It’s been awhile since I posted a new FREE coloring page. Click HERE to download a larger printable PDF version of this lovely butterfly fairy!
Have an amazing weekend everyone,
Micheline
Coloring Pages for Kids
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Author Archives: Whimsical Publishing
Third Time’s a Charm
I just finished this new commission (above) this morning! Look familiar? Yep, this is the third go around! Apparently it’s a popular painting. Directly below is my first painting of ‘Following the Snow Line’ and then my second time through below that. Interesting how they are similar but also manage to remain original.
If you are interested – check out my process of painting this piece HERE!
You can see more of my work here in my gallery as well.
Micheline
Hope Under the Big Top
When I was a little girl my sister and I had a large trunk full of dress-up clothes. It wasn’t as colourful as the “tickle trunk” on Mr. Dressup (in fact it looked more like a pirate’s chest) but it was every bit as magical.
My mother had filled it with old hats, gloves, purses and dresses. While part of me wishes she’d held on to them until we were adults, I’m grateful she never had that good sense. Despite the fact that over the years these beautiful vintage pieces became worn, torn, stained or lost, what remains with me is a heightened sense of girlish pleasure every time I’m given the opportunity to dress up.
Fortunately, I get that opportunity every May. Six years ago my husband and I were invited to a fundraiser. It was a dinner and auction with 100% of the money raised going directly to help with building projects and medical services for the people of Haiti. The theme was the “Hollywood Academy Awards”.
We went the following year (1920’s Speakeasy), and the next year (Olympics –I was a Greek goddess). After that, I began volunteering on the fundraiser and each year I seek out local donations (which are always very generous) and work with a talented team to put together auction packages for the fundraiser.
This year the theme is ‘Under the Big Top’ and I can’t wait to dress up as a lion. A girl lion of course –but with a lion’s mane.
Of course, as much fun as it is to dress up, the greatest enjoyment I get is from knowing how much the money raised is going to help people. Proceeds from this year’s event will support a local Haitian doctor and two Haitian nurses at a recently built, free standing medical clinic in Grand Guave and will provide free medication as well as HIV on-site testing and supportive treatment for local Haitans.
The event is open to everyone if you want to attend, but tickets are going fast! In the meantime, check out this fascinating site chronicling the October/November 2012 trip of local volunteers to Haiti.
Hope to see you under the Big Top!
Trina
PS: If you loved the Mr. Dressup greeting card above as much as I did, check out this site for more Canadiana!
I recently traded in my old flip-out cell phone for a new iPhone – WOOHOO! Yes, I do realize that I’m almost a decade behind the rest of the world and yes, I am also rolling my eyes at myself. BUT, now I’m so connected that I can’t seem to get disconnected… EEP! Social media in the palm of your hand can be dangerously addictive! Ah well, maybe the novelty will wear off… eventually… 
That said I’m now obsessed with INSTAGRAM – I love photos and Instagram makes it easy and fun to share. So if you also love pics and feel inclined to get to know me better FOLLOW ME!
Happy Sunday!
Micheline
Have Horse, Can Colour
From the brute strength of the Draft horse to the speed and agility of the Arabian, horses have plowed fields, pulled carriages and ridden faithfully into battle for humans throughout the centuries.
In addition to contributing to human success, horses have an intriguing role in mythology, represented as unicorn, Pegasus and centaur. That’s why Micheline and I have chosen the horse (and it’s mystical cousins) as a follow-up to our mystical dragons colouring book.
Designed to delight and inspire, this book is also illustrated by Micheline Ryckman and newcomer Hayden Wolf and will include a step-by-step drawing guide along with a collection of stunning, ready-to-colour drawings.
Enjoy the “sneak peek “ inside our new colouring book and be sure to check back for details of how you can win a copy of it, due out this fall.
Cheers 
Trina
Designing Dragons
From Saint George and the Dragon to Puff the Magic Dragon and Cressida Cowell’s modern-day book series, How to Train a Dragon, the lore of dragons passes from one generation to the next. Fearsome, magical and majestic they still have the power to thrill us, scare us and entertain us.
At Whimsical Publishing, Micheline and I are really excited to breath new life into the iconic dragon with our new colouring book, Whimsical’s World of Dragons.
Designed to delight and inspire, artists Micheline Ryckman and newcomer, Hayden Wolf, will also include a step-by-step guide to budding artists and dragon enthusiasts everywhere to create and colour their own magical creatures.
We’ve included a sneak peek inside the book below. Details of how you can win a copy of our new colouring book – due out this fall – will follow soon. 
While you’re waiting for our new release check out our FREE colouring pages!
