I'm BACK ... and a Giveaway!

Hi everyone!
I'm back!
I hope you all had a simply fab summer ...
didn't it go by fast?
I take summers off from blogging
(with the exception of popping in now and again to say hello)
to enjoy the way-too-short summer months
and to take a little time to let even more inspiration bubble up.

So, first, let me say
HAPPY AUTUMN!

Isn't it glorious?

If you follow me on Twitter and/or Instagram,

you've been able to keep up with me on a daily basis

throughout the summer.

Summer certainly wasn't all lying back in a lounge chair ...

my custom illustration calendar certainly kept me very busy,

with requests to create pretty things for clients.

Most of them I can't mention yet

because they haven't been introduced by the clients.

There are many exciting things waiting to be created

starting in November too ... including a couple of book covers (fun!).

One of the things I love about what I do ...

each day brings something exciting and new.

October will be filled with finishing the 2014 calendar illustrations

so that it can be introduced in November!

So excited about it!

I'll be showing some teasers soon!

If you follow me on instagram, you probably saw this:

Also on Instagram, for the first time,

I recently shared a few

quick rough pencil sketches

taken from the pages of my personal sketchbook ...

sketching for half an hour in the morning when I'm in the studio

is how I often begin my days ...

usually I really don't have an idea of what I will be sketching,

I just go with whatever comes to mind ...

it's a good way to open the door for inspiration ...

Those weren't created for public consumption,

but I thought you may be interested in seeing a glimpse of how my mornings 

in the studio begin.

NOW ...

guess what?

I'M HAVING A CELEBRATION PARTY!

And it includes a giveaway!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS IN CELEBRATION

OF JUST CROSSING THE LINE TO OVER

20,000

PINTEREST FOLLOWERS!

On Pinterest you may have seen this posted today!

Whether you follow me on Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram,

Facebook, here on the blog (or in all places),

I wanted to take a moment

to say thank you.  Thank you for your support and

thank you for all of these special virtual friendships.

I love hearing your thoughts and visiting your blogs ...

and now that I'm back, I can't wait to hear what you've been up to.

Okay, back to the GIVEAWAY!

I'm gifting one of you that leaves a comment on this post

one of my signed "Paris Party" prints!

It fits a standard-size 11" x 14" frame!

Since I'm celebrating 20,000 Pinterest followers,

I thought the party print was the perfect choice!

Just leave a comment here on the blog, along with how I can reach you

should your comment be drawn.

The winner will be chosen from those that left a comment via

random number generator at noon EST

on next Tuesday, October 15.

Good luck, everyone!

And if you are one of the 20,000+ followers on Pinterest ...

thank you for following!

In closing,

since this is a Pinterest celebration,

I thought I'd end it with a variety of a few of my recent pins ...

(all of the following pins can be found in my recent pins here)

I loved the following quote because you know I think allowing yourself to dream

up a fantasy life opens the door to inspiration ...

So obsessed with animal prints this fall ... obsessed ... did I say ... oh, yes, I did.

And, so, I suppose this is now self-explanatory ...

And this ...

This city is a serious love of mine ...

I thought this sounded as delicious as it is beautiful ... 

you can find the recipe is here ...

After the previous dessert, you may need this workout tip ...

All about the gold ...

Oh, Dior ...

I love the photos collected in my "Take me to the Sea" Pinterest board ...

it's like going on vacation ...

And right from vacation, I'll take you to a holiday party ...

what can I say?  Variety is the spice of life ;)

This reminded me of a very scary thriller ... but doesn't she look amazing?

In closing, I leave you with a final pin ...

just because you are so wonderful.

See you next Wednesday, when I announce

the winner of the "Paris Party" print! xo

OOH LA FROU FROU

is the blog of fashion illustrator

SANDY M

For custom illustration inquiries,

drop Sandy a note here.

The sources for the three autumn photos above 

can be found here.

Pencil sketches and "Paris Party" illustration are by

illustrator SANDY M

All other photos are from my recent Pinterest pins

and can be found here.