Yule 2010

The holiday season.
Uggh.
I actually managed to get most of the knitting done in time this year, and I still feel beaten by the holidays.






Pictured are a few gifts for Chikara that turned out lovely. She picked both of them out, and the grayskull gloves are actually made of her very own yarn...
I'm proud of the Gir hat. it turned out a bit largish, but looks great. And she's so cute in it!





Another of my favorite giftthings was a hat I made for my brother. It's from a pattern I found online for a reversible "biker hat". Whatever that means. I made it with a fancy merino/cashmere blend I bought specifically for making mangifts. It knitted up extremely small, in my opinion, but, as with most knits, it stretches quite a bit. It was soooo dreamy to knit with that yarn, too.
I also really enjoy the goofy picture of my brother. It kinda looks like he's holding a miniature trombone...

I completely forgot to take photos of all the other things I made and gave out. Luckily, my new year's reflections led me to the shocking realization that I actually really enjoy making lame things for people, and I would like to spend more time planning/writing about this. So this year I am going to try very hard to focus on generosity and craft gifting, and writing all about it.

Bondage Boat

Another wedding present made for a friend. It's supposed to be Bettie Page, but the combination of bad lighting and THE BRIGHTEST FLASH EVER made this impossible to photograph. Believe me, it was really lovely in reality....





Now I just have to deliver the other wedding gift I have sitting here...
And get to work on all the lame yule gifts!!!

Just sayin.

Drawing it out

For the last year or so, when I'm bored, I've been drawing portraits of my friends from photos.

I have done a few upon request. I've given a few as presents. Mostly, I'm just doing this for my own entertainment.


Sean, the drawing of the man and the photo that got me started on my current portrait kick. I haven't drawn a lot of men, and he's a pretty inspiring guy. The most awesome person you'll ever meet, perhaps. Anyway, I think it's pretty obvious that I mostly draw women. He's very pretty in person, but not *quite* this feminine.


Here's my chikadee, all dressed up for a wedding. It will be a present, if I haven't given it to her yet. I wonder where I put that drawing...








Here's my gorgeous friend Gibbitt, from a photo of herself on her way to a dance party at Dragon*con. She's all blues and purples and greens in that photo, and I didn't realize til I drew this that the color is what makes it really special. Luckily, she's gorgeous enough to be breathtaking in black and white as well. Of all of my portraits posted to my deviantart gallery, this one's got the most favorites, I believe. Can't blame them.



This was a commission for a birthday gift. I don't do many group or couples portraits, and it's always interesting. Not only do the features have to be in proportion, but the two or more people have to be properly oriented in relation to each other as well. It helps that Amber is a perfectly average ladyheight, and her Tim is beanpole man. Made everything really strange to fit on a page.



This was another commission by the model, which turned into a birthday present from her husband. Or something. There were two commissions. But one gift. I was very sneaky. This was fun to draw. A dream to draw, even. There were challenges, but because it was a photoshoot situation, the lighting and shading were interesting and dynamic. With standard flashes, the shadows disappear and the light colors get blown out.. this is why faces look just a tiny bit fatter on film than in person. All the interesting shades are missing. Only the lightest and darkest make the cut. As the artist I usually spend a lot of time trying to imagine those shades back in. This is made much easier when the photo is as nice as this one was.


Here's another photo snapped by a pro of my friend Watcho. It was one of the photos I picked up when I was soliciting portrait practice jobs. I'm excellent at getting a likeness when the person is in a standard position: front facing, relaxed features. This was an entirely new thing where I had to get the likeness while most of her face was hidden behind her hand and she was sucking on a smoking thing. Interesting challenge. :)



My most recent drawing is... alright. Like the others, the scan makes my pencil texture scratchy instead of awesome. The likeness is.. alright. I was trying to mix it up a little again with the glasses and big happy smile as my challenges. For the record, drawing glasses sucks. They're these stupid little bits of plastic or metal and glass that should be shapes and shades and no big deal, but they're shapes and shades within shapes and shades and all curved and twisty and I kinda want to kill them. And smiles will always be tricky, what with teeth and muscles and whatnot. So I'm only mildly satisfied with this one, but happy with my progress.



As I draw I become more aware of my style, which I've always considered pretty traditional, especially when it comes to portraiture. But I'm seeing now that I have a slightly heavy hand and an eye for simplifying that works best with casual, organic images. The photos with more formal staging, or more expressive features don't look as good in my hand. I'm hoping to get more experience with facial expressions, but I can't discount that my pencil stroke and weight and shading usually creates the mood enough that the person in the portrait is almost an afterthought.

I'm ok with this to a degree. On one hand, it's kinda cool to leave my mark so obviously. But then again, what's the point of a portrait if the content is as much about the artist's stroke as the model?
Not sure I need to worry about it so much. We'll see which photo interests me next, and what I actually end up working on: the portrait, or my technique.

Anyway, you guys might be getting drawings of yourself or loved ones for any upcoming holidays. Don't bother to complain. Just be grateful I'm not going through a self portrait phase.

If you need to see the whole gallery, knock yourself out at http://anhonestpuck.deviantart.com/

Dragon*con!

I've been SUPER busy (being awesome, mostly) and haven't shared the success of the lame things I, and others, made/put together for Dragon*con with my devoted blog readers!

I suck!

