From Sketch to Final

 

 With only a few weeks left until Jinx and the Doom Fight Crime! hits stores, I thought it would be fun to share my process from start to finish. This was my first book constructed in 3d, and I could not have been happier with the results. Getting the chance to revisit my childhood days of spending every minute building miniature "attractions" for my dollhouse had me giddy again....and started yet another time-consuming "interest" ;).

First came the sketch. It took me quite some time to come to terms with my style of sketching. The example above is rather "refined" compared to most of my sketches, as I like to leave things very crude and rough when submitting sketches for approval.  Accompanying the sketches is usually one final art example, which then allows the editors to see my jump from sketch to final. I've tried creating more detailed and "finished" drawings, but have found that for me, it takes away the spontaneity and creative freedom that's needed to create good final art. I know many artists that thrive in a completely different manner.....it's just about finding what works best for you.

The next step involved days of getting sucked into downloading templates of every piece of dollhouse furniture you could find, as I was instantly hooked the minute "dollhouse templates" was typed into the search engine. I now indeed have an obsession, and need someone to ask me to create an encyclopedia of miniature furniture from the beginning of time to now. I designed this simple washing machine/dryer with the intention of leaving the bottom open to allow for added interior light in the washer.

After assembling the machines, figures were constructed and set up for photography. All of the pictures in Jinx and the Doom Fight Crime! were taken using natural light from my dining room window.

And there you have it! I hope you enjoyed this little sneak peak into my process for this wonderful story by Lisa Mantchev :)