Dea Lenihan's Blog, page 9
April 1, 2016
Colorful April Giveaway ~ No Foolin'!
Happy April!
I am happy to announce that the April giveaway is a kickoff to the new venture, Coloring Book of the Month Club.
This first book is called Coloring Dreams and will be given with a set of 24 Prismacolor pencils.
Cover!
Prismacolor pencils are known for their vibrant and long lasting colors, and they are a favorite of many.
The details of the Coloring Book of the Month Club will be released in the near future.
Snails Among the Mushrooms and Clover
In the meantime enter the contest.
Good luck!
xo
a Rafflecopter giveaway
I am happy to announce that the April giveaway is a kickoff to the new venture, Coloring Book of the Month Club.
This first book is called Coloring Dreams and will be given with a set of 24 Prismacolor pencils.

Prismacolor pencils are known for their vibrant and long lasting colors, and they are a favorite of many.

The details of the Coloring Book of the Month Club will be released in the near future.

In the meantime enter the contest.
Good luck!
xo
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Published on April 01, 2016 22:18
March 31, 2016
March Giveaway Winner!
Congratulations to Heather Demonteverde!
She is the winner of our Fancy March Giveaway. Now she will be able to light that delicious citrus pomegranate candle and draw to hear hearts content.
Stay tuned for April's giveaway ~ a lovely coloring book, drawn by ME, and pencil set!
Congrats again Heather!
xo

She is the winner of our Fancy March Giveaway. Now she will be able to light that delicious citrus pomegranate candle and draw to hear hearts content.
Stay tuned for April's giveaway ~ a lovely coloring book, drawn by ME, and pencil set!
Congrats again Heather!
xo
Published on March 31, 2016 10:04
March 27, 2016
Love and Hoppiness All Around!
Published on March 27, 2016 09:35
March 22, 2016
Bunnies of Cuteness on SALE
All the Easter coloring book pages are on sale at my Etsy store.
Bunnies on a crocus field, on the farm, in a birdbath, and MORE!
Click HERE for the bunnies at my shop.
Happy Easter!!
xo

Bunnies on a crocus field, on the farm, in a birdbath, and MORE!

Click HERE for the bunnies at my shop.
Happy Easter!!
xo
Published on March 22, 2016 21:35
March 18, 2016
Here Comes Peter Cotton Tail ~ Easter Bunny Coloring Download
Hippety hoppity!
Just a few short weeks until Easter.
I hope you like this Bunnies of Cuteness download. Click HERE for to print Strawberry Bunnies.
Bunnies of Cuteness!There is another in my ETSY shop, and every day until Easter I will add another downloadable page.
Have fun! Please share your colored page and share with me--I would love to post your colored pix on my blog and on my fun Facebook page ART by YOU.
xo
Don't forget the Fancy March Giveaway. Enter HERE.
Just a few short weeks until Easter.
I hope you like this Bunnies of Cuteness download. Click HERE for to print Strawberry Bunnies.

