A cluster of flowers for Natasha!




Here's a great saying courtesy of Nina P. Loved making this one!

Well, I'm back at work! The day after the holidays. Yes, I know there's still a holiday left to celebrate, but for now, It feels good to be cranking away and getting back on track. I had the most wonderful holiday with my family. Between playing board games and eating a very non-traditional meal, it was really a fun experience. It's been quiet at the studio- I imagine that most people are still sitting around in their food comas and catching up on movies / trying out new presents and enjoying the company of family, friends and pets.

I spent the greater half of Christmas Day coding the Great Personality game. (Yeah! I've got this thing DOWN!) And I have to admit that I'm pretty darn proud of myself. It's become easy to add interesting and exciting things -- like animated frames (Non-stop rain was a big one!) and some really fun twists!
Hopefully I'll code up a little teaser so you guys can see what I'm up to.

Happy Holidays, everyone. May your new year be filled with adventure!

Happy Holidays!

I am almost at the end of my commissions for this year! This is one of the last ones and I'm really happy with it. I've had the pleasure of drawing tea plants a couple of times for clients in the last year and this was a nice treat!

Speaking of treats, today was an incredible day. I was really lucky to have spent it in the company of all of my great friends. My friend Ryan just moved back to town and has been spending his afternoons with us at Paper Bicycle. He was able to join us for our end of the year Paper Bicycle / Light Grey holiday party. We were also blessed with Jesse Riggle and Ian Gorton as well, and Francesca, Jenny, Chris and I shared presents and great times with everyone around a tiny silver tinsel tree. I'm quite a sentimental person -- so there were a couple cards, and a couple presents today that made me tear up (with happiness!). I am really happy to say that this year has shaped up to be something incredible. I feel like I've been really lucky to have spent it with great friends, doing so many fun things.

I am planning to finish it off with a bang as my parents and siblings come into town. Happy Holidays to everyone out there! Thanks for watching my blog and saying hello throughout this year. I appreciate every one of you guys. May your holidays be amazing. Hugs to all of you!

Bouquet for Megan C.

I just finished this little illustration for Megan C. -- who is a huge sweetheart and such a generous person. I have been finally getting to the end of my commissions from Oliver's fundraiser and it feels good. My goal is to send out the last ones by the end of the year and I'm almost there!

Over the past couple weeks I've been trying to plow through teaching finals at MCAD, finishing up my postcard for Light Grey Art Lab's 6 Degrees exhibition, doing all of my daily work at Paper Bicycle, and getting ready to code the dating sim for an upcoming Light Grey show. It's been incredible. There are some days I feel more productive than others, but when I actually have time to sit back and reflect on what the last year has been like -- I'm quite proud.

I guess I'm most proud of keeping up a pace that I thought wasn't possible. I'm proud to have spent all this time with ambitious, incredible people. I've been introduced to new friendships and people that really push me to work harder and look for the next challenge. It's been great and as I finish some of my 2013 things, I'm looking forward to a new list, one that makes 2014 as incredible, and exploratory, as this year.

Chinese Bell Flowers

I hope everyone had a really fantastic holiday weekend!
I have been grateful for all of the craziness, the visits from my family, and the projects that I have going on.

In fact, here's one of them.
Here's a little floral study that I did for the wonderful Wendi Chen.
I've had the pleasure of feeling pretty productive over the last several days despite having the holiday-lag following me about!

Besides preparing for the upcoming shows at Light Grey Art Lab and finishing the rest of my commissions (thank you, everyone!) I've been swamped!
MCAD ends in just about two weeks and I'm feeling like, despite how much work this past semester has been, I'm really going to miss it when it's over.
I'm looking forward to sitting down, getting a ton more work done and really cranking out a ton of the stories and code that is for the upcoming Great Personality Exhibition (happening in January!)

Well, wish me luck! Francesca and I had the opportunity to update the website on Friday evening, and we've recently included some projects that I'm really proud to add! Here's a link if you're curious!

Quick Drawing of a man!

Between finishing my commissions for everyone and getting everything done before the Holidays I've barely had a chance to myself!
In a moment in the middle of the night a couple nights ago I started what was, at the time, as sketch of this man and over the last day or so it's turned into this guy. Sometimes you just need to do some self indulgent stuff, right? It's rare that I get the chance to just sit down in Painter and sketch!

