About Holly

I love being on the verge of a new creative experience!

I'm an illustrator, author, mentor, teacher, idea generator, painter, thinker, big dreamer, rule breaker, rock the boat type with no apparent off switch based in Eastern Canada. I grew up on a visual diet of Ed Emberley, comics, cartoons and music. After high School I went to NSCAD University in Halifax, Nova Scotia for 5 years and my fascination with mingling text and imagery led me to illustration. It was a match made in creative heaven.

My Process!

Media needs illustration. In a nutshell, I paint creative image solutions for my clients. My method of choice is a versatile paint called gouache. It helps me create the vibrant, whimsical illustrations that you see on this web site. I do not mind getting my hands messy which is why my slogan is a handmade experience!

My process begins with a meeting and a chat about the creative project, its potential usage and projected time frame. From there, a quote and an agreement is drafted. Then I do some research and I write everything down. Since my work is very narrative based I just start making notes and adding many words. I find if I record all these words, I can find images inside of them. Once I have found what I’m looking for I mull over the many ideas. I then create initial roughs to show my client. Then we discuss potential colour, layout, and size changes and solidify my client’s vision of the final concept. From there I layout the piece on illustration board and begin painting. The work is completed and invoiced.

My Book!

Breaking Into Freelance Illustration: the guide for artists, designers and illustrators.

This book came out of few places. First, I saw a need and decided to take on the challenge. Like many illustrators I was frustrated after I left school. I had more business and self-employment questions than answers. As time went on I soon realized I was not the only one. I decided to research the industry and discovered a love for it. From that came a willingness to chat about it. I guess that is how the mentoring thing came about. Secondly, I needed to shake up my own career. I had hit a point in my creativity where I needed a ‘creative sabbatical’ so to speak-I needed to reinvent myself or kick my career into another direction. Instead of waiting for the opportunity to come to me, I decided to make the opportunity myself. Lastly, finger injuries have a funny way of forcing your hand in strange ways. A bad day and a bad run in with a dog left my right hand in such bad shape that I could barely hold a pencil. My career was up in the air and I needed to think quick. After the dog incident I surprisingly became very fearless and what better way to use that energy than sending out a book idea! It all made sense!!