Hallmark Brief

I was not 100% sure about undertaking the Hallmark brief as part of AD32 but I am really glad that i did. It has provided me with ample opportunity to experiment with drawing and creating new characters which is a vital tool if I intend to become a children's book illustrator in the future. I had lots of fun with this task and i think it has been useful as a first project because it got me using my sketchbook a lot, experimenting with shapes, form, materials and preparing me for the rest of my projects.
Character designs and roughs etc can be found in my sketchbooks, the following are my more finalised designs...

My character has undertaken many changes...At first the lines were much darker as i had drawn them in brown pen but after the group crit and a bit of self evaluation, i could see that the lines were too dark and were taking focus from the eyes. It was also pointed out that the eyes were quite small so i changed them on my designs and am now really happy with the results.

I got really into this project and very invested in the character i had created and this prompted me to make some 3D versions of my design.

 This model is made from supersculpey and i made it as a pencil topper to demonstrate a different way my design could be used by a card company that manufactures such a big variety of products. I could easily have drawn a plan for this sort of product but i really would like to enhance my modelling skills and make more 3D objects in future projects so i thought this would be a great opportunity to practice. I also just really love making things!

Due to the knitted pattern I had tried to illustrate on my character i really wanted to see what the 'real' creature would look like! It is by no means perfect but i think that it is it's imperfections which make the toy even cuter than before. The eyes are bigger on the toy because i had to use buttons and this led me to change the size of the eyes on my illustrations too which makes them look cuter and stand out more from the patterns. I really like the slightly wobbly shapes of this toy and it prompted me to draw more characters from this, making the proportions slightly off, giving it a quirky look.

Final images for Hallmark:

Birthday Bunny! I am really pleased with this one, the shape of its body and the colours etc are working really well and i also think that the neutral colour scheme makes this character/design accessible for men, women and children.

Get Well Soon Bunny! A slightly more static character but i think it communicates well enough to be understood by all.

Easter Bunny! This is one of my favourite images. I am really pleased with the composition, colours and lifework. I have kept a traditional symbol of easter in the form of an egg but hopefully it is a bit different to other easter cards and more contemporary.

I intended this design to be a valentines day card as there are many corny messages you could attribute to it ('your love sends me to the moon' etc) but i also see that if you take the heart away it is quite a cool design on its own and the heart could come off altogether or possibly be replaced by a number, making it more suitable as a birthday card. I am not 100% sure about the background but the brief was to illustrate the character in a range of different situations/occasions and i am really pleased with the design of this image.

Christmas Bunny. I went with something less conventional and not so 'in-your-face' as come christmas cards but i think it conveys the meaning quite well. I am pleased with the overall image and think that in context it would fit in with the current christmas card market.

Final A3 design sheets for Hallmark: