Illustration Friday - Crazy "Lush" VMA Incident

Good afternoon everyone!! I felt like creating another "Illustration Friday," post. This week's word was "lush" and I immediately thought of one individual who created an incident that caught the media's eye for the week. So I created this cartoon portrait:

The infamous VMA Miley Cyrus as a cartoon. I used to love Hannah Montana!! I don't completely agree with what Miley is doing with her career at this very moment but at the same time I don't condemn her. The artistic direction of her last video was pretty fun with the bears, twerk soup and McDonalds french fries skull. I say, let her do what she wants to. Hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Illustration Friday - Pink "Power" Ranger Kimberly!!

Hey everyone!! The week has just started but I couldn't resist working on another piece for "Illustration Friday," when I found out the theme was "Power." The first thing that comes to my head when I think power?? Power Rangers of course so I decided to create this little cartoon:

That's right the Pink Ranger, Kimberly!! As girly as I am, believe it or not she wasn't my favorite but my second favorite. In my mind, the Yellow Ranger came in first!! I liked her weapon and dinosaur far more than Kimberly's. But I'm sure I would have given my right arm to be EITHER of them!! Hope everyone is having a great week so far!!

Illustration Friday: "Fresh" & Ready for Class!

Hey everyone!! Hope your week is going really well so far. Can you believe we're already halfway through August?! I decided to participate in this week's "Illustration Friday," theme which was "Fresh." At first I was drawing a complete blank. But thanks to a suggestion of one of my friends I came up with this little doodle:

 
A "fresh" piece of fruit with a super fresh mind ready to get back in school!! Ready to hit the books, he's got his glasses on, and his ruler out ready to learn! The background is the scanned texture of a composition book to match the school theme. I'm contemplating releasing this as a blank card in my shop for educators and students. I hope everyone who goes to school enjoys their last bits of summer freedom. Have a creative day everyone!!

Happy Kool-Aid Days!!

Hey everyone!! This weekend is time for celebration!! Yesterday, today AND tomorrow (Aug 9th - 11th) is "Kool-Aid Days!" If you're unfamilliar with "Kool-Aid," it's a powdered drink mix that comes in all sorts of crazy flavors and colors. It even has it's own mascot appropriately named, the Kool-Aid man. I decided to create an illustration dedicated to that crazy pitcher of sugar himself:

I grew up on Kool-Aid. My parents would make me some as a kid and boy was it a treat! To this day, I will admit though, I don't know how to make my own Kool-Aid. The first time I ever made it I forgot to add the sugar, d'oh!! I also loved the Kool-Aid adverts. Check out this one from the 90s posted on Youtube:

 

RADICAL! Hope everyone has a great weekend and a fun time celebrating!!

One Sweet Mistake!! Octo-cake Illustration!!

Hey everyone!! Just wanted to update the blog with a quick doodle I did. I haven't done an "Illustration Friday" topic in a while but still work on lots of sketches and plenty of doodles. I decided to share a simple piece I made for fun this week.

 Oops look like there was a mix up at the bakery!! Mr. Octopus just wanted to join in on the fun of cupcake baking. Everyone makes little mistakes at their job. Try not to sweat the small stuff today and have a SWEET time doing whatever you do!!

Inspiration Post - Retro Robot Records!!

Hey everyone!! Hope all of you are having a fantastic summer so far. July is already ending which means it's time for our "Inspiration Post!" My blog's chance to choose a theme and 5 accompanying visuals that really jump-start my imagination. It's a great way to get a look into my head as well as encourage your own creative adventures. A nod to BakerBot from my previous post, I chose "Retro Robot Records!!"

Before the age of machines cranking out Dubstep music, robots held profitable careers in OTHER areas of the music industry. Such as posing for album covers for all sorts of artists all over the world. Yes, some of our technologically advanced friends are a bit vain. Why not make a career out of it?? Scroll down to check out the 12 inch by 12 inch canvas that is the vinyl record sleeve possessing tons of robots setting their phasers to "inspire" just for you!!

