How I Became An Artist

What I Do and How You Can Do It To!

I've been an artist for nearly 30 years now. In the past few years I've expanded to creating art for greeting cards and t-shirts. On this lens I'll look at what I do and how you can do it as well.

What Is This Lens? Why Should I Read It?

What Is This Lens?

It's a look inside my life as an artist. What I do, why I do it, how I do it, etc, etc, so on and so forth, in the hopes that you might learn something and be better able to create works of art of your own.

Why Should I Read It?

Why Did You Choose To Become An Artist?

I didn't choose art. Art chose me. Being an artist is not something that I consciously choose either to do or not do. It's just something that I find myself doing, without even thinking about it. It's a habit that I often find myself doing. I can, have, and often do, find myself with a drawing nearly finished before I realize I've even picked up a pen at all. Many of my drawings of Etiole and EelKat were done without ever looking at the paper.

Why did I choose to become an artist? I didn't. I don't consider myself to be an artist either. Drawing is just something that I do.

Do You Draw or Paint?

Both.

Though I draw more often than I paint. Drawing is quicker, and supplies are cheaper. I often can not afford to buy new paint, or rather, I'm too cheap to want to be able to afford to buy new paint, depending on how you want to look at it. The price of a box of 96 colors of crayons is the same as one tube of paint. I can do so much more with 96 crayons than one tube of paint, so I end up with the crayons bought and the paint on my "to buy later" list. This is an unfortunate side effect of reading Uncle Scrooge comic books for the last 30 years with a rapid obsession, his stinginess seems to have rubbed off on me.

I also lack patience. I can draw a picture in under 20 minutes. A painting on the other hand, required drying between layers, and drying can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days depending on the type of paint I am using at the time. The end result is I have A LOT of unfinished painting floating around that got put away after the first coat dried, because I had moved on to something else while waiting, and lost interest in finishing the painting. Eventually they all get finished, but sometimes it takes a few years for me to get back to a painting.

If you are asking which is easier? For me? Drawing, because it's what I started out with. Drawing is second nature to me, I do it without thinking about it. I doodle on everything. Open up a book I was reading last week, and you'll find every blank space filled with my scribbles and doodles. Call it an obsessive compulsive habit, but I can't see a blank piece of paper and leave it blank. I have to fill it up with something, anything.

What Training Did You Have?

uhm... none.

I started drawing before I could read and write. I must have been about 2 years old when I started. I do not remember a time that I was not drawing. It was in those early years of practice that I developed what would become the unique style I have today.

During the first ten or so years of my life, I set out to collecting a lot of drawing books, and it was through those drawing books that I got my first start. Many of these children's art instruction books, I still use even today, and would recommend them to anyone of any age who desires to learn to draw.

If you have never drawn anything at all, there is nothing better than the any art books by Ed Emberley. These were among my very first books, and were well used. Used so much if fact that I had to buy multiple copies of several volumes. I still use Ed Emberley's books, as there is nothing better to teach the basic ground rules of drawing.

Sadly of Ed Emberley's some 30 or so books on art instruction, only a handful are still in print today and the out of print volumes are rather hard to find.

I had already written and illustrated my first book at the age of 3, two years before starting school.

My school time was limited to three years, from the time I was 5 to 8 years old. In K-5 I sat through their baby classes bored out of my mind, because I had already been reading and writing for two years, while the rest of the class was still learning their ABCs. I felt so out of place in Kindergarten class, but due to my age, I was not allowed to skip ahead to the higher grades where I should have been. I alleviated my boredom by writing the first rewrite of my book Friends Are Forever, the first volume of The Twighlight Manor Series. The only lessons I took any interest in was art class and theater. At age 9 I did not return to school, opting instead to teach myself via high school and college texts.

My early years were spent doing two things: writing books and illustrating them.

