Paint, Puppies, and a Little Drone Adventure 🎨🐶🚁

Finishing the T Shirts 👕

Last week I finished hand drawing on five T-shirts. This was the first time I have been commissioned to draw directly onto clothing. I have drawn on tote bags as commissions before and I have drawn on clothing for myself, but never for someone else. It was such a fun project.

The shirts are going to UNC graduates, so each one includes a few Chapel Hill favorites. I added the Old Well, local bars, the North Carolina state flower, and of course a little basketball tribute. Each T-shirt was drawn by hand using materials designed to be permanent and then individually ironed so the colors could set and last longer.

New Pet Portraits 🐶🎨

Right now I am in the middle of two pet portrait commissions and having a lot of fun experimenting with new backgrounds. I am starting to drift away from my usual ones and play around with new ideas, colors, and settings to give each furry friend a little more personality.

As for painting the pets themselves, I think I have finally cracked the code on fur. Wavy, curly, scruffy, or straight, it is all starting to feel much more natural. When I first began painting animals I used the tiniest paintbrush imaginable and tried to paint every single strand of fur. It took forever. Now I can grab a more normal sized brush and build the texture much faster while still capturing all the fluffy, messy, adorable details that make each pet unique.

Drone Day in the Studio 🚁

This past week I also got to spend time with more friends from college. From Shanghai to Los Angeles and from wherever they now live around the world, it always feels special when we all cross paths again.

One of my friends came to LA for work and stopped by to visit. Not only did he bring lots of laughter and good times, he also brought a very cool drone. Honestly it felt like the ultimate boy toy because suddenly everyone was gathered around this tiny flying machine completely obsessed with it.

But I get it. When you put on the goggles you essentially become the drone. You are suddenly flying through space like a little fly on the wall. It is wild to see the world from that perspective. I even got some footage of it flying through my studio.

A Mermaid on the Door 🧜‍♀️

Last but not least, the mermaid piece I painted and sealed onto wood for my mom has now become a little piece of public art in Venice.

It is currently nailed onto her front door where it adds a bit of whimsy to the house and to the street. Venice is full of art on fences, walls, street poles, sidewalks, and just about anywhere people can add something creative. Now the mermaid gets to be part of that colorful neighborhood story.

With love and color,

Rosalie