Too many things in progress!

I was so happy when I left for vacation.
I had managed to finish off all my projects and had a nice clean desk.

When I got back, I enjoyed the freedom for a couple of days.
I was imagining all the things I could start on and was trying to decide what direction I should go in.

It didn't take long for that to change. ;)

Exciting news though...I got my first two commissions!
I'm considering this my first step towards finally opening an etsy shop.
I've only been dreaming of doing it for forever now.

Here's some photos of what I'm currently working on...

This first guy is a commissioned sock monkey.
He's a bit grumpy right now because he has no face. I don't really blame him.
I'd probably be grumpy too.

 

Next is a pair of eyes belonging to my second commission.

They'll belong to a Rainbow Dash inspired pony.

I've got most of the pattern drawn out so I'll be starting on her as soon as the monkey gets his face.

 

 

This little doll face is patienly waiting to be painted and given a body.

I told her she had to wait until the pony is done.

Thankfully, she seems pretty laid back about the situation. :)

 

 

This little cheshire kitty is sitting in my sketchbook right now, hoping to be turned into a painting.

I have a feeling he's going to expect to become a plushie also.

Demanding little creature.

 

 

And finally, an in progress painting.

This was actually drawn by my husband.

When our son was born, we worked together and painted a huge mural in his nursery.

My husband drew it all and I did the painting.

We had so much fun working on it together...we actually dreamed of doing murals for other people for awhile.

I decided we should try something a little more simple and had him start drawing pictures on canvas for me to paint. I think it's coming out very cute. :)

 

 

I'm not sure if I ever actually shared our son's nursery on this blog. There are SO many pictures of it, that it would take me forever to upload them so I'll just be lazy and link to the craftster post I made about it a few years ago. If you're curious to see it, just look here!

 

 

As you can see, I have lots to do!

Guess I better get back to work.

Hopefully I'll return soon with some finished pictures.

 

Anyone else have too many projects going?

Bliss

Today has been such a wonderful day.

I think it's pretty obvious I adore my two kids.
They make me laugh with their silly antics.
They constantly inspire me with their personalities...but they also wear me out!

Today both kids spent the day at my mother-in-law's home.
After weeks of being on the go constantly, my husband and I finally found we had a day together with NO responsibilities.
It was pure bliss.

We went out to lunch at a nice restaurant and strolled around the local outdoor mall
(and nearly melted from the terribly painful heat!).
We finally ended up in Barnes and Noble.
I gathered a stack of artsy books and we found a quiet corner to read and drink overpriced coffee.
I feel SO much better.

It's funny how much we took these "date days" for granted before we had kids.

I'm now back in my art room, waiting for the kids to get home, and doing as much of this as I can before they do...

I am beyond excited about my current project.
It's something I've been dreaming about for years and it's finally coming together.
I can not wait to share it with you guys...
I'm actually so excited, I don't even want to show it until it's completed!

I have so many ideas brewing right now and I'm just dying to start putting it all together.
Hopefully I can rework how I handle my days to make more time for creating.
In the meantime, here's some sketchbook doodles.

Anyone have any exciting plans for the weekend?
Or working on any exciting projects?
I'd love to hear about it!

Choo Choo! Someone's Turning Two!

I can not believe in just a few weeks, my little baby boy will be two years old.

Where has the time gone!?

I really wanted to make his birthday invitation and now that I finally have a scanner and photoshop, I had no excuse not to!

Alex is obsessed with trains, so his birthday is going to be train themed.

He's going to be sooo excited!

I made a rough little doodle then searched around for tutorials on how to color in photoshop.

It's been quite awhile that I've really been able to play with photoshop.

(I use it everyday at work, but that's different!)

This was the first time in a loooong time I've colored anything in photoshop

(and I'm pretty sure the first time I've ever completed a picture in photoshop, heh.)

I still have a lot to learn, but I'm pretty happy with it for my first attempt!

And then the invitation!

(I blacked out the address and phone numbers...sorry! Don't want any surprise people showing up! Haha!)

I'm no graphic designer or anything, but I'm quite proud of how it turned out!

By the way...everytime I've had the picture pulled up on my screen to work on it,

Alex will run by, laugh, and say "Choo choo! Yay!"

So he approves and that's all that matters!