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The Holmes Manual

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The Holmes Manual, 2014

Copyright © 2014 Restovate Ltd.  All rights reserved.  Created for The Holmes Group & Harper Collins

I have a couple illustrations featured in Mike’s all-new book, The Holmes Manual.  Due for release June 3rd, 2014.  Please check it out!

TheHolmesManual_front

The Holmes Manual Cover

 

 

Maintaining your home now will make your life easier down the road. As Canada’s most trusted contractor, Mike Holmes helps you Make It Right. Providing solutions to everyday problems, The Holmes Manual has your whole house covered: from top to bottom, outside to inside, foundations to finishes. Mike answers the questions homeowners ask him all the time, including: Why do my windows have moisture in them? What is the life expectancy of plumbing? What kind of ceiling is best in a basement? How often should I have my ducts cleaned? How can I tell if our house has mold? Packed with handy tips, photographs, and diagrams, The Holmes Manual is a must-have guide for every homeowner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More Projects done for The Holmes Group, can be found in the portfolio section.  Portfolio

 

Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead

Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead Packaging

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Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead Packaging, 2013

Newly added To Portfolio, Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead Packaging, Created for The Holmes Group. Product Design

Earlier this year I was asked to come up with packaging for a brand new Mike Holmes bobblehead doll/toy.  I was more than happy to have a project like this to work on.  It started with the modeling of mike’s head and body that was done by www.bobbleheadscanada.ca.  (He worked from two reference shots of Mike’s head, both front & side profiles to create a successful likeliness of mike’s face).   Once that was completed I was given the model to take dimensions from and test out packaging ideas.  I knew from the get go that I wanted to have a large visible window to showcase Mike’s bobblehead, so I tested out some designs in photoshop and then printed them out. I took the printed pieces and assembled them together to get an actual view of the box. Once I had a better understanding of that I went ahead and came up with a theme and colour that would suit the project but also the company behind it. The colour theme I chose to go with was a nice middle tone blue that I thought would match the look of the Holmes Group’s current products but still have a little more colour.  The reason for this was because I wanted a more cartoony look as it would better match the fact that it was a bobblehead and not some cold tool.

 

Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead

Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead

 

 

“I tested out some designs in photoshop and then printed them out. I took the printed pieces and assembled them together to get an actual view of the box. Once I had a better understanding of that I went ahead and came up with a theme and colour that would suit the project but also the company behind it”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was also tasked to come up with the tattoos that the bobblehead has featured on both arms.  They were created using reference images of Mike’s actual tattoos, dumb down a little bit as I knew there would be scaling issues with the decals.  Creating the tattoos really helped make the bobblehead feel more like the real & “current” Mike Holmes so I’m happy they turned out, better than expected. I used Illustrator to create the tattoos as well as the rest of the packaging.  I highly recommend any illustrators just starting out to try their hand at the slice tool as it works really great in creating cartoony imagery.

Packaging

Packaging

 “Creating the tattoos really helped make the bobblehead feel more like the real & “current” Mike Holmes so I’m happy they turned out, better than expected”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More images for this project can be found in my portfolio under, Mike Holmes Official Bobblehead Packaging 

crownvicslide

Modified Crown Vic, Vehicle Phantom View

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Modified Crown Vic, Vehicle Phantom View, 2010-2011

Newly added To Portfolio, Modified Crown Vic, Phantom View, Created for Sheridan College. Technical Illustration. Automotive Illustration.

This project was created for Sheridan College between 2010-2011. Originally it started as a personal project to see how far I could take a phantom view illustration but inevitably turned into my thesis project for 4th year Illustration.  The difficulties in creating an illustration of this magnitude occur when you try to gather reference material. Specific components are unique from car to car, so referencing pieces from a rear-wheel drive vehicle may be completely different from that of a front-wheel or all wheel drive vehicle.  This is more true for this specific illustration because I didn’t just use references of a Ford Crown Vic.  Many different parts were used from all sorts of manufacturers, from a Mazda engine to a Cadillac Catera interior.  I went this way because I knew I wouldn’t have enough material for one specific car and I wanted to have a little fun with it at the same time.

