Finished Wedding Invites!

I'm finally allowed to blog about these! Finished up this little printing project last week and I'm excited to share these. My sister is getting married in 2 months and she asked me to illustrate and print her invites... so much fun!



Here's her concept sketch she sent me for inspiration... (The bride and groom have three little boys between them, and this wedding will officially bring this family together. We thought it would be a great idea to include them on the invite, too!)



I was doodling some ideas with Paper by FiftyThree (love, love, love that app!) and sent her this rough idea...



...which turned into a cleaned-up sketch...



...and then a carved stamp! (I no longer carve linoleum blocks like I learned in school-- I much prefer the ease of Speedball Speedy-Carve.)



This is round one of printing sitting out to dry.



Good thing my ink is gluten-free? Ha! Still wouldn't want to taste it.



Here are all the finished invites ready to ship!



More prints I've done recently....



...this was last year's Christmas card. I think I have the printing bug again :~)

In love with Paper by FiftyThree!

Anybody else out there absolutely hooked on Paper??? I'm still in the learning stages, but it is just so enjoyable. A great way to sketch anywhere on the go. My experiments so far:

Children's Theater Posters

I just wrapped up a series of clay illustrations for the 2012-2013 season of the Children's Theatre of Cincinnati. Check it out!


The Magical Adventures of Merlin.


Suessical Jr.


Santa's Toy Factory.


Disney's Cinderella Kids.


Here's an alternate color version of Cinderella Kids. The client preferred the first version, but I can't decide which is my favorite.


...this is how it looked in the sketch phase!


...and here's the sculpt in progress. I normally sculpt in full color, but I tried a more digital approach with this one.

the Fib-Sniffer 4000

Wow! I've been digging through my closets today in search of artwork I can sell..... and I found this guy! This is my very first official clay illustration. It was for an advanced Illustration class at Kent State in Spring of '01, so nearly 10 years! It looks so.... primitive. :~)

Those hands make me laugh! ...and how my businessman is flat, with his mouth completely punched out. Those lights around the border are glow-in-the-dark.

I'll keep practicing & see how things look in another 10 years!

Polymer Clay Cactus Gardens!

Hello! Look what I did yesterday :~)


I'm preparing for my first outdoor art show next week, and I decided I needed something fun to sell that doesn't go on the wall. These little polymer clay cactus gardens are fun to arrange & re-arrange..... I'm thinking of setting a fixed price & letting people pick out their favorite 5 or 6 cactus components?


Close up of the rounds.


Plenty to choose from!


I've made the bottoms all pointy nubs; easy to stick in a little pot full of sand. (or grits, or lentils....)


I'd love any feedback on these! Should I sell the pieces individually? ...or pre-arrange the pots?
My first show should be quite the learning experience ;~)

Spot Illustrations

Well hello! Here are 4 of 6 spot illustrations I've just completed for Cleveland Magazine. It's for an article discussing private schools, and places where learning actually takes place.
This one is "The Great Outdoors."


"At School." I tried to keep these pretty simple, as they'll be printed somewhat small...


"Beyond Borders."


"In the Workplace."


.....here's how the sketch phase looks!

Clay/Art News!

Hey!
I got to meet one of my all-time favorite illustrators, Chris Sickels of Red Nose Studio.

It's so inspiring meeting other clay artists!!!
Red Nose Blog
Red Nose Studio.com


Me being cheesy. (...Is that an autographed Look Book you're holding?)


ALSO:

I've signed up for Art in the Park! (I'll get the official word in about a week....cross your fingers!) It's a huge outdoor art/craft show in northern Kentucky, and I've been preparing & framing my polymer sculptures to *hopefully* sell.


....and finally, here's the next step in my illustration. Still tweaking things a bit. Final + spots due Monday!

Have a good weekend ;~)