drawing

MHAW18

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Angela Porter20180515

Today I give the second of my anti-stigma talks for Time to Change Wales.  Today, it’s just a couple of miles down the road from me.

I was tired yesterday after my talk; not physically tired, emotionally tired, and I still feel a little so this morning.

I started drawing this before I went off yesterday, did some more work on it last night and finished it this morning.

Art really helps soothe my emotions and helps me find that place of calm, contentment and balance.

That’s my #tuesdaytip.  Find something you can lose yourself in, that brings you peace and calm and contentment and a break from the stresses, worries, problems of life. It’s all about self-care. For me it’s art or making music, sometimes taking a walk, and mindfulness meditation. For others it could be gardening, baking, woodturning, swimming, cycling, or any one of a myriad activities that bring peace and contentment.

Mental Health Awareness Week 2018

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Angela Porter mhaw18 14 May 2018

This year, in my role as a champion for Time to Change Wales, I’m giving (at the moment!) four anti-stigma talks to various organisations this week.

The aim of the Time to Change Wales campaign is to help to bring about an end to the stigma and discrimination that surrounds mental health.  In my anti-stigma talk, I talk about the campaign and tell my own story of my mental health issues.

It’s not a secret, I have complex post-traumatic stress disorder (cptsd) that has resulted from constant trauma from emotional neglect, emotional and mental abuse from a very young age and that persisted throughout my life until the past two or three years.

EMDR therapy with a fabulous therapist is really helping me and my mental health is so much better than it used to be.

If I help just one person through my talks, then it’s a worthwhile exercise.

For myself, it’s helping me to ‘own’ my own story and to not minimise the effect the traumas of my life have had on me, on the way I think about myself, about how I behave to avoid triggers or more trauma, and to begin to live a healthier more rewarding life.

Art is not only how I make a living now, but it is also my therapy, my way of helping myself when I’m anxious or depressed or stressed. It helps me to find my balance again, even if temporarily.

Sunday, sunday

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Angela Porter 13 May 2018Another floral wreath card, hand drawn on watercolour paper, coloured using the Spectrum Noir Sparkle pens with a water-brush.  I added some Gold Sakura Gellyroll highlights, as well as some sparkly crystals in red, amber, and two shades of green.

Not my usual kind of colour combination, and I’m not at all sure I’m happy with it.

The design would make a pretty bujo spread or month cover, just enough space in the middle for a title.

Trying to find those #weekendvibes.

A floral wreath card

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Angela Porter 12 May 2018 watermarked

Saturday morning and I do my best to settle into a creative mode, and this is the result.  A pretty, floral wreath, drawn on watercolour paper with copic multiliner sp pens.

It’s been a hard couple of weeks and being creative has been difficult for me.  I’m beginning to settle after the upheavals that have occurred, but it’s taking a while. I will get there, and being able to draw this, and colour it, shows I’m starting to settle. I am doing my best to find those weekend vibes.

The watercolour paper is 5″x 5″ and has been mounted on a 6″ x 6″ square side.

 

Shine

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Angela Porter 25 april 2019 small

Phew, this took some doing…

I tried four or five times to create this quote illustration using traditional media this morning.  I failed each time; they just weren’t right at all. I’m still really anxious/stressed from the debacle of a car breakdown at the weekend.  Once my stress hormones are elevated, it takes a goodly while for them to leach away.  It takes a good while for this to happen as I’m much more susceptible to being startled or becoming even more anxious.  I know from past experience that eventually things will return to a less stressful level.

So, in frustration, I turned to my trusted trinity of Surface book, surface pen and Autodesk Sketchbook Pro and created this one.

I’m learning how to set up pens in Sketchbook pro, and finally have one that mimics a roundhand nib. My hand-lettering is still a bit wonky, but I finally have something I like.

The background was made using traditional media by myself – distress inks on mixed media paper, scanned in to the ‘puter so I can make use of them.

Drawing on the surface is almost like drawing on paper, but without the eraser mess.

I do need to create more backgrounds for me to use now I’ve got my head around doing that.

I chose this piece of wisdom for #wednesdaywisdom because it is relevant to myself at the moment and the healing I’m going through in my EMDR therapy. I’m sure, however, that it is relevant to many, many people.

On another note, it’s #wipwednesday over in the Angela Porter’s Coloring Book Fans facebook group. I keep saying it, but they’re a lovely bunch of people, friendly, supportive and appreciative of each other.  Why not pop along, join up and say hello?

Also, don’t forget A Dangle A Day is available for preorder  as is Eerie Entangled Art.

