Stamping My Feet with Excitement

I'm excited! My new chops have arrived from China.

While I enjoyed painting Carpe Diem Rabbit, I had a heck of a time making a nice looking "chop" signature to go along with the Asian theme for it. It's sort of... chunky/funky. :-}

So, I did something I've wanted to do for a long time: ordered my own genuine Chinese signature chop that has my name, Retta, translated into Chinese. In the same order, I had one created that translates to Blessing.

I found a wonderfully talented Master Seal Cutter on Etsy named Feng Zhuo. He did an amazing job. The square one (my name) is a green agate with a light swirl in the stone, and the other is a very dark purple with a shimmer. Beautifully and delicately carved. I am so impressed!

I can highly recommend Feng Zhuo. He works with you, and personalized my order. He answers emails promptly, and shows you a sample from your stamp for your approval before he ships. 

His Etsy shop is called Chineseseal, HERE.

This is from his About Me page on Etsy:

About Me:

Feng Zhuo, poet, master of seal cutting, was born in Confucius’ hometown: Qufu City of Shandong Province, China. He is the 28th generation disciple of the Dragon Gate sect of the Complete Reality School of Taoism. He graduated from Jining Polytechnic, majoring in Foreign Trade English, and then got his bachelor's degree at Jining University. 

He worked on a project for the development zone and translated the instruction of the film washing machine. He also worked at the press centre of Jining Electric Power Company where he earned the title of Excellent Editor.

Seal carving is a personal, artistic, and professional exploration for Feng. His inspiration for this craft follows in the tradition of seal art from the Qin and Han Dynasties. For Feng this is a combined study of history as well as of his self-expression. His capability and expertise is broad and suited for all interests from traditional to contemporary. He has pleased customers world-wide who can offer enthusiastic recommendation.

If you get one for yourself, let me know, I'd love to see it.

Now, off to make a painting so I can stamp it!

Happy stamping,

Retta

My Tiny Treasure!

Do you enjoy stumbling upon a great find? And get excited about sharing that discovery with others? 

Well, tick me a YES to both questions.

Here is my newest little treasure, an adorable and quirky Blue and Silver Dangle Pendant I found at a new Etsy shop, by creative jewelry artist Shannon Blencowe, at Blencowe Boutique:

Isn't it cute as a bug's ear? 

If I had to think of a few adjectives to describe her work, they would be: vintage, STeaMpunK, imaginative, quiRky, retro, unusual, and fun!

I asked Shannon if I could write about her new Etsy Shop, and she graciously gave me permission to show you photos of the fun and imaginative jewelry she's been creating. Some have already been sold, but the pics give you an idea of her imagination. They do sell fast, so if you see something in her shop you adore, snap it up quick!  Honestly, there were a couple more I wish I had snagged (loved that first one, the Winged Heart!).

I can't wait to see what she comes up with next. Congratulations on your new venture, Shannon, and I wish you spectacular success!

Retta

This Workshop Was A Blast!

Not all of us are able to attend live workshops. But a few years ago I DID attend a painting workshop... only in book form! 

I was recently organizing my studio, and came across some paintings I did for that workshop, and thought I'd tell you about the book. I loved it so much, I gave it away for someone else to enjoy. :-)

It's titled:

Oil Painting

The Workshop Experience

by Ted Goerschner

You can currently find it on Amazon, and a good used hardcover can be found for under $5. (Amazon LINK) You can click on their "look inside" feature to get a peek inside the book.

Even though nowadays I mostly paint with acrylics, back then I was experimenting with a type of watersoluble oils. I had a blast with that workshop! And most of the painting principles he taught are also useful for acrylic painters.

Mr Goerschner teachs the use of toned grays as a part of your palette, for color harmony, and his examples are impressionistic.

Here is one of my little paintings (all are about 5 X 7) which showed how he uses the grays. Looking at it now, I'm not thrilled with my greens from back then (too yellowy and unnatural), but I was happy with how it turned out in spite of that (as always, just click any pics to enlarge):

Here's a detail...

He uses visual critiques in the book. He shows paintings which need help, and then how to improve them. I'm a visual learner, so this was very helpful to me. He includes a dozen student paintings, which he corrects.

Mr Goerschner writes a lot about Design, and how to achieve a good painting that is designed on purpose, rather than hoping it turns out well. He covers color mixing, composition; all the basics that go into a well-designed painting.

Here is one landscape lesson which focused on composition. I painted it loosely, and I enjoyed how the underpainting showed through:

Close up details...

While he mainly focused on landscapes, he did include still life paintings. Here is my version of a floral still life. I'm not wild about how the vases turned out, but loved the strong orange/blue color scheme:

And a detail...

All the information needed to do the workshop is included, even for beginners. The book is set up in assignments as though you are taking his week long workshop, except you can follow along at your own pace. I enjoyed his teaching method of using step-by-step examples.

