From the land of Irving, wishing you all a Happy Halloween!
#3 Hug Your Pumpkin
I always find it a little funny that when we visit our local pumpkin patch, the pumpkins we choose from are not from the vine but laid out in rows by size, variation, and even color. Kind of like picking out a T-shirt on a clothing rack, except pumpkins are a lot heavier and pricklier. Understandably, it’s not advisable to have children pulling pumpkins from vines, because their vines feel like hundreds of tiny needles and require a decent pair of garden gloves.
This year, we got our pumpkins off of a spontaneously grown vine in our backyard. They were small but there were 7 total! We couldn’t keep them on the vine or it would have overrun our entire (teeny) backyard, which we shared with neighbors. But they came early and in time for Fall and they were ours. However you find your perfect pumpkin this Halloween season, whether at a grocery store, a pumpkin patch, or from your own vine that was spontaneously grown in your backyard from the seeds of the previous years’ carvings, even if it's not the biggest one in the bunch, don't forget to give it a good hug. I hope it gives you a good dose of that Halloween Spirit.
#4 Portrait of a Masked Girl
As I was finishing up my daughter’s costume for her school parade tomorrow, I found myself short on time to complete an illustration for this Halloween Countdown. When short on time, zoom in. I had a concept or two prepped but no time to finish so I remembered a local ad for Halloween portraits which I thought was such a great idea. So I drew a young girl dressed in costume having her headshot taken, so proud of her creation. My daughter is named after a bird, so birds are a typical theme in my repertoire, and in this case, the design for her mask. She is a fictional superhero. I’m thinking there’s a story buried in this image.
Edit: I decided that upon looking at the art again, the audience could use another “photo proof.” An open smile made all the difference in adding to her story. It’s a good study in character design, and building visual interest. It’s those “imperfections,” or in this case, missing front teeth, that tells us a little bit more about her.
Introduction to Bits & Pieces
Halloween 2021 is fast approaching. I love this time of year—the changing season and fall colors, cable knit sweaters and tall boots, costumes and spooky stories. It’s a curl up in a cozy nook reading and writing time of year, when the kids are settled into school and there’s a little more space to create. So I thought this would be a good time to refresh my blog. But first, let me backtrack a bit.
The past nine years marked dramatic shifts in my personal and professional life. I went through a divorce, single motherhood, a full-time job designing Halloween costumes, dating again, a new romance, followed by a beautiful wedding, which ushered in a new title of step-mom. But wait. To top it all off, the world faced a global pandemic. Through it all, illustration was ever present, but my enthusiasm for it was waning. Extra-curricular activities like drawing, writing, and blogging, took a bit of a backseat, new posts were sporadic.
In 2020, I had this overwhelming desire to stop and reset. The opportunity came when I was furloughed from my job, and I was so grateful for it. I used that time to take in what was happening, to breathe, mother, think, and illustrate. I drew a lot. I played around with media and application. I tried redesigning my approach in any way I could, so that art making was fun again.
When my job was reinstated in July of 2020, I could hear the hissing of a pressure cooker. Applying what I learned in my downtime, I started illustrations on a new book from NCYI by Jenny Simmons called, I Can Say No, about using the word “no” to create healthy boundaries (it should have been a reminder to me as gentle as an Acme anvil falling from the sky). But I thought, “Many people are out of jobs. I should be grateful.” Yet the reality was ever present. My daughter was remote learning, managing a blended family was challenging, the pandemic was raging, and the political climate was uncertain. The stress of my new workload was…worrisome.
As months passed, my 8-5 became more demanding, especially because it was virtual. While creating art was finally starting to feel more like a positive outlet after some self-discovery, virtual work, school, meetings, and appointments, made it hard to see a beginning and end to each day. Making time for anything was hard. In February 2021 we adopted a 2-year-old coonhound mix. Did I say we had trouble with time? While taking on a dog meant more responsibility, Penny was a welcome bundle of furry cuddles that eased our mental and emotional stress. Walks with her were mostly welcome, sometimes reluctant, but always necessary retreats.
Come February, I signed on to illustrate a really exciting book (of course I will share it here once I’m allowed). In March, I Can Say No was released and met with high praise by school teachers and counselors around the nation. With a wave of momentum building, I stopped fighting the worry. Something had to give. I realized I needed to halt the survival mode I had been on at the start of the last nine years as a single mom, and trust more in the current living mode. I also learned to truly lean on my wonderful husband. In early Spring of 2021 I finally decided to quit my job. It was bittersweet saying virtual goodbyes to coworkers I had a fondness for. It was also odd no longer having to think about next year’s Halloween trends before my own child’s current costume.
Now as October 31st approaches quickly, all three kids have no idea what they will be for Halloween, but I’ll be ready with any last minute cut and sews or purchasing of ready-made costumes. I’ll also have time to savor and share illustration treats, perhaps a few tricks of the trade, all throughout the rest of October and beyond. Thanks for reading Bits & Pieces. I’m grateful you are here. Please stop by every now and again for a new post. In the meantime, what are your Halloween 2021 plans?