Tuesday

Jurassic Jumble Game


I illustrated all of the dinosaurs for the game Jurassi Jumble. The illustrations started as watercolor paintings and then additional details and finessing were added using Photoshop. It was a nice learning experience getting to know more about some of the fascinating creatures that roamed Earth so long ago.

Mattel Barbie and the Pink Shoes


I was in Barnes and Noble over the weekend with my husband Ben and our daughter Sarah. I went to look at Golden Books with Sarah and found a Barbie book with a logo on the cover that I worked on. I work for a design company called Design of Today, for those of you who haven't picked up on that yet. Over the years we have worked on several projects for Mattel. One of those was a hand lettered/drawn logo for Barbie and the Pink Shoes. They picked one that I worked on. They took the sketch and created the beautiful final logo attached here. I am really excited to see how the logo ended up and happy that I got to be a part of it. I am attaching a final logo that we sent. The project started in pencil.

Thursday

Tristan da Cunha Island Map


I created this map for Don Boulden, my father-in-law. He may have been a distant relative of the man who discovered Tristan da Cunha island.  I have to admit, it sounds like such a neat place. It takes forever to get there, which makes the island even more exciting and intriguing to me. You must go on plane rides, boat rides, it takes days. There are some people there, some stores, a hotel or something of the like and a lot of beautiful looking terrain. Or so it would seem when I did research to create my map. My husband and I thought making a map like this and then adding a history of the island (written by my husband) would make a neat, and original Father's Day gift. (He loved it!)

I used Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to make my map. It took forever but I like the outcome. (NOTE: I created everything myself except for the little inset illustrations in the water. I got those from very old maps.) 

I can't help but think of the last few lines from the movie Joe vs. the Volcano when I look at this map:
- "I wonder where we'll end up?"
- "Away from the things of man, my love. Away from the things of man."

Tuesday

I.C. Pup

I created these cute little guys for a project at Design of Today for a company called I.C. Pup. They were drawn to pop in from the side or bottom of a blister or box. I thought they turned out to really well. The project look ended up going another way. It happens. But, after doing this sort of work for 16 years now I get over any feelings of personal rejection very quickly.  It's a creative decision and you never know what a client will go for. If you can't handle rejection, being an designer, artist and/or illustrator isn't the field for you.

Monday

Law of thirds, golden ratio

This is a piece that I created lately for my friend Nathan. He had asked me for an abstract piece several months ago. I have been looking around for just the perfect flat object to work on. I finally found an old chalkboard in my own house. What a find. We purchased an old house last June that we adore and there are neat things lurking in nooks and crannies. In addition to it being a great old object, it also came complete with two holes ready to hang on a wall. I had been thinking of one of my favorite tools or themes used in art: the golden ratio. I wanted to use that in my painting because I have always found that concept to be very beautiful and also peaceful. The idea that everything can be broken down to it's base level and organized, very appealing. Here is what I came up with. It was fantastically fun to work on and I am full of new ideas now that I want to try to execute.

Wednesday

Fancy Illustrator


I made this fun little scene while playing with Adobe Illustrator and I love it so much that I had to share.

Friday

Big Bang Theory t-shirt design


We, my co-workers and I at Design of Today, worked on creating a style guide for Warner Brothers based on the tv show The Big Bang Theory. Boy, am I a fan. What a great show and fun project. Today, I found one of my designs for sale on a t-shirt! I always get so excited when this happens. Here's a link if you'd like one of these gems for your very own.

Monday

Small Robot


I created this little guy as part of a co-workers birthday card. He was a lot of fun to make and was received very well. Had to share.

Friday

Happy Halloween, last two.


A little axe never hurt anyone, right? Also, I enjoy gargoyles year round; so, here's to a happy Halloween and every day after.

Wednesday

Halloween 3



One of my favorite Halloween treats.

Saturday

Halloween 2


Costume idea: be a chicken person. Throw candy on the ground occasionally and peck at it.

