I had the pleasure (and fun!) to illustrate this puzzle for the January 2022 issue of Highlights magazine, depicting a VERY busy village with several people missing their mittens. Kids are supposed to find the mitten in the scene and figure out who’s mitten it is. Below is some samples of these project. Thanks for stopping by!
Something New! Highlights Hidden Picture Cover & Puzzle!
I love all the projects I do for Highlights for Children, and this time, I had the opportunity to do a little something different—a reverse hidden picture, which would also be used for the cover! This is a Christmas holiday themed book so Santa in his sleigh being pulled by reindeer was the theme! It was a bit novel to do this in reverse, but I think it turned out well. There are many other illustrators who contributed their talents to the book as well! This is an item any child would enjoy, I am sure! Maybe even adults! Thanks again, Highlights!
Something New! High Five Magazine Spread: "School Supplies"!
It’’s always special to do anything for Highlights For Children, and when the art director asked me to create an illustration spread for the September 2020 issue of High Five magazine, I of course said yes! This is for their “That’s Silly!” segment in each magazine, where kids find as many “silly” items in the scene as they can. It is a good educational tool which is fun and humorous as well! Below are samples of the spread as well as closeups. I hope the kids had a few laughs as they looked over this scene! I know it was pretty fun to create!
Something New! Magazine Puzzle Spread: "Drive-And-Go-Seek" ("I Spy")
Here’s a VERY busy 3-page illustration spread I did for a magazine, in which kids are to identify numbers of cars & trucks from the poem (by Stacy Lane) and find them in the picture. I hope they enjoy doing that as much as I enjoyed creating the puzzle! Sample photos are below.
(c) Click Magazine/Paula J. Becker 2020
Something New! Whooping Crane Spot Cartoons!
I had such fun drawing these Whooping Crane illustration/cartoons (below) for this article to educate kids about this amazing bird! I love birds and birding so getting the opportunity to come up with something humorous to accompany this article was really special for me. Please get the magazine (OWL magazine, April 2020 issue) and learn about Whoopers and more!
(c) Owl Magazine/Paula J. Becker 2020
Something New! Highlights Hidden Picture (The Corona Virus 2019 Edition)
Highlights is really one of the best companies to freelance for, I have always said! Things have changed a lot over this past decade, but they never cease to appreciate their illustrators! So with this odd time of the world shutting down and sheltering because of a very-bad-no-good virus, they have found ways to be relevant, helpful, and continue to educate and amuse kids! I am grateful and honored to be one of many illustrators commissioned to do a special HP to reflect the this period of time. These Hidden Picture illustrations were published on social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, where kids and adults alike can find the hidden objects, and maybe even identify with the scene. I know I do! My contribution is below, including some closeups. Thank you, Highlights, for all you do!
(c) Highlights For Children/Paula J. Becker 2020
Something New! "Wacky Wetland Tours" Puzzle Maze
It was really fun to work on this Maze/Puzzle spread for the spring 2020 issue of Chickadee magazine! Samples are below. Check out Owlkids other magazines and books! Your kids will learn a lot and have fun at the same time!
(c) Owlkids/Chickadee Magazine/Paula J. Becker 2020
Something New! Owl Magazine Spots for "Incredible! Style Stories"
I love illustrating spots like these! And I learn so much each time! (Samples, below) Check out Owlkids and their magazines and books for your kids. They’ll learn so much and have a fun at the same time!
Something New! "Critter Clinic" Puzzle Spread
Here’s a really fun puzzle spread I did for Bayard/Owlkids and one of their magazines. This spread was for Chirp’s Jan/Feb 2020 issue. It was such a fun illustration to work on! Below are some samples and closeups. Thanks for stopping by!
Magazine Illustration: "An Amazon Town"
Here’s a really fun magazine spread, depicting an areal view of Presidente Figueiredo, Brazil, a town in the Amazon that is a big tourist destination! And I can see why. So many amazing things to do, from swimming in a river, hiking, going to caves, waterfalls, zip-lining, etc.! After researching this area, and then drawing it, I really want to go! But for now, I’ll enjoy it through this illustration. I hope kids enjoy all the information they learn when they read and play the games on this jungle spread!
Magazine Illustration: "Cat Chat"
This is a recent puzzle project for Owl magazine, Chirp! Very fun and I loved drawing the cats!
Magazine Illustration: "Allison is an Astronaut"
I had a load of fun working on this spread for the July 2018 issue of High Five magazine! This poem, “Allison Is an Astronaut” by Barbara L. Scanian was such fun to create a scene for! Since I’ve been taking up star gazing again, I enjoyed recreating a solar system mobile, books about stars and planets, sketches that “Allison” drew, and that fun star background. I’ve been using a bit of collage in my illustrations again, seen on the floor and the star background. And besides the poem, this is a puzzle, too. Look for the letter “A” hidden throughout the illustration.
Such fun! It was great to work with Kelley Cunningham Lanuto on this! Thanks again, Kelley!
Magazine Spots: Rhinoceros Rescue!
Written on September 24, 2018 by Paula in Cartoons & Comics, General Illustration, Samples
These really fun spot illustrations were created for a magazine article about rhino conservation. I learn a lot when I do these types of jobs, so I appreciate the project in more ways than one! I’m happy to be a part of helping animals and the conservation of our world!
Magazine Spots: Urban Coyotes
I worked on some cartoon spots of coyotes for a children’s magazine article about coyotes migrating to urban areas. Very cool and informative article, and one I greatly enjoyed working on!
Merry Christmas 2018!
I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a wonderful 2019!
