End of the school year, and my latest drawing endeavor

I just finished my junior year of university, and boy was that an interesting nine months. A lot of stuff happened--both good and bad--and I learned a lot about myself and the people around me.

I lived in this dorm room for two years, and while it wasn't a tearful goodbye in the end, I will miss having this chalkboard next to my door. My friends and I used to leave notes for each other, and the drawing of the oxytocin molecule used to cheer me up for some unfathomable (and probably a placebo-effect-related-) reason.

I don't want to get too wrapped up in reminiscing, but I'm really happy with how I've grown and how much happier I've become. So before we move onto summer, I'd like to briefly recap this school year:

• I raised my grades and simultaneously enjoyed my classes
• I finally got to take "real" classes in my major--and loved them!
• I finished the last of my chemistry courses for my entire undergrad career--it feels fantastic, and I finished on a high note with good grades and a wonderful lab partner (a plus, considering I find this to be my least-favorite subject)
• I continued at a job that kept me regularly sane (and helped me consistently leave campus and the college-bubble)
• a 3+ year-long close relationship ended :(
• a different 3-year relationship grew :)
• I got over my disappointment about the end of my first romantic relationship, and looked forward to continuing it as a close friendship
• I found myself inspired to try to become a better, more motivated version of myself
• I met many fantastic people, and made new friends I hope to keep in touch with in the future
• I finally found a place (and friends!) to live with next year
• I figured out my summer plans and am so friggin' excited to have my first summer without classes in three years.

But now, after four finals (the last of which was on a Friday night--never again, for all I hold dear to me), a move back home, and re-learning how to use a dishwasher (I swear, it's a foreign appliance in college), it's officially summer!

One of my first drawings since the start of summer was an attempt at a crown/tiara. There's a story behind it which I hope to explain in a later post with the final version of it, but for now here are the WIPs:

I started with pencil and a reference:

And then moved on to outlining in pen. I first printed this on a separate piece of paper because I wasn't too confident in the steadiness of my hands--a problem I have been having recently. I hope practice will help me regain the smooth lines I used to be able to make.

In the meantime, this is where I am at the moment:

June 2

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