The beautiful swirls and Celtic curls of calligraphy are a magic addition to many fantasy illustrations. Get step-by-step tutorials on creating these effects with Cari Buziak’s new title from North Light Books, Calligraphy Magic.

8ft. tall homemade portable canvas!

Want to do a bit of graff practice, but there are no free (and legal) walls available?

Check out this tip from Graff 2 author, Scape Martinez:

Basically it is constructed from cardboard.
We went to a moving company that sells your traditional moving boxes, and we found sheets of cardboard that were 4×8 feet in size, they were “double ply”, so we purchased 8 sheets and doubled them up.
Meaning we ended up with 4 sheets of 4×8 board.
We duct taped the edges, all along the edges to hold the sheets together, so now they were “double, double ply” and around 1/4 inch thick.
I proceeded to duct tape two of them together along the narrow side, the 4foor side, edge to edge, to create a giant sandwich board.
So when complete it stands eight feet tall and four feet wide, easily movable, and very light.
So then I got some basic paint primer from the hardware store and laid down two coats of primer, pure white, let it dry and wa-la!
Graffiti wall to go!

Here’s a link to video of the finished project: Walls on the go!

IMPACT’s sister site Artist’s Market Online is offering another giveaway on its facebook page! When AMO reaches 500 fans, we’re giving away a copy of the 2011 Artist’s & Graphic Designer’s Market ($34.99 value). AGDM includes over 1,100 listings for markets that buy artwork, including fantasy and comic art.

AMO’s facebook page offers daily tips, links, quotes and other good stuff. Also, the AMO blog feeds onto our facebook wall, so it’s also a great way to keep up with the latest news. Besides, who doesn’t like free books? So “like” AMO on facebook and invite your friends to do the same!

Have a great holiday weekend!

Mary

Hey kids! Here’s an awesome free demonstration from the upcoming Sketch Card Mania by Randy Martinez and Denise Vasquez. Check out the book for the best instruction on drawing sketch cards and great demos of wizards, warlords, warriors and more!





HOW TO DRAW A UNICORN IN 5 EASY STEPS
Everyone knows that magic comes from the single golden horn that extends from a unicorn’s forehead. While extremely powerful, unicorns want nothing more than to live in peace and play. Unicorns are beautiful, elegant creatures, so draw them with graceful strokes and delicate features.


STEP 1: Sketch the Initial Figure
Start with a quick gesture drawing of the unicorn—a basic stick figure with circles for the joints. Use a circle and a square for the head. Draw guidelines on the head so you will know where the unicorn’s facial features will go and a simple line for
the horn.







STEP 2: Add the Main Shapes
Draw the upper torso and connect the two parts of the head with an upper and lower jawline. Connect the head and the upper torso with two sloping S-curves. Draw a cylinder for the upper legs of the unicorn. Again, use cylinders for the lower legs. Give the unicorn an ear and a cool-looking goatee. Add form to the horn and draw the mane with some S-curves. Don’t worry about the hair details yet.







STEP 3: Add the Small Details and Shapes
Add the smaller details such as facial features. Use the guidelines from step 1 to help place the eye, nostril and mouth. Continue drawing the facial features and legs. Add detail to the hair, mane and horn. You’ll add the really fine details while you pencil and ink your drawing in the next step.







STEP 4: Ink the Drawing
Add smaller details like fur and shadows to the mane and goatee. Use a black pen or marker to fill in the solid dark areas. Erase the lines you no longer need and ink
your drawing.







STEP 5: Color Your Unicorn!
Choose a coloring medium and have fun. Get creative with mixing mediums and add some glitter to your unicorn’s horn.







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Also available from Randy Martinez: Creature Features!






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The original book, GRAFF, put you in touch with your creative style.GRAFF 2 is here to help you find your creative soul. Is it wildstyle or bubble letters? Scape Martinez is taking the message of creativity and expression to the next level. Follow Scape on Facebook for up to the minute news!

Yes that’s right, it’s Customer Appreciation Day–just because we want to say, THANKS to all our awesome customers. So today in our online stores, customers will receive an extra 15% off their purchase, plus free shipping! Just use the promo code THANKU at checkout. So be sure to visit the North Light Shop and our other stores today and stock up on some great titles!

For a list of our online stores and more details about the promotion, click here.

IMPACT’s sister site ArtistsNetwork.com is giving away art supplies! The Journal Junkies Sweepstakes includes a variety of artists journals, pens, a watercolor travel set, 4 North Light Books, a subscription to Watercolor Artist, and a bunch of other great stuff (a $475 value). You have until May 31, 2011 to enter, so check it out. Who doesn’t love free art supplies?

Have a great weekend!

Mary

I came across this story on Comics Alliance about a collage comic that looks absolutely incredible! I’m a huge fan of comics and collage, and putting the two together in this form exceeds every possible idea I could have come up with. The article mentions a few other non-drawn comics online; and in an interview I once did with Scott Allie of Dark Horse (Writer’s Digest magazine), he mentioned how we’ve barely scratched the surface of what could be used for sequential art. He’s correct, and this comic shows just one of the infinite possibilities just waiting to be explored.

Try your hand at collage and/or comics with these fantastic titles from North Light and IMPACT books.

“Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so.”

“In order to fly, all one must do is simply miss the ground.”

“So long and thanks for all the fish.”