Happy colouring,
Trina
Dragon Art
When my oldest son, Will, was turning three he had one wish for his birthday –a green dragon piñata. It took me days to papier-mâché one using a large balloon for the body and shaping everything else out of newspaper rolled into various shaped and sized cones. After several more hours cutting and gluing strips of green tissue paper my first piñata was born.
Will loved it so much he refused to let me fill it with candy or be beaten with the traditional piñata stick. Thus “Dragon” became an official party decoration and spent the next three years hanging from a hook in our basement collecting dust.My youngest son never requested a dragon piñata for his birthday (and I certainly never offered to make one!). He has, however, requested numerous dragon books over the years. From Ernest Drake’s Field Guide to Dragons to Cressida Cowell’s modern-day How to Train a Dragon book series, Thom was hooked.
Over the years the boys and I have drawn dragons, written stories about dragons, read books about dragons and are big fans of the classic dragon movie, Dragonheart.
Perhaps that’s why I’m so excited to share with you Whimsical Publishing’s big news: WE’RE PUBLISHING A DRAGON COLOURING BOOK! With original artwork by house artist Micheline Ryckman and newcomer Hayden Wolf, this book will also include a step-by-step guide for budding artists and dragon enthusiasts everywhere to create and colour their own magical creatures.
Stay tuned for a sneak peek inside the book and details of how you can win a copy of our new colouring book due out this fall! In the meantime, check out this cool website on how to make your own dragon piñata!
~ Trina
The Art of the Humble Horse
I’ve known Micheline’s daughter, Hannah since she was about four years old. In the decade I’ve known her I’ve watched her grow and into a lovely young woman. While it’s normal to outgrow the things you loved as a child there’s one love Hannah has never outgrown; her love of horses.
If you’ve been following our blogs you already know this. You’ve probably seen pictures of Hannah’s horse, Lady and pony, Babe. Maybe you’ve even read some of Hannah’s stories or seen some of her beautiful drawings.
Hannah isn’t alone in this passion; there’s something special about horses that continues to draw us to them from a very young age. We devote shelf space to Classic books like Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty and watch timeless movies like National Velvet. Famous artwork owes its inspiration to this gentle beast from the stunning The Large Blue Horses painting by German artist, Franz Marc to the bronze sculptures by Frederic Remington.
Whimsical Publishing has also been inspired by the simple horse. In fact, WE’RE PUBLISHING A HORSE COLOURING BOOK! With original artwork by house-artist Micheline Ryckman and newcomer Hayden Wolf, this book will also include a step-by-step guide for budding artists and horse enthusiasts everywhere to draw and colour their own stunning horses.
Stay tuned for a sneak peek inside the book and details of how you can win a copy of our new colouring book due out this fall! In the meantime, check out this cool website from Horse Channel on their 30 favourite children’s horse stories: Horse Channel.
~ Trina
Oodles of Doodles
Did you ever get in trouble for doodling on your school work when you were a kid? I certainly did! The funny thing is that no matter how many times I was reprimanded I couldn’t give it up. And today, I doodle just as much.
According to Wikipedia the definition of doodling is this:
“A doodle is an unfocused or unconcious drawing made while a person’s attention is otherwise occupied. Doodles are simple drawings that can have concrete representational meaning or may just be abstract shapes.”
If I am at meeting or required to do any form of auditory learning, my compulsion to doodle is irresistible. My childhood impressed upon me that doodling was bad but recently I discovered otherwise:
According to a study published in the scientific journal Applied Cognitive Psychology, doodling can aid a person’s memory by expending just enough energy to keep one from daydreaming, which demands a lot of the brain’s processing power, as well as from not paying attention. Thus, it acts as a mediator between the spectrum of thinking too much or thinking too little and helps focus on the current situation. The study was done by Professor Jackie Andrade, of the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth, who reported that doodlers in her experiment recalled 7.5 pieces of information (out of 16 total) on average, 29% more than the average of 5.8 recalled by the control group made of non-doodlers. (Thanks again Wikipedia!)
In light of those statistics I say > DOODLE ON!!!
~Micheline
Introducing Hayden
Whimsical Publishing is pleased to introduce a new member to our team, Hayden Wolf.
Combining his extensive background in art and design with a background in visual communication and photography, Hayden is the perfect compliment to Whimsical Publishing’s house-artist and fellow photographer, Micheline Ryckman.
Hmm. That sounds a bit formal, doesn’t it? But how else do I introduce such a talent except to say that we’re really excited to have him on board! Perhaps the best thing to do is to just let you see for yourself. Mich has included pictures of some of Hayden’s work. Hayden’s website is currently under construction but for now you can check out more about him and his work by visiting him on Facebook.
And here’s a bit of a spoiler alert; Micheline is also working on a couple of colouring books with Hayden –but you’ll have to check back to find out more about those.
~ Trina