My mom was a seamstress, and at age 6 I sewed my first cloth doll and set out to drawing, designing patterns for, and sewing her wardrobe. At age 12 I drew, designed, and sewed my first "prom-dress" ball gown. At age 14 I enrolled in a college course in fashion design and dressmaking, graduating 2 years later at age 16. From that point on, a large majority of my art career was devoted to fashion and costumes. My goal than was to recreate in complete historical accuracy every costume throughout history. Yes, I know, when I dream big, I dream big.

After completing this course, there was a dramatic change in my both my books and my art. The Twighlight Manor series saw it's first dramatic change into the book it is today, with it's characters now dressed in elaborate costumes which they are famous for.

A year later, at age 17, yet another thing would greatly effect my art career: my Sunday school teacher, was about to become VERY, VERY famous. Brother and Sister Hawkes were among my Sunday School classes' favorite teachers. They were known for teaching their lessons through colorful children's picture books, and using Brother Haweks drawings to bring Bible and Book of Mormon stories to life in a way that no other Sunday school teacher could ever do. All the teenagers hoped that when teachers were chosen, that they would get put into Brother and Sister Hawkes' class. I was one of the lucky ones to end up in their class.

That year, however, their Sunday school classes began to change, as Brother Hawkes took to bringing into class, his huge canvases, and babbled with joy over the fact that his art had finally been accepted by a book publisher and these were the pictures he was about to send in. Our little group, got so over whelmed with canvases and talk of publishing agreements, that we barely had time for Bible studies anymore, and soon we were coming to class with pads of paper and drawing more art than we were memorizing scriptures!

A year and 3 books later Kevin Hawkes was #1 New York Times best sellers list, and winning awards as the best modern day children's book illustrator. Sadly, his career as an artist took him and his family away from Maine, as they moved to be closer to his publisher.

Most of my art training, however, did not come from books or lessons or art teachers, but from my own backyard. I grew up on a farm, in the woods, on a beach in Maine. Most of my childhood was spent in the company of animals and nature. Most of my time spent with animals and nature was spent drawing pictures of animals and nature.

My training and my drawing style is what is known as "Look and Draw". Simply put, I draw what I see. I look at something and put it on paper.

Halloween Witch by Wendy C. Allen magnet

Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals

by: Ed Emberley

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Weslandia

by: Paul Fleischman

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illustrated by Kevin Hawkes

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Which Artists Influanced You?

Well, I would have to say that Kevin Hawkes had the biggest actual impact on my art career, him and his wife being my Sunday school teachers and all. I may not have learned very much about the Bible or the Book of Mormon that year, but I did learn the inside business of book illustration and publishing contracts, as it was the thing we heard talked about the most during class. Kevin Hawkes art is utterly amazing. I am so glad I was able to see the huge original canvases of so many of his paintings, years before the rest of the world saw those same pictures on the pages of books. Though his art is beautiful in the books, it is utterly stunning in actual canvas. However, while his art is beautiful and I learned a great deal of the publishing industry from him, I can not actually say that his art in itself had any effect on my own. His style is completely different from mine.

When I was about 4 years old, I used to watch a show called "Let's Draw". No idea who the artist was, but he, was the one, who got me going. I would eagerly await every episode and follow his instructions without fail, drawing in duplicate everything he drew on the show. Though I have no idea who he was, I'd had to say that the artist who hosted the show "Let's Draw" is the one that influenced my style and techniques the most.

I was about 7 or 8 years old, when I discovered yet another TV artist, one whose show I quickly became addicted too, and who, though he died many years ago now, I still watch the reruns of his show: Bob Ross. Bob Ross intrigued me. I was mesmerized by the fact that he could take a knife and a fan-brush and four tubes of paint, and end up with some of the most amazing mountain vistas and lake views I'd ever seen.

