Desktop Calendar {March}

Happy Leap Day! Did you do anything fun today? Last night at my cardio class our instructor told us "anything goes" on Leap Day because it doesn't really count. For example, if I decided to totally pig out on candy and pizza today (which I did!) then the calories mean absolutely nothing! It's like a free day for totally indulging. Um, yeah right. I wish. That's why I'm sitting here feeling totally bloated from all the pizza I consumed. Ugh.


Anyways, a new month means a new desktop calendar, right? March's calendar is a little whacky, I'll be honest. I think it's the lack of sleep I've been experiencing lately. 

Inspired by March Madness here in the US, I decided to go with a basketball theme. Even though I don't follow basketball at all. Except maybe a Wisconsin Badgers game here and there, I have no idea what's going on. But yet I thoroughly enjoy setting up my NCAA bracket and I get pretty competitive when it comes down to the end. Don't ask me why - I think it's because I'm just competitive by nature, or maybe it's because it's something my whole family partakes in (yes, even Stella has a bracket!). If you want to read more about my methods for picking teams, check out my March Madness post from a couple years ago.


I wanted to depict some trickster b-ball players, like the Harlem Globetrotters, and I thought it would be especially cool if they were unicorn players so they could spin the ball on their horn. Awesome, right? I know. I need to sleep.

You can click on the above image and save it to your computer, or you can also find it here.

Please note that this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.

Happy March, y'all!

Plush Team Swap {Raccoon}

Yesterday I received my Plush Team swap item in the mail! I was SOOOOO excited!

Casie from BeBe Babies made me the cutest little friend. For the full write-up (and more pics!) head on over to the Plush Team blog.


Yay!

Rachel in Lux

Howdy!


Today I want to share a fun project I recently completed for a friend. Last fall, a couple of our friends, Jordan and Rachel, moved to Luxembourg for a fabulous job opportunity. Rachel decided to start a blog called Rachel in Lux to record her adventures across the pond. She approached me to illustrate a blog header that was unique to her and would encompass her new life in Lux - a little bike riding, some gorgeous architecture and her companion Willow the Dog.

We wanted to keep it crisp and clean, so we limited the color palette on the white background. Rachel and Willow's sweet smiles, some breezy flourishes and subtle patterns keep the imagery whimsical and fun. I even created some additional swirls and category titles to tie all of the elements together.


All-in-all, I really like how it turned out (plus it is inspiring me to freshen up MY blog header!) and I think Rachel likes it, too - even better!


I highly encourage you to head on over to Rachel in Lux to read some interesting and funny posts on the adventures of a Wisconsin girl trying to figure out life in Luxembourg!


Have a great day,

{Happy} Valentines Day!

I was itching to do a little drawing this afternoon, so I decided to sketch a little Valentine.

I was playing around with allowing my underlying sketch to show through and some opacity.


I hope you all have a fabulous Valentine's Day! We're having a heart-shaped pizza tonight to celebrate. It's one of my favorite traditions since Stephen and I have been together!


Love,

Kiddo's Artwork

Now that Stella is in school and is getting uber-interested in art (yay!), we have an ever-growing pile of her artwork. Of course we're not going to throw it away, but there is only so much room on our refrigerator to display it.


One way I've utilized it is by transforming it into Thank-You cards. I cut up her artwork into Letter-sized pieces, paste it onto a Letter-sized sheet of cardstock with Modge Podge, cut it in half, and vóila! A super-cute thank-you card. Not only does it look fun and colorful, but the recipient will get a little piece of original Stella art! Bonus, right? 

I also wrote "Thanks" with an oil pastel, but of course the message could be changed to suit different occasions.


Now I have to figure out ways of displaying some of her art on the walls - do you have any creative ideas, beyond framing it? That can get so expensive. I'd love to hear some of your thoughts...


Cheers!

Desktop Calendar {February}

Here in Wisconsin it is just after 11pm on Februrary 1, which means I'm getting this February desktop calendar in just in the nick of time. Whew!

This one was inspired by The Black Keys' song, "Howlin' For You".

I thought it was somewhat appropriate for February, being the month of Love and all!

Plus, it gave me an excuse to draw a different animal and environment.

You can click on the above image and save it to your computer, or you can also find it here.

Please note that this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.

Happy Februrary!