Curlicues

Hello! I'm Heather Gibbons, though I'm more frequently known online by aliases such as Aqua. Aspiring to someday put my abilities as a digital artist/illustrator to greater use, I also like to dabble in web design and the occasional traditional illustration (I feel sad for my dusty sets of markers and pencils!).

I love to create new things as well as draw existing things that I enjoy, which is often video game related. I've been fascinated by games since I was very small and though I'm not sure I'll ever be involved in the field, still enjoy making the occasional sprite-styled image or try to mimic the styles used in my favourite games for fun.

When working on the computer, I use a Wacom Intous3 6x8 tablet with Adobe Photoshop on an intel iMac (go Apple!). I also have an arsenal of traditional tools such as Prismacolor coloured pencils, markers, and watercolour pencils; microns, bristol and sketch paper, and more. For my web design I generally code my HTML and CSS by hand, though have found CSSEdit quite handy as of late.

Other interests of mine include science fiction, astronomy and space in general, good chocolate, visiting interesting places, bicycling, biology, and things decidedly non-girly like bugs and reptiles. I also love listening to music and wish I could create some of my own!

The Site

While the main site itself was coded by me using SubEthaEdit and CSSEdit, the gallery software used is Coppermine Photo Gallery.

Blu-Rain.net itself has been hosted by Surpass Hosting since late 2002.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please read before you contact me with a question!

Q: Are you taking requests or art trades?
Generally I don't take requests. Sorry! I might consider art trades, but generally I only do that with friends or people I know.

Q: How about commissions?
I'm actually experimenting with that right now. If you're interested, check out my current prices:

Avatars/Icons : $5
Full colour, outlined square image (at least 400px) for use on dA/LJ/etc. Can shrink for you if needed.

Pixel Art : $8
A small sprite-styled image. May add a simple animation if wanted.

Drawing, Sketched - $3
A large unrefined drawing. Any additional characters (up to 3 in total) are $1.50.

Drawing, Outlined - $10
A large drawing that I've outlined. No background. Any additional characters (up to 3 in total) are $5.

Drawing, Coloured and Shaded - $25
Includes a simple background. A more complex background will be about $5 to $10 extra. Additional characters (up to 3 in total again) are $10.

If you want something in an alternate style I've used (like my paper cut-out/lineless styles) I'll consider it, but I'm still unsure of pricing for those.

Q: Can I use your artwork for (insert use here)?
It really depends on what you're using it for. If you want to use it for a personal icon somewhere and it's not one of my original characters or someone elses original character, I may be alright with that, but please ask me first! My art is not for commercial use unless it was created with that agreement (ie. my Subeta images).

Q: How did you draw (insert picture here)?
I see this a lot, but it's hard to explain a technique unless you see it in action (and I'm lazy). Some things you aren't necessarily going to be to good at right away, like clean lines (a steady hand helps a lot!). Google is filled with handy drawing tutorials.