Holly Surplice ~ Illustrator

It's almost time for a Guinea Pig Party!

2012-01-09T11:44:00.003Z

I had the loveliest start to my weekend with the arrival of the first bound proof of my new book Guinea Pig Party from the super lovely Nosy Crow!

You can't really tell from the pic but it has the most fantastically squidgy hard-cover which I am really excited about as it makes it feel really special and just that little bit different too. It also has yummy spot uv on the front cover to make the image really pop - yes, these are the things that really do float my boat! I can't wait to be able to share this with you properly when it is published (5th July just so you know!) and I really hope it is something that you and your little friends are going to enjoy.

Happy New Year to you all, I hope you had a great festive break and that 2012 is a fantastic one for you.

Hollyxx

Merry Christmas Everyone!

2011-12-19T18:10:00.002Z

Am busy tying up all those pesky loose ends this week before taking a bit of a breather over Christmas so that I am all fresh and raring to get creative again in the new year. It's going to be a busy 2012 for me, there's a bunny book to complete then a small matter of the much anticipated arrival of baby #2 in April...I may have to put the pens down for that one, just for a moment or two!

Anyway, I wish all my lovely friends, family and followers the most wonderful of festivities and I hope that 2012 is truly fantastic for you all.

Hollyxxx

Something Festive!

2011-12-01T11:55:00.002Z

Something a little festive to kick off December with!

Earlier this year I was approached by a lovely new business called The Border Mill which specialises in treating, spinning and producing alpaca wools and products. I did an array of illustrations for their website and marketing materials and here was something I did for their winter promotions.

Happy December everyone. xx

Stretching It Out

2011-11-29T09:59:00.003Z

Am busy this morning tackling changes to my Bunny roughs following feedback from the publisher. It's always a tricky stage but I always go into knowing that the changes will inevitably bring about better images and a stronger story. I can't wait to get on with the colour though!

This Bunny requires to stretch a bit harder apparently (I think he's like me and not a great fan of pilates!) so I am off to see what I can do with him. I actually really like how he looks in this rough so it will be interesting to see how things look after the changes...

Been Roughing It!

2011-11-25T16:11:00.003Z

I've been beavering away drawing lots of rabbity roughs for the new book recently and have just sent the first draft of them through. Keeping everything crossed that they get a good reception and that the new characters go down well!

Here is a little snippet from one of the pages of the main character Bunny and his side-kick Mole for you to get a peek at. Just black and white now but I shall be working on colour samples very soon - am thinking gorgeous clean and vibrant spring colours with elements of gold in there too for some foresty backgrounds. Can't wait!

Hope you are all well, thanks for dropping by for a read. xx

Something a Bit Rabbity (& Moley!)

2011-11-10T17:37:00.004Z

Just a wee rough that I had been doodling recently. Am working on a Bunny book for the lovely folks at Harper Collins which promises to be full of fun and colour. But in the meantime here is a little black & white of a bunny that tripped over a molehill and went plop into a puddle. You can click on the image to make it bigger.

Am slightly in love with the mole at the moment!

Hope you are all well. Thanks for stopping by!

Hollyx

It's all been about the Guinea Pigs!

2011-10-12T13:30:00.003+01:00

Well it definitely has been a shameful length of time since I last blogged but there has been a very good reason! I have been frantically working on a ridiculously fun book with the wonderful Nosy Crow and we have quite literally had guinea pigs coming out of our ears getting it all ready for Frankfurt.

I am so pleased with how it has come together, it is a counting book bursting with lots of guinea characters and I am keeping everything crossed that it is being well received over in Frankfurt as I type! The above is one of my favourite moments in the book and just about sums up how I am feeling right now!

Can't wait to share more of this with you but in the mean time it's back to the drawing board for me, and, Rabbits! x

Lovely Review!

2011-09-08T12:37:00.003+01:00

Here is the loveliest review of About a Bear I am ever likely to get by the super-fantastic Book Sniffer!

About a Bear is released early!