Also! I wanted to let everyone know that I also just got a tumblr! I know, right? Late to the party, but very excited to have one.
If you want to follow what I'm up to there, please do! :)

Quick Update on Commissions & Oliver!

One of the commissions I've been doing for the kind people that have donated to Oliver's treatment

So this past week has been really tough, but amidst the craziness and all of the anxiety, we had a great day so far today.
Last Sunday we took Oliver into the emergency vet because he had stopped eating and was very weak. One of his medicines gave him a stomach ulcer and was making this whole ordeal much more complicated. Side effects are so confusing. One medicine heals, but causes something else that needs another medicine to counteract. I don't understand it all -- I am not sure if anyone really does!

Today, though, I'm hopeful! We went into our regular family vet, talked with them for a while about how Oliver is doing. He had a tube to help get him some food while he was sick and they were able to take it out today. He almost instantly perked up, ate some food on his own, and explored the office (we brought him to Paper Bicycle for a little bit as we were on our way home) after it was out. It was such a relief. Seriously. I have been on pins and needles for a week hoping he'd do well!

Now I am just hoping for a speedy recovery and that his appetite gets better, and he can go back to cuddling and roaming the house with his normal chipper attitude. It's always a scary thing when your loved ones are sick - especially from complications of one of the things that are supposed to help heal them.

I wanted to write a quick post to thank everyone that has been super sweet to me during all of this!
As you can imagine - running Paper Bicycle, Light Grey Art Lab, teaching and trying to keep my regular life together on top of all this is a juggling act, and people have been so wonderful and understanding.

I am hoping that the craziness is over for now, and that we can go back to "normal". Cross your fingers for us!
We are still fighting the battle, but for today, things are looking up!

I hope to post more of the commissions I've been doing, too - thanks to everyone and their never-ending patience!
I am finally getting around to tackling some of the later ones! Thanks again!

Everyone go hug their loved ones! :) Hug them all for me!

Postcrossing and Sendsomething.net - Mail Time!

I got a bunch of cute postcards in the mail today!
Wow, does it feel great to get something other than bills! I am a member of sendsomething.net and love sending packages, postcards and things to people any chance I get! Just recently a friend from Light Grey Art Lab introduced me to Postcrossing as well and I've been in love!

Thank you to J.Tills, Jacqueline, and the mysterious sender from Singapore! You guys made my day!

There's something so awesome about learning little bits about other people, cultures and languages. I love seeing the postcards that people pick out for me, and I adore seeing their handwriting! I know I have particularly cryptic looking handwriting, with it's weird twists and turns.... More scribbles than letterforms...
It's just so interesting!

Join Together, PDX!

My piece for the upcoming Join Together show in Portland curated by Meg Hunt!

I'm really honored to have been asked to do a piece for Join Together, a really cute art show in Portland. My good friend Meg Hunt is getting married to her long-time love, Mike, and in celebration of their union, She's curated Join Together to be about love, partnership and just ... joining together!
My little piece is a combo of the natural subjects I love. I was thinking about it as I was making it --- that it's really fun to see how many types of foliage can co-exist together in one little space. A little gathering of all types of greenery.

If you're in Portland, try to make it out to the reception on the 9th! (Just a couple days away!)
Congratulations, Meg! I wish you the best!

Sketchbook, you are growing on me.

One of my latest sketches

I've made some progress lately. I was paging through my sketchbook and realized the other day that I've had this one for about a year and a half. I've become painfully aware that I am a slow sketcher. I have always had this problem with trying to make everything in my sketchbook perfect rather than just embracing some of the weird, bizarre or spontaneous things that come with just trying things out.

In the last several months, though, I've been sketching regularly - both in my personal sketchbook, for fun, and for the upcoming Sketchbook Project 1703 Miles and Back Tour. Everyone at Light Grey got one and so we decided that we'd be working away at making something fun, while being okay with whatever interesting and crazy things came out of it.

