Saturday, December 3, 2016

Advent Calendar 2016

My 2016 Advent calendar is finished. Always a good experience for me as I draw and color my way through Christmas.

Each drawing space is small (about 1-5/8" high) and it may look a bit fuzzy or faded above.  For a better view, click on the image.

With my daily drawings, I set aside a bit of space and time to reflect on the Advent season, and its message of hope and love.   If you might like to try something similar, click here for more information, including 2016 template links.  Or click here for my seven calendars from past years.

For a listing of words, sources of words, Copic colors, and other materials used,  see below (or click on "read more" to see it.)

Saturday, November 26, 2016

Advent Calendar Template 2016

Tomorrow is the first Sunday of Advent, and I'll start to draw my 8th annual Advent calendar.   I'll plan to post the drawings at least weekly. 

My first Advent calendar was drawn in 2008, and afterward I wrote about what I learned.  It's been a wonderful way for me to connect with the season and to meditate while I draw and color. 

To see my previous Advent calendar drawings, click as follows:
My friend Sybil also posts her yearly Advent calendars in her prayer-drawing blog, Praying in Color.  Click here for her 2014 calendar, here for 2013, here for 2012, here for 2011, or here for 2010.  I'll also link to her 2016 calendar as it appears.

If you'd like to try this activity for yourself, you're invited to click here for several different templates on Sybil's blog.  Along with my calendar grid I'll be using this year, she offers a wreath and two trees with different shapes for the days.  She also shows her finished calendars for 2015 at the end of her post.

Monday, July 4, 2016

Red, White, and Blue with Tan Frame

Some red, white, and blue for the Fourth of July.  I'm thankful for my country and those who protect our freedoms.

After I airbrushed the tan frame with E33 and 44, I drew a tan line with the E33 marker. 
  • Copic marker colors used: B24,26,39, R24,29,56, E33,44
  • Pen: Copic multiliner 0.5 black
  • Paper: Neenah, cut down to 4-1/4 x 5-1/2"
  • Words: Thankful - July 4, 2016

Sunday, July 3, 2016

Curls of Ribbon

Curving lines that flow like curls of ribbon.  Just a few colors, with narrow white borders.
  • Copic marker colors used: FV2, BG32, RV17
  • Pen: Copic multiliner 0.2 and 0.1 black
  • Paper: Neenah

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Daily Drawings - January 2016

Updated through January 23 (Final)

I've completed my four weeks of daily drawings for January 2016.  I tried the idea last January with objects around the house.  This year I wanted to keep it simple with a few lines and colors each day.

Added January 23:  I found it refreshing and relaxing to stay with the simple lines and coloring.   It felt like a "vocabulary review" of lines, shapes, and patterns that I enjoy using.  At the beginning, I made a list: Circles, squiggles, lace-like, v's and u's, landscapey lines, fill patterns, swooping curves, spiral, diamonds, zigzags, wavy lines, angles, dots, and stripes.  Looking back, I see them all except the spiral.  Overall, I really like the drawings (some more than others, of course) and I'm glad I tried this.

I'm using a computer-printed grid like my annual Advent calendars.  Each rectangle is 1-7/16" x 1-5/8".  The drawings can look blurry in the blog post, so please click on the image for a better view. 
  • Pen: Copic multiliner 0.5 black
  • Copic colors:  If you'd like to know the colors I used, please leave a comment here, and I'll be happy to add them to this post.
  • Paper: Neenah