My portrait of Jane from Sea of Shoes blog

This girl has a life that I could only dream about. She just participated in a debutant ball in a beautiful palace in Paris! If you want to live vicariously through her wonderful blog, it is www.seaofshoes.com.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

The Glamorai blog is having a costume contest!

It seems like now that there is a new Johnny Depp movie about Alice in Wonderland, Alice is hot again. Here's something fun to do over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, after you finish all of that Black Friday shopping. The Glamorai blog is having a costume contest. All you have to do is take a picture of yourself in a costume inspired by Alice in Wonderland, you can send it to her at theglamorai@gmail.com by December 2 at midnight (EST). Everyione who enters will get a 10% coupon from the Corvus Noir website. The winner will get their picture on her blog and a custom-made 1950s pocket watch. Above is a preview of me in my Mad Hatter costume.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

Unknown Hipster has fun drawings

As I was surfing this internet, I discovered this Unknown Hipster at http://unknownhipster.com.
This guy has some fun drawings, like this one of Andy Warhol and Jen-Michel Basquiat. Anyone who has read my blog for a while probably knows that Andy Warhol is my favorite artist.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

The Cherry Blossom Girl gets edgy style

I've always been partial to the rock chick look, and this outfit is one of my favorites! This picture was posted a couple of days ago on the cherry blossom girl blog (www.cherryblossomgirl.com).

I love the boots with the short girly skirt. The hair and leather jacket complete the edgy style. Fit and proportion are everything when it comes to making this work, and she has gotten it right. It looks like she has darkened her hair a bit to complete the dark theme.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

Fashion Illustration Lesson 1: Body Proportions

One of the most popular and highly rated books on fashion illustration is the Fashion Sketchbook by Bina Abling. This is a HUGE notebook with almost 500 pages and lots of exercises and examples to use.

One of the lessons that I found most helpful was getting the body proportions right. I have shown an example here, both from the book and my sketch that I did according to Abling's lesson.

One guideline that seems to be fairly universal is that the figure should be about 10 heads tall. I have a tendancy for some reason to make the heads too big, so this rule helps to prevent that from happening.

Abling breaks it down further, suggesting that the shoulders be at 1.5 heads, waist be at about 3.5 heads and the knees at 6.5 heads.

This is an outstanding resource, and if you get just one book about fashion illustration, this is a good one. The only criticism I have is that I like fashion illustrations that are highly stylized, and this book doesn't really teach how to do that. But, for most people, getting the basics first is important, and only then does it make sense to work on the style and personality of the drawing.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

Teo Jasmin Boutique

I have always been a big fan of the Beatles and Andy Warhol style pop art. This online boutique has both of these and more! Teo Jasmin is a boutique in Paris but people all over the world can visit their boutique at http://www.teojasmin.com

At Teo Jasmin they specialize in stylish and trendy home decorations and fashion accessories. Some examples of their product line are pictured here.


Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html

Hot Fashion Trend: Lady Gaga

According to this months Harpers Bazaar magazine, Lady Gaga is one of the hottest fashion trends! Did you see her at the American Music Awards last night. In the words of my son Chris, "She set the freakin' piano on fire. She also wore an outfit that looked like a nude body suit with some weird mask and little bitty lights around her waist and shoulders.

Having said this, I actually thought her performance was kind of cool. The songs that she sang were pretty good, and she definitely has lots of talent. I say, ROCK ON, Lady Gaga!
The pictures on this post involve my sketch of Lady Gaga, and the page from Harpers Bazaar magazine.

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you are looking for a current example of my custom fashion illustrations, visit this link: http://lizblair.blogspot.com/2009/10/alabama-chanin-design-and-my-drawing-of.html