Written by Vyanna Reynolds and illustrated by Patricia Schmidt, this children’s book is a delightful story about Hawaiian Spinner dolphins and their friends, Octavia the octopus, Archie the urchin, Rufus the eel, and the surfing crab.
Destiny and her family of dolphins love to spin and play but also would like to wear the wonderful stripes and patterns of their more colorful tropical fish friends and like Archie the urchin, collect stuff. Things don’t go quite as planned!
1st Step: On top of the pencil drawing on the double-page spread watercolor paper, Pen and Ink lines are drawn. Pencil lines are erased. Then masking fluid is painted on top of the images for protection from the background washes in the next step.
2nd Step: After the masking fluid dries, several layers of the background blue water and gold sand washes are painted onto the watercolor paper. The background is allowed to dry and then the masking fluid is rubbed off. The white paper images have begun to be painted. The lava rocks, surfing crab and Rufus the eel, are painted following the color sketch pages that planned the book layout and colors for the 32 page story.
3rd Step: More and more watercolor washes paint the bright coral, fish, dolphins and even a mermaid. Watercolor pencils were also used to add in tiny details. See the finished double-page watercolor illustration in the “A Dolphin Named Destiny” book on pages 24 & 25. I hope you will enjoy reading all about Destiny the dolphin and her family and friends!