Tom Sambles Illustration Blog

Exhibition Postponed!

2012-01-03T04:52:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately the 9 to 5 Exhibition has had to be postponed for the time being due to problems with the gallery space! I'll post when I know when and where it will now take place. In the meantime, here's another zombie

Working 5 to 9 Exhibition

2011-12-31T08:54:00.000-08:00

Slightly late notice, but for anyone living near Epsom I am participating in an exhibition at the Yoyo Gallery from January 4th-8th 2012. More information about the exhibition and directions to the gallery can be found on the 5 to 9 website.My own pieces will consist of assorted 'Zombie Employee' pictures, so anyone who is a fan of zombies should definitely stop by. And if you're not a fan of zombies then we probably don't have much in common, but there's other stuff to look at. Here's a sneak peek:

Guitar Doodles

2011-09-12T11:02:00.000-07:00

I finished this guitar almost a year ago and never got round to stringing it until now. It's a fairly battered old thing, but with a liberal covering of doodles using only the finest permanent markers, I'd like to think I've given it a new lease of life. Now I just need to learn how to play it!

Lego Minifigures

2011-09-12T10:48:00.000-07:00

I discovered a short while back that the Sainsbury's Local near my workplace sells Lego Minifigures, and this fact excited me far more than it should for a man of my age. I've always loved Lego, it was without a doubt my favourite toy as a child and I still get a feeling of longing when I see the new Lego Harry Potter and Star Wars sets that they make now. Rather than run amok the moment I spotted them, I decided to purchase one Minifigure each time I bought my lunch at Sainsbury's and now I am steadily developing a nice little collection (pictured). However, I'm starting to think I may have exhausted my supply as today the only Minifigure to be found was lying randomly on a shelf, alone and afraid. Fingers crossed they get more stock in, otherwise I'll have to resort to buying online...

I've also managed to pick up a couple of duplicates, the Punk Rocker and the Ice Skater seen on the far left of the picture. Swaps anyone?

Birthday Cartoon

2011-08-10T15:34:00.000-07:00

This is a picture I recently finished as a gift for my brother's birthday.

Pixie Twins

2011-02-25T18:03:00.001-08:00

Exhibition Cartoons

2010-11-05T09:19:00.000-07:00

All the new characters from my exhibition have been uploaded to the Work section of my site. Might give the site a bit of a facelift sometime soon too! Much to my disbelief, a friend recently told me they didn't know you could click on the preview images to see the whole picture... so I might have to do something about that too.

Open Exhibition

2010-10-27T20:53:00.000-07:00

I think it's fair to say the exhibition was a success, and much to my surprise I sold everything! I'll upload all the new pictures to the Work section soon.

Exhibition tomorrow!

2010-10-26T12:44:00.000-07:00

I have just spent the entire day finishing all the printing, cutting and sticking in preparation for the Open Exhibition in Balham tomorrow night. Now to play Fallout: New Vegas and relax!

Another Character / Upcoming Exhibition

2010-10-19T07:34:00.000-07:00

These new characters are being prepared for an Open Exhibition at which i will be presenting. Check out the Facebook page for more info. I probably shouldn't show them all here beforehand, it might defeat the point!

Job Satisfaction

2010-10-08T23:41:00.000-07:00

A Potentially Offensive Character

2010-09-25T05:50:00.000-07:00

Another Character

2010-09-21T09:23:00.000-07:00

Sleazy Man

2010-09-15T10:55:00.001-07:00

Character Designs

2010-06-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

Some characters I've just finished for a commission.

An Angry Doodle

2010-02-03T13:25:00.000-08:00

A rough doodle completed on my break at work:

Miserable Santa

2009-12-15T13:45:00.001-08:00

Another Five Words

2009-12-01T17:16:00.000-08:00

This time the words were: Tulip, Teak, Elfin, Banjo and Hospital. Courtesy of Jobe. Thought I'd try something a bit different for the background.

Five More Words

2009-11-22T14:14:00.000-08:00

Bit of a surreal cartoon this time. The words were: Octopus, Wizard, Banana, Aeroplane and Freak, courtesy of Tim.

Five Words

2009-11-19T13:29:00.000-08:00

I'm currently working on a personal project. First, I ask a friend to come up with a list of five random words, which I then use as inspiration for a cartoon. This cartoon came from a rather interesting list by Camilla. Her words were: Fucking, Ballsack, Timothy, Monkey and Sunset. Apparently they were the first words to enter her head.

Busy busy busy

2009-09-02T15:21:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick work in progress pic of some characters I'm currently working on for a project. The textures are taken from a variety of socks.

Stag Weekend in Ayia Napa

2009-07-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

I recently went on a Stag weekend in Ayia Napa. The stag in question was my friend Hamilton, and I designed some t-shirts for us to throw beer all over.

