Archive for the ‘Whimsical and Strange’ Category

Wedding Invitations

Tuesday, November 30th, 2010

Wedding Invitations by Amy Crook

Wedding Invitations by Amy Crook

When my Mom decided to get married at short notice, she actually arranged everyone’s attendance by phone — it was a small wedding of just immediate family, so mainly she had to work around everyone’s schedules in time for me to get a reasonably-priced flight out. She asked me to make wedding invitations as sort of a keepsake for everyone, and after a bit of prodding added the descriptors “bright green swirls” to her vague request of “something nice.”

I picked up the cardstock first, simple non-folding cards with a nice embossed “frame” that I’ve faked in here in Photoshop. Names & details have been changed, of course, but this is what I came up with. I first made two sets of swirly, romantic designs in watercolor and scanned them, then I ended up deciding on the lighter green and making them into transparent Photoshop files so I could layer them in InDesign. I printed them by hand at home the same way I make my holiday cards, on my high-quality inkjet printer.

The project (which was my wedding present to them) ended up being a fun combination of fine art, design, and actual production work. She was pleased with the final product, and I kept forgetting to make this “generic-ified” version so I could post them to the site.

If you’re interested in having custom design done for you, you can take a look at my portfolio over at Not Dead Yet Studios or just drop me a line to discuss your project. My December is pretty full, but I’d love to work with you to make something beautiful and functional to fit your needs.

Wedding Invitations, 5.5″x8.5″ hp inks on cardstock, not for sale.

Categories: Completed Commissions, Daily Art, Whimsical and Strange
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Coloring Book Doodles

Sunday, November 28th, 2010

For most of the buyers of my Cthulhu Coloring Book, I’ve had time to put a little 5-minute sketch in the inside front covers. I remembered to scan most of the doodles before mailing them, so here they are for your to enjoy!

Weeble Deep One sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Deep One sketch by Amy Crook

Evil Brain sketch by Amy Crook

Evil Brain sketch by Amy Crook

Evil Cheeseburger sketch by Amy Crook

Evil Cheeseburger sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Death (classic) sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Death (classic) sketch by Amy Crook

Yig sketch by Amy Crook

Yig sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Death (Sandman) sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Death (Sandman) sketch by Amy Crook

Octopus sketch by Amy Crook

Octopus sketch by Amy Crook

Hello Zombie Kitty sketch by Amy Crook

Hello Zombie Kitty sketch by Amy Crook

Nyarlathotep sketch by Amy Crook

Nyarlathotep sketch by Amy Crook

Flying Polyp sketch by Amy Crook

Flying Polyp sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Skeleton sketch by Amy Crook

Weeble Skeleton sketch by Amy Crook

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Whimsical and Strange, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
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Weeble Wednesday: Yog-Sothoth

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

Weeble Yog-Sothoth by Amy Crook

Weeble Yog-Sothoth by Amy Crook

If you’re feeling a bit short of time this holiday week, perhaps Yog-Sothoth could help you out — or make it all so much worse. Yog-Sothoth is an Outer God of the Lovecraft mythos, and yet another of the oddling creatures in my Cthulhu Coloring Book. Yog-Sothoth was named The Lurker at the Threshold by Lovecraft, and is considered to be both at one with all of time and space, and outside of it.

My interpretation of his form as “great globes of light” is a bit whimsical, so I decided to use actual watercolor to experiment with his coloring, and had fun working wet-in-wet to get some rather psychedelic effects.

Yog-Sothoth, 5″x7″ pen and ink and watercolor on watercolor paper, $79 with free shipping.

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
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Squid with Mittens

Friday, November 19th, 2010

Squid with Mittens by Amy Crook

Squid with Mittens by Amy Crook

This happy little guy is just trying to keep warm. Someone knit him a lovely set of mittens for all his tentacles, and a matching hat. I decided that, since they don’t really have thumbs, squid mittens should just be called squittens. Also, it’s really fun to say.

You can get him or any of my other squid greeting cards at Etsy, or buy his original with the button above.

Squid With Mittens, 5″x7″ pen and ink and copic markers on watercolor paper.

Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Tentacles, Whimsical and Strange
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Goth Christmas Tree

Monday, November 15th, 2010

Goth Christmas Tree by Amy Crook

Goth Christmas Tree by Amy Crook

It’s that time of year, and I’ve been working on holiday card designs. In addition to my usual stock of Lovecraftian horrors, I decided to do a cheerfully morbid Christmas tree. Skulls adorn the branches and it’s topped with an eye-tipped vine. There’s a bloodstained package among the gifts under the tree, and the curly, swirly, tentacle-ish branches are reaching down to help distribute them.

You can pick up some of these cards for your own holidays at Etsy, or buy the original below.

Goth Christmas Tree, 5″x7″ pen and ink on watercolor paper.

Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Tentacles, Whimsical and Strange, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
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Whispering Gremlin for Jo VanEvery

Thursday, November 11th, 2010

Whispering Gremlin by Amy Crook, commission for Jo VanEvery

Whispering Gremlin by Amy Crook,
commission for Jo VanEvery
all rights reserved

When Jo VanEvery came to me asking if I would help create an illustration for her presentation in November, I was excited to draw something new. We went back and forth on just what a gremlin looked like, and we ended up with this little green guy whispering wicked self-doubt into the ear of his human.

This naughty boy likes to undermine his human’s confidence and sow the seeds of indecision, especially in grad students.

Since this is a commissioned piece, all rights are reserved, and it may not be reposted or reused anywhere, except by Jo, of course. Thanks!

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Whimsical and Strange
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Weeble Wednesday: Zombie

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

Weeble Zombie by Amy Crook

Weeble Zombie by Amy Crook

This morbid fellow is another one of the bonus zombies from my Cthulhu coloring book. I originally had drawn a bunch of these guys for another purpose, but somehow they never got finished until I needed them for the coloring book. Still, I do love the details on this one, from his missing arm to the skull logo on his shoe.

Weeble Zombie, 5″x7″ pen, ink and Copic markers on watercolor paper.

Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
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