Sneak Peek

Here's a peek at one of my favorites from the books I’m illustrating. 

Monkey Mayhem

a sneak peak at some stuff I'm working on:

Monkeys are creepy in real life, but they're fun to draw!

Toned

Love using toned paper. There's something about it that makes my ideas flow better. 

Progressing on my project... I dreamt about a musk ox last night. I read somewhere that the musk ox represents endurance, strength, determination and service. I've decided to take that as a subconscious pep-talk, as well as a reminder to stay humble.

I'm working on a t-shirt design for a local Girl Scout troop. I hope these girls are having some awesome experiences. Most of what I remember from Girl Scouts relates to getting hot-glue burns during craft time.

Same thing

I found this in an old sketchbook of mine. I don't really know why I like that quote so much, but I do. (from the movie 'Closer')

image © Laura Terhune

Something I made for a friend. Hebrews 6:19

Rough It Up

   In addition to my freelance pursuits, I also work at a toy company called Peachtree Playthings*. When I started there I only knew the bare essentials of Adobe Illustrator that I needed to do my job (which at that time was basically b&w linework.) Now, two years later. I'm probably more confident in AI than any other program. Here are some characters I've been working on recently for some PTP craft kit packaging.

  

  I find that the images I make on Illustrator look more interesting when I rough them up a bit. For example I almost always start with a hand drawn image. I try to find ways to use texture, warp the color, or use intentionally non-symmetrical shapes. In this one I tried something new and used a gradient to fill some of my linework. I was going for a lost and found line effect similar to watercolor. I think including these organic-inspired elements helps the illustrations to look less cold and clip-art-ish. 

*If you're interested, the product I work on most of the time at Peachtree Playthings is called "Fashions You Color." They are adorable, colorable purses (and other accessories.) They come with pre-printed designs (by yours truly) and markers, to color it in and make it yours! They are available at several major distributers, but are probably easiest to find at Wal-mart, Toys R Us, or Hobby Lobby.

xLaura Dollie