Rua Barata Ribeiro

Missing Rio a little this morning, so I dug up some sketches from one of my last days there. I had this mental image that my time there was going to be spent in cafés and bars, with my sketchbook in hand, drawing all day. These drawings are from the one time I actually did sit in a café and draw. (As for the bars...yeah, forget about it.) 

The Book of Love

Wrapping up another busy day of work, and feeling a bit sappy this evening, so I thought I'd share a couple of romantic little drawings from my sketchbooks.

An older couple I spotted in Arpoador on one of my last days in Rio.
Yes, they were actually reading Voltaire. 

Garotas de Ipanema

A series of pin-ups inspired by the Rio de Janeiro beach culture and the beautiful, confident carioca women that people have been writing cheesy songs about for as long as there has been a Rio. I used to be a cold weather, only-happy-when-it-rains, scarves and boots kind of girl. Although I loved the beach, I hid beneath layers of clothes and SPF 80, fearing the sun as much as showing off any bit of my less than perfect beach bod. 

Well, Rio beat that out of me, and fast. I'm still religious about my sunscreen, but now that I've been converted to the cult of the barely-there biquini (and tricked by the carioca men into believing I look good in one), I use about twice as much...