Oodles of Doodles

sleepy Black artist + MS paint fan. linktree

[renlo]

Social and Shop Links

Hi friends!  I’ve hit a (very brief) lull in my semester and personal life, so I’ve decided to clean up and update my socials just a little bit.  I also wanted to mention that I have several shops where you can get my art on prints, clothing, and other fun things!  

I also updated and added a 40-paged coloring book that’s available for purchase on my Ko-fi page (more updates to come)! 

🌟Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/renlodraws

🌟INPRNT: https://www.inprnt.com/gallery/renlodraws/

🌟Redbubble: https://www.redbubble.com/people/alittleshop/

🌟Teespring: https://every-shade-and-hue.creator-spring.com/

[renlo]

Happy Pride Month! I wanted to doodle something before the month was out and finally got around to making some chibis. I wanted to put something funny on the shirts, but nothing felt quite right.

[renlo]

Happy Pride Month! I hope to make more pride-oriented art over this month, assuming I'll have the time and space to do so.

[renlo]

I recently misheard something my husband said and realized that I'm much more Sonic-obsessed than I thought. It's been a few years, and I'm still trying to figure out if Sonic Colors Ultimate is an improvement over Sonic Colors.

Side note: I'm actually a huge Sonic nerd! Our mutual love of Sonic is partly how we got together.

[renlo]

Finally had enough mental space to doodle something! 🌟

The last few weeks have been incredibly exhausting and stressful, largely due to work. It's nice to be able to draw something and like it somewhat.

Though the world is full of harshness, I hope you find something that gives you hope, and maybe makes you smile. 💜

[renlo]

Work has been very, very taxing recently, so I've been feeling especially drained the last few weeks. A box of brioche donuts helped to ease the stress just a little, though!

[renlo]

Please excuse the recent lack of art! The last few months have been, to say the least, fairly eventful, and it's been a little hard to be creative.

My spouse and I bought a house! This is a privilege I don't take lightly. Moving has been tiresome, but I'm grateful.

Within a week of moving in, a trespasser appeared on our porch in the middle of the night. He was apparently taking pictures of our front door, and ran away and sped off in his vehicle when my husband noticed him. A lot of time has been spent researching security systems and tools. 🫠

A coworker caused an incredibly complex, extremely unethical, and potentially illegal problem at work, and I have been thrown into the center of it. I'm not in trouble, but I'm now responsible for fixing it with very little help.

The world has been incredibly harsh. Watching civil rights unravel in real time has been a heavy weight.

I am very, very, very burnt out, lol.

Thank you for taking the time to look at my doodles (and to read my random streams of consciousness). I hope to draw something - and maybe take a sabbatical from work - soon. Much love and gratitude to you all! <3

[renlo]

A semi-mindless doodle. A friend mentioned stargazing recently, and it reminded me of how enchanted by stars and constellations I was as a child 🌟🌙

There's an easter egg in there, albeit a pretty personal and simple one. :)

[renlo]

A work-in-progress that I like and might actually finish! Life has been a lot, and drawing is hard, but I'm thankful to have the chance to be a little creative 🌟

[renlo]

Some fan art from a few months ago that I forgot about! I absolutely love creature-catcher games and drew this while playing Pokémon Z-A. Admittedly, Z-A has left me with some mixed feelings, but it did (sort of) scratch that itch.

[renlo]

Please have a really dumb comic based on a silly conversation(?) I had with my husband a few weeks ago!

Life has been hectic, but we had the chance to go to a convention and have a good time! We cosplayed as Shadow and Rouge. :)

[renlo]

A doodle inspired by sunsets! The days are getting slightly longer, which makes me happy.

To be honest, the last few days (or weeks?) have been incredibly stressful. On a personal level, work has become more demanding, and I can feel burnout creeping closer. The kind of work I do is impactful but can be emotionally taxing, and I'm watching the resources that my team and I depend on ebb away as grants and funds are slashed. On a macro level, the world often feels as though it is burning without stopping. I have been trying to find comfort in the reminder that there are still good people in the world who are fighting for change, and that we have fought (and won) against evil in the past.

