Amanda Kastner⬥StorySeamstress

They Draw and Cook is a fun blog full of recipes that are pictures--er, pictures that are recipes . . . well, something like that! One hundred recipes were chosen to be included in the to-be-published TDAC cookbook, and I was surprised and delighted to find that my recipe illustration will be among them! The illustration is pen and ink with watercolor, and then a bit of digital touch-up on the highlights. (Oh, and the black bean & chicken soup recipe? It's one of our favorites!)

After realizing how many literature - inspired entries I've done recently, I decided that Pride and Prejudice couldn't be left out any longer! I have to admit that the quote is actually from the '95 movie version, so it is not strictly canonical Austen. Oh well. :) Pen & Ink wash     Lydia I should love to go sea-bathing! Mrs Bennet A little sea-bathing would set me up for ever. Mr Bennet And yet I am unmoved.

There was a fearful mess in the room, and piles of unwashed crocks in the kitchen. Nearly every pot and pan he possessed seemed to have been used. We spent the weekend at the lake, and I happened to pick up The Hobbit for the first time in several years. I love the beginning--Bilbo's harried politeness to the uninvited guests and his dismay at the large amounts of washing-up the next morning. But really, what else can you expect when you have a houseful of hungry dwarves over for breakfast? Pencil sketch, digital color

What is a diary? According to Gwendolen, it is . . . I never travel without my diary.  One should always have something sensational to read in the train. --Gwendolen, from The Importance of Being Earnest I started on my thumbnail sketch and was suddenly reminded of this painting by Jean-Honore Fragonard. So, I looked up the image and somewhat modeled my painting's composition and color scheme after "The Reader." I used my trusty faber-castell pens because I was too lazy to get out my dip pen. :) After I painted it, I scanned it in and added a few highlights in Painter--I have a terrible time keeping highlights in watercolors. When I saw this week's word at Illustration Friday , several diary-related quotes (besides the one I decided to illustrate) instantly came to mind:

  Here she is, ready to enjoy the music! I'm quite happy with the instruments and the little girl, but the background might need some help.

  I was inspired by watching my niece as she wandered through a group of tall guys playing bluegrass, bobbing her head to the music. A quick sketch, the pen-and-ink tracing, and now the partially-finished watercolor is sitting on my desk waiting for the final touches.