There’s a new doodle coming to the shop soon… in keeping with my goal of creating more designs that appeal to boys, this 12″ x 48″ banner can be personalized with your child’s name. Of course, there’s no saying your Matchbox-car-obsessed daughter wouldn’t love this as well.  In fact, the inspiration for this doodle came from one of my kid’s favorite toys:

I thought I had a solid concept for this one, but after a few hours I lost steam, so it’s technically unfinished. I’m not feeling it. I think, perhaps, my approach was too literal. Oh well, maybe it will come together later.

Just a quick note to say there are some new, modern birth announcement designs up in the shop!

My entry for this week’s Illustration Friday–sometimes, love is brave. I know, I know, it’s sentimental, but that’s why I enjoy children’s art. It allows me to tap into my sweet and sappy side, guilt-free! This happy pair will soon be available as a print-a-doodle in the shop.

You may have noticed a “new arrival” in the Calobee Doodles shop: birth announcements!

I started thinking about this when I had my daughter and was looking for birth announcements myself. I found several cute cards online, but to be honest, the prices were outrageous. I realized that, even in my postpartum haze, I could easily design something just as cute (and have it printed for much less!)

So, I came up with this, and I liked it enough that I thought others might be looking for attractive, affordable designs, too. I made a mental note to try my hand at some templates when I was slightly less frazzled by new motherhood. Hey, it only took a year.

There are currently three designs to choose from in three different colorways. I’ll be adding more as I go, so if there’s a particular style of design you’d like to see, let me know! I’m also available to do custom party invitations, wedding or engagement announcements, and I may add some designs for those in the future, too.

It’s that time again! I’ll admit this one isn’t particularly inspired, but March is not exactly an inspired month in Maine. It’s rainy. It’s gray. It’s not particularly warm when you factor in 40 mph winds. I’ll have something more exciting to offer come April, I’m sure. Until then, here you go:

One popular custom request is scenes or portraits drawn from photos. Rachel of Koukla Mou Designs asked for a custom doodle based on a photo of her sitting in front of a pretty water landscape.  These doodles are somewhat challenging for me because I’m obviously not a “realistic” illustrator, but I like to stay true to the original while maintaining my style. Rachel’s portrait came out really well, and working on it inspired me to try my hand at another landscape–more on that one later!

New to the shop: Print-a-Doodles!  Printable illustrations you can use for scrapbooking, buttons, magnets, party invitations, wall art, and more.

This is my first foray into selling digital products (that aren’t custom) and something of an experiment. I’ve purchased a few printable products on Etsy before with great success, so I thought, “Why not try downloadable doodles?”

I’ll be adding more of these to the newly minted Print-a-Doodles section of the shop over the next few days!

This is my first entry to Illustration Friday. *blushes and waves tentatively* I’ve watched TGIF from afar for a while now, but when I saw this week’s theme, “perspective,” I thought my favorite “sea” print was perfect:

Looking down on their world as they look up at yours.

Next week I’ll try my hand at something brand spankin’ new.

Soon to be added to the shop: this sweet numbers and fruits poster!

It took me longer than you’d think to decide which fruits would stay and which ones wouldn’t. I wanted a good color balance and a variety of shapes and sizes. Fruits that I doodled but did not make the cut: starfruit, grapefruit, pomegranate, raspberries and coconut!