ghost time!

is it really october tomorrow? when did that happen?? i love october-- fall leaves, halloween, cooler weather.... and i'm totally digging this october-appropriate ghost themed craft kit by elsie cake! could it be any cuter? (the answer is no, it could not.)

check out elsie cake's adorable etsy shop (where you can get your own ghost kit!) and her flickr page-- both are so inspiring and full of awesomeness, it will be an instant favorite, i promise!

KidsHaus

oh my gosh, are these the sweetest gocc-printed images you've ever seen? i love them so much!! they are by etsy seller KidsHaus, and i think i just might have to have that elephant. it's so sweet!!

you can also check out the blog here-- it's equally adorable, MY GOODNESS.

[originally via design is mine]

back from boulder

i am back! safe and sound. it was so nice to be in boulder-- the weather was PERFECTION, and it was great to take a short time-out from all the working and making things to visit with my family! and now it's back to it-- tomorrow i'll pick the calendar giveaway winners-- which means today is the last day to buy a calendar and be entered into the giveaway! (of course you'll be able to buy calendars after tomorrow-- the chance to get a free second one will be gone, though! hurry!)

the photo above is my friend travis who got married on saturday night, alexandra (an old friend from bmoca), and myself-- we had so much fun!

the flower girls were so adorable...

and traci looked gorgeous....

and here are a couple shots from my walking around boulder-- i think i walked about 7 miles on sunday! it was lovely.

i'll be back soon with regular posting!!

back tomorrow!

hola friends! just wanted to let you know that i'm in boulder right now and am heading home today-- i'll be on a plane and unable to blog, so i'll be back tomorrow!

bet you didn't know that i've been in boulder since thursday, though, huh? i planned ahead and scheduled posts for thusday and friday, but i didn't get as far as monday. darn!

so, i'll be back tomorrow with photos of boulder and my friend's wedding that i went to on saturday night!

hope you all had a fantastic weekend!
(ps... it's NOT snowy in boulder right now-- ijust like this photo that i took a while back!)

new pattern = wallpaper (i hope!)

ok friends, i have a dilemma. remember the paintings i posted a little while ago that were going to the nursery? well, they *loved* them (yay!), and now they would like wallpaper for the nursery as well!

(i also made a mobile for the nursery-- i have no good pics, but i might post something anyway. it was based on this one.)

anyway, where do i get wallpaper printed? i am having real trouble finding someone locally that will print on a non-vinyl material and with water-based inks.

have any of you printed wall paper before? do you have any recommendations? i'm thinking about going with design your wall-- any experience with them? help!!

the design above (the pink one) is what i've sent to her, and i'm hoping she likes it-- the blue one i just did for fun because i liked the cute design so much. :)
what do you think? nursery-ish?

if you have any info for me as far as wallpaper printing goes, please do send it my way!! i'll love you forever! (who am i kidding-- i will anyway. but you know that!)

daily photography love: .littlegirlblue

oh my. my my my. i'm just crazy about these photos by .littlegirlblue, a photographer from turkey. (a place i want to visit one day, by the way.)

i'm discovering that i really like photography that is exposed in interesting ways (forgive my lack of intelligent terms to describe this-- i know little about photography!)

these have jumped right to the top of the list.

.littlegirlblue can also be seen over on deviant art right here. and flickr here.
*enjoy!*

the wizard's hat

i got a really fun email about this new zine created by jeffrey bowman and andrew miller called the wizard's hat, and it looks like a super cool project.

here's a bit of the guys' mission for the zine:

it's a platform for something new, fresh and inspiring, to showcase work's from the art, design and illustration world including the un-known's and known's

inspiring, non? :) (that's french for 'no', in case you thought i just made a typo...)

you can buy a copy right here!!

myrica design

i am *smitten* with these awesome acrylic pieces by swedish myrica design. i pretty much want to live in that photo directly below.

if you live in LA, you are lucky enough to be able to see these in person: here and here. and if you live elsewhere in the world, check here for retailers.
love it!

new painting: dress up

painting #2 in the new series of bigger pieces! this one is called 'dress up' and is 24x24", oil, acrylic, paper, and linoleum block printing on masonite.

