That Time of Year

It’s tough to believe, but December is right around the corner yet again. For the last couple years, Greg and I have made a point to take a break from the site to spend some quality time with our families. This certainly doesn’t mean we’re disappearing – this is merely our “Summer Break”. However the good news is we have some big plans for the site.

Over the next several weeks we’ll be putting the finishing touches on CreatureBox 2.0. We’ve been meaning to refresh the site for quite a while but life has a way of filling up quickly. The new site will allow us to stretch our legs a bit and offer a clean way of displaying a range of content. We hope you’ll all join us for the launch at the start of next year.

In the meantime we’ll be updating our progress via Twitter so if you have an account, we’d love to have you on board. Also, now would be a great time to subscribe to the RSS feed to get all the latest happenings with the ‘Box. We’ll also still be checking email so feel free to drop us a line anytime with the Contact Form.

This has been a wild year and Greg and I can’t thank you guys enough for the support. The sketchbooks were a huge success (all sold out!) and we look forward to making ground on the 2010 book during the break. We hope you all have a wonderful holiday – keep it safe, and we’ll see you in 2010!

*Update*
For those who are still interested in the 2009 sketchbooks, head over to our friends at Stuart Ng Books (in the U.S.) and The Labyrinth (in Canada). They should have some copies. Thanks!

Moleskine Brush

As Greg mentioned a couple weeks back, we’ve been playing with ink and brush pens. It’s been a good deal of fun and lessens the guilt when I’m plopped in front of the television – blast you Netflix PS3 Disc!

We get emails from time to time about how to get started in concept art. The response tends to be the same and almost always starts with “observe and draw from life!” To that end I’m really trying to follow my own words and have taken to carrying my sketchbook around. I lucked out and found the perfect bag at the perfect size – though some would say it could double as a purse. At least now I have something to smack a mugger with.

*Update*
I’ve been getting some requests for more details on the bag so here’s the scoop. If you head over to Amazon, you can find it as “Travel Portfolio Bag“. There are several independent resellers offering the thing which can get a bit confusing. I went with the Olive Drab to hold on to the remaining shreds of my masculinity. The bag doesn’t have the best construction, but it’s been great for me so far.

Tricks and Treats

It’s been a wild and crazy few weeks – sinus infection, computer upgrades, Halloween – but at least life is an adventure. This was our first Hallow’s Eve in the house. The turnout was pretty decent but we still have enough candy left over to bury in our bomb shelter. At least if the world ends I’ll have a great excuse to down those mini Nestle Crunch bars.

On the computer front, I’ve made the transition to Windows 7 x64. All went kinda smooth though I’m hitting a few bumps with Sketchbook. I’m finding that disabling the windows tablet services get the strokes nice but then the “Open” and “Save as” dialog boxes stop working. I’ve been able to use ACDSee as a work around but is anyone having any luck with this?

Alright, time to soak in the new time change darkness!

A Mild Case of Sluggy

I’ve been sick for what feels like a century. I thought I was out of the woods yesterday but I was greeted with another sore throat this morning. What gives? What kind of Wheaties do the bacteria eat out here? In any event, there are many far worse off than me so I will now stop my griping. I feel as slimy as the dude in this post – a critter from the upcoming Ratchet game. October 27th folks!

In other news, I’ll be migrating to Windows 7 64-bit next week. Woohoo! RAM! Solid state hard drive! Anyone else taking the plunge?

Change of heart

I can be a bit of a grump sometimes. There are all sorts of reasons for my occasional sour puss but none of that really matters too much. Unfortunately, this can lead to me snapping at my wife – which is never cool. Every time I’m irrational or bark needlessly, she hangs with me. We make a great team, especially considering she’s had plenty of reasons to smack me upside the head. This one’s for you babe.

POW.

Been a busy weekend in the studio but fortunately Fall is on the way. Cooler weather means getting the windows open so I don’t feel like I’m locked away so much. The only bummer is the gunshots going off directed presumably towards the deer. My wife and I spotted one this morning missing a leg hopping around in the woods just past our house. Nature certainly has a way of holding on. Journey onward valiant buck!

In other news, Greg and I are working on a couple interviews that should be hitting the web sometime soon…we’ll be sure to post some links.

Last but not least, if you’re an artist on the go with the iPhone, be sure to give Sketchbook Mobile a look. We’ve been beta testing the app for the last several months and I have to say the brushes continue to be smooth and the faux pressure sensitivity is very cool. Other welcomed features include layers, brush customization, and mirroring tools. Happy drawin’!