Tuesday

Hallween 1


This is the first in a series of Halloween images. I call it: FRANKENMEL.

Eye is for Eyeball


I haven't put something up for a long time. Here's the honest truth. I can't show anything recent because my favorite recent creations have been for clients at work. When it's possible, I will share. Until then, enjoy this eyeball I made yesterday. It was for a project too but in the end, it wasn't needed. I like it.

Thursday

Fame


This is one of several icons I created for a style guide showcasing the classic tv show "Fame." I created it for DOT, we created the style guide for MGM. Great project, I loved it.

Monday

Grouping of Patterns


Busy, frenzied patterns. I like them, I like them together. Clusters of crazy fun. I created these for a friends company.

Wednesday

Drawings from Ice Age 3

At Design of Today, where I work as an illustrator and graphic designer, we did a project for Twentieth Century Fox for the movie Ice Age 3. I created a very simple "baby" version of all the main characters. It was so incredibly fun. These little guys are definitely some of my very favorite creations.

Monday

Website illustrated by me

For the past 7-8 months I have been creating illustrations at work (Design of Today) for a company called Nutritionally For You owned and created by a wonderful woman named Chris Sare. It has been such a fun project. Chris emailed me over the weekend to let me know that the site is now live. I am so excited. Seeing my illustrations come to life is just so so fantastic. Please CLICK THIS to explore the site. I am including screen shots of a few pages, be sure to go see the rest.


Artist: Anselm Kiefer


In January and February 2011, I was in Fort Worth, Texas with my husband. He was there for work. I did some work from the hotel and when I wasn't doing that, I explored Fort worth by foot. One day I found the Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art and discovered a new favorite painter, Anselm Kiefer. I sat in front of the attached painting, titled "Die Aschenblume," for a good half an hour. It was was more than a feast for the eyes, it just oozed deeper and deeper into my mind, exciting the far reaches of my brain. I've looked several times online for a copy of this painting, just to see it again, and finally found this one today. It doesn't do the real painting justice in anyway at all (it's 149 5/8 x 299 1/4 inches for starters) but all the same, it has me excited all over again. I just found out that we will get to go back to Fort Worth later this year. I can't wait to revisit this extraordinary painting.

CLICK THIS and THIS to read more about this very talented painter.

Tuesday

Excellent play button


Cleaning out my desk, so to speak. Am finding fun things I forgot about. Like this one a lot.
Simple but lovely.

Monday

FOUND: one little pattern















I found this little pattern on my computer, I made it last year sometime. It's cute.
Sometimes, design CAN be cute. I swear.

Upcoming Show Announcement

I am excited to announce an upcoming watercolor show
and would love to see you there!

Monday

Cheetos with toe nails



























My husband has a friend who opened a snack size bag of Cheetos recently only to find a large toe nail piece in with the orange puffs. GROSS! Understandingly enough, he threw up and hasn't been able to eat Cheetos since, me either! Since today has been quite discouraging so far, I decided to make this mock Cheetos bag. Hopefully it will make my hubby and his buddy laugh.

Tuesday

Newly completed pattern and seahorse





















This is a pattern that I just finished for a well known shoe company. They also have a great line of clothing. It wasn't chosen, but I really like it, I think it's fun to look at because there is more happening than first meets the eye. I took the name of the company out because this is an ongoing project. However, since this one is out, I don't think there is any harm in showing it.


Also, this seahorse was submitted as an idea for a t-shirt design several years ago. I just found it cleaning out some folders on my desktop and really think it's fun, so here it is as well.

Self portrait.



























I call it, "Large white spaces and sunglasses."

