Day 21

OMG... I'm officially in the 20's. Teenage awkward!

Day 20

Wait... what? I don't even...

Day 19

Maybe little reef sharks are the same as having a cat here on land. Cute cuddly and like to snuggle.

day 18

This has become my own Julie and Julia project. Instead of cooking delectable delights of daring dinners I am drawing fictional creatures. Seriously if I can do this for a whole year it will be the longest project ever.

Day 17

What a pain in the arse. What was I thinking? A mermaid every day? I feel like I've already ran out of chubby mermaid poses as well as hair styles. They're all starting to melt together. I haven't even finished a MONTHS worth of mermaids. Oh god why did I commit to doing this ridiculous project? I persevere.

Day 16

In an effort to me more inclusive not every mermaid can be cute, chubby and in their early 30's. Mermaids can age gracefully too.

Day 15

Bad hair days happen to everyone ESPECIALLY fictional creatures. I mean the humidity under the ocean these days... I swear!

Whatever.

When I was little, about 7 or 8 I LOVED gymnastics. I mean LOVED it. All of my binders had gymnasts on them and I would spend hours pouring over library books at my elementary school. I'd trace the girls mid pose in a back handsprings and could think of nothing else. I took gymnastics for a while in my small town. I found that I could bend in crazy ways and I was rather good with balance, especially on the beam. I learned how to do handsprings and flips and back walkovers and aerials. When I would go to school, at recess, I would do flips and hand springs and cartwheels all over the field. I wanted to be in the Olympics... and my hero was Nadia Comănec (I had old encyclopedias). I was so happy doing these things- and I wasn't bad either! One day my best friend decided that I was a show off; That the only reason that I did gymnastics was because I wanted everyone to watch and be the center of attention. Systematically, one by one all of my friends decided that I was weird a braggart and a showoff. I remember spending months crying and not understanding why everyone hated me and no longer wanted to be my friend. It was like I had died, no one would talk to me at school and they'd make fun of me within ear shot. My mom would try and comfort me and tell me that sometimes kids were cruel.

For me, it meant that I needed to hide what I really loved doing... that a sense of pleasure to me was a source of scorn in others. I was rejected wholly and completely by every friend I had. Since that day I've never been able to let myself be excited about anything... to be too enthusiastic means eventual rejection by others when they think whatever you love is stupid. I stopped doing gymnastics and became an introvert. I would draw but not show anyone- I was also good drawing but found it to be a much easier thing to hide. That pattern has sort of repeated since I can remember. I don't play games, I don't dance, I don't sing- I won't even try. I have a mortal fear of looking stupid. I have a little 7 year old me running my life.

Anyway, today someone made me feel like I was once again 7 years old. I wanted to share my silly 365 day project with people I like. People that I thought would find chubby mermaids somehow amusing and sweet or even empowering. People that I like despite whatever station they might hold in my workplace. I wasn't fishing for compliments or trying to further some stupid agenda- it hadn't even crossed my mind. I am drawing mermaids. Something that literally makes me smile and laugh while I draw them... something that is truly giving me joy. Unfortunately it only takes a few words to conjure up a 7 year old emotions and make me want to quit. I don't think I will. I had a good cry and realized that the people that matter are the people that WILL think a year long chubby mermaid project is perfectly awesome.

This mermaid is me.

Day 13

Special request mermaid with accompanying scuba kitteh. I am not that great with getting likeness but I still like the way this turned out. It's very sweet.

Not so chubby No. 12

Okay so she's not that chubby, but she is a mermaid. I did this a while ago... its really what started this kick. That and there is this guy that works in the Coffee Table in Eagle Rock and he has this adorable tattoo of a chubby mermaid on his arm. Inspiration comes from peoples arms. Little known fact.

Day 11

Sooooo not my best mermaid but I promised to post a mermaid every day for a damn year... there are bound to be some fugly mermies on this blog.

Day 10

Mermaid day dreams?

Day 9

Big bootie! I loveeee this one. Not only does she have rockin' hair but she's getting her workout on. Yeahhh.

Day 8

Sometimes chubby mermaids are a little shy.

Day 7

Sharks might not sleep but mermaids evidently do. Quite soundly on the sandy sea floor. Luf them!

Day 6

Squee! So far she is my fave! I love her fat fishy bottom.

Fat n' sassy!

I like big butts and I can not lie! I thought mermaid diversity day would be fun. I have had to make up 5 days of mermaids because I am notoriously lazy and won't do something if I don't wanna. So today I made up for lost time and knocked out a few fluffy girls. It's a pretty fast process- chubby mermaids are easy to draw for one, and I am clearly not putting in a huge amount of effort here... lets face it. These are quick drawings which is kinda fun, it takes the stress out of drawing if I don't have to sit there and render. Plus as an added bonus quick drawings always seem to have more life in them. I've always had an issue with stiff drawings. So really, trying to draw SOMETHING every day is a good thing for me. You'd think that I'd be doing that working as an artist but the fact is that most days I don't even get to draw! Yay for mermaids!

Also I am backdating these thingies!

day 4

Oh now this is for sure chubbs LOVE IT!... and slightly awkward. And stubborn.

day 3

Seriously... worst one so far.

Day 2

Day two... meh

Day one

some say she's not chubs. She's definitely not Kate Moss.

Fat can be cute sometimes

Fluffy! For some reason I have been really interested in drawing cute fictional characters with more meat on their respective bottoms. No one ever shows love to girls with sass these days. I love the idea of 365 days of Rubenesque fish girls!