Up To No Good. Fennec Fox and Barn Owl Illustration- Pencil Drawing

Busy, busy, busy

Being busy is a blessing.  However it leaves me little time to blog.

In works right now:

4 new hellephant illustrations for the hellephant of the month club/ overlapping with one more hellephant nautical nursery illustration.

3 koala illustrations

1 black durgeon trigger fish illustration

Hellephant has a Day, the whimsicle children's book.
...Which is ONE DAY away from being printable cover to cover.
and to top it off, I am going to hand bind 50 hard back copies personally. I can't bear to have these be any thing less than super special snowflake books.

I have a few other jobs in various stages of hold as well. There are also few illustrations I'm itching to get back to.  The wobbegong shark needs to get done for Shark Week.  It'd be sad if he missed it.  I also have some narwhales that need love.

So if you have pre-ordered or custom ordered anything, thank you!  I am gathering speed to finish one awesome project after another. I am also very grateful that you all have invested in my art.  You make my life fantastic.  (Really- I'm dreaming right?)

Featured in another blog!! What are the odds?

Squirrel Creek Creations: Feature of the Day #59: Jewel Rene: Greetings! Nautilus Art Print Today's feature goes to Jewel Rene and her beautiful illustrations. Since she doesn't say much about her...

I've been featured: Creating the Joneses

I feel so loved!  Two of my Hellephant pieces are featured in this article! The author, Erin Kempfert, is very nice and makes some great suggestions about commissioning art.  Check it out!
Creating the Joneses: The Ins and Outs of Commissioning Artists, or, LOO...: It's been a long time since my last update. I know. I'm terrible at keeping up with everything I need to do, so throwing a blog into the mix...

 I finished the ruby throated hummingbird illustration.  I'm going to carry the colors through the other two bird prints in the commission.  

Birds for Kathy's Cottage

These line drawings are for commissioned illustrations for a cottage in Michigan's lower peninsula.  The finished sizes will vary, with the pileated woodpecker being the focal point.

Do you hear wedding bells?

Janee is getting married and ordered this coloring page for the front of her wedding planner.  Her wedding is going to be fantastic!  I know I want to crash it.

Teaser:  It's almost time for the second edition of hellephant coloring pages!  Which hellephant adventures do you want to color?

Northern Spotted Owl Illustration

Here is the finished owl illustration.  I used the same background gradient from nautilus, only in reverse.  A nice flat tree line silhouette helps the owl pop forward in the composition.  

Northern Spotted Owl Pencil Drawing

I saw an article on the redwoods in National Geographic and it featured a lovely spotted owl.  She was so cute I had to sketch her out.

Ribbon Seals Finished Illustration

As the poles melt, we are finding out more than we've ever known about ice seals.  Ribbon seals are only one variety of ice seal. They are usually so remote that studying them in the wild has proved difficult.  With global warming, they are swimming further inland and further south and have even been seen on the northwest coast of the US.  

I've drawn this little family on an iceberg, surrounded by sea and sky.  I like to imagine it's quiet and peaceful when the weather is fair.

The pup could be confused with a harp seal pup, but when as the little pediped gets bigger, distinctive ribbons of white wrap around his rich black brown coat.

Hairy Frog Fish Finished Illustration

I was so engulfed in the Zen of illustration, that I forgot to save an in progress of the the color on these two.  Hairy frog fish move by gulping in water and propelling it out their gills.  They steady themselves with their little fin "feet".  Mostly they remain motionless on the bottom and camouflage perfectly in with coral and sponges.   The wave their lure enticingly and snap up prey with an amazing strike speed.  They will even try to eat fish much larger than themselves.  They change color as they age, going through a wide range of hues in their lifetimes.

Personally, I think their striation brings to mind the lion fish.  I wonder if they are relatives.

Ribbon Seals In Progress

I've been mildly obsessed with these since one was spotted on a dock in the Northwest US last month.  They normally spend their lives at sea and on the ice. I drew them with 4H and 6B pencils, and decided to work the background color first.

Hairy Frog Fish Pencil Drawing

I have a friend in Australia who adores this strange little fish.

You Are Here Spot for Ottawa Park, In Progress

I've scanned the pencil drawing, and finished the background. I just have to color the critters.  They are turtles playing hockey, a possum family flying a kite, a mallard and heron boating and a squirrel and raccoon golfing.

Dascyllus Illustration

I love the lookout fish!  This was easier to work in layers, there are about 9 here.  The coral was tricky, but worth the effort.  The final print will be 11x14 inches and I hope Ellen smiles every time she looks at her fish!

Dascyllus Pencil Drawing

These little beauties are dascyllus.  They are very shy and love to duck behind coral when the paparazzi are hounding them.  Ellen contacted me because she managed to capture these three on film and asked if I could illustrate them for her.  I worked in 4h and Hb pencil and then scanned them in. I'm almost through with the color, and will post the finished illustration shortly.

Opossum Mama Illustration

When a girlfriend was interested in a possum illustration that would represent her and her four young daughters, I couldn't wait to start. It would do double duty as a Valentine's present.
My husband, the banjo master, loves possums. It's a little late, but it's finished!  

Geoduck Illustration

finished geoduck illustration

I was a little worried about taking on a geoduck commission. They looked like sand monster from Star Wars, or the worms from Tremors. They are huge clams that can survive for a century buried in the sand, their siphon or neck to gather nutrients at the surface. 

geoduck illustration in progress

 You do have to admire their defense system though.  Their shells are too small to adequately protect them, so burrowing into the sand is a very effective way to avoid predators.

geoduck pencil drawing

Next, I may have to give them a try at the seafood counter.  They are supposed to be very tasty.

Poison Dart Frog Illustration

In progress shot on the poison dart frogs I posted a week or so ago:

Some detail shots from the finished illustration:

I was really blown away be the wide array of color these come in.  I was also impressed that my nine year old friend Ana, was able to name most of the color combinations when she came to visit.  I can see why poison dart frogs are such a favorite in all age groups despite their deadly nature.  They've certainly earned my respect.

Even More Hellephants

Reverse Raffle This Week!

Valentine's Day is coming and I need all the love. So I am holding my first facebook reverse raffle this Wednesday night starting at 7:00 p.m. Est.

How to enter: 


1. Go to www.jewelrenee.etsy.com and pick out your favorite print. 


2. Copy the web address of that print and post it on my page,http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jewel-Renee. 


On Wednesday, I'll pull all of your names out of my red fedora. 
Last one out, after I have let down everyone else as gently as I can, WINs their chosen print. 

If you've been eyeing a hellephant or even the anglerfish, this is your chance!
Anyone can enter, but only one entry per person please!

Completed Hellephant Pages Gallery

Hellephant fans have some mad coloring skills!  Here are a few pics:

Poison Dart Frog Pencil Drawing

This is the pencil drawing for a custom illustration.  Used a 7H and an HB pencil on vellum finish paper. I'm looking forward to using all my jewel tones to color these deadly beauties.  They may not be fish, but I am definitely happy to look at them behind glass.

More Hellephants

Oh the Places You'll Go.

A few days ago I started a Fiver Gig.  I've been drawing a hellephant coloring page as described by the client and emailing a grayscale Jpg.  Well it's just about the most fun I've ever had.  Here are some of the pages so far. Some are jobs from fiver, some are from peeps on the regretsy forums.