Bob Ross had a huge impact on my style. Oddly though, my style is nothing like his! The problem I had with Bob Ross, was that he was painting in oils, and I had no paints or brushes. I had only my pens and crayons. So, I improvised. I began to watch his show with a rabid obsession, and duplicate all of his paintings, but in pen and crayon instead of oil paint. I was determined to match my drawings to his paintings, and did not let the fact that I was dueling my pen to his brush stop me from trying to recreate his art. I was not about to let the fact that he was using completely different supplies than what I had on hand, stop me from taking his lessons. The end result was, Bob Ross ultimately became my art teacher and the inspiration the set me on the road to being an artist, and my lack of the correct supplies to take his classes, set me on the road to developing a style that was uniquely my own.

The artist who influenced me in my adult years, was one long dead: Charles E. Burchfield. A classic painter of long ago. Well, maybe not so long ago, as he died in the 1960's but still, as great painter whose art is displayed in museums around the world, and sells at auctions for prices in the millions. Charles Burchfield is known for his landscape art, filled with passion and furry. Not your typical landscape artist, his art comes to life with snow storms and destruction, filled with twisted trees, and raging clouds, you can feel the anger of the storm gods as they reek havoc on the earth.

Bob Ross' New Joy of Painting

by: Annette Kowalski, Robert H. Ross

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Charles E. Burchfield: The Sacred Woods

by: Nancy Weekly

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Release Date: 12/31/1969

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When Did You Start Creating Art For Gift Items?

I was about 25 years old, when I bought a book on painting art for greeting cards. I'm not sure why I bought it, it was just there and I saw it there, and bought it. By the end of the week I was drawing my first art designed specifically for greeting cards. Later that month I took to compiling a portfolio to send out to card companies, but never did send it out to any. Instead I went online and started researching card companies and greeting card artists.

In 2003 I founded Copper Cockeral Cards and Gifts and set out to printing up Christmas cards off my desktop printer.

Before I knew it I was in gift shops and book stores and analyzing what other card artists were doing. I began to write up graphs on what types of cards were hot sellers and at what prices they were being sold and what type of locals were buying what type of cards.

I noticed a trend in buying packs of custom cards with art drawings on them, over buying one card at a time mass produced by companies such as Hallmark.

I went back to the internet and did more research, now looking into the art of creating custom cards.

Than in December of 2004, I discovered what I had been looking for: a way to get my art on greeting cards, and than sell them myself: I had found CafePress and the rest is history.

Copper Cockeral Cards & Gifts

Welcome to Copper Cockeral Cards & Gifts' official Squidoo lens. Copper Cockeral Cards and Gifts stocks cards, shirts, gift items, jewelry, and prints featuring original art and photos by Maine native Wendy C. Allen a.k.a. EelKat. It's sister galler...

Painting Greeting Cards in Watercolor

by: Jacqueline Penney

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Release Date: 12/31/1969

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What Equipment Do You Use?

I'm a multi media artist. Meaning that if it's a method used to create art, I probably have tried it already or soon will. On the most extreme levels I have taken to drawing on fabric and "painting" the picture with embroidery.

My fashion design and Twighlight Manor art is done in pen and ink and colored with marker and pencil. These are drawn on 8x11 20lb bright white paper.

My paintings are done in watercolor, gouchae, and acrylics; sometimes in one, but usually a mixture of all three in a single painting. These are done on a wide variety of backings, from copy paper to ragcloth to pastel coloured construction paper to canvas board.

For my nature and pet spot illustrations, which you see on my more popular CafePress and Zazzle items, I use crayon and pastels. These are done usually on 8x11 20lb bright white, 8x11 60lb bright white, or 8x11 60lb pastel coloured papers.

What do I prefer? Depends on what I am drawing and the end result I am trying to achieve.

If you are wondering what specifically I use, brand names, colors, etc., I am building another lens to list those on:

My Art Equipment

With 30 years of art under my belt, I have tried literally hundreds of different materials and art supplies, testing them all, the old and the new, and finding out which are the best, than sticking with the ones that worked the best for me and my sty...

Do You Give Lessons?

Nope.

