Surtex!

Let's start out (like I usually do) by saying it's been an embarrassingly long amount of time since I last blogged. I guess you could say I've been super busy- a totally true yet boring explanation. I feel like I've mainly switched to staying connected via Instagram but I thought it was time to post about the awesomeness that is having my work at Surtex! Surtex is a surface design/textile trade show where my awesome reps at Lilla Rogers Studio will show work, sell work, and make new connections. I'll post more about the prep for the show soon (making a Blurb book, signage I did for the studio, etc). I hope if you are going to the show you'll stop by the LRS booth and take a look at my work!

Updates and such and such

So what's been happening since I last blogged you ask? Well...LOTS of art making, a new computer, still pinching myself that I'm represented by Lilla Rogers Studio, 8K+ instagram followers, and I took up needle punching (I'll show pics of that in a separate post once I have a few things to show).

Can I just say that upgrading from a 5 year old 17" laptop to a 27" sparkly new desktop has been AMAZING?! I must've had the patience of a preschool teacher while I was working on that lappy. Now I have the patience of a preschooler if my file takes longer than .3 seconds to save. Seriously. Having the large screen also revealed a major flaw in my website. My images were all different sizes and I couldn't tell on the smaller screen. It was bugging me for a while- so tonight I decided to re-size all my images and make them consistent. I also updated my landing page with that big kitty illo that I reworked from a MATS assignment. rawr.

WHAT THE WHAT?!

Wow. Just WOW. I'm not sure if I'm even ready to write this post- it's all so surreal. But here goes...I am so excited to say that I won the Special Studio Award of being represented by Lilla Rogers Studio! (Read their post HERE) This final round of the Global Talent Search was pretty intense! We were to design two boards of a home decor line based on a trend board given to us by Margo Tantau (Art Director for Midwest CBK). I chose "Vintage Cottage" and just started brainstorming. I knew I wanted to do some animal/floral platters so I jumped right in. And actually, those are the only items that stayed in from start to finish. I have about 3 other boards worth of illustrated products that did not make the final. The whole time I just tried to stay confident and true to myself. I knew that if I was designing things out of fear of losing, my work wouldn't come across as strong. Here's what I ended up submitting:

I love where I landed with these boards. I knew that perhaps it wasn't the most commercial stuff- but I also knew that Lilla liked my quirkiness. Now I need to do a shout-out to some awesome peoples. My hubs and family for being the ultimate support crew! Emily Balsley and Candice Hartsough McDonald for encouraging me to take MATS a year ago and being super artists to bounce ideas off of! Also a shout out to the other finalists- I know Lilla's choice couldn't have been easy. And then a mega CONGRATS to Kate Mason- the grand prize winner and Clairice Gifford- my fellow studio prize winner! 

Now....how do I get that rug made?!

GTS Round 2

CLICK HERE TO VOTE!

This assignment brought up some (ok, a meeeelllion) questions for me:
-How do I do 110% without looking heavy handed?
-How can I wrestle an idea that I can't get out of my head?
-and then all the other questions that were floating around all week: too simple? too busy? not quirky enough? is the illustration really shining? does it look like i'm considering every aspect?
(rinse & repeat)

The idea of "Night & Day" came to me pretty early in the brainstorming process. I tried to shake it to consider other ideas but I just kept coming back to it. I knew it would be a strong way for me to show my love for plants/flowers and there was a lot of breathing room and play for me in this idea. So I embraced it and ran. With only a week and a few days to create there's not much room for completely changing ideas. Thankfully the piece came together fairly quickly over the course of four days. And that left a few days for tweaking... Background or no background? Should the hands stay or should they go? Do we like the purple tone or should it go back to teal? Add in a small tin or let the main set really shine? Background or no background (this question was still being debated up until the very end)?

Obviously I answered the questions and chopped away at the doubt bit by bit by considering every detail. I looked at how the piece compared to my portfolio (yes- it looks like my work). Does it stand up to what I consider my strongest pieces? (yes- it holds its own). Would I be interested in this piece at a store? (yes- i would be drawn in and then delighted by the nocturnal pangolin and interesting flowers) Could this be used in other markets? (yes- I could see it working even better in the paper market) Am I enjoying myself while I make it? (YES!)

Holy crow. No wonder I am exhausted- it was a lot of questioning/answering! But i'm feeling good with what I submitted and that's all I can hope for at the end of the day. Now it's time to rest, make more art, try not to stress too much, and wait.

You can vote for me HERE and read all about our brief HERE. xoxo

GTS Semi Finalist!

