I began the commissioned pencil drawing for Found Friend of a view out of the window of a chapel at St. Anthony Retreat Center in Three Rivers. It was pure pleasure to draw in pencil after months of book designing, coloring book drawing in ink and oil painting. I LOVE to draw in pencil, particularly […]
Sketches for Commissioned Pencil Drawing
A commissioned pencil drawing is a drawing someone pays you to draw specifically for her. Found Friend asked me to draw a view out the windows of the small chapel at St. Anthony Retreat Center in Three Rivers. First, I took photos. Second, I did 2 sketches to see if either one fit her vision. Found […]
A Found Friend Commissions A Pencil Drawing
“Commissioned Pencil Drawing” is a straightforward title for a nice story of friendship and inspiration. I have a friend from summer camp when we were in grade school. We cannot remember the summer we met. We lost touch. She and my older sister became friends as adults. Last summer I was reading one of my […]
Mineral King in Early Summer
What do I mean “early summer”? It isn’t summer until June 21! Oh yeah? It’s been in the high 90s and low 100s for a couple of weeks around here. That qualifies as summer, despite the calendar’s report. Trail Guy is back out on the trails in Mineral King. I’ll get there, just hang on. […]
Almost Done Designing a Book
“Done” designing a book? Stick a fork in me, I’m done. When did we start substituting the word “done” for “finished”? Who cares? I’m almost done! Here is what remains on my book design project for Louise. Learn how to design the back cover. Design the back cover, making sure it is prepared properly for […]
And More Designing a Book
I offered to design a book for an author friend. Let’s call her “Louise”, because that is her name. Louise discussed it with the 3 people who commissioned her to write their story, and they gratefully accepted my offer. I read up on book design, learning most of what I needed from The Book Designer‘s […]
More Designing a Book
I thought I knew what was necessary about designing a book, because I designed my book The Cabins of Wilsonia. That book involved preparing pencil drawings using Photoshop Elements, a few pages of text, all the frontmatter (that’s Book Speak for the pages of a book that are not the main part that normal people […]
Firewood by the Wilsonia Door
What is it about doors that is so attractive? In this pencil drawing, it is the light and shadow. Does this look like a cabin to you? What is a cabin? A little home in the mountains, but it can be a big fancy-pants home in the mountains too. (Ask my sister-in-law who lives in […]
Porch Time in Wilsonia
Porch time is big in Wilsonia. People with cabins spend more time outside than inside. Umbrellas abound, and people read, watch deer, nap, and greet folks who are passing by. Sometimes they listen to birds, look up names in bird books, or play solitaire. I’ve seen people quilting, and if it were me, I’d be […]
I Love To Teach People How To Draw
I love to teach people how to draw. Every Tuesday afternoon, people come to the Courthouse Gallery in Exeter for lessons. Four people for an hour at a time, each one working at his own pace on his own drawing. (Yes, I know it is acceptable to say “they” as a singular pronoun now, but […]