Have fun! Please share your colored page and share with me--I would love to post your colored pix on my blog and on my fun Facebook page ART by YOU.
xo
Don't forget the Fancy March Giveaway. Enter HERE.
Published on March 18, 2016 16:29
March 11, 2016
My Self-Published Easter Coloring Book ~ and How YOU Can Do It TOO!
In 2014 I wrote a children's story about a girl who was just in love with candy, and a bunny that just might be a robot.
It was a story and a coloring book, and it was out before the whole coloring fad. (Maybe I started it! ;) I had just come out of a contract with a small publisher and I decided that I would put the book out right then, rather than waiting for someone to pick me up. (That can be a loooong time.)
So I drew the pictures, brushed up the story, (which could STILL use a good edit), got it formatted, and self-pubbed it on CreateSpace.
Francine on AMAZON
Much to my surprise, Francine and the Super Spy Bunny was the number ONE Easter book for several weeks that year on Amazon, listed as a Hot New Release, and I actually made some money.
I want to tell you that you CAN do this without spending hundreds or thousands of dollars! I know a few unfortunate souls that hired a vanity press to put the whole thing together, and they regretted it.
Here is the Reader's Digest version of what you need to do:
1. Write your story
a. Edit, edit, and edit some more.
2. Draw your pictures (if there are any)
3. Design the cover and the back (or hire someone to do it. I self-pubbed four books and did three of the covers myself.)
The back of Francine.
4. Design the title page
5. Design dedication page (if there will be one)
6. Choose your font. (Do not pick anything crazy, you will most likely regret it. You want the book to be readable. You can pick a fancy first letter for the first word of each new chapter, but that is as far as I would go with wild font.)
7. Format your book or hire someone to do it for you. (I hired someone--it was not another thing I wanted to learn. Maybe someday...)
8. Get your file from the formatter and decide what you want to do! You can upload to Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes and Noble or any number of distributors, OR sell it on your own on your blog or website.
I am putting together a more comprehensive guide to self-pubbing and am wondering if this information is something any of you feel you need. If this is something you are interested in please tell me in the comments below.
Also look for my latest Easter coloring book, The Bunnies of Cuteness, coming SOON!
xo
Oh! You an enter the Fancy March Giveaway HERE! It is an artistic spa-like experience, and you don't even have to leave the house.
It was a story and a coloring book, and it was out before the whole coloring fad. (Maybe I started it! ;) I had just come out of a contract with a small publisher and I decided that I would put the book out right then, rather than waiting for someone to pick me up. (That can be a loooong time.)
So I drew the pictures, brushed up the story, (which could STILL use a good edit), got it formatted, and self-pubbed it on CreateSpace.

Much to my surprise, Francine and the Super Spy Bunny was the number ONE Easter book for several weeks that year on Amazon, listed as a Hot New Release, and I actually made some money.
I want to tell you that you CAN do this without spending hundreds or thousands of dollars! I know a few unfortunate souls that hired a vanity press to put the whole thing together, and they regretted it.
Here is the Reader's Digest version of what you need to do:
1. Write your story
a. Edit, edit, and edit some more.
2. Draw your pictures (if there are any)
3. Design the cover and the back (or hire someone to do it. I self-pubbed four books and did three of the covers myself.)

4. Design the title page
5. Design dedication page (if there will be one)
6. Choose your font. (Do not pick anything crazy, you will most likely regret it. You want the book to be readable. You can pick a fancy first letter for the first word of each new chapter, but that is as far as I would go with wild font.)
7. Format your book or hire someone to do it for you. (I hired someone--it was not another thing I wanted to learn. Maybe someday...)
8. Get your file from the formatter and decide what you want to do! You can upload to Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes and Noble or any number of distributors, OR sell it on your own on your blog or website.

I am putting together a more comprehensive guide to self-pubbing and am wondering if this information is something any of you feel you need. If this is something you are interested in please tell me in the comments below.
Also look for my latest Easter coloring book, The Bunnies of Cuteness, coming SOON!
xo
Oh! You an enter the Fancy March Giveaway HERE! It is an artistic spa-like experience, and you don't even have to leave the house.
Published on March 11, 2016 07:07
March 6, 2016
Fancy March Giveaway
I don't know about you, but I feel like I need a little pampering after such a gloomy winter.
Wouldn't it be nice to sit a warm, scented, candlelit bath and sketch with a new set of pencils? Well that is just what I did the other day!
I want everyone to have a lovely afternoon like I did. Although I can't give the lovely afternoon to everyone, I can give it to one lucky winner of this month's giveaway.
The winner will receive a Muse candle scented in pomegranate and citrus, Farmhouse Fresh shea butter body cream, and a drawing set of eight graphite, pencils, three charcoal pencils, one sketch stick, two charcoal sticks in soft and medium, a kneading eraser and a white plastic eraser.
The pencils are basic, although I like them very much, I did not want to have to worry if they fell in the water. I think you will like them too.
Start sketching!
I had no preconceived notions of what I would sketch, but got some great ideas! Yes, the paper got splashed a few times, but it was fine. The ideas were worth more to me.
So enter here!
xo
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Wouldn't it be nice to sit a warm, scented, candlelit bath and sketch with a new set of pencils? Well that is just what I did the other day!
I want everyone to have a lovely afternoon like I did. Although I can't give the lovely afternoon to everyone, I can give it to one lucky winner of this month's giveaway.

