Getting to the Value Study Stage

We only have three more illustration classes left (sob!). The goal now is to come up with three finished pieces of art using the sketches we've done so far. I've selected two of the scenes. Not sure which the third will be. First, I'm going to do "Last to come in was the old gray cat." I posted a thumbnail for this sketch earlier. Here is a more developed sketch--I'm still not happy with the proportion/perspective:

I need to make the wedding party smaller to increase the sense of height in the room and not make the bugs seem out of proportion with the cats. I like how one of the cats is looking at the reader. I learned this is called a "cheat." I wanted to make sure the reader understood these figures as cats.

The next scene I am definitely doing is the proposal scene. I started by creating the finished sketch/value study for the protrait of Uncle Rat. Then I will do the scene with Froggy and Miss Mousie. One of the things this stage requires is fully developing the characters. I had to think about Uncle Rat. I want him to look stern and vaguely threatening in the portrait, yet still a bit comical, so he isn't terrifying. I'm pretty happy with this drawing:

I like how Uncle Rat is holding sheaves of wheat. I have decided he is a miller. Portraits done in the 1700s often showed a clue about the person's profession. I based this portrait on a few done in the late 1700s. I'll scan them in later to show here on the blog.

Next stage will be to do the scene with Froggy and Miss Mousie (see post below for explanation of how this spread will be laid out).