Reflecting on the Crunchy

Welp! I can add another notch to my Artist Alley experience with Crunchyroll Expo. In short – my sales were fair, but I had a lot of fun as I did with the year I was doing Fanime. I met some fabulous artists – even some I’ve been following ’round the interwebs – so I had some slight star-struck moments.

Why yes, we ARE artists!

Though my friend and were a bit  more prepared setup-wise, we did still feel like amateurs. Because – WOW, if you’ve been to any Artist Alley, you know there are some impressive displays! But this time, we had a good stock on variety and I thought our table looked pretty good.

The fun part.

Oh, a bit of this and a bit of that…

The crowd itself seemed a bit more mellow than I expected, but perhaps that can be attributed to this being the first con from Crunchyroll. That did give my tablemate/pal and I some time to peruse the rest of the convention.

Not shown: Me doing a Skyrim merchant impression

The Exhibitor’s hall was cool, but I was absolutely more impressed with Artist Alley! It was a very humbling, but also learning experience – I’d chat with a few of the fellow artists, get some tips on printing, supplies, setup, and just generally praise their work because holy cow…there are just some AMAZING pieces out there!

This being my third tabling experience – I’m still ever a rookie learning the ropes. Do I want to do this again? Absolutely.

But until my next table, I’ll continue to improve my work and hope to keep in touch with the fellow artists I’ve met!

No, THIS is the fun part. Taking EVERYTHING down. Sigh…

If you weren’t able to come say hi at Crunchyroll Expo, I’m always on Twitter and Instagram!

Water You Waiting For?

I’ve made a vow. A difficult vow.

A vow I’ll likely break the next time I step into an art supply store.

Dammit.

I vowed to only use the art supplies I already have…and RESIST *cries* giving in to temptation should I step into a Michael’s..or Flax…or peruse on the Blick’s site…

Which leads me to the set of watercolors I’ve, sometimes, put aside in favor of my markers. For the past few weeks I’ve come back to them and even bought a new watercolor pad.

Used a coupon at Michael’s. A justified purchase.

OK that didn’t count – I NEEDED that pad to use my watercolors!

Also – during the past two weeks, a pal and I gave ourselves themes to work on for our future art table adventures. So it was killing two birds with one stone for me.

A few weeks ago – we made ourselves draw Pokemon. Easy enough? Eh…a bit of a challenge when it’s something I don’t normally draw. But it was good practice all the same!

The cute route is a family-friendly route, right?

Week after – a Studio Ghibli/Miyazaki week – because…face it, those characters are forever.

When in doubt…TOTORO.

Chibi Totoro: NOPE

I want to say I’m improving, and I think I am. All I can say, it’s just fun. I like to think of this set of watercolors as having an unlimited palette of water-based markers.

Of course – my only gripe is the bit of waiting in between laying down color to dry. Otherwise – I love the blending and layering.

Next: Ren Eboshi

The Good: I’m putting mileage on this watercolor set. I’m seeing some improvements – aka – I’m a bit more patient between color applications.

The Bad: It’s got me looking at watercolor supplies which I…don’t…don’t…need! But WANT!

Is there a watercolor set or brand you favor?

Follow along my watercoloring adventures on my Twitter and Instagram!

 

Fanime’d

Hey folks! I can finally come up for air here!

If you’ve seen me around Twitter and Instagram – I obviously haven’t been inactive. Along with my Daily Doodles, I was scrambling to get stuff together for…wait for it…my first con!

Of COURSE you need a Gold Bikini Kylo sticker!

We’re gonna need a bigger display to show off our awesomeness.

And what better opportunity to dip my feet in the crazy waters of Artist Alley-dom than at Fanime a few weeks back!

Our booth babes

“That commissioned Sailor Mars. It belongs to ME.”

In all – I had a blast. I definitely had so much fun engaging with folks who stopped by  to talk about things we love to geek over as well as the stuff I was selling. My friend and fellow artist who I shared the table with, not only is she amazingly talented, but she was a ton of fun to hang out with. It was particularly cool to watch her work on commissions – her work is awesome! Though it was her second Fanime, it was a learning experience for both of us. We DEFINITELY want to do this again next year.

Some may call this junk, me, I call them treasures.

Just passing the time.

I’ve also learned a lot from the fellow artists from neighboring tables – tips on what’s best to sell, best ways to make items, and how to make your table look super cool. We’re going to up our game, for sure!

Who knows – I may find myself at another Artist Alley table sooner than next year. Now…to start churning out some buttons…

If you’re interested in what I’ve sold at Fanime- I’ve put together a few cute packages of sketch card prints and stickers on my Etsy. Come by and check them out!

Pushing Plushies

Remember those little plushies I’ve been taking everywhere with me like an overgrown kid?

The eyeliner’s in there. And now, you’ll buy it for me.

Does that look like a muffin to you, MATT?!

Welp, now I’m sharing the love- on my own Etsy page!

It’s something I’ve always wanted to do – to make cute, geeky crafts and, if others enjoy them – they can take them home too! They’re hand-stitched and made to order – so each one is special.

The pocket-sized plushes currently available are unmasked Kylo Ren and his alter-ego Matt The Radar Technician. Head on over and take a look – and…if you like any of them, bring them home – AND – take them with you on your everyday adventures!

They’re portable, adorable, and photogenic – if there’s one thing these pocket-sized guys love is to have their pics taken.

Come on by my shop and check up often – I plan to add other types of plushies, sketch cards, and other wonderfully nerdy things!

I talk a lot about these things on my Twitter. Come chat with me!

Art that gets me wet (sorta)

I want to talk about my on and off again relationship with my watercolor set.

It’s not you, it’s me.

We had our awkward moments. Then I thought we were getting serious.

Then markers came in so…we decided to take a “break”

Then we kind of ran into each other and did some catching up.

I don’t know. This is getting complicated. One day, it feels like, yeah…this is the ONE.

And then we don’t talk to each other for days.

We are still talking about watercolors, right?

Man, I love this set. I don’t use it as much s I’d love to – I’m getting there. Seeing other artists out there using watercolors for their manga-esque pieces really inspired me to pull out the set more often.

Water you wading for?

Sounds cheesy, but it really is like having an entire set of water-based markers….with all the fun of mixing and watering down to get that color you need.

Snow White with a cosmetically-challenged apple.

I learn the hard way – very often- that watercolor is something that requires patience. A LOT of patience. I love the layering of tones – but waiting a bit for the previous layer to dry can get me antsy. Being too impatient just results in blotchy bleeding and me drowning my sorrows in an entire bag of Cheetos.

 

“Please draw me a dreamy handsome companion soon!”

Still, though, I love the results. They’re particularly fun to use when making greeting cards and ATC (artist trading cards). Probably because I like to work on smaller surfaces!

MAOW!

“You, me, and some Ferelden stew. What do you say?”

If you’re curious about this particular set – it’s called the Sakura Koi Pocket Field Sketch Box. It’s crazy handy and, for people who like to have their stuff strewn about like me – cleanup is hardly cleanup.

Did I mention TRADE? I DID, didn’t I? If you’re interested in a trade of art things, come chat with me!