One pot painted, four more to go

photo taken on the ledge of the small balcony

To give myself a simple creative push, and to rekindle my younger former craft days in after-school programs when I was in primary school, I wanted to paint some terracotta pot planters for the summer.  I purchased about seven basic terracotta pots at Michael's craft store (any hardware or craft store will most likely sell them) and some bottles of cheery outdoor acrylic paint; choosing between a white, marigold yellow, salmon-pink, and a sky/light turquoise blue as my color palette.  

It's been a much slower process than I recall as a child, but I would only paint one pot at a time too.  I really feel that it's worth the effort to bring a little individuality to my small container garden.  I'm sure most of you can recall this simple craft and painting a pot at least once in your life to plant a marigold or other plant in.  

Small, simple crafts like this helps to awaken my artistic self-esteem, even if it's painting cheap clay pots with cheap acrylic paint.  And of course, for those who know me well, I still end up with paint on myself and/or my clothes with each painting session.  I secretly really like the paint marks and smudges I find on some of my clothes and/or hands/fingers/arms/legs; it makes me feel fantastically artsy.   

...And if you've been counting at home, yes, I did purchase seven pots and am only painting five.  To give it to you straight, the last two are the largest of the seven and I'm getting a little bored with mini painting sessions and various drying times.  I got a little lethargic and left the largest in their natural dried clay color for my cucumbers and cherry tomatoes to grow in. Yes, one solid color would have been easier to just do, but one solid color is just a little dull for my tastes, when my artistic being screams, "put more detail into it! Rawr!"

Sketchbook Look: Curly girl

Untitled (Curly girl). 2013
Pigment liner on paper. 6 x 8"

I'll be finishing up my second retail job today and saying goodbye to packing, tagging, and merchandising previous seasons clothing at discounted prices for awhile.  Though clothing retail wasn't bad to work in, I am already taken in the home goods/furniture/fragrance retail.  I look forward to worrying about only getting to one job and actually enjoying my New York State summer.  Hopefully some tent camping, hiking, swimming, and running will be in my future in the next couple of months.

I drew this doodle (above) this morning while drinking my coffee.  The methods were the same as the last doodle and I tried to keep my thoughts free to the possibilites I was spontaneously creating in my small 6 x 8" sketchbook.  I'm not sure if I'll add to it, color it, or just leave it be.  As weird as it sounds, I sometimes like leaving my pieces unfinished as they are.  It's a unexplainable artistic fate for some of the pieces that I create.

Note: I hand draw these pieces and scan them (through an older scanner) to my laptop.  Sometimes the scans aren't perfectly ideal.  I didn't want to tear it out of my physical sketchbook and that's how it scanned with the spirals.  

Sketchbook Look: Celestial moonboy

Untitled (Celestial moonboy). 2013
Pigment liner on paper. 6 x 8"

Believe it or not I don't draw and doodle nearly enough for what I should be doing.  I should be doing it a lot more for my sanity's sake and for my developing career.  Sometimes I'm my own worst enemy and stop when I've started a drawing or doodle that really isn't hitting my expectations.  As silly as this sounds, I simply just need to let myself doodle more. 

I started this doodle in a small sketchbook that serves as both a place to write any new recipes I am inspired by off the internet, and any other various things I think of.  My sketchbooks have been holding more words than drawings lately, but they still serve their purpose in holding potential future projects and artistic pieces in general.  Gregory and I have been watching a lot of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine lately in the evenings (streaming via Netflix) and this drawing is a little inspired by of Odo, a shape-shifter on the show.  I'm beginning to like his character more and more as the series develops.  

When I completed the face (I always start with the eyes and then face first) I didn't know where to take the drawing....or what to make him into.  I decided to make him into a general "alien" looking man, though I thought about making him into a caterpillar or moth-looking man.  The moon was created with a little "Starry Night," by Vincent VanGogh, in mind.  I didn't have a "set" end result for how I thought this drawing should look like in the end.  I usually have an image in my mind of how I would like the pieces I draw or create to end, and sometimes I have no idea and "just go with the flow."  This was certainly a "let's see where this is going" piece.  

Now, the question comes down to color or not to color?

