Monday Bunday: Layered Look

I've been learning how to work in layers using my graphics tablet and Corel Painter.

In this instance, I took a photo of Cadbury and added a new layer where I colored over the fur using the digital watercolor tool. Then in another layer, I added a background, and in a third layer, I colored in his eye using the artist felt tip tool. When I was done, I went back to the original photo and deleted that layer.

The advantage of working in layers, besides being able to essentially trace your image, is that you can erase anything that isn't working. Colors don't get muddy when you stray outside the lines. Mistakes are more easily corrected.

It's also easier to be lazy. Paint over the bunny when you do the background! Who cares? You can always erase later.

In fact, the most enjoyable thing about using the graphics tablet is that one's mistakes aren't recorded for eternity in a sketch book or consigned to the landfill. A few clicks of the mouse, and it's gone forever. No waste.

So, lots of artistic fun is going on here at the House of Cadbury. I hope everyone else is having a fine time as well.

Sunday Wrap-up and Recipe Share

This has been a particularly productive weekend for me.

My Saturday run was very nice—we’ve had some cooler (by our standards) weather lately and for the first time since May, I ended a long run without being thoroughly soaked. Although it’s true that I learned to run in a Houston summer and can gauge my effort by how much sweat I wring out of my clothes, that doesn’t mean I don’t greet cooler weather with joy. But September is still summer for all intents and purposes, so the weather should be up to its old tricks by next weekend if Hurricane Ike doesn’t come here.

I have some new art project ideas so I went to Michael’s today to stock up on craft supplies. Although I wasn’t surprised by how high my total came to, it is interesting how quickly all those $3 and $4 items add up. It doesn’t help that I’m more likely to buy too much than too little, for fear I’ll get halfway into something and realize I don’t have what I need to continue. I’d rather spend $20 I didn’t need to than spend an hour or more of my time going back for that one thing I didn’t get. Sadly, there is every likelihood I’ll have to go back anyway since I'm new at this particular type of project and don't know what to anticipate, but that’s just how things go.

I’ll have more to say about my art project as time goes on. There might be a giveaway involved, if all goes well. For now, I'm still experimenting.

I tried a new recipe today and it’s a good one. Check out these Black-Eyed Pea Cakes. When I made them as directed I found them too wet to work into patties so I added extra breadcrumbs and some of Bag Lady’s dehydrated spinach. My next misadventure was trying to fry them, per the instructions. In spite of generous amounts of olive oil, they stuck to the pan, so I ended up baking these about 15 minutes at 450 degrees. Putting them on the broiler would’ve worked, too. I skipped the adobo sauce and instead I topped them with chipotle cheddar. The result was so delicious that Dan insisted on trying one, then ate the whole thing even though he had just finished a big lunch. He ate another one tonight and is pestering me for more. It looks like I’ll have no choice but to make more if I want to enjoy any myself!

I also made oatmeal cookies, Persian spiced rice and curry zucchini and broccoli. I have some leftovers from other meals in the fridge, so this ought to get me through the week and if not, it only takes five minutes to make a batch of couscous.

I have two new short stories up this weekend. Ordinary Miracles is part of the Will and Diana series, and The Beauty Queen is a Steal Tomorrow Extra. Check them out if you’ve got time.

And in bunny news, Cadbury did his first out-of-cage flop tonight under my chair by my feet. I wasn’t able to get a picture of it, so this picture of him under the computer chair will have to do.














I know he looks sweet but he's now in the corner trying to relocate the litterbox and chew fringe onto the sides. I have serious misgivings about his decorating ideas but there's no stopping him once he has a notion.

Have a good week, everyone!

(Bunny) Life Imitates Art

On my trips to Vermont I fell in love with local folk artist Warren Kimble's rabbit paintings, since those fat white bunnies look so much like my own little fatso here at home!

The above print is in Tidbit's feeding corner, so she can be reminded of her overfed condition and reflect on how much better she has things here than when I found her at the shelter a few years ago, a bony little thing weighing only four pounds!

And here's the perp today:


















Looking well-fed and innocent, as usual.

See the resemblance?