Library Tuesdays : Aliens Love Underpants

I am hereby declaring the birth of Library Tuesdays! It's a day where you are all invited into my humble little library - a collection of books that inspire me, and books that I love!

Before I start, I'll have to warn you, the books that I collect might seem a little different to what you're probably expecting from a typical 22-year-old. So be warned. ;)

The first book I'd like to share is:

 

Aliens Love Underpants

by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort

(2007, UK)

This is one of my favourites in my collection so far. I love that it's so cheeky, plus the entire book rhymes too! It's about how these aliens don't come down to Earth to meet humans, they come for our underwear instead!

I love the details in this book, in terms of illustration and imagery. You can tell that the authors / illustrators had fun with them - just look at the magazine he's reading, and all the bumper stickers on the spaceship!

The illustration is absolutely flawless too. Just like all the other books in my collection, I can just stare at each page for hours and still be mesmerised by each stroke and detail!

I can't wait for Tuesdays now to share MORE of them with you!
 

Refreshed and Improved!

Hi all! I know, it's been a while, but I'm glad to announce that I'm BACK - all refreshed with new improvements!

I hope you're enjoying my new header and new features on this blog. Of course,  I admit there's still plenty room to improve, so it won't just stop here. I'm still learning and growing!

I've been working on my whole branding and identity, and as promised in a post or two before, here are some photos:

 

 

  

  

You might start to notice one thing about me and my white spaces - I absolutely adore clean, white spaces. There's just something about it that's so pure and uncontaminated, and I'm a strong believer that you don't always need flashy graphics and images to capture someone and to speak to them. I might be wrong, but hey, maybe 5 years down the line I'd read this again and think otherwise!

Moving on, another improvement you'll be seeing with this website / blog is that I will be updating and posting more regularly. Whether it's a one-image post, or a single paragraph, or even an interesting link I stumble upon - I have promised myself that I will be sharing it here.

I hope you're looking forward to seeing more of me here, as much as I'm super excited to share all sorts of things with you!

Have a good night and a great week ahead. :)

 

Header #4

Just because! :)

Header #3

Hello there!

As you can already tell, from now onwards, yours truly will be welcoming you each time you visit!

This is part of my new branding - yup, there's more! I'll share them here once they're all done and printed. Think business cards and so on!

It can be quite lonely standing up there with inanimate alphabets, so... if no one's looking, do give little me a little high five!

 

A Creature A Day: A Reflection

Hey guys!

I know I've been MIA lately, and I'm really sorry for that!

You deserve an explanation, but before that, I'd just like to thank everyone who has been reading and following my blog and creatures. I really appreciate all the likes, suggestions and comments - you have no idea how overwhelmed and grateful I feel to have all the support I have had the entire time!

Unfortunately, I have made a decision to end this project.

I am aware that I fell short of my goal and promise. I have only 54 creatures to go till I reach my target, so why stop now, you ask? Well there are several reasons, or lessons, if I may, that I learned during this journey.

At first, it started of as something truly enjoyable. I guess that was the honeymoon period. I couldn't wait to come up with new creatures - I was sketching day and night. I was inspired by ANYTHING I laid my eyes on, and I was ever so diligent.

As days became weeks, it gradually felt like a chore. I would be cooped up in the room drawing creatures, even when I had friends over! My weekends were spent coming up with creature ideas. I got annoyed with everything and everyone until a creature for the day was completed. Truth be told, I think I also irritated people around me. You have no idea how many arguments I've started because of this! Yes, I became a lifeless, grumpy person.

That was the reason I decided to take weekend breaks. But even then, this project was slowly taking over my life. And I'm one to believe that we should never, ever take on anything that makes us unhappy.

Then the weekend breaks became a week's break, which ended up as six week break, and it all went downhill from there. I was finally enjoying my "freedom"! I didn't have anything to worry about, I didn't have 24 hour deadlines - the large, grey cloud above me finally cleared up.

Believe me, I've tried pushing myself to complete this project. I even tried using different drawing and painting techniques to liven things up, but the more I pushed, the worst I felt about this project.

Perhaps I was being too ambitious at the beginning? Perhaps I didn't have enough discipline to follow through with what I've set to do? Whatever it is, I've learned lessons that I would have never learned if it wasn't for this project. On the other hand, I'm also rather proud that I was able to produce 71 imaginary creatures from scratch - something I wouldn't have thought I could achieve before this.


Here are a few things I've learned:

1. Quality takes time.

I kept churning out creature after creature, most of the time without a thought. I was always rushing to complete them because I had limited time, on top of everything else I had. The outcome was drawing standards that I would otherwise have never allowed myself to produce.

2. Too much of something is definitely not a good thing.

I can be your living proof when it comes to this saying. I know it wasn't obvious that this project was killing me - I tried to sound as chirpy as I possibly could in my posts. I mean, Creatureville is meant to be a pleasant place, right? I think I digressed a little, but you get my point.

3. Stop if it makes you unhappy.

Life's short, so why spend it doing things that make you unhappy? It will only cause unnecessary negativity!


All in all, I think this project served its purpose. It didn't end up as I imagined it to be, but I managed to get the most out of it. I hope all you readers and followers will understand where I'm coming from, and I apologise if I've let you down! I promise I'll deliver better the next time around!

Oh my, this has become a lengthy post. I hope you're still reading!

Till the next time, take care and be well :)

xxx

Yeen

A Creature A Day : Day 71

Mr. 71 is both near and far sighted.

His little right eye detects everything near, small and minute. His large left eye, on the other hand, is capable of capturing details from a distance - he can even see beyond horizons!

Pretty handy I'd say.

Annd, for the first time ever, lo and behold - my very first animated gif!

Here's Mr. 71 being the cheeky little rascal he is!

  

  

A Creature A Day : Day 70

Helloo guys!

Hope each of you had a merry, merry Christmas and also had a wonderful time ushering in the new year.

First and foremost, I want to apologise for the massive, massive delay. I admit, I wasn't the most disciplined person and was carried away with all the free time I had. Plus, the festive season arrived... I know, no excuses for me! Forgive me, guys? :)

Secondly, I've been reflecting on my past works and progress, and I've decided that I need to grow! Truth be told, I always thought my drawing style was too childish, and also really amateurish! But back then I never really bothered trying to improve myself.

So over the break, I explored and experimented with other styles that I've always admired, namely watercolour styles and effects. It took me countless tutorials and videos, alot of experimenting and frustration, but I think I'm slowly getting there and moving towards more "mature" pieces.

Without further ado, here's Mr. 70 to welcome you back!

No, that's not his face on his stomach! Mr. 70 just has a protruding forehead! Legend has it that Mr. 70 has a brain five times the size of a regular brain, and it's resting comfortably in his skull. Some nicknamed him 'flowerhorn', but that doesn't bother Mr. 70 at all! This is him striding proudly with his (fore)head held high!

So, what do you think, guys? Yay or nay? Please feel free to leave a comment and let me know your thoughts on this! Of course, this is still a work in progress. I'm trying to maintain and incorporate my personal style as well, i.e. clean, crisp lines and strokes, bright colours, clean background.

Here's to a great new year, with big things to come! Cheers!