Tag: #penandink

Flamingo WIP

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Work In Progress

My next totem that I am working on is the flamingo! They are a very bright colored bird and have odd proportions. The weather is finally starting to get warm and act like spring so I thought a nice tropical creature could help get us in the mood! It’s going to be beach season soon! Beach or not, I just want to be outside!

Here is the completed ink for flamingo. The entire animal is done in tangles unlike my recent horse and orca totems. I can’t help but use zentangle when creating feathers! They are too perfect for the occasion.

I will also be incorporating the legs but have decided a new and fun approach. I am drawing the flamingo on three different sheets of paper. Then, when I scan them into the computer, I can piece them together making one long print! It’s going to be cool! I like trying something new with each piece that I do so let’s see how it turns out!

Thanks for stopping by this week! Check back next week to see the finished flamingo in all it’s florescent feathers!

Stay flashy, free spirits!

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Horse WIP

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Work In Progress

I am surprised it has taken me this long to do my favorite animal as a totem. I’ve been wanting to tackle it for a while now but it kept getting put off. I finally made time for it and present you with the ink for the horse totem. I know I say this for every drawing but I am really enjoying this one. The mane has been fun to play around with. I can’t wait to get the color done. Once again, I did not add any tangles to the animal. It just didn’t call for it I guess. I wanted the mane to be the “wild” part about this piece. What do you think?

Check back next Monday to learn about the symbolism the majestic horse holds! Thanks for stopping by!

Stay wild, free spirits!

Totem Animal: Blue footed Booby

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Totem Animals, Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA)

This post is all about boobies! I’m sorry, I had to! Ok, but seriously though it’s about boobies. The blue footed booby to be exact. It is the latest animal I chose for my totem series. I had a lot of fun with this piece. I really enjoy using zentangle when drawing birds. Their feathers always come out awesome! I was excited to use the blue colors to create the feet, as well. I didn’t use any ink around the feet like I did through out the rest of the piece. I wanted the color to be the only part of the feet you pay attention to. This is also why I didn’t add any tangles to the feet. I kept the colors for this drawing realistic. The blue footed booby is so beautiful on it’s own. I didn’t want to take away from their natural patterns and colors.

The blue footed booby’s symbolism is just as interesting as their appearance. It was difficult to dig up information on this one. It was a unique choice on my part. Not too many people stumble across these guys too often, being that that they are only found in Central and South America. However, I was seeing them repeatedly online and my son brought home some school papers about them so I decided I needed to check this one off the list.

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Blue Footed Booby Symbolism

The word booby comes from the Spanish word “bobo”. Bobo means stupid. Some think this name was given to these birds because of how clumsy they are when on land. Although they bumble around on land to mate and care for their young, they are most graceful in the air and water. They soar through the air, above the ocean hunting for food. They will dive straight down into the water, with speed and elegance, to gobble up unsuspecting schools of fish. When searching for a mate, males use their vibrant feet in a courting dance to show off to females. The brighter the blue, the more attractive the mate. They also use their feet to protect their young and keep them warm. Because of their size, the only predator boobies have
(besides humans) are sharks.

The blue footed booby is a survivor. If one has crossed your path you can expect the same for yourself. No matter what life is throwing at you, you can come out of it stronger than ever! Dive deep within yourself. There are more layers than just the surface. You have strength deep within that will help you get ahead in life.

The booby is fearless. They may look silly as they stumble around, doing a little dance. They may be a bit goofy with big blue feet that don’t quite seem to fit the rest of their body. Though in the end, they are still confident and continue on. So what if your own dance is a little clumsy, it’s yours! Strut your stuff, don’t be afraid to be you! Single? This could be your time to shine and pick up that cutie you’ve been too shy to approach otherwise. In a relationship? Don’t forget to have some fun every once and a while. Remember to dance together, even if you look silly.

The blue footed booby is also a symbol of creativity and dreaming. It might be time to take that dream and make it a reality. The booby is telling you to keep in touch with your creative side. Anything is possible, as long as you can imagine it. Use your creativity to make it happen.

