Blue

Something I painted this afternoon for the 12 Months of Paint challenge (this month's theme was blue.) Most of what I'm doing these days are black and white sketches, so it's nice to switch gears for a bit with color.

The Swing of Things

 

Back into the swing of things this week: thumbnails, lettering, catching up on Serial's second season and some pattern making (case in point, above).

Also, there may have been a chocolate sea salt cruller (because, January).

Twenty Sixteen

The year still feels new and fresh. And cold. Really cold. I'm sitting here with a hat on and a puffy vest because I'm too much of a crank to turn the heat up higher. But hey, I don't have to shovel anything, so it's all good.

Anyhow, I've been mulling over 2016 for the past couple of days, taking the time to figure things out. So an assortment of goals for the next twelve months:

1. Develop a fabric collection.

2. Read 25 books.

3. Finish unfinished things. Quilts, cleaning, running, a childhood dollhouse, etc. Anything that's languished in a back closet or the recesses of my mind is fair game.

4. Work on the graphic novel idea I've been researching for the past two years. I've chucked it a few times over, but the subject doesn't seem to let go. So I'm going to dedicate some scheduled time to that each week.

I have a few other ideas kicking around in my head, a group pop-up shop, embroidery concepts, screen prints, etc. There'll be more "Alfred" updates and book things to mention in the coming months. But for the time being, I'll start with the above and see where the next twelve months lead.

Also, I give up, I'm going to go turn up the heat.

For Auld Lang Syne my Dear

Thanks for the memories, 2015! I'm plunking down with a cup of coffee and my laptop for a minute, to stop and meander through the past twelve months. Every January I have a battle plan in my head, a roadmap of the new year ahead. And invariably by December, I've taken highways and byways unintended, but eventually appreciated. I think Dirk Gently (a.k.a, Douglas Adams) put it best when he said, "I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be."

I started 2015 flying into Washington, D.C, on New Year's Day. San Antonio this past Spring was splendid and ditto for a night spent on an island off the coast of New Hampshire this past August. And a trip to Los Angeles in September was swell.

I began work on Finding Wild amidst the most punishing winter I can remember and sent in final artwork just as the leaves started to unfurl. My sister and I launched a graphic novel in weekly installments -- eight months in and I feel like we're really getting to the good parts. And I experimented, making lots and lots of artwork, trying to get closer to the things I want and need to make.

So how about 2015 New Year's resolutions? I didn't sew as much as I wanted to, but I did make an Archer shirt that I wear continuously. I took an etching class at Chase's Garage and am loving Skillshare. And I did read 25 books, you can see them over here.

I'm still mulling over 2016, how to map out the next twelve months. But for now, I'm going to have a glass of champagne, a slice of this cake and binge on the Twilight Zone marathon. Happy New Year and here's wishing you all the best in the months ahead!

Fa La La La La -- Gift Tags Printable

Happy, happy holidays! Here's a free gift tag downloadable to celebrate the season.

Fine print: you'll need a PDF reader to open these. Before printing, I recommend fiddling with your printer settings so that it's at its highest output quality (especially if you choose to run these on card stock). Feel free to print as many as you like for personal or educational use. Enjoy!

:: Download Here ::

The Holly and the Ivy

 

Deep in December

Everything since mid-November has been a bit of a blur, but I think that's true for most of the general public at present. I haven't even managed to haul out the Christmas ornaments, but am hoping to rectify that situation this weekend. Aside from that, what's what?

* I'm finishing up a free holiday gift tag downloadable. I'll have that up here next week.

* I'm completely obsessed with the Limetown podcast and literally squealed with delight when I realized Serial launched its second season yesterday.

* I have a Christmas card downloadable in the shop. Speaking of the shop, I'll have calendar tea towels up tomorrow, Saturday. And the Cyrillic alphabet illustration above is a print I finished up ages ago, but forgot to show here. Head desk.

And that seems to be it, so back to the drafting table. If this was the year 2100 I'd offer you virtual egg nog and sugar cookies, but technology hasn't caught up with my internet dreams yet. Someday.