April postcard and wildflowers! (Patreon)

Hello everyone! 

We're back at it again with another postcard post! Haha, postcard post get it because it says post twice haha...ANYWAYS. I tried something different with this month's postcard! Funny story actually, I had actually already drawn a piece before this one, but upon further consideration decided it was better suited as a print than a postcard. As in the characters were too small and would be practically nonexistent in postcard form. SO, I ended up drawing this piece instead and even this one ended up undergoing considerable reconstruction. Take a look at the first draft:

We've come a long way folks.

To talk a bit about this piece, I've been very inspired by vintage colors and advertisements lately. I love the warmth and depth that they have and wanted to infuse some of that charm into this piece. Plus the weather's been warming up lately and it's making me feel incredibly alive and I want that to come through in my work. 

I was actually having trouble with the colors in the beginning because I made everything (the background, midground, and foreground) too saturated. It looked too vivid and modern, as if it were taken with a digital camera. I looked up references for vintage ads and saw that while the colors were saturated, they were also quite muted/dark. For example:

Even in broad daylight, the colors are much darker than you'd expect. The water and especially the sky are actually quite muted in comparison to their real life counterparts. I think that what makes these duller colors work is the saturation of one color, in this case the skin tones. It prevents the background from overpowering the entire piece and helps the people stand out and look rich and sunny. I always try to keep this in mind when balancing colors, which can be difficult because I tend to saturate everything. General rule: want it to stand out? Saturate. Want it to fade into the background? Desaturate. (Restrictions may apply.)

Since California's gotten a lot of rain this year, the wildflowers have been blooming all over the place and it's breathtaking. I want to try planning a visit to some fields soon so I can take in the beauty and sketch. My appreciation for nature's beauty continues to grow and I want to draw plants all the time, so get ready and shout out to all my fellow plant-lovers. <3

$10 patrons who pledge in April will be receiving this piece as a postcard at the end of the month! Keep in mind this is limited edition and will never be printed elsewhere or sold in my store, so if you're interested in a print make sure to change your pledge.

That's it for this post, I hope you all have a good day and stay awesome. :D

Love,

Vicki