Live Fashion Illustration with Links of London.
Read MoreFashion Illustration Gif
This month I'm working on a series of evening live-drawing events with Links of London, which leaves my days free to work on some new personal projects. I've been practising with gifs and moving image for a while, so I thought I'd start a collection.
I also took the chance to create something a little more painterly. So I bought myself a new set of watercolours (a much needed upgrade) and got my hands dirty.
Storyboard Illustration for events
A recent commission; I was asked to create a concept illustration for an event's company. They wanted an artwork to use in a pitch, which would visualise the event space.
The brief was to focus on white, classical, Venetian furnishings with fresh flowers, white candles and space for gifting tables.
London Fashion Week - Bloggers Event - Live Drawing
Live fashion illustration at London Fashion Week
Read MoreNew Work - You & Your Wedding Magazine
I'm really pleased to share this new work I did for You & Your Wedding magazine. I was asked to create a series of drawings for their bridal fashion awards supplement.
The supplement included 8 fashion illustrations that I created for them last year, that have been reused, but this year there was an additional 13 illustrations depicting the winners. It's my first commission for architectural drawings and I'm really pleased how they turned out.
Here's some of my favourite illustrations.
You can see the rest of the illustrations here.
I was also pleased to be featured at the front as a contributor to the magazine. A commission of two firsts.
Live Drawing with Folli Follie
Before Christmas, I was invited to do some fashion reportage with the jewellery and accessories brand, Folli Follie. I was in-store providing some quick fashion illustrations for their customers.
Here some fab pictures at the Regent Street event by the wonderful Rob Cartwright.
Willa, x
Photography Illustration Collaboration
Last year, during a quiet period, I made it my mission to try some new things and meet new people through collaborations. One of the biggest challenges for me, was my collab with talented still life photographer, Johanna Parkin and the wonderful florist, Geraldine Casey.
Together we created this lovely series of photographs.
We wanted to create a series of images which would blur between reality and illustration. Hoping that it would be difficult to see what was real and what was not. The illustrations on the vases blend into the paper at the base and back.
The process was quite complicated; trying to get the illustration to line up with the angle of the camera. That was before we even added the flowers!
There was weeks of preparation to create three large panels and paint three vases. I found it quickest and easiest to work wth letraset promakers, which gave a beautiful watercolour texture on the ceramic. Sadly, though, it meant that the vases weren't watertight. They look great in the pictures but are sadly not much use for holding flowers day-to-day.
The day of photoshoot was one of London's warmest days, which meant that the florist had problems of her own, as the flowers misbehaved.
Johanna needs to be a perfectionist. It's amazing what the camera shows up. I've got a new admiration for the amount of work involved in still-life photography.
Sadly, we ended up not using all three pieces, as the third and most complcated piece didn't hang together in the set. Experimenting in this way was a great way of finding your limits.
I love doing collaborations like this, with new people and with interesting projects (especially when it gets me away from my desk and into the real world).
Let me know what you think.
x, Willa
Together we created this lovely series of photographs.
We wanted to create a series of images which would blur between reality and illustration. Hoping that it would be difficult to see what was real and what was not. The illustrations on the vases blend into the paper at the base and back.
The process was quite complicated; trying to get the illustration to line up with the angle of the camera. That was before we even added the flowers!
There was weeks of preparation to create three large panels and paint three vases. I found it quickest and easiest to work wth letraset promakers, which gave a beautiful watercolour texture on the ceramic. Sadly, though, it meant that the vases weren't watertight. They look great in the pictures but are sadly not much use for holding flowers day-to-day.
The day of photoshoot was one of London's warmest days, which meant that the florist had problems of her own, as the flowers misbehaved.
Sadly, we ended up not using all three pieces, as the third and most complcated piece didn't hang together in the set. Experimenting in this way was a great way of finding your limits.
I love doing collaborations like this, with new people and with interesting projects (especially when it gets me away from my desk and into the real world).
Let me know what you think.
x, Willa
2014 Year Round Up
I'm feeling pretty good about 2014. I feel more grounded in my work. While I'm not earning any more than I did last year (one of my goals), I'm happy to have survived conquered my first year of being a full-time illustrator.
My 2014 run-down
I went full-time
I gave up my part-time job in January 2014. It was the worst possible time. January-March is always my slowest period and 2014 was no different. I started the year with no work and a dwindling bank account. Not great, but it's part of being freelance I guess.
It gave me some time to sort out my processes and I worked on some wonderful collaborations.
First my collaboration with Photographer Lorna Milburn and Make Up Artist Sam Norman, where I created the illustrations and head piece for a fashion shoot.
Later, I worked on another photo shoot with the amazing still life photographer, Johanna Parkin
Of course later in the year work started to pick up and by the end of the year, I was back to normal.
Here's some of my favourites:
My first book (illustrated) was launched:
These cute b&w illustrations for Keri Scarves:
This step-by-step of male grooming for Vän Magazine
Food illustrations for Tesco's Online Magazine.
I started an illustrators' meetup in Berlin
I've been travelling backwards and forwards to Berlin for the last year or so, but never enough time to really make friends or get to know anyone. In the summer I officially started a German branch of Yo Illo out there. It's been a great way to get to know people and understand how different the illustration industry is out there.
I did a lot of live drawing events.
This was a huge success for me this year. I was asked to do some live-drawing work for H&M, so I invested in getting some great photographs from the event, which I knew that I could use for promotion. It worked! I worked for H&M, Links of London, Folli Follie, The Grand National and Microsoft to create some great personalised illustrations.
I threw an illustrators' party in London
I had an awesome time at the Yo Illo party. It was a huge amount of work though; it nearly killed me in the process. I could write a whole blog post on that alone.
It's actually pretty difficult to squeeze a whole year into a blog post. I've realised that I need to go back and write separate posts for some of this stuff.
Oh well, January is always pretty quiet anyway :)
x, Willa
My 2014 run-down
I went full-time
I gave up my part-time job in January 2014. It was the worst possible time. January-March is always my slowest period and 2014 was no different. I started the year with no work and a dwindling bank account. Not great, but it's part of being freelance I guess.
It gave me some time to sort out my processes and I worked on some wonderful collaborations.
First my collaboration with Photographer Lorna Milburn and Make Up Artist Sam Norman, where I created the illustrations and head piece for a fashion shoot.
Later, I worked on another photo shoot with the amazing still life photographer, Johanna Parkin
Of course later in the year work started to pick up and by the end of the year, I was back to normal.
Here's some of my favourites:
My first book (illustrated) was launched:
These cute b&w illustrations for Keri Scarves:
These bold fashion illustrations for American Express:
This step-by-step of male grooming for Vän Magazine
Food illustrations for Tesco's Online Magazine.
I started an illustrators' meetup in Berlin
I've been travelling backwards and forwards to Berlin for the last year or so, but never enough time to really make friends or get to know anyone. In the summer I officially started a German branch of Yo Illo out there. It's been a great way to get to know people and understand how different the illustration industry is out there.
I did a lot of live drawing events.
This was a huge success for me this year. I was asked to do some live-drawing work for H&M, so I invested in getting some great photographs from the event, which I knew that I could use for promotion. It worked! I worked for H&M, Links of London, Folli Follie, The Grand National and Microsoft to create some great personalised illustrations.
I threw an illustrators' party in London
I had an awesome time at the Yo Illo party. It was a huge amount of work though; it nearly killed me in the process. I could write a whole blog post on that alone.
It's actually pretty difficult to squeeze a whole year into a blog post. I've realised that I need to go back and write separate posts for some of this stuff.
Oh well, January is always pretty quiet anyway :)
x, Willa
Merry Christmas Everyone
I hope Santa was good to you all.
.
Willa, x
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Willa, x
*Christmas Special* - Personalised Fashion Illustrations available for preorder
A lot of people have asked, so I'm finally doing it!
This Christmas, for one day only, I'll be offering people the chance to purchase their very own live fashion sketch at the unique price of only £25. Perfect as a christmas gift for your fashionista friends, or a little treat for yourself.
To make it even more special, you'll be able to watch your fashion sketch being drawn in real time as part of a Live Drawing Event! I'll be capturing the pictures by tweeting and instagramming, so you can see my process and ask me questions. throughout the day.
This is a special price for this event only. Places will be limited so book early to avoid disappointment. you can pre-order through the depop app here
This Christmas, for one day only, I'll be offering people the chance to purchase their very own live fashion sketch at the unique price of only £25. Perfect as a christmas gift for your fashionista friends, or a little treat for yourself.
To make it even more special, you'll be able to watch your fashion sketch being drawn in real time as part of a Live Drawing Event! I'll be capturing the pictures by tweeting and instagramming, so you can see my process and ask me questions. throughout the day.
This is a special price for this event only. Places will be limited so book early to avoid disappointment. you can pre-order through the depop app here
What you get:
On the 8th December, I'll tweet you, to let you know when your artwork is being created, with a link through to a live stream, where you can watch me creating your artwork in real time.
You'll then recieve a unique, personalised fashion illustration signed and wrapped, posted to your door. The illustrations are created in pencil, ink and watercolour on 300gsm Fabriano watercolour paper. They measure 8’x10’ so will fit into standard frames. A frame is not included.
