Let’s Make a Cartoon Character!

Slap slap slap me, I’m so clueless. I really wanted to join the bandwagon of making a cartoon character. But like I said, I’m a na’da!

Enter my nephew (artist partner) YUAN, oh boy, sometimes it’s great to truly rely on kids’ imaginations! Let’s make that often! So please people,let’s CLAP CLAP CLAP for Yuan!!!

This was Yuan’s output from the previous post.  I’m so in love with the dinosaur (which I thought was a dragon so the kid was kinda mad haha)

I asked Yuan to do the character again, this time on a bigger (and more clean) paper. With a promise that I will use his drawing for an animation project! He was amazed that I can make the drawing move so he did my request.

Yuan working. I also asked him to name the character. HMMM what could it be? he kept rejecting my suggestions. Why dislike naming it the same as his? Yuan the dragon dinosaur. What’s wrong with that? haha

And I jumped in to help him color.

Output:

Presenting, Fely and Pete the Phyrosaur. (etymology: Dinosaurs that throw fire!!!) haaayaaaah!!! Fely the mother, Pete the son. cute names Yuan. 🙂

Oh yeah, before I forget, the animation part!!  Well I’m planning to learn that one, but for now… Yuan, here it is *drumrolls:

CLAP CLAP CLAP Miaaaaa!!! 😛

Creativity is contagious. Pass it on! – Albert Einstein

❤ mia

Freedom Sheet for Kids

Mama Mia, I should have thought about this earlier. Had I done so, I could have saved sheets of bond papers — which after all the doodle, scribbles and colors, soon turn to paper airplanes! (*total facepalm moment, their works must be displayed like legit, right?) Well, kids are kids and they play.

So I made a what I called ‘Freedom Sheet‘ for them. On these 90 x 60 cm white sheets, they can do anything they want; color, scribble, doodle, write etc. This is great, I’m assured the kiddos continue to practice drawing, PLUS, they maybe, (just maybe), can’t turn this into airplanes! Wee!

All sorts of kid-friendly art tools are on the table.

This is the first day for the freedom sheet. I told my nephews Andrei and Yuan to make their own ‘cartoon character’. And these are the results:

Yuan

Mighty T-Rex and the castle

Flying Petri and Little Foot under the tree.

Andrei

A Korean Pop Superstar!

Super cute! I love the characters they did. It’s something I cannot do, really. With cartoon character concepts, I absolutely do rely on my nephews’ beautiful imagination.

Surely, the freedom sheet is big for kids and there are more spaces to fill. I’m excited for the final output! And I will still post here, in case the sheet becomes a giant paper airplane! 🙂

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. – Maya Angelou

❤ mia

 

Illustration: I Love Japanese Manga

It’s been awhile. No words to say but ‘I’m happy‘. Writing and drawing are two of my many passions. My soul and every fiber of me are joyful whenever I’m working on projects that synthesize my talents. Projects such as this: Japanese manga/comics. I adore making comic strips ever since (thanks bazooka gums) and illustrations to stories. Until now, amidst the trolls and rolls of adulthood, illustrating never fails to perk me up.  It’s different now ‘coz it’s computer aided. Analog and digital Illustration: I’m both.

Here are the initial story boards :

Did you get even a slight grasp of the story? If so, I can call it a teaser ha-ha. There are more boards to create, edit and finalize to bring this story into a ‘THE END’. For now, let me just say, I’m so thrilled with my initial outputs. It looks like manga! EEEEE!

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. – Elder Uchtdorf

❤ mia

Project: DIY Lego Batman Desk Organizer

Just recycled!! Woo-hoo! As a DIY fan, I’m super happy to accomplish one. And when it’s a recycling project, I’m way much happier . It means one less junk on earth! In today’s project, I recycled ‘plastic water bottles’. Lots of empty bottles, not just in our house but in our community and everywhere! While I can’t collect everything everywhere (yet…I’m trying to figure out how and my excuse to my parents), lemme start in our own backyard.

Back to being a DIY fan, I have tons of tools occupying most of my desk (‘coz they’re all over the space). I have few buckets and they’re very useful. But they look plain and dull. Enter this idea, why not make a new organizer to house my bigger tools (paint brushes, cutter, etc) and  at the same time, a cute fixture on my desk? Currently, I’m adoring Lego Batman Movie. I haven’t seen it but these creatures are cute, of course, it’s the main lead I’m rooting for.

How?

Initial Step:  Decide the height of the organizer. This one is at 5″, almost half the size of the bottle. Since we have Lego Batman as character, mark where his ears are with a black felt tip marker as shown in the photo.

The following steps are easy as shown in the photo below. Mark, Cut-out and then paint.

With white latex / acrylic paint, cover the whole body until opaque. Repeat coating when necessary or as desired.

Once white coat is dry, sketch the character’s feature with a light pencil. Then, start coating with matte black acrylic paint. Let it dry.