The Alan Parsons Project - I Robot Album 

image via http://vinyleye.com.au/

Let's start off with the I Robot Album by the Alan Parsons Project. Leave it up to a prog rock band to feature an out of this world cover concept. The sleeve depicts the colorful complicated inner-workings of a gargantuan steel giant. True to it's form, the actual album is set in an age where machines rule over man. I love the bizarre scifi elements such as the transportation tubes. The mix of illustration and nearly photographic artwork gives us a bleak look at our possible future. All hail the robot overlords!

Munich Machine - Get on the Funk Train

image via WaxPoetics site

A robot record in it's purest form, the Munich Machine album lets it's artwork do all the talking. The sleeve features two machines shooting lasers out of their eyes as they rocket into the sky for one funky night! I'm under the impression the robot on the left is a female and the one on the right is her male dance partner. The design of the robots is fantastic. The knobby joints, bright colors and clear accents to display circuitry are phenomenal. Both possess rocket launchers in their bell bottom shaped boots. The yellow robot even has a set of wheels attached to it's soles!!

Bionic Boogie

image via http://www.flickr.com/photos/christianmontone/

Incredibly provocative this fem-bot models for the "BionicBoogie" album cover. If you haven't guessed yet by the satin curtains and groovy font, this is a disco album. And, I admit, she's less of a fem-bot and more of a model. Who seems to be modeling some kind of futuristic listening device complete with headphones and volume control?! Steam rises out of robotic fashionista as the gauge's needle tips dangerously towards the edge. This album cover was TOO bizarre to pass up for the list.

Music Machine - Ktel 

image via Neato Coolville blog

The POSTER CHILD of retro robots stars on this album titled, "Music Machine," by K-Tel. And just as advertised on the front, it even had it's own commercial. Robbie the Robot is the celebrity robot from television series "Lost in Space." The photograph of Robbie rocking out in a deserted field behind a ridiculous stereo system is classic. All the design elements come together in a cheesy way for a winning combo!! The sleeve looks like more of an ad than actual artwork, cramming tons of text as well as bubbles featuring some of the artist you can listen to on this record. I wouldn't have it any other way!

DANCE, DANCE, DANCE - Matthew Laznicka Illustration

Woah check out those robots breaking it down!! I was surprised to find while on my search for retro records that this was not ACTUALLY a record. Nope. Upon closer examination, it's a print by Matthew Laznicka, made to look like a record. With the distressed look and old school fonts I have to admit even I was intially fooled. The art was too fun not to add to this month's post. The color scheme is great, the robots are dynamically illustrated as they dance they dance until the sun comes up!!
 

image via "Junk Shop Juke Box" blog

If you are unfamiliar with the any of the music on the record's from today's post I urge you check them out!! They're all a lot of fun and a refreshing change up from any artists of today. Oh!! And don't forget I keep extra bonus pieces for each "Inspiration Post" on my Pinterest board I dedicated to "Inspiration."  Follow http://pinterest.com/nerdycupcakes/inspirations/ for sneak peak at what's coming for next month's post.  Have a great weekend everyone!!

Illustration Friday - BakerBot Version 2.0

Good morning everyone!! Just wanted to squeeze in my "Illustration Friday," post before the deadline hit!! This week I was pretty excited to create a piece since the topic was "Robots." I love drawing robots. I have drawn so many different kinds during the span of this blog. A concept I frequently play with is a BakerBot:

This latest model of the BakerBot has no time to for fun at the moment. He has to delivery a freshly baked blueberry muffin to a VERY hungry customer!! Maybe in the future we will have bakeries run all by "BakerBots." I can dream!!

To improve on my skills I challenged myself to work on a more dynamic pose for this character. I hope everyone has a super weekend!! 

Laura Cooks: Cooking with Pumpkin (w/ illustrations)

Hey everyone just wanted to update my blog with a pumpkin-themed fun cooking adventure I had. And since this is my illustration blog, I also created a cute little pumpkin character to guide us through each dish!

