Thursday, January 30

The Cover!


Here's the art work for the book cover!   I'm so pleased with it.   It looks inviting and intriguing.

Russell has paid some homage to vintage illustrated books, particularly Toby Twirl (see below) with its plain colour background with full colour characters in the foreground. Although Edward Jeffrey created them in the 1940s and 1950s, the annuals are 1930s in style.
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So if Mabel had been set 25 years later,  we'd have done the whole art deco thing with the font and brilliant colour.  But since she is in 1915, we've decided a "typewriter" font to give the book a more Edwardian feel, and the background has khaki, to suit the military theme.

Some of the illustrations are full page.  Here are the fleas spotting the evil robbers come to steal the "good drugs" off the train......





Other picture are in comic book format

I love the way that all the characters have different personalities, and Russell's drawings show this.
So, delighted.  Now, just have to wrestle with the intricacies of Lulu.  Oh, and ...well, there are actually LOTS of things to do. 

Saturday, January 11

Flea Circus

The kids were keen on the idea of a flea circus.  They did want it to have a Big Top.  Or, I suppose, a Little Top.

Russell is well on his way with the pictures. Here is his pencil proposal for the Flea Circus. Looks good to me.


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