So here are some of the highlights:



This is my lovely, wonderful, bizarre, devoted, intoxicated group of friends dressed up like M*A*S*H meets Battlestar Galactica. That's me with the cylon bear from the last post, and that's Jack with the sign with all of the colonies... There are better pictures, but I can't find them at the moment. Maybe I'll add some later. The important thing is showing how the lame thing I made looks in context. Pretty awesome! I also made the image on the clipboard of the chest xray with a waffle inside. Like a toaster! Get it? Har Har Har!
I think best crafted item in the photo is the sign with the colonies. Luckily, it's being "stored" in my living room until next year's con. :)



Ahh, the Doctor. There is nothing lame about him at all. There is an argument for the knitted TARDIS being a lame thing, however. It was a gift*, which by all accounts, he adores, posing for pictures with it as he did all weekend, so the lame tag is obviously ill placed. (kinda like the positioning of that TARDIS. I'm sure there's a more appropriate photo out there, but they just weren't as funny...)

This is the beauty of lame gifts. The recipient either gets the inherent awesome and appreciates the quirkiness, or they accept it with an awkward smile and shove it in the closet until they get a chance to kill it with fire.

Sean (the Doctor) gets it. :) I'm convinced he cuddles that TARDIS in his sleep.

* Chikara knitted both the Doctor's scarf and his TARDIS. Well, done, dearest!

By Your Command

D*C is coming right up, so it's time to hit the costuming and crafting like a fast thing that reaches top speeds before collision.

I really suck at metaphors, but it is indeed like that.

Today I worked on a costume for a group theme that was the brainchild of my friend Emily. The plan: get several of our drunken batch of friends to morph Battlestar Galactica uniforms into something with a M*A*S*H influence. We've been calling it B*A*S*H. :) I've taken on the role of RADAR, cause I'm shortish and roundish and have glasses and ... ok, I wanted an excuse to make a Cylon teddy bear.

And now I have done!

I started by gathering everything I thought I'd need:


And fine, fine, I bought the scrolling LED kit from thinkgeek and had my dad do the soldering. I outsourced!

Then I altered the plans on instructables by using hot glue and velcro and such to attach everything. I didn't put any sound tech in it, cause I think talking stuffed animals are creepy and will try to kill me while I sleep. Stuffed Cylons especially.

I cut the seam in the back of the bear's head, and took out it's brains and then cut the eyeballs out of it. Unfortunately, with the stuffing out, it was strangely difficult to cut a straight line.

I then glued the LEDs in (REALLY frustrating!!) and rigged a velcro closure on the back seam, restuffed it, making sure the battery box with the on/off switch stayed within reach.

So it's done, and it does look sinister.



Remember how I said I couldn't cut the front straight?

Yeah.

That poor bear.

Here's what the bear looks like in action! With a soundtrack in the background cause I'm filming this with my coolpix! And me trying to hold still and not giggle!



HAHAHAHAHAHA

I like to think that what I lack in polish I make up for in goofiness and enthusiasm. Silly is just one letter short of skilly! I'm almost there!

Let's Play Dress-Up!

With Dragon*con fast (OMGFAST!) approaching, I've been thinking about my appearance more than usual. I've been considering what costumes to wear, and how they look on me. I've been playing with makeup, and considering hairstyles.

I've also hit a moment in my life where I feel like I've surrounded myself with so much useless nonsense, I need an intense purge: of possessions as well as outdated thoughts and beliefs. Spring cleaning for the whole self!

All of this has brought something I rarely consider directly under my gaze: my fabulously lame wardrobe!

Jeans, tshirts, sneakers. I've dressed it up a bit since I worked at the library...Give me a plain V-neck or throw a cardigan on, and I'm layered enough for any indoor environment! I don't dress to get attention, and that's really ok, since I usually don't want attention, but I've recently begun to notice that the clothes I own aren't flattering or comfortable. Nothing makes a person feel more self conscious than ill fitted clothes! (except maybe a giant nose pimple)

I was having a discussion the other day about jeans, and it hit me like a fashion epiphany that I prefer trouser cut to all other styles. Something about being fitted around the waist and belly, but having space in the leg/knees that is appealing. Also, I think it flatters my shape. Since then, I'm super aware of how constricting my boot-cut jeans are! I can barely wear the damned things anymore!

My tshirts are often too long for my frame. I haven't met a capri pant that hasn't made me look like a hobbit. I love natural fibers and knitted layers and sun dresses. And, shockingly (to me), I love things like this:



It's very pretty, feminine and kinda hippyish, and I love it. No idea where I'd wear it...

But it goes with my self image of being silly and pretty and creative and carefree. I've been carrying this weight around, literally and figuratively, for so long, it's hard to remember a time when I dressed like the sweetheart I tend to be, instead of the attention-resistant introvert I've become. There's room for me to be both! I can have pretty clothes if I want! I deserve to feel good about myself!

So, since I'm working now, and back in college (surrounded by teenagers), I'd like some input concerning my intended make-over. I'm calling on all of you to send me links to things you'd think would enrich whatever my style is turning into... Please ask me questions, get me thinking about this, since I'm feeling out of my depth trying to think on it alone.

If I like what I hear and see, I'll buy an item or two as I can afford it!

Summary: Right now I dress like a boringly repressed woman who writes worf/wesley slash and takes pictures of her cats wearing handcrafted hats based on those worn by historical military leaders.

Not that this is a bad thing. I'm sure done properly, it would be hilarious...

But it's not me. Let's turn my lame wardrobe into something wonderful and reflective of the puckish you all know and love!

Let's play dress-up!