Artwork will be posted in a hard-backed envelope on Monday 8th December by next-day, signed-for delivery. Please note, that this only guarantees Christmas delivery for those living in Europe, North America and Canada.
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Once you've purchased your illustration on depop, I will contact you and ask you to send me a full length photograph of you (or your friend) wearing a favourite outfit.
Photo guidelines:
- one person per portrait and humans only please!
- a clear, full length picture.
- If you want to be wearing something different, please let me know and I will try to adapt the illustration.
- some clothes work better for illustrations. Black can be a bit boring but textures, prints, sparkles and furs look great.
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I'm really looking forward to the event! If you have any questions let me know.
Willa, x
Live Portraits with The Jockey Club
Another live drawing event! This time with a difference.
I was asked by The Grand National and The Jockey Club to attend a dinner event and create a series of fashion sketches of people as they mingled and during dinner. The sketches were to be portraits of the attendees, each wearing a hat, in ode to a day at the races. Hats were provided by the fabulous Awon Golding and Lizzie McQuade and provided some excellent inspiration and couture shapes for the portraits.
Obviously, I didn’t want to spoil the attendees appetite or make them feel awkward, so I tried to be as inconspicuous as possible. It’s not an easy task to capture 20 portraits over dinner when people are eating and chatting; especially when you’re trying to keep track of who you have/haven’t drawn already. *yikes.
Here's some photographs (with thanks to The Jockey Club) and some of my favourite portraits from the event.
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| my tools |
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| A selection of the beautiful hats on offer |
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| The amazing venue |
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| Drawing secretly in the background |
New Work - Portrait for Stella magazine
Truthfully, this commission was from back in August, but I'm just getting around to showing it.
I was asked to create my smallest ever commission. A teeny tiny portrait for Stella magazine at a miniscule 26mm wide. Despite it's small size, it was no simple task to create a good likeness at this size. I had to use simple, bold lines and strong colour to make it work. A bit different from my normal style.
In fact, the art director, Jason Morris, had contacted me after seeing this ipad drawing on my website. He thought that this style would be ideal for this simple, yet fashionable brief.
So, I set out to create an similar illustration, created with ink and watercolour. And here's what I came up with. Two options. The art director had wanted something straight on, but I felt that the angled head would be more interesting for this graphic piece. I'm pleased that they went with it.
I also created some hand lettering for the article title.
Unfortunately I missed the image being used in the magazine; shame.
x, Willa
I was asked to create my smallest ever commission. A teeny tiny portrait for Stella magazine at a miniscule 26mm wide. Despite it's small size, it was no simple task to create a good likeness at this size. I had to use simple, bold lines and strong colour to make it work. A bit different from my normal style.
In fact, the art director, Jason Morris, had contacted me after seeing this ipad drawing on my website. He thought that this style would be ideal for this simple, yet fashionable brief.
So, I set out to create an similar illustration, created with ink and watercolour. And here's what I came up with. Two options. The art director had wanted something straight on, but I felt that the angled head would be more interesting for this graphic piece. I'm pleased that they went with it.
I also created some hand lettering for the article title.
x, Willa
Live Fashion Illustration with Links of London.
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| Photo from @labelsforlunch instagram Lettering by me. |
Last week I was asked by Links of London and Epiphany to attend a blogger event and create some live fashion illustrations of the bloggers.
As always, it was a great night. The girls were all so lovely and made sure I got plenty of cupcakes to keep me going. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures, but I've shared some of the great pictures from instagram below. Thanks to everyone for your lovely pictures! It's great seeing them being shared and loved.
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Photos from @mintyessence @acidbrights @linksoflondon @laurenella1990 @sabrinachakici |
x, Willa
Talking at London School of Fashion: Fashion Illustration
We chatted about how what kind of portfolio you should get, the importance of networking and the pros and cons of different internships. It was a lovely experience and hope I had some useful advice for the students.
Willa, x
A Holiday in Girona
You may have noticed that I've been a little quiet online recently. That's because I have been catching the last of the summer sun in Spain. A friend was getting married in the Catalonian countryside, so we used the opportunity to see Catalonia, relax, read some books and indulge in some art.
We booked a sweet little Air bnb just outside Girona; a working farm. It was beautiful and peaceful with chickens, ducks, rabbits, cows and not-so-wonderful mosquitoes. We learned our lesson after the first night, and closed the windows before dusk.
It was a great holiday. Here's some of my highlights:
Can Ginebreda's erotic sculpture park
Amazing! Okay, I have to admit that the sculpture was not always my cup of tea, and the artist (Xicu Cabanyes) seemed to have a mixed style, but wow! This massive park sits on top of a forested hill with incredible views and there was noone around. Noone except Xicu and his assistant, who have been working, creating sculpture within this idyllic workshop with his many cats and dogs for 40 years. How he managed to swing this studio space, I don't know.