The winner will receive a Muse candle scented in pomegranate and citrus, Farmhouse Fresh shea butter body cream, and a drawing set of eight graphite, pencils, three charcoal pencils, one sketch stick, two charcoal sticks in soft and medium, a kneading eraser and a white plastic eraser.
The pencils are basic, although I like them very much, I did not want to have to worry if they fell in the water. I think you will like them too.

I had no preconceived notions of what I would sketch, but got some great ideas! Yes, the paper got splashed a few times, but it was fine. The ideas were worth more to me.
So enter here!
xo
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Published on March 06, 2016 11:46
March 3, 2016
Selling Your Art
Last month I sold a few images on ETSY.
They were all copies or reproductions of originals that I created in the past. One was a copy of a picture from a book I illustrated that I retained the rights to. One was a watercolor reproduction that I recently added to my site.
Reproduction sold last week.Although I do not think I will ever get rich selling off these sites, I do think they are important. Agents, publishers, and others look for our work. They need patterns, illustrations for children's books, pix for stationary, umbrellas, cloth, and plenty of other art.
I use Etsy, Facebook, and I just discovered Society6. People use eBay, Art Fire, Craigslist, and many others. HERE is a list of 18 places you can use to get your art out there.
If you are looking to start your art career or just make a few extra dollars, there are plenty of places for you to start.
xo
They were all copies or reproductions of originals that I created in the past. One was a copy of a picture from a book I illustrated that I retained the rights to. One was a watercolor reproduction that I recently added to my site.

I use Etsy, Facebook, and I just discovered Society6. People use eBay, Art Fire, Craigslist, and many others. HERE is a list of 18 places you can use to get your art out there.
If you are looking to start your art career or just make a few extra dollars, there are plenty of places for you to start.
xo
Published on March 03, 2016 17:43
March 2, 2016
Artists, Watermark Your Work
As artists we realize the importance of sharing our work, and we also realize the danger.
We create original pieces, and are always at risk of someone taking advantage and using them without our permission.
I found several watermark companies today, and after trying them, I found that for the work I am doing now, Visual Watermark is the easiest to use, and the trial period is free. After that, there are three levels to purchase, ranging from a one-time payment of $19.95 for one computer to $39.95 for up to ten computers.
Visual Watermark walked me through every step, from download to watermark image storage.
I chose to use my name and a relatively transparent watermark. You will be able to choose the transparency, font, color, and design for your watermark.
You can also create a watermark in Photoshop or Illustrator if you have them, although you would not be able to do a large amount at one time.
We should also share our work on social media on low resolution, so a reproduction would be very difficult, if not impossible.
Our work is valuable, and we should do all we can to keep it safe.
Find Visual Watermark HERE.
Here is a link to a post of Nine Best Software To Ad Watermarks. I tried them all. CLICK HERE.
Tell me what you think!
xo
We create original pieces, and are always at risk of someone taking advantage and using them without our permission.
I found several watermark companies today, and after trying them, I found that for the work I am doing now, Visual Watermark is the easiest to use, and the trial period is free. After that, there are three levels to purchase, ranging from a one-time payment of $19.95 for one computer to $39.95 for up to ten computers.

Visual Watermark walked me through every step, from download to watermark image storage.
I chose to use my name and a relatively transparent watermark. You will be able to choose the transparency, font, color, and design for your watermark.
You can also create a watermark in Photoshop or Illustrator if you have them, although you would not be able to do a large amount at one time.
We should also share our work on social media on low resolution, so a reproduction would be very difficult, if not impossible.
Our work is valuable, and we should do all we can to keep it safe.
Find Visual Watermark HERE.
Here is a link to a post of Nine Best Software To Ad Watermarks. I tried them all. CLICK HERE.
Tell me what you think!
xo
Published on March 02, 2016 18:44
February 28, 2016
Congratulations to our February Giveaway Winner!
Our February Six Shades of Grey Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pens winner is RUY MORRIS!
Congratulations!
Thank you to everyone who participated.
Our new giveaway will be listed tomorrow ~ I have a feeling it will be a favorite to those who like art and to be pampered a bit.
Congrats again Ruy!!
xo

Congratulations!
Thank you to everyone who participated.
Our new giveaway will be listed tomorrow ~ I have a feeling it will be a favorite to those who like art and to be pampered a bit.
Congrats again Ruy!!
xo
Published on February 28, 2016 22:25