And now for something...mildly different.

I am still working on the Riding Hood drawing, through ups and downs and unnecessary elements and tendinitis flare-ups (ugh), but after watching Jareth's arrogant face in the Within You scene from Labyrinth, i got itching to do some fan art and an idea flitted across my brain. 

Because I liked it and didn't want to forget it, I jotted down a quick left-handed sketch that I have saved for after I finish the one on which I am currently working. But I though I'd post a little teaser, and a look at my process (you know, to do something DIFFERENT...haha) and also, a little reminder to myself so that, a couple weeks down the road, when RRH is finished, I don't forget the thing that I wanted to do next. 

I just love the idea of Jareth angistly watching Sarah before she even knows that he's really really real, wondering why he is drawn back again and again to this darn MORTAL CHILD in her silly dresses and fake paper crowns. And I've been, as you may or may not have noticed, been having fun trying some stuff out with value and lighting and stuff. So, um...yes. This. 

Hopefully it will turn out how I want it to inside my mind palace. 

I ALSO have another thingy to put up here...but it is part of a birthday present for a friend, and even though I'm about 90% sure she never goes on my website, well...I still try to avoid spoilers. So once her birthday is over I'll put something up. A bit of silly. A bit of fun. 

Anyway, that's all for today. I'll probably post a progress shot of RRH for this week tomorrow but until then, enjoy life and whatnot. 

A New Year

Hey there -- if you are reading this, I hope your holidays were great. 

Mine were...pretty good. 

And though it seems as though delivery is taking it's time, the thing I told Santa I really wanted seems like it may be on it's way -- I've been regularly drawing for over half an hour at a time, and working out with the full-body elliptical at the gym, without any worsening of my tendinitis. 

I actually have places to be and people to see, but I thought I'd toss a couple short weeks worth of progress up here. I'm currently waging a war with the background, as I want there to be some rendering, but not for it to detract from the action. 

But this is where it is right now: 

Have a great weekend, everyone! 

Just a quick one

End of the day on the Thursday before Christmas. 

Actually finished 2 late projects I was assigned by 4:30 or so, but I wanted to stay and get my drawing time in before I left for the day. 

Going to an end of the world party tonight, apparently. 

If we are all still here on Wednesday, I'll see you then. 

More work done on this drawing...started giving the wolf his darkness...and a few changes if you look for them: 

Happy holidays all. I hope the world doesn't end. 

A Tedious Road, A Pretentious Title

A couple paragraphs lost to the wrong keypress. HATE that. 

What was I saying?

Well, I thought I'd done some damage this past weekend -- I cleaned my apartment, which included moving a book case (which was ridiculously lightweight, but the same can not be said of the art books that had to be removed and then replaced) and a large chair, and I made two batches of cookie dough, which involved a lot of stirring of stiff ingredients and I was concerned that I had set myself back a few steps. 

However, I intended to soldier on with the established course of action until it proved to be having a demonstratively negative effect. So yesterday, I drew twice, but due to time limitations rather than physical ones, and then used the elliptical machine with the upper body workout included.  Afterwards, I didn't really give either hand any special treatment-- no soaking in warm water or icing -- and actually stressed them a tad more by hanging fairy lights in my windows when I got home. 

Today, my hand is feeling, if anything, better.  I've had a little more soreness lately, but less stiffness, and until I get input to the contrary, I will count that as an improvement. I can much better handle some mild aching than the utterly wrong feeling tingling tightness of the tendonitis. Once again, I've only drawn twice, but that was, again, due to a busy work day, and not discomfort, and I pushed the second session further, time wise, without any noticeable ill effects. 

Even with my more limited time this week, I've been making some progress in rendering: 

Slow progress.  But progress.  

I had a happy art accident with the shading today, using a grey with a little bit of teal in it, rather than a true grey or a brown grey when doing the shadows on the shirt. I loved it immediately. 

I know all I talk about lately is my tendonitis. 

I'm sorry. 

Let's all pray together for it to simply go away, so I can talk about something else. 

It's just the one current constant in my art life right now. I am still working on the freelance project, but slowly. Other than that and work, I can't really do a lot. It is endlessly frustrating.  

Anyway, the day is past over and the stupid gym is waiting. More progress posts soonish. 

Not Healed but Healing (I Hope)

I have been working, a little at a time on my red riding hood picture: 

...I think I may want to lighten up the darkest trees in the background -- once fully colored, I intend the wolf to be a dark smear across the page, and don't want it competing with the trees. So, I think I'm going to change that.  Yes.

I showed up to OT yesterday to learn it was my last session. 

I'm not back to 100% but even when my had does get inflamed, it seems to recover much faster, and I'm regularly pushing my limits with drawing. 

During lunch today, I did two 10 minute sessions, separated by about 15, and don't seem to be suffering ill effects. Or, at least no more than usual. (Mild stiffness, mild soreness, but of the sort that seems to fade away almost entirely after a little while.) I'm keeping up my exercises. Today I start back on an elliptical machine that incorporates upper body (I switched to legs only when the tendinitis showed up). Maybe at some point I'll even be able to stop dosing myself with 16 ibuprofen/day.  

I'm nervous. 

I'm afraid of pushing too far, or not far enough. 

I'm worried that I'll be too hesitant and my career will fall through because I don't draw enough. 

I'm worried that I won't go slow enough and I'll injure myself again. 

I'm trying to take a slow and steady path, but paying attention to my body is something at which I have never excelled.  It took someone else pointing it out, in my 20s, before I realized that low blood sugar effects my emotional state adversely. I have had cists that I never realized weren't normal lumps until a friend called attention to the fact that they only existed on one hand or foot. 

I'm hoping that, now being familiar with the way that overuse feels, I will know when to back off, but I am concerned that I will get involved in a project and not notice the cramping in my muscles because I'm zoned out on art and trying to finish something or get something to look the way I want.  Because that's how my brain works when art is happening, if it is going the way it should.  I fall into a blissed-out haze and my body releases endorphins and my mind calms itself and I don't realize until later that I haven't shifted position in an hour and my knee joints are in agony. 

I'm nervous about going it alone. About not having a director to tell me when I am fine to push further and when I should make myself take a break. 

But...Here goes.