artinjest

Preview for you Patrons. 365 Days of Drawing.

WHOOOOO a full year of drawing every day! I wanted to post this video here a little early so you could get a first look before it goes out on the social medias later today.

The last day of the 365 day drawing challenge just HAPPENS to fall on day one of Inktober so I wanted to compile my full year's worth of drawings in one spot.

This project was probably my single longest running but my GOODness did it ever build some good habits. HUGE thank you to you for coming along on the jou...

HENLO FRENS

OCTOBER IS HERE! Y'know what that means? It means that we start our INKTOBER MADNESS! And it is going to be mad...

(Dunno what Inktober is? Check out my last video here on Patreon and pop over to Inktober.com if you're curious and stay tuned for some very special perks that will come out of our Inktober adventure and hit your mailboxes next month!)

For now, enjoy...

Spazz or snooze. There is no in between.

Early peek at the comic that will go up later today on socials! I have VERY few settings these days. It seems like I’m either a buzzy caffeinated spazz or I’m passed out like a toddler somewhere. Is this seasonal?? Is there a happy medium on the horizon? Or am I just destined to yo-yo between extremes all day long...

What are your energy levels like these days beautiful patrons? Tell me your tricks for a smoother circadian rhythm pleaaaaase.

Big love for being one o...

Bonus comic: HOW parents / caregivers HOW.

Just wanted to share a wee comic going up on the socials today. I was hanging out with my niece and youngest bro today and I am constantly amazed at how good my brothers are at being papas. As someone who consistently struggles to manage my OWN person and wellbeing, I MARVEL at the ability any parent / caregiver has to like...get small kids on and off a bus?? HOW ARE YOU DOING THAT HOW.

I imagine standing outside the grocery store just handing out gold stars to every person navigating t...

Inktober. She's coming.

Ohhh Patrons we're really in it this year. I wanted to share a wee sneak peek at what I have in the works for Inktober this year AND let you know that you're going to get some extra goodies as a result!

Big love to all of you for making this amazing little community. You are making it possible to take these more risky endeavours and crazy ideas and actually make them happen. You're wonderful and I so appreciate it.

If you want some more Inktoberish content in the meantime, check o...

Comic Time! The making of things...

Ohhh Patrons, shektchbooks are such a magical thing. When I teach any workshop, I love seeing people go from that fear and trepidation around making things to that absolute delight in having done something with your own hands.

When we are young, we make things for our own joy and entertainment. We have no sense of whether we have made a “good” or “bad” drawing. This remarkable space is what makes kids so utterly creatively fearless. I build so much of my work, and especially th...

Sneak peek at an upcoming comic!

If ever you are struggling with an artistic decision, just ask the nearest toddler to share their pitch-perfect creative confidence with you. Top secret but I get to take part in an auction with a bunch of artists in November and I’m gonna paint a kids-sized rocking chair! OOOO I AM SO EXCITED. Naturally, my oldest niece is the perfect audience to test my concepts on. Option two was outer space, but she didn’t need to hear it. There was no second option after dinosaurs as far as she was c...

Subtle Sketchbox in September

Helloooooo September AND September Sketchbox! As always, wanted to share an early peek at this month's video with you folks here before it hits the socials.

This month's Sketchbox was full of water soluble pencils which are a beautiful medium known for their subtlety and fine mixes of delicate colour. Now, if you've been following along at ALL you'll know that I tend to go LOUD in all things - colour included. So, not gonna lie, I was a bit intimidated by these delicate Derwents at firs...

Happy September you wonderful people!

The September perks might be my all time favourites so far! These little LEGO figures were so delightful to draw and I loved choosing characters that made the perfect amount of nonesense together. Enjoy the digital downloads for your desktop or phone screen and as always if you need a different size or format just let me know!

If you're in the mailable tiers, keep your eye on your mailbox for a whole bunch of perks starring these little characters. Did you know they starred in a fabulou...

Story Time and Sneak Peeks!

Hello beautiful Patrons! 

This month's perks are turning out pretty fantastically. I've been obsessed with Lego figures lately for reasons I can't explain. I recently searched all my favourite figures I could remember from when I was a kid. Fun fact: they're pretty much all also things I wanted to be when I grew up. Yes most of them were animals, fictional characters, and mythical creatures.

This strange little brood turned out to be the inspiration for your sticker packs and...

#ShareYourStudio Day! Remember this????

Ohhhh beloved patrons! Remember this gem?? I made this studio tour way back when we first crossed the goal and I just wanted to share it for #ShareYourStudio day here on Patreon.

It also made me realize that we need an update! So much has changed in the studio since this video and I'd love to share it with you. Many of those changes are a direct result of YOU wonderful folks and being able to create for this awesome community.

Whaddaya think? Should we do an ...

Happy Monday: sketching time lapse!

My comics always start as VERY rough scribbly sketches and while they don't get too refined, they do go through a bit of an evolution!

Check out this little video capture that shows the whole process of a digital drawing using the Procreate app on my iPad pro. The comic will go up on socials later but wanted to share the video here for you delightful patrons.

Huge thanks to all of you for supporting this comic-ing and helping me make funnies out of everyday foibles! You're beautif...

Comic Time: I bought a Cricut and everything went perfectly right away.

Ohhhh friends that is not at all what happened. I DID indeed buy a Cricut, which is an amazing precision-cutter CNC machine type thing. It was a lofty purchase but one that seemed worth it because I wanted to be able to print and cut my own stickers in house. “No problem” I thought. “How hard can it be?”

I should have known better than to use a sentence like “how hard can it be” which is OBVIOUSLY cursed and put a jinx on the whole thing.

By now, ...

August Sketchbox. Hello Gorilla!

Hello Friends!

Just wanted to share the August Sketchbox video here before it hits the socials. This month's box had some Inktober vibes - getting us into that black and white mindset! As soon as I saw the Amsterdam Acrylic Ink I knew I'd be drawing a gorilla. 

Fun fact: I drew this whole thing but then at the very end I added some more black in over the gorilla and completely ruined it. I re-sketched and started over and when I was done realized I had left the pos...

Fifteen feet of colouring headed for East Gwillimbury!

Hey Patrons! Just wanted to share this little video I made for a recent project. The Town of East Gwillimbury is hosting their first Tapestry of Taste festival and they asked for a giant colouring page! If you'd like a little behind the scenes, check it out!

This little town is gorgeous and the buildings were a pleasure to sketch. I love putting these activations together and shipping it somewhere to be brought to life brings me no end of joy. 

Speaking of things that bring m...

Aspirational Groceries.

It’s a vicious cycle folks.

Just wanted to share this wee comic from the social media feeds about my delusions of grandeur while grocery shopping.

Happy Friday Patreon fam! Huge thanks to every one of you for your support. Can’t wait for everyone to get their August perks!

B

Summer Succulents are here!

Hello beautiful patrons. 

I hope you’re enjoying the hot hot heat as much as these sweet little cacti are. They don’t care that it’s dirty hot and are thriving nicely.  I’ll be trying to take my cue from them and not get grumpy about being a wee bit warm. After all, it’s not snowing sideways!

Attached are your August desktop and phone backgrounds featuring these little sweeties. Download away and as always if you need formatting for a different device, just let...

Chatting about creativity on CKCU

Oh friends. There are few things I enjoy more than talking about creativity. This is a little interview I did with a lovely fellow on CKCU radio. They've been hugely supportive of my work over the years and it's always nice to talk shop about why (and how) I do what I do.

Creativity is a really interesting concept and it's definitely a non-traditional way to make a living. If you're curious about that sort of thing, give a listen and, as always, thank you for being a huge part of this j...

Behind the scenes on tiny Zines!

Ooooo friends. I had so much fun making this wee zine. If you're thinking of going for the Special Offer in August, this gives you a little look at the process to create one of these wee comics. This one was for the VERY special purpose of teasing my brother on the West Coast by derailing his teachings. What better way to do this than with a little zine??

Enjoy the video and huge thank you always for making it possible to create this content to share. You are all ice cream co...

Summer succulents!

Some little prickly friends are in the works for the August perks! It is HAWT in Ottawa right now but I refuse to complain (months of snowing and hailing sideways I WILL TAKE 32 DEGREES.) so in response I’ll just be drawing little pricklies that stay calm and collected through the heat.

Also going to be working on the Special Offer for the HyperNova tier so if you want to be the star of your very own comic, now is your chance! Wanna know more about the special offer? There’s a littl...

Comic time! Summer Style: An Evolution.

