spring sketchbook snaps

Last week consisted of a lot of spring cleaning, but it also yielded tons of much needed creativity. Because of this, my sketchbooks saw a lot of love. I’ve been trying to just doodle and sketch more, as I tend to over work a lot of drawings due to my obsession with detail and texture. Simplifying my illustrations has been fun. Although of course, I can’t stay away from meticulously drawing animals, and so a few more excessive renderings have started to emerge. Some new pieces in my ongoing collaborative sketchbooks with Anika Starmer, Patterns & Paws, have started to come together. Stoked to finally have a bit of time to devote to these beauties so I can mail them back to Maryland soon. What have you been drawing in your sketchbook?

too good tuesday #3

It’s Tuesday, which means it’s time to share all of the things that were too good to me this past week:

getting spicy (not to mention DELICIOUS) in the kitchen.Finished a large pencil drawing commission (will share the results next week). In the making of the piece, I became great friends with my pencil sharpener (but I secretly wish that David Rees had just been hanging in the studio with me).Lots of grey days here in the mountains; I’ve been feeling calm and composed instead of sad and sleepy… perhaps this is why. My super inspiring friend, and co-collaborator on Patterns & Paws, Anika Starmer’s Flickr page. Seriously. Wow. Scoring this vintage “cookbook” all about properly freezing food! (here is a similar online reference). Getting selected by the jury to do BOTH Make It Shows in Vancouver and Edmonton! More to come on that this week (along with news about another HUGE upcoming show!)

Did you have some good things go down last week? Share them with me in a comment below :)

Autumnal

I hope you all had a happy Halloween last night, but perhaps more importantly, I hope you are having a wonderful autumn!  Fall has been in full swing, from full golden trees, to falling red maple leafs, and a bit of the obligatory cold rain and wind. Despite the drop in temperature, this season is hard not to admire… the transformation that nature goes through is truly stunning, which is why I asked readers and friends to submit their photos, drawings, poems, etc inspired by the theme Autumnal. Thank you so much to the following lovelies for submitting these wonderful pieces:Michelle Ashton “I’ve been loving the signs of autumn ~ brisk air, bright colors and crisp fallen leaves to crunch through.” -Kimi Kobashi“My hedgehog says he would love to feature in your Autumn post before he goes off to hibernate for Winter.” -Sarah Hutchinson Burke “As a little girl I was always drawn to the trees in my yard, often spending entire days sitting under their magic blanket of leaves and interweaving branches. Visiting my parent’s house one afternoon with my son, I was drawn back to them. I crawled my way under their low hanging branches and found a spot to sit and snapped this photo. I sat their with my son taking in their magic once again.” - Lisa Marie Tsering “I saw your request for autumnal themed artworks… this illustration of mine is a hand printed lino-cut of a self-portrait based on an old family photo.”- Lorna Cox “I do enjoy your blog, like it that  you live just north of me and share so many interests. The watercolor above is one panel from a five panel series about the foliage around my house through the seasons.” -Katy Gilmore “This was taken on the trail near the cabin where I’m staying in Arizona, in a pine and aspen forest. Some of the aspen leaves are turning yellow, while other trees are already bare, with tall evergreens sprinkled between. The air is so crisp and clean here, it really feels like autumn!” -Anika Starmer

I hoped you enjoyed these autumnal beauties! I will be sharing my Autumnal themed snaps tomorrow and I will be looking forward to seeing your submissions for November’s collaborative post, “Soft Spot.”