Donkeyblog Donkeyshines is the Land of Absurd T-shirts!

March 29, 2009

Shirt of the Week- Bat and Rat

Filed under: Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 7:04 am

I realize that bats and rats are not the most popular animals, but this is actually my favorite of the Donkeyshines T-shirts. And for the week of March 29-April 4, you can buy it for $16.99. This is a pretty good deal, as this shirt is printed on super-soft bamboo/organic cotton and is therefore normally priced at $24.99.

batandrat200

I happen to like bats very much, and have even met a few rats that I get along with. I guess I ‘m not the only person who appreciates these animals, as there is a band in the UK called Frodo Freud which sings a song called Rat Bat. This song is not among the ones they have available for download so I have not heard it.  It must be pretty fun, though. Frodo Freud bought Bat and Rat shirts for each band member to wear to one of their gigs. If I lived in the UK, I would certainly have been at that show. Perhaps someday they’ll tour the US.

March 22, 2009

Shirt of the Week- Nessie in a Fishbowl

Filed under: Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , — Ryan Klemek @ 11:44 am

As many of you may have already noticed, I recently have been designating one shirt per week to be sold at a special sale price. The shirt for the week of March 22-28 is Nessie in a Fishbowl. Regularly sold at $21.99, get it now for $16.99. The design is printed on super-soft American Apparel ringspun cotton, and comes in Forrest green and black, in both men’s and women’s styles.

nessieforest200nessieblack200

This design was actually made a year before I started Donkeyshines, and is still one of my more popular shirts.  As for my inspiration, it’s hard to explain exactly how these ideas get into my head. I might trace this one back to my junior high school days when I was obsessed with the Lochness Monster. I read every book that was written on the subject, and found all of those blurry, ambiguous photos of the creature to be completely convincing. Of course,  I felt the same way about ghosts, aliens, Big Foot, ESP, and astral projection. I was in seventh grade, and I stayed fascinated by each of these subjects for about a week before moving on to the next one. Nessie was different, though, for a couple of reasons. First of all, out of all of the supernatural phenomena, Nessie seemed the most plausible. Sharks, crocodiles and other marine animals have survived from prehistoric times, so why not a plesiasaur? Secondly, well, all boys love dinosaurs. Yes, I know plesiasaurs aren’t dinosaurs, but close enough. Who wouldn’t want a little pet Nessie, swimming around in a fish bowl? By the way, I am assuming plesiasaurs are just like goldfish in that they grow only to the size of their enclosure.

March 15, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 9

Filed under: Artwork — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 1:05 pm

So the painting is “done”.

jonlorettaday9

“Done” is in quotes because even after I photographed this, I saw something that needed fixing. I made a smoother value transition in the upper left corner of Jon’s shirt. The tricky thing about acrylics is that they look lighter when they are wet, so what looks like a smooth transition now might actually not be. So I will have to wait until later to see if I’ve actually solved the problem. I have to wait until later to actually put it on my scanner, since the paint is still sticky. Ultimately, photos of the painting just aren’t clear enough to use for my product page, so I’ll have to scan it. I think even if that value transition isn’t quite right, I will stop working on this. I’m never going to be completely satisfied with it, but eventually you have to just accept it as it is and move on. See Finished Painting.

March 8, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 8

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 2:14 pm

I’m getting close now. Hopefully I can have this finished by next weekend.

jonlorettaday8

I’m starting to get used to these paints now. The slow-drying does make the whole painting process take a bit longer. I have to wait for certain areas to dry even to work on other areas because I can’t rest my hand in the wet areas.

March 3, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 7

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 5:27 pm

I’ve finished Loretta, and just barely started Jon:

jonlorettaday7

I’ve changed my mind about putting this unfinished painting up as the product image. Maybe in a few days. I guess I’m only half done somehow…

March 1, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 6

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 3:27 pm

I am now 90% done with Loretta:

jonlorettaday6

Really, all I have left is the hair. I wish I had more time to work on it. I’m thinking I will start using this as the image on the Monkey and Bulldog product page once Loretta is done, even though Jon will still be a pencil sketch.

February 24, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 5

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 5:21 pm

I’m starting into the shirt now:

jonlorettaday5

This is probably going to take a while…

February 22, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 4

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 2:58 pm

Not much to say except that I got a little more done today:

jonlorettaday4

Now that I am getting the hang of these Golden Open paints, I’m beginning to appreciate their benefits. For one thing, the paints in my palette don’t dry up, so I am not wasting paint. That’s a real plus, as these paints aren’t cheap. It also saves valuable seconds when I sit down to paint because I don’t have to set up the palette each time.

February 21, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 3

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 3:56 pm

I have now started painting:

jonlorettaday3

Getting this far took me much longer than I expected. I am using these new paints called Golden Open Acrylics, and it is taking some time to get used to them. The advantage is that they dry very slowly, so it’s easier to blend colors and make smooth gradients. What’s difficult for me, though, is that because it dries so slowly,  you can’t put colors on top of each other without mixing them. I have to be careful not to make a big muddy mess. I’m starting to get the hang of it, so hopefully, it will go a little faster now.

February 18, 2009

Monkey and Bulldog Models- Day 2

Filed under: Artwork,Donkeyshines Announcements — Tags: , , — Ryan Klemek @ 5:45 pm

I haven’t had a lot of time to work on this, so it may not even look much different than it did after the first day. I am done with the pencil sketch, at least:

jonlorettaday2

I’m finding pros and cons to drawing on the gesso board as opposed to plain illustration board. On one hand, the graphite stays completely on the surface, so it can be completely erased, if necessary. That is helpful. On the other hand, the hard surface wears away at the pencil pretty quickly, and it’s difficult to have complete control of tiny lines without a good point. And since I have to keep sharpening it, I am burning through this pencil pretty quickly. I am also expecting it to smudge a lot if I have to lean on any parts of the drawing. When I start the painting, I’ll see if the gesso is helpful. I’m guessing it might be beneficial not to lose that first layer of paint. On plain illustration board, it soaks in. We’ll see.

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