The book The Cabins of Wilsonia is completed, published and for sale.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch (where did that saying come from?), I still draw cabins in pencil. (I oil paint too, but that’s a different subject on a different blog, cabinart.net, a blog that covers all aspects of my art business).
Some folks liked my work in the book, but it only contained a drawing of their chimney. They asked me to draw their entire cabin.
It took us over a year to work out the details of what they wanted, We began with a few sketches, which then needed to be discussed and revised.
There were details they wanted to be sure appeared in the drawing that were just too small to appear in the sketches. When they were convinced that I knew all the little things that mattered to them, I was able to begin.
I work from left to right, top to bottom, to avoid smearing.
After a rough start of a missed deadline, wrong address and incorrect face of a cabin, this is the completed commissioned pencil cabin drawing of a Wilsonia cabin.
What a long long sentence. A picture is worth 1000 words.
I kept emailing the Wilsonia cabin owner to inquire if the Post Office had forwarded my incorrectly addressed card.
Nope.
Finally, I asked if she’d like me to copy the sketch and email it to her. Being a gracious and understanding customer, she was agreeable.
Well, oops.
I drew the wrong side of the cabin. She wanted the front, I drew the back. I didn’t look at the photos she sent me, only looked at the ones I had taken. Knowing that more living happens on the back side than the front, I just wasn’t really paying attention.
Holy cow.
What a gracious and forgiving customer, who kindly let me know that wasn’t the view she had asked for.
That’s the reason I do sketches! Let’s get it all figured out at the small scribbly stage before I pour hours into the precision and detail that make up my pencil commissions.
Quickly, I did 2 more sketches for her. Fast. Immediately. Scanned. Emailed. Red-faced. Git-er-dun. Giddy-up. Hubba, hubba, hubba.
She preferred the extra width showing in version B, and you can believe I got on it, immediately without delay!
Last winter, a Wilsonia cabin owner contacted me about drawing her cabin. It was to be a gift for her sweet mama. Getting photos wasn’t going to be easy, in spite of the lack of snow. Cabins are closed in the winter, which means there are shutters on the windows which makes them look quite uninviting.
No hurry, said she.
No worry, summer’s coming, said me.
Suddenly, Sweet Mama’s birthday was almost here. Customer said, “Oops”, maybe you can do a quick sketch or something and send it to Sweet Mama in time for her birthday and here is the down payment on the drawing and here are a few photos.
No problem. I did the sketch, turned it into a birthday card, and sent it off.
TO THE WRONG ADDRESS!
Yes, they had moved and I didn’t make note of which address was correct – from the check or from the envelope.
THE CARD NEVER ARRIVED!
What is an incompetent artist to do in this awkward situation?
Tune in on Monday, August 17 to see what happened next.
I got word on the upcoming book The Cabins of Wilsonia, but until I see it, I don’t feel confident about it. As it gets closer or if there is confirmation of something, then I will let you know.
Meanwhile, back at the drawing board, a cabin owner wasn’t thrilled with the way her cabin will appear in the book. She timidly asked a few questions, because she is kind that way, and I told her that I can redraw it for her any way she would like. Being sweet, she said, “I don’t want to add to your work.” I said, “That’s how I earn my living!!” We laughed, and then she said she would like me to redraw the cabin for her. (This is called a “commission”.)
I took many photos, we had some conversations to clarify details, and here is both the first and the second drawing of her cabin.
As it appears in the book
As she requested it
I completely understand. People like to see their cabins as they envision them. For the book, I showed cabins in part, occasionally in whole, and with many details. This involved cropping. If every page showed one cabin in its entirety, the book would be boring.
There is a very sweet woman whom I have never met, but we seem to have become pen pals. We write notes to one another about Wilsonia, particularly about the upcoming book and about her cabin.
She asked me to draw her cabin, and let me know that it is very plain but means very much to her.
Because it is so plain, and because there are more cabins than I could possibly fit into the book and have it be interesting (that is for another post), I opted to not include hers in the book.
She is gracious and kind and honest. She bought 4 books in spite of the fact that her cabin is not in it, and then asked me to draw it for her.
You can see it doesn’t have many details architecturally:
I photographed it at 2 separate times of day, looking for the best light and best angle.
She asked for a collage, which shows different angles, views and details, all in one drawing.
