Postcards: Uranium Tan

Back to collaging!  This is a good example of me choosing some text and image I am 90% sure will work together, and then slowly selecting additional elements in an attempt to bring it all together.

The initial text is from an ad about ladies drinking beer after golfing.  The lady is from an ad for UV bulbs.

This hand is from ad about how great nuclear power is.  I didn't realize that was a theme for a while, but there was definitely a time for "hey guys, have you heard of nuclear power?  It's pretty great."

Another chunk of that fallout shelter diagram, as seen in previous cards.

Postcards: Bamboozled

I disapprove of most everything.  Damn fool kids, always on my lawn.  So it was to Carley's surprise and delight that I fell in love with bamboozlin dogs.  I didn't see it coming either, but look at this guy.

That's amazing.  And thus I set out to learn how to draw disguised pugs.

Postcards: Heirlooms

We have a shelf with... stuff on it.  It's maybe 50% heirlooms.  Maybe 30%.  Enough that I think of it as the heirloom shelf.  I acquired some new stuff at the last family reunion, and was inspired to have a go at drawing it.  And a nail.  The nail is one of those not-an-heirloom objects that is part of the inspiration-objects Venn Diagram.  Look, you can see the composition works better with the nail.

The nail might not be super exciting, just a nail that I may make into a ring someday, depending on my supernatural fighting needs, but the medallion is an inherited item.  I haven't been able to figure out anything about it, other than there are similar medallions out there.

See?  Similar design, but not the same.  A little research aside for you.

The knife is an award for the Pitney Bowes Sales Leadership Club of 1965.  Had I heard of Pitney Bowes before receiving this knife?  No, no I had not.  But they were a company my grandpa must've worked for in 1965.

The CTA token was just one of those random objects in a jewelry drawer, like buttons and safety pins, but I liked the look of it.

There are so many enamel owl pins in the world, I have uncovered nothing of use about this one.

I found someone in DC was once selling a pair of earrings like this one, but that's all I've been able to find.  They didn't even post any useful details.

Postcards: Athena

I struggle with precision.  Tiny details.  Those sorts of fiddly things.  So this was a challenge for me.  I set out to copy Athena by Erté.

Postcards: The Four Roads

This is Gemma Gary's Seals of the Four Roads.

My friend Erin posted it on Instagram as an image she loved.  I had asked her to do some research for me, and thought recreating the feel of the piece would be a good Thank You.  You can see the original composition is four independent circular elements arranged in a square.  Not ideal for a 4x6 piece of watercolor paper.  Time to make it my own!  When in doubt, put a key on it.

The books behind the cards are the sources I used for my Serpent, Hare, Toad, and Crow.

Then I just looked for a way to tie it all together.

Postcard: I'm Glad You're Here

Maggie drew this during a delightful lunch we had together, and then gave it to me to color.