Here's a picture of a few of us wearing the t-shirts. I'm the twat in the middle with his arms in the air.

My Apologies

2009-06-16T13:13:00.000-07:00

It's been a very long time since I last added some new cartoons to my site. This is mainly because Ive started a new day job. I'll try to peel myself off the sofa on my next day off and draw something.

Daydream 06

2009-05-07T03:35:00.000-07:00

Anyone reading the latest edition of Daydream should spot one of my cartoons (the one with the burst sexdoll), alongside the work of numerous other artists.

Scribble Project

2009-02-19T04:02:00.000-08:00

I finished my sheet for The Scribble Project last night, and it can now be seen on the blog along side the creations of other artists. It's fun to see how everyone has responded differently to the same questions and shapes. Be sure to have a look, the project was created by Lisa Currie.

New Shizzle

2009-01-31T08:40:00.000-08:00

I've just added a bunch of new cartoons to the Work section of my website, so head over and check them out.

Also, a couple of clever shrews have tracked me down on Twitter. If anyone else wants to add me they're welcome.

Error Corrected

2009-01-12T19:05:00.000-08:00

I just noticed a few of the most recent images on the 'Sketch' section of my site hadn't been uploaded correctly. They should all be there for your viewing pleasure now, in future I'll check my updates a little more thoroughly.

New Stuff

2008-12-17T10:34:00.000-08:00

I've just added a few images to both the Sketch and Work section of my site. A couple of the images are from the branding work I did for 'Beaver' beer.

My 8 Pages

2008-11-17T16:55:00.000-08:00

I have just completed my turn with the Travelling Moleskine. The results can be seen on the blog (along with a brief bit of waffle from myself) or on Flickr.

The Travelling Moleskine

2008-11-04T08:29:00.000-08:00

As of yesterday morning, it's my turn to draw in the Travelling Moleskine. In fact, I'm the first to do so. It's a vibrant red one this time, so I doubt there's much chance of it getting lost again.

New Profile Pic

2008-10-29T17:43:00.000-07:00

As you can see on the right, I've modified my profile pic to reflect the fact it's bloody freezing.

I should be uploading some new stuff soon, I'm wading into my new sketchbook and the Travelling Moleskine should be arriving on my doormat any day now (fingers crossed, the last one went missing under mysterious circumstances). I'm also working on a commission involving beavers.

Sock Toys

2008-10-08T06:46:00.000-07:00

I finished these toys about a week ago, but today is the first chance I've had to photograph them in the garden (as it wasn't pissing down with rain). They were mostly made following the Sock Monster guide over on Monster-Munch.

Punk Banana

2008-09-25T02:54:00.001-07:00

Job Hunting

2008-09-13T06:05:00.000-07:00

I've been looking for a day job for some time now, and have come to the firm conclusion that there's bugger all out there. If anyone wants to offer me a job, feel free to email me.

Flickr

2008-08-26T19:49:00.000-07:00

I have just set up a Flickr account, so I have yet another internet group / social tool to manage now. Check it out here. I've also set up a Deviant Art account, but I haven't got round to putting anything up there yet. All my work can be seen on my website, anyway.

The Travelling Moleskine

2008-08-26T10:32:00.000-07:00

I'm pleased to announce that I will be participating in The Travelling Moleskine, which kicks off in September. The sketchbook will travel from artist to artist around the world, and I will have it in my sticky little hands for two weeks. Have a look at the blog for more information.

Fish Eat Fish

2008-08-22T04:32:00.000-07:00

Here's a logo design I completed recently for Fish Eat Fish.

Ugly Faces

2008-08-14T10:25:00.000-07:00

I've decided to experiment a little with my work recently. I'm currently working on some homemade soft toys, and I'm also planning on trying out traditional watercolour backgrounds for some images. Firstly though, I have created some pencil shaded drawings of some extremely ugly characters. They can be seen in the 'Sketch' section of my website.

Damn you, iPhone!

2008-08-07T04:37:00.000-07:00

I had the intense displeasure of seeing my site on an iPhone yesterday night. The colours are slightly off, resulting in rather gash squares around the images on the main page. I'm hoping this is only a problem on the iPhone, if not I'll be mightily pissed off.

It's worth noting that other than this little problem, iPhones seem great.

Wierd Doodles

2008-08-04T11:12:00.000-07:00

I drew some rather crude, strange pictures in my sketchbook today. This one is my favourite, it's also the only one I bothered to ink and scan. I couldn't quite decide what the guy on the left is saying, so I've left it to your imagination. Possibilities include: "Is there someone else?", "How much for one hour?" and "You're going to have to carry me".

