Doodle-a-Day Project Wrap-Up

Happy New Year!! 2018 was a crazy busy year for us... 

For those who don't know, my grandmother moved in with us October 2017.  So I went from stay-at-home mom to caretaker as soon as my youngest started kindergarten.  Over the course of 2018, my grandmother fell 4 times and broke her pelvis after one of those falls.  On top of that, she's nearly blind (macular degeneration) and has lost much of her hearing.  So I shuttle her to doctors appointments and, in general, take care of whatever she needs.  Overall, she's in reasonable health for an 88 year old but some days are busier/harder than others.

We also found out at the end of 2017 that my oldest son has executive functioning issues and anxiety. Executive functions are everyday organization skills, things like remembering to do all the steps required to take a shower or remembering homework everyday.  It's been a relief, honestly, just knowing that there WAS an underlying issue and helping him work through that. It's a process and we're all learning together. We're also trying to help him with his anxiety and that, too, is an ongoing process.

On top of that, I've been volunteering at the school once a week, which I love! AND I've been doing a little freelance graphic design. I only take the projects I really want to do!

And I managed to do three projects for a collector, joined a paper doll group here in Massachusetts, and published my first book with Paper Studio Press. I also completed 12 black and white sheets in the paper doll collaboration project as well as 63 sheets in the Doodle-A-Day paper doll project.

I'm tired just writing all of that down!

So the next few posts are going to be a recap of 2018.  I want to share some of the projects I've worked on as well as the process for creating them.  After that, well, I'm just not sure! I'll think of something....!

In the meantime, let's talk about this HUGE project I just finished.

This is a screen shot of the entire Doodle-A-Day project as I have it laid out on Pinterest.  It's pretty amazing to see the colors transition throughout the year! I definitely became more bold as the year went on.

Each month had a five-color palette along with black and white.  There were four dolls that rotated throughout the year.

That's all four dolls together. One thing I'd like to do is give each of them a more neutral base outfit.  I tried to stay fairly neutral with the shoes but totally did not with the outfits!

Each set started out as a drawing in ArtRage.  I find that to be my go-to drawing program lately.

I drew everything digitally - from the base dolls to each and every outfit.  The image above shows essentially what I did for each set.  There's a base doll, then a sketch layer, and then a line layer. I used the pencil tool and the ink pen tool in ArtRage. At this stage, I exported to a Photoshop file and worked on it in Photoshop.

Next, I added tabs and a white fill on everything.

I created an action to speed things up a bit.  An action in Photoshop is a recording of several steps in a process that can be played over and over as needed.  My action consisted of 1) select outside the lines 2) inverse the selection and 3) contract by one pixel so that all of the color fills land inside the lines with no bleeding outside of the lines.  This saved me a few seconds on every individual item which added up to HOURS over the course of the year.

Once the tabs were placed and everything got a white fill, I added the text. I used one font and one size (in most cases) for the entire project.  I saved the black & white sheet and went on to coloring.

Honestly, coloring should be a post all by itself! I'll show you a bit of the way I do it but I may go back for more in-depth demonstrations.

In this image, I've circled the layers used to color the doll.  That's JUST the doll - not the layers used to create the background, the clothing, none of that....just the doll. 

After creating the doll - which is always the longest step - each drawing and inking session in ArtRage took about 2 hours. Sometimes more but that was the average.  Creating a black and white sheet took another 2 hours or so.  And then a fully colored sheet took anywhere from 4 to 8 hours depending on the complexity.  So each post took from about 8 to 16 hours.  Each post. Conservatively, I have over 500 hours into this project! Or, put another way, I was spending at minimum 10 hours a week on this project.  That's huge!!

The next step is to figure out what to do with this project.  Should I make it a calendar? A massive book? A series of themed prints? I don't know yet. 

This ended up being a huge write-up!! Did you love the project? Did you have a favorite doll or month or themes? I'd love to know!

The next post will be a summary of a really unique project I did for a collector. So look for that soon.

October Paper Doll - Set 4

October is flying by!! We're all getting excited for Halloween.  My oldest is dressing up as a video game character (Genji from Overwatch for anyone who knows what that is!) and my youngest wanted to be a scary pumpkin. We found a mask & a robe and we're DIYing it.

Very scary if you ask me!

Speaking of scary... I am loving the spooky themes this month!

The themes for this set are so fun! First up is a "bat" skirt. "Treat" is a candy corn patterned apron for baking.  "Band" is a sparkly skeleton band on a t-shirt. "Spirit" is a Victorian ghost costume with matching white hair. Because I love to mix-and-match, the parts of the costume would work with other wardrobe pieces, too. "Brew" is a cauldron of witches' brew. And "light" is a moon and star themed tunic.  There's a black top and leggings to mix and match.

One more set to go for October. And only two more months to go! There's also going to be a collaboration set so look for that, too.

October Paper Doll - Set 3

Sometimes the stars align! Today (the 19th) is the last day of prompts on my paper doll page today.  Yay!! That rarely happens...

I really like the themes for October.  Some are a little random, but most are pretty great.

First up is "dream" and I made a set of retro pajamas with the fall leaf motif on it from set 1. "Gate" I made a graphic tee with a cemetery gate on it. "Spider" is sparkly spider web leggings with spider web accented shoes. "Owl" is a Halloween owl applique on a sweater. "Pasta" is another graphic shirt.  "Vehicle" is a goth's dream - a tee with a hearse on it.  And there's a hairstyle with spider web earrings, a pair of orange jeans, and a black skirt for mix-and-match options.

Next Friday is another collaboration sheet but I'm hoping to get another October sheet up before then!

October Paper Doll - Set 2

Things are getting chilly in New England! Both of my boys are playing soccer this season and it has been chilly.  We're also gearing up for Halloween - we have three parties and trick or treating. On different days, thankfully!

Today's set has a lot of fun seasonal themes!

For "basket", I made a flannel shirt and basket of apples. "Cool" is a warm sweater for cool days.  "Under the bed" is a monster printed top.  "Begins with W" had to be a witch!! "Farm" is a set of overalls. And finally, "game" was tough so I made harlequin patterned leggings, maybe like a playing card joker.

I'm still not thrilled with the lack of contrast - I'm going to leave it for now but I may adjust the background in the future. Set 3 is coming soon!

October Paper Doll - Set 1

Finally got the first doodle-a-day sheet for October completed! I am not participating in Inktober - not enough free time.  Maybe next year! In the meantime, I'm cranking through my October prompts.

These are the October themes. If you'd like to follow along, I'm using the drawing suggestions from @ellolovey on Instagram and she's on Facebook, too.

These are pretty great themes! I picked really autumn-ish colors, too, and I love them!  My youngest son (who is 6) has informed me this year that it is AUTUMN not FALL and we must call it thus.  Cracks me up!

The only thing I'm not really happy about & I couldn't really find a good solution for it is the lack of contrast between the outfits and the background. There just wasn't a good way to create a background that matched the rest of the series, used these colors, and managed to provide contrast.  The text isn't popping either, but I went with it anyway.

The themes and outfits, however, I LOVE!! First up is "apples" with a retro apple pattern. In fact, it's the same apple pattern I used in the Kitchen Kitsch book! Then there's "leaves" and I went with a leaf pattern on a scarf. "Crow" is an applique on a long sleeed top.  "Pumpkins" is a skirt that matches the crow top nicely.  "Spice" is a sweater dress with a pumpkin and cinnamon motif.  That's another thing my youngest is all into this year - pumpkin spice everything! "Carnival" was tough - I went with a striped jacket and straw hat. Finally, "in your closet" is leggings and boots based on leggings and boots in my own wardrobe.  The only difference between those boots and my boots are mine are flats.

I gotta say, if I had to pick a favorite, the February doll is it! This is the last month for her.... I'm diligently working on the next set of prompts so look for those soon!

June Paper Doll - Set 5

Look, I realize it's the second week of July and I'm JUST now finishing the June paper doll series!! Ah! I refuse to give up and have an incomplete month.  I WILL be posting July pretty much ASAP.

For now, though, let's wrap up July.

