an abundance of color

A night or two ago, the sunset was beautiful. There were so many wonderful pink and coral hues. It was very inspiring.

I had a similar experience today while I was eating lunch. Color is magical. I really enjoy that teal and coral, or orange, combination. I've been using a lot of turquoise lately I'm noticing. I'll overdo it, and then I can move on to the next trend.

This is a bib style necklace that I started working on this weekend. I plan to cover a good percentage of it with embroidery and beading.

Just added these cards to the shop. Lyrics by Stevie Wonder; calligraphy, design, and construction by me.

Thinking of working on a new painting this week. I'd also like to paint some more furniture. Anyone want to donate a table?

someone's having a baby!

It's not me, which means I can celebrate even more!  Yesterday, I made a clay elephant to show my excitement. I was mostly inspired by my friends' clay work. Namely, Carla's self portrait, Cecelia's bear, Brian's creatures, and without a doubt, red nose studio. I'd love to experiment more later with finishing touches, painting techniques, and little environments to set them in.

Tomorrow, Cecelia, Ella, and I have a Christmas crafting play date. I am very excited.

bunny conquers pillow mountain

This sketch from a few weeks ago is of a beloved peter rabbit, or velveteen rabbit, stuffed animal that we've held onto from when I was younger. I was inspired to give him some life in this quick drawing after stumbling upon Jane Hissey's "Old Bear" book in our basement. I always loved looking through her illustrations and pretending that my stuffed animals were playing around in my room while I was gone. I plan to do another sketch in graphite and watercolor. Soon.

giraffe, two

This week I was working on another giraffe painting commission for a baby shower gift. I made some revisions to the last giraffe sketch I had, and like this a lot more. It has more of that cuddly baby feel, even though I liked the modern Jonathan Adler type shape I had on the last painting. This is meant to coordinate with the Carter "Tall Tales" crib bedding set. There are some felt elements sewn into the canvas, and a ribbon border attached with decorative upholstery tacks to the edges of the canvas. It's 12x24", varnished acrylic.

This upcoming week I'm going to switch gears and brush up on my fashion design and trend research. I'm working my way towards a potentially great job, thanks to a wonderful friend. Thanks, Kyle! Here's hoping.

red trees and red wines

The time has come again, for the annual photo of the tree in my parents' front yard. This is always the first tree on the street to change colors, and it always turns the greatest shades of red and orange. I really love it.

I was in Rochester this weekend for my friend Kristin's bachelorette party. We went on a wine tour on Seneca Lake, on a very perfect weather day. I am so excited for her wedding in a few weeks with all it's lovely ivory laces, toffees, and browns. So classic and elegant. Several days ago I finished her gift and promised images once she had received it; so here we are!

quality control

I realized that my previous post, with the sketch for my latest commission, was a very poor representation. Therefore, it is gone. Here is the finished piece: 10x12" bond paper mounted on masonite. I'm still deciding whether or not I should play around with the background. I'm going to sleep on it.

I've been working furiously on getting some inventory together for the market. I'll post photos later of the greeting cards I've made so far.

My next challenge is displaying the things I've made in an attractive way on the table. I think I'm going to use  Amy Atlas as inspiration. I think her event planning and decorating can be translated into a small scale craft market. I love her colors, symmetry, and the detail she puts into labeling everything.

people and their stories

My friend Allison exposed me to Storypeople, while I was still working at the stationery store. I really love their prints, and just recently saw their sculpture work! There are a few of their pieces at a gallery in Covington, which I hope to make it down to. I really want to see those in person. Brian does most of the story writing, and they all have a very real feel to them. I love the  blunt, simple language

Here is some of the great Storypeople artwork: