what i worked on today while not being lazy

First post of the reboot*, I guess. Basically a little snippet into what I did for homework today (in addition to an English paper, but I doubt anyone would appreciate me sharing that). The assignment was basically to loosely draw a human skull from life, and then build your own face on top of it for a self-portrait, again working from life (well, a mirror). The apparent objective is that by drawing in all the bones, your face should not end up a happy round circular balloon.

I documented the process with a few snapshots for fun. Unfortunately, I did not realize I was taking the pictures from a funky angle until the end. The drawing’s not quite done yet, but I rather like how this 6-part sequence goes. Enjoy.

Oh, and I’m terrible at capturing likenesses. I don’t really look like how my portrait came out in the end… ish.

(*Originally, I wanted to name this post Back from the Dead, but that was just too disgustingly tacky. I’m not a fan of most titles on magazine editorials, and especially NOT the ones with puns/hip double meanings.)

announcing whimsykid 2.0

So I guess this is what you’d call a reboot.

I’d been thinking about why this page died, and how I could never really capture that ZING, for a lack of a better term, that the blogs I enjoy reading have in spades. Flicking back through all the posts I made over the past year, I think it essentially boils down to:

• a lack of focus– despite a few posts I can say I like, I have a lot of half-hearted entries that don’t really do much. I was more posting for the sake of posting, and the mishmash that resulted isn’t very interesting. This is where I really can toss about the old adage “quality not quantity”… I’ve definitely read really short blog posts by others before that were way more awesome and managed to say a lot more than long ramblefests (of which I am the queen).
• a need for more unique topics– I discovered, going back, that the posts with the most positive replies (or hell, just replies in general) were the ones in which I shared things that I made/found/thought instead of just vague lame things like “this is what I’ve been listening to” (although that kind of post can be done well, I just half-assed them)
• I need to write without trying to be all prissy and essay-like– okay, I don’t think any of the writing I’ve done here would be considered thesis-quality, but still, looking back and reading, I was thinking, “This is disgusting. This isn’t me.” I think the problem was I was trying to restrain myself and write more objectively, and thus sound stifled and sadly generic. I might be exaggerating a tad, but still, it’s true.
• I’m just gonna take more photos in general. I like pictures, and I’m sure you do too.

SO.

I’ve felt a new wave of inspiration that’s been making me want to come back to whimsykid. College work is heaping and thus pouring time into this is the perfect way to kill all my brain cells by not having enough sleep time. YES. 

Still working on the content for a few upcoming posts, but stay tuned.

hiatus in the meantime

Hey, can’t believe it’s been about a year since I started this. Anyway, I just moved in and started college so if you don’t hear from me in the next little while, it’s probably because I’m busy with school stuff. Hope everyone’s well, wherever you may be, and this won’t be the last you hear of me, I just might not be around for a while! Take care!

The joy of record stores

I have an addiction to buying music, for some reason, and I’ve fully realized it this summer. It’s rather odd. In an age of free downloading, it doesn’t actually make any sense to want to go out to buy CDs and vinyls… but there’s an odd sense of satisfaction you get from holding the actual album in your hands, and flipping through stacks of records in bins. Fun times. And it’s nice to support local businesses, too.

So go ahead and start looking for independent record stores in your neighbourhood! If you ever find yourself in Vancouver, you should visit Red Cat (pictured above) and Zulu (below).

A bit of the music I’ve been listening to lately:

P.S. I’m debating whether to open an Etsy shop… It’s been a fun idea I’ve always wanted to try. The thing is,  at the moment I’m not positive what I’m going to sell because I’m not sure what people are interesting in buying. I might be working on a batch of earrings again soon, plus I have a stack of mini-prints leftover from when I used to make and sell fantasy art (oh, the days…). I can also do prints/cards of my more recent art, things that have been featured on the blog. It’d be great to hear any feedback on the matter!

Movies/Music/Books

I don’t know if this will be a regular thing, but I though it’d be cool if I did this as a periodical feature. Pretty self-explanatory– discussing the movies, music and books I’ve been enjoying. 

MOVIE

On the Canada day weekend, I happened to watch the very Canadian movie One Week (no, it wasn’t planned purposely to be patriotic). When I first heard the summary of One Week, I was like, “Aw, it’s going to be a cheesy sapfest”. It did have its cheesy moments, but it was also a really cute movie. Not to mention a wholeheartedly Canadian production that actually instilled a bit of patriotism in me (which isn’t always easy– we’re not the most characteristically interesting country, no offense). 

MUSIC

Right now, a sampling of my current roster of songs this summer:

• Beach Boys – Wouldn’t it Be Nice
• The Killers – This River is Wild, For Reasons Unknown
• Bon Jovi – Living on a Prayer, You Give Love a Bad Name
• ABBA – S.O.S.
• Passion Pit – Make Light
• Chad VanGaalen – City of Electric Light
• Metric – Wet Blanket

It’s a strange mix, I know. Quite a bit of old stuff in there. My Killers phase is still going– I’m slightly addicted to the Sam’s Town album– the whole thing– right now for some reason.

Another strange thing is that I’m listening to the radio right now, something I’ve NEVER done at home. Even stranger, this station has played songs I know and enjoy for approx. the last five songs– which is insanely rare.

BOOKS

I don’t know where I first heard of John Green, but I picked up two of his books in the last little while: Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns. 

   

They’re both actually really similar, but I liked Paper Towns more. Green actually does have a nice style– it’s pretty hard to find an author working in the YA category, writing about teenagers, that doesn’t make me want to strangle myself. Or feel dumb. Though not always likeable, his characters are well-developed and interesting, and I enjoyed the informal sense of mystery/adventure in the plots (as in they’re not like, “I’M A DETECTIVE NOVEL! LOOK AT ME, I’M SO CLEVER AND FULL OF PLANTED TWISTS!”). Nice relaxing summer fare that’s slightly dark at the same time.