Blue footed boobies live on the coast. This symbolizes unity of all the elements. The sun shines on the coast (fire), the booby birds dance on the shore (earth), they soar through the sky (air) and they dive into the waters(you guessed it, water). They use all the elements to survive and have achieved a balance between them. If we can obtain this balance in our own lives, we too can dive deep into the open water and come out with an abundance of fish….or whatever you are aiming for!

With awkward feet and a name that makes you giggle, it’s surprising how powerful a totem the blue footed booby can be. Balance your life and remember to look within yourself for the strength to survive. Stay silly and spend time with the love of your life.

I hope you were able to gain some insight from the blue footed booby. I was happy to learn as much as I did about them. They are unique and interesting creatures. Have you ever seen one of these birds in person? Share your story in the comments below! Thanks for stopping by this week! Check back soon for my next totem piece, the orca.

Dive on in, free spirits!

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~Totem Animal art by Free Spirit Meg~

Find your own totem animal in the shop!

Prints and Products Available @ Redbubble!

Manatee Totem in the Shop!

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Free Spirit Merch, Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA)

Good morning art lovers! I am super excited to announce that my Manatee Totem is now in the shop! I have so much fun designing these products and it adds a little twist to my drawings. I design the backgrounds on photoshop and they really add to the image! I get to play around with so many different colors and it gives me ideas on how I can make my drawings better as well. I use to be strictly a graphite pencil artist but I’ve realized that has changed, a lot! Now I use ink pens, colored pencils, art markers and now photoshop! I’d say I’m more of a mixed media artist now. But don’t worry, I still have a lot of pencil ideas a’brewin! I want to get back into my “Eye” series. I had a lot of fun doing them and people seem to love them! My totem animals just kind of took over! That’s ok, though. The totem animals will be an on-going thing. They will never end, not until I have drawn a totem for every animal in existence. I’m not sure if that is possible in a single lifetime but I will certainly try! Anyways, now I’m rambling.

Here are some of my favorite Manatee products but there are so many to choose from! You can see all the products available in my shops at

Redbubble & Society6

There are also prints (framed and canvas as well), yoga mats, coasters, notebooks and journals, tapestries, serving trays, keepsake boxes and so much more! Any and all sales are greatly appreciated and will help me grow into a full time artist…which means more and better art!

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you find something you like!

Happy shopping, free spirits!

  • Stickers!
  • Tote bags!
  • Clocks!
  • Pouches!
  • Stools & Furniture!
  • All Over Graphic Tee!
  • Pillows!
  • Water Buddha Shirts!
  • Beach Towels!

Zenbooby WIP

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Work In Progress

Hey Everyone!

I’ve been trying to get as much drawing as I can done, in between all these snow storms. I do snow removal overnight when it storms so it can be quite exhausting. Sometimes I just need a day to sleep! I was almost able to complete my latest totem drawing today, the blue footed booby. It’s coming out quite nicely and I’m excited to finish it. I worked on it today while I watched movies. I watched 1922 and began watching Dances with Wolves. Both are great movies.

I have quite a few totems I would like to get done in March. After a recent poll I did (which is still open until I finish the blue footed booby) it looks like my next totem drawing is going to be an orca. The orca is my favorite marine animal. I’m really excited to start that one. The poll is still going though so it could change. Jaguar is a close second! After the poll winner, I will be doing the horse. It is my top favorite animal so it is insane that I haven’t done it already. Plus, I have had a lot of requests for horse lately (which is also in the poll if you want to vote for the horse and see that one sooner!) After that, a friend of mine suggested doing a flamingo since it is a vivid and colorful animal. Also, everyone’s getting excited for warmer seasons so it’s the perfect animal to add some Summer vibes!

Thanks for stopping by today! Check back soon for a lot more totems to come!

Stay warm, free spirits!

  • #1 Pencil sketch
  • #2 Ink
  • #3 Color pencil
  • #4 Color pencil and Prismacolor markers

Totem Poll (see what I did there)

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in FSM Updates, Totem Animals

Hey All!

I’ve been out of sort for the past week or two, getting a lot of snow removal hours and trying to catch up on some zzzzz’s! I think Mother Nature is going to give me a breather now…for a little while…so I can start my next totem, the blue-footed booby! I real excited to get start because the colors are going to be bright and beautiful! Once I finish the booby, I thought it would be fun to let you guys choose what totem I should do next. I’ve created a poll to let you guys pick which animal you would like to see next. Here are the choices…

Which totem animal should I draw next?