Well, if you are here, and I am not doing anything, and you bring your own supplies (have a set of markers and crayons or color pencils with you) and you have a couple of hours to sit down and draw, than, yea, sometimes I do give on the spot impromptu art instruction lessons.

My method of teaching art, is to sit down and draw. You can follow along and do what I do or not, your choice. I will slow down my drawing (I'm a bit of a speed draw-er) so you can follow along.

The thing is, I only show others how to do the animals and pet spot illustrations that I do for greeting cards. If you are interested in my fashion design art or my Twighlight Manor book illustrations, than, no. Why? Because drawing humans and humanoids creatures is not something you can do from just watching me. You'll want to do a detailed study of human anatomy and biology first... which I did. You'll also want to take a course in fashion design, remember too, that I took a college course in this. Unlike my animal and nature art, my fashion and Twighlight Manor art, is something that took me several years to learn how to do, and it's not something that you'd be able to pick up from a one hour sitting with me.

I am considering writing a book on how-to draw using my methods, so maybe in the future you'll be able to take lessons from me that way, but for now, your only hope is a chance meeting with me at a local library, should you be there the same time I am.

Here is a book I often refer to:

Colored Pencil Solution Book

by: Janie Gildow, Barbara Newton

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Release Date: 12/31/1969

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Where Do You Get Your Ideas?

I get a lot of my art ideas from things I write. I am after all a writer first and an artist later. I have a lot of hobbies and lead a very busy life. I get my ideas for topics to write about from my life, my hobbies, my jobs, my family, things I do, places I go, etc. Here is a list of the things that inspire me most:

I am a writer. I write books. I write short stories. I started writing in 1978. I have been writing for a very long time. I have a million and one fictional characters running rampant in my brain, begging, no not begging, demanding I write about them. I draw all of my characters, all of their pets, all of their planets and solar systems, all of their cars and space ships, and everything else that is in anyway connected to my characters lives.
Comic books. I love comic books. I own more than 7,000 comic books. I collect comic book memorabilia. I collect autographed comic books from my fave comic book authors and artists. I email most of said authors and artists constantly. I dress up in my daily life as my favorite comic book characters. I am a freelance writer who writes comic book scripts for Danish comic books. Did I mention I love comic books? I esp. love furries. I read about furries, I create furries, I write about furries, and of course I draw furries.
I'm a costumer-fashion designer-Glam-Goth: big hair, bright colors, fishnets, sparkles, sequins, gowns fit for an 1300's princess from France and elaborate kimonos any Japanese demon would envy, capes, hats, frock coats, all that glitters is better than gold, esp if it's purple. I make all of my cloths myself from drawings I created and patterns I made from scratch, a result of having a seamstress for a mother and taking a two year course in Dressmaking and Fashion Design. I draw a lot of fashion illustrations.
I live on a farm. I own and run The Pidgie Fund, a shelter that rescues feral cats and pit-fighter cocks (roosters). My home is currently the home of 13 formally stray no-longer feral cats, and 60+ now tame and peaceful roosters, and one 13 year old dog who loves all his cats and birds. In my lifetime I have owned more than 500 pets, all of those pets have sat for portraits to be drawn or painted. About 90% of the art I sell on CafePress and Zazzle, are pictures of my own pets.
I have a garden. Me and my dog and my cats and my birds all spend hours in the shade of my rose bushes and lilacs and hostas and lilies and orchids. I paint lots of pictures and take lots of photos of my flowers, and these all get sold on my products as well.
I was given my first camera when I was 7 years old. I have had more than 20 different cameras since that time, and several thousand photos to go with them. I have a never ending supply of photos to sell on my products, or to use as ideas to paint more art to sell.

How Long Does It Take You To Complete a Picture?

Depends on what the picture is and what medium I am using.

My fastest drawn pictures are the ones I do of Etiole, which are drawn with a liquid eyeliner pen, and brushed over with a glaze of nail polish and eye shadow. (See the one shown here --->.) These super delicate drawings must be stored in a controlled environment to ensure that the makeup used to draw them does not mold. These from start to finish take less than 10 minutes to draw, mostly because they are pictures of my beloved Etiole, whom I have drawn hundreds of pictures of.

