Messages

1

Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: Share Your Zizzer Zazzer Zuzz Exchange!

« on: April 30, 2018, 01:56:35 PM »

Hi all – I've received all but 2 from my list so far (a new record for me – yay!) and thought I might share what I sent with everybody here. Since a new exchange is up and running, I thought it would be safe to "attach" here without being too much of a spoiler for anyone that's still missing mine. I'm hoping everyone who participated will post a pic or three. So far, List 2 has had some brilliant pieces and I can only guess what went whirling around from List 1 or 3. I'd love to see some. This has been such a fun and amazingly creative exchange. Thanks all!!!!

Gibby

2

Show & Tell / Re: Overdoing it

« on: July 10, 2017, 12:56:50 PM »

Croquet anyone?

After a spree of not practicing, I finally got back on track this weekend. 13 pages of letterforms and 1 page of flourishing practice. I'm still not the biggest fan of bird flourishes... so I thought I'd try a flamingo. From there things got a little out of hand – so to speak. I did have the forethought to video myself working on this one. But there's 5 hours of footage for me to edit down and speed up – so it might be a while before that gets uploaded anywhere.

After finishing this one, I think I've decided bird flourishes aren't bad – provided the bird had a bit of personality before it landed on the page. I may have to try some others now. A penguin? A toucan? An emu?

Regardless, just hoping this one makes someone smile. Or gives someone a happy couple of minutes trying to find all of the Alice references in there.

Thanks all!
Gibby

Edit: I might have created a video – it's at 7500% speed so... a little quicker than my normal pace.
Hope you enjoy. (if I did it right the pic below should link you over to the flickr video – fingers crossed)

3

Show & Tell / Re: Overdoing it

« on: June 06, 2017, 01:48:29 PM »

Thanks so much!

I hadn't even thought of taking a video. The next time I get a quote stuck in my head - I may set up a camera to catch the madness. My process (especially for this one) is very random. Seeing it all together might be more confusing than helpful, but I think I'll give it a go. Now I just need a little inspiration and a bit more caffeine to start attacking some pages.

Thanks again!!!
Gibby

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Show & Tell / Re: Overdoing it

« on: April 10, 2017, 01:45:51 PM »

Awww, thanks all! You've officially made my week!

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Show & Tell / Re: Show us your best

« on: April 07, 2017, 05:07:13 PM »

These are truly beautiful. I'm so glad that you shared them. So lovely. I can't wait to see what 2017 inspires.

Gibby

6

Show & Tell / Overdoing it

« on: April 06, 2017, 04:41:01 PM »

Flourish-carpetPage by the flexistentialist, on Flickr

It's been a while since I've posted, well, anything. Sorry about that. I've not been exchanging lately, because life just got very much in the way and I didn't dare agree to a deadline I couldn't keep. But I have been practicing. And one night after I had been reading the Night Circus, one of its quotes got stuck in my head. I thought that might be a place where a bird flourish really made sense. (I'm not normally a fan of the birds) And so I thought I'd give it a whirl... or three. The above is what fell out of my pen two nights later. I didn't dare put this is the flourish section, I know it's still really rough. And it probably breaks a dozen rules, but for a practice piece that took on a life of its own. I kind of liked it.

And I think I like fish flourishes. And search-and-finds. Who knew?

Feel free to tell me about the rules I broke. It truly won't hurt my feelings at all.  (I know the tail is awash in errors) And I'll keep them in mind the next time I go nuts on a page, promise.

Hoping it makes someone else smile. (Fishes are fun.)
Gibby

7

Coffee & Nib-bles / Re: Calligraphy confessions

« on: March 09, 2017, 01:25:43 PM »

It had been a long night of calligraphy, one of those rare school nights where things were actually working and I didn't dare stop for fear that the ink gods would frown at the weakness of mortals - even though the morning alarm would wait for no one, mortal or otherwise. As dawn quickly approached I cleaned my nibs and other bits and bobs at the bathroom sink, then went to bed for what would in essence be a power nap.

In the morning there is a large silver tube of white gouache set startlingly close to a large silver tube of toothpaste... and there is a sleep-deprived me getting ready in a haze.

Thankfully gouache doesn't smell minty, but the toothbrush has been demoted to "for cleaning grout purposes only".

I have since realized that the ink gods have a funny sense of humor.


 

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Flourishing / Re: Flourish Drawing

« on: January 26, 2017, 12:55:07 PM »

I've been toying with the idea of trying some flourishing myself – thanks for the list of resources. That looks incredibly helpful! My google-skills were failing me. Weird things appeared when I googled: the difference between flourishing and offhand flourishing.

Thanks again!
Gibby

9

Open Flourish | General Discussion / Re: Flourish Forum Pangrams "Original" List

« on: November 29, 2016, 12:55:44 PM »

What a fun idea – I love new ideas for practice text. That poor fox must be so tired by now.

Pangram (with moderately correct spelling):
I am Gibby, from Houston Texas, quibbling over the puzzle of drawing out jokes – and double letters – correctly.

Pangram (the way I'd probably write it nowadays):
I amm Gibby, ffrom Houstonn Texxas, quibbling ovver thhe puzzle of drawwing ouut jjokes – andd doublle letters – correctly.   

Thanks! (shall be practicing this one tonight)
Gibby

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Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: Halloween | Day of the Dead 2016 Exchange Lists have been sent!

« on: October 17, 2016, 02:32:28 PM »

Happy Haunting everyone!

I sent my exchanges to list 11 on Friday. (Here's hoping the postal system 2 ZIP codes over is more treat than trick than my own postal people). And it looks like an early bird has already landed in my mailbox – how spooktacular!

My fingers are firmly crossed for everyone to have a phantom-tastic exchange!

Thanks all!
Gibby

11

Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: SHARE A PHOTO OF YOUR EXCHANGE!

« on: September 21, 2016, 01:09:42 PM »

Awwww – thanks! Actually I ended up making 5 total. (I got overly excited once I got the first one to work). It was my first advanced exchange, and it said that some extra effort was kind of expected, so....

I really like maps.

And if you put enough stuff and twists and bad puns and hidden messages, the recipients may be a little less likely to notice the still-not-quite-right letterforms so much.

Gibby

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Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: Halloween | Day of the Dead 2016 Exchange Sign ups are now OPEN!

« on: September 17, 2016, 02:40:31 PM »

@Terasleen
For a normal exchange, like this - there's normally somewhere between 7 and 9 on a list. 😊 It makes for a lovely variety of mailbox happiness.

Gibby

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Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: Halloween | Day of the Dead 2016 Exchange Sign ups are now OPEN!

« on: September 16, 2016, 02:37:27 PM »

I'm so glad to see this exchange back again. (Can't wait for all of the spooky stuff to start appearing).

I did have one question, though. Now that there are different levels – will that affect how many people are on a list?

Just wondering as I was trying to get a jump on things.
Gibby

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Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: SHARE A PHOTO OF YOUR EXCHANGE!

« on: September 14, 2016, 02:00:32 PM »

Hi all!
After a near catastrophe with my last exchange photos (thanks again @AnasaziWrites!), I thought I'd go ahead and post them here. I've not heard back from anyone on my list – so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they made it to their destinations. (I tried using spoiler tags to hide the photos just in case, but I couldn't quite get it to work)
 
I sent what may be the ugliest USPS boxes ever to hold my exchanges. But the contents inside included a folded set of instructions and a folded map with a hand-cut paper wrap around it.

Here's the Kraken wrap:


This is the outside of the instructions (I had to make up for the lack of envelope):


Here's the outside of the map – with its riddle:


And here's the map:


The center rings of the map can be turned. When they arrived, they were purposely wrong, so that the recipients could try and solve the riddle. When aligned (as seen in the photo) you can read the answer to the riddle – if you look carefully.

If (and this was a huge if) everything lined up just right, and the recipient pressed down in just the right spots... and the calligraphy fairies were smiling at just the right angle – it was supposed to light up.

Proof that they worked before they left my house.:


Sorry for the barrage of images. After a losing my originals, and then getting new ones miraculously sent to me – I wanted to have these out there before something else happened.

Ummm...I love maps.

Gibby

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Completed/Past Exchanges / Re: North, South, East, West 2016 Exchange Lists are Sent!

« on: September 14, 2016, 10:16:23 AM »

You are so wonderful! Thank you so much! PM coming through momentarily.