Kittens, Asthma and new sketches!

I have to admit, I love my job. 

Working late into the night, eating dinner at my desk while I work and working weekends - it's all worth it to be doing what I love every day. 

Here's what I've been up to recently...

KIT KITTEN and the TOPSY-TURVY FEELINGS

    It was such a privilege to illustrate for Jane Evans for her book 'Kit Kitten and the Topsy-Turvy Feelings' and I felt as if I had learnt something new whilst doing so. Jane is a trauma parenting specialist and her books are not your average children's books, they are carefully written stories about parents who aren't always able to care, or children who come from homes with violence. Each book features questions, games, advice and suggestions that encourage the adults to listen and the kids to talk in a way that they feel safe and without pressure. Something that makes Jane's books unique and essential in so many ways.

When I received my copies of the book in the post, I was delighted to see they were of a very high quality and felt great to read. The pages were thick and glossy, and the hardback cover works wonders for little hands to hold. 

Jane is currently releasing her third book, 'Little Meerkat's Big Panic' which I am proud to have illustrated also. To find out more about Jane and her incredible work, you can visit her via;

Website; www.parentingposttrauma.co.uk

Twitter; www.twitter.com/janeparenting2

You can order Jane's first two books through her publisher Jessica Kingsley or with Amazon.

I HAVE ASTHMA, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Wendy Chen's book was inspired by her own family, but is perfect for any child who might know someone with asthma. It's explains what happens during an asthma attack, how it is managed and how it can be part of a normal, active lifestyle. What a great idea!

You can find more about Wendy by visiting her website; www.wendychenbooks.com

And you can buy Wendy's book on Amazon.

SNEAK PEEKS...

I should really share more sketches of new projects with you, I absolutely love sketching and the process behind designing a new character. It's so fun! Here are some friendly faces you will be seeing more of soon!

  

NEW LOGO, NEW WEBSITE!

I've been busy re-vamping Izzy Bean Illustrations with a brand new logo, and a new website too! 

A lot of you loved the old logo and it got a lot of positive comments, but I felt it was time for a re-fresh and a change... plus I love the new logo a million times more! What do you think?

Thanks for looking, as always!

Website; www.izzybean.co.uk

Racing Pigs, Rescue Dogs, Chameleons and so much more! - 'End of the Year' Blog Post by Izzy bean Illustrations!

2014 has come to a close, and what a fantastic year it has been!

I've been lucky enough to work with some incredible people on such fantastic projects - every time I get an email from a potential client I can't wait to see what adventures I might be getting up to next! 2014 did not fail to deliver, so let's see what it brought...

Racing Pigs!

The year started off with a new Fairy Tale Trail book from a long time client Evergreen Creations LLC. Adding to an impressive line of books I've illustrated for this super company, including 'Beauty and the Bees' and 'Ciderella', The 'Three Racing Pigs' was a great way to start the year!

The Fairy Tale Trail is a great series of modern twists on old classics - all in the name of promoting agriculture education! Check out these pictures of children following the stories through corn mazes and farms across the US.

Doesn't it look like fun?!

You can find out more about the Fairy Tale Trail by visiting their website;

http://www.thefairytaletrail.com

And you can purchase the books through Amazon;

www.thefairytaletrail.com/order-now.html

The Three Racing Pigs set the standard for 2014 and the rest of the year whizzed by! 

I couldn't possibly talk about all of them, in fact I couldn't even pick out my favourite as they are all so fun! Here are a few random highlights that I'd like to share with you. 

The Sea Creatures are back!

Do you remember the loveable Sea Creatures battling the tide in Grandma PaintPot's beautiful book? Well they make a second appearance in Book Two - Leonard Limpet Makes A Splash!

Grandma PaintPot doesn't disappoint, this book is packed full of action, adventure and daring acts! 

You can buy this, and the first book in the series, through Amazon

Featuring the letter L...

2014 saw a lot of repeat custom, with Elinor Hamilton bringing me another book from her delightful range of 'speech therapy' sing-a-long nursery rhymes. This one is a favourite I'm sure you will all know, go on, have a little sing!