2011-08-30T18:45:00.002+01:00

So excited that Amazon has released my new book early! Check it out here and if you'd like to write a review anytime I'd be very grateful!

Hope you all like it!! xxx

News About A Bear!

2011-07-19T14:16:00.006+01:00

I could bearly (sorry!) contain my excitement this morning as a little package arrived this morning containing advanced copies of my new book About A Bear!

It is so exciting to see bear in all his beautifully bound glory and think he looks very happy in own his little book! I am so delighted with how both the paper and hardback have turned out, the colours look great. Harper Collins have been great letting me go wild with my palette and the reproduction shows the pinks and metallics just brilliantly.

I've given you a little sneaky peek at the endpapers (which I am ridiculously happy with!), and the title page which I love. I really hope that you love Bear too when he becomes available to purchase in just a matter of weeks - you can pre-order a copy here!

Happy Mondays

2011-07-11T13:28:00.003+01:00

This was me ten minutes ago when my fabulous husband found my Wacom tablet pen which I have been hunting for since Friday. I was despairing even more when I started to look into how much it was going to cost to replace it!

Our darling little daughter had pushed it into a gap under a kitchen cabinet...about the only place I hadn't been on my hands and knees looking. Deep sigh of relief from me, and back to work now.

Hope you are having a happy Monday too. x

Been Doggy Doodling

2011-06-21T12:56:00.005+01:00

Well I know it's been a while, but I have been busy drawing many things... guinea pigs, alpacas and lots of spotty dogs! Sharing with you a couple of of illos that introduce two new characters who I have a real soft spot for so watch this space. x

News About a Bear!

2011-05-19T19:45:00.002+01:00

It was an exciting moment today when I discovered that my new book for Harper Collins had been put up on Amazon. Unfortunately it is not available to purchase yet but you can pre-order! I really hope you all like it when it comes out x

2011-04-26T13:16:00.002+01:00

It's taken a bit of a marathon effort for me to get here but I have been working hard to get my fitness back into order after becoming a mum. So to celebrate and to give me a goal I am doing a 10k race on 8th May and using the opportunity to raise some cash for the fantastic Sick Kids charity. If you would like to sponsor me, you can click here no donation is too small and every penny counts and will help keep me going!

Thank you!! xx

Happy Easter

2011-04-21T20:45:00.002+01:00

Rubbing Noses with the Book Sniffer!

2011-04-06T22:42:00.003+01:00

I've been having great fun talking all things children's books with the utterly charming Book Sniffer, as well as trying to do a bit of doggy match-making! Read it all on this fantastic blog, and follow it to get the heads-up on the what's new and exciting in the field of Children's Books.

March Hare (just running a bit late!)

2011-04-06T12:57:00.002+01:00

Continuing in the spirit of Spring, I came across this drawing in a sketchbook the other day which was part of a series of sketches I did watching a field full of Mad March Hares a few years ago. I love coming across things like this, it reminds me to go out and draw from life more often!

Spring Lambs!

2011-03-31T16:31:00.002+01:00

In the spirit of Spring, I thought I'd dig out something a bit seasonal!

I did this little painting in 2007 when I lived in the beautiful Scottish Borders and there were lambs aplenty to draw. I miss that aspect of country life, in the city you miss out on all those gorgeous seasonal changes in the landscape like lambs appearing in the spring and fields being harvested in the autumn.

Today though it is unseasonably chilly and windy and I feel very sorry for all the little lambs braving this weather - what a shock to the system that must be!

Zoom!

2011-03-30T22:44:00.003+01:00

Just a quick sneaky-peak at part of a lovely commission I'm working on at the moment. Still totally in love with drawing those guinea pigs!

Yay! Giclee Prints At Last!!

2011-03-22T21:09:00.004Z

I am so excited to finally be able to put some gorgeous giclee prints up for sale on both etsy and on notonthehighstreet.com.

The images are from "About a Bear" which is being published by the lovely Harper Collins, and is released in September.

I am just so pleased with how the illustrations have translated onto a large scale format, printed on the most gorgeous heavy weight archival papers, you can see every texture and detail. The colours have reproduced fantastically too which is just as well because when you see the book, you will see that it is particularly vibrant!

