Fashion Friday - Camille

My computer is back up & running.  I was lucky that it was a simple fix this time. I love drawing on my Surface way too much to switch to something else, despite it's obvious flaws.....

In keeping with my Japanese theme for this month, I have something a little different today.  The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has a lovely collection of Asian art as well as Impressionist art.  One painting that spans both is La Japonaise by Claude Monet.  This is a painting of his wife, Camille, in a blonde wig and Japanese kimono.  It's returning to the MFA after conservation & a tour abroad.

Download Fashion Friday - Camille pdf here

This painting seemed like a fitting subject for a paper doll! Now, I'm not sure what Camille Monet wore under HER kimono, so I kept the doll base the same as all of the others.  I'm not totally sure about the accuracy of the kimono either.  The painting shows figure in profile, so I had to guess at the front of this.  Check out the MFA's page on the painting here.

Maybe I'll do a whole series of art paper dolls.  How fun would that be?!  Anyway, enjoy!

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Fail AGAIN

This is not the ideal forum for this rant. But in a way, it kind of is. I create digital art and most of the art on this blog is digital. When my computer fails, I can't create for myself or clients and I'm seriously annoyed.

I'm on my way to the Microsoft store again today. For those who have not been following along, I'm on my 5th Surface Pro 3 since August 2014. This is the paperwork I've accumulated. I bought my Surface August 16, had it replaced October 22. I brought it back in March and had it replaced twice in one month. I then brought it in in April where it was replaced again. I chose a machine for digital art and it's great for that when it works. And the techs at the store are great but seriously Microsoft, get your shit together. I may not be a famous comics artist but I want a functioning digital art computer too. /rant ‪#‎MicrosoftSurfacePro‬ ‪#‎fail‬

Fashion Friday - Hana

For Mother's Day, my husband & sons got me a membership to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.  We had a chance to go this past weekend and it was great! I've been going to the MFA for at least 15 years, and I try to go a minimum of once a year.  It's a great collection and is especially strong in Japanese art.

Check out this little gem that I found.

I found a 19th century Japanese paper doll! How funny is that?! This was in the Japanese galleries, a place I always visit when I go to the MFA.  I've probably walked by this a dozen times and never noticed it! Here's a photo of the description that was next to it.

This is especially coincidental since I had planned on making a Japanese inspired paper doll for today.

I am not an expert on Japanese fashion.  Not even a little bit.  I am more than happy to derive inspiration for people who know more than I do.  For this project, I visited Liana's Pinterest board on furisode. If you, like me, have no idea what a furisode is, Wikipedia has a nice little article.  My paper dolls are meant to be teens/young women so a furisode seemed appropriate.

Download Fashion Friday - Hana pdf here

I also had the good fortune to find a bunch of vector Japanese patterns.  Now, I don't know much about the cultural meanings of certain colors or patterns. I did know enough to steer clear of white.  I think this is cute & youthful and hopefully a good representation of a furisode.

Fantasy Paper Doll: An Archery Costume

Happy June! I can't believe it's already June! I feel like I was just wrapping up my Christmas paper doll and that was about six months ago....

So today I have another installment of the fantasy paper doll.  It's an archery costume.  It's meant to be a fur-trimmed leather vest & boots.  I'll admit, the hand holding the bow is not great.  Part of this project is learning to let go, so I'm letting it go!

Little known fact: I own a bow.  I shot with my father (and sometimes my uncle) quite a bit as a teen/young adult.  I haven't shot since having kids.  Another thing on my list of things to get back to (at least I'm oil painting again!)...

You can find the doll that goes with this outfit here.