Losing Teeth: A Weird Right of Passage

The years I spent with Playgroup in Chicago were a hoot, every day was a new adventure. One of the many extra curricular activities that went along with the teaching position, which regularly crossed over with my art, design and craft life, were the tooth boxes, which I have written about before.  So, let us retread this old territory together, and try not to look too bored. 

The initial sketches become drawings which are then inked, very run of the mill. The only real challenge of this project is the format - these are measured to fit inside the boxes, and thus are a scant two inches wide by just over one inch tall. 

After the drawing is all cleaned up, the watercolor comes into play, and after allowing for the tiny paintings to dry thoroughly, I use mod-lodge to stick them in and lacquer them over. 

The letters and teeth on the top are paper cut, and I hit them with the mod-lodge as well. The look is clean, vibrant, and is hopefully will help releive the children of their natural reactions to their teeth falling right out of their heads.  

CAT PORTRAIT!

It's been a while (maybe three years or more) since I had made anything with oil paint, even longer since I used them on canvas. That said, when I received a query for a 'regal cat portrait' from a close friend, I was equal parts excited and nervous. 

I started with a rough pencil sketch, and then set down to painting. I used to 'lose' the underpainting when I overworked the layers and covered things up, so I would take digital snaps of each major step. These days, what with good cameras in our phones, it was easier than ever to insure myself against any major missteps. 

Much like riding a bicycle, oil painting technique is kind of hard to forget, it seems, as I didn't run into many major struggles, aside form patience in allowing layers to dry (always my number one hiccup). 

In the end, the only element I'm wasn't 100% on board with were the stars, but they looked good enough for deadline! 

My résumé has since been updated to include 'regal pet portraiture'.