My sharing of the long, intense art journey I went on with "Sworn Servant" continues with Part 2 - Joscelin's Armor. 

Cassiline monks like Joscelin, the solemn warrior featured in "Sworn Servant", don't just wear any tunic, but prescribe to a unique regalia that includes modest metal bracers, traditional weaponry of a longsword and dual daggers, and a specifically long cut mandillion coat of the softest lanolin.

In "Cassiel's Servant", the main character, Joscelin, describes his armaments in exacting detail as someone proud of his service and the care of his equipment, so I had many lovingly detailed descriptions to work from!

This meant exploring clothing terms I wasn't familiar with.  What is a mandillion tunic?  What is lanolin?  Watch my 1 minute short video for a quick breakdown of the process of exploring Joscelin's look with a focus on his 'clubbed hair' and his layers of armor and clothing I needed to design for this painting:

If you'd like to know the answer to the questions of what exactly are mandillion coats and lanolin, you can find out in my in-depth Secret Sketchbook research of Joscelin's weapons and armor available to all of my Patreon Patrons at $2 and above (or buy the entries you want individually for $3 a piece).

See the Patreon archive for my Cassiel's Servant project to pick and choose Secret Sketchbook entries you're interested in or simply enjoy browsing the free public posts:



Go back to Part 1 of the Art Journey Updates for the complete updated list of Art Journey posts I'll be sharing over the course of this campaign.

Next, I'll be sharing a glimpse into designing Joscelin's armaments, the modest, but deadly weapons of the esteemed Cassiline warrior monks.

<3 Ang

Let's keep the excitement going for this campaign!  Remember, you can help me spread the word about supporting my gold foil print by sharing these posts on my socials (commenting is especially helpful so we can beat the algorithm!):

We are FUNDED as of Sunday morning. FANTASTIC!!! These gold foil prints are getting made!🎉

This project has performed totally beyond my expectations for this very small, niche item. Thanks to everyone who has been so passionate about pledging & sharing!  I'm so incredibly grateful.

Everything from here on out is a blessing of succor for my indie artist endeavors, on top of being able to fund the print series' production. 🥰

I've also had a few requests to add playmats of "Sworn Servant" for those wishing to have playmats of both paintings from my Kushiel Concepts collection. I am happy to oblige with not only playmats of this painting, but the other major Kushiel paintings I've done!

For those who don't know what a playmat is, it's a sort of large mousepad you can use for collectible card games or to put underneath your keyboard and mouse.  I had sold out of the Kushiel's Legacy playmats from my Etsy shop a couple of months ago.

I'm pleased to report that I've found a new playmat printer who can do lovely stitched edges on a thick vinyl!  They're a bit pricier than my old, thinner mats without stitched edges, but worth it for the higher quality and better finishing.

Here's a peek of the sample I got with my art "Keeper of Secrets" on a playmat from the printer I'm hoping to use, so I know they can handle my detailed art:

Here's a mockup of what to expect of the new "Sworn Servant","Temple of Kushiel", and "Your Heaven Is Bloodless" playmats with stitched edges.  I'll also be personally signing the mats bought through this campaign! 

Find them in the Add-On shop where you can buy them individually or complete your whole playmat collection with the 3 mat set for the best price!

You can also review the expected shipping rates for these items in the updated Shipping section.

Keep on sharing this project!  We may be funded, but there are always a few cancellations during any project, so I want to be sure that if anyone needs to drop that we'll be more than safe from fluctuations in pledges from the relatively small amount of backers who are helping to fund this series (you guys rock!!!).

Keep sharing these links on socials and commenting, if you have time, as that's the most powerful way to get my posts seen:

My thanks once again for how motivated and amazing you all are!

More art soon,
<3 Ang

It's been an exciting couple of days already for this campaign!  I had so many fears before launching this project thinking it might be too small, too niche to fund, but you passionate folks have turned out to help us be almost 100% funded by day 2!

Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart. Truly!  It looks like we'll be funded very soon.  Most certainly by the end of this month-long campaign!

As a treat for those keeping up with this project, I wanted to give you a glimpse into how I made this painting over the course of this campaign.  I've put together a series of 1 minute videos showing the process from idea to final!  Starting with thumbnail sketching:



Here's a look at my favorite thumbnail sketches from the many I explored for this painting:


Even before I got to the point of exploring thumbnail sketches, I did a fair amount of pondering on what the main character of "Cassiel's Servant", Joscelin Verreuil, should look like.  Here's a peek at my pondering from my Secret Sketchbook:



I also fan cast Bill Skarsgard for Joscelin after seeing him kick butt in the movie "Boy Kills World", where his agility, physique, and martial prowess really impressed me. 

Kushiel fans, who do you fan cast for Joscelin?  By the end of the painting process, my version of Joscelin came out a mixture of Bill Skarsgard and Liam Hemsworth.

If you want an even deeper dive into how I conceptualized this painting and its characters, be sure to check out my Patreon where you can pledge $2 for access to all of my Secret Sketchbook entries about this painting or, if you aren't a fan of subscriptions, you can pay a one-time fee of $3 per entry and choose the specific entries you're interested in.

Find my Cassiel's Servant project archive with a list of all the public and Secret Sketchbook posts here:



Next along the Art Journey, I'll be sharing a peek at the concept sketches for Joscelin!  Designing his armor proved the most research intense and fun part of the process.

Let's keep the excitement going for this campaign!  Remember, you can help me spread the word about my gold foil print by sharing these posts on my socials (commenting is especially helpful!):

<3 Ang

(I'll update this list as we go along!)

I can't believe we're finally here!  I began painting "Sworn Servant" two years ago during a challenging period of my life.  My husband, who works in tech, had been freshly laid off.  Being an indie artist was more challenging than ever in the flood of AI art, overcrowded marketplaces, etc. while we struggled at home with life's challenges.  The world seemed a constant rush of bad news!



That's when art has always been a special salve for me.  When everything else was falling apart, painting on this piece kept me centered and helped me prove to myself I could still appreciate beauty in the darkness and feel triumph at creating something bit by bit that wouldn't otherwise exist. 

What serendipity that I would finish this painting just in time for Jacqueline Carey to celebrate 25 years of her Kushiel's Legacy book series, which inspired this piece!

This book series has always been an escape into beauty, decandance, and quiet strength for me.  It came to me in my college student days years ago, inspiring me towards pursuing my career as an illustrator with a penchant for mature, elegant dark fantasy. 
(This is also when I began my Kushiel themed illustration project, Kushiel Concepts, for those who might be new to my work.)

I'm glad to share a piece of this inspiration and passion with you!  I know we'll make this gold foil print a reality as this journey of creativity continues.

Please look forward to this project's Updates as I share part of my long journey with this piece, the concepts that inspired it, the research, etc.

My thanks, as ever, to Jacqueline Carey, herself, who has always been supportive of my fan works and championed each endeavor.

For now, let me know are you a Kushiel's Legacy fan, too, or are you just here for pretty art? (Both things are valid! :D) 

What do you love about the books?  Do you have a favorite piece from Kushiel Conceps thus far? 

I'd love to hear from you, the passionate crowd helping bring my small bit of creativity to life.  Let's get hype and celebrate this momentous creative event!

<3 Ang

Help me spread the word!  Your word of mouth is the most powerful tool in my indie artist arsenal.  Commenting on posts is especially powerful!  Help spread these posts on my socials: