New stationary designs

Lately I haven't had much time for creating due to family health issues … but somehow, in between things, I managed to do some work for the "Better Together Minted Greeting Card Design Challenge". Would have loved to do more … Oh well ok, I think in times like these the most important thing is to somehow just keep working – in order to keep one's creative muscles relatively fit and healthy.

Today I'll show you some of my submissions to this challenge. It is a contest for both copy and design. One could either work with own copy, or choose copy submitted by another artist and create for that. Something that I loved to do!
Votes and likes would be very welcome! Voting already ends on Monday evening, 15th of May (mid european time) – sorry for the rush! I simply didn't manage to post my designs earlier … Thank you so much for voting and liking!

Lovely Day Flowers

"Lovely Day Flowers" – watercolour floral design  for a birthday card with copy by Jennifer Lew: "Front: Make today lovely/ Inside: Happy Birthday".

"Walk in Flowers"

"Walk in Flowers" is a 21st birthday card featuring a shower of watercolour petals based on my own copy. Front: "May you walk in flowers and dance in the rain." Inside: "With lots of love on your 21st birthday!"

"Sunny Road"

"Sunny Road" is a another 21st birthday card based on my own copy: Front: "Wishing you … wind in your hair, joy in your heart and a sunny road to life's adventures." Inside: "Happy 21st Birthday!"

"Entwine"

"Entwine" is a wedding card design based on a copy by Lisa Sunday Rinella. Front: "Lifes entwine, dreams melt into one another, joy is on the wind." Inside: So happy you found each other." I immediately fell in love with Lisa's words and together with my watercolour details this card makes one of my fave submissions.

"Emerald Isle Blessing"

"Emerals Isle Blessing" – this one is special to me because the copywriter, Mariecor Agravante, chose my photographic art print out of the bounty of designs that are already for sale on Minted and wrote a copy for it specifically to go on a card together. Front: "Emerald Isle Blessing", Inside (excerpt):  "May the mists of the Eirinn isle, bring a glow to your dimpled smile, … And may the wings of Irish laughter, Uplift you now and ever after." Thank you so much, Mariecor!

"My own kind"

"My own kind" – here's a mixed media botanical design that I used for a mother's birthday card featuring copy by Kate Ross. Front: "You've always taught me to be my own kind of beautiful." Inside: "I'm so grateful for you, Mom. I celebrate you on your birthday and always."

"Always Love"

 "Always Love" – this sympathy card features my own photography. The copy is by Courtney Crane. Front: "Though there is loss …, Inside: "love always remains. Thinking of you with heartfelt sympathy."

"Galactical"

Finally this is a card to send to a loved one: "Galactical". It is based on a copy by Frooted Design. Front: "The moon is way too close." Inside: "Love you to the furthest galaxy and back!"

Want to see more? You can have a look at ALL submissions (3752!) to this challenge over here.
And you can find ALL OF MY submissions using the filter "Sorted by artist" and then hop over to page 71. Thank you!

Hello 2017 – and nature's New Year celebration

Here's to 2017 – wishing everybody a happy, healthy and peaceful New Year!

There won't be a real review of 2016 this time … I'll just settle on admitting that I am pretty happy to be in 2017 now! And that 2016 was a challenging year at least. Caring for two 90 year old peeps (one of them with dementia) while looking after two households plus trying to run my art and design business often brought me to the edge of exhaustion. I believe that there's a time for everything in life, and this obviously is not the time for big career plans …

So for 2017 I'll just try to concentrate on the positive things. Hoping to help my parents to live their high age life in dignity – which is not easy all the time – and praying for patience for myself. And I'll just take every chunk of time I can get to create. It has become crystal clear to me that this is one of my basic needs, going way beyond any thoughts of career or making money.

For today – and to celebrate the New Year – I'll show you the winter wonderland that we enjoyed for two days right at our doorstep. It started on the 30th of December when we had a day and a night of dense fog. When the valley appeared again out of the big nothing, it had wrapped itself into a festive cloth of glittering frost … enjoy :-) Happy 2017!

Skyblue by Eva Marion

Welcome to my new shop – for original art! Doors are open! Finally ;-)
It took me a bit, but after getting more requests for original paintings lately, I decided to take the plunge and to open up an Etsy shop.

So this is "Skyblue" – www.etsy.com/shop/SkyblueByEvaMarion – named after one of my fave watercolour hues.
In there you'll find my "classics":
- original watercolour paintings, landscapes and florals
- and handpulled prints of my aquatint etchings.