The pet spot illustrations (seen on the buttons and magnets shown throughout this lens) are scribbled out with crayons, and finished with a wash of watercolor, than touched up with magic markers. The whole thing from start to finish takes less than 30 minutes to complete.

Pastel art takes about the same amount of time as crayon art, though it is much messier and leaves greasy stains on my hands and everything I touch, so I use this medium least of all.

The large detailed pictures like EelKat the Black Bobcat and The Twighlight Manor, (both shown earlier on this lens, scroll back up to see them) each took about 3 hours to draw, using only a Pilot razor point pen.

My fashion drawings and most of the Twighlight Manor character drawings, take about 45 minutes to draw and color, longer for the more detailed ones and the ones with multiple characters in the picture. These are drawn in pen and graphite, than colored in with a mixture of color pencil, crayon, gel pen, glitter glue, and magic marker.

My watercolor art is not strictly watercolors, but usually is a color pencil drawing, than traced over in crayon, and finally painted over with a wash of watercolor, and is in effect, actually me drawing a picture on top of another picture, and than painting a third picture on top of that, and thus takes twice as long to complete, averaging 2 or 3 hours per picture. My Purple Irises, Love Flamingos, and Pastel Rooster (all shown on this lens) are all examples of this type of art.

Actual paintings can take up to 3 weeks, because I have to wait for the paint to dry in layers and can not paint the entire picture straight through.

So How Can I Learn To Do Art Like Yours?

I would say that the best way to learn to do the type of art I do, would be to follow the same basic path I took to get where I am today. Granted you can't do everything I have done, and events that happened in my life have effected my art, just as events that have happened in your life will effect your art.

To follow the path I took, I would recommend that you buy the same art books I bought, and than read and study those books, and use them as I did, to teach yourself how to be an artist. Uhm . . . buying ALL the art books I have, may not be something you'd really want to attempt to do though, as I own a private library collection, with more than 10,000 books in it, and about 200 of those books are art books. I have a rather massive collection, and I did sort of throw myself full force into these books and read every bit of text and test out every example of step-by-step drawing and painting instructions AND most importantly, I DID NOT learn to draw and paint over night. It took me 30 years to get to where I am now, and in those 30 years my art style is constantly evolving and changing.

So What Art Instruction Books Would You Recommend?

Oh... lots and lots and lots of them! To many too list here on this lens, so I'm making a separate lens just for that. I have a huge collection of art books, and I'd recommend all of them, cause I use them myself.

On this list, however I am not including EVERYTHING I own, but rather the art instruction books that I used the most and the ones which had the most impact on how I developed my own style, as these are the ones that would be the most important to someone wishing to develop a style similar to mine.

Best Art Instruction Books

These are the books I used to teach myself to draw and paint. I have listed them in the chronological order in which I bought and used these books, from my early years as a small child not yet old enough to read and write, through my teen years, and...

What Is Your Secret To Those Eye-Popping Colors?

A common comment I get about my art, is that the colors seem to pop off the page. It's the first thing anyone ever notices is that I use very bright colors, very unnatural and bright colors. I am constantly asked, what I used to achieve these bright colors. My answer usually sets folks back. They are both stunned and shocked, by the secret to the colors in my art.

My answer: Crayola crayons.

I am never without my Crayola Big Box. Yes, the famous yellow box beloved and coveted by kindergarten children everywhere for it's 96 colors of crayons.

I buy a new Crayola Big Box every year, wither I need a new one or not. All of my drawings and paintings, get touch ups with crayons. Either a layer of crayon goes on first or an outline of crayon is drawn on after, either way, it's the touches of crayon that gives my art the "glow" of color.

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Who Is Your Favorite Art Supplier?

I can answer that with a link straight to their website!

