Weddingbee PRO

One of our readers recently asked us to do an interview with the artist behind all the wonderful illustrations on Weddingbee and we aim to please, so here is the story behind our enigmatic illustrator!

I was perusing wedding related illustrations on istockphoto several years ago when I stumbled across Irene’s portfolio.  I thought she would be a great fit with the Weddingbee style, so I reached out to her and commissioned the Mrs. Bee character I continue to use today.  Irene has been working with us creating new bee generations and feature icons ever since.  Other than her istock illustrations and the work she does for Weddingbee, Irene is mainly a motion graphic designer who designs and animates tv show packaging and promotions for network identities and more.  Sounds pretty cool huh?

Without further ado, here is more from the gal of the hour!

How did you get started as an illustrator?

I usually draw for my design projects when there is a need for it. The turning point was when I drew icons for the various Disney consumer electronics products — that’s when I gained more confidence as an illustrator, and realized being an illustrator is a lot of fun on its own. I started to draw a lot more when I became a contributor to istockphoto.com, and that’s when Bee found me.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

Everywhere - from traveling, books, movies, art, illustrations, photography, to the kwanzan flowering cherry tree in my backyard. Life is so beautiful, and it is a wonderful feeling when you can interpret and recreate it on paper with a twist from yourself.

What is your design process — do you sketch digitally, or on paper first? How long does it take to complete a generation of illustrations?

I first find as many visual and color references as I can on the internet, and place the images together in photoshop as a mood board so I can see them all at once. I then analyze the characteristics that I like, and start sketching on paper. Then I scan, trace and refine everything in Adobe Illustrator. The initial illustrations for a generation of characters can usually be done in one day, then Bee and I work together to see how we can improve them if there’s a need for it. So I would say 1-2 days to complete a generation of illustrations.

People have asked me how I draw with a mouse - I don’t know but I just do. I cannot use a Wacom tablet for some reason.

What is your favorite generation that you’ve created for Weddingbee, and do you have an all time favorite character?

The doggy generation turned out to be lovely, and gummi bear is my favorite illustration. It was a challenge to create a semi-translucent character that has a face on it, but it turned out to be one of the cutest characters from the group. Mrs. Gummi Bear also turned out to be one of my most favorite bees of all time with her intensely creative projects and sense of humor. I am so glad they paired up because she really gave life to my favorite character!

Another one of my favorite characters is Meatball - I thought it was funny because I used chives to create a smiley face for it.

If it were up to you, what theme would you choose for the next Bee generation?

I remember reading Mr. Bee jokingly suggested having a generation of weapons (chainsaw and baseball bats), which I thought would be hilarious! We were/will be bridezillas at one point or another during the wedding planning process, so it would only be appropriate!

Are you engaged? Do you use Weddingbee?

I was married before I was commissioned to do the first character, Mrs. Bee. I wish I’d found Weddingbee back then!

Now I check Weddingbee from time to time to read the stories, and get inspiration from various design projects. I draw wedding-related illustrations for sale as stock, so it is very helpful to understand the trends of the wedding scene.

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Irene has become a big part of Weddingbee, and we’re obviously big fans of her work!  You can see all her entire portfolio on her website here, and be sure to check out all the illustrations she’s created for us below!  Wow!