Note, he is not teaching how to paint like HIM, but how to paint well, period. Bottomline... I can highly recommend it.

Hope you enjoyed this book review. It's made me want to buy another copy of his book and take the workshop over again! :-D

Happy painting,

Retta

Let's Party Medieval Style!

It's another Launch Party!

This times it's my very own sister, author Karen Elizabeth Brown. Today kicks off the official launch of her newest novella, Medieval Muse.

 Back on July 14th (HERE)  I gave you a behind the scenes look at the making of the cover art for Medieval Muse.

Now... we are celebrating the story itself! First, I'll share Karen's "official" announcement, then below that I'll give MY review of the book. Watch out, just because she's my sister, don't expect me to "fudge" with my opinion. ;-)

Medieval Muse

By Karen Elizabeth Brown

What happens when Victoria Budroix receives a cameo that promises to give her the desires of her heart? Since she doesn’t know what that would be, a trip to medieval times, intrigue, threat of war and an overbearing lord are on the list for her to choose from. Or could it be meeting her one true love?

Sir William of Conrad has escorted a stranger home to be under his protection. He discovers this woman speaks her own mind and melts his heart. He faces his father’s outrage and a broken alliance with the neighboring clan by falling in love. 

Medieval Muse is available as a free read from Smashwords.com, HERE. 

Karen Elizabeth Brown’s passion for writing is what fills her entire life with exhilarating inspiration. She spends her days writing, doing research and studying about the subjects of her stories.

When she’s not writing, she enjoys music and reading, especially medieval fantasy. Born in Southern California, she migrated to Southern Oregon in 1974 where she now resides in the Rogue Valley with her family and friends. Find out more about the author at her official website. 

Okay, time for my honest review. 

Sister or not... Karen wrote a totally interesting story! I love time travel type tales, and this novella whisks you back to medieval times in an unusual way. 

I could identify with our leading lady. A modern, strong willed, independent and spunky gal who DETESTS having to ask ANY man for "permission" for anything... being plunked down in the middle ages! I enjoyed the humor that situation caused.

I also enjoyed "meeting" the people from the castle. The main characters seemed real and believable, from the castle gossip to the timid scullery maid. And of COURSE our leading man. Poor guy had his hands full with this feisty "Lady" who appears out of nowhere!

I won't give away the ending, but let's just say it didn't leave me grinding my teeth, like some unresolved stories do! It ended "just right". :-)

If you enjoy romantic fantasy, time travel, castles, intrigue, humor, double-crossing women and gossips... well, maybe not those last two. But this was a totally enjoyable novella, just right for a hot summer evening with a tall glass of iced tea.

Happy reading,

Retta


PS: Did I mention this was a free download at Smashwords? Just follow the link to Smashwords and download the format that works best for you. And if you enjoy it, would you do my Sis a favor and come back to leave a review at Smashwords? 
Thanks bunches!

Join the Party!

I'm happy to tell you that Mary Pax's Launch Party starts today! 

It's a Launch Party for the latest book in her Backworld's series,

Stopover At The Backworlds' Edge

First, the official announcement, then afterwards I'll give you the straight skinny:

The Backworlds Book 2 is Out!

The sequel to The Backworlds is now available. Craze and his friends continue their adventures in Stopover at the Backworlds’ Edge. See what role chocolate plays in the galaxy this time.

The interstellar portal opens, bringing in a ship that should no longer exist. A battleship spoiling for a fight, yet the war with Earth ended two generations ago. The vessel drops off a Water-breather, a type of Backworlder thought to be extinct. She claims one of Craze’s friends is a traitor who summoned the enemy to Pardeep Station. A betrayal worse than his father’s, if Craze lives to worry about it.

Available for all ereaders from:

Amazon / Amazon UK / B&N / Smashwords
iTunes and Kobo will be available shortly.

If you haven’t read The Backworlds yet, it’s available as a free read from many outlets. See HERE for links. [http://mpaxauthor.com/the-backworlds-series/backworlds-the/]

Inspiring the words M. Pax writes, Mary spends her summers as a star guide at Pine Mountain Observatory in stunning Central Oregon where she lives with the husband unit and two loving cats. She write science fiction mostly and has a slight obsession with Jane Austen. Mary blogs at http://www.mpaxauthor.com/blog/

Okay, I promised you the straight skinny. When I review a book, friend or not, I'm honest. And honestly... this was a BLAST to read! 

I thought the first book in the series (The Backworlds) was a fun read... I was delighted to find this one topped it! Once I started, I didn't want to stop. 

It was a fun romp through space and other worlds, with fascinating characters of all "kinds". I'd even venture to call Chocolate a character in THIS story! Danger, betrayal, spies, frizzers, gender-morphing beings, revenge, cruelty, friendship and tenderness... and of course, chocolate. ;-)

The story had so many surprise turns I had to buckle my seat belt. I'm not fond of "predictable" books. Can we say Borrriiinnnggg? But NOT THIS ONE! 

