New product designs on Red Bubble

As the end of the year approaches, we start to plan gifts for our loved ones. There is just enough time before the holiday season to order a unique gift and support an artist as well so you can spread some holiday cheer all round.

I have many of my paintings available on a wide variety of products on Red Bubble. I have adapted a number of these. There are so many different products. Each design can be applied to cards, cups, cushions, mobile phone cases - the list goes on and on. I receive a small commission on each item sold. 

Here are just a few examples. Click on the highlighted product name go to Red Bubble.

Mobile phone cases - pretty link roses.

Cushions

Mugs  

Travel Mugs

Tote bags. The current trend is to avoid using plastic so these sturdy and beautiful bags are the answer. 

And some wonderful floaty scarves...

I've also adapted a couple of designs for duvet covers and clocks. 

Sketching at Mt Coot-Tha Botanic Gardens

It was a sunny morning yesterday at Mt-Coot-Tha. I had previously sketched the Japanese Gardens where the rest of the sketchers were meeting, so I decided to look for something else. I found this striking view of the Tropical Display Dome and a magnificent baobab tree. I started directly on the tree with watercolour - no drawing. The dome was tricky so here I used a light pencil sketch to keep me on track.

Mt Coot- Tha Tropical Dome - watercolour and ink in a Beta Sketchbook

First pass with watercolour and the pencil sketch of the Tropical Dome. 

Once this first wash was dry, I went in with some ink (Pilot Metropolitan Fine nib) to draw in the details of the branches. I wasn’t concerned about keeping to the painted areas, rather worked to redraw new details. 

More progress - ink and watercolour 

Summer in Brisbane, it seems, is here in earnest. It was very hot day and the shade I had been sitting in was disappearing. By the time it came to painting the Dome, I decided this would be achieved much more easily with a table, proper shade and cup of coffee. I moved into the cafe to complete the sketch. I was so wrapped up doing this that I only noticed the rest of the crew when they stood up to take photos! 

It’s strange how our brains translate what we see into manageable symbols. I must have stared at the Tropical Dome for over an hour before I started to paint it. My brain saw ‘diamond’ shapes and painted them accordingly. It was only when I was halfway through painting the Dome that I realised that the ‘diamonds’ were in fact triangles. Talk about painting what you think you see and not what you actually see!

Graphite drawing to re-see the Tropical Dome 

The reality...