Sometimes it's ok to be a follower

Saturday, December 29, 2012

Amelia

Hi everyone,
Hope you all had a wonderful holiday.
Mine was fantastic but ended much to soon. 
I think I need a vacation to recuperate from my vacation, lol.

I did learn that pretty much all toddler toys seem to require assembly. (at least all the ones that we bought did) We spent nearly the entire day on Christmas putting toys together.
 I think next year I'll assemble everything as I buy it. That way it's all ready to go.    

Even though we had so much fun I'm glad life is getting back to normal now. Which means playing with the little man and squeezing in a bit of art while he's napping.

Amelia Cuddlebug Cuties


Amelia Cuddlebug Cuties


Enjoy coloring and crafting with Amelia but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 
***
 
There's 2 days left to enter for the December blog candy

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.
 
Hugs,
Anna

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Christmas Candy Round 2 Winner!!

Hi everyone,
I have a Christmas Candy winner for you.



 
And the winner is:

Congratulations!!!!
Send me an email with your address and I'll get your new goodies on their way to you.
cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com 
Have a wonderful week everyone
Hugs,
Anna

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Stella New Years Digi

Today has been such a wonderful day. 
My husband left for a business trip right after Thanksgiving and today he finally came home. It was a pretty long trip and right in the middle of the holidays...but the bright side was I didn't have to feed him and gas up his car for the last three weeks. (<-- I'll give you guys one guess how I was able to buy the extra candy this month, lol)
We actually put up our Christmas tree together over Skype. (well, I put it up and he watched) It was so funny, but it was the best way we could come up with to still spend the event together as a family.

*******

This is Stella, my little sassy New Years party girl.
Doesn't she look spunky? I just love her.

Stella Cuddlebug Cuties

I haven't got her colored yet, but she was so cute I wanted to go ahead and post her. 
I'll post her finished colored illustration in the next few days.

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Stella but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

***
There's only 2 more days left to enter in the More Christmas Blog Candy

Hugs,
Anna


Wednesday, December 12, 2012

More Christmas Candy

Good morning,

I thought since it was Christmas, and I really want to celebrate, that we should do one more candy for the holiday.
There's only two weeks left till the 25th so this is going to be a quick contest. It'll run from today through Saturday December 15th. I'll announce the lucky winner on Sunday the 16th.

More Christmas Candy Cuddlebug Cuties

Goodies included:
1 package Martha Stewart sleigh and presents stickers
1 die-cut mat pad (this is some of the prettiest paper I have ever seen)
1 package The Paper Studio flower brads
1 Martha Stewart tag pad
1 Recollections santa sticker pack
1 Recollections reindeer sticker pack
1 Martha Stewart die-cut package
1 Martha Stewart tag package
and 
3 spools of holiday ribbon

If you want to be entered in the More Christmas Candy Drawing all you have to do is be a follower and leave a comment below. Everyone is welcome to enter.

I'd love it and would be very grateful if you post a pic of it on your sidebar, but it is not required to enter.


 Good luck everyone.

Hugs,
Anna

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Christmas Candy Winner

Hi,

I have a Christmas Candy winner for you.


And the winner is:

Linda K. from Lady Bug Stampers 

Congratulations!!!!

Send me an email with your address and I'll get you new goodies on their way to you.

cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com 

Have a wonderful week everyone

Hugs,
Anna

Saturday, December 8, 2012

A Christmas Donation and a new digi

Good afternoon everyone,
I'm so glad the weekend's finally here. Today is my day for Christmas shopping. I'm running on 3 hours of sleep and enjoying every moment of my purchasing gifts, two weeks before the holiday, adventure. 
My little guy was starting to get sleepy in the last store, he was asleep before we could make the 15 minute drive home. So, we're taking a little mid-day break. While he's napping I thought I'd pop in, say hi and pass out my latest illustration.

Before I get to the newest digi, I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who has made a purchase from my Etsy store this year. All of the proceeds have been donated. I wanted to make sure that the group that I choose would have their fundraiser this year before I told everyone my intentions. 

Every Christmas my favorite book store does a book drive for a local orphanage. Every year I buy a few books but I always feel like it's not enough. I want to do more. I love to read. (I have three books going right now) I couldn't imagine not being able to go the library or the store to get books, or not have a family that would go out and pick up goodies for me.  