Have You Any Final Advice To Offer?

For anyone just starting out in an art career, or looking to expand their skills as an artist, I would tell them this:

Be original. You are the only you their is in this world. Go ahead and be influenced by the work of others, but ultimately, let your own light shine and create art that is unique to you.
Don't do the same tired old things that everybody has already done. Dare to be different. Dare to try something new. Dare to experiment with new techniques.
Always strive to learn everything you can. Read every art instruction book you can get your hands on, even if it's a type of art you do not do. You'll never know where the best advice you can get will come from.
Don't be afraid to ask for advice. Remember that we all have to start somewhere. Find a fellow artist that lives near by and ask for their feedback. Remember also, that even the best artists, fail in their own eyes. No matter how good you are, you can always learn something new.
Do pick a topic/subject/medium you love. Love your subject and you will love your art. Let the fires of passion burn from your heart to your fingertips and to your paper. Show the world just how much you truly love your subject.
Don't pick a topic/subject/medium that you hate just because you think it will make money. Never sell your soul for money. Your art will suffer for it. If you do not love your subject, your art will not shine in it's best glow.
Find forums for artists and designers, and join them. Read the forums. Join in the discussions. Talk to other artists. Ask for advice. Give advice to others seeking advice. Sometimes the best thing you can do to improve your art skills is just talking with other artists.
Don't give up. No artist became an instant success. Most of the world's most famous artists were not successful until 30 or 40 years AFTER they died! Just keep going and going and never give in no matter how pointless and hopeless it may seem to become. Remember that behind every shadow is a light waiting to be found.
Have fun. Remember that having fun, should be your top priority in being an artist. Art is an expression of the soul. Art should be something you do because you enjoy doing it.
Read the advice on this lens:

Accepting Your Writing Style

I think one of the hardest things for a new writer to do, is to just be themselves. To inspire them, I have reprinted here an article I wrote a few years back. May it inspire you to be yourself and do your own thing. Dare to be different. Dare to b...

My Newest Additions:

Three Flamingos by eelkat

Wading Flamingos by eelkat

Flamingo Sunset by eelkat

Starlight Starbright by Wendy C. Allen by eelkat

Nightmare by eelkat

powered by Zazzle.com

Cock o the Rock by pidgiefund

Eyes of India (lilac) by pidgiefund

Eyes of India (brown) by pidgiefund

powered by Zazzle.com

For Fear of Little Men - VISION D-8 UFO Book Cover by twighlightmanor

Etiole as the Goldeneagle by twighlightmanor

powered by Zazzle.com

Black Widow by TheRabbitHole

Gothic Skull inverted by TheRabbitHole

Gothic Skull pastel black by TheRabbitHole

powered by Zazzle.com

One Last Question: Who Are Your Favorite Artists?

Well that's easy: Keno Don Rosa and Rumiko Takahashi. Any body who knows me, knows I idolize both of them. They are both comic book illustrators. Don Rosa illustrates Disney comics while Rumiko Takahashi illustrates manga.

Here is one of Rumiko Takahashi's drawings --->

I also like Giorgio Cavazzano, Erte, Thierry Mugler, Greg Hildebrant, Brian Froud, Quentin Blake, Charles E. Burchfield, Salvador Dali, M. C. Escher, William Van Horn, Carl Barks, Romano Scarpa, and Claude Monet.

My Two Favorite Artists:

Don Rosa

Disney artist and author. Creator of the wildly popular cult classic: The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck.

Rumiko Takahashi

Rumiko Takahashi is my favorite female author. I love her books. I love the characters she creates. I love the shows and movies based on her books. This is my lens devoted to her.

More Artists I Like:

Claude Monet - Resources for Art Lovers

Claude Monet is famous for his paintings and being a key figure in the development of Impressionism in France and elsewhere. This site provides a comprehensive overview of Monet, his life, his art and his home at Giverny - through links to info...