 “The difficulties in creating an illustration of this magnitude occur when you try to gather reference material. Specific components are unique from car to car, so referencing pieces from a rear-wheel drive vehicle may be completely different from that of a front-wheel or all wheel drive vehicle.  This is more true for this specific illustration because I didn’t just use references of a Ford Crown Vic”.

Interior, Drive Shaft Phantom View

Interior, Drive Shaft Phantom View

Once most of my reference material was gathered I decided on the angle and view I wanted the car to appear on, a lot of this was based on the reference material itself as what I had to work from help dictate the final view (to some degree).  The line work began in Illustrator CS5 starting with the body.  From there I did print-outs to draw on top of which helped me map out where the rest of the components would go.  The drive shaft and steering wheel were drawn in pencil at first and then traced in illustrator but other components like the engine and wheels I created directly in Illustrator.  (I have no set method for creating an illustration, I’ll alternate from computer to pencil quite often. If one way isn’t working out I’ll switch to the other).  From there I moved onto the wheels, drawing the individual treads took a great deal of time, I think I redid a couple wheels more than once too, chalk it up to a great learning experience that was all worth it in the end.  After I was satisfied with that I started on the engine, the bread and butter of the piece.  Fitting a Mazda engine inside a Crown Vic was quite challenging but I welcomed it, things went a lot smoother here surprisingly, it just took a lot of time.  I think overall this whole piece took about 150+ hrs.  The last part was the interior and extras that I borrowed from a Cadillac Catera specifically the cream colors used in the final piece.  Coloring took place in Photoshop CS5 which was the fun part.  I worked rather large, The final piece was made to be outputted at nearly 10ft wide which really hampers the RAM on your computer working at that size.  You just have to deal with it and have patience.

 “The drive shaft and steering wheel were drawn in pencil at first and then traced in illustrator but other components like the engine and wheels I created directly in Illustrator.  (I have no set method for creating an illustration, I’ll alternate from computer to pencil quite often. If one way isn’t working out I’ll switch to the other)”

Once I had the piece close to completion I took it for some critiques, I made some modifications to the wheels, body and windows.  It was a lot of extra work but it helped the final piece in the end.  I presented this to the Adobe Design Achievement Awards, ADAA in 2011. An online award submission held by Adobe every year for current and recent graduates.  I received a semi-finalist award for this piece and some good recognition. All in all I’m happy with the final drawing but I am looking forward to trying something a little different the next time I work on an illustration of this size.

crownvicslide

More images for this project can be found in my portfolio under, Modified Crown Vic, Phantom View

 

 

Technical Illustrator

Mike Holmes – Roofing Images, (Manual)

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Mike Holmes – Roofing Images, (Manual), 2012

Newly added To Portfolio, Mike Holmes – Roofing, Manual, Created for The Holmes Group. Technical Illustration. Architectural Construction.

Below I’ve posted a small number of illustration I did for an illustrated home manual (I’ll post some more in the future) These Illustrations were to be kept simple, on a white background and the text kept as legible as possible as the images were going to be used in many different formats. Quite often the images were to be placed fairly small so it was imperative that the outlines and text maintain their qualities so the viewer wouldn’t lose any information.

Technical Illustrator

 

Technical Illustrator

Above is an illustration showing roof vents and the purpose they serve. Roof vents are used to circulate air, keep the temperature in your attic mildly cool, protecting the climate inside your house and preventing ice dams from forming on top of your roof.

Speaking of which, the ice Damming Illustrations showing both ventilated and non-ventilated were featured in the February 2013 On The Go magazine which accompanied the Mike Holmes article titled “Ice Dams & Your Roof”

 

 

Technical Illustrator

 

Quite often the images were to be placed fairly small so it was imperative that the outlines and text maintain their qualities so the viewer wouldn’t have to compromise on information.

 

 

 

 

Below is an excerpt from the article on Ice Damming –

“Ice dams prevent water from flowing down. It will eventually back up, finding its way under the shingles and into the attic. A thick ice dam can damage roof flashing, fascia and soffits. It can even shift vent stacks and create gaps that allow water into your roof. that water can flow into your exterior wall cavities and end up in your basement. Or it can leak into your home and cause damage to walls, ceiling and insulation”

-Mike Holmes, On The Go Magazine, February 2013

holmesonthego2

 

Technical Illustrator

Biomimicry, Armadillo Lizard ATV

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Biomimicry, Armadillo Lizard ATV, 2010

Newly added To Portfolio, Biomimicry, Armadillo Lizard ATV, Created for Sheridan College. Technical Illustration. Scientific Illustration. Automotive Illustration. 3D.