This little bird was a doodle I made while I was playing D&D last Saturday with a group of friends. It had been a really long time since I sketched and hung out, and even longer since I played D&D. Hooray for sketching and hooray for hanging out. Two things I am excited to do more of!

I have a list of commissions (Thank you!) from some amazingly wonderful people that I'll be sharing here as I complete them.
Thanks to everyone that donated or comissioned me to help me pay for Oliver's (my kitty!) treatment.
I'm still taking orders! :) Here's a quick link in case you know anyone who might want a pretty drawing!

Custom Artwork Fundraiser- for my Kitty Oliver's Treatment

Oliver, my sweet kitty

Hi guys, It's Lindsay.
It's been a tough week. Chris and I have been in and out of the University of Minnesota Veterinary Clinic this past week and just got some really sad news. Our kitty, Oliver, has been diagnosed with having cancerous tumors in his lungs. We've decided to try to give him the best shot at fighting it, and he's currently getting chemotherapy to try to treat them. He's a tough boy and has a fighting chance since he's an otherwise healthy boy. With his chemo, he's got a chance of shrinking or stopping the growth of the tumors, and we're hopeful that it makes living happily with them a real possibility. He is happy, not in any pain, and has been racing around like a crazy cat regardless of his diagnosis.

I'm not a person that gives up easily, and though it's been very hard to understand it all and very expensive, I am determined to try to help however I can.

I have set up a small online shop where I'll be creating custom artwork for anyone that is interested or willing to trade a nice piece of art for help in offsetting the cost of his treatment. If you are looking for a nice gift for someone you love, or just would like a nice illustration for yourself, I would be happy to create one for you.

Please help me spread the word with anyone you might know that could be interested.
I have also set up a donation page on my website for anyone that is interested in donating whatever amount (if you are not interested in a piece of work) HERE.


Here are some examples of the types of work that I'll be selling. If you are interested in prints or patterns, I would be happy to make either!
Thanks so much, and if all you can do is share this post for me, I would be forever grateful.

A link to my custom art shop fundraiser can be found here.
I'll be doing these on a first-come, first-served basis and will try my best to create them quickly for anyone willing to donate.
Questions? Send me a note at my personal email, lindsay@paperbicycle.com

Here are some samples of my artwork.
Thanks so much, you guys, for your help. I appreciate it more than you can know.
--Lindsay


Custom Typography, Monogram, Phrases.


Custom Black and White Sketches


Custom Repeating Patterns


Custom Botanical Illustrations


Custom Crystals / Mineral Prints

He's got those eyebrows I like.

I drew this boy because I saw some great eyebrows today that I was like "YEAH THOSE ARE THE BROWS!"
The bigger the better! That's what I always say. Just a little pencil sketch before bed in my new giant moleskine!

April 22: Sprigs

Longing for a little greenery. It's supposed to snow all week and I am pining for some vegetation! The only greenery I see these days are the greens in my salad.

April 21: Snail Mail Night

I've been longing to write some letters and mail some packages. I used to be a part of a website called Sendsomething.net a long while ago and I had the inkling today to see if it was still there! When I saw that it was, I about flipped and started roaming through it to find some people to send things to!

Does anyone remember postcardx? I used to send a TON of mail back in the 90s. Everything from postcards to super long emails. It's amazing what kinds of things you receive -- and even more amazing the relationships you make! It's super easy to be a part of it. You just log on, fill in your bio and address and that's it! You can hit a button on top to receive a random person's address (or search by interest) and that's it!

It's a ton of fun just floating through it and reading everyone's interests. I find it amusing that most people are just as into cats, tea and art as I am. I'm sure we're all kindred spirits!

April 18: Snow.

Snow.

Yeah that's right. Time to break out the snow suits and the stompers.
We've got 12 inches, baby.

April 17 : Glacier

I have had an obsession with Iceland ever since my trip there three years ago. It was a magical, wonderful place, filled with lunar landscapes and incredibly incomprehensible changes in terrain. Of course, there are several glaciers in Iceland that took my breath away and I did a tribute to glacial ice for Light Grey Art Lab's upcoming Macro & Micro Exhibition (This Friday from 7 - 10pm at Light Grey Art Lab).