I am beyond thrilled that I made it into the top 50 for Lilla Rogers' Global Talent Search! The assignment was to design a pattern to be used on a shoe for a hip/quirky 20-something girl in NYC- so of course I would include a ghost and a shuttlecock. haha. You can see the other semi finalists here. Working with Lilla and her team would be a total life-changing dream come true. She and the artists she reps are total rockstars! Now I'm going to go lock myself in my studio for the next two weeks (though maybe I'll have some bubbly first!) xoxo

Charish Mix n Chic Style Challenge

I was recently approached by Charish to create a style board for their August Mix n Chic Style Challenge. I was so excited! Then I saw that they wanted me to use Shabby Chic items and I was like- wah wah. In my mind Shabby Chic = 90s wannabe cottage home with faux weathered wood, milk bottles, and sponge paint. Ha! But here's what they said: Shabby Chic will match well with most styles. Whether it’s Bohemian Charm or Rustic meets Shabby Chic– you can play up coastal elements in the bathroom, provide a touch of French country living to the bedroom, and vintage charm in the kitchen. The less matching the better! Ok- feeling better. I'm a big fan of not totally matching! I looked through some images they gave me as well as items from their site and created this board:

I started with that ultra-feminine pink chair because it scared me and made me smile. Paired with the graphic pattern of the rug, some functional industrial pieces, my art (duh), and a few funky vases/containers (can never have too many of those in a studio), the chair ends up feeling fresh and fun! How have you embraced shabby chic?

(counter-clockwise from lower left) Similar pink, feminine chair // Ceramic face vase // Mexican rug // Harwood top work table // Danish modern lamp // Fish pot // Katie Vernon Healing Wreath // Apothecary cabinet // Monkey dish // Yellow horse candy dish // Catherineholm bowl

MATS Home Decor Week 5 + roundup

Week 5 (the final week :( ) in the Make Art That Sells Home Decor course focused on wood and textures/mark making. I started the week with markers and inks and soon realized I needed to do something totally different. I created the three 11x14 paintings over the course of a few days- building layer after layer until i had the desired effect (in person they are very textural). I've been lusting over a bunch of the abstract painters' work I follow on instagram and really wanted to do my spin on some abstract-ness coupled with a tiny still life. To make these pieces more functional I thought a plant shelf would be the perfect addition. That nesting terrarium set came towards the end of the week after many walks, some mild procrastination, and an hour or so of out-loud brainstorming. I think the idea is really fun (though perhaps a bit impractical).

We were also encouraged to put together at least one piece from each week to show a full collection.

I think i ended up creating a fun, hip (but not unapproachably cool), modern collection that I'm really proud of. I definitely made some tweaks to a few of the products from each week (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) to make it all a bit more cohesive. 

So what would I give this course on a scale of 1-5? For me it was a total 5- I feel like I was able to experiment just enough to keep growing but there was enough structure to not make me loose my mind. I loved being stretched in new ways- like allowing myself to dream of products that don't even exist. I adored the fast pace of a 5-week course but if i was working another job during the day i don't know how i'd get it all done. I am also glad I had already taken MATS A/B (mostly to be used to the pace and format). Also one of the best things about the class is the community that forms. Between the classmates (who are amazing and supportive and rockstars) to Lilla and Margo (who are such excellent mentors- totally encouraging, relatable, and engaging)- you really feel supported during the craziness. 

Now it's time to update my website, list some new products in my etsy shops, work on a few commissioned projects, and prep for the Global Talent Search (don't worry- if you don't know what that is- i'll be talking all about it for (hopefully) a few months). Cheers!

MATS Home Decor Weeks 3 + 4

whoa. how do nearly 5 weeks go by so fast?! Week 3 for the Home Decor class focused on glass and pattern. Here's where I landed:

This was the hardest week for me so far. I really enjoy how some of the pieces turned out (pink jug, smokey plate). There are times when you just know you need to go back to the paint/paper again rather than trying to force something in photoshop- and this week I just didn't have the time to start again. Ah well. Week 4 was all about hand lettering and ceramics. I was so excited for ceramics week but I was also traveling the entire time. I took my travel watercolor kit, wacom, laptop, and camera to San Fransisco and was able to work during Juniper's naps. She also had a fever for one of our days- so I got some extra work time in. First some progress shots:

For some time I've wanted to do some illustrations involving foreign words that we don't have english words for. In retrospect- these would make better spot illos or cards rather than something you eat off of or use to serve lemonade. But still- i loosened up and just had a bit more fun with the whole assignment: 

Here's a round-up of all my weeks so far:

I've definitely learned something new each week and pushed myself in new ways. The whole course has been pretty fantastic for experimenting and creating loads of new work! 