Sketchbook Look: lavender girl

There's a correlation between my blog absence and when I started working another part-time job.  Well, I've decided to leave that second retail workplace for a better summer, to find my focus with my art again, and for a little more freedom (even if that means a little less income to work with).  Honestly, I feel as though I've hardly created anything this year and it's almost half over.  I'm making the decision to change that.

I drew this doodle on a lavender piece of scrap paper (about 3 x 5" dimension) and a thin black marker.  I'll admit I started it stealthily between customers and sizing new merchandise at my second job this afternoon.  I need to draw doodles more without caring about the outcome of the doodle.  Sometimes that's when some of the most interesting illustrations start from.   

Summer Planter Theme

potential Summer color scheme for terracotta planters

It's almost mid-June and I'll admit I'm not doing particularly well in the sprout department.  I wouldn't say I have a black thumb (when one just cannot keep any plants alive), because I do manage to keep some plants thriving.  I suppose I would say my thumb would be a muddy green in the color spectrum of gardening and figurative thumbs. 
 

That said, I've gone and purchased more seeds and plan on purchasing some new terracotta pots to decorate.  I decided to buy some organic, non-GMO seeds from Seedsnow.com.  They had almost everything I'm hoping to start again with the exception of lavender contained in a basic seed packet.  The majority of the seed packets I chose were on sale for $0.99; with the exception of oregano.  I find that these seeds were cheaper than purchasing them from a chain home improvement store and I feel a bit better about planting them. 

 All I need now is to pick up some classic basic terracotta pots and start painting while I wait for my seeds to arrive in the post (and for my cold to go away).  Above is an idea (hand-drawn and scanned) for my expected seeds to grow in with a funky summer color scheme.  Thank goodness it's still early enough in the New York growing season to start seedlings over again.

Arrival of new business cards.

THEY'RE HERE!!!!

(Yes, Poltergeist pun encouraged right here).
 

My new business cards finally came in the mail!  They actually arrived a little sooner than expected; I've just been a little behind on blogging about them.  

 I'm so excited and proud of how they came out!  They are saturated with color, glossy, little bits of awesomeness that I am finally proud to give away to friends, family, co-workers, and most importantly at exhibitions.  I was recommended to use Moo.com by a professional friend and one of my former fashion illustration professors, Amanda (one of my inspirations for independent artists/entrepreneurs).  I'm so thankful she recommended this site, because as you can tell I'm so happy with the outcome! 

Most people could whip up business cards no problem, I'm sure.  I definitely lean on the side of analog and prefer to do everything hand-drawn or hand-made.  As you can guess, I'm not all that computer savvy and it's not easy for me to "whip" something up using a computer.  Even those these current business cards are smaller images taken from photographs of my physical illustrations, I am simply over the moon for them!  I certainly recommend Moo.com, if you're looking for a website to create stunning business cards for your business, profession, or craft. 

Homebrew: Iced Green Tea

I have a liking for iced tea that goes beyond your normal Lipton iced tea or iced Nestea (which is too sugary for my palate now).  I've turned to a more wholesome alternative of seeping hot tea, adding local honey as sweetener, and cooling it in the fridge.  It's really nice to be able to reach in the fridge and have a glass of iced green tea, already slightly sweetener and better than the store bought concoctions.  Last summer I also began experimenting with making my own iced teas as well as combining different teas.  Here are a couple of variations I enjoy:

rose-chai (Wissotzky)

green tea (Numi organic)

orange tea (Tazo)

passion tea (Tazo)

green tea + passion tea

green tea + orange tea

orange tea + passion tea

Simply heat a tea kettle on the stove with water and boil.  Place 2-3 tea bags (depending on how strong you would like your tea/combination) over side of pitcher.  Pour water in pitcher over tea bags and steep for 10-15 minutes.  About 5-10 minutes in, I add about 5-6 tablespoons of honey and stir until dissolved.  Taste test along the way so you get the right amount of sweetness in your tea.  It also helps to mix the honey in while the tea is still hot, so that it all dissolves smoothly.  Discard tea bags and either pour into desired container/pitcher or place in fridge to cool.  

The glass container I use for home brewed iced tea/iced coffee is from Pier 1 imports, but has sadly been discontinued.  You can also find some neat glass containers on Amazon, like this adorable one here or here (or just for inspiration).   

-Caroline