I LOVE all things pumpkin. I'm a pumpkin addict!! And fall just happens to be my favorite season. Unforunately everyone is still focused on summer and it's just a TAD too early for stores to be carrying their "pumpkin spice" seasonal eats. I decided I'm not waiting until fall. Armed with a can of pumpkin and Pinterest recipes I had all day pumpkin feast!

 

First came breakfast. Even though it's been about a billiondy degrees outside almost daily I decided to start my morning with the "Clean Eating Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal" recipe from "The Gracious Pantry." The recipe only required simple ingredients I already had at home. The oatmeal serves 4 but I'm only one person so I adjusted it back to 1 serving.

Drizzled with maple syrup and topped with chopped pecans, this was such a filling breakfast!! And yes, it looks as good as it tastes!! Next up came my lunch. What could you possibly make for lunch with canned pumpkin?? Two words: grilled cheese.

Mmmm cheese on carbs!! Not the healthiest thing to be stuffing my face with but the ingredients weren't too terrible for you. For instance, the recipe calls for a laughing cow cheese wedge which are very low in calories (and super yummy). And instead of a deli cheese slice I used some vegan cheese made from rice and it tasted just as good.

Bizarre sounding but totally savory!! The pumpkin "filling" was enough for 2 separate sandwiches but I piled it all on one anyway. YOLO my friends. I ate my sandwich with some wheat thins and some applesauce. Mmmm!! Check out the full recipe by user asally04 on the "KeyIngredient" website. And last but not least dinner.

All I needed was one more pumpkin recipe and my pumpkin feast would be complete!! And I definitely had one up my sleeve. "Pumpkin Mac and Cheese" by "Eat. Drink. Love." I can't say no to Mac and Cheese. It took me two attempts to make this. The first attempt I burned myself on the pot of boiling water and spilled the entire pound of curly noodles all over the floor. Yikes!! It just goes to show you accidents happen. We all need to be careful when we cook!!

I'm glad I picked myself up and tried again because this recipe was a unique filling dish!! It calls for not only cheddar cheese but also Gruyere. If you don't feel like buying Gruyere you can use Swiss but I wanted the full Pumpkin Mac and Cheese experience!! It was a great way to end my day. I hope you enjoyed the illustrations. If you're a true pumpkin addict like me, go try out some of the recipes!!

Illustration Friday - Space "Travel" PRINT!

Hey everyone!! Man is it super hot here in Pennsylvania. I hope everyone is staying cool where they live. I have some exciting news to reveal in this post. My Etsy shop, VioletInk, has been re-opened and I am ready to sell some art prints of my illustrations!! The first illustration I added for your purchasing pleasure is "Space Fish," which also happens to work swimmingly with this week's Illustration Friday theme, "travel."

The first Goldfish to ever TRAVEL to outerspace!! Space can't be that different from life underwater. Our little guy glides his fins effortlessly through the stars. I will admit, I did cheat a little. This was an original piece I created back in 2010 but this is first time I am releasing it as a 8x10 print!! If you are interested in checking out my shop or purchasing this particular piece of artwork, just go to http://www.etsy.com/shop/violetink. Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

USA 4th of July 2013 - Wrap Up

Hey everyone!! Just wanted to create a post about one of the Holiday's I celebrated here in the states, Independence Day also known as the "4th of July!" It's all about celebrating America and it's freedoms. I saw a lot of really fun ads on my Facebook feed and wanted to share with you guys some of my favorites. Check them out below:

These two gems were pulled off the "Venture Bros Blog" fanpage on Facebook. The Venture Bros is one of the only things I watch on television and it's highly underated. I couldn't resist sharing these star spangled tributes to America.

The Kraft branding is fairly easy to recognize; unnatural yellowy-orangey color on a royal blue background. They incorporate their product, mac and cheese, cleverly in two patriotic ads. 

These ads featured on the "Kraft Macaroni and Cheese" fanpage, were silly and targeted towards those who already like Kraft Mac and cheese with bold captions such as "You know you love it. Evidently so does Uncle Sam." As an illustrator I also appreciate the fact that these two ads were completely illustrated and still very modern, eye-catching and tantalizing! 