Once the first coat is dry, run few strokes of black paint to make it flatter and more black. When everything is set and dry, start completing batman’s features.

On drawing Lego Batman:

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Finished product

Recycling is so fun, right?! This has been the advocacy of this blog. Recycling: From junk to useful and beautiful stuff. This, for me, is the magic of art! I have lots of water bottles and everything recyclables in-stock which means more projects brewing. And there are lots of great ideas on books, people, internet and mine is no different… but being so personal! And that makes this and future projects original. hayaa! 🙂

But wait…

Recycling: From junk to useful and beautiful stuff. This, for me, is the magic of art!

❤ mia

Project with Kids: Pop-Up City

Unbelievable but true! My with the kids almost-daily art sessions now becomes a collaboration. Woohoo! I L.O.V.E it. Working with kids, exchanging ideas, immortalizing it … such a wonderful experience, isn’t it? 

One of the artists I follow MeriCherry, created a beautiful Make Your Own City project. I absolutely adored the activity: simple and kid-friendly process. For sure the nephews will like the project. I told Yuan about the idea — but he has something else in mind. He wants it to be (and he can’t even describe it accurately, so in my translation:) 3D-ish. So I get the idea, kid. Lezdodiz!

Pop Up City

We used (and we love recycling):

• Old file folder
• Card board (scrap cartons)
• Marker
• Scissors
• Crayons
• Glue

How?

On a cardboard, Yuan drew what he sees in a city like tall buildings, houses, cars, trees, even an airplane! Then I cut them out.

TADDDAAAHH!

Thank goodness with the creative ideas of kids. Without ’em, I would have never thought of cute projects as this. They inspire me so much. Their smiles mean a lot to me. We’ll definitely create more. Collaborate. Too legit to quit. hayaaa!

May your choices reflect your hopes not your fears. – Nelson Mandela

* This project is entirely from reused materials, which is the primary advocacy of this blog. We create with this in mind.

❤ mia

Project with Kids: Cartoon Cut-outs

This activity is transpired by our previous art sesh where our little artist Andrei pitched the idea of cartoon cut-outs. Good idea, kid. *clap *clap

In this post, I will show my nephew Yuan doing more cut-outs (he goes home from school earlier, that’s why). He borrowed Andrei’s cut-out as a template. I can truly feel this kid’s inclination to illustration. By himself, he starts tracing and he knows what to do. Although afterwards, he pushes the marker suggesting I continue the drawing (he got frustrated when he thinks his copy is not as good) but I rejected saying it’s best if he be the one to complete his artwork. Instead I gave a little guide/demonstration (showing him proper strokes and some tips on detail observation since he’s copying a model) and assured him he is doing the right way.

The beautiful result is this:

Wow!!! Good job, Yuan! Now, you know how to draw your favorite cartoon! I told my nephew. He was so delighted, he created more! Yeepee! 😀

Yuan’s Output:

These were the kids’ first batch of cut-outs. Reference: Monsuno Figure named Lock.

My model drawing is flanked my Yuan’s drawings. Reference: Optimus Prime / Transformers

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Just when I thought it’s a wrap….we are not over yet. Someone’s lucky to make it to the day’s art sesh.

It’s Nathan!

I did a rough sketch of Optimus Prime and he colored it with crayons. Lovely robot!!

And I almost forgot, all I did in this art sesh was to cut out. That’all. And a bit of teaching. I I discovered kids learn so fast especially when they like what they’re doing and are also independent. But not with the scissors, I never let them (for now).

Hmmm What should we do next? better ask the kids… 🙂

Children must be taught how to think, not what to think. – Margaret Mead

❤ mia

 

Project: My Heartless Valentine Shirt

Let this project give you idea on how I spent my valentine cheers. Hey, Is there a problem? Jeez, I’m married to art, yo… yeah, we’re good, I’m fine. I’m good. Really. *sobs*

Okay, here’s the thing: This was a science project for my cousin. It’s an apron illustrating the digestive system, as you see. I was really fascinated by what I made, I was wearing it almost half a day. Then, I saw people wearing red. I’m like ‘what’s the matter?’. Oh, dude, it’s valentine’s. I think I should create something special or better yet should I wear red? (ugh, please!). When I look myself in the mirror, saw the apron, I said, “this is my valentine’s…. heartless!”. hahahaha 😛  (not to mention, kinda ‘disgusting‘, LOL)

Alright, this is the part I’d say…kidding aside, right?! Okay, kidding aside, I’m in love with life, that’s for sure! No need for man to date, my family is more than enough (here we are with the sentiments blah blah blah!) And my literal heart is with me, beating, healthy. The figurative heart… well , is married with art. Believe me, I’m good. I’m fine. *sobs*

All you need is love but a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt. – Charles M. Schulz

PS: yeah right, true. 🙂