Giorgio Cavazzano

Artist. Most famous for his work with Super Picsou Geant comics.

M.C. Escher

Maurits Cornelis Escher, one of the world's most famous graphic artists, lived from 1898 to 1972. When Escher was 21 he enrolled in the Haarlem School for Architecture and Decorative Arts. After a week he decided he would rather study graphic art ins...

Charles E. Burchfield

Charles E. Burchfield

Erte & The Golden Age of Hollywood

Before Erte, women were stuck in Victorian Era clothing- corsets, button up boots, voluminous skirts, high neck collars. It took some vision to change that! Erte, a Russian Artist, had a special view of women. The way Erte looked at wome...

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All photos, art, and designs on this page are copyright: EelKat, Wendy C. Allen, The Twighlight Manor Press, and/or Copper Cockeral Cards and Gifts, 1978 -2009.

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HorseAndPony HorseAndPony Mar 9, 2009 @ 8:48 pm | in reply to EelKat

Thank you so much for your reply. We will try to do the same.

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EelKat EelKat Mar 8, 2009 @ 10:57 pm | in reply to HorseAndPony

I do all of my art on 11x8 inch paper or canvas, because that size fits right on a desktop scanner. I use a Lexmark scanner/printer/copier combo to scan my art. I save everything on my computer in JPEG format and at the best quality and largest scale settings. Than I just upload those files to Zazzle, CafePress, Razoo, etc, and put the files on their products, and than list them for sale.

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HorseAndPony HorseAndPony Mar 6, 2009 @ 6:12 pm

We love your art and Bob Ross is one of our favorites. We love to create things, paintings, drawings, crafts and more. Our daughter is very talented at art as well. We also lack the ability to wait for paint to dry, stay in school(we homeschool), pay money for expensive craft supplies (we love our quick crayon and colored pencil drawings), etc.... However, they all end up in a pile on a table or in a frame for a gift. I would love to get some of our creations online. What is the best way to get art work from our tables to our computer? This was a great 5* lens for us. Thanks for the info.

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synajib83 synajib83 Jan 9, 2009 @ 5:09 am

I don't know how to paint but i like beautiful painting.

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d-artist d-artist Dec 18, 2008 @ 7:39 pm

I love your whimsical art...great lens!...5*

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jessicashalyn jessicashalyn Sep 29, 2008 @ 1:54 am

Hi EelKat, beautiful art works of yours. great work. 5* and favourated

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momsherbs momsherbs Aug 28, 2008 @ 2:31 pm

Wow,
Great lens. As a fellow artist I have to mark this lens as a favorite!
5 stars!

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momsherbs momsherbs Aug 28, 2008 @ 2:31 pm

Wow,
Great lens. As a fellow artist I have to mark this lens as a favorite!
5 stars!

Reply

bjbook bjbook Aug 25, 2008 @ 7:35 am

Super lens.
Love the buttons!!
5 stars!

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mrsjordanjr mrsjordanjr Aug 21, 2008 @ 8:02 am

Love your work! It looks like fun too. :D

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blue22d blue22d Jun 21, 2008 @ 7:36 pm

Well, here I am again. Can't stay away. Love your art work. I do a little watercoloring and crochet. Love color. Color is such an mood upper! Great lens here. Thanks.

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spiritartist spiritartist Jun 18, 2008 @ 4:08 pm

I CAN'T BELIEVE THE RANKING OF THIS LENS IS SO LOW! IT'S TRULY A WORK OF ART! HOW DO THEY FIGURE RANKING ANYWAY? I've 5 stared, favorited and lensrolled ya!
Wishing you continued success ~ Sandy

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ddixonart ddixonart May 8, 2008 @ 9:03 pm

Thank you for featuring some of my lenses on your page! I really appreciate it, and I'm so glad you have found them helpful.