Here's an ad I came across on the "Crayola" fan page!! Crayola crayons are another thing that are pretty easily recognized. What a smart idea to lay their actual product out to create an American flag!! It was accompanied by the caption,"Give a big thumbs up for our forefathers, who made it possible for us to have the freedom to create, imagine and inspire!" The white crayons look a little green to me but I still love  Crayola crayons and this sweet ad.

Here were see the same concept presented with a different product. Cheezit's released this ad on their fanpage to celebrate America!! While I find Crayola's take on the idea sweet I find Cheezit's ad visually more appealing. In fact, it makes me pretty hungry. But if we're going for accuracy points, the stars as well as stripes are misrepresented while Crayola made sure to duplicate the flag to a T!

And last but not least, Hello Kitty added this lady liberty to their fanpage. I love the simplistic art style that is Sanrio. I draw a lot of inspiration from their brand and am a self proclaimed, Hello-Kitty-a-holic! Having the brand's mascot drawn up as a little Statue of Liberty is too cute and very visually striking!! Bravo Sanrio!!

As for me?? I spent Independence relaxing with family and friends at a picnic. I made sure to bring a very patriotic cake along (pictured above) with that was a HUGE hit!! Hope everyone else had a great Holiday and a great weekend!!

Illustration Friday: Unicorn "Protest"

Hey everyone!! Hope your week is starting out well. If not, it's almost over, no worries!! I am trying to stay consistent about my "Illustration Friday," posts and created a piece for this week's theme which was "Protest." The past few topics have been challenging for me since they're less fun and more serious but I still managed to come up with this:

A propaganda poster advertising "Unicorn Rights." Did you know some people do not even BELIEVE that unicorns EXIST?! What a slap in the face!! I am positive if all the unicorns banded together they could form an excellent protest. I wanted to create a powerful and marketable piece to aid in raising awareness of their existence. Fight the power!!

Illustration Friday: "Equality" Wedding Cake

Hey everyone!! Hope everyone had a good week last week!! I had a fun idea for this week's "Illustration Friday." The chosen topic was "Equality." I thought long and hard about what to illustrate that showed my support for marriage equality and came up with a super cute idea below:

An adorable Groom & Groom teddy bear wedding cake! Although I like to have a lot of fun on my blog I always try to emphasize the point of being yourself!! And I'm a strong believer in treating those how you wish to be treated.

This illustration is still cute and I wanted it to symbolize my support for same-sex marriages. I'm thinking about making a Bride & Bride themed illustration as well. We'll see!! Have a great day everyone!

Inspiration Post: Tasteful Teacups!!

Hey everyone!! I know it's a little LATE but I still pulled together a theme of favorite creative pieces to showcase in this month's "Inspiration Post." If you're unfamiliar with the blog, the "Inspiration Post," shows off some crazy imaginative creations that all have one general theme. The theme is personally picked out by me and June's muse of the month was "Tasteful Teacups!!"

Welcome to the tea party!! Being that I am a girl, I did go through a tea party phase with lots of mis-matched little cups filled with "tea" (water) that I would serve to my stuffed animal friends. My imagination has only grown since then and I've come across so many unique teacups and saucers I can't help but continued to be inspired. Whether you prefer handle or no handle, grab yourself a mini cup and scroll down (pinky out) through my collection of tea cup pieces!!

Handmade Stacked Tea Cups bookshelf - WoodCurve Etsy Shop

This piece of furniture is practically viral. I've seen it on a few different websites and blogs and it was even lusted after by recording artist Kerli. A real work of imagination meets functional furniture, this 1 piece bookshelf gives the illusion of a set of 4 teacups unsteadily towering on top of each other. The original design was created by design engineer Scott Blackwell whose Etsy shop is currently on hiatus due to catch up on the demand for his crazy creations.

