Restyle! The Letter S

S is for Seal and Starfish

Part of my job in my career as a greeting card designer was to give fresh looks to older designs that still had good bones. It was to give new life or a second wind as well as increase sales. Not unlike rearranging the furniture and painting the walls of one's living room to give it a new spirit.

So while looking at my art on the walls of my tent during art festival season, the older design below became a candidate for a restyle.

While I still carry this version on Fine Art America, I thought to produce another with a different color look.

Now I also offer this cute seal as a cute summer T-shirt.

You can find this cute T-shirt here: https://fineartamerica.com/products/s-is-for-seal-and-starfish-valerie-drake-lesiak-adult-tshirt.html 

Whether a seal fan or the letter S fan, or just love the sea, this seal is a real cutie for all that need a little fun in life. 

Redesign & Update

L is for Lily of the Valley

When participating in art festivals, I often watch and listen to how people respond to my art and selection of illustrated letters. The Letter L for Leaves below became a candidate when I listened to one young mother expressing a wish that it had a lily with the leaves. 

As you can see in my first attempt on illustrating the letter L it is pretty simple. It was my first L in my project of doing an illustrated alphabet. 

A lily? Why not! Why not add lily of the valley! I think it gives it a bit more interest. Now L is not just for leaves, ladybugs, lace and lavender, but lily of the valley as well! Who knows? It will be interesting to see how well it will be received in 2017.

A is for Anteater

A is for Anteater

Between getting ready for income taxes and a presentation that I have to do later this month, I have had little time to have fun illustrating. Finally I got a break! 

So here is my newest letter A!

A is for Alvin,

the Audacious Anteater 

holding  African violets 

with his buddy Alex 

the Ant 

illustrated with a Aqua color look 

of course! 

Chasing Away the January Blues

Reflection of a Promise

Cleveland winters are known to be filled with gray skies and snow. Today is no different. However, it is great down time to start on a few more illustrations. 

Here is my latest, where the picture tells the story. 

Only 69 more days till Spring!

The Christmas Pointsettia

The Christmas Poinsettia

Yes, finally, it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I have not posted here for a while. Missed November completely. I have been going through a few annoyances that have kept me away from creating, as well as kept me in the BLAH zone! Finally, as I am recovering from my second cataract surgery, it looks like I am getting out of the woods to see the lights of Christmas! 

So here with a little Christmas cheer I post here, 

I wish you all...

M E R R Y   C H R I S T M A S !  

I is for Indian

I is for Indian on an Island with an Idea

I think the letter I, although simple in shape, is one of the more difficult letters to design to. Most of the words associated with the letter I tend to be adjectives. Of the nouns, most of them do not lend themselves to the shape of the letter I.

After two other illustrations of the letter I, designing it as an Indian seemed to be my next choice as opposed to an ibex or an iguana. So this Indian who finds himself on an island needs to use his imagination to come up with an illuminating idea; note the incandescent light bulb. 

Yes, maybe I was stretching it there.

 

M is for Mountains and Moon

M is for Mountains & Moon

Every time I do a show, I realize I need to expand my offering in various letters. The Letter M became a new candidate for a new design. The moon was a request from Carol Mason who politely suggested I could add another M to my collection.

So here is the latest letter M with Mountains, Moon, Moose & Maps!

Those maps being one of the stars in the background and the state of Montana in the foreground!

 

The Letter K is for Koala

K is for Koala

I think this K is a Keeper. Who doesn't love a Koala bear. 

PS: He is a lucky one after all, with all those ladybugs to bring him luck!

Signs of Spring!

Hello! 

Blue Bird and Ladybugs

The nicest part of April is hearing the birds sing when I work outside clearing the debris of winter. Who knew such little ones could bring so much joy after winter.

Special Project: Clague Family Tree

Clague Family Tree

This is a break from tradition. 
I was asked by a friend to come in on to a project that relates to a little local history. 

In Westlake, Ohio, there is a little museum called the Clague House Museum that sports the Clague Playhouse in the back of it. Across from it is Clague Park.

So you kind of get with all the name dropping that the Clague family were kind of the pioneers that help established the surrounding area. It was the Clague family that cut down the trees to create the road that is now called Clague Rd.  

As I said, my friend, Betty Franklin, asked me to help on a project which turned out to be illustrating a family tree for the Clague family for the house museum at the request, help, and research of the curator, Lysa Stanton. 

This was a new journey for me. I have never illustrated a family tree before. As I started my sketches, trying to figure out who's who, I realized it was a bit more complicated than I thought. It was easy to get lost on who should go on what limb. But at last, after this evening's approval, here it is.

Side note to those that are interested in the kite and the Latin quote below; these relate to the family's place of origin. The Clague family came from the Isle of Man. 

The "triskelion" or the symbol of the three legs joined at the thigh is on the flag of the Isle of Man. Putting the three legged symbol on a kite was a little bit of creative license, but I later found out that they do a bit of kite flying with the kids at the museum. 

The Latin quote at the bottom is the island's motto translated as "whichever way you throw, it will stand". Upon further research from Wikipedia, I found that the meaning of the motto may have referred to the poor quality of the coinage around the 17th century, which more likely meant "however it is tested it will pass". 

And why an apple tree you might ask? They were farmers that planted orchards and one of their many crops were apples. 

E is for Elk and Eagles

E is for Elk and Eagles

 It has been a long winter, so to escape the gray skies, cold and snow, designing a new letter E with  spring and summer in mind, seems preferable. 

So here is a new letter E for Elk, Eagles, Eggs, along with Emerald Green.

The Letter L is for Lighthouse

L is for Lighthouse 

I have always liked lighthouses. They are a beacon of hope. So suitable for the letter L.

You could add other L words like Lunar and Lake to describe

 this Lovely illustration of this  

 Little Lighthearted Lighthouse.

D is for Duncan the Dragon

The Letter D for Duncan the Dragon

I have been thinking that I needed to add another D to the collection of Alphabet Soup.

This is dedicated to all those who love Dragons and the letter D.

The Letter C for Cat & Canary

C is for Cat, Canary & Cup

I don't know if the C is obvious as the handle on the cup, but I was trying to avoid bending a cat into the shape of the letter C. I wonder how others will receive it. 

Each one of these is a fun exploration design. Of course there is another C word in the design. 

The word Chevron describes the pattern on the cup.

 

Listen to Your Heart

Listen to Your Heart

A good thought to start the new year. 

Happy New Year!

Happy 2015!

Wishing you all a blessed and happy new year!

Tea Cup Wisdom

Tea Cup Wisdom

I've started collecting quotes here and there with the thought that some of them might inspire a design or two.

So here is a little wisdom on a tea cup I'd like to share 

with all of  you. 

 

The Letter W for Watering Cans and Wrens

W is for Watering Cans and Wonderful Wrens

You may have to take a second glance, but can you see the W? 

(Besides what is written on the gift tag) 

Watering Cans, Wrens, and Wild Berries make up this latest W. 

It is filled with a Wealth of good Wishes for any W admirer.

Z is for Zebra!

Z is for Zebra!

I have been in the flow of ideas, but I have to confess a bit tired now. 

When I started this project of illustrated letters some 4 years ago, I first started with the letter Z not knowing where it would take off. It seemed like a good idea to tackle Z again.

I shall name him Zack for a new Z come back.

The Letter V for Vase of Verious Flowers

The Letter V for Vase of Various Flowers

Here is a new addition to my Alphabet Soup of Illustrated Letters

with a new Version of the Letter V. 

I kind of thought that the letter V would make a Very Vibrant Visual of a Vase.

Of course one will need Various Vibrant Flowers to fill it!