Hope you likey!

Dancing Guinea Pigs

2011-03-13T22:45:00.003Z

Just to prove that I am still alive and kicking, here is a dancing guinea pig I drew today!

I have been busy busy busy with lots of exciting things, (hence the lack of blogging). Apart from dancing guinea pigs, my brain is working overtime developing my second book for the lovely Harper Collins whilst trying not to think about the fact that the first, "About A Bear" is shortly off to Bologna to try to impress. Keeping fingers and toes firmly crossed!

More Little Birds

2011-02-20T16:38:00.002Z

I thought I was done with these little bird collages, but then I got this lovely commission to do a pair of Goldcrests for a golden wedding anniversary present.

To be honest I love making these little pictures. There is something quite therapeutic about all the cutting out of leaves and then carefully figuring out their placement, which is unusual for me as usually I like to work really quickly. I should add here that it is therapeutic until, ones husband comes alone to have a nosey while on his own and accidentally drops a crisp onto the picture and then, instead of carefully picking the crisp up, he tries to blow it off, along with all the leaves which had been set in place but not yet glued down! I kid you not this actually happened - I didn't know if to laugh or cry (I laughed!), as the picture was actually double the size of this one - so many leaves! All I could think was, "Silly me, there was me thinking that I just had to focus on keeping our toddler away from my artwork, and in doing so, took my eye off my husband!"

So, that's what I've been up to this weekend, hope you've had a good one too.

New Personalised Prints

2011-02-18T13:08:00.004Z

I've been working on some new things to sell in my Etsy shop and have had great fun with this little character which is being sold as a personalised print. You can have any letter and colour combo you like - it would make the perfect gift for any little person!

You can also find all of my prints, as well as beautiful cards, mugs and double-sided wrap designed and produced by me in my Marbles Ink shop on notonthehighstreet so please check out my full range and let me know what you think.

Got some other new things coming very soon so watch this space!

Etsy...here I come!

2011-02-13T22:00:00.005Z

Ok, so I have taken a deep breath in and entered the world of Etsy! Esty is a fantastic place to buy all sorts of original and unique gifts, and now, you can purchase a range of prints by me!

I have been uploading some super cute guinea pig prints, including some that can be personalised and will be adding more variety soon, so please keep checking up on my space and hopefully there will be something there that takes your fancy!

Do let me know what you think, and if you know someone who might like my prints, please forward them this link!

Thanks xx

Love is in the Air!

2011-01-31T12:55:00.003Z

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I thought I would spread a little love with the help of this little fellow...because nothing says 'I love you' better than a cute guinea pig!

As you can see, am still playing around with guinea pig characters, both for book and greetings card designs. Once again, the above available to license.

Wish I could do this today!

2011-01-27T13:13:00.002Z

Having the sort of week where I wish I could float away from it all, holding on to a balloon! However, due to the impossibility of my finding a balloon big enough, I did the next best thing and drew something! x

Back to the Drawing Board!

2011-01-23T16:25:00.004Z

Well it's been a while since I posted anything here, I admit, but after a lovely Christmas break I have been back at the old drawing board working on character development and concepts for some brand new books!

This is the most exciting and frustrating, and tricky process all wrapped up into one! I always find I have a weird nervous energy while I am working through this stage; one minute you think you've come up with something new and exciting, and the next you are full of doubt and fretting about what the publisher will think...it's exhausting!

At the moment I am mostly concentrating on images of spotty dogs but last week I had a flash of inspiration for something totally different which is where this little guy comes in! Will keep you posted on how things develop, but in the mean time I will keep on doodling while I hope you are all enjoying the start to a lovely new year. xx

More Birds

2010-11-27T12:32:00.002Z

I've been doing some more little bird collages recently and here is my latest effort. My take on a pair of Long-Tailed Tits, a commission which requested more than one bird, because it is apparently better Feng Shui. I loved this concept and it immediately made me think of these social little birds who I absolutely adore. I sometimes see them when I am out walking the dog, in their little flocks flitting between the trees and it never fails to bring a smile to my face.

