Inktober 2019: day 31 - mapping pen and ink wash

The Mirror Twins and their friend wish you a happy Hallowe’en! Be careful who you greet after dark.

I posted a terrible, late-night photo of this on twitter just to prove I finished it on time, because it was so close to midnight!

Inktober 2019: day 9 - dip pen and ink wash

The Mirror Twins have spotted a potential new friend.

I’m getting really tired so I tried to keep this one simple, but it actually took longer than yesterday’s picture!

Inktober 2019: day 5 - dip pen and liquid ink

Isaac doesn't always know how to pass the time at night

I had the idea for this one a few days ago, but had to save it for the weekend because I knew I wouldn't have enough time on a workday. In hindsight I could have pushed the lighting even more, maybe I'll give it another go later in the month.

This is also a turnip pen instead of my normal mapping pen. I've been having trouble finding replacement mapping nibs (although I've finally tracked down some that I like) so I've built up a small collection of alternatives.

Book Wyrm

Another birthday card! This one was for a friend who likes dragons and books. With any luck she also likes puns, since I can't seem to resist writing them on the card when I think of them.

Beached

A beached mermaid, since it's Mermay.

Should she call attention to herself in the hope that humans will help her back to the sea, or stay quiet for fear they'll put her in a specimen case? With the tide going out, she doesn't have much time to decide.

The Spook's Apprentice

I've been working on some book illustrations for a portfolio update, so I picked a few scenes from The Spook's Apprentice by Joseph Delaney, which is a book I really enjoyed. Originally I planned to do these in gel pen, but I realised I'm still very happy with the illustrations from The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray that I did in that style, so I tried something a bit different and went for thicker cross-hatching done entirely in dip pen. I also tried a few insets instead of sticking with only full-page illustrations, and experimented a bit with new compositions.

Of course, any kind of horror illustration is still firmly within my comfort zone. Up next, something a bit lighter and more child-friendly.

Barnabas Oley Bookplates

Finally, things that aren't fairies!

I was hired to make some designs for my old primary school (Barnabas Oley), that could be used either as certificates or as bookplates for excellence or progress in handwriting. I hand-wrote the text using the letter forms the children learn.

I said 'things that aren't fairies', but later I was also asked to do some powerpoint slides featuring Poppet the House Hob for the awards assembly, so there were fairies involved after all!