I was charged with creating a Halloween-themed image of our company mascot to put into the monthly newsletter. This was probably the most exciting thing I did all day, so I thought I’d share a little bit about my creation process.

The art starts with a sketch on a crappy lined notepad that came from the office supply room. I didn’t draw very large, or get into much detail on this one. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t.

The sketch is scanned and brought into Photoshop. I use my Wacom pressure-sensitive tablet to draw line art on a new layer atop the sketch. I’ve decided to add in a bucket-o-treats, so I made the canvas a little larger to accommodate it.

When the lines are done, I drop out the back layer and save it. Then I open up Adobe Illustrator and place the Photoshop file into the Illustrator file. I use the trace feature in Illustrator to vectorize my line art. I expand that and ungroup it. Then I use the magic wand to select and delete all the white areas.

I create a new layer underneath the line art layer. Then I lock the line art layer and start adding in the blocks of color underneath using the pen tool. And, that’s about it. The company mascot is a rubber chicken, BTW… hehehe I made him look a bit too lively, I think.

Not too long ago, I acquired a Family Circle from April 1956. The cover price was only seven cents! (I paid $1) How could I pass it up with great ads like these!? When you flip open the cover, the first thing you see is this poor outcast. If only she knew the answer to all her problems was mouthwash. (Click each ad for a readable size!)

Readers of this issue are also treated to this appetizing ad for green pea soup. Can anyone say Exorcist?

I am also led to believe that people in this period in time are incredibly obsessed with their digestion. There are five ads in this one magazine about various laxatives and indigestion relief products.

Even children are not exempt from the worries of *gasp* constipation. Children of all ages even!

The kid in this laxative ad looks like he just crapped up a storm and he couldn’t be prouder! Don’t you love how dramatic the facial expressions are? The headlines and body copy have a tendency towards uber-dramatic too.

Look at the brow furrowing on this chica! I cannot imagine a more dramatic look of discomfort.

Finally, here’s another dramatic ad for the ladies! Why be old-fashioned!? Make sure you’re not sadly behind the times! haha