So this year every stamp that was purchased was going to be for those children (as long as the book store had the drive again this year and luckily they did)

I want to thank you all for your purchases.
You have blessed many children this Christmas.

Donated Books, the first handful, Cuddlebug Cuties


 I showed up at the store during story time. The childrens section was packed. I grabbed several handfuls of books and sat at kids table that was about a foot off the ground; reading the back of every book. Trying to make sure they looked fun and interesting, and that I had a good variety for all ages.

I made my selection and jumped in line. The line wrapped around several times and as I stood waiting I couldn't help but over hear the checkout clerks. Over and over for every customer they would say; "would you like to donate a book to the orphanage?" Over and over the most common answer was; "no, not today."  There where a few yeses but the noes where winning.

When it was my turn, I walked up to an older male associate. He's worked there for years. He looks slightly defeated, dreading asking his donation question, so I spoke up before he could. I lifted a stack of books that went up past my elbows on the counter and said, "these are for your book drive"

I was met by silence. He was just standing there looking down at the books. Finally he looked up at me and I was surprised to see that he had teared up and started to cry. He patted the area above his heart and said, "that is so nice, you have no idea what this means to those little ones." He smiled at me and for a moment I wasn't sure if he was going to climb over the counter and hug me.

It was a wonderful experience. I wish that all of you could have been there to share it with me. 
 Today all of you helped make a difference is someones life. Thank you.


*********

Ok, now on to your new digi. 

Ty Cuddlebug Cuties


Ty Cuddlebug Cuties



Enjoy coloring and crafting with Ty but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 
Here's my marker list:
Copic

Skin: R00, R01, E50, E51
Hair: E30, E31, E33, E53
Clothes: R20, R21, R22, R14
B91, B93, B95


And just two more things,
Today is the last day to enter my Christmas blog candy giveaway. If you haven't entered yet you can find the post here

And Chris from  My Inspirational Journey, you've won my November candy. Send me an email and I'll get your goodies shipped to you. 

cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com

Hugs,
Anna 


Saturday, December 1, 2012

Angel

Hi everyone,
I have all kinds of stuff for this post;
we'll have a Nov. candy winner
new Dec. goodies
and
a new digi

But first I want to welcome all of our new members.
I'm so happy each and every one of you stopped by and joined.
Feel free to stop in anytime and say hi.
Big hugs to all.


Now the moment you've all been waiting for.
November's Winner

#31 Chris from My Inspirational Journey
Congratulations!!!!!!

You are the winner!!! Send me an email with your address and I'll get your new goodies shipped off to you.

cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com


*********

Now for Decembers blog candy. 
I went out shopping for some goodies. I kept thinking that I wanted something big, a nice assortment of toys to celebrate my 6 month blog anniversary. I found a great set of Basic Grey items and bought one of each and then a few other items that I thought would look great with the collection. 

Completely ecstatic over my find; I went home, sat at my art desk, glanced up at my wall calendar and realized something

It's my 5 month anniversary, not 6. Whoops...

I don't really want to wait until next month to start this giveaway, so instead of celebrating my half a year of blogging we'll have to pick something else.

How 'bout this: 200 members
Yay!!!!

Cuddlebug Cuties December Candy

Here's what's included:
  • 1 paper pad (6X6, 36 sheets)
  • 1 set of layered trims
  • 1 package fabric and button stickers
  • 1 package felt cupcake stickers
  • 1 package layered stickers
  • 1 package journaling cards
  • 1 package rhinestone accents
  • 1 rickrack ribbon 
If you want to be entered in the December Candy Drawing all you have to do is be a follower and add your name to the link below.

I'd love it and would be very grateful if you post a pic of it on your sidebar, but it is not required to enter.
 Good luck everyone.


 And now for the new digi.

Five months ago when I started my little art blog, one of the first thoughts that I had was; oh I can't wait to draw an angel. Christmas will be prefect and it'll give me time to decide exactly what I want her to look like.

I knew I wanted lots of flowing hair. Something that looked like it defied gravity.
And then the wings. So many possibilities. Lots of feathers, bubbly, tucked in, huge and fanned out, my list goes on and on.