This project was created for Sheridan College in 2010, it focused on the term Biomimicry. “The design and production of materials, structures, and systems that are modelled on biological entities and processes”. Based on this term I was tasked to come up with an idea that borrowed from biological life. Originally I had the idea to utilize an electric eels natural defense, the electric shock which can generate up to 600 volts of electricity. I wanted to convert this energy into horsepower somehow but couldn’t get past the numbers needed to compete with similar vehicles of its kind.

Technical Illustrator

This project focused on the term Biomimicry. “The design and production of materials, structures, and systems that are modelled on biological entities and processes”.

Technical Illustrator

After compiling all that data I decided to scrap the entire idea in favor of something a little more visual. I began researching other biological entities that I could still apply to a motorized vehicle and then came across the Armadillo Lizard. This lizard interested me specifically because of it’s main defensive against predators. “This heavily armoured reptile is named after the armadillo for its ability to roll itself into an almost impregnable ball when threatened. In this position, the spiny scales covering the neck, body and tail are presented to any potential predator, protecting the soft belly” -Arkive.org

 

“This heavily armoured reptile is named after the armadillo for its ability to roll itself into an almost impregnable ball when threatened”.

Technical Illustrator

Technical Illustrator

I came to the conclusion that this would be a great idea for a new tire that would work really well for an off road type of vehicle, so I began drawing up concepts of an ATV. I started with a few side profile sketches to get some ideas flowing quickly, Once I had something I was interested in, I would take it to the next step by drawing it in 3 dimensions. This would enable me to see how the machine would look and flow in a more realistic space. I treated both the body of the machine and the tire treads as one entity so as to create better flow between the two.

 

“I started with a few side profile sketches to get some ideas flowing quickly, Once I had something I found interesting I would take it to the next step by drawing it in 3 dimensions. This would enable me to see how the machine would look and flow in a more realistic space”.
 

 

Technical IllustratorI worked mainly from my own reference sketches to create the finished ATV and tire. Taking the profile sketches into 3 dimensions was probably the most crucial piece because that was where I began to see how everything was going to fit together. From this I was able to create the 3D model without running into too many unforeseeable problems and saved quite a bit of time creating the final piece.

“Taking the profile sketches into 3 dimensions was probably the most crucial piece because that was where I began to see how everything was going to fit together”.

 

 

 

 

More images for this project can be found in my portfolio under, Biomimicry, Armadillo Lizard ATV

Technical Illustrator

 

kevinprendergast.com

Macro Nutrition – Iso-Synth, Product Packaging

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Newly added To Portfolio, Macro-Nutrition Product Packaging Created for Sheridan College.  Product Design, Graphic Design, Technical Illustration.

Full product concept.  Macro Nutrition – Container concept modeled in Bonzai 3D, graphic wrap created in Illustrator and Photoshop.

This started as an assignment to develop product packaging for an idea that focused on 3 Flavors.  I decided to develop a concept for a Nutritional company, creating the Full Branding image.  From the Logo’s, Products, Flavours & Containers.  A lot of reference was placed towards pre-existing Health & Wellness companies, mainly the MuscleTech & Optimum Nutriton brands.  They’re designs are pretty fresh and up to date compared to a few of the lesser known brands.  After I had my reference material, I went into creating the container  – which was pretty simple. The container was designed so the lids would cup the next container that sat above it, Creating a more balanced display when placed in a store setting.  There also was some thought put into the inside of the container that showcased how the protein would have been dispersed for a mixed container.  Something that I haven’t seen done yet.  (I’ll update the gallery with a photo of this example shortly).  After I completely this stage I created the logo and decided on the flavours for the proteins.  The fruits were created in Illustrator & Photoshop and then placed onto a rough design of the label which I knew would wrap around the containers.  A little bit of graphic design & it was ready to be mapped onto the 3D model & rendered out.

 

 

 

Portfolio Items