Beep beep!

Well Moonrose, I hope you like bright, oversaturated colours.

Next time I shall try something less migraine inducing. I bet you can't wait to see my *sparkle*pets!

Crazy Chimeras

Lionfish/Tiger/Monarch for Tlouey
Lemur/Cat for Amerasu
Birch Tree/American Lady Butterfly/Orchid for Fyrelyter

To see the offerings of the others in this group - click here

More Mutant Madness!

I'm hosting another Chimerical Critters swap on Illustrated ATCs (last year at this time I hosted one as well. Amongst our bizarre beastie bastardisations were the following:

Toucan/Lobster for Ms Art Lady
Unicorn/Tiger/Ladybird for Moondance
Anteater/Reindeer/Bumblebee for OuP

I have also been inspired to write up a tutorial on inspiration for creating these sort of bizarre hybrids. So expect more from that in the future, along with a sample of the various creations submitted to this one.

More weirdness to come!

Branching Out...

... into tree illustrations!

These trees all sprout from the book "In search of Remarkable Trees (On Safari in Southern African).

Although they are not in fact all African Trees.


They are:
A Kokerbooms of South Africa, Pachypodium geayi of Madagascar (A really big Elephant's Foot plant)
The Australian Grass Tree and the Aloe pillansii of Northern Cape

She Sells Sea Shells

Well, actually, she's giving this set away:

What we have here are four brightly coloured sea critters etc commonly found in New Zealand waters. I've used saturated colours to give a bright, playful feel. Not that you'd want to play with some of these!

Paddle Crab: These grow up to 10 cm in width and are commonly found in New Zealand waters. Although they can pack a bit of a puncture, they are also something of a delicacy. They use their paddle-shaped rear limbs to swim through the water.

Ram's Horm Shell: This frequently found debri is actually the shell of a cephalapod. The original animal probably died far out to see and then the husk is washed in with the tide.

Kina: Live kina are a spiky, green-brown ball that stalks slowly across the ocean floor, using tube-feet positioned between the spikes. It munches on algae and adheres stuff to itself to aid in camouflage. These creatures can live 15 years! When they die, the spines rot away, leaving the green, slightly flat globe frequently found washed up on the shore.

Maurea (Beaded Top Shell): This Gastropod is one of a large family found in New Zealand. Although not particularly common, they can be found on low tidal rocks where they browse on algae and sponges.

A taste of kiwi with some literature thrown in

An elegant Kotuku contemplates her next meal. She's about to wing her way to Argentina.

Bod and Miss Lupescu, from Neil Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book".

A traditional Maori talisman. The meaning behind these little carved deities is much debated. "Tiki" refers to a male demigod in Polynesia, and it may have links with fertility or birth deformities (protecting against). They are often carved from is pounamu - greenstone.

Down by the Seaside

Down by the sea you might find a pair of Hooker's Sea Lions, an albatross and a pied stilt. Obviously, the perspective is a bit off for this. But still, it's a pretty 5x7 inch piece.