New Sketches

2008-07-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

I've added some new images to the Sketch section of the site. Some of them are from my old uni sketchbooks, when people falling or treading in dog shit seemed to be a common theme.

Here it is

2008-07-17T15:54:00.000-07:00

New images have been added to the Work section, and a couple to the Sketch section too. The site also has a new look.

An update is coming

2008-07-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

It's been a shameful amount of time since my last update, but I am currently working on a bunch of stuff to upload and also a makeover for the website.

Typing my name into Google

2008-04-14T18:22:00.000-07:00

One of life's greatest pleasures is seeing what comes up when I type my own name into Google. Filter out all the crap, my own website, my Facebook profile and all the stuff about some guy called Professer Roy Sambles and occassionally a gem will pop up. It's great to see people sharing my work or linking to my site on their blogs, and for this I thank you.

Going to America, KTHNXBAI

2008-03-11T05:18:00.000-07:00

I will be on holiday in America from the 13th March until the 3rd April, so expect late replies for emails you send me during this time.

Just in case anyone is interested, I will be visiting LA, San Diego and Tijuana before driving up the coast to San Francisco, then flying to New York. I might even bore you all with some pictures upon my return.

Why I hate Zeke

2008-02-14T19:11:00.000-08:00

Is it me, or has the character of Zeke in 'Neighbours' somehow become even more irritating. He was never a likeable character, but his increasing tendancy to pick fights and the utterly shite acting just make me hate him even more. This hatred reached a peak in one memorable scene when he told Karl's senile father that he 'rocked'. The sooner they have him killed off the better. In fact, they should have his sister killed off with him.

Preview

2008-02-13T10:34:00.001-08:00

I hate scanning

2008-02-13T10:28:00.000-08:00

The shelf above my desk is crammed with sketchbooks that I filled with random doodles during university, most of them somewhat crude and frequently accompanied by swearwords. These doodles make up most of the pictures on the 'Sketch' section of my website, and whenever I can be bothered to do some scanning I flick through them and pick out some of my favourites.

A picture

2008-01-31T11:49:00.000-08:00

I can't be arsed to write anything today, so here's a picture of a crazed military commander that hasn't got onto my website yet. Enjoy.

A splitting headache

2008-01-30T17:41:00.000-08:00

I have a headache today. Quite possibly because of the amount of time I've spent on my laptop over the last week, both working and obsessively playing World of Warcraft until the early hours of the morning. It is annoying.

Makeover

2008-01-30T07:11:00.000-08:00

I'm currently giving my website a bit of a facelift, so if it looks wierd that's why. Should be finished by the end of today. Sometime this week I'll finally add some more pictures to the Sketch section too.

Funwalls, chain letters and all that shite

2008-01-29T09:17:00.000-08:00

Whilst browsing through my friends' Facebook profiles last night, I noticed with increasing concern the number of people who have added Funwalls and Superwalls. The point of these, really quite dire, walls is beyond me. The same crap is posted back and forth from person to person (often multiple times), most of them finishing with some threat along the lines of 'send this to 10 friends or you will die alone'. Why do people do this? I have come up with three possible reasons, although I'm yet to come up with a valid excuse to add the wall in the first place.

1. They actually find the stories, jokes and cringing messages about friendship entertaining. "Oh yeah! Men and women are different! Oh how very amusing".

2. They genuinely believe that forwarding these posts will bring them whatever fortune is promised. "I'm going to meet my true love tomorrow! I bet it's that plump girl on the checkout at Tesco".

3. They are afraid of the consequences of not forwarding them. "Oh no, the person I have a crush on won't talk to me for three months!"

Anyway, send this post to 10 of your friends or you will drop your phone in the toilet tomorrow. Before flushing.

Patch Together

2008-01-29T08:48:00.000-08:00

I recently submitted my geek character designs to the ongoing designer toy competition at Patch Together. If you like them, please vote generously.

http://www.patchtogether.com/?Designs_Details&Id=113

A long overdue update

2008-01-28T16:36:00.000-08:00

I've added some stuff to the work section; a preview of the illustrations I'm doing for the book 'Bumblebee' by Tia-P Russell, some characters for a computer company, Smash It, (plus some ones that weren't chosen but I like) and also some Xbox Live gamerpic designs that hopefully might actually be available to download sometime in the future. I've also been busy doing some slightly more normal design work, but I prefer to keep the site focused on cartoons and illustrations.

The blog is here

2008-01-28T15:53:00.000-08:00

A while back I noticed that the news section on my website looked fairly gash if looked at on any computer other than mine. So I have created this blog to cover my work updates, and also to post general rubbish I feel like sharing with anyone bored enough to pay attention. This should also allow for more frequent news updates.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all the people who have emailed me recently to compliment my work. Your praise is much appreciated.