Hutch's Tap Room

My place mat @ Hutch's Tap Room, 1099 University Dr, Dunbar PA.

(This also doubles as Day 16 of The Rots' 31 Day Rotty Halloween Challenge.)

D's Six Pax & Dogz @Ds6Pax

My paper towel @ D's Six Pax & Dogz, 1118 S Braddock Ave, Pittsburgh PA.

(This also doubles as Day 15 of The Rots' 31 Day Rotty Halloween Challenge.)

Day 14 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

Once again with the marker thing. I'd like to think I'm getting a little bit better with them, but that doesn't really feel true.

I'm thinking he's not a happy camper.

Day 13 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

Another one with markers. The red marker turned out to be more pink than red, but I'm thinking it's in support of breast cancer awareness month.

Yep. That's it.

Day 12 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

I decided to try and crush my fear of markers with this one. The fear isn't completely crushed, but I'm learning more every time I use them.

I also did something I don't normally do in Photoshop. After I scanned the page in, I didn't try to get the paper as white as I usually do in other scans. I think it looks just right with an antique-y sort of tone.

Day 11 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

I'm liking how this one turned out, although it started out a little iffy. It originally started as a spider web with a bunch of little spiders, but it was just awful. That's when I started filling it in as bats, and that worked out a whole lot better. You can still see the lines that made the spider web, but I kind of like them in there.

Day 10 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

A spider for today. I think his right eye is a zombie eye, but I can't be sure.

Day 9 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

I drew this little guy this morning in about five or six hours. I think his jack-o-lantern face probably turned out as cute as he is.

Day 8 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

Today's idea was a witch. She was supposed to be doing a Pete Townsend kind of jump with her broom as the guitar, but it kind of looks like she's making a running start to take off.

Whatever works.

Day 7 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

Here's a flying monkey for today. If anybody can tell me what flying monkeys have anything to do with Halloween, I'm listening.

Day 3 of 31 Day Challenge #RottyHalloween

I've challenged myself to draw something for Halloween every day in October, and The Rots' Facebook followers are holding me to it (I hope).

Day 3 kind of made me feel a little naked. When you draw in your sketchbook, it's supposed to be just for you. A place to experiment and let your guard down, knowing nobody else is going to see it and form an opinion.

Here's what I drew in my Moleskine, and it isn't the best thing I've ever done. I drew it with a Pilot Precise V5 marker, so there was no erasing when it wasn't going the way I had planned. But I promised a sketch every day, and this is what happened.

So, yeah. A little naked.

Sketchbook Project Special Edition 2012—Buster #sketchbookproject

I think I've been slacking a little getting these things posted.

Here's another image from my Sketchbook Project Special Edition sketchbook. It's of Buster, who my mom used to call our "Halloween Kitty."

According to legend, he was as evil as he looks here.

Vampire Bats

Scanned directly from my sketchbook, here's a page of bats to celebrate Halloween. I started the page with the idea that I was going to fill the whole thing with bats. I wanted to push myself to come up with as many ideas as I could because I tend to start sketching and get lazy about it way too soon. As you can see, the first ones I drew at the top of the page are nowhere near as good as the ones that showed up on the bottom. (Click the image to see it biggie-sized.)

I'm working on painting a few of these little guys on my iPad. I found a fun new app called Auryn Ink that paints like watercolor. It even has a tilt function that, if you tilt your iPad, it makes the pigment collect in the direction you're tilting. I'm playing around with it to use as the background.

The next page in my sketchbook is all about pumpkins. I've noticed in recent years that pumpkin nummies are a whole lot more numerous than when I was growing up. Pumpkin gobs. Pumpkin cake. Pumpkin muffins. Pumpkin donuts. Pumpkin Spice Latte. Pumpkin soup. Pumpkin rolls. I think all we had when I was little was pumpkin pie. It's too bad this only lasts about two months out of the year. I haven't found a pumpkin nummy yet that I didn't like.

Buster the Great

Here's a new Square Kat for you. His name is Buster, named after an all-black cat my family had while I was growing up. Yes, he had an attitude. He would hide under the open stairs to the basement and wait for anybody who walked down to swat at their ankles through the stairs. And somehow we never cut his claws. In hindsight I suppose that was a mistake on our part.

Buster, to the relief of most everyone involved, isn't with us anymore.

Free bookmarks for your #AllHallowsRead givings

Neil Gaiman has proposed a new tradition of giving scary books to someone you know for Halloween. Buy them new, buy them used or give one of your own. Regift if you must.

Of course, my version is a little more twisted: I borrowed a book from my local library and, after having read it myself, I renewed the borrow and loaned it to a friend. The book was Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

I loved the book, first of all (it was first suggested that I would by somebody else). My library's version was from 1967, so the cover actually was as bad as the link above (the new cover looks much, much better). But the page corners were bad, too. Frighteningly bad. The top corners were damaged from years and years of people folding them down to mark their spot. Over and over. Page after page.

Not good, guys. Maybe a little respect is in order.

Here's my work-around:

1. Download these bookmarks for free
2. Print them out
3. Rip them out along the dotted lines
4. Give them along with your All Hallow's Read scary book giftings

Did I mention they're free?