There is a baby shower this weekend for my sister-in-law; I’ll be decorating cookies and decorating and icing a cake (hopefully). My hand should be ‘fine’ by then! Its a jungle-themed shower (to go with their baby room) and it’s been a ‘cute’ journey of getting things for the shower, making pictures for the baby room, making shower gifts, and making The Lamp.

In the Jungle...

The lamp was a great group project, starting with me and my mother-in-law going off and getting a plain lamp, which is harder than it sounds. We needed one with a flat base, and a rod that we could enclose in bamboo. Now that I think of it, it probably would have saved us time if we just made the entire thing from scratch. The shade on the lamp was awful, so we got a separate shade. Back home, my mother-in-law covered the lamp shade with new material and glued cork to the base, while the mom-to-be and I sculpted the animals and leaves out of sculpey. We had my father-in-law drill some bamboo (its not completely hollow!) and remove the lighting switch while the sculpey figures were painted.

I think it’s cute. I think the baby probably won’t care (BUT in the years to come, will look back on a photo of it and go ‘gawwww!’).  (I made/painted the monkey and the lion.)

A Mad Tea Party - Mad Hatter, 8 of 9

Postcard created in Photoshop and printed on cardstock. The ‘last’ of this Alice related postcard series (there is one more, but it is on hold).

Recovery is going well; my right hand is getting stronger and less awkward, and I hope to at least start doodling this weekend!

Z is for Zebra

… fin …

A Mad Tea Party - Walrus, 7 of 9

Postcard created in Photoshop and printed on cardstock. The Walrus is not from Alice in Wonderland but he’s part of a poem in Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There…and he’s oh-so-cute.

My surgery went well – my right hand is very sore and is unusable but I’m SO glad to have that blasted cyst out. I now have the greatest hubby-nurse ever.

Y is for Yale

Watercolours, pencil crayon and markers on watercolour paper. Simply put, the yale is one wicked-cool animal. It has horns that can move any which way it wants!

For more info on all your favorite medieval beasts, visit The Medieval Bestiary or your local library.

I’m a bit nervous as I post this, for in less than 12 hours I will be off for some ‘minor’ wrist surgery. It’ll be a little while before I can draw again, so I’m feeling pretty sad. Only one more medieval letter to go then who knows what I’ll post!

A Mad Tea Party - Carpenter, 6 of 9

Postcard created in Photoshop and printed on cardstock. The Carpenter is not from Alice in Wonderland but he’s part of a poem in Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There.

X is for Xerus

Watercolours, pencil crayon and markers on watercolour paper. Alright, so I cheated a little bit on this one, seeing as there are very few animals starting with X and fewer still that would have appeared in a medieval bestiary. So hopefully these African ground squirrels (genus Xerus) won’t get too angry, as squirrels can die of rage.

For more info on all your favorite medieval beasts, visit The Medieval Bestiary or your local library.

A Mad Tea Party - Caterpillar, 5 of 9

Postcard created in Photoshop and printed on cardstock.

My first sketch was of a person-sized caterpillar, then that turned into a regular caterpillar with a mini hookah, and finally I decided on a large-ish caterpillar with a small-ish hookah. The person-sized caterpillar stood out just too much.

I will post the remaining Medieval Animal Alphabet pieces and the rest of the Mad Tea Party – but then I shall take a break (but for a good reason!). I will be having some minor surgery on my wrist in a few weeks and will…sniff…not be drawing for a little while (and designing and sewing and sculpting and Tai Chi and gaming and fencing and blah blah blah). Fear not, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine. 

W is for Wolf

Watercolours, pencil crayon and markers on watercolour paper. If a man sees a wolf (before the wolf can see him), the wolf will lose his ferocity. But if the wolf sees the man first, the man will lose his voice.

For more info on all your favorite medieval beasts, visit The Medieval Bestiary or your local library.