I hope you'll like it!


P.s.: For those who are super quick, here's an Etsy promo, still valid until tomorrow night:

Buy a gift. Get a gift.

Spend $50 on your first-ever order and get $10 towards your next one. Ends 12/12. 

Full details: etsy.me/welcomecredit

Happy shopping :-)

November Garden

The garden season comes to an end but there's still some beauty to discover. The reduced vegetation makes you notice the little things … I particularly love the various forms of seedpods and plant silhouettes that provide good inspiration for floral/ nature designs.

The spikey Lion's Tail stems look like spines, and sometimes like strings of pearls.

Delicate Bluebeard Seedheads. I love their soft colours against the greys and greens of the roof.

 Dramatic silhouettes and shadows of wild Yarrow.

Last Hyssop blossoms and seed umbels.

Two sweet guys that guard over our rooftop garden :-)

Our garden dragon can spit fire and is the work of my potter friend Baerbel.

 

This little forest scene was a fun discovery on the roof!

 

 

For the head gardener and his feline assistant it's time to sit in the sun, read a bit and just relax …

End of Season!

Autumn's Best – Inktober 2016, part 4

Running a bit late, as I had been away and "offline": here's the final part of Inktober!

Starting with the "Forest Girl" above, for Inktober 23. I thought I'd be painting an autumn wreath, but the brush decided differently and then this girl turned up …

Before doing Inktober 24 called "Treehome" I had been passing by the new tree climbing garden in our local wood. All these platforms in the trees reminded me of treehouses (though the one I did is rather a tree-tent…). As a child I really would have adored to own a treehouse and we kids tried to build one from found wood every now and then, but these always collapsed after a while … I still would love to own one now!

I had to find out who lives in the Tree-tent above, so I did this fox-girl, called "Forest Girl 2" for Inktober 25.

"Fall in the Forest" – some fun little forest folks and motifs for Inktober 26.

 

I can't help but love autumn. I always have. It's my favourite time of the year. Inspite of the colder days and earlier nights, there's so much to cherish! So here's "Autumn's Best" for Inktober 27.

Getting ready with this "Witch's' Prep Guide for Halloween"! Inktober 28.

"Melancholia" for Inktober 29. It's that time of the year again …

And here's my Inktober 30, called"Flower Girl". It's inspired by admiring a beautiful bold woman on the train station. She wore a stunning and summery flower dress brightening up the otherwise dull, grey late autumn scene. Wondered where she did come from! Prob directly from Frankfurt airport nearby …

Finally! A "Dark Mood" for Inktober 31.

Phew! Bit exhausted now to be honest ;-) but loved it nevertheless. I hope you liked following me along for Inktober as well!

Moon and sun and the valley – Inktober 2016, week 3

The third week of Inktober! I still enjoy it – most of the time ;-)

Sometimes I think it would be better to have a real theme … But on the other hand this way I enjoy that it is spontanious and often surprising for myself: I just sit down without thinking too much or researching and sketching beforehand, and I draw whatever comes to my mind in that moment.

Inktober 16 above was inspired by the beautiful Hunter's Moon that we had in that night.

As was the drawing below for Inktober 17: "Where do we go" – well I'd love to know! Who wouldn't!? Maybe the moon has an answer …?

As I was in a nighttime mood and had noticed a lot of moths in the garden on that evening, I did some of these for Inktober 18. Some of them are imagined, some a bit more naturalistic, but as well  drawn from memory.

This was the first time that I drew an Inktober piece before really starting the day, so I wanted to do sthg related to mornings. Roosters seemed fun - here is a little parade for Inktober 19.

On Inktober 20 I had accidentally stumbled upon some beautiful areal photography - like fields and villages seen from the sky - on Pinterest. So I wasn't surprised what came up when I later on sat down to draw: a little farmhouse scene with rooster and chicken.

The quick sketch of the valley railway below – for Inktober 21 – was drawn from memory after a bike ride along the river.

The last drawing for this week was as well inspired by the valley: "Deerjump" for Inktober 22. Biking homewards in the evening I met 3 beautiful deer, running and jumping across the path right in front of me and then through the meadow to a nearby hedge. But they didn't disappear, they turned round and looked at me for what seemed a long time … it felt like they were curious and as keen on observing me than I was on observing them :-)

That's it for today – now onwards to the final Inktober week!

 P.s.: For those who are not familiar with "Inktober": You can find a short explanation about it at the end of this post here.