☀

Ugh I know, I know - I thought I'd be back to regular weekly blogging again during this break but clearly this hasn't happened! However, this doesn't mean that I haven't been busy!

I have been working on some personal illustrations over these past two to three weeks, which I have featured below and can also be seen under my Portfolio page.

Paeonia Lagoon

Iris

Intergalactica

Instagram Updates

1. Cameo the Label lily palm print top - I am in love with this.
2. Drawing Gia Carangi, my model inspo.
3. Floral illustrations.
4. Warming myself up with homemade pumpkin soup and breakfast tea.
5. Is my floral obsession obvious?!
6. Progress of a recently completed illustration.

This month I have been drawing my inspiration from musical sources, such as FKA Twigs and Lana Del Rey. Style-wise, I have been interested in the juxtaposition of bright metallic and nude, blush and muted grey shades. I'm wishing the warm weather would return soon so I can enjoy sleeping by the pool and basking in the summer sunshine. I need more Vit. D!

Until next time! x

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Not been feeling inspired, so I've just got a small instagram-based update to post. It has been a hectic week and I've had a lot of work to do in a short space of time, so I haven't really had much time to just stop and smell the roses, just lull about and not think about uni work 24/7. I have become a collaborator of Kanon's blog which you can check out here - I've written an article about Frida Kahlo and her connection to flowers as my first contribution here!

My week in pictures

1. Leather and faux fur = a good combination.
2. Some flower illustrations for a collaborative project I was working on during the week.
3. "I was sad, but then I bought something online. I feel better now." - This statement sums me up in a nutshell.
4. Lovely leaves at the Botanic Gardens last weekend.
5. The rose garden is so wonderful at this time of year - the smell from all the blooming flowers creates this amazing perfume, plus some of the roses are as big as my head and I feel a bit like Alice in Wonderland for a while.

Until next time! x

Languor

Wow it has been almost like an eternity since I have last posted on my little corner of the internet - my life has been extremely busy which has lead to these lack of updates. But I have been working on my personal identity for when I leave university (even though I plan on taking a Masters after this degree is finished). My own little logo took me a lot of sketching and manipulating to conceive, but I am now very happy with my outcome. On the right pane of my blog you can see my logo, the little hybrid creature who I dubbed Aura, symbolising traits I wish to possess in my professional life. Each animal amalgamated into this creature (fox, deer, owl and rabbit) are aligned with traits that I find relevant and important to my work ethics. I hope you all like her! :)

You may have noticed that I have revamped my blog layout - I was quite tiring of my old theme and decided a fresh change of colours and imagery was required. Let me know what you think of it. Also, now that I am of a little break (and it is now half over!) I have been working on personal illustrations that I have been trying to find the time to do during the semester, but just not being able to allocate any time at all to this endeavour!

This is the Boudicca illustration that I mentioned in my earlier posts, I've only started to paint it in now. I have been working on and off on this since the beginning of this year I believe! All I want to do it to finish her, so that will be one of my aims this break.

This is an illustration focussed on the theme of winter harvesting. I started this illustration just this week and hope to also finish it before the end of the break.

Now I think I will spend the rest of this night either painting or re-watching I Capture the Castle for the millionth time! Oh Henry Cavill, you are the perfect man.

Finally I shall leave you with a song I have been repeating non-stop this week.
Lana Del Rey - Blue Velvet

Au revoir, mes amours. ❤❤❤

Phosphenes

Images from my favourite childhood book (which inspired me to illustrate) "Horses of Dreamland" by Lois Duncan, illustrated by Donna Diamond. The illustrations always captivated me and the hazy watercolours remind me of actually being inside of a wonderful dream.

This song is perfect.


That is all for this week, goodbye. ♡♡♡

Ephemeral

Hello all! I recently finished a new illustration which I have been meaning to finish for the longest time, but uni has just gotten in the way of everything. But in this one week I have had free from uni, I have managed to accomplish more for myself then the 13-14 weeks of constant stress I've had. I just really needed this week, although it isn't all that long of a time, it is long enough for me to recover and get ready for next week, where I'll be starting my 3 week intensive packaging course.
Anyway, this is the finished illustration.


Stevie Nicks

Seeing as I have had the time, I have also begun another portrait which is of Boudicca, who is one of my la femme heroes. I have been waiting for ages to find the time to actually start this portrait. I think I will not have it finished by the end of the week, but I will definitely finish it during the mid-year break. I become really invested in my illustrations, as I take the time to research the subject matter and become interested in the history and other factors surrounding the topic I've decided to illustrate around. It is just in its first early stages but I hope I will be able to translate the final image I have in my mind onto the paper.



That is all for now, I shall leave you all with a song I have been coveting at the moment by one of my all-time favourites, Marina and the Diamonds.
♡♡♡

Marina + the Diamonds - Bubblegum Bitch

Withered Roses

Hi all,

Firstly, sorry about the very delayed post, but I've had a hectic week.

I completed an illustration for an article over the weekend - the article was focused on violence against women, so I decided to take a different approach to the situation. The thorn vines are the constraints, the feeling of suffocation and fear and all other negative emotions that come from violence. The wilting flowers are reflective of the feelings of hopelessness, exhaustion, depression and loss of livelihood that can result from abusive behavior. It's a pretty intense topic, but it's a topic that I think most women feel strongly about and is something that is always brought up in the media.

I used pencils, watercolours and felt tip pens to create the illustration. The rest was edited and finalised in Photoshop.

University has been incredibly stressful, and it is only the first week back! But seeing as I am in the third and last year of my degree, I feel this is obviously necessary. But still, the costs involved with printing and other supplies this year will - I fear - be massive, but I'm going to try and scrape where I can and go with the lowest cost options. Also the fees seem significantly higher this year, which is no good either. :( Overall, this year will be the most focused on costliness. I only wish the uni could provide supplies within the HECS fees, it would make life much easier! But since I've made a promise to myself not to buy any clothes that aren't a necessity and only to buy things I need like food and supplies, I should be fine. :)

I really love the New Zealand label Lonely Heart's Autumn/Winter 2012 Lookbook. I love the contrast between the muted earthy shades and then the sudden bright "pops" of blue and red and yellow which break up the flow. Here are some of my favourites from the collection.

Photography & Styling: Karen Inderbitzen-Waller
Lighting & Digital: Avril Planqueel
Model: Olivia O’Driscoll
Makeup: Chay Roberts
Hair: Jason Chong Li

That's all for a little while, I will leave you with some Fleetwood Mac. ♥

Fleetwood Mac - Dreams

Under the Sea

Finished another illustration, this one is titled Seafarer and was created with pencils and watercolours. I feel like going to the beach and I was inspired by the beach and summer when I created this.

ave del paraíso

Finally finished my Halloween/Day of the Dead themed piece entitled "ave del paraíso" (bird of paradise). I hope you all like her. :) Time to start another!

Foster the People - Pumped up Kicks