Birds of Paradise

2010-11-17T16:31:00.004Z

I've just finished doing a wonderfully exuberant painting of Birds of Paradise for a fabulous client you wanted something wild and colourful!

This is just a section of the painting, there are two other male birds displaying above and below and the colourfulness continues! I've used lots of gold, which doesn't really show up that well when photographed but it looks lovely in the light and gives things an extra dimension which I really love.

It took me two attempts to get it right but I'm really liking the wildness of this one and can't wait to see it framed up!

Jammy Coo Love

2010-11-06T11:12:00.007Z

Well I write shamefaced (again) at my lack of blog action of late. I am trying to choose what to blame this on... No time due to keeping up with my non-stop toddler, busy doing commissions, doing a few revisions of the Bear book pages or wanting to post up some pics of Birds of Paradise that I've been working on but not ready yet!

Instead I choose to blame my lovely sister Delia (well if you can't place blame on a sibling, then who can you eh?!). Delia is the proud owner and creator of the wonderful Jammy Coo, a fabulous gallery and coffee shop in the beautiful Scottish Borders (it's the kind of place you always hope to find but rarely do) and I've been busy designing lots of lovely things her.

I designed the JC logo a couple of years ago and it is such great fun to play with and encorporate into all sorts of designs, you can do anything with her! She features on the Jammy Coo crockery (you can purchase the Hot-Choc mugs!) and some gorgeous heavy duty canvas shopper bags and just yesterday I was frantically finishing an exciting new design for a new product to be sold in the shop and hopefully soon online (keep an eye on the Jammy Coo blog for details.), but I will leave that to Delia to share! For regular customers, you can pick up a Jammy Coo loyalty card, and open to all is the Jammy Coo Late-Night-Shopping nights (click on this link - there is a free recipe that Delia has posted!!!) where the mystery new product will be launched!

I've designed a few logos in my time now but the Jammy Coo is by far and away my favourite, I don't think I'll ever get tired of playing about with her. In fact, I can't wait to see what she is going to feature on next!

Christmas Penguins!

2010-09-16T13:59:00.002+01:00

Apparently, it's only 100 days til Christmas (sorry!), so here are some festive designs with one of my favourite characters, the penguin. Designs available to license!

Tweet Tweet

2010-09-10T11:11:00.002+01:00

So I have finally finished doing my bear book (Yay!) which I am so excited about and I am keeping everything crossed that it goes down well at the Frankfurt book fair in a few weeks time!

This leaves me with a little bit of time to do a bit of blogging and start thinking about the next project and to perhaps create some images just for the sake of it! Here are a couple of little pics I did recently, inspired by something I did for a friends birthday present. The leaves are collaged from pieces of backgrounds I created for the bear book. Although not particularly accurate, these little birds are inspired by the gorgeously perky Wren, possibly my favourite british bird.

I am going to take these off to the framer later and put a lovely big mount and frame on them ready to be exhibited at the Jammy Coo's "Jammy Coo Turns Two" exhibition in October.

The Bear Book!

2010-09-03T14:10:00.004+01:00

Well I couldn't wait any longer - here is a sneaky peek at my Bear book! This is an image I have just done for the interior title page, so this is a double page spread with text still to go in. I really hope you like it!

Illustration Friday!

2010-09-03T13:54:00.001+01:00

So I am finally getting round to entering something into Illustration Friday! This weeks subject was "Dessert" and I immediately knew just the illustration to put forward. I hope you like it!

I Miss My Sister

2010-08-26T14:12:00.008+01:00

Last year I did the illustrations for a fantastic little book for the Child Bereavement Charity to be used as an aid to help children cope and work through the stages of bereavement following a loss. It was an amazing project to be involved with and they were fantastic clients.

From a creative point of view, this was one of the first book commissions that I did where the main subjects were people, although I couldn't resist adding a little four legged friend companion too! I really loved the challenge of illustrating the sensitive emotions involved in the story.

