Art Therapy... Sort Of

While I haven't made any tack in a long time, this month I have been easing myself back into art in general. Perhaps it isn't the healthiest coping method (cleaning up the house to get it ready to sell would be better...), but it's helping me take my mind off things.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm quite poor at drawing, and I really don't need the stress of trying to improve right now. I need a way to relax. So, I've started collecting free-to-use line drawings from the internet and colouring them.

My first piece is based off of lines by VendettaImaging on dA.

I recommend checking out the full size image!

I decided to create a loose interpretation of EEC Unsung Hero (a Breyer Keltec Salinero), and then gifted the design to my one friend who is into the Horse Art RPG scene. Hopefully she enjoys her new virtual pony!

I'm not going to lie though, this dude was a lot of work! First of all, the original drawing was at a much smaller resolution than I was wanting to work with, so I had to enlarge it quite a bit - which of course involved carefully redrawing all the lines to clean them up x_X After that, work went slowly and smoothly, carefully building up the base colour variations and adding layer after layer of details on top.

For the most part, I'm satisfied with this piece.  It served it's purpose of giving me something to do to relax. But (and there's always a but!) I wanted to give myself a bit more of a challenge.

So, up next is this heartthrob, created from lines by Hardandhind on dA.

Please check out the full size image, I have a lot of detail!

This boy took several days, but I think he turned out really great! His start was much of the same - enlarging the original drawing, redrawing new crisp lines, and then meticulously refining everything to look smooth and intentional. Everything after that was a LOT of work! From the roaning at the edges of his white markings, to the individually painted hairs of his mane and tail, I allowed myself to get lost in the process.

...Now that I think about it, this sort of thing would be good for creating mock-ups of how I would like my 2 resins to be painted. Although, that might be putting the cart before the horse, as I don't even know of any artists who are actually accepting commission pieces.

Baby Steps

While it's nothing big, I made something:
 

EEC Valentine Gift (Comanche)

This halter lacks a few of my usual touches - the buckle on the crown lacks a tongue (leading to a crown strap without any holes), and there is no buckle on the chin. Still, it looks neat and clean, with the blue complementing Comanche's chestnut coat nicely. Most importantly it felt good to make something physical.

Maybe on Saturday I'll feel up to making something fancier, but for now...This is good.

Looking Back, Moving Forward

To say the last few months have been difficult would be a severe overstatement.

 

Just grin and... ???

However, there were some good things that happened. In June, I made the trek to see my best friend! Let me tell you, long distance public transit is often complicated, but I made it there and back in one piece. And, I don't know if any of you remember, but my best friend breeds horses!

2 weeks old!

  CeeCee had another dun colt this year, and he is just the cutest.

Hey mama, got anything for me?

 His name is Remington, and while he looks very sweet and docile in these pictures, I assure you, this little man loves adventure! At first it was difficult to get him out out the paddock - usually the foals will happily follow their dam, but Remy always insists on exploring.

Lookit those eyelashes!

 Still, he is incredibly friendly and sweet.

See this nose? Yearning for kisses!

And he is always up for cuddles!

Another horse that has come into my life is Pepper, a 3 year old Thoroughbred mare purchased by another one of my friends at the beginning of this month.

Getting used to her new home

 For being so young, she is surprisingly calm, but she still has a lot of learning ahead of her. 

A quiet stroll around the Standardbred track

While I certainly wouldn't get on her right now, (even as calm as she is, I'm not THAT brave!) it's good to have more horses to visit.

The Longest Year

So...I've been absent from this blog, Model Horse blab, and just generally the hobby for a long time. At first I was feeling burnt out from going full-tilt at tack- and prop-making, then school got in the way, then depression...

...And then at the end of April my mom was in a car accident.

She is a diabetic, and her blood sugar suddenly dropped for unknown reasons. All I know was that she was found driving recklessly down the back roads by a police officer, and rolled the van 6 times right in front of him. I thought I had lost her.

She was in the hospital for a while, but came out of things almost completely unharmed - just very sore and suffering from a severe concussion. So, a lot of my time was spent looking after her and just generally keeping her safe. Things were going well, but with her health being already poor, there was no way attending Breyerfest would be feasible.

...And then, at the end of July, she had a fatal heart attack.

There's no need to go into details now, but, I held her in her final moments. I just hope she's at peace now.

One of the few good pictures I have...

I miss you, mom.

Getting Back on the Metaphorical Horse

After only using Photoshop for school for so long, I finally decided to do something for myself. While I may not be the best at starting my own projects, I often find myself adding to the projects of others. Today's work was inspired by Desktop Stables and my complete and utter obsession with more, more, more!

So here I sit, flitting between Photoshop and Google image search, making up even more labels for grooming supplies. 

What I've been staring at for over an hour!

 This is all I have to show for it at the moment, as I had to make everything from scratch. It's been a while since I did such a thing (most of my feedbag files have been sitting on my computer, untouched for just over a year now), but it feels good to put so much detail into something that I don't have to draw!

Now to just figure out what products to tackle next! Some Mane N Tail Mineral Ice to sooth sore joints? Tuff Stuff to keep the herd's hooves in prime condition? Maybe even some sheath cleaner? (Hey, I do have several studs and geldings!) I should also make some saddle soap containers, as well as lots and lots of treats...

Maybe this was less getting back on the horse and more falling back down the rabbit hole!

The Official Wishlist

These are models that I am actively and seriously looking to buy - If you have any of these guys for sale, please let me know!

Regular Run Models:
Cheveyo
Sahran

Special Run Models:
Sheila, Breyerfest 2016
Mamacita y Chico, Breyerfest 2016
Jasmine, Breyerfest 2011

Premiere Club Models:
Yasmin

I guess the only other thing to keep in mind is that I live in Canada, so shipping will probably look expensive and scary.

What a Busy Weekend!

 Last weekend was a whirlwind of events. In addition to my show on Saturday, something very special happened on Sunday! As I have mentioned before, my best friend breeds Quarter Horses and Paints, but the first of this year's crop has been born.

Kachina (Henry's First Lady), with her brand new filly

 She's an adorable little paint filly, with some wonderfully loud markings. Doesn't she look so much like her momma?

Bendy baby legs!

What a precious face!

Squeee!

I just love foaling season!