@amberwingart sounds cool, thanks for sharing!

Thanks everyone! I already stopped working on this piece, but I might finish it just so it doesn't bother me that it is incomplete. I I love all of your input!

@Suzy-Heitz Thank you Suzy - i like how yours turned out too!

Thanks @Russ-Van-Dine, I appreciate the positive words, glad you like it! I'm going to see if I can do this style with a more complex/full page piece next time....

Thanks @lmrush! Certainly looking to grow a bit more!

@Lee-White : Congratulations, Aaron!

@Lee-White wow, I am so stoked and honored to have you critique my work. This really got the wheels turning in my head, because I was convinced that drawing a character model that was somewhat true to form when it comes to body proportions was impossible to then work into a more free inking style ala Quentin Blake and yourself, hence, why my inking merely stayed on track with the character design as well as my painting. What you did above really answered a huge dilemma I was having these past two weeks, which was how to incorporate all of the rules I was learning in the courses, yet still have the freedom that allows me to break rules wherever I want.

As for my painting: I totally understand what you are saying about painting in a fluid way. Prior to learning watercolor, I was using those really good markers (idk the name atm) and I felt like I was super fluid with those, but when I went to watercolor, I noticed that though I start out with the goal of painting very freely I end up tightening up out of fear of drenching the paper, as well as covering up a white area that I cannot recover. So I keep telling mhself that it is something that will come with time, and is why I am painting every day. This weekend I am going to shadow your luminous knight video, and paint along with it. I think that will really help me get a feel for what you are saying. I will post the results in this thread.

Thanks again for the help!!! I am a big fan, so it means a lot.

@JajaJulie thank you! You all are very encouraging. I looked at it so much that I wasn't seeing anything nice about it at all anymore. Thank you for the help!

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My entry for this month...

@Lee-White thank you!!!!! I can't tell you how hard it has been to figure that out. You're the man!

@smceccarelli though Lee is correct, your input also answered another big question for me. Thanks for being so active on these boards.

I wanted to share something I learned on a you tube video years ago. It cleans brushes I would otherwise throw away. Murphy's oil soap and water- I use half half, I was amazed!!!! I started taping the brushes to the rim of the glass as to not bend the bristles on the bottom of the container. I have done this with oil and acrylic and even house hold wall paint brushes. I usually just soak overnight. Really rough brushes you may need to soak a few days! The old paint just slips off. And the brushes are like new= Best trick I have ever come across in painting! Happy painting!

First off, thank you all for the help and critiques. Your input was invaluable.

There are a few things I want to touch up but I have officially run out of time. I had a 3D project unexpectedly land on my plate today so I wanted to finish the night off with completing what I have. Let me know what you think.
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Unfortunately advertising is an expensive part of doing business. I think I spent around $8000 in the first year on postcards (that's an estimate). Postage being the biggest expense. Still, in an age where everyone wants to send an emailer because it's free, you will stand out if you send tangible promos like postcards, etc.

The expense is the other reason you need to be DAMN SURE YOU ARE READY. If you aren't already getting lots of attention for you work, it might be too early. Signs you are ready are:

you are winning contests people are sharing your work A LOT on social media you are being asked for interviews, shows, etc you are being asked to do actual work for clients clients are recommending you to other clients your instructors are saying that you are ready and encouraging you to start advertising.

If these things aren't happening, you may want to wait until they are. This is exactly what we are going to be going over in the portfolio class that starts in January.

Hello all - Here are the submission instructions for this month's Third Thursday - Wednesday is actually the 14th and i'm sure that is when we should submit - good luck everyone 🙂

Submission:
Images must be submitted before 12:00 noon EST on Wednesday, Sep. 15, 2016

Images should not be larger than 2000 pixels in the long dimension

Images must be sent to svslearninfo@gmail.com for consideration

LABEL YOUR JPEG WITH YOUR NAME (ex: jennySmith.jpg)

In the email please include your Instagram and Twitter username (we want to tag the winners)

@lydia, you didn't come across as putting any job down😊 I just commented about being a Barrista cos you mentioned it!! I chose it over teaching, 'cos it allows me mental and time to pursue my goals!!!All good.

I watch them without drawing. I have trouble focusing on anything else while drawing or painting, probably due to my lack of experience. But I enjoy watching them after dinner in the conservatory on my pad or phone. I usually watch for an hour or so at a time 🙂

Final cleanup and has been submitted. Looking forward to seeing everyone else's finished pieces.
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Thank you all for you comments. I really appreciate it. I always get to a point in my pieces that I know they are not quite finished but I just don't know what to do next, so thank you for your input.

I really like this perspective better! Nice job Natiwata. I tried to imagine different angles while still making ht story obvious, this is a great skill set you have.