I came up with 2 ideas, both quite pleasing. Now the ball is in her court!
Several cabin folks in Wilsonia have asked me to draw their cabins. One wasn’t built yet, one is very plain, and one is almost impossible to photograph or see.
Today I’ll show you the one that is almost impossible to see because of the wall of cedar trees. I tried and tried to find the right view for the book and finally said to myself, “Never mind! This is too hard, you cannot include every cabin anyway, so just move on.”
Just move on, folks. There’s nothing to see here.
But wait! There must be something. I did several sketches from different angles, scanned them, and wrote to the cabin owner. No word back yet.
You can see these are just sketches as opposed to drawings. Scribbly, loose, lots of trees pruned or removed, missing detail. . . good thing the owner knows I can draw.
Now, I just need to hear from him so I can begin the actual drawing.
There is one I like the best and hope he picks. Do you have a favorite angle?
The Fourth of July is a busy busy time in Wilsonia. When my husband (AKA Trail Guy) and I arrived, our host had posted a schedule of events in our cabin.
We headed over to Grant Grove for the annual parade. It is a parade with few entries, but all are patriotic and enthusiastic.
This is possibly the most impressive horse I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Ever.
Motorized vehicles were more common than horses. They hold more waving people than a horse does.
Then, I went to work and pre-sold some books, The Cabins of Wilsonia. Please excuse me for being redundant here – Google likes to see what a blog is about within the blog because it helps them find whatever people are seeking, and I hope people find this blog if they are seeking the upcoming book The Cabins of Wilsonia. (STOP IT!)
Trail Guy and I took a walk around Grant Grove Village. He found his favorite flower, a leopard lily (AKA Tiger Lily). If you want to know more about Trail Guy and wildflowers, the info is in my other blog. It will open in a new tab so you don’t lose this window of The Cabins of Wilsonia. (STOP IT!!)
I photographed a cabin to draw again. 268 drawings – you’d think there’d be nothing left to draw of the cabins of Wilsonia (not the title of the book here – will Google notice?) However, you’d be mistaken. This will be a commissioned drawing – photos have been ordered, and I’ll provide sketches too so that this very gracious cabin owner is thrilled with her original pencil drawing of her cabin of Wilsonia (I SAID STOP IT!)
It wasn’t all work. We joined our dear friends from Wilsonia on a walk. It wasn’t really a hike because we took no water, snacks or daypacks. Trail Guy is explaining things about the area. He knows a lot and is great to have on the trail.
The Manzanita/Azalea Trail has a great view. The cabins of Wilsonia are down there in those trees. (Would you please just STOP IT?)
As the book grows, so does my other work. Another commission came for another cabin on another street that has already been completely designed and drawn. No problem! Drawing cabins in pencil is what I do and have done since 1985. Really! (No, I wasn’t 5 years old at the time, but thanks for thinking I’m just a youngster.)
Once again we began with photos, and from these, I made 3 sketches. There was a question of which might be the best angle of the cabin, and sketches seem to be more helpful in deciding than photos.
I had to remove many trees in order to be able to see the cabin, but don’t worry because it was a figurative removal, not a literal one. (Has anyone besides me noticed how many people misuse the word “literally” these days?? “He literally shot himself in the foot.” Really? Can he walk any more?)
B was the choice. Bet you are wondering which sketch is B, since there is no B on the page of sketches. (It is the one that isn’t A or C.)
I waited awhile to begin. There is a large painting on the easel, 2 other commission drawings, and then, of course there is The Book with its revised and loaded up schedule. Finally, I decided it wasn’t going to draw itself, so this is what I did:
Next, I wait to hear from the customers. If they are pleased, I will be pleased and I will spray fix it so it doesn’t smear. If they want changes, I won’t be as pleased, but I will do my best. It will be me that I am displeased with for not getting it right the first time, not the customers.
The drawing is finished, the cabin folks are happy, and the book continues.
Not putting this drawing in the book gave me the freedom to put color in the flag. This little zinger of color makes me disproportionately happy with a simple pencil drawing.
I wanted to do this with every cabin in the book that has a flag. It would make the cost of the book shockingly high instead of just high. And no, I don’t know how much it will cost yet. But thanks for asking – it shows me that you are still interested in the project. 😎