  • Orca
  • Jaguar
  • Sloth
  • Mouse
  • Horse
  • Wolf
  • Kingfisher
  • Buffalo
  • Zebra
  • Dog

Leave a comment below with the animal of your choice.

Thanks for voting! I can’t wait to see who the winner is!

I also have the poll up on twitter and deviant art. Those votes will be counted towards the total as well! Unfortunately, twitter only allows 4 choices so you can only vote on the full list here on my blog and on deviant art.

Take care, free spirits!

Rhino What You’re Thinking!

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in FSM Updates, Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA)

Hey Everyone! I uploaded the Rhino Totem to my Society6 and my Redbubble. The designs came out really cool! I am enjoying the Redbubble editor. It is so easy and user friendly. It doesn’t take forever to load like Society6 and I can change the color of the background on the editor which gives me a lot of options. I really like the red with the Rhino design.

Society6 has some awesome products though that Redbubble does not. I really like the yoga mats and the furniture is really neat too!

Make sure to give both shops a glance. They are each unique and different like these notebooks. The blue one is from Society6 and the red one is from Redbubble. Like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get! Plus the prices vary between the products. Sometimes one of my shops will be having a sale and the other won’t.

I hope you enjoy the Rhino Totem. There is so much available in the shops it’s crazy! Let me know what you think about each store and what you favorite products are. Do you prefer Society6 or Redbubble? Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Growth is key! Thanks for your support! All profits go right back into my art for supplies, equipment and helps keep the blog running! And remember….

Save the Chubby Unicorns, free spirits!

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Related Posts: Rhino Symbolism | For Sudan and Northern White Rhinos

ZenSquirrel WIP

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Work In Progress, Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA)

My latest totem is certainly one of the most interesting. The creature I was inspired to do this time is a flying squirrel. I know I have already completed the Squirrel Totem but I had to add this one to the collection. I recently read an article from National Geographic about the recent discovery that certain species of flying squirrels glow a vibrant pink when under ultraviolet light. Scientists are still trying to figure out why this happens and if it useful to the animals or not. The colors were beautiful with the hot pink in the light areas and a shade of blue in the darker areas. I decided I had to this for my next totem piece. I have the ink finished and will start the color on it today. With just the line art though it is already vivid and bright! It’s fun using different colors than I normally would. Especially pink which is a color I use the least.

Next week I will post the symbolism behind the flying squirrel. I wonder how different or similar it will be to a common squirrel. If you are interested in reading the article from Nat Geo, I posted the link at the bottom of this post. Thanks for stopping by today! Check back often for new work!

Shine bright, free spirits!

Squirrel Totem

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Related Posts: Squirrel

National Geographic Article:
Flying squirrels secretly glow pink, thanks to fluorescence

Totem Animal: Coyote

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in Totem Animals

The Coyote Totem came out very nice. I had a lot of fun with the different tangles and matching them with the coyote’s natural patterns. The colors were also fun to play with, using the different shades of copper, tans and yellows. I also added more of a background this time. With such a great pose from the coyote, I didn’t want it to look like the coyote was floating in mid air. The background is a design I came up with to represent the tall grasses the coyote will hunt in.

Coyote Symbolism

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The coyote is a very unique totem from the others I have studied so far. The coyote is a trickster. So much so that they will even fall for their own tricks. They symbolize self sabotage and making things more difficult for one’s self. If Coyote has presented itself to you be sure that you are not blinded by the obvious. You may be caught in disbelief of a stampede coming towards you that you allow it to trample you. Not believing what just happened, you’ll look again only to get struck once more by the same stampede. It is time to be aware of your surroundings. Are you being fooled by someone? Are you fooling yourself or others? Make sure you have not beguiled yourself and others into believing you know what your doing, when in fact you do not.

Do not be alarmed if Coyote has came across your path. Yes, Coyote’s medicine can be perceived as good or bad but it is still medicine. Coyote holds a great wisdom. Seek out this wisdom when you are down about yourself. Coyote wants you to be able to laugh at yourself. It may be laughter from pain or it may genuinely be funny. If you feel as though you have a flaw, shrug it off and chuckle about it. No one is perfect. If you wish to change that flaw then take the action needed to do so but do not fool anyone into thinking your perfect. Own up to who you are and do not let it bring you down.