For anyone else who is feeling exhausted, I hope you find the strength to continue pushing forward <3

[renlo]

After years of referrals, late-night Googling, and lurking on subreddits about autism, I have been formally diagnosed!

It feels both cathartic and a bit strange, and I still have a lot of things I'm processing, but I'm thankful to finally have answers. <3

[renlo]

Flower girl. 🌸🌷

I absolutely adore peonies - my husband actually got a small bouquet of them for my birthday, and I have one being pressed in a book right now.

Happy Black History Month! Love, celebration, and the preservation of history are so important right now. As a child, I struggled to accept my identity, and I realized later that this was due to the harmful messages that surrounded not only me, but also other Black and Brown children. However, by encountering media that celebrated the Black experience, I learned to embrace my identity. I slowly learned to love my kinky hair, dark skin, and broad, button nose. This is what motivates me to create art that celebrates the Black experience - the hope that children will learn to love themselves rather than resent their features.

Though there are forces that seek to dismantle the media that depict the Black experience, it is my hope that we're able to create even more art, stories, and songs that celebrate our history and resilience. <3

[renlo]

I recently started therapy again, and one of the things I mentioned was that it feels like there's a 'part' of me that stows away big emotions and refuses to let them out because it's afraid of judgment. She desperately wants to avoid being singled out for being sensitive or strange.

Its 'sister', meanwhile, patrols my behavior, trying to make sure I am as morally inoffensive and squeaky clean as possible. She carries the strict, regressive messages and respectability politics that I try hard to remove from my faith and personhood.

One of the things my therapist has illustrated is that these parts are largely protective, or at least try to be - they try their hardest to avoid the uncomfortable words and circumstances that were experienced in the past, though sometimes they can do more harm than good. My therapist also suggested that I meet these parts of me with kindness instead of criticism. So here we are!

(While you're here, you should check out this lovely link to find resources to support Minnesotans!)

[renlo]

Wanted to draw something cute and cheery to offset some of the emotional turbulence that came with the last two weeks. Drawing this was a lot of fun and brought some comfort. <3

I think it's funny that pink is one of my favorite colors, even though I never wear it. I should make more pink art...

I hope that you continue to find the strength to hope and push forward despite the things transpiring in the world. Please know that it's okay to rest, to grieve, and to lean on those you love.

[renlo]

From the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone who took the time to send something in response to the previous post. Whether it was a picture of your dog, a meme, or a funny story, I can't understate how grateful I am for your kindness. I haven't responded to everything because I'm not quite sure how to respond to asks privately (I might send DMs), but please know that your warmth was seen and felt.

And thank you to everyone who sent a kind thought or prayer my/my family's way. This week was hard, and I am still grieving, but I feel more assured that there are still good days ahead. I have some doodles that I managed to make in between everything that I'll probably share soon.

I wish you all health, wellness, and peace. <3

[renlo]

Tw: Death.

My grandma passed away earlier this week, and her funeral is this weekend. I have many thoughts and feelings, though I don't quite have the words for all of them right now. But it's been hard.

If you are able, could you please send something silly or funny via my asks? It can be anything, really. A funny story, a video, a meme. A good laugh would feel nice. My grandma was an effortlessly funny person, and I think it'd make her happy to know that some laughter was found even during this time.

And if you aren't comfortable sending anything, that's okay - please don't feel obligated. Please just say a small prayer for me and my family, and be certain to cherish your loved ones. Give someone you love but haven't seen in a while a call, or give someone a hug. Send a message to a loved one, or reach out to a friend to hang out. Every moment is a blessing. And if you're also grieving for any reason, please give yourself the space to process those feelings.

Thanks just for reading. 💜