Caricatures, Silhouettes and Illustrations by Leona Hosack

Teach ye your children the verses that have been divinely revealed, that they may recite them in most melodious voices. ~Baha'u'llah: Baha'i Education, pages 250-251 Here's my new cheering child for the week!  As well as a link to a new collection of singable Baha'i inspired songs from my hubby Larry's and my Bandcamp page- Music to Inspire! Leona and Larry. Enjoy! Great for kids and their families! http://leonaandlarry.bandcamp.com/album/the-oneness-of-us-all This is a pencil portrait I did yesterday of my granddaughter Bailey! It was so much fun to do! It is serving as a sample of my graphite portraits in my Etsy shop! https://www.etsy.com/listing/152258535/custom-graphite-portrait-from-your-photo?ref=shop_home_active

" C hildren, children, hand in hand we'll walk along. Children, children, learning how to get along." - Larry Hosack from the song "Children, Children". My latest submission to Illustration Friday! The theme this w eek is Tension! These kids are certainly having a little tension over painting their dog house! The dog isn't helping either! http://illustrationfriday.com/ This illustration is one I did many years ago and is also featured on the bandcamp page that I share with my husband Larry. We think as many do, that young children can benefit from hearing fun songs about getting along, solving problems and celebrating world mindedness, and so we wrote this group of songs when our children, who are now in their twenties and thirties were young! http://leonaandlarry.bandcamp.com/                                                       ...

Time for a new cheering child to cheer us on through this new week! I know I need a little cheering on. How about you? And here's a new silhouette I did recently! On Saturday, May 25th, I'll be at Willowbrook Museum in Newfield, Maine doing silhouettes for their opening day.  Admission is usually free on opening day! Maybe I'll see you there!  http://www.willowbrookmuseum.org/

My new submission to Illustration Friday this week. The theme is liquid! This is a cut paper collage! http://illustrationfriday.com/   I cut silhouettes at the Somersworth Chamber of Commerce Dinner last night, and had a great time meeting different business owners and making contacts! Such fun! Everyone was so nice! Thank you to Tony Lemmo for arranging for me to be there!

Here's a new cheering child! It's a new week filled with new opportunities and new challenges! New chances to learn something new! As I am now in my sixties this has more meaning for me than ever!You're never to old to be learning something new! I'm grateful to be doing silhouettes later this week! I'll be at the Somersworth Chamber's "Gala 2013" Annual Dinner at the Red Barn at Outlook, Rte.4 in North Berwick, Me doing complementary silhouettes for the attendees. Thought I'd share some photos from a few years ago of me doing silhouettes at the Strawberry Festival in South Berwick, Me. I'm looking forward to doing this festival again on June 29th, always the last Saturday in June! Happy Learning!

My latest submission to Illustration Friday! The theme this week is Future! I chose to submit a picture of a child. I think that it's so easy to forget  how precious our children are and how our future will be shaped by them! Especially when we're trying to get out of the house and get them to school or somewhere else on time! They have their own time table and it doesn't always match our own! It's a challenge to spend quality time with the children in your life doing what they love, and giving them what they need as well as taking care of your own needs at the same time! Not always easy, but it can be done! Happy Mother's Day to every mother and to every child!   Children are the most precious treasure a community can possess, for in them are the promise and guarantee of the future.  (Letter from the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá’ís of the World, Ridván 2000)      http://illustrationfriday.com/

I decided to feature a new "Cheering Child" doodle at the beginning of every week,  to cheer me on throughout the week.  She looks happy! Maybe she can cheer you on too!  This last week I have been working on several projects. One is a silhouette for Mother's Day ordered through my Etsy Shop.   https://www.etsy.com/shop/creationsbyleona The other project was two caricatures of Justin Kelcourse, a Realtor in Portsmouth, NH. The first is Justin celebrating millionaire day, and the second one features his cat! What do you think?

Mother's Day is coming! I have Mother's Day silhouettes available through my Etsy Shop! I work easily from photos to create a one of a kind custom silhouette! And I'm happy to add a bit of calligraphy here and there if someone wants it. I studied Calligraphy years ago in school and taught it off and on for many years in Adult-Ed classes. I am thinking of doing more calligraphic pieces for the shop, or maybe starting an Etsy shop just for calligraphy, especially for weddings. Below is a sample of my Calligraphy which I did years ago. https://www.etsy.com/listing/71261005/custom-hand-cut-silhouette-with-mothers?ref=shop_home_active Believe it or not this calligraphy is hand-done in the old fashioned way. I actually fed watercolor into a dip pen and changed the color from time to time, in order to get this effect. It was fun but time-consuming! What do you think? Happy Creating!