Category: Ray Wattson
Ray Wattson
Happy Friday, House of Shine. Cheryl here.
Since it's Ray Week, let me share with you my story of Ray.
One evening, three years ago, I was hanging out at the Beeny household. I'm sure we had just enjoyed a wonderful meal cooked up by Richard and we were bantering and laughing about our newly named lightbulb mascot, Ray, and how we were going to make him come to life at Highlowaha.
Peggy had put together a mock up of Ray and I was showing Claudia a cartoon artist's blog that I followed. We discussed what Ray would look like and what he would be for and I had no intention of volunteering to be Ray's artist but by the end of the evening I found myself saying that I would sketch up a couple of Ray's for Claudia too look at but I could not promise anything.
So, I went home and penciled out Ray for a couple of holidays. Just Ray with a holiday related hat or shoes holding something related to that holiday. I scanned them and sent them to Claudia. And, a couple of days later she emailed me and said, "I chose you." Honestly, I was nervous. What if I couldn't do it? But I could do it. And I have done it.
My first real Ray was for the Olympics and the second was for Back to School. The two that started it all.
I had no intention of drawing these elaborate backgrounds. They just kind of took on a life of their own and then each new Ray had to live up to the previous Ray. Sometimes they didn't translate well but when they did, I loved them and couldn't wait to send them to Claudia. I have a lot of favorites when it comes to Ray but my top favorites include RAYvolution, StingRay, CompadRAY, and AnniverseRAY.
All of Ray's images are scanned and edited in Photoshop. When you see twinkle lights on the Christmas trees in both HoliRay and Jingle All the RAY, those are done in Adobe's Photoshop. I would be nowhere without that software program. Well, I'd be somewhere but it wouldn't be near as nice. It allows me to make the colors richer or smooth out the areas where the ink just wouldn't cooperate. The funniest story from Ray was in Jingle All the RAY. That's a partial true story and it still makes me laugh today.
The most stressful part of drawing Ray was when we wanted to get the images on t-shirts. That is not an easy or inexpensive task. There are just too many colors in the drawings. Poor Ray. He really did want to give the clothing line a try but I still believe that Ray could have his own line of items. I think he could do greeting cards, calendars, coffee mugs or posters. T-shirts just aren't his medium.
The funniest thing about drawing Ray physically is that his head is large and his arms can't reach over it. Periodically, a request would come in for a Ray that required his hands over his head and that's just not going to happen. I love that he has flaws. Just like all of us. The other issue I have with Ray- I can't draw is darn finger pointing out at you! It just comes out looking wrong. But we're all able to laugh at my inability and work around it.
Now days, when we discuss Ray, I love pulling out the drawings and reminscing where he's been and what he has done. I tend to forget all the scenes I've drawn him in. It does give me a sense of satisfaction knowing that I have created the little guy in all these different scenes. I like that my boys get involved like in T-Ray. JB pointed out that Ray wasn't invented in the dinosaur era. He would have been fire.
And while I like the scenic drawings of Ray, I also love Ray just by himself like in the images above. I love the Twitter image of him and that was one we didn't feature on the blog. It has been such a fun adventure for me in creating Ray and I guess I've always loved him. We even had a "Complicated" relationship on Facebook for awhile but I had to break up with him in case a real man came along. I'm excited for Ray's new venture and to see where we get to take him next. Wherever it is- I'm sure he'll...
Shining off until Monday...
Happy Birthday, Ray!
This is the day of your Celebration Week when we invite House of Shine readers to get in on the fun and create a caption to go along with our latest picture of you.
We're not newcomers to this idea. A few years ago Peggy Robinson was our winner with her suggestion that we title the picture below, Raysin in The Sun.
A visitor to our site won the contest last year when she recommended that we use the title Shake Rattle, and Ray for the picture shown below.
Who will be this year's lucky winner of our Name That Ray Caption Contest?
One thing is for sure. Our winner will be creative and able to think outside the box. Take a look at the masterpiece inspiring this year's contest:
And just so you know we are committed to helping you be successful, let us share the background to this year's drawing. According to Cheryl, our resident artist and creator of the pictured featured, this year's drawing is based on the work of Marc Chagall. Chagall's painting is titled, La Mariee and - in the spirit of Cheryl's Year of Love - is meant to tell the story of young love. Interestingly enough, Cheryl also shared that the goats often pictured in Chagall's work are meant to represent him. Still want to know more? Click here to learn more about the original painting.
So have at it. Put on your thinking caps, consult your friends, and then visit us in the Comment Section to share your best suggestion for what to title this year's picture.
Shining off until tomorrow...
Ahhh. It's me again Ray Wattson. This, as many of you know, is my week. It's my Birthday Week. I've been wandering around my place and reminiscing. It's hard not to get sentimental as you look back on your own greatness. You can almost hear the hissing as a tear or two of pride try in vain to make to the floor.
For those of you who don't know me, let me offer a bit of sympathy... and explanation. I am Ray Wattson. Think of me as the embodiment of Shine. I swing by the House of Shine on occasion and offer my friends support. Some times it comes in the form of a gentle, mothering and uplifting hand......NOT. Mostly, it comes by way of my shiny boot giving you a swift kick. Reminding you that there are no excuses. There are no Victims. There are only Owners.
My pad is a testament to the power of Shine. Look around. What do you see? Achievement. Mine is a place of achievement. Join me in a stroll down memory lane. While I go prep for my party, spend a few minutes trying to see if you can remember all the good times represented by memorabilia on the walls.
Raycula, Compadray, Abracadabray.... Come on. See how many you can name. And don't forget about the pictures of me, from over the years, that I haven't even included.
Shine On...