Author: Aisling

Free Coloring Page – Garden-style

garden-y coloring page -- free downloadYes, this seems like a good day for a free coloring page.

I’m working on a couple of new coloring book series. So, I’m happy to share one of the pages.

I draw these by hand, and then clean up the lines (just a little) in Photoshop.

So, they’re kind of irregular. They’re kind of organic. And, yes, they’re a style I’ve been drawing in, since my early teens.

(As a teen, at the local public library, I created each summer’s reading program artwork for the Children’s Reading Room. It was almost always in this style… wavy, wobbly, and fantastical.)

Here’s the link to the free coloring page: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8noedrX-LRwWW1VMnlWU0lIeE0

If you’d like to share the link with a shorter URL, this works, too: http://tinyurl.com/zwyp7rd

It’s a hand-drawn coloring page — 8.5″ x 11″ — that you can download and print as a PDF.

I’m preparing a new coloring book series in this style. It should be available in early 2017.

More Copyright -> A Brilliant Resource

question markAs artists, bloggers, authors, publishers, and generally creative people, we often turn to stock images — at sites like Shutterstock, DepositPhotos.com, FreeImages.com, MorgueFile.com (not what it sounds like), and a bazillion others — for art, photos, and inspiration.

We also use things like the Creative Commons search engine, to find hidden gems for our work.

But, do you know what’s okay to use in your artwork…? And what’s legal to use in artwork you sell…?

I’ve talked about copyright in the past. I’ve also debunked the “three stroke rule.” Those are old articles, but most of the information still applies. (Remember: I’ve been online, talking about art, for 20 years now. Really.)

Now, a friend has created a great article and infographic on the topic of stock images and how/when to use them:

Stock Images [Cheat Sheet]

Go see it. It’s very cool!

Fore-Edge Book Art – Historical Examples

When I first saw this concept in the movie, Crimson Peak, I didn’t think fore-edge book art was anything mainstream… ever.

Now, I’ve learned that it’s a legitimate book art. (How did I never hear of this, before?)

It’s something I’m considering including in my altered books art, and perhaps other projects.

Another example, from 1801:

Here’s a 1947 video showing one way fore-edge art was added to books:

And here’s a modern artist working with this concept:

For more historical insights, this 28-minute discussion explains the fore-edge tradition and practice in more detail:

Merging, Moving, and More

Quick update: By the end of February, this site will move to new hosting. To most visitors, nothing will look different. The site might appear to be offline for a few hours, during the move, but that’s all. (Site is now at new hosting. Whee!)

I’m also continuing to merge most of my art-related websites. All of them will become part of Aisling.net.

Update, 21 Feb 2016: Everything is here (except some of the really old articles). However, I need to fix the illustrations, recordings, & links in the articles that moved here from ArtistsJournals.com. (I’m keeping the old ArtistsJournals.com site online, until I fix these issues.)

At the start of March 2016, this site should be a one-stop resource for mixed media artists and artists who keep visual journals.

Meanwhile, if you’re on the updates list — receiving emails every time I add something to this website — I appreciate your patience. You may see a flurry of updates as lots (and lots) of articles are added to this site.

Coming Next – Mailart and More

moving boxesIn the continuing re-integration of articles from my original website (started around 1995, back in the GeoCities days), my next project is to restore mailart-related articles to this site.  Those (very dated) posts are still at my old, dusty, HTML site, and need to be revamped, rewritten, and moved here.

Meanwhile, yes, the coloring books continue. I’ve created 20 of them, so far. My top-selling coloring book is Bold and Easy Coloring Pages 1, with a new book being released about every two weeks.

I’m absolutely loving this. Most of my coloring books are hand-drawn (yep, ol’ fashioned pen & paper), so they take a lot of time… but the feedback from them has been very worthwhile.

In the immediate future: To improve navigation and load time at this site, I’ll be changing its design and some of its features… but only slightly. When that’s underway, this site may look rather untidy. If you land here during that time, I apologize; keep in mind that it’s a major milestone as I re-energize this site.

Thanks!

Free Coloring Pages from ‘Bold and Easy 4’

Bold and Easy Coloring Pages 4 - coverOkay, I’m enthusiastic about coloring books. And, I’ll admit I’ve been carried away by the success of my “Bold and Easy Coloring Pages” series.

This series has wider lines that are easier to see if someone has a vision challenge. And, in most cases, the coloring areas are larger. That makes them easier to color by anyone with dexterity issues like arthritis or difficulty holding a coloring pencil, marker, or crazy.

(The cover at right shows the most complex coloring design in this book.)

They’re ideal for special education teachers, seniors with some disabilities, and anyone who wants a book that’s easier to see and has bigger areas to color.

But… last week, in my enthusiasm, I accidentally uploaded the wrong interior for “Bold and Easy Coloring Pages 4.” And, besides having designs I hadn’t planned to include in the final edition, one page actually had an error on it.

The word “embarrassed” doesn’t begin to describe how I felt when I made the discovery.

Fortunately, I found it so quickly, only one person had bought the book. (The book now selling at Amazon is the correct one.)

If you’re that one person who bought it, please contact me and tell me:  What country you purchased it in, when you bought it, and how much you paid.

In return, I’ll send you an Amazon gift certificate so you can replace that book, and buy another one of my coloring books (or anything else you’d like to use the certificate for).

Meanwhile, here are two free pages from the corrected edition of Bold and Easy Coloring Pages 4. Download, color, and share them!

Free sample 1 – Free sample 2

Here’s what they look like:

Sample 1Sample 2You can find more free downloads — including others from my “Bold and Easy” series at the Coloring Group website.

New Coloring Book, and New Free Coloring Book Pages

Okay, I’m so hooked on coloring books, I may need a support group soon. (I am kidding. I can’t imagine wanting to be pried away from my art… ever!)

Lovely Designs 1, by Aisling D'ArtMy latest is Lovely Designs 1 (now out of print), and it’s a little different from my previous books. In addition to the 26 coloring pages (printed on one side of each page), I’ve included six “DIY” (do it yourself) pages.

When I draw my coloring pages, I don’t sketch anything ahead of time. Instead, I go right to work with a large pen or brush-style marker. I make broad, sweeping strokes to indicate the main areas of the design.

Next, I scan those drawings, so I can clean them up a little in Photoshop. That’s partly to erase any truly impossible lines I’d included. However, it’s even more useful to get a fresh look at the art… in a different scale (small), and in a different context (on my monitor).

LovelyDesigns1-Sample2It’s similar to how I used to explain my online diary, back when people thought that was weird. (Long before “blogging” became a trend.)

I used to explain how much easier it was to see what I was doing well — and not-so-well — in my life. On the computer monitor, it was like reading someone else’s story, not my own. (That may not be easy to understand, but — in those days — people weren’t so deeply enmeshed in social media and in each other’s lives. So, to read a “story” online was like reading a news story or diary by someone else altogether.)

Anyway, after I tweak my initial drawing, I print it so I can add embellishments and details, by hand.

Six of those un-embellished scans became part of Lovely Designs 1, along with three illustrated pages explaining how I embellish them… in case anyone else wants to try their hand at this kind of art, but needs a “head start” to gain more confidence.

Lovely Designs 1 - Left-hand editionAlso, Lovely Designs 1 contains two mandalas and two repeating patterns based on the same drawings.

For my left-handed friends, I’ve also created a left-hand edition of Lovely Designs 1. (I’m trying to do this with most of my coloring books. In my opinion, nothing about art should be inconvenient, ever. That includes having to reach across a coloring book, just to color the picture.) That’s its cover, on the right. (See the double-L logo at the lower right side of the cover, indicating a left-hand edition.)

So, anyway… the freebies have arrived. I’ve added them to the ColoringGroup.com list of free coloring book pages.

 

What’s on Your Desk?

Aisling's computer desk - 20150901Following the lead by K. M. Weiland (http://www.kmweiland.com/all-the-super-important-stuff-on-this-writers-desk/) and encouraged by my friend Nanette Day and the example set by Jules Dixon —  I’m sharing a completely un-staged photo of what’s on my computer desk this morning.

(My current “art desk” is my bed. I have stacks of paper for drawing, plus a silverware drawer insert — $2 from IKEA, but you can find similar ones at Target, Walmart, etc. — filled with pens, pencils, paintbrushes, etc.)

Anyway, here’s what’s on my writing/computer desk and (at least partially) shown in the photo:

1. Computer (bearing a Honeydukes sticker from the Harry Potter shop at Universal Studios theme park), printer/scanner, and monitor.
2. One mic, plus one headset with its own mic.
3. Two pens, four thumb drives, a calculator, a portable hard drive, and a spare USB hub.
4. Two bottles of vits and a glass of water.
5. Lots of papers: My daily to-do notebook, and yellow, lined pad for notes. Notes from said yellow pad.
6. A printed page from my upcoming coloring book, still in progress.
7. Last but not least: A white mouse from IKEA.

(If you’re just desperate to see everything in detail, click on the photo for the 800 x 600 pixels version.)

Since I’m incredibly busy right now, it’s a minor miracle that my desk is this tidy.

I decided to post this since it’s kind of in line with “Real Professional Qualities,” my somewhat sarcastic article from Professional Quilter magazine, March 1986 issue.

 

Wild Art Dolls Have Arrived!

As of this morning, all of the Wild Art Dolls articles have moved back to this website. Whew! That includes the free doll patterns.

(I will update the GIFs as full-size PDFs, later. Meanwhile, you can rescale GIFs to print, full-size. In most cases, my cloth doll patterns were designed to fill an 8.5″ x 11″ sheet of paper.)

If you find any broken links, broken images, or text that doesn’t make sense, let me know in a comment at the broken page (or wherever things seemed to break).

I have temporarily removed the voice recordings from the doll art pages. They were in an old format that most computers can’t recognize. I plan to update those recordings, later.

I’ve restored the site’s Search form and the Categories list to the sidebar of this website. That should help you find anything you’re looking for.

Also, I’ve removed old “featured images.” That should resolve the problem where stray graphics were turning up in odd places.

Next, I’m planning to move all of my mailart-related articles back to Aisling.net.  Those articles were at Mailartists.com, and they’re even more outdated than the wild art dolls articles were. (It’s difficult to believe I’ve been online about 20 years…)

So, this next part of the “back to the garden” project (as I’m calling it… a Woodstock reference) may take considerably longer.

Meanwhile, I appreciate your patience as I shuffle files, fix broken code, and all that non-art technical stuff. It will be worth it, when this is completed! (<– That’s become my mantra. LOL )

And, one more thing… you can download free, printable coloring pages by Coloring Group members — including me — at the Free Coloring Pages page at ColoringGroup.com.