"A Long Trip to Tea Time" art print - Marisol Spoon on Etsy

I LOVE the creative concept of this print of a young girl balancing a pink tea cup effortlessly a top her head. A task I'm sure I'd never be able to accomplish with the ADDED challenge of a ship sailing carelessly around the tea. The print is created by the husband and wife artist team, "Marisol Spoon." The scalloped edge and gold details of the tea cup and microscopic components of the ship are amazing!! And her extremely long neck and haunting eyes keep this piece unique and memorable. Purchase it on Etsy or see more of Marisol Spoon's pieces at http://marisolspoon.com/

 Bijotti&Ciciotti - "SoSweet Collection" Tea Cup ring

Why stop at  a simple tea cup when you can have an entire tea party on just one ring?? Handmade and on the tiniest of scale, this ring features a half empty tea cup complete with biscuit for dunking. It's sophisticated, dainty and much more traditional than the other takes on teacup pieces in this month's post but definitely worthy to include!! View the detailed listing and other fun jewelry pieces in Bijotti&Ciciotti's Etsy shop!!

Blaue Blume Tea Cup - Undergrowth Designs

Check out this twist on your typical porcelain tea cup!! An ornate heirloom fancy enough for any tea party, this completely original piece is only a fraction of the bizarre creativity that is the "Blaue Blume Tea Service," collection.  A prime example of re-imagining a simple subject matter, the contrast between conventional and elegantly odd make this tea cup special!! All pieces are designed by Tina Tsang and available to purchase on the Undergrowth Designs website.

sweet paul blog - Country Living Tea Time Clock

I'm not entirely sure of the origin of this piece but the concept was too fun to pass up. 12 different tea cups form one amusingly chic timepiece. I'm PRETTY interested in re-creating this sometime as a DIY gift. Supplies? Pick up 12 random tea cups that you fancy at a thrift store, purchase a set of clock hands at a craft store, SUPER strong glue and add a piece of wood to hold it all and VIOLA! Our final inspiration piece for June 2013!

I didn't intentionally grabbed 60% of this month's post off Etsy. I couldn't help myself!! Everyone on there is just so darn creative. I always have a tough time deciding on what pieces to feature so there's always bonus "Tasteful Teacups" over on the Pinterest board I dedicated to "Inspiration."  Follow http://pinterest.com/nerdycupcakes/inspirations/ for sneak peak's at next month's picks and more!! Have a great week everyone!!

Illustration Friday: "Worn" Trunk Murderess

Hey everyone!! Just wanted to post my illustration for this week's "Illustration Friday," post. The chosen theme was "Worn." I took to google and got the definition of "damaged and shabby or very tired." I decided to create a piece depicting, "Winnie Ruth Judd," aka the "Trunk Mudderess":

Ruth Judd was convicted of murdering her two best friends back in the 1930s and placing them in a trunk that she attempted to transport at a train-station to Los Angeles. The entire case as well as what Ruth Judd was put through left her an extremely "worn" woman. Way more macabre than anything I usually create I decided to place newspaper clippings I found online around the illustration as a background.

Happy "Eat Your Vegetables Day!"

For those of you who celebrated Father's Day recently I hope you had a great Holiday!! But did you know the day following Father's Day was ALSO a holiday?? That's right, June 17th is "Eat Your Vegetables Day!"

My favorite vegetables are carrots and celery so I often pack them in my lunches. And I can always enjoy a hearty wrap or sandwich stuffed with spinach and other yummy greens. But as a kid I HATED the darn things!! To celebrate I created this illustration of vegetables cowers in the corner before their imminent slaughter. Hope everyone has a great week!