MATS Home Decor Weeks 1 + 2

When I heard about the newest Make Art That Sells course about designing a home decor collection- i had to sign up. I'm two weeks in and I'm trilled that I did! It's making my brain work in different ways- rather than just creating the illustrations- i get to think about specific products that could be made with my art on it! Week one focused on metal with birds- here's what I came up with:

This one came together so fluidly- birds+triangles+bird sounds+a few flowers all with a fairly limited color palette. Week 2 was fabric with flowers week. I knew I wanted to push myself and show MORE! I started here:

I was feeling happy about this one- light and airy, very neutral. But then I got a push from Lilla to consider varying the density of my patterns. I realized I had illustrated a lot of stem-y botanicals and didn't have much counterpoint to the airy/neutral side. So we went to this:

Getting better...I like how the lettering in the dark grey tea towel relates to week one. But I was still hating on my table lamps and rick rack. So here is where I landed next:

Since there are quite a few different bits and pieces in this- my goal was that you could pick any 3 and they would relate in some way. I love how the hanging lamp turned out- very neutral but dense. Probably the most fun thing was thinking about trims and pom poms and MEGA pom poms! But this version was a bit too busy- like there were one or two too many elements. So i tweaked and nudged till i got this:

and now i'll step fully away. (at least for a few hours) ;)

Thinking about versatility

Before all these Make Art That Sells courses I'd never really thought about the overall versatility of my artwork. What Lilla preaches is "Icons, icons, icons!"- so that individual bits of art can be reused on a variety of products and in many different ways. Learning this and seeing that even my hand-painted work is basically layers of icons ready to be dismantled and rearranged is pretty thrilling. I wanted to show the last two bootcamp assignments and how I've altered them to be used in more than one way.

First is the patterned sea life plate. Here is what I submitted for bootcamp, followed by a new landing illo for my website and a repeat pattern that will be up on Spoonflower soon.

Then we have an editorial assignment about digital nomads for June's bootcamp, followed by a Facebook header, and a pattern for my Spoonflower shop (i'm still waiting on samples for these patterns before they will be available for sale).

So there you have it- trying out being as versatile as possible while still being myself. (also- if you can't tell- i think i'm kinda obsessed with these muted colors with pops of dark coral and mustard) 

Poster Contest (guess what...I won!!)

April's Make Art That Sells Bootcamp assignment was to design a poster for their live Global Art Gathering happening this summer in Brighton, England. It was a slow start for me- I spent a few days just in my brain- letting it all stew. The thought process went something like this:

-ICONS! 

-maybe i should make a simple grid of icons 

-what could i do to make this more fun?

-tattoos? tattoo man? 

-wait?! is the "tattoed man" over-done? (check in with fellow illustrator, hubs, googles)

-tattoo LADY would be bad ass. 

-tattoo lady in swimsuit (not striped) with tats that nod at the event (mer-lilla, MATS house, folk-craft influences, Brighton landmark), trends (owl, pineapple), traditional tattoos (bird, lettering), and communicate event messages through hand-lettering. 

I then created a few roughs and even re-did most of the hand lettered tattoos a few times. Once I started going I knew I had a potentially really great idea and so I needed to make sure the execution was equally excellent. I chose to keep with the fonts that they gave us for the event (though we didn't have to- and were encouraged to explore hand lettering). I felt like it kept the whole poster on-brand and allowed both the info and the illo to stand out. They didn't get mushed together. The whole design took 2.5 days to make. I had a few other projects for the month that I needed to get done (and I work well when I just throw myself at a singular illustration for a few days). 

Once the bootcamp gallery was uploaded I knew that there could be a number of winners. So much talent and a variety of styles- so many of which would have made great posters! (I highly recommend checking them all out!)

When I got the email about winning I freaked out for 5 minutes and then continued to freak for the rest of the day. (who am i kidding?! I'm still freaking out!) I get to skype with the lovely Lilla Rogers for an hour AND have my poster all over Brighton! You can read their post about it here. 

MATS B Week 5 - Party Paper

It was a bittersweet end to a fantastic course. This last week I went on vacation starting Wednesday so I had to have all my painted bits done really early in the week. I then brought my laptop and tablet to Arizona where I worked on my piece with palm trees, cacti, and love birds in the background. Not too shabby. I knew most people would be focusing on birds and flowers with the Bavarian/Ukrainian Folk theme- so I went with fish. Folky fish. A "Folk-sea" if you will. :)

I was happy with how it turned out given my vacationing circumstances. Also- since creating art with icons makes your work really versatile- you can easily turn bits from this into:

A little illustration for a card or print. Or into:

A cute fish pattern! 

I think that was the biggest takeaway from MATS- as Lilla says "icons, icons, icons." And it's true- when your work is versatile- the possibilities for different gigs is endless. Now it's time to get back to work and keep on crackin'!

