ink & watercolor on 2.5″ × 3.5″ card

All your assault rifle are belong to us. :)

ink & watercolor on 9″×12″ Arches hotpress

A commissioned image from Bill, thank you! :)

I like messing with characters’ outfits just a bit. In this case I gave Zatanna the little short tie that doesn’t make sense. (But is somewhat stylish, I think.) ^_^

Cozins, the last couple of months have been totally hectic and absolutely and utterly awesome. :) I am a real art student at the Concept Design Academy in Pasadena, CA. (A dream come true for a self-educated gal like me!) Came down to LA for the summer, and I’m thinking I’m probably staying here indefinitely. ^_~

So at the end of May I packed the essentials into my trusty Prius, waved tearful goodbye to lovely Seattle and headed down the Pacific Coast. Instead of following I-5, I decided to take the scenic route along highway 101. I figured when will I have another 2 days for a leisurely drive like that? It was prime opportunity to visit some roadside attractions and make this into a proper road trip! :D

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And what a trip it was! It took three days instead of two, and I could’ve easily made it into four but ran out of time. I cannot recommend it enough, cozins! Aside from all the places I planned to visit, there were so many hidden local charms along the way! Driving off road and getting lost and marveling at the beauty of nature and finding my way back – awesome adventure indeed. (It doesn’t hurt to have your environmentally friendly spaceship equipped with a GPS. LOL)

Along the way I saw much of gorgeous Oregon coastline.

Visited the very stinky, but very awesome Sea Lion Cave.

And discovered my most favorite place in the world – the California Redwoods. It’s truly magical and awe inspiring.

ink & watercolor on Arches coldpress

One of my first commissioned pieces done earlier in March. I was going for a vintage poster look, but I really like the bright and vivid colors of the background.

For about half a year now I’ve been drooling over a Winsor & Newton series 7 brush.

Why a Series 7? Engineered for the Queen Mum back in the day, this brush is made from the pelt hairs of a winter Siberian male red sable (ain’t making it up), it’s more pliable than synthetics and it always springs back to a point. If you’ve used a synthetic you know the tip fibers feather out and get kinda curvy – the sable brush with its magical point is what enables the best control during painting or inking. I’ve seen it recommended over and over again.

Well, I finally splurged and got one. :D

As I suspected, the mere act of purchasing a fancy tool like that did not make me ink like Sean Murphy. Damn. LOL Aaah, it’s true cozins, there are no shortcuts. The tools are only as good as the hands that wield them. ^_~

What IS true is the level of quality of the Series 7. My oh my, cozins, I have never met a more obedient brush. I just loved using it! True to the promise, it always sprang to a point, and that point was literally a hairline thin. I could’ve painted individual hairs if I was so inclined. The point was almost too fine for me, I didn’t know what to do with it!

black ink & yellow watercolor on bristol vellum

This Silk Spectre was my experimentation piece. I got a little carried away with the hair… but I got to draw spandex for the first time, wheee! Wish I could’ve laid in some shadows on her face, but I’m still terrified to “ink” faces. XD