Hey all! On July 29 we will be expecting our first newborn! Which means we may be unresponsive for the month of August. I, the caricature artist, definitely will not be available for gigs in the month of July and August. I am going to attempt to draw at this years Oak Fest but who knows how tired I will get and leave early each day. (will most likely happen).  Ruben, the face painter, will be on paternity leave but will try to be available for face painting as much as possible. The first half of August however I think we will both be sleep deprived from the baby and probably can't do any parties during that time. This is our first time parenting so wish us luck!!


Below are images we both drew announcing our pregnancy to our family and friends. 

Here are some caricatures done at this years art fair in Art in the Park at Elmhurst! I loved that this year people actually wanted a caricature done with their dogs! Those were fun to do. Doggos are definitely part of the family. 

I am the only one who responds to emails and I am sorry if I am really slow at getting back to you. I work full time animating at a studio Monday through Friday, and sometimes overtime hours, so it is hard to focus on emails when there is a lot going on with life. I tend to make time for emails on weekends so it’s possible I would respond once a week. If the event is short notice, I will try my best to respond fast. You can also messsge me through my Facebook page to alert me for a faster response. Rule of thumb is to book a month ahead of time and be patient. I will get back to you as soon as I can. 

Now I leave you with a picture of my adorable puppy! 

This year we decided to participate in Oak Fest in Oak Forest. To my surprise, people still remembered me even though I wasn’t there last year. Some couples had newborns and came to get another drawing with their new addition to their family. It was a pleasure seeing all of you this year! I am glad I am making a postive and memorable impact on people. We had fun selling this year and survived the heat wave and strong storms. I also invited my caricature artist friend Abel to come draw with us. We will surely be there again next year. 

I have a new page where that you can like and follow my posts. It’s called Comicliz because it’s not only limited to posts about drawing at special events but everything I tend to doodle and create such as comics, crocheting, painting, and sketchbook. Basically similar stuff you would see on this blog but now also on Facebook! 
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I been having fun drawing people on my sketch book and practicing the art of cartooning. :)

I absolutely adore this drawing. In my first or second year of drawing caricatures at family parties, there was one at a little girl's sleep over party. The birthday girl decided to draw me in return and my heart melted when she handed me her drawing. She got all the details about me like my pony tail, bangs, and long sleeve shirt. I am glad I was able to inspire a little girl to make a caricature of me after I made one of her. I will forever treasure this drawing. Thank you Emilia. 

Hello! My name is Liz and I am the one who has been writing these blogs, responding to emails, and updating this website.

Party Doodle has been my adventurous hobby. It has taken me to all areas of Chicago and outside suburbs I have never been to before. I have done a few festivals that were total fails or complete successes. I have met a lot of friendly people who really appreciated my art which I am grateful for. Thank you to all of you. Your positive responses is what keeps me going. Ruben is my boyfriend who does face painting whenever he has free time from his salary job. When ever he comes out to face paint for kids he loves it because making kids happy really brightens his day.

                          What did I go to School for?

People ask me a lot if I went to school for this. I did not go to college seeking specifically to become a caricature artist nor gotten a major for caricature art, I don't think that exists. I went to school to become an Animator which is making cartoons that move on TV like Pixar's Toy Story (3D Animation) or like Classic Disney Lion King (2D Animation). I studied both 3D and 2D Animation and while studying those, I also had to learn how to draw. On one summer day in 2009 during college years, I was on a date at Six Flags where I stumbled upon some caricature artists. I have gotten one before while I was in high school but this time I was looking at it with new eyes. I was suddenly inspired how someone could create concept art in an instant. The next day I started researching caricature artists on youtube, blogs, and google to learn as much as I can to know what it is like to be a caricature artist, how it is done, and how to draw like one. I began practicing on my own which was difficult. I practiced for a year in 2010 and everyone knew that I wanted to become a caricature artist. Then on another summer day in 2011 my brother asked me to draw caricatures at his garage sale to attract people to browse around and I was selling them for $5 per face. It was my chance to test the waters of live caricature and boy I was nervous! Luckily they liked my drawing and I made about 2 or 3 sales. Then there was one man who stopped his car in front of our garage who I thought came to look at the stuff we were selling but instead asked me to draw caricatures for an event at the local church. And there it is, I've gotten my first gig! The event went well and it was a real confidence booster. After that, Ruben's sister asked us to sell at her block party and she suggested to Ruben that he should do face painting while I sell caricatures, and that is where Party Doodle was born. Liz the caricature artist and Ruben the face painter. I started posting on craigslist to get more gigs and we designed this website together.

                                   Theme Park

Shortly after we started Party Doodle I was hired to work at a theme park at Lincoln Park Zoo to draw caricatures in 2012. While working there I learned soo much more about caricature art, how to sell my work, how never to sell myself short, develop thick skin from unhappy customers, how to draw faster and maintain good quality, and met many awesome artists in the caricature community. It has been one of my favorite summer jobs and I would recommend it to anyone starting out. Party Doodle was getting less attention from me while working at the Zoo because I had to commit more to my job than my hobby, which ended up in me rejecting a lot of gigs. I worked at the zoo for three seasons. At one point I realized my manager was the artist I stumbled upon at Six Flags when I first became inspired by caricatures, and he became the one to teach me everything I know. Isn't that interesting how things work out? In the summer of 2015 I did not work at the zoo for the first time but instead was furthering my studies in 3D Animation with online workshops at IAnimate.com and was also able to spend a bit more time with Party Doodle. That summer I did more gigs than usual and experimented with different festivals and craft fairs. It was a lot of fun just doing my own thing. 
                                         Studio

Caricatures at Lincoln Park Zoo wasn't the only job I had during those years. I was bouncing back and fourth between the zoo and in the off season working contract gigs at NetherRealm Studios doing 3D Animation. The skill I actually which I went to school for! I was involved with the famous games "Injustice: Gods Among Us" and "Mortal Kombat X"! That was the dream job, to do 3D Animation and still manage to live in Chicago to be close to my family.    

    (above is a picture of me standing in the lobby at NetherRealm Studios)
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                   Where is Party Doodle Heading Now?

So what am I doing now? It is mid June in 2016 and guess what? I now have a permanent position at NetherRealm Studios and we are working on the next Injustice 2. *jumps up and down in glee* I am so happy! But do not fret! Caricatures still is and will always be one of my passions along with animation. I will continue to do gigs and also continue to improve my craft.

However having a salary job does mean I will have less time to manage Party Doodle and also less time to do gigs. I am sorry if I am slow at responding to emails and this is also why I don't regularly manage things by phone. I plan on updating my website to be simpler for booking gigs and hopefully link you to other artists I would recommend in case Ruben and I are not available for your event. I will continue to update the blog so you can see the gigs I've done, sketches I've drawn, and random things I would like to share with you. I will try my best to stay actively involved with Party Doodle because it is still one of my passions. 

This weekend we will be selling live caricatures and face painting for tips! We will be in the kids section where there will also be other fun activities for kids. Take a stroll through the park with the family and enjoy all the art work there is to see.