Beware. Coyote could also be a sign that something may backfire on you. Perhaps you feel like everything you touch is going to sh*t. Or perhaps someone you have tricked in the past is looking to get you back. Keep a keen sense about you, like Coyote, to ensure you can escape any traps laid out for you. Especially be careful not to fall into your own trap! Do not play tricks on yourself and set yourself up for failure!

They are related to everything whimsical and everything funny. They teach us to stay light hearted and remember to laugh. The reason I chose to do the coyote totem next was because I heard them singing in the woods one night. When a coyote calls it may be because things are becoming too serious. They remind us to remain playful and view the world as if through child eyes. The world is a wonderous place and Coyote teaches us that anything is possible.

If you would like to dive deep into Coyote lore, I suggest checking out the book Native American Myths and Legends by Richard Erdoes and Alfonso Ortiz. There are many great stories in it about Coyote’s magical feats and incredible powers. They are the masters of many skills. Although, they will often seek out ways to benefit without having to use those skills. They are not lazy, quite on the contrary. Though they come off as crazy and foolish, they can also adapt to any situation they are in and any environment as well. They are swift and have many tricks up their sleeves (if they had sleeves) to get out of trouble urgently.

Summary

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Coyote is the wise fool. They have powerful magic that can get them out of any predicament. Though remember that magic doesn’t always work. Do not fall into traps made by yourself and do not fall for anyone else’s either. If you are known to prank others, there might be someone around the corner waiting to get you back. Stay aware of the obvious and do not second guess what is right in front of you! Use your skills to adapt to your surroundings. Remember that we are all flawed, to err is human. So learn to laugh at yourself when you make a silly mistake. Embrace the true you and stop tricking everyone into thinking your perfect because you’re not. No one is. We just are. So have fun, stay playful and fill your eyes with wonderment. Just remember to not let that wonderment turn into a vale over your head.

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I sure learned a lot from Coyote! They couldn’t have showed up at a better time. Did you know their howls can be deceptive as well? When they yip and yap through the woods, their call will bounce off the trees. This makes one coyote sound like two and two sound like four and so on. Many believe this is a tactic used to intimidate potential threats that may be close by. Just another tricky prank they like to pull!

I hope you enjoyed Coyote’s Totem piece and were able to take some Coyote wisdom with you as well. Prints are available in both my shops @ Society6 and Redbubble! Thanks for stopping by today!

Keep laughing, free spirits!

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Related Posts: Coyote WIP

Sources:

Free Spirit Meg’s Art Shop!

by Free Spirit Meg, posted in FSM Updates, Totem Animals, Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA)

Free Spirit Meg’s Art Shop….I like the way that sounds! Anyways…I am so excited to officially announce that I have my own online store now! It’s been a long time coming. Now, I can finally offer prints and canvases of my work. I am slowly creating an online presence starting with Society6 and RedBubble. They have a lot of great products on both sites and it is really fun creating merchandise with my art! I’ve already made my first sale on Society6 and I am so excited and grateful! This is my next step to becoming a full time artist and I feel that much closer to achieving my goal! Thank you to everyone who has supported me this far. I hope I can continue to create beautiful artwork to please your eyeballs! Be sure to check out the new shop and pick up what you like. There are frequent sales going on so check back often!

Another way that you can support my work is by subscribing to Free Spirit Meg on Patreon. It is a site that helps creative entrepreneurs build their business and put together Reward Tiers. You get to choose how much money you want to contribute and receive subscription boxes for each month you are subscribed. I currently offer monthly photography postcards, totem animal prints and custom totem cards exclusively for patrons! The more I grow, the more goodies I can put in my subscription boxes! Check it out and let me know what you think!

Again, I just want to say thank you to everyone who has helped me get this far and I can’t wait to see where it goes from here! Let me know what you think of the new shop and what your favorite items are! Also, if you have a favorite totem animal that hasn’t made it to the shop yet, feel free to leave a comment and I’ll be sure to add it in with haste!

Take care, free spirits!