Even though the subject is very sad, this is a really uplifting book full of warmth and love and with really positive messages, perfect for personal use or great to have in a classroom library. Definitely one of my favourite book projects to date.

The book was published by the charity itself and you can find it here.

Like a Bear With a Sore Head!

2010-08-21T22:40:00.002+01:00

Well he's not the bear I am working on at the moment but one I have dug out from the archive and was a concept for a get well card.

2010-08-09T15:24:00.002+01:00

A few more designs for you to look at. All available for licensing!

Card Designs Galore!

2010-08-05T07:35:00.003+01:00

Well I am busy beavering away working on my Bear Book for Harper Collins which I am loving! I have developed a whole new approach for me in creating the artwork which I am so excited about. The as yet, untitled book will be published next year and I am trying to get it ready in time to be taken to Frankfurt Book Fair in the Autumn. This is definitely the most fun I have had creating artwork for a book!

I would love to share what I am doing with you but I want to keep things under wraps until it's all finished, and the book at least has it's title! In the mean time though, here are some more card designs for you, which are all available for licensing.

Card Designs

2010-07-28T13:06:00.007+01:00

Was tiding up some files on the computer and came across a whole heap of card designs I did a wee while ago, so thought I would pop a few up for you to see. All designs are available to license.

Colouring In!

2010-07-17T15:21:00.005+01:00

Well since I last blogged I have been super busy getting things underway working with a new publisher to produce my Bear Book! Am so excited about it and am working with such a lovely team which is so refreshing.

I'm currently having lots of fun exploring different techniques to bring colour together with line in a way which would be suitable for the finished artwork. Lots of challenges here and I really want to get the feeling just right so am going to keep experimenting, but here's where I'm at at the moment.

Let me know what you think...

2010-06-29T09:52:00.008+01:00

I am typing shame-faced at my lack of blog action of late but hope that attaching a pretty picture will make up for it a little!

This is an commission for a cd cover for a collection of soothing songs for Mums and babies to listen to and is called Nightingale.

I went quite a way from the suggested format of the design and opted for a wrap-around image which I think will look lovely on the product. The client was great and was really open to my creative input and ideas - always makes a job so much more interesting!

Hope you like!

Tiger Tiger

2010-03-31T20:58:00.006+01:00

I can't believe how slack I've been already about posting on my new blog! I am blaming a raging cold and writers/illustrators block for this one I think! I've been working on some book concepts, story and character development but nothing worth writing about at the moment!

So I thought to tide things over, I would post up a pic of one of my paintings to show what else I do! My painting work is quite different from my illustration work but I still have a real focus on character. I love making spontaneous, lively marks with vibrant inks and gorgeous golds and working on a large scale. You can see more of my paintings on my website.

Thinking about doing something with a Kiwi...

2010-03-23T00:30:00.006Z

I've been playing around with thoughts of doing a nocturnal book with a Kiwi character instead of an owl. My other half is a New Zealander and so the Kiwi was an obvious character for me to explore. I love it's shape and just its sheer unusualness but being a nocturnal creature means quite a dark book and so lots of creative challenges!

This is very much an early rough and I fear that he is a little inconspicuous here (he's on the log looking down at some ants!) but just thought I'd keep you posted with what I'd been up to!

2010-03-17T20:40:00.004Z

Just another couple of roughs from the bear book....

2010-03-17T19:58:00.002Z

Am working on a new book at the moment, and here is a sneaky peak of a double-page spread to get you started. If you can't already guess, the main character....is a bear!

The book is all roughed out and is with my agent at the moment and we are playing the waiting game to hear back from publishers - fingers crossed!

Hello!

2010-03-16T12:56:00.002Z

Hello and welcome to my blog!

Jump, jump, jump for joy at long last I have got around to creating a blog to show you what I am up to on the illustration front!

I will try my hardest to place regular posts and keep up to date with my latest jobs, doodles and illustration concepts, in between feeding, changing and entertaining my very energetic 8 month old little girl!

Feel free to post comments etc and I hope you enjoy what you see!

Thanks, Holly x