Blog of Sandro Pereira

Sonic the Hedgehog Icons available for download!

2013-03-11T18:22:00.000Z

Hi, everyone!

I'm just dropping by to let you know that the Sonic the Hedgehog Icons pack is now up for download on my deviantart.com page, here.

Since I didn't have the time to create a proper preview picture (or I'd risk delaying the release even more), here's a picture with all the icons included in the pack:

I hope you enjoy them!

Sonic Icons delay

2013-02-27T21:08:00.001Z

You may have noticed that I still haven't released the Sonic Icons, despite promising to release them soon after the last post.

Unfortunately, I've had to delay the release due to some important projects I have going on, at the moment. There's a couple of icons missing and I haven't even thought about the preview picture (can't release without one), so I'll wait until I have some time to work on those. I'll try not to take too long!

Announcing the Sonic the Hedgehog Icons pack!

2013-02-09T16:55:00.000Z

Here it is, the "thing" I wasn't planning on doing, but ended up doing anyway: the Sonic the Hedgehog Icons pack!

Like I wrote last time, this was something that, on paper, made a lot of sense: most of you probably know me as the Super Mario Icons-guy, but as much as I love the Mario games, I'm a much bigger Sonic fan, having grown playing the 16-bit hedgehog classics and loving them to death.

So why did it this long for this icon pack to happen? Well, the truth is that, as harsh as this may sound, the Sonic universe is simply not as iconic as Mario's. If you think about it, every item, character, enemy, power-up in the Mario games is incredibly iconic, simple, and instantly recognizable, even in smaller sizes. I bet almost everyone could draw a Goomba from memory alone. And a Super Mushroom. And a Question Block. And several other items/enemies/power-up/etc. Even as a Sonic fan, I don't think I could even name one Sonic enemy, let alone draw it from memory.

So, what does this mean? It means that I don't believe the Sonic Icons pack will ever have as many icons as the Super Mario one, but I still hope you'll enjoy them!

The good news, for me, is that SEGA doesn't release as much artwork as Nintendo, which means that I have a bit more artistic freedom when it comes to creating the icons. I'm super happy with the results, so far, and hope you'll like them too!

Anyway, the Sonic the Hedgehog Icons pack will be available soon on my DeviantArt page, containing about 20 icons, with more to come at a later time!

Guess what!

2013-01-29T11:22:00.000Z

Well, this is awkward...

2013-01-23T22:39:00.000Z

I was just writing a nice post explaining why I wasn't gonna work on a particular project I had had in mind for a long time, but when I started to work on some pictures to illustrate my point, I had so much fun that I changed my mind.

Silly me.

I'll have something more to tell (and/or show) you in a week. I think at least some of you will enjoy this, so stay tuned!

New (new) look!

2013-01-14T17:38:00.001Z

New version of the site up and ready to go (for the most part, at least)!

I’m starting to think that I spend more time updating the looks on this site than actually posting content on it. Hm.

Anyway, I thought I’d make it look a bit more like my recently-announced new portfolio page, so here it is. Other than the visual revamp, the only thing different about it is the fact that I’m now calling it a “blog.” Why is that? I really have no idea. Maybe it’s just a way to downplay the perpetually-outdated gallery and shift focus to the portfolio thingie. Yeah... that sounds about right.

I’m still trying to figure out whether to keep or get rid of the gallery. I like the idea of having a sort of artwork archive, containing all the stuff I’ve worked on since forever, but the thought of having to update it with all the stuff that is still missing gives me a headache. Gah!

Also, the fact that I’m a very reserved person means that I don’t really like talking about stuff in public, which makes having a blog a silly idea. So yeah. Again, I’ll try to find some interesting things to show you or tell you about, but the number of posts won’t increase dramatically. Sorry about that!

Thanks for reading, take care!

New portfolio page!

2013-01-11T14:46:00.001Z

Hey, it's been a while!

I'm just dropping by today to tell you about my new portfolio page. I'm still tweaking a few details here and there, and there is still some work missing, but it's completely operational, so feel free to take a look!

This time, I'm using cargocollective.com as a host, and the experience has been fantastic. There are tons of ready-made, fully customizable layouts available, with tons of options to make the most out of your portfolio. As someone who doesn't know much about coding, I can tell you that this was a godsend!