I dream of a studio like that!
The Dali Triangle
Three tourist spots in Catalonia; Dali's house, Dali's theatre museum and the castle that he gifted his wife. The museum was an amazing building, but not the best collection of his work. plus it was super busy. But, the houses were wonderful! A real insight into Dali's life. I've been reading into the relationship between Dali and his wife Gala - truly interesting
The wedding
Of course! David and Tine hosted the most fabulous weekend. A pinterest worthy wedding in the Catalonian countryside. Think farmhouse, picnics rugs, boutique food vans, cake tables and the most amazing scenery. All topped off with a bit of limbo dancing and early morning dancing in a field. Beautiful!.
We booked a sweet little Air bnb just outside Girona; a working farm. It was beautiful and peaceful with chickens, ducks, rabbits, cows and not-so-wonderful mosquitoes. We learned our lesson after the first night, and closed the windows before dusk.
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| Our Airbnb apartment |
It was a great holiday. Here's some of my highlights:
Can Ginebreda's erotic sculpture park
Amazing! Okay, I have to admit that the sculpture was not always my cup of tea, and the artist (Xicu Cabanyes) seemed to have a mixed style, but wow! This massive park sits on top of a forested hill with incredible views and there was noone around. Noone except Xicu and his assistant, who have been working, creating sculpture within this idyllic workshop with his many cats and dogs for 40 years. How he managed to swing this studio space, I don't know.
I dream of a studio like that!
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| Admiring the sculpture |
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| View from the park |
The Dali Triangle
Three tourist spots in Catalonia; Dali's house, Dali's theatre museum and the castle that he gifted his wife. The museum was an amazing building, but not the best collection of his work. plus it was super busy. But, the houses were wonderful! A real insight into Dali's life. I've been reading into the relationship between Dali and his wife Gala - truly interesting
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| the view from Dali's house |
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| Dali's theatre museum |
Of course! David and Tine hosted the most fabulous weekend. A pinterest worthy wedding in the Catalonian countryside. Think farmhouse, picnics rugs, boutique food vans, cake tables and the most amazing scenery. All topped off with a bit of limbo dancing and early morning dancing in a field. Beautiful!.
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| cutting the cake |
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| Catering from a vintage caravan |
New Work - Food Illustrations for Tesco Magazine.
I’ve recently created some lovely food illustrations for Tesco magazine. They were created quickly to meet their deadlines, but I’m still really pleased with how they turned out.
New Work - Beauty and eye care illustrations for Boots Magazine.
Live Fashion Illustration for H&M Studio AW14 launch
Live Fashion Illustration for H&M Studio launch
Read MoreDigital illustration workshops with Microsoft
Recently, you may have spotted on Instagram and twitter that I have been working with Microsoft to host some drawing workshops. I was teaching people how to draw portraits on the new Surface Pro 3 tablet.Over the two weeks, I went from Nottingham; Birmingham; London; Glasgow; Newcastle; Manchester; Bristol and finishing with two events in London. It was a lot of travel, but I was with a great team and it was a lot of fun.
Drawing on a tablet is a different experience from drawing on paper, and I'm restricted from working in my normal ink and watercolour, but I have developed a slightly different handwriting for digital drawing using thicker lines and solid colours. It's a good way of trying out something different. Scroll down to see some examples of my ipad drawings.
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| Working with Microsoft |
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| Explaining how Photoshop works |
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| My drawing style as a digital tablet drawing |
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| Fashion drawing on an iPad |
Commissioning illustration for social media.
Recently, I've been creating a lot of illustrations for Tesco. I've worked for their paper magazine before, but this time it's different. I've been creating work especially for their social media outlets; Instagram and Twitter (@BeautyatTesco and @TescoFood). It's the first time I've been commissioned for editorial illustrations in this way, and I think it's pretty exciting.
It's reckoned that a tweet with an imbedded image is much more likely to be retweeted. Hurrah! We've always known that a picture tells a thousand words; which in essence solves the issue of only having 140 characters. Plus, illustration is an perfect way of solidifying your companies brand and making it instantly recognisable.
It's great to see that Tesco are taking their social media seriously; creating new and interesting content while supporting the creative industry. Rather than the all-too-often regurgitation of images that have long lost their copyright owners. I really hope it is succesful for Tesco! If it is, then I'm sure more online magazines and blogs will start using illustrators in this way.
Perhaps this is a new arena for illustrators to excel with the demise of the classical publishing industry?