Illustration Friday: "Sweet" Ballerina

Hey everyone!! I nearly ran out of time to do an illustration Friday post but the challenge word was WAYY too tempting for me to pass up this week!! This week's theme was "Sweet." I love cupcakes, candy, sprinkles, sugar just EVERYTHING sweet. I wanted to combine all my favorite sweets into one piece so I created this illustration:

A SWEET little candy girl with peppermint stick arms and legs, a donut tutu, chocolate frosted hair, gumdrop torso complete with a cherry on top!! She's dancing a ballet routine on an equally sweet pink frosted cupcake. Mmmm!! I'm really happy with how it turned out, with what little time I had from start to finish. Hope everyone has a super weekend :)

Inspiration Post - Retro Space Astronauts

Hey everyone!! Every month I collect and showcase pieces I find online that I hope will inspire you to CREATE something great for what I like to call the "Inspiration Post." As busy as this month was, I ALWAYS find time to stay inspired. For May, I found myself constantly being pulled to all things space. This month's post is dedicated to "Retro Space Astronauts!!"

3-2-1 blast off (to the past that is)!! Space travel, anti-gravity, pets suited up in astronaut apparel, space camp?! When it came to the future, with a little imagination the possibilities always seemed endless. These aren't boring schematics from rocket ships, or museum quality photographs of the planets. These are imaginative and fun retro space travelers with unstoppable imaginations. Journey with these brave soldiers by scrolling down!!

Puffin Biscuits ad posted on Dying For Chocolate Blog

Is it weird that I have been a fan of this ad for many many years?! In fact it was one of my first desktop wallpapers on the PC I am currently writing this post from. "Puffin Biscuits," presents us with an atmosphere of flying buttermilk biscuits. The little boy in the ad dons an astronaut's helmet while the little girl looks on with wonder. Is he really an astronaut? Probably not but the imagination that went into this ad is admirable and the artwork is excellent. Those Puffin biscuits look good enough to eat!!

Explore the Universe poster by Moustafa Khamis on Behance

I originally came across this piece on Pinterest and it took me a bit to track down the original artist. Created by Moustafa Khamis, a designer and artist from Abu Dhabi on Behance, this poster is included in a set called, "Posters of a New Century." Although designed more recently, this as well as the other posters in the series have a very retro feel. With a simple color palette, distressed textured paper and clean layout this poster's friendly illustrated astronaut welcomes you to join NASA and see the universe!! I'm in!

Space Cat by Ruthven Todd - Image on The Toasted Scimitar blog

Not ashamed to say that I own this book. Yes, I am, in fact, ancient. I think it was something my library gave away when I was in elementary school. An original inspiration I absorbed into my brain as a young lady, it fondly continues to spark my imagination to this day! The first book in a series of feline space journeys, the book tells the story of Flyball, a cat who is rocketed into an outer-space adventure. Why can't they make more kids book like this anymore?!

1985 Astronaut Barbie - "Barbie Works" VOGUE UK Blogpost

I love Barbie. If you think she isn't a proper role-model for young girls, I think you are wrong. The woman was in space (and still looked stylish doing it). This photograph of the 1985 astronaut Barbie was grabbed off of VOGUE UK's blogpost titled "Barbie Works," by Lauren Milligan. In a hot-pink space suit complete with fish-bowl helmet and futuristic poofy-sleeves, Barbie looks perfectly content and ready to claim that planet in the name of Mattel! This girly and sleek re-imagined space suit is something I would definitely don myself!!

Collier's Magazine April 18, 1953 issue - image via PaulMalon on Flickr

And last but not least, an authentic piece of nostalgic space history, the April 18, 1953 issue of "Collier's" magazine. This was the piece that was the main influence behind this post and one of the first pieces I came across this month that really inspired me."Collier's Weekly," was an American magazine that roughly ran from 1888 to 1957. If you search for "Collier's Magazine Cover" you will be bombarded with brilliantly illustrated works of art similar to our space cadet above. This cover has it all!! A top-of-the-line ray gun, a crazy "space helmet," and a brave space traveler in awe at an alien species.  

That's it for this month's "Inspiration Post!!" If you're looking for MORE creative retro space travelers be sure to check out the Pinterest board I have dedicated to "Inspiration." The inspiration board always has extra pieces for each month's theme. What are you waiting for?! Rocket over to http://pinterest.com/nerdycupcakes/inspirations/ to check it out!! Have a great week everyone!!