Sunday, February 14, 2021

Hi! Happy Valentine's Day! I know I said I might skip this newsletter, but I didn't want to break my streak! Today is the 15th newsletter in a row. Plus I have a lot of love-related doodles in my back pocket that I want to share.

I haven't been drawing much this week because of the ear surgery I had Monday (more below), so some of today's doodles are older but haven't been shared in the newsletter before and are relevant today.

We've got post-surgery comparisons, dates that didn't work out, a very cute love story that obviously isn't about me, and an odd custom Valentine's Day card request.

Also, quick V-Day request from me. Share the love! If you like this newsletter, tell a friend! I'm thinking of some incentives like stickers, etc., coming soon!

Ear surgery turns me into van Goh

I had surgery on Monday for a CSF (cerebral spinal fluid) leak in my left ear that has been there for years. Apparently, it's rare and it may have been caused by weak membrane from birth or because of a college concussion ... After many, many ENTs, I finally found a doctor who diagnosed it and could fix it. Recovery is going well. The left side of my head is sore and I've been sleeping and resting a lot. Below are two post-surgery comparison pics.

I can't paint like him, but our ear coverings look pretty similar. Luckily, my left ear is intact and I took that bandage off on Tuesday.

My friend Colleen said this looked like a fascinator. What do you think?

Dating bingo — reasons it didn't work

This was my first doodle which started everything! I made it in July. People responded so well on my Instagram that I made another one in the series and created an account for my doodles called, of course, Danielleindoodles. You can see my style has changed a bit since then and hopefully my drawing has improved?!

Dates where I was the problem

It's not always their fault... sometimes I'm the super awkward one. Here are a few little vignettes. I've made three of these. See the full serries here. Should I make more?

A cute adult sleepaway camp love story

Two summers ago, I boarded a yellow schoolbus headed toward Camp Eisner in the Berkshires. I was going to a Jewish adult sleepaway camp called Trybal Gatherings. On that bus, between a leaky AC, a smelly bathroom in the back, and squished three-seater, I saw a romance start to blossom. The couple is still together and I made them a cute doodle about their love story. 

I know you're probably thinking, "Danielle, did you have a camp fling at Trybal?!" No, I got a bad cold and no one wanted to go near me. But I made really good friends!

A strange request and an iPad lesson

I posted on a local Facebook group yesterday that I had a few Valentine's Day cards left. A girl in the group asked if I could do something custom. I thought she'd want me to change the colors of the people in this card I already made, but she wanted me to make something she saw on Etsy. This isn't my concept and I'd never think of something like this! But, it gave me a reason to try Procreate (the drawing app) on my sister's new iPad. It was not as easy as it seems. (Also, see all my custom work here!)

Thanks for reading! See you next week. In recovery, I've (mostly) put the pen down but it hasn't stopped me from coming up with new ideas. Plus, I had a lot of love/dating related ideas I didn't get to make yet.

Have a safe Valentine's Day if you celebrate! And remember to share the love — of my doodles! <3

xo

PS: Some email housekeeping:

1) Sometimes this newsletter goes to promotions, so add the address to contacts if you want to receive it in your main inbox. 

2) You can reply directly to this email and I will receive it!