Angel Cuddlebug Cuties
In the end I chose lightly feathered and curved. I love the dimension of them.

Angel Cuddlebug Cuties

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Angel but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 
Here's my marker list:
Copic
Skin: E50, E21, E51, R00, R01
Wings: BG70, B41, B93
Hair: E41, E42, E43, E44
Dress: BG70, BG10, BG72

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.
Hugs,
Anna
 

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Christmas Scarlett & Blog Candy

Hello everyone,
Are you  guys ready for Christmas yet?
I'm not even close. I just started holiday shopping today. I spent Black Friday and Cyber Monday with my family instead of shopping. And today, I only made it to the toy store and the craft store so I still have a long way to go.

My local craft store had an amazing sale on papercraft items and to make it even better they had a 20% off your entire purchase coupon. Well, I couldn't pass that up. I had to stop in and take a peek at all the goodies.

I snagged a few items for my save for later stash and a few items for a little Christmas Candy.
I'll still have December candy, this is just  a little extra giveaway for the holidays.

Cuddlebug Cuties Christmas Candy Giveaway

 Here's what's included:
2 Anna Griffin paper pads
1 Martha Stewart paper pad
1 Martha Stewart  tag pad
1 Anna Griffin tag pad
1 pack Martha Stewart Christmas tree sticker sheet
3 Christmas Crafts sticker assortments (santa, reindeer, and gemstones)

If you want to be entered in the Christmas Candy Drawing all you have to do is be a follower and leave a comment below.
You have through December  8th to enter. 
I'd love it and would be very grateful if you post a pic of it on your sidebar, but it is not required to enter.
 
 Good luck everyone.
 
Oh, and I have one more thing for you guys today. 
A New Digi
 
Scarlett Cuddlebug Cuties

Scarlett Cuddlebug Cuties
 I just had to do a little fuzzy santa outfit. They are so cute.
Enjoy coloring and crafting with Scarlett but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 Don't forget to checkout my November blog candy here.
Have a great week.
Hugs,
Anna

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Thanksgiving Digital Stamp

Hello everyone,
Can you believe there's only a few more days till Thanksgiving.
I lost track of time and the holiday just sneaked right up on me. 
It's one of my favorite holidays because it's the one that is hosted at my house every year. I love cooking and getting ready for my whole family to visit.

I felted I needed a special illustration for my scrapbook, smashbook, and sketchbook. Something creative that I can use for all as an embellishment in all my little memory books. Sitting down and getting ready to put all my thoughts on paper I realized something. I haven't seen a turkey in decades. (Grocery store not included)
I sat at my desk with closed eyes thinking back to my childhood. I grew up in the country and even though we didn't have turkeys our neighbors did and they were always in our yard. After a bit of reminiscing  I got to work. And I gotta say I love this new image. It's ranking up there with my favorites.

Courtney Cuddlebug Cuties


I love the bobbed haircut on this cuddlebug. Every fall I always have the urge to shorten my hair and get it bobbed. I have no idea why, but the thought crosses my mind every year. 
This year however, I'm not sure if I'm willing to give up the ability to create the mom ponytail. 

Colors Used:
SN = Spectrum Noir
P = Prismacolor
PM = Promarker
C = Copic

Hair - (C) YR 30, E 35, (SN) GB8, (PM) raw sienna
Skin - (C) E30, E50, R00, E02
Clothing - (C) R32, R20, R00, BG0000, B24, Y21, YR21, Y32, YR30
(PM) powder blue, 
(P) light cerulean blue
(SN) GB8
Turkey - (C) E31, YR24, E07, YR18, R02, YR000, YR30, Y26, Y21
(P) Tuscan Red, Blondwood
(PM) Raw Sienna



Courtney Cuddlebug Cuties
Enjoy coloring and crafting with Courtney but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 Don't forget to checkout my blog candy here.
Have a great weekend.
Hugs,
Anna

Monday, November 12, 2012

Casey Digital Stamp

Good afternoon,
Hope you all had a wonderful and creative weekend. Ours was filled with family time, a bit of toy shopping, and then topped off with a huge birthday party for my little guy. (Even though I started preparing weeks ago I still felt rushed, lol) It was a fantastic day.

***

Long after my house became quite and everyone had fallen asleep; I found myself still to full of energy to rest. So, I pulled out all of my art supplies and decided to have some creative me time.
 I find it amazing how when I'm happy my illustrations come together so quickly. No fuss, no stress, just fun expression. This is my favorite kind of art. 

Well this was one of those days. It felt like within minutes I had a rough sketch that I just loved and couldn't wait to polish up. 

Casey Cuddlebug Cuties

Once I had Casey inked I looked at my marker case and had a realization. I'm very bad about just reaching in and grabbing random markers. I don't plan out which ones will blend well together, have favorite combos, or anything special. I just play around until I'm happy with how my picture looks. I'm pretty content with this technique and I don't really plan to change it but I am going to try to at least write down the colors that I've used. That way if someone is interested in duplicating a color, I have a list to share. I've tried this a few times before, and I love sharing, I just don't always think about it when I'm coloring.

So here's my list:
(all Copics this time)

skin- E21, E51, E50  R01, R00
shirt, hat, boots- YR21, YR30, Y32, Y21
jeans- BG70, B41, B21, B93
hair- E35, E33, E53

Casey Cuddlebug Cuties

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Casey but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
 Don't forget to checkout my blog candy here.
 
Have a great week.
Hugs,
Anna

Monday, November 5, 2012

Maya

Good morning everyone,

I have a new digi for you guys this morning.
This is Maya.
                  Maya Cuddlebug Cuties

It's actually starting to get cold outside, not chilly but down right cold. It almost feels like we went straight from summer to winter without autumn in between. One day last week it was 85 degrees outside and the next day it was barely 50 degrees, and today its even colder.
I picked up some coffee from McDonalds this morning and the lady taking my order said she heard we might get snow next week. It's really early in the season for us to be having snow and although I love it I am not ready to start shoveling my driveway. 

But the weather has given me inspiration for some new illustrations. Maya started out with a cute layered summery dress, but after doing her rough sketch I found myself looking out the window at the rain and I though it's sweater time. I popped a turtleneck on my cuddlebug and before I knew it page 2 of my art journal is well on its way to completion. 
In my journal she's standing by trees with leaves falling all around. I'm not really sure what I'm going to write on the pages yet, but I'm so happy with the art in them.

            Maya Cuddlebug Cuties

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Maya but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

 Don't forget to checkout my blog candy here.

And one more thing before I go.
I just wanted to take a minute to thank each and every one of you for stopping by. I know that we all get busy and I wanted to let you guys know that I truly appreciate every visit, comment, and email. Thank you all for being so wonderful.

Hugs,
Anna 

Thursday, November 1, 2012

November Blog Candy

Good afternoon everyone,

It's the first of the month which means it's time to draw for Octobers blog candy winner and get Novembers goodies posted. Yay :)

The winner for October is:

Congratulations!!!

Send me an email with your address and I'll get your new toys in the mail.
cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com

***

Now for Novembers candy.

November Blog Candy Cuddlebug Cuties




I love this little set. It's full of beautiful blues and pinks and has such a vintage romantic feel.

Here's what's included:

  • 1 package adhesive gems (20 count)
  • 1 package flower/gemstone embellishments (3 count)
  • 1 die-cut paper pad (18 sheets)
  • 1 package dimensional stickers (6 count)
  • 2 spools of ribbon

 If you want to be entered in the Novembers Candy Drawing all you have to do is be a follower and add you name to the link list below.
I'd love it and would be very grateful if you post a pic of it on your sidebar, but it is not required to enter.
 Good luck everyone.
Hugs,
Anna

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Nadia

Hello Everyone,

I finally receive my boots. Yay!! I had given up on getting them and left for the afternoon. After being gone for a few hours I find that it had been raining, for quite sometime. I checked my tracking number to see where my shoes were and you guessed it, sitting on my front step. Suede shoes sitting in the rain, all I could do was laugh. When I got home I was thrilled to find that the delivery person had wrapped them and a plastic bag and they were completely dry.

(I did a little happy dance when no one was looking.)


Then over the weekend, the best event ever.
My little guy looked up at me
little arms stretched up 
then
said Mama

First time. I melted. It was so wonderful.
(Major happy dance)


Nadia Cuddlebug Cuties


I started a new art journal and Nadia is the first cuddlebug in it. I'm still working on her set of pages but I'm enjoying a fresh start in a new book. I enjoy having dozens of blank pages and imaging what I will create on them. So much fun.

Nadia Cuddlebug Cuties

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Nadia but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a wonderful Halloween.

Hugs,
 Anna

Monday, October 22, 2012

Zoe

Hi everybody,
I've had the most unproductive day. I ordered a pair of shoes off of Zappos and they should be arriving today, so I've spent the whole day watching for the UPS guy to come down my street. I felt like such a little kid, checking every few minutes thinking is he here yet, lol. Even when I left the house I kept checking the tracking number on my phone. 

Now it's the afternoon and still no shoe package yet. It's funny, I'm so excited over a pair of winter boots that I can't even wear yet because it's to hot outside.

I did take a little break from looking out the window to work on a new illustration. 
This is Zoe. 

Zoe Cuddlebug Cuties

I love it when I have a drawing that can sit on different elements of my projects. Versatility is good.
She could sit on a strand of ribbon with her legs swinging over or maybe on a framed box full of heartwarming text. 

Zoe sitting on a pumpkin Cuddlebug Cuties


Or maybe sitting on another digi. This pumpkin would be great for Halloween or Autumn. 

Zoe Cuddlebug Cuties

Pumpkin Cuddlebug Cuties

 
Enjoy coloring and crafting with Zoe and the pumpkin but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing them.
 
 Have a wonderful week everyone.
 
Hugs,
Anna

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Sierra

Good evening everyone,
It's been much to long since my last post. 
Everyone in my family got sick, but not all at the same time. We all took turns, so as soon as one of us started to feel better someone else got the sniffles. By the time we all felt better I was just exhausted. 

I wanted to sit down and draw but my creativity told me; nope, I'm tired and on vacation, lol. So, I decided maybe I needed to take a few days to rest and recuperate. But I don't really enjoy sitting for very long and I missed you guys.

So last night I popped out my sketch pad and got to work.

Sierra Cuddlebug Cuties
Sierra Cuddlebug Cuties

Enjoy coloring and crafting with Sierra but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

Don't forget to check out my blog candy here.

Have a great week everyone!
Hugs,
Anna

Monday, October 1, 2012

Candy

Hi everyone,
Are you guys ready for candy?

Candy Cuddlebug Cuties
Silly question

Ok, I put everyone's name in a box and had my little helper draw the lucky winner of the Martha Stewart September candy.




And the winner is:


Congratulations!!! Send me an email with your address and I'll mail out your new toys.
cuddlebugcuties@gmail.com


Now for Octobers blog candy.

October 2012 Blog Candy Cuddlebug Cuties



This is a nice fall colored set. 
It contains: 
My Mind's Eye All Spice 6X6 paper pad with 24 sheets 
Recollections adhesive rhinestones 116 pieces 
K&Company 12 piece dimensional bird stickers 
1 set of ribbon in green and orange 3/8"X9ft

 If you want to be entered in the Octobers Candy Drawing all you have to do is be a follower and add you name to the link list below.
I'd love it and would be very grateful if you post a pic of it on your sidebar, but it is not required to enter.
 Good luck everyone.

 The Candy digi will be free for the month of October 2012.
 Enjoy coloring and crafting with her but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

Have a great week everyone!
Hugs,
Anna

Friday, September 28, 2012

Josephine the Stylish Witch

Good morning everyone,

This is my princess witch. I wanted to try something different with her. Get away from drab colors, not that I often use dull colors but when I think of stereotypical Halloween witches they're always dark. So, I combined a witch hat and black kitty with a princess gown and wavy locks to get this little cutie. I think she even has that I'm bored look, I'm not sure if that's more of a witchy thing or a princess mannerism; but I love it either way.

Josephine Cuddlebug Cuties
This is Josephine. The conventionally pretty witch with class and stylish offbeat individuality.

Josephine Cuddlebug Cuties



Enjoy coloring and crafting with her but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.
And in case this is your first time here I have several other Halloween inspired images that are still available for free and I have blog candy here.
Have a wonderful weekend. 

 Hugs,
Anna
 

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Birthday Boy

Good evening everyone,

Can you believe it's the weekend already?. My week feels like it has just flown by. 
My little cuddlebug will soon be having a birthday and I've spent the entire week preparing for the event. It's been so much fun, I think I'm even more excited than him.