Mary's characters, the pickles they got into, the worlds they were on--and inside of--had me shaking my head at her wild imagination. It had me asking "how does she THINK of these things??!!" And I thoroughly appreciated the ending. And no... no hints.

Yep... loved it. Honestly. Can't wait to read the next one in the series.

And the next time I sit down to have my hot tea and chocolate... I think I'll take a long pause and remember what happened in this story!! :-O

Happy reading,

Retta

A New Book is Born! Cover Art Part 1

A few weeks ago I wrote a post titled Commission Work: Love It or Hate It?  My usual take on it is... well, not on the Love It side. :-)

But, I've met so many wonderful people in the blogsphere, and sometimes we just connect at the heart level. One of those people was Jules aka Big Girl Bombshell.  

Jules is a writer, and she asked me to consider doing the cover art for her new book (HERE)

Click 3 Times 

Beyond the Flying Monkeys 

 It didn't take me long to say yes! 

In honor of Jules' new book announcement (which is due out this summer), today I'm starting a tutorial series based on her book cover. It'll be a peek behind the curtain at how the art was created.

I plan to cover it all:

• from the ratty looking preliminary sketches 
• to playing with color schemes (some were ghastly!) 
• to what all the symbolism on the cover means
• to tips on how to create your own cover for that e-book you know you want to write
• to the finished book cover

I'm sort of new at this book cover thing, so I'll also share with you what NOT to do, based on my own mistakes. :-O

It won't be an exhaustive tutorial, but it'll help you get started, and maybe save you some time and give a general outline of the process.

To begin, here's where we are headed, the finished cover art (can click to enlarge):

Jules was easy to work for. She's a colorful writer, and uses a lot of word imagery. Her book is based upon that familiar favorite old movie The Wizard of Oz, and she courageously and creatively tells her own story.

The cover art Process:

Step 1) Ask yourself, what is the main message? What's it about, the biggest idea, the concept. There are lots of tutorials on the web to help with this if you need ideas. But basically, think "simplicity".

My author had lots of ideas she hoped to convey on the cover, so it was a challenge to make it work, without looking too cluttered. 

Today, I thought it would be fun to explain the symbolism on Jule's cover art. She uses the Wizard of Oz as the source of her metaphors, and I tried to show a lot of that on the cover.

Here's a close-up image (can click to enlarge):

• Yellow of course, for the Yellow Brick Road

• Spiral, swirly shapes in background, for tornado, the journey and traveling the Yellow brick road

• 3 images of the numeral 3, for click the heels together 3 times to go home

• Blue, for bluebirds in Dorothy's song Over the Rainbow

• Green, for the Emerald City

• Red and twinkles on the large 3 in title, for the ruby red slippers

• All colors of the rainbow present

• Flying monkey is small and grayed, no longer powerful over us

• Heart at center for several reasons: this journey taking heart; the tin man wanted a heart; we are on a journey to find our true heart, our authentic self

• Red and green at lower sides, for the poppy fields, places where we can get sidetracked or led astray

• Silhouette of the 4 main characters (and Toto); they are copyrighted images, yet so iconic that even as a silhouette, everyone knows who they are

• And lastly, purple, an exotic color that evokes the story of Oz, the changing colors in it; it is the color of wisdom, spirituality, royalty and wealth.

That's a lot to cram into one book cover! Next time, I'll continue the Steps of the process. Hope this was helpful. If not, at least entertaining, LOL!!

I'll end each post in this series with a link back to the beginning of the tutorial (today's post). The Steps will be more fully explained in each post.

The Process Summary:

Step 1) What is the main concept; think simplicity

Step 2) Find out the needed technical stuff: aspect ratio, pixels, file size etc.

Step 3) Do a lot of quick thumbnails, in black and white (pencil or digital)

Step 4) Play with color schemes, which supports your concept best

Step 5) Gather any needed reference material

Step 6) Finalize your sketch; think both large & small image readability, & bold text

Step 7) Transfer sketch to your support if paper sketching; or scan in to computer

Step 8) Continue in your chosen medium, or in photoshop (working in Layers) 

Step 9) Font: readability is priority one; must be allowed for commercial use

Step 10) Final copies. Save in PSD. Send needed sizes to author, or what's required by publisher. 

The ideas here are most applicable to the traditional artist who is using a digital art program to do the finish work. Those making 100% digitally created cover art are a horse of a different color. ;-)

Thanks for reading, and I'd love to hear what you think!

Retta

Part 2 HERE

Bedazzled by Zazzle

I finally did it... something I've been thinking about for years. I designed my own Christmas cards and had them printed up by Zazzle. 

I am sooo excited by the results!

Here is my original design, done with Sharpies and colored pencils:

Next year, I hope to have my very own Zazzle store up and running, and can offer cards (and other stuff) for sale. Yep, that's part of the "Bold and Adventurous New Year"!

Happy painting,

Retta

=^..^=