You can visit the official website here;

www.bookcastle4kids.com

A Promise and A Pledge...

I had heard of '1000 Books Before Kindergarten' before being contacted for this project. However when I started to find out more, I really appreciated just how great it really is.

"The concept is simple, the rewards are priceless. Read a book (any book, including this one) to your newborn, infant, and/or toddler. The goal is to have read 1,000 books (yes you can repeat books) before your precious one starts kindergarten. Does it sound hard? Not really if you think about it. If you read just 1 book a night, you will have read about 365 books in a year. That is 730 books in two years and 1,095 books in three years. If you consider that most children start kindergarten at around 5 years of age, you have more time than you think."

You can find out more about the project on their official website, which features articles, advice, reviews and tips!

www.1000booksbeforekindergarten.org

They even have an iTunes app!

Candy Chameleon...

In all my years of illustrating, I get to draw all manner of things. However, I had yet to draw a chameleon. So when Roxanne Dial contacted me about her book, I couldn't wait to get started! 

Candy Chameleon is the story of a lizard who has to find a way of standing out when she naturally blends in. I loved the premise and I loved using all the colours to bring Candy to life. This was a project I really enjoyed! 

You can buy the book right here!

The Missing Cakes

Last, but most definitely not least, is Policeman Paul by Chris Cader. A well written story about missing cakes - with loveable characters and a great plot twist! I'm not giving the game away, you'll have to read it for yourself!

So that's it for 2014. It's been a fun ride, thanks to everybody who shared it with me! My diary for 2015 is already starting to fill up fast, so I'll be sure to share some updates with you very soon!

I'd like to say and extra special thank you to all my clients - thank you for bringing me such fun and interesting projects to illustrate - you're the reason I love my job!

In the meantime, if you have a project you need illustrating, you can email me at izzybean@izzybean.co.uk

I hope you all had a year as good as I did, and I hope you have an even better 2015!

Izzy Bean

Do You Poop?

Do You Poop? and other great stories!

Wow, has it really been almost 5 months since my last post? It seems like 5 minutes! 

I have been working hard and putting all of my time and devotion into some really great new projects. Sometimes I feel so privileged to get such great stories to illustrate! Often I get sent some copies of books once they’ve been printed, so I thought what better way to kick off this blog then with some photos of those great books I mentioned!

Do You Poop?

I loved the premise for this book as soon as Kerri contacted me. It was not only fun to illustrate, but it was great fun to read too! Take a look;

Do You Poop is a great book if you have young kids whether they are potty training or not. Check out Kerri's website for more information, or buy the book on Amazon!

www.kerriwoodthomson.com

Buy on Amazon

The Selfish Shellfish

You might remember I blogged about Grandma Paint Pot and her loveable sea creatures in the past. Well here are some (overdue) pictures of this brilliant book about the cute creatures and their crazy antics. The writing is superb, the characters are fantastic - and it’s set in Cornwall too! So what’s not to love?!

I highly recommend a visit to Grandma Paint Pot's website to find out more information and great pictures of REAL Leonard limpets and Pheobe periwinkles!

www.grandmapaintpot.com

You can buy this book in paperback;

Itunes

Amazon

And stay tuned for book two! I'm not giving anything away, except that it will be worth the wait to see some familiar faces!

TESCO’s GO CREATE colouring pad

I was a little surprised (and a lot pleased) to see my illustrations had made it into Tesco’s colouring books. At only £2.50 for 64 illustrations for your little ones to scribble in - you know that’s a bargain! 

Check out my two nephew’s handiwork too! Not bad, hey? We’ll make an illustrator of him yet!

What else?

Well it’s been a busy summer, and there’s lots of beautiful books and projects I have yet to share with you! Here’s a small selection of some of the latest - and there's more to come soon! 

I’ve even included some sneaky sketches of projects I’m working on right now! Can you guess what they'll turn into?

I actually do a much better job of updating my website then I do my blog! So if you’d like to see my most current work, or ask for a quote for your book, please visit www.izzybean.co.uk or email me at izzybean@izzybean.co.uk

Thanks!