Wednesday Wisdom

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Angela Porter 18 April 2018

What does research mean for you?

For me, it’s trying out new materials, new methods, new styles of drawing, colouring, lettering, using my art in different ways, most recently that includes Bullet Journals (BuJo) and these little quote illustrations.

It’s looking at how other artists and illustrators work and letting what I see spark creativity in me, not to copy them, but to inspire myself to broaden my artistic ‘vocabulary’, to try those new things that develop my skills, to still do things in my own way but adding techniques to my toolbox of artistic expression.

This quote is also a work in progress, I’ve yet to work out what to do with the entangled drawing at the bottom – to leave it as it is in plain black, to add shading, to add colour.  At the moment I don’t know what to do with it, but I suspect it will come to me eventually.

Talking of work in progress wednesday, it’s the day the members over at the facebook group ‘Angela Porter’s Coloring Book Fans’ share their wip’s.  Why not pop along and join in? They’re lovely people, very friendly.

Sunday funday

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experiment 8april 2018 angela porter It’s Sunday, so that means it must be #fundaySunday #Sundayfunday.

This was my bit of fun for the day.  I created a background using Distress Inks, a mini-blending tool and a stencil.

After scanning it into my Microsoft Surface Book, I imported it into AutodeskSketchbook Pro and started to draw entangled patterns on the top of it.

It was just an experiment to see how it worked out, including the use of colour gradient fills for the entangled patterns.

I think it worked out ok.  I think there’s some more things I’d like to try out using this method; scanning backgrounds and then working on them digitally opens a new world of possibilities for me, as well as keeping me playing with more traditional media.  I do love the mix of the old with the new.

Of course, drawing on my Surface with the Surface pen is a lot like drawing with pen and ink on paper but with more possibilities…

It’s Friday!

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Angela Porter 6 April 2018 colouredFriday means it’s #dangleday, #freebiefriday #fridayfreebie and #furbabyfriday all over the web!

I’ve designed the dangle to the left for #dangleday.  I will also be putting an uncoloured version of it on my facebookpage – Angela Porter Illustrator – for you to download and colour for free.  So that makes it a #fridayfreebie.  It’s also great for getting into that #weekendvibes going – nothing like a bit of creativity to relax you after a busy week.

I’ve left the banner blank so you can add your own message.

Perfect for a bullet journal (BuJo) cover page.  Lovely turned into a greetings card.

Make sure you print it out to the size you need; the image is sized to fit on an A5 BuJo page, but it will print out cleanly to A4 (US letter) sized paper.

All I ask is that you don’t share the uncoloured image, but feel free to share the coloured image stating where you got it from. Also, the template is not for resale either in it’s uncoloured or coloured form; it’s for personal use only, though you can give the finished project away as a gift if you wish.

I’d love to see how you use the template, so please share on my facebook page.  You can also tag me on Instagram as @angelaporterillustrator or on Twitter as @wyrdsmithing.  On facebook you can tag me either as #angelaporter.

Don’t forget, my new book ‘A Dangle A Day’ is available to preorder.

It’s also #furbabyfriday over on the facebook group Angela Porter’s Coloring Book Fans, and I love to see everyone’s furbabies!  I don’t know if I’ll manage to get my very camera shy kitty to allow me to snap a pic of him…

 

 

Dream Big

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Angela Porter Dream Big Dangle 4 April 2018

Today’s small dangle design.  Lots of shimmer and sparkle on this one, though it’s not photographed all that well, mounted on a 5″x7″ card blank.

Let me know if you’d like to see a printable digital download of the design available in my Etsy shop, Artwyrd.

A Dangle A Day, my upcoming book, is available for pre-order now.

Dangle Design

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Angela Porter 20180331_01 coloured small

The quote on this dangle design is rather appropriate at the moment and reflects a number of recent conversations I’ve had with people about art and other things.

I know I have a LOT of practicing to do with my hand lettering; I’m not all that happy with it in this design at all.  Well, the words ‘novice’ and ‘master’ are fine, it’s the other wordage. But the more you practice, the more you do, the better you get.  So, it’s a work in progress with me (something else that the BuJo will help with.)

I drew this with a Sakura Pigma Micron PN pen on paper, scanned it in to my Microsoft Surface Book and then coloured it in Autodesk Sketchbook Pro.

Want to learn how to create your own dangle designs?  My upcoming tutorial book ‘A Dangle A Day’ is available for preorder now!

On a slightly different note, a new colouring template will be available exclusively in the Angela Porter’s Coloring Book Fans facebook group, a lovely, friendly group of people!