Badger tickling: proceed with caution

So I'm going to start drawing again. I used to draw all the time but I kinda of stopped doing it after I graduated college...that's the thing about art school. When you're done you feel like every creative atom in you is gone, because there was so much forced creativity happening. But! No more! The thing is, I'm definitely out of practice. I need to find my style and my point of view again, and I think the best way to go about getting that back is to find inspiration in other artists. I'm thinking that constantly sketching will open the door for me to begin painting again (particularly with watercolors) and so on. And I'm surrounded by so much beauty all of the time, so, I'm going to get on it. A couple of inspirations to me:

- Igor + Andre : especially the 10 minute sketches. I am really drawn (pun!) to his use of lines and color. And when he uses watercolors as his medium. duh.
- Animal Sleep Stories: These sketches are so much fun. Tons of detail, and definitely very Yellow Submarine-esque. Which I like.
- Hayao Miyazaki, both films and sketches: Easily my favorite animator of all time, Miyazaki will many times sketch out watercolors for storyboarding and concept development and such...and the animation in the actual films is very inspiring also. I love the art. It's beautiful and magical.

Maybe I should pick up a Japanese sumi-e class since I'm here? hmmm. lots to ponder. Also, I have a Tumblr, which I've been updating a lot. Check it out: ceciliajane.tumblr.com

Howl's Moving Castle

So, in these last couple of days before school starts back up, Blake suggested we have a Hayao Miyazaki marathon last night. I fell asleep before we got to it, but when I woke up, rather early, I watched Howl's Moving Castle all the way through for the first time. It's a beautiful movie. I had seen Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke previously, but it's been awhile, so I'd like to see them again. I downloaded about 6 Miyazaki movies, and I'm excited to see My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Nausicaa, Valley of the Wind. I think that even if one doesn't dig Anime/Manga, they will still appreciate the uniqueness and beauty of these movies.

In relation to knitting, there's a group on Ravelry that I belong to for fans of Studio Ghibli/Miyazaki films/art, and there is some cute ass shit that people have created.

Check out Totoro and his cute ass acorns! I love it. I need to make it asap. Maybe I can purchase the pattern from the poster of this image.

Beer Gloves progress! I'm getting through them, although I am feeling rather guilty for knitting something for myself when I still haven't finished Dashing for my brother's christmas gift, although I'm starting to reconsider my gift. I'm thinking he would appreciate a Lucha Libre mask from Son of Stitch N Bitch more, as he actually did ask me for a ski mask, and he has a good sense of humor. Hmm. Maybe I'll start on that today. Anyway, here are my beer gloves in all their woolly beauty:

The color in this photo is far more accurate to what the yarn actually looks like. I love them. Even on my small and chubby little boy hands.

Just as a side note, the needle I have sworn my unding love to since mid summer are the Denise Interchangeables. I wish they were available in smaller sizes, but I don't mind buying a couple of extra circs from KnitPicks in case I want to tackle something like socks. I highly recommend them. Blake got them for me as a gift and they are the most handy things ever. Especially if you are an avid user of the Magic Loop method of knitting (like myself). Seriously.

I am such an animal nerd. The Eukanuba dog show is on, an although I have some reservations on pure bred dog breeding and the like, I really love the dog shows. You see? I'll be a tweedy old lady in no time! Wurrrd.