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Spook Spook May 5, 2008 @ 6:18 am

I was very impressed,you are very talented and deserve all you get.Best of luck always

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chefkeem chefkeem May 4, 2008 @ 8:45 am

It's great to get to know you better, Wendy. I hope that more lensmasters will follow your example and portrait themselves more openly along with their marvelous lenses. 5*, etc.

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Evelyn_Saenz Evelyn_Saenz May 3, 2008 @ 12:40 pm

What a beautiful lens! 5 stars and Favored!

I just added Keven Hawkes to the pole of the favorite teachers. Thank you for introducing him to me.

Evelyn

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My Bio

I am Wendy C Allen, Doll Maker and Independent Avon Sales Representative.
I love Eels. I love Bobcat. I am a Giant Squid and a Squid Angel.
I am an author and artist who rescues animals & raises Ranchus.
View my page on I Believe.
Are you on FaceBook? Become a fan.
You can find out more about me and my life here: About Me & On Being Homeless
I believe in Faeries, Phookas & Faith Not Religion.
I was a witness to a UFO sighting in Maine.
I am a CosPlayer.
My favorite actor is Vincent Price.
I love reading and writing and spending time with nature.
My favorite author is Keith Laumer and his best book is Retief & the Warlords.
Thanks for visiting my lens.

If I were a month, I would be August.
If I were a day of the week, I would be Friday the 13th.
If I were a time of day, I would be twilight.
If I were a planet, I would be Jupiter.
If I were a sea animal, I would be a giant moray eel.
If I were a direction, I would be East.
If I were a historical figure, I would be ______ ?
If I were a liquid, I would be Moxie.
If I were a bird I would be a turkey vulture.
If I were a cat I would be black.
If I were a dog I would be a Cocker Spaniel.
If I were a tree, I would be a great white pine.
If I were a tool, I would be _______ ?
If I were a flower, I would be a blue flag.
If I were a type of weather, I would be a warm spring day.
If I were an animal, I would be a bobcat.
If I were a season I would be Autumn.
If I were a holiday I would be Halloween.
If I were a color, I would be orange.
If I were an emotion, I would be love.
If I were a sound, I would be laughter.
If I were an element, I would be the water.
If I were a car, I would be a Cadillac.
If I were a food, I would be macaroni and cheese.
If I were a place, I would be Otter Cove.
If I were a body of water I would be the North Atlantic Ocean.
If I were a song I would be "Come Hell or High Water" by Poison.
If I were a book I would be Jane Eyre.
If I were a gemstone I would be a pigeon blood star.
If I were a metal I would be platinum.
If I were a word, I would be unforgettable.
My favorite color is orange.
My second favorite color is blue.
I also like pink.
My favorite city is Old Orchard Beach.
My favorite place to walk is The Ross Forest.
My favorite view is the rocky coast of Maine.
My favorite Disney character is Scrooge McDuck.
My favorite super hero is Darkwing Duck.
My favorite Disney villain is NegaDuck.
My second favorite Disney villain is SteeleBeak.
My favorite super villain is the Joker.
My favorite Disney non-duck character is Tiger.
My favorite trees are white pines.
My favorite flowers are purple iris & blue roses.
My favorite animals are eels & bobcat & roosters & ranchu.
My favorite flavor ice cream is French Vanilla.
My favorite dogs are Cocker Spaniels.
My favorite singer is Serj Tankian.
My favorite musician is Liberace`.
My favorite guitarist is C*C*DeVille.
My favorite food is veggie & rice stir fry.
My favorite pizza is black olive, mushroom, spinach, cheese, dill pickle, & lima bean, with no sauce.
My favorite fruit is grapes.
My favorite place to shop online is Kyoto Antiques.
My favorite non-fiction book is The Self-Publishing Manual by Dan Poynter.
My favorite book is Retief and the Warlords.
My favorite series of books is The Retief Series by Keith Laumer.

Hey, you know what? I sell Avon! I'm an Independent Avon eRepresentative and that means you can buy Avon from me, 24 hours a day, from your computer, from anyplace in the world, and Avon will ship it to you.

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