It was a really fun drawing to make and I got a kick out of giving it a warm, dusk-like lighting. It seemed that the sun set for hours while we were there, and that the sun didn't dip down until well after 10pm. I am taking a trip there with Chris Hajny and Francesca Buchko (who are also in the Macro & Micro exhibition) this coming June. I can't wait! It should be a real adventure!

If you are interested, this piece is for sale in the Light Grey Shop as an archival giclee print through the end of the exhibition! You can also take a look at all of the other awesome art by the other 90+ international artists, too!

April 16 : Sleeping birdie

He's worn out from a day of hunting worms and gathering twigs.

April 14: Never-ending moss field!

Never-ending little moss tufts!
It's like a puffy field of dreams!

April 12: A Bird Friend

This little guy looks hungry!


This guy looks hungry, too. For ADVENTURE!
(Found this amazing book at the Half Price Books by my house. I'm not sure if this was the original story for THIS, but you should probably watch it anyway.)

April 11: Never let me go.

It feels like a quiet night. Here's a small, quiet drawing to fit the mood.
Created in photoshop with my tablet, just for fun.


A little detail of the bird

April 10: Script

Sketchbook view

It's getting closer to April 15th and all I can think about is how much I hate doing my taxes. Seriously. It feels like I've been doing them non-stop for the last 9 months. What's up with that? I guess that's the part where I have to thank myself for becoming a self-employed business owner. There are seldom times when I think back fondly about working for someone else's company, and tax time is one of them. Ah, when things were easy. I remember those days.

I guess you trade some perks for other perks, right?


Here's a straight-on view

I got to forget all about my tax woes around 6:30 when I headed to MCAD to teach my Illustration in product design class. Man, I love that class. Let me just tell you (again) how much I love teaching. It's ridiculous. This semester's class is full of geniuses. Every single person in the room is full of amazing ideas and inspires the crap out of me twice a week. I am very lucky that I get to spend time with these guys and there's not a day that goes by that I don't think that. It makes me want to bring them a box of doughnuts every time I come to school. Of course, I can't do that because I'd give them all heart-attacks and I would eventually run out of money, but it's the thought that counts.

Tonight I had just a minute to do something in my sketchbook before I call it a night and I chose to do some hand-type. I have no idea where this came from, but sometimes I just like the feeling of this fancy pen I have. It's called a Kuretake Fudegokochi. It's one of my favorite pens -- it's half brush pen, and half felt pen. I'm not even sure how it's possible that I love this pen so much, but leave it up to Japan to make more amazing things.

My two favorite pieces of script from tonight say "only the lonely" and "nothing matters but you". With a chose third for "Fortune Favors the Brave".

April 9: Big Eyed Dolls

I hear it's snowing outside. It's so black I can't see. I have been absorbed in talking to my parents and looking at celebrity gossip on the internet. (What a way to spend a Tuesday night!) I took a trip down to Half Price books after work and indulged in three new vintage books. You know when they tell you not to judge a book by it's cover? That's all I do. I have a gem from the 50s, and another two from the 60s sitting in front of me. One is called "The Palace of Eternity", and another "The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu" (yes, that is a real book), and the last one is a pulp novel called "The Tattooed Rood".

The other day my pets broke my scanner that I use for posting things from home (which is why you get to see my sketches via photo!) and I'm desperate for my new one to come in the mail. I know it'll arrive any day, and as the forecast predicts, I am sure I'll find it buried on my front porch under a half a food of snow when it finally arrives. Once that scanner arrives I'll be sure to show you these fantastic covers. Oh, how you'll love The Tattoos on that Rood!

Tonight I drew some girls. I have been drawing characters in my sketchbook for a couple weeks now. It's rare that I get to draw people for work, so I figured I'd indulge today. For some reason I was thinking 'big eyed dolls' all night, and this is what came of my inspiration. Just heads for now... but I think I might just color these ladies up and give them some bodies and post them one of these days. The one on the top right looks like my sister, Victoria, a little bit. Not because of the scowl, but there's something about her!

April 8: Night time and fire-flies.

Full repeat

I started creating this pattern last night by playing with watercolors. I had done these guys in greyscale first and then decided to color them in the computer.
I wanted to make something that had a glowing look and that was reminiscent of a field with fireflies, without actually drawing fireflies.