The themes for this set were: mermaid, lemon, roar, cool, succulent, and tropical.  The mermaid one is dull in black and white but very vibrant in color! Lemon is straightforward.  For "roar" I used a lion graphic and a fun font.  Succulent is another obvious one - I used the same pattern from one of the January sets.  Cool was difficult and I went a bit boring - those are linen capris to mix & match.  Tropical is a bright leafy patterned dress.  And I threw in a mix & match skirt.

I'm moving along on July.  Hoping to actually get ahead in July since we have an awesome vacation scheduled in August!

June Paper Doll - Set 4

Quick post today! I have a TON of stuff to do!! I know it's July but I am determined to finish this ENTIRE project up so no skipping around.  Today is the fourth sheet in the June set. One more then on to July.

The themes are: yoga, sunglasses, summer, bee, pink, and window.  The romper is one of my favorites - I tried to make some interesting shoes for once!

One more June set to go.... Gotta get to that! I'll take the 4th off and a happy 4th of July to all of those celebrating!

June Paper Doll - Set 3

As promised, I have another set ready to go! We just started summer vacation here and haven't gone totally feral yet, so that's a good thing! We're even managing to do a little school work.

Today's set was a pain to lay out.  I drew more than I thought and it didn't fit as well as I hoped.  But I managed it!  This sheet (13-18) gets me almost caught up....

The themes this time were varied.  First, "begins with L" which I think is a repeat theme - I went with lacing in the form of a dirndl inspired top & skirt.  "Wheels" (which I think is another repeat) is a Danica Patrick inspired racing jacket and pants.  "Nature" is a cactus covered maxi skirt. "Couch" is a pair of comfy pants that would mix with the tank here or the track jacket here.  "Father" is a 1970s menswear inspired jumper dress.  And "overalls" is a trendy set of jean overalls with a scarf and high heeled work boots.

There are two sheets left and I probably won't get them both up this week, but I'll do my best!

June Paper Doll - Set 2

I have NOT abandoned this project! That's the first thing I want to say.

Secondly, June got busy! A field trip, two field days at school, a week of volunteering at the school, a kindergarten performance, Father's Day, a birthday, and two doctor visits and I am TIRED! The month really just got away from me.  OH! And two big paper doll projects that I'm still working on & I'll share as soon as they're ready.

My plan is to ramp up and get as much of the June doll ready & posted this week. There's also a collaboration set going up on Friday so look for that. In the meantime, here's the second June sheet:

The themes for this set were all over the place! "Fish" is a set of leggings. "Orange" is a crop top.  "Southwest" is a patterned top with turquoise accessories.  "Cookies" was a tough theme and I went with a patterned blouse.  "Stickers" was another tough one and I went with patches on a skirt - that's kind of a sticker, right?! And finally "peacock" is a crazy beaded flapper dress and matching headband.  That last one is easily my favorite on this sheet & I really should do a whole series of crazy beaded flapper dresses!

So look for loads of posts this week as I attempt to catch up!

June Paper Doll - Set 1

It's time for another monthly paper doll set! This is the sixth month (!!!!!) of this project and I am amazed that it's still going! I have two commissions I'm working on, volunteering at the school, taking care of my kids & my grandmother, preparing for summer with the kids home, AND somehow managing to get this project done.  Pretty proud of myself at the moment.  I even found time to protest the atrocious school budget in my city.  But that's not relevant here...!

The June paper doll wardrobe is designed for the February doll.  I'm not trying to coordinate colors across months but I do think this set will mix rather well with February, even if that was accidental!

Again, as with the whole year, I'm working from prompts provided by @ellolovey ( Instagram and Facebook).  This is the whole list if you'd like to follow along.

First up is "donut" and I think that's fairly obvious! Then there's "trail" - I made a dress with a map of a portion of the Appalachian Trail. "Neon" is a very 80s cocktail dress and puffy, highlighted hair style. "Accessory" is a simple dress with an elaborate collar necklace & cuff bracelets. Next on the list is "strawberries" and that's a printed button down shirt with a cardigan.  And finally, "gardening" is a set of overalls, rainboots, and gloves.  I've noticed as the year goes by that some of the themes are reused -- and that's fine! It's great to think about the same idea in a different way.

I'll have the next set ready sometime next week! Enjoy!!