YES. The optimal summer outfit that is lightweight and breathable, allows me to eat nachos and store future snacks, has maximum breathability AND ridiculous patterns. WHERE CAN I PURCHASE A SUMMER BAG OTHERWISE I WILL JUST GO INTO PRODUCTION.

I saw a toddler the other day wearing these oversized overall type things and I was like "yes..that but looser and more stupid looking" and felt utterly jealous. This is not the first time I've deeply and sincerely envied a four-year-old's clothes....

Custom Comic coming atcha!

Special offer until the end of August for all Pateons in the HyperNova tier! In addition to all the usual perks, you’ll get a custom comic featuring a funny moment or story provided by YOU! Wanna gift a chuckle to someone who needs a pick me up? Keep the comic-y goodness all you yourself? Your choice! I’ll get the topic or scene from you and create a comic spread of your very own. You can also just say “surprise me” which means you’ll prolly get a dinosaur or something. Just saying....

How do I make comics? AND a special surprise...

I LOVE making comics and using drawing as a way to tell stories! This video is a little peek into my very-much-personal-and-FAR-from-perfect process for making comics to share.

GUESS WHAT?? From now until the end of August, I'm offering a special perk! All of my HyperNova Patrons will get a custom comic of their very own! You can send me a story, share a joke, or just say "surprise me" and I'll create a comic page just for you. Keep it all for yourself or gift your perk to someone who c...

Early look at the July Sketchbox!

Helloooooo beautiful Patrons! Happy July and summer and Canada Day and all that jazz. Wanted to give you folks the first look at the July Sketchbox video before it hits the socials. ALSO we're switching it up this month! I've included a little run down of the materials that came in the box as well as my thoughts. Think like a super janky review-type thing. July's box was all about illustration markers which suited me all to pieces! I'm by no means an expert but I HAVE tried about 32 different...

Happy Canada Day Patrons! Wallpapers are here!

Hello lovely folks! Hope you enjoy the July wallpapers, all based on a little wee story coming your way. It's a little ruminating I was doing about perspective and wanted to find a way to tell you about it in the smallest, simplest form. I hope you enjoy that, along with the Canada Day long weekend if it applies.

You are all a rainbow sunset sky of awesome. Thank you for letting me tell the tiniest of stories in your mailables this month.

Brenda

Lil' perks are in the works!

Sneaky peek at what I'm up to for you this month. Something a little different landing in your mailboxes beautiful patrons and I hope you enjoy it. Little peek before the send out and big love to all of you who make it possible to create.

You're awesome. See you via snail mail soon.

B

Canada Day Long Weekend!

Oooo friends. This collaborationw as so much fun. Leuchtturm is a sketchbook company that I know and love and I use their sketchbooks ALL THE TIME. They got in touch and asked if I wanted to make a Canada Day video for them and I said HECK YEA!

I'm pretty lucky to live in the nation's capital and I sometimes forget how Parliament is basically this giant castle.   Huge thanks to Leuchtturm1917 for sending me these sketchbooks and for making what is by far one of my favourite dr...

Happy Summer in the City!

'Tis the season for festivals here in Ottawa and I am having the loveliest festival season indeed. Enjoy this little chatty video about an engagement I did at Italian Fest this year! The Preston Street BIA were kind enough to invite me out and did I ever have a wonderful time. Little video of the project itself with some commentary on the behind the scenes.

Happy summer you wonderful people. Thank you all for being a huge part of what makes this work possible. You're wonderful.

2019-06-19 14:32:35 +0000 UTC View Post

Comic time! Leo thinks I control the weather.

My precious senior kitty, who’s demands I spend my time meeting, is the dearest in the world to me. So when he seems to think that my range of control extends to the weather, I’m a little flattered. That said, it’s problematic when every time he wants to go outside he acts like I have MALICIOUSLY INFLICTED this bad weather upon him. He can certainly tell someone off, lemme tell ya.

Happy rainy weekend you wonderful patrons! Thank you for giving me the perfect place to s...

Colouring continues!

Oooo Patrons. It is so very cool how one project can lead to another. When I was working on the Living Colouring Book, I had no idea it would lead to so many other fun things. Thanks to that wild and wonderful endeavour, I was invited by the Preston Street BIA to make a giant colouring activity for their festival this weekend and I am so excited. Saturday June 15th and Sunday June 16th I'll be at the overpass on Preston from 4-8pm inviting the public to help me colour in these Little Italy st...