I have a couple invites to send, so if you're interested in checking the site out, drop me an email! In the meantime, check my new portfolio in the following link:

iOS Icons

2012-04-29T23:00:00.000+01:00

As promised: new icons!

I've recently and unexpectedly got in the exciting iOS icon-making world, and here are a few icons to prove it! What do you think?

Some of these were made just for fun, others are on their way to the App Store, and a couple are already there. I still haven't had the chance to work on the UI design of any app, but I hope that changes soon, because I'd love to!

New icons incoming!

2012-04-25T22:00:00.000+01:00

Sorry, not the Super Mario kind, this time!
I apologize for the complete inactivity these past few months. College is just a couple of months away from wrapping up, so it's no wonder I have so little time to spend online.
That little free time, though, has been spent on some awesome icons that you'll get to see soon!

Candy! (Work in Progress)

2012-01-23T15:20:00.000Z

Hi guys! Sorry about the lack of recent updates. College's been brutal, with all the exams and final papers and stuff. Gah!

Anyway, even though there's still some older stuff that I still haven't put up on the gallery, I thought I'd show you something completely new that I've been working on, but isn't quite finished yet!

I'm painting this as a birthday present to my girlfriend, who loves The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack just as much as I do. Both Flapjack and captain K'nuckles are pretty much finished, but I still haven't had the time to start the background. Got any ideas?

Stop Censorship

2012-01-18T15:49:00.000Z

Thank you & Happy 2012

2012-01-01T22:07:00.000Z

It's hard to believe the year's already over.

2011, for me, was a year of committing, of trying new stuff and of giving back to the people who enjoy my work. In a nutshell, it was a year of extravaganza. (Right?)

The Super Mario Icons Extravaganza, like I said at the beginning of the year, was a big 'thank you' to everyone to the thousands of people who had downloaded and shared my Super Mario Icons pack. Even though I was pretty excited about it when I first thought of it (with the help of my sister – thank you, too), I'll admit that, as 2011 neared, I got a bit scared. Was I able to pull it off? Could I really do a new icon every single week of the year? Would I fall short of my objectives? Those questions were mortifying!

Still, I went ahead and decided to do it. And it went great, all thanks to your feedback and motivations. I want to thank all of you who downloaded, commented and dropped me emails. I really appreciate the support.

As a thank you present, here's 14 more icons to satisfy your customization needs. These are not new icons, just different colored versions of a few icons that were a part of the Extravaganza. They were initially planned as a "last minute" icons for especially busy weeks, but I felt like they defeated the whole purpose of this ordeal, so I scrapped them.

Click here to download them. Alternatively, they're available to download as a part of the Super Mario Icons pack, now updated with the 66 Extravaganza icons, for a total of 130 icons!

Looking back on the Extravaganza year, I think I took care of most of your requests. If I haven't done yours, I'm sorry, it was probably because it was way too complex of an icon for me to be able to do, at the time. There will be other opportunities to get them done, I'm sure!

Speaking of which, I'll admit I have thought of keeping the Extravaganza going through 2012, but it's really not a feasible plan for me. College's wrapping up this year, and I gotta be at the top of my game, so that means no committing to tight deadlines outside of college projects. I'm sure you understand.

Additionally, I want to focus a bit more on some personal projects and original artwork, rather than playing around with other people's property! Stick around for it, I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

So, here we are. I had a lot of fun, this year. I hope you had too, and I hope this next year brings even more fun to all of us!

Happy new year, everyone!

Extravaganza Week 52 - Mario

2011-12-26T00:13:00.002Z

Here it is, the final icon!

Well, there was really no better way to close the Super Mario Extravaganza than to have an icon of the plumber who's the star of this whole thing (like some of you had guessed), right?

I really hope you enjoyed all the icons I put up for download, including this one. Thank you very much for the warm comments and emails, I really appreciate the support!

Drop by next Sunday for the final Extravaganza wrap-up and maybe a few extra surprises!

Extravaganza Christmas Present!

2011-12-24T11:00:00.000Z

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Hello, everyone! I'm just dropping by to wish you all a happy holiday and give you a little present!

In the spirit of the holidays and the Super Mario Extravaganza that has been going on for almost a year, here's a special Christmas-themed Mushroom icon! This is a special icon that will only be available for a while and it will not be added to the Super Mario Icons pack, like all the other Extravaganza icons, so grab it now!