Dark City Underground blog header








I designed a blog header for Dark City Underground. DCU is a fantastic blog that features book reviews, movie trailers and reviews, and much more. It is very eclectic, well written and fun. I wanted to create an image that showed what a variety of posts DCU showcases, hence, the cowboy, scary dude, and PI. I also wanted it to be somewhat stark and have a lot of white as the background at DCU is white. I used the font courier, a font I don't normally use, and it worked well in this case. I love how it looks like an old typewriter. Perfect for a blog primarily about books. I love how this turned out. CLICK THIS to see the header image in action and explore DCU.

Would you like me to design a header for your blog or website? Email me for details.

Look, another one!






















I love making these. Designing anything really, is a blast. It's such a rush when things go well. I know, I'm a geek, I've never said otherwise. Once again, pertinent info has been blurred. The bride in this case wanted something fairly different from the invite I put up here a week or so ago, very different feel and colors. I love how it turned out.


Want me to design yours? I'd LOVE to. Email me for info.

Thursday

Otto Rank was an amazing person.


I have been reading something so exciting and hopeful for all artists and creative people that I have to share.

There is a marvelous book called "The History of Psychiatry" written by Franz G. Alexander, M.D. and Sheldon T. Selesnick, M.D. in 1966 floating out there in the world. I found my copy in the dollar room of a local book shop called Sam Weller's Bookshop. I am fascinated by the human body and right now, the brain; so, I was excited to see what this book had to say about the people who have tried to understand it.

Last night I read a section about psychologist Otto Rank. In his treatise on artists, Der Kunstler, published in 1907, he says, "...the artist is able to restore by a peculiar roundabout way the originally pleasurable relationship to the outer world that mankind lost in attaining civilization." How completely wonderful.

For those of you out there who are like me, an artist, or a writer, a creative person, someone who loves any of these things and feels like humanity is in a downward spire, that the world is so crowded that it is nearly lost among a myriad of shopping malls, that too many human beings are mean and selfish, this is an extremely hopeful thought. It is a realization of what is happening around us and in understanding, there is hope.

In creating a world that is fast paced, full of traffic, gadgets that keep us from hearing silence and thinking, cubicles and the lot, we have a world that has forgotten or is too busy to stand still and look up at the sky, to think for even a minute about anything, to enjoy silence, to be creative, to do anything that allows us to remember that we are just creatures, just little creatures in a vast universe. We need to breathe and slow down and enjoy being alive.

And ARTISTS, we are part of what matters, part of what helps all of us remember what a great universe we as a species are a part of. Artists are worthwhile, we are KEY in taking this world in a direction that matters.

Art is not something to leave by the wayside, it is not a silly hobby, it is a symbol of being connected to the world, Earth's essence, all that matters. Forget the mindless, quiet desperation that comes with being alive in a crowed fast paced world filed with cubicles and worry and go for a walk, smell a tree, paint a picture or read a book. Go do it now. We'll all be better off for it.

To read more about Rank CLICK THIS. Below is a bit of the treat you will be in for.

How our struggle for independence goes determines the type of person we become. Rank describes three basic types:

First, there is the adapted type. These people learn to "will" what they have been forced to do. They obey authority, their society's moral code, and, as best as they can, their sexual impulses. This is a passive, duty-bound creature that Rank suggests is, in fact, the average person.

Second, there is the neurotic type. These people have a much stronger will than the average person, but it is totally engaged in the fight against external and internal domination. They even fight the expression of their own will, so there is no will left over to actually do anything with the freedom won. Instead, they worry and feel guilty about being so "willful." They are, however, at a higher level of moral development than the adapted type.

Third, there is the productive type, which Rank also refers to as the artist, the genius, the creative type, the self-conscious type, and, simply, the human being. Instead of fighting themselves, these people accept and affirm themselves, and create an ideal, which functions as a positive focus for will. The artist creates himself or herself, and then goes on to create a new world as well.