i'm getting more and more excited about these pieces as i create them! i can't wait to see what the other 10 are going to look like.... there seems to be a theme forming, but i need to think it through some more... stay tuned and i'll give you more info into my thoughts behind the pieces. :)

elsita

i'm really enjoying these illustrations by elsita this morning, particularly the ones with the red + gray + white color scheme. they are so lovely! and that top image makes me feel very excited about cooler weather and getting to wear scarves again! i love scarves.

her shop is full of goodies, as is her blog-- definitely worth some peeking!

coe & waito: jellyfish

this is completely incredible. i am rather obsessed with jellyfish, so this porcelain instalation by coe & waito is right up my alley.

these ladies do some really beautiful work, i do say. this was a special installation they created for the gladstone hotel in toronto. i wish i could've seen this in person. i think i would've stayed all day, just staring in wonder.

and if you haven't seen the rest of coe & waito's porcelain work, please go visit their website-- it is beautiful.

[via design-milk]

i'm on decor8!!

oh my goodness, i just saw that holly featured my work as part of her etsy take 5 tuesday series on decor8, and i'm so excited!!

check it out!

a big huge thank you and a hug to holly!!
oh, this has made my day. :)

ps- i just added that print on the bottom left to the shop this morning, so it's in there for the taking!

ryan quincy

i'm so in love with this painting by ryan quincy, it's ridiculous.
the colors, the imagination, that character with the glasses..... it doesn't get any better than this, folks. isn't it the best??

check out more of ryan's work on his website, his blog, and over at kitsune noir (where i discovered this painting-- it's part of kitsune noir's desktop wallpaper project, quite worth a visit)

anorak magazine

goodness, i'm totally digging this magazine for kids called anorak that i just discovered over on stickers and donuts. the illustrations are all so colorful and fun-- no wonder it's called 'the happy mag for kids'! i totally want to illustrate for them. do you think maybe they'd like my girl in a bear hat character?

anyway, the mag is based in the uk, and is a treasure trove for kids. the website features games, coloring sheets, stories, videos, and more, and i can imagine the real-life version is much the same. i'll have to go to borders or barnes & noble to pick up a copy!

here's part of the magazine's mission:

anorak’s main philosophy is to encourage children to make their own decisions and is here to amplify their voices. it has at the core of its offering a passion for words and images that challenge and stimulate.

whenever i have kids, this will definitely be at the top of my list for them! it reminds me of how much i used to love highlights magazine as a kid-- this seems even better!

new painting: this is the moment

ok, i am really pleased with how this painting called 'this is the moment' turned out. i just agreed to do a show at art & light gallery in greenville, south carolina last week (at the beginning of november! eek!), and this is the first piece for the show. hopefully the rest will please me as much as this one does! i really like the colors and the feel of the whole thing. (which diesn't happen all them time!)

i'll be posting more in the series soon-- these ones are on the larger side, too, which is really nice-- it allows for more freedom, i think, than my typical smaller size. this one is 24x24" and is done in acrylic, oil, india ink, and stamping.

daily photography love: amalia sieber

wow. wow wow WOW. i am in love with these photographs. amalia sieber is one talented lady!
i saw the image above (with the key and doorknob) on fffound, and then had to check out the rest. they are each more gorgeous than the next.

i would highly suggest going to visit amalia's flickr photostream and her web portfolio as well. i'm totally inspired by her beautiful images.

new pattern: fisheye

i had some fun last night making a new pattern-- it's been too long! i've been swamped with other work and the patterns have gotten away from me lately, and i'm glad to be back to it.

this one is called "fisheye", and you can see it here in 2 colorways. the bottom one feels a bit rainbow-y and candy-ish, but i thought i'd leave it anyway. what do you think?

{ps- this is my 900th post! wow!}

15-month calendar

good morning, my friends!! happy monday. :)

i feel pleasantly awake this morning (more so than usual lately), and ready to start a new week. (i think part of it is because i'm leaving on thursday to go to boulder for a wedding and to visit my family- yay!)

i wanted to share this with you quickly, because i thought it was such a grand idea that someone requested of me on etsy: a 15-month version of my small calendar!

i added 3 months, so it begins in october 2008 and goes through december 2009-- so you can start using it in just 9 days!

click here to get your very own, or one of the other versions of the calendar..... remember, if you order one before october 1st, you'll be entered in the giveaway for a second calendar for free!