Playing with Digital Textures

What I miss most about painting digitally is the rich, textured look of oils. So I've tried for years to achieve that look in Photoshop and Painter with all the various brushes, filters and settings they have. Finally, I stumbled upon the brushes with the little drip icon on top of it (oil, pastel, airbrush, etc). It's not quite just like painting in oils yet. But with practice, hopefully, I may never miss oils again. 

Dolphin test sketches

My first color sketches for my current children's book project which is all about saving dolphins.  These were done, by the way, over a year ago (yes, it took that long to get the project rolling). Well worth the wait though. The story, when I read it, actually made me cry. Am very happy to be putting my skills to use for a good cause and a really good book!!

Sketch 25

Sketch 25 #Inktober #Tintubre, panel 6 Mouse Story. Mouse looks around but instead of abundance of nuts, fruit, worms, etc. he sees giant wheel of cheese surrounded by gourmet crackers across the street. (I left the store signs and labels unlinked because I want to fill them in, later, in Photoshop in both English and Spanish. Also, not quite sure yet what those signs will say.)  

Sketch 24

#Inktober #Tintubre Sketch 24, an older sketch newly inked because am short on time these days. 

Sketch 23

#Inktober #Tintubre

Sketch 22

Falling a little bit behind. Sketch no. 22 ‪#‎Inktober‬ ‪#‎Tintubre‬ Mouse asking bird neighbors if any of them has a nice bit of blue veined cheese or a well aged cheddar along with some seasoned crackers--maybe with a bit of rosemary or sea salt, for breakfast that they would like to trade. Cheddar? Sea salt? If he's hungry there's a colony of fat grubs nearby. And some worms just down there....(Text still in process.)

Sketch 21

#Inktober #Tintubre day 21. Love the brown tint but will never use clumpy, lumpy cheapo brown ball point pens again. #HarryPotter  #Hermione  #RonWeasley

Sketch 20

#Inktober #Tintubre

Sketch no. 19

Sketch no. 19. Another super simple one. She kinda looks like Velma from the Scooby cartoons but she's actually a girl I saw in $bux. ‪#‎Inktober‬ ‪#‎Tintubre‬

Sketch 18

#Inktober #Tintubre

Sketch 17

#Inktober #Tintubre

Mouse Is Still Hungry

Sketch no. 16. Mouse is still hungry #INKtober #TINTubre

More Inktober Sketches

Sketches 10 - 15 for #INKtober #TINTubre

Recently finished sketch

A squiggly sketchbook drawing I started ages ago of the cafe/libreria Libros del Pasaje and would work on from time to time. It's one of those drawings where I kept debating til the very end whether to cutify the characters or to keep them pretty much as I saw them.

Some of My Emoji Designs

More inktober sketches (no.'s 8 and 9)

 Mouse is hungry -

Inked sketchbook sketch -

Inktober/Tintubre sketches

Sketches 4 - 7

Mouse wakes up version 2 / El ratón se despierta versión 2

More #Inktober / #Tintubre practice -

Mouse Wakes Up ~ Ratón Despierte.

Sketch no. 3. Mouse wakes up ~ ratón despierte. Plus rough for next panel. Not sure about shading with pen. May redo this one... ‪#‎Inktober‬ ‪#‎Tintubre‬

The Mouse Asleep ~ El Raton Dormido

For #Inktober/#Tintubre

Tintubre/Inktober

My first of, hopefully, many sketches for Inkober/Tintubre. Ideally I would draw one every day, but last night I found myself totally stressing out over which side project to spend more time on: that graphic novel I keep saying I'll write one day, that children's book I likewise keep saying I'll write and illustrate one day, those sketches and illustrations I want to add to my portfolio, those sketches I want to do just for the heck of it, a few other bright ideas I have as well as this, Inktober/Tintubre. Just because. 

And it's good practice. 

Okay, off to do some real work. And to make some soup and bread. (I love cold, rainy Sundays like this! So long as I'm inside where it's cozy. ☕️)

New photo prints

Most people who know me know how much I love photography. It began as a way to have my own collection of reference material but, when digital came along, it developed into a love of  photography as an art form. Recently, I opened a print shop on Society6 featuring my very favorite images. Please take a look! :)

http://society6.com/crcphotoshop/prints?show=new

New Etsy Shop Section

I recently opened a new section in my Etsy shop for my original illustrations. So far I've listed seventeen works from my Remember the Ladies series :)

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CheryldelosreyesCruz?section_id=16099223&ref=shopsection_leftnav_5

Most of these, of course, are also available as prints in my Society6 shop 

http://society6.com/cheryldelosreyescruz/prints?show=new

Another new listing in my watercolor/gouache section -

Recently finished

Two recently finished digital paintings started about a year ago but, with my work schedule, not finished til last week. 

I was also able to take some time, last week, to do some computer file cleaning.

Some stuff I hadn't lain eyes on in four, five years. With the buffer of time and all the work I've done in between (not that I'm where I want to be, ability wise, yet. There's still so much room to improve.) I could clearly see how much my first digital pieces, my paintings and character designs

really, really sucked. Oh my god....

So glad I didn't give up. 

Cafe sketching

Drawing, watercoloring,

coffee, pastries,

dessert

friends,

make life so much better.

New Prints

From my Ladies series:

 http://society6.com/cheryldelosreyescruz/evelyn-nesbitt_print#1=45

http://society6.com/cheryldelosreyescruz/princess-angeline-kikisoblu-or-wewick_print#1=45

http://society6.com/cheryldelosreyescruz/zitkala-a-red-bird_print#1=45

http://society6.com/cheryldelosreyescruz/louise-brooks-wtp_print#1=45

Some old animation

Working on an animated emoji project which, since most of the creative decisions are in my control, I'm having a lot of fun with. So, since I can't share any of that yet, I thought I'd share some old stuff -

https://www.behance.net/gallery/20051641/Animation

Lunch with awesomeness

Meant to post this several weeks ago (time is whizzing by just way too fast!!!). My friends and I were so excited to meet Dolores Avendaño, the amazing illustrator of the Spanish language edition of Harry Potter!!!

 http://www.doloresavendano.com.ar

Jesica Cichero - http://swingingcreature.blogspot.com.ar/

Andrea Toledo - http://andi-caricaturas.blogspot.com.ar

A few exhibition photos -

Lost of great people, friends and family came to view the show. Local radio personality Melissa Sansotta gave a speech and performed some of her poetry. We met lots of artists we did not know before including a couple of veteran newspaper cartoonists. and the director of a museum here who talked to us about possibly bringing our exhibition over to his museum in a year or two. Maybe too much free wine? I hope not..

Jesica Cichero - - http://swingingcreature.blogspot.com.ar/

Andrea Toledo - http://andi-caricaturas.blogspot.com.ar

y yo!