Friday, February 3, 2012

I thought i'd show my first steps in making my post card this week. First I decided on another costume card and found some online to use as motivation. 
I drew the girl with a #2 pencil and took a picture of it with Photo Booth because I was unable to use the scanner at the time. I sent this as email and saved it to my desktop. I uploaded the picture of the drawing to two basic graphic programs because neither do all that I'd like to be able to do. I have to switch back and forth, changing from .png to .jpg and vice versa as I work on the drawing.





LOL! Sorry, could not help it when I saw this staring out at me. It is the drawing uploaded to the graphic programs and it shows the first 'painting' steps using both programs, going back and forth between them. (Despite what I called it, it is NOT scanned.)
This is the postcard after I finished painting the costumed girl and added and manipulated the other three images (from three different sources.)
  Finally, I filled in the background with various cuts and pastes of painted swatches I did pixel by pixel by pixel.  I can only imagine in horror having to fill the whole background in pixel by pixel. Texture or variations in color are  not 'fillable'  in one easy step, to my limited knowledge of both these programs.




The Bookseller finds himself in France and remembers to send his wife a post card with a costume.
The postcard address side was found online, and manipulated to add appropriate postage and cancellation. Hubby then wrote the card. Translation below. Card was then scanned and uploaded.

Wife, (did he really leave out the salutation Dear?)
Paris is like a wonderful dream, very beautiful and interesting. Charming places to buy books.  Picked up First French illustrated edition of the Count of Monte Cristo, 1846, exquisite gold tooled full leather binding. May not make much money on it, but I fell in love with it. Could not resist.
"wish you were here"
Hank
(hmmpff, forgot Love, ?)
OOPS!  my mistake, it is there-Love, Hank

26 comments:

  1. Sounds very complicated Rose! I wish I could use one of those graphic programs, what a wonderful postcard! M mm I can smell that old book!

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  2. Wonderful card, so technical !! Hopefully Hank is just a bit short on words !! He did send a card after all.A xx

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  3. :) This made me smile!
    I can't believe how much effort it takes to make your card. You did wonderful but I'll stick to drawing at my desk! :)

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  4. I LOVE it! So cute!! Where's the punches??? *giggle* Cant wait for the next one! * huggles* =0)

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  5. Lovely combination of images, well worth all your work! M

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  6. Thanks for showing your process. It is a beautiful card, though I think I would be upset with my hubby if he merely addressed my as Wife.

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  7. Such a sweet card. Loving your story...this is so fun!

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  8. wow Rose I love that you showed the stages, i would not have the first clue how to paint in programme. Will Hank be in trouble for missing the 'dear', will his wife notice?

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  9. Great coloured drawing, so complicated to do though, my skills not up to this. Not sure I'd be happy as "wife" with my card this week even though the picture is lovely Hank sounds preoccupied.
    Jen x

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  10. OK my dear friend Rose this is exceptional work - You do amazingly well with these paint programs. And in return for getting you successfully into stickam - I may be requesting lessons on digital colouring!!!

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  11. What a wonderful creation... I am in awe! Love the collection he is building up with those books. I sense a happy wife on his return - even if he did forget the terms of enDEARment!

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  12. Lovely postcard, I like how you have shown the steps if painting.

    Nicki.xxx

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  13. Wow! Incredible!! I'm so glad you showed the steps. I'd never have thought that there would be a grey underpainting for all of her dress.
    The handwriting looks just like my dad's. Thank you...it made me smile and think of him this morning.

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    1. The grey is from the way the 'photo' from IBooth picked up the rather dreary whiite background of the cheap paper I used for the original drawing. Bad lighting, too. At any rate, it came out grey and had to be 'painted' in the graphics program. I should experiment to see if I can avoid the grey!

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  14. Like the insight into how you create the cards :)

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  15. Very informative post this week. Fabulous drawing and resultant card. Hank is a bit of a mcp - he must try a bit harder!

    Janet xx

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  16. Fabulous postcard and drawing....A fun storyline..

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  17. I'm so in awe of all the processes you put together for this card. Pretty incredible and the final result is amazing.

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  18. I admire those who have/use computer skills to create the most wonderful illustrations and drawings. Gosh, I have had a computer for too many years to admit to considering I have only just mastered the copy and paste procedure. I can only rely on india ink and a nib pen. I do like your card this week. Just wonderful. *smiles* Norma

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  19. Ah what did she do to deserve the dropping of the salutation dear?

    your patience paid off she is a fine french maid - gorgeous,

    maybe the maids are distracting him?

    dx

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  20. You lost me with all the digital talk, totally over my head, very clever way of making the card I would have to resort to pen and paper, lovely image, love how it turned out xxx

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  21. Wow!! has she got some Dutch cloggs on I really want to know. It sounds a complicated process to me so well done!

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  22. Wonderful to see your gorgeous girl emerge from a pencil sketch...
    fantastique....much aloha,

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  23. Love the cards and the story Ms Rose!

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