You know the drill: hit the download button below to get your icon in PNG, ICO and ICNS form!

Extravaganza Week 51 - Super Leaf

2011-12-18T22:05:00.001Z

Look, we're almost there!

And here is the penultimate icon: the oft-requested and immensely popular Super Leaf! I was pretty excited when I read it was returning in Super Mario 3D Land and thought of adding it to the Super Mario Icons pack right away!

Extravangaza Week 50 - P-Wing

2011-12-11T22:30:00.000Z

Fly! Fly like a racoon!

Wait, what? Something's not right here...

Anyway, yes, I do remember that the original pack already includes a P-Wing icon, but that was the retro, blocky version. After the return of the P-Wing on Super Mario 3D Land, I really wanted to add its modern counterpart to the collection!

It's a bit unfortunate that the power-up doesn't serve the same purpose anymore, but it's pretty cool to have it back either way, don't you think?

Extravaganza Spotlight - Icon Workshop

2011-12-11T21:15:00.000Z

Here's the final Extravaganza Spotlight!

If you've ever wondered what software I use to create the ICO and ICNS files to create my icons, here's the answer: Axialis' Icon Workshop!

After drawing and painting the icons so that they look as official-like as possible on Photoshop, I save them as a PNG file with a transparent background (which you also get when you download the icons) and then run them through Icon Workshop, which is an amazingly simple and straightforward piece of software.

Just import the PNG file, push the "create a Windows icon file" or the "create a Macintosh icon file", save, and you're done! There's a lot of powerful dials and tools for the experienced users, too!

So if you're looking into designing some icons for the OS of your choice, drop by Axialis' page and try Icon Workshop out. I'm sure it's exactly what you're looking for!

Icon Workshop

Extravaganza Week 49 - Item Box

2011-12-04T22:26:00.000Z

Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!

How many times has another player stolen one of these from you, right at the last second? Gah! Get away from my Item Box, it's mine! Mine!

Extravaganza Week 48 - Berry

2011-11-27T22:52:00.001Z

Here's an icon Yoshi would love!

And look, they kinda resemble Christmas balls, too! I'd love to decorate my Christmas tree with berries and stardust!

Extravaganza Week 47 - Wario

2011-11-20T22:31:00.001Z

Here's a personal favorite of mine!

Last week, when I uploaded the icon of Tatanga, I talked about how Wario was one of my favorite Nintendo characters of all time. Then I realized I hadn't made an icon of him! What?!

I know he's become more of a star of his own series rather than a secondary character of Mario's, but if Luigi gets to be an icon, so does Wario!

Extravaganza Week 46 - Tatanga

2011-11-13T23:03:00.001Z

Go get your Game Boy, it's time to revisit Super Mario Land!

Here's Tatanga, the game's mysterious alien villain. I never got to play Super Mario Land, since I was a bit late to the Game Boy party, so when someone requested this icon (sorry it took so long) I didn't quite recognize the name...

After doing some research, I found out that I had actually battled him before in Super Mario Land 2! I guess he never made that big of an impression on me... Wario, who made his first appearance on that game, would end up becoming one of my favorite Nintendo characters, though!

Extravaganza Week 45 - Penguin Suit

2011-11-06T23:05:00.001Z

Penguin suit up!

With Winter right around the corner, we gotta dress appropriately! If anyone knows where I can get me one of these, please let me know. I bet I'd look awesome!

Man, Mario's wardrobe is so much more awesome than mine...

Extravaganza Week 44 - Jack O' Goomba

2011-10-30T23:51:00.000Z

Trick or treat!

Special icon for the occasion! I hope you have a nice Halloween, with tons of candy and stuff!

Extravaganza Week 43 - Cloud Flower

2011-10-23T23:14:00.000+01:00

Fitting flower for a rainy day, huh?

I dunno how the weather is over there, but here in Portugal it's pretty rainy. Bah!

Permanent Marker

2011-10-23T23:05:00.001+01:00

Here's some new (old) artwork just for you!

Actually, not for you. Sorry. This picture was something that happened when I was thinking up something for a competition. The theme was "good versus evil," and while I did have another, serious entry (that I'll post later), this was my tongue-in-cheek, silly entry.

Everyone loves to get stupid, once in a while. Right?