My mother and I went shopping at Toys R Us for gifts. They had a huge sale, buy 2 and get the third for free. Well, we just had to take advantage of that. By the end of our trip we had filled 3 shopping carts and had 6 sales associates ask us if we wanted a store credit card. I really don't think I could handle a credit card for that store, lol.

After shopping I felt that I really should make something special for him too. Handmade presents are always my favorite gifts and even though he's still a little tike maybe someday he'll look at his collection of mama made items and think of me.
So, I sat down at my desk and for several days stared at a blank sheet of white paper and the wall in front of me. It's not often that I feel pressure when creating something, but the need to draw an extra special picture for the most important person in my life was a bit daunting. Eventually I decided to just start drawing. Anything was better than nothing. I knew I wanted it to be colorful so I just started adding presents, balloons, and bows everywhere. The more little bits I had to color the better.

Birthday Boy Cuddlebug Cuties


Birthday Boy Cuddlebug Cuties
Birthdays are special so this digi will always be free.
Enjoy coloring and crafting with him but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing him.

 Hugs,
Anna
 
 
 

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Mirabel Gypsy Sweetheart

Good morning,
I have a new cuddlebug for everyone.
This my little sweetheart gypsy Mirabel. 



I really wanted a bright and colorful girl for Halloween. I love it when a costume is fun and vibrant.
Something different form the typical dark Halloween colors.

Mirabel Cuddlebug Cuties


Mirabel will be free through Sept 19, 2012.
Enjoy coloring and crafting with her but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

 Hugs,
Anna

Monday, September 10, 2012

Metallic Markers

Good Evening Everyone,
Sorry my last post was kind of short and sweet. It wasn't my intention to just throw a digi at you and run. I got interrupted half way through the post and needed to run. 

I did want to share one more thing with you guys tonight. 
Promarkers Metallic Set

I have had these markers in an online wishlist for quite awhile. I love Promarkers and metallic could be really useful for adding a little extra dazzle to my images.
However one thing kept stopping me from purchasing these markers - they're water based. I've been disappointed with streaking when using water based markers in the past so I wasn't sure if I would just be wasting my money.

Several weeks pass and several times I get online and look at the markers. (as though something might change, lol) Then the unthinkable happens. My most frequented craft store starts carrying them and they have a huge display that looks very appealing. Now I want them even more. 

I go back and forth for a bit; wonder about the pros and cons, if the store would let me return opened markers if I hated them, and so on. Eventually, I just broke down and bought them. I figured I was spending more for gas driving to look at them repeatedly. In the long run it would be cheaper just to buy them.

So now that I've had a few days to experiment with them, I thought I would share just in case anyone else might be considering purchasing them too.

Here's a pic of the little slip inside the case:
Front

Back
Pros:
  • Beautiful rich colors that have a little shine to them
  • These would be great for coloring little bits metal and jewerly
  • They write on black paper, if you're not a fan of gel pens, paint pens, or colored pencils these might be a suitable alternative
Cons:
  • The color lay down is slightly harsh for large areas, so far I have not been able to get a successful blend with these. I'm not saying that it is impossible just maybe a bit difficult.
  • They write on black paper. (I know what you're thinking: wait wasn't that a pro??)  Yes it was, but it's a con too. It will completely coverup the black lines on your images too, so you have to be very careful while coloring.

Colors on white paper

Colors on black paper

Overall I do like them. They won't be my most used markers, but I believe there will be times when they come in handy.


Thanks for stopping by and letting me share.

Hugs,
Anna

Pumpkin Spice

Hey everyone,
Hope you guys had a fantastic weekend.
I have a new cutie to cheer up any back to work blues.

My family has been calling this my pumpkin girl for the last couple of days and it kinda stuck, so...
This is Pumpkin Spice. 

I was at the store browsing through Halloween costumes when I found the most adorable children's pumpkin suit. It was an entire body suit but I kept going back to it and thinking that it would make a really fun skirt. Perfect for those days that your feeling festive.

Pumpkin Spice Cuddlebug Cuties


Pumpkin Spice Cuddlebug Cuties

Pumpkin Spice will be free through Sept 14, 2012.
Enjoy coloring and crafting with her but please give me, Anna Stillwell at Cuddlebug Cuties, credit for drawing her.