--Copyright 1998, C. George Boeree

Wednesday

Wedding announcement fun

















Something new and different, I designed a wedding announcement. It was really fun. The couple told me they like gerber daisies, simple design and fall colors. I wanted (yes, I did add my input) it to have a classic feel and look sophisticated. Zowie what an awesome challenge. This is what I came up with. They loved it, me too. Ahhh YES! That's they way I like projects to go! (Pertinent info has been blurred and dulled to protect the innocent.)

Monday

Bamboo Brace by Professional Therapies
























Recently I created a series of illustrations for a company called Professional Therapies. They have designed an arm brace for children called The Bamboo Brace, to read more about it CLICK THIS. The illustrations I created will come with the brace and help an adult fit a child with the brace. They were really fun to draw. I love the baby's chubby little arm.

Sunday

Ed Hardy



















Worked with the fine folks at Design of Today coming up with some tee shirt design ideas for Ed Hardy. Liked this one a lot, skulls with heart shaped eyes always work for me.

Tuesday

Fun with eyes



















Most artists will remember the first things they sketched. For quite a few of us, eyeballs were one of the first things we drew. The magic of sketching something and making it look 3-D was too exciting to pass up. I thought I'd give it a go recently just to remember those good times. It was FUN drawing this!

Tuesday

New logos


































I just finished a couple of projects creating original branding logos. One was for a company called Strategic Outdoor Shop and the other for a very creative woman named Christina Stover.

Dream Machine 3000




























Have you ever wanted more time, more money, to remember a cool dream and re-dream in the next night, have a bowl of ice cream magically in front of you, wished that your favorite foods were fat free, that there wasn't any pollution in the world, that people were kinder, that you didn't have to work, have you ever wanted to fly or be invisible, how about time travel, ever wished for that?

WELL, this machine I have created is for you. It makes dreams come true.

This is how it works. First, you must load your dream into the machine. There are two ways to do this. You can either push the "record" button and speak into the built in microphone or aim the nozzle tip at your dream item and hit the "scan" button. THEN, when you see your wish on screen, simply hit "GO." Instantly, there it is, your wish granted.

Voila. Dream Maker 3000.

Monday

Clean with a bit of grunge



























Recently I was asked to create a logo for a photographer named Noelle Reynolds. The tricky part was that she wanted her logo to be clean, as she shoots quite a few bridal pictures, yet have a grunge/messy feel. I was instantly intrigued. How exciting to come up with a logo that would combine two such opposing ideas. This is what I came up with. The cool thing is that it works alone or on a colored background.

Wednesday

Little green (pink & orange) men




















These little guys (a black and white version anyway) were created as an idea for a financial company who wanted some funny character art to teach people about money, wills, and other various financial issues. They weren't used in the end, but I really liked them so I added some color just for kicks. I love the space background of my last post drawing so I borrowed the idea for this one.

"Have you heard?"






















Gossip: blubbering, burble, chatter, clamor, drivel, gab, gabble, gibberish, gossip, gushing, idle talk, jabber, jabbering, jargon, murmur, muttering, prattle, ranting, tattling.

Monday

Ghostbusters Ectoplasm Energy Drink



























This excellent power drink has some of my artwork on it, too cool! I worked on a project with the fantastic folks at Design of Today and MGM on a "Ghostbusters" art project. The silhouettes in the middle of the can are mine as well as the cityscape and additional imagery on the sides of the can. You can't see all of that here BUT you can CLICK THIS and buy a delicious drink for yourself and admire the rest of the can as you sip.

Tuesday

Experiments with fish

















The amazingly cool thing about fish, is that they are a blast to paint, I had no idea. Fish have so many messy colors and odd shapes that I can splash, dash and throw paint around to my hearts content. The painting you see here is my favorite. CLICK THIS to see two more.

One of those days

























Have you ever had one of "those days?" The sort of day that starts out fantastic but by, say, 10AM you are feeling a little shocked, disappointed, and droopy around the edges. Sure you have, we all have. I drew this little picture for my friend Melissa who had 2 in a row. Here's to her having a better day tomorrow.