Open for Commissions

Hey everyone! Still not much news I can share on the Bertie Blue book or other projects just yet but I do have something I need to talk to you about and it's something you can help with.

I'm a freelance cartoonist. This is my job. And I'm constantly needing money. Art stuff ain't cheap and nor is living. And I kind of want art stuff and life.

SO! If you've ever been wanting me to create something for you, like illustrations, portraits, logos, tattoo designs and so on, I am now open for commissions! Have a look down below and see the services I have to offer.

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Artwork/illustrations

Simple

Coloured character(s), no background, no shading

$20/ £13

If you have a preference, specify if you want the lineart to be black, coloured or lineless.

Simple Shaded
Coloured character(s), no background, shaded 

$30/ £20

If you have a preferece, specify if you want the lineart to be black, coloured or lineless.

Simple B/G

Coloured and shaded with simple background: 

$40/ £30

If you have a preference, specify if you want the lineart to be black, coloured or lineless.

Detailed B/G
Coloured and shaded with more detailed background: 

$50/ £35

If you have a preference, specify if you want the lineart to be black, coloured or lineless.

Can add up to two characters for no charge, after this, it's $5/£2.50 per character.

No more than ten characters per illustration/commission.

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Logo designs

Simple Logo
One colour (up to three colours), no shading

$78/ £50

Complex Logo
More colours, shading

$149/ £100

Variations 
featuring mascots, banners suitable for social networks

$313/ £200

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Tattoo

You trust me enough to let me draw something that'll be permanently on you? Wow, that's intense. Hit me up and we'll talk custom tattoos. The below pictures are examples of particular designs I can do. I'll need as much help as possible to make the design of your dreams. Naturally, we'd want to do this right!

Simple

One colour

$39/ £25

Simple
More colour, unshaded

 $78/ £50

Complex
More colour, shading

 $149/ £100

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Portraits

Want a portrait of yourself/loved one/pet? Hit me up!

Portrait

$40/£30

Please specify if you want them to be cartoony/ realistic. Also mention if you want the lineart to be black, coloured or lineless if you have a preference.

No more than 5 people and/or pets per portrait. PLEASE provide a photo for reference.

Character sheets/designs

Want a one off character design? Or an in depth character sheet describing the character and their traits?

Character design
One off character drawing (ideal for mascots)

$30/ £20

Simple character sheet 

Shading/texture comparisons, some small detail 

$40, £30

Detailed character sheet 
expressions, details, character descriptions, colour palette

$50, £35

EXAMPLE TO COME SOON

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Here are some conditions that won't take as long to read as Apple's. So y'all got no excuse!

~ I can only accept money through paypal, unless you know me locally and can pay in cash but other than that, we doin' this digital, yo.

~ Email Emmanimator@live.co.uk for commission orders and any questions you have.

~ I would appreciate you providing a reference of what/who you want me to draw. This is VITAL for the portraits. If I don't have a photo of who you want me to draw, I can't work on it!

~ Be as detailed as you can with what you want. I want to provide the best!

~ I work on a pay half now, pay half later rule. I accept half of the payment at the start, work on the sketch, show it to you and you let me know if everything's OK/anything needs changed. Once the sketch is approved, I'll need the second half of the payment and then I can finish the artwork.

~ As of now, I can only provide digital copies. They will be sent to your email/whatever email is provided on completion.

~ My prices are open for negotiation if I am providing multiple illustrations on the same project e.g. children's books, depending on detail and the time it would take to complete.

~ The finished image is yours and I will ask permission to feature the artwork on my website. I retain the right to feature it in my portfolio.

~ No family unfriendly commissions. Not hatin' on 'em, I just don't do 'em.

I've included a link to my price list with the links at the top. Have a look through them and hit me up if anything interests you. I MIGHT consider a christmas deal on some of the more expensive options but I'm still thinking about that.

Remember, contact me at Emmanimator@live.co.uk for more information/to discuss commissions.

Might be a rather unique christmas present though, eh?

Introducing GrumbleSquab

Now that I've made the decision to name my work under the umbrella name 'Emmature Media', I've been planning a bit of remodelling for my blogs and social networks alongside developing my other projects. You'll most likely have noticed the new blog title picture featuring mascots that you'll be seeing a lot more often.

I've been making variations for my portfolio and tumblr sites as well and I'm planning on making similar ones for my twitter and Facebook pages too. 

I've mentioned Bucky the pugalope before, the Staghound mascot who occasionally gets drunk on whatever tipple Ruari reviews at the time. But the big eared yeti is a new addition, one specifically for Emmature Media.

Her name is Squab. GrumbleSquab.

I really want to make a unique print out of this picture, possibly look into making some phone covers as well. But as of right now, here is Grumbles in her unique yetihuahua glory. Featuring the Doodlebug. Cos ain't no way I'm getting rid of that.

I'm debating making the background of all my customisable sites lilac with stars rather than straight black. If anyone has a preference, let me know but that's something I'll probably play about with when I have more time.

… does anyone else think GrumbleSquab sounds like something from a children's story? I pondered this heavily on twitter last night.

… I should probably stick to just illustrating stories, huh. On an unrelated note, Grumbles totally doesn't eat kids. Not after that one time.

~***~

Just a heads up, I'm planning on changing the URL of the website soon. Of course I'll update everyone once that happens, I'm mainly looking into how to be able to redirect an old URL to the new one. I'll keep ya posted.

Emmature-media.co.uk or something like that.

~***~

In other news, I know some folk have been really interested in obtaining a copy of the Bertie Blue novel. As of right now, we are currently looking into getting it out there. We were originally going to get copies printed and sell the, ourselves like we did with the picture books but it seems the price of a 140 page book as opposed to a 14 page book costs that little bit more. And by a little, I mean a LOT.

So we're still looking into other options. We have some ideas but we can't talk too much about that right now, not until we have some progress to share. All I can say is that the book itself is complete and we're just looking into the best options to get it out there and share with the world.

Watch this space, guys!

The Adventures of Bertie Blue Novel COMPLETE!

Published in the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.

… well, I very much couldn't post it ON the 11th hour, could I? I was doing the silence, obviously.

Yep, this little guy is one of the main reasons why I've been silent for a while. Certainly not because I have nothing to show. In fact, quite the opposite! It's just that the projects are either secret or need to be experimented with to see if such a thing can be done. I promise updates as soon as I can.

I'll just say that I need to start developing an online shop that sells more than just the Bertie books.

Anyway, lets not get ahead of ourselves. This entry is about the illustrated novel!

The book features all FOURTEEN of Bertie Blue's adventures in the war, in and out of the trenches. There are illustrations scattered throughout each story, all of which are based in historical facts and events. We're still working out a retail price and I'll obviously let everyone know the details as soon as humanly possible.

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In news that I CAN share, however, I'm slowly going through something of a redesign. 'Emma Friel: Doodlebug' was a bit of a mouthful in itself and I missed the 'Emmature' nickname that I was often referred to. So from now on, the blog is going to be titled 'Emmature Media' to cover all of my creative aspects.

It spans over a few things. 'Emmature Doodlebug' for prints and artwork. 'Emmature Shopper' for my upcoming online shop. 'Emmature Productions' for animations. 'Emmature Hour' for my radio show/podcasts. If I ever get around to doing such a thing.

And so on.

I've just got to get around to designing a new logo for the blog and various social networks. I'm still planning to include the doodlebug logo in some way but also have it feature alongside a mascot. I've got some designs in mind if I can fit them in alongside these projects.

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Speaking of mascots, I've been collaborating with Ruari in one of our Staghound projects. Long story short, a Staghound project is one where the two of us collaborate on something, be it proofreading, drawing/writing for the other, working on videos together and so on. It's gonna be big.

One of these projects is our little Staghound fella, Bucky, being illustrated alongside Ruari's beer reviews. So far, I only have one done for him but soon there will be more to Buck things up. Ain't he a cutie?

You can read the review he's featured in HERE. I'm buying ArtRage sometime this week so artwork including him, as well as others, should hopefully be that bit tidier. I'm experimenting with programs other than Adobe. Good to have more arrows in the quiver. If that's the right expression.

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Crumbs is still a thing but as of now, it's strictly a passion project that I can only really work on when I have the time. I'm trying to organise my projects and life so I can start working properly on it again. Any advice for work organisation is appreciated!

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And that's roughly all I can share so far. I'll try to stick to a weekly update on this blog but as the projects are mostly secret for now, it's a bit tricky. All the more reason to work on Crumbs more!

Oh yeah, I'm separating different projects in an entry with those wiggly line star breaks. I started doing it in the Bertie book and it's kind of stuck. Do you like it? I like it.

Oooh, glowy...

Yeah, you probably noticed that the blog looks a tad different now.

It was originally this.

Now it's more like this.

While I was working today and trying to repress a panic attack over how little I was getting done (or felt I was getting done), my mind wandered to how glow-in-the-dark tattoos are a thing and how I'll totally get me a little star tattoo if I ever land the cash. Then I thought about how glowing things are really soothing and enchanting and just overall rad.

Then I decided that I should totally show more of my love for glowing stuff in my work.

Hence, the glowing title and darker look for the blog.

I might still play about with it cos it seems a bit sparse. Although that said, I'm mainly meant to have my artwork and blog text do the talking rather than how it's designed. But we'll see. For all I know, I might get bored of it and go back to the white design. We'll play it by ear.

Anyway, back to the Crumbs buffer. To anyone who hasn't heard me endlessly blather on about my bird comic, you can read it from the start HERE.

And click HERE to visit the Crumbs patreon page if you're interested in supporting the project.

Crumbs on Patreon

I'm getting the Crumbs buffer chugging along nicely. I'm already covered for this week with two of next weeks pages sketched and the following weeks planned. I'd like to have a bunch of pages in the buffer for wiggle room in case I'm not able to work on any for a few days. It'll help me sleep better at night.

Speaking of which, here's another way you guys could help me do that.

Remember that Patreon I mentioned, to support my work overall? Well, to be honest, it felt a bit disorganised and vague. So, instead of having it cover all of my projects, I've decided to dedicate the Patreon page entirely to the Crumbs comic.

Click the picture to be taken to the patreon page. For those who don't know, Patreon is a website similar to Kickstarter but with their being no time limit. It's ongoing and patrons can fund as many projects as they want for as much/little as they want.

Guys, I'd really appreciate any funding/awareness you'd be willing to give to help this project progress. I've got big plans for Crumbs but I really need your help in making it happen. Even if everyone was willing to donate $1 a month, it would really go far in the long run.

And even if you're not up for donating, I'd appreciate anyone sharing the news, retweeting, reblogging, whatever you have to do. It's all appreciated.

For more information, have a look at the page. It should explain things in more detail.

I hope you'll consider supporting the comic!

Crumbs Update and Bertie Blue Development

So, yesterday's post is now today's post.

That was my bad. I've become a bit overwhelmed with some things and it doesn't help my anxiety much. I've had a bit of difficulty facing the day but I'm here now.

Unfortunately I don't really have a new image to share, as I try to do for my blog entries but I DO have the next Crumbs page! Click on the image and it'll take you straight there.

And check out the rest of the pages/site if you haven't already!

As said on the site, I do plan on spending the next week blasting through as much of the buffer as possible. I was getting anxiety attacks and low moods which were causing loss of motivation which were causing anxiety attacks and low moods which were causing loss of motivation which were causing…

Well, you get the idea.

Anyway, there's that AND I have a bit of Bertie Blue news to share. As planned, 'Bertie Blue and the White Rum Sauce' is now complete and I am able to have it stand alongside it's previous stories as a small collection.

So pretty.

Speaking of collections though, the author and I have decided (for the time being anyway) that we're going to stop creating the books in this format.

And instead, put all FOURTEEN of the stories in one novel with three illustrations per story.

A charity known as Words For The Wounded hold competitions to raise money for the rehabilitation of wounded servicemen and women. With the subject matter of the story and with the combined stories reaching the word limit, the decision was made to combine all the stories and enter it as an illustrated novel in the competition, launching on the 11th November.

The goal is to have the book all ready by then. I'm starting the task the week after next, allowing myself to catch up with Crumbs before I can balance the two projects again. This seems like a very exciting development for the project and I can't wait to put my all into it.

Finally, and most importantly, thank you to everyone who kindly commented on Facebook wishing me the best. I really appreciate your support, you're all so wonderful! I hope you'll all enjoy what's to come.

Chihuahua Princess and Pigeon Development

So, people who know me (or sometimes don't know me) are aware of my incessant pug fascination. They're just delightful potatoes that one day grew fur, became sentient and ran into a wall. Ever since, they have infiltrated so many families, adverts and fashion accessories. They are beautiful beasts who I will one day be proud to call 'Master'.

However.

They are not the only dog I love. In fact, I love every single breed of dog on the planet. And probably a couple off this planet as well. So occasionally I am prone to drawing other breeds.

Specifically, I've become possessed by this precious princess. The tiny but mighty Chihuahua.

She kind of looks a bit like a cat, probably cos of the pink nose. But I'm mostly happy with how this came out. And I've had an overwhelming urge to doodle a Shiba Inu for well over a week now, as well as more chocolate labradors, so there will probably be more doodles of dogs in the future. And a butt-ton of other animals. It's good to draw more than pigeons all the time.

Don't despair though (you were totally despairing, I saw), the pigeons aren't going anywhere. In fact, I've been quite productive with them as of late. In regards to Bertie Blue, I've just emailed Steve the Christmas story PDF complete with coloured illustrations. We're hoping the book will be ready to print this week, with an even more exciting development for every single story of Bertie Blue ever written. There are fourteen in total.

I'm holding off on sharing more news about that for now though. In the meantime, I'll share the cover for the aforementioned Christmas story 'Bertie Blue and the White Rum Sauce'.

Glad to have the three stories out in time for Christmas. But as I said before, there's a potentially interesting development for the stories that we're considering. I'll share news on that as soon as I can.

Finally, Crumbs. I'm happy to say that the webcomic has entered it's second week! Still quite slow moving for now but we're kind of story/world building a little bit… kind of… sort of… eh, it'll hopefully make a bit more sense next week.

Anyway, the comic is running quite well so far and people seem to be intrigued by what's happening so far. So while the comic is running, I've toyed with the idea of making prints and posters. One design being Page 4 without dialogue. I think it's quite a dramatic piece and I'd totally poster the heck out of it.

Does anyone else feel the same? Would you have this rockin' on your wall?

Feedback is appreciated!

Anyway, hopefully I'll be able to share more information about the Bertie Blue Christmas story and this new Bertie development later this week. And possibly more dog pictures. Perhaps.

Most likely.

Don't forget, Crumbs updates tomorrow. But this Wednesday's page might be a bit… intense. Heavily implied pigeon death as we see the toxin in action. Just a heads up.