 Hugs,
Anna

Sunday, September 9, 2012

The Reality Of It All

Last week I was reading a post by one of my favorite bloggers. She was having a particularly rough day and was questioning why she blogged. The collection of posts on her blog are about her life, her family, her artwork, and her beliefs. At times people disagree with her decision to post family photos and discuss her christian beliefs.

I read through her entire post feeling tears coming on. It truly bothered me that people feel they can harass others just because they have the security of hiding behind a computer screen. It's just bad behavior.

I found this woman's blog one day when I was particularly bummed out and going through a tough time. Her blog was the first that I had ever seen or read. Until that point I didn't even understand what a blog was. The words that she published were very touching and made me feel better. So reading that  she sometimes wondered why she blogged because she felt that there wasn't enough enjoyment to replace the negativity that she received, made me feel badly for her. I have met so many wonderful people blogging and I would hate to feel that I needed to give up something that I enjoyed.

I have never met this blogger; can't imagine that I ever would for any reason, never talked to her, or sent her an email, I do not know her and I do not know what makes her blog, but I do know one thing about what she writes. It's that her words have the power to help people. She has an amazing ability to help and encourage complete strangers. And this day I decided that maybe someone needed to tell her that, maybe she didn't know. I wrote her a very long email telling her how grateful I was, how she had wrote words that I needed to hear, and how in the end she had made me feel better. I let her know that she had helped me.

The next morning she returned my email. She told me of how my email made her cry because she really needed someone to tell her that. She was a complete sweetheart and thanked me repeatedly.
I spent the rest of the day thinking, wow sometimes it really does feel that when we have something to be joyful about, forces outside of our control come to try and steal our joy. It's a shame really.

I really didn't understand where this poor woman was coming from. I had never had anyone be mean to me over blogging...
That is until today. This morning I received my first piece of harassing email or hate mail; I'm not really sure what to call it.

This person contacted me through my store and was pushing for a response from me, so please see below:

I draw and craft as a hobby. It is something that I enjoy doing. I am sorry if somehow I have offended  you by sharing my art. The truth is I have no idea who you are, so that was not my intention. I can draw in many different styles: fantasy, manga, etc... but I enjoy big eyed cutesy art the most. This is why I tend to draw big eyed art. It is a style that is defined by the slightly over sized adorable eyes. This is how I draw and it is how thousands of people world wide draw also. I'm sorry if it offends you that people other than yourself draw this way. I am not familiar with your art so I am not inspired by it nor you, sorry. I truly do not understand the pictures that you attached. Our lines do not match up, our pupils are different shapes, and our light flashes are in different places. The noses, mouths, and chins are also different. Your face shapes are pointed and mine are round. They are different, I see no reason for you to feel threatened by my work. I know that you complained about several of my other images too, but you did not send me any pictures about those so I really do not know what your concern is. You indicated that you had an issue with my hair styles. My hair is long and I have experimented with many different styles my entire life. This is where I get my inspiration for hairstyles. When I find one I like I put it in my art. Let me assure you that my work is my own.

I enjoy drawing and sharing. I give most of my illustrations out for free, and all anybody has to do is ask if they want one. This is something I do for me, not as a job to make money. I am not trying to steal your style or your customers. 

You stated in your email that you would be hiring a lawyer if I did not obey you wishes. That is your choice, I have no issues hiring an attorney myself. I have saved all my work from the beginning rough sketch ideas all the way to the completed product. It is quite easy so see how many times I erased each image until I got it just the way that I wanted it. I would not waste my time tracing your work, I enjoy creating it myself. 

  • I will not be removing illustrations  
  • I will not be closing my store
  • I will not discontinue posting  
  • I will continue to share my love of drawing with others
I stand by my work and I'm not going to let you or any other stranger take something I enjoy doing away. I do not appreciate you sending me threatening emails. I feel that artists should be supportive of one another, not stretching to find ways for others not to be able to express themselves in their love of art too. It is unfortunate that this is the way you choose for us to meet, it truly saddens me. I wish you all the success in the world in your creative endeavors.

Hope everyone out there is having a wonderful day.
Hugs,
Anna