MATS B Week 4 - Editorial

Good gracious- i'm so far behind on my blogging. Time to catch-up! Week 4 in Make Art that Sells B was one of my favorite (and arguably most successful) weeks yet. I knew it would be a map assignment and I was kind of dreading that I needed to do a map of Dubuque, Iowa. Then I found out that we could do a map of where we lived OR a favorite place. I could do Yosemite or Bloomington, IN, or somewhere else! But then I thought about it- and realized that illustrating Dubuque was a good opportunity to really look at our new city and challenge myself. (Thankfully Dubuque does have a lot of interesting old buildings, a river, and a noticeable german/irish Catholic influence). Here's what I made:

I adore how it turned out! It was so fun to draw such a variety of icons- from a nun and trout to an eagle and trolley!

MATS B Week 3 - Scrapbooking

Scrapbooking. I must admit I was kind of dreading this week since I am not a scrapbooker and haven't felt much of a connection to a lot of the scrapbook market. But the mini assignment that was provided was airships- blimps, dirigibles, balloons! love it! I just wanted to have some fun with it at first so I painted up this piece:

Then I got started on the assignment. The truly freeing part about this week was just being able to make a ton of little icons and then puzzle-piece them together. So on Wednesday I painted my shapes and words:

I wanted to go kinda steampunk-light and focus on nautical adventure. About an hour into work on Thursday I realized that Juni didn't have school the next day and my mom was coming to visit. So I pushed hard and finished it up on Thursday night:

I like how it turned out. However I think some things get a little lost since it's all very much a similar tone. My favorite things are the whale weather vane, the birds, and the fact that i got to letter "ahoy-hoy" and "huzzah." On Sunday I was able to sit down and paint during Juniper's nap...

And then on Monday I procrastinated by making these guys:

Can you tell that it's been kinda a grey week here in Dubuque? Maybe some warmer weather and sunshine will add a little more color to my art. ha! Now time to work work work!

MATS B WEEK 2 - Baby/Kids Apparel

ah seahorses! I feel like ive been doing a lot of ocean illustrations for Oopsy Daisy (coming this summer i think)- but I was excited to go at it again in a new way. Right away the idea of "Hide and SEAk" came to me and though i tried to think of other ideas- it just stuck around. So i went with the bad pun. I got to a point with my main pattern where I wanted to settle on the color scheme. Here are some color drafts that I sent around to some trusted illustrator friends and the MATS community to get some votes on:

from this I narrowed it down to the off white and dark blue...

Here I blocked in some potential coordinate color ideas. I was leaning toward the lighter colors but something needed to change...

 Then I switched out the blues for the olives and it felt fresh but kinda vintage and fun! So I went to work and came up with the final....

and quickly realized that this was crazy-boat-overload. So i tweaked it till I had this...

ah so much better! Juniper definitely needs some eyeball leggings asap! 

But wait! there's more! 

So I still had that pretty sweet darker color scheme and some time on my hands (well, a morning at least). So I decided to jump on the llama train (yes, there is a llama train) and made this...

i'm kinda obsessed and now I definitely need to get this licensed and made into a sheet/comforter/pillow set! 

MATS B WEEK 1 - Paper Market

Ah the first week back for part B of Make Art That Sells! I love the fast pace of these assignments and end up being super productive. This week the assignment was to create a holiday card with a toy train theme. After countless thumbnails (actually about 32)- I realized I wanted to just focus on some beautifully colored/decorated train cars rather than on illustrating a whole scene. The main reason behind this was Lilla's voice saying "make a card you would send." For me it had to be simple, interesting, and beautiful. Here's what I ended up submitting:

I think it's cute and I really like the colors I used. I think it would be awesome as wrapping paper. I'm not 100% on the hand lettering and a few other elements- so I may revisit it at some other point. But it's so good to be back at it!

So far so good

whoa- where is 2015 going?! I'm writing this while feeling crazy sick- so let's focus on how awesome this year has been so far:

-The month of January for both of my etsy shops was better than any month in 2014! That was something i was not expecting since sales usually dip a bit after the holidays.

-I've been posting a lot of process and studio pics on instagram and have been gaining 100 new followers a week this year- crazy!

-I finished one commissioned logo piece and am currently working on another.

-I'm in the midst of Lilla Roger's Make Art that Sells Bootcamp which is super fun and making me excited to start Part B of her MATS course in March!

Here's some of the work I've done this year:

Can't wait to see what the rest of this year holds and get over this crazy virus! gonna go drink some tea now.

Thankful indeed

Wow- so I ended up making 22 new illustrations for my #25thankfuldays thingy I did during this holiday season. Somedays I made two a day to prep for going on vacation, most days I made one a day. It was fun and enriching to think about just a few of the things I am thankful for (this could have been #1,000thankfuldays). Anyhoo- here are my faves from this little series:

Thanks for following along- hope you have wonderful holidays! I know 2015 is going to be full of exciting new adventures- can't wait!