Detail

It's getting closer and closer to spring and I can't wait until it's nice enough to go outside and see some real flowers. It's funny. I draw foliage so frequently, yet it's been a long while since I've gotten to see greenery around my neighborhood! Soon, right?

We're working on a patterns project in the class I'm teaching. I am really excited about it. My students are geniuses and I'm totally looking forward to seeing what they make!
We went through a bunch of different types of patterns today in class and I taught them how to make damask patterns, toiles, radial patterns and chinoiseries! I'll have to try and keep up with them!

April 7: Black watercolor

Tonight I'm working on a couple patterns and I decided to bust out the watercolors. I have a project that I'm doing tomorrow that involves making flowers that need to be able to be shown in various palettes, so I'm doing all of the painting in grey-scale. When creating patterns I usually create assets like this on a page and then toss them in the computer. It's funny to see them all in a blob like this -- there really is no rhyme or reason for where they're placed or why some match and some don't!

April 6: Raspberries!

A quick and loose sketch of some raspberries for the night! Thinking of raspberry jam, smoothies and all things summer. Too bad it's rainy and only just springtime!

April 5 : Space!

Space is the topic of the night! Here are some doodles that I made during the Light Grey Lock-in! I did a couple type drawings based on the sci-fi books I've been ordering off of eBay!

April 4: Silly Doodle Cats!

I've been playing this game on my phone called Megu, and every week or so, my tamagotchi-esque creature morphs into something new. Most times it changes into a kind of funny, bean-shaped animal or a piece of food with a face. All of which are great. I had been playing with my brush pen and decided it'd be fun to do a grid of silly bean-cats. So, here they are! Bean cats for everyone!

April 3, Frogs for Sam.

I made something sketchy today and I'm dedicating this post to Sam Basques, who asked me to draw a frog. So I did! And I'm really happy with it.
Just a little guy nested in a patch of leaves. I stuck with a pencil-in-my-sketchbook drawing today. It's quickly becoming one of my more favorite mediums for quick drawing. I've got this really nice Pentel 0.9mm lead pencil that's a gorgeous yellow ochre color. It's my pride and joy and I've taken to using it almost exclusively for sketching in my little sketchbook.

I actually just sat down a little bit ago to relax while Chris plays Bioshock Infinite-- after a long day of designing notebook covers and hosting interviews with two very fascinating people, Mary Jo Hoffman, founder of Stillblog.net, and Nic Skrade from Uptown Tattoo. I have to admit, it's certainly hard to get meditative in my sketchbook while the room is filled with gunshots, yelling and explosions. I'm actually really enjoying the story and it's been fun watching him play. One of these days I'll have to actually learn to use the controller and pick up a game myself. For now, I stick to story games on my phone. Those aren't too hard -- it's just me touching the screen now and again to advance the plot.

Beyond that, I've been thinking of starting a couple drawings that are sci-fi in nature. I've been surfing all over Ebay recently, buying vintage paper items like I do, and amassing this amazing collection of books from the 50s, 60s and 70s. I'm actually considering scanning some of these covers and sharing them, as I've got more vintage paper things than the average person -- and some of these illustrations are crazy awesome. There's one that came today with the title YEAR 2018, by James Blish. (He has an awesome name). I'm considering plowing through that book just to see how much 2013 differs from the world Blish created back in 1959, when he wrote the book!

If I get the chance, I'll make sure to write a full book report. Some of these paperbacks look like I could tear through one in an evening.

April 2! Day 2. Sketching and updating the blog!

Well, here's something that I made in painter. It's definitely different than anything that I've shown on this blog before, but hey. I'm welcoming some new process and some experimentation! I was telling Francesca this morning that it was awfully hard for me to get used to this painting, not because I think it's bad or anything, just that it's been a while since I posted something figural! As I was painting this one I was thinking to myself: "I better not draw a face from the front like I always do, so why don't I do something weird and different, like draw children! And draw them from the back! Yeah! What a good idea".... Hmmm. I guess that's what I did.
Who knows what I was thinking. It's a lot of pressure just making things and realizing that I can't hide them in my sketchbook this month!

I was thinking about all of these interesting things that I've got planned for April -- from field trips like the one that I'm going to on Thursday to the Bell Museum, to the Lock-in on Friday at Light Grey Art Lab -- and I'm actually looking forward to this challenge. I'm hoping to mix a couple patterns in here, some paintings, some drawings and who knows what else!

***

So what do you think of the new layout? I've got a couple personal projects that I was thinking it was time for a little spring cleaning! I added a new background, a new header, and re-arranged a little bit. I'm pretty happy with the re-vamp! Well, one more thing down! Tomorrow I'm headed to help Chris record a podcast at Mary Jo Hoffman's house! I'm excited to say hello to her and help pick out some of the specimens that she'll be lending us for the Macro & Micro show at Light Grey Art Lab. She's going to be our featured guest! Have you seen her blog? It's fantastic. Here's a link to stillblog.net! You'll see why I'm absolutely enchanted with it!

Wish us luck! I'll be posting an update with photos tomorrow! It should be a great time! Until then, I'm off to do some late-night drawings!

Venus Flytrap!

The sketch that started it all


Detail

I spent the whole weekend sketching and this Venus Flytrap is one of the sketches that I was really proud of. It's done with graphite and then colored in Photoshop. I was thinking this one should be pretty subtle since it's particularly line-heavy.

On Friday I was hanging out with a couple friends and one asked to see my sketchbook. I don't know about you, but it's really hard for me to actually let people look through my sketchbooks. Half of what I've got in there is embarrassing -- for various reasons... and the other half are notes that I'd rather not show to anyone. I tried (as politely as I could) to decline, and felt super awkward just sitting there, clutching it to myself, holding on to it for dear life. You know when you're practicing drawing and you draw the same thing over and over? Or when you're not sure what you're even sketching... just making lines all over a page? Well, my sketchbook is full of those things. That, and a zillion notes that I've written about everything I'm thinking, doing, or wanting to do. Sort of a diary, I suppose.

I am still trying to feel good about sharing my sketchbook with other people, but for now, I just show the pieces I think are ok online. The rest I'm keeping for myself.


Full Repeat

I'm also starting a 30 day challenge today for the Month of April! I have been wanting to do one for a while now, but haven't remembered to do so at the start of the month! This is my first one and I'm hoping to kick some fun things out this month. Wish me luck!

Vintage Flowers

I have this great old wallpaper book from the turn of the century that has this massive cabbage roses in just a couple colors. I had been looking through it last week for inspiration and came across this mustard and green color combination. I'm absolutely amazed at how beautiful vintage patterns are. It's apparent how much preparation and time went into creating them.

It's no wonder I'm a vintage paper addict.
Seriously. When I get on an ebay kick, there's no stopping me. In fact, that reminds me... I should really archive all of these ancient wallpaper books. That'll be my summer project.

I have been doing some complex patterns lately and decided that this week I'd do something a little more quiet. I created this one with ink on paper first, with a linen texture overlay on top -- and colored it up!

Creeping Charlie, the pattern.

Here's the mini view of this huge pattern I made tonight.

When I first got my cat, Oliver, I had named him several things before something stuck. Charlie was one of the names that was high on the list. Oliver is, by far, the creepin'-est of cats, and as I was making this pattern tonight I thought for a second that it would have been very fitting had I named him Charlie.

I don't know why I labored over this pattern so much tonight, but I'm glad I did because I really like the way it turned out. It started as a complex sketch and turned into a giant winding beast. I took some liberties with the actual colors of Creeping Charlie - and I'm surprised I did because I am usually all about putting purple all over my artwork. But there was something really sinister about having red veins for vines -- and so it goes.


Here's a little close-up of the artwork

I had a really great weekend. I got the chance to spend the weekend hanging out with Francesca (it was her birthday! Happy Birthday, Francesca!), and some great friends. Games were played, Japanese food was enjoyed, and I got some artwork done, too! I'm looking forward to my 32nd Birthday this coming Tuesday. (Yikes! I'm not sure how that happened! I barely remember turning 30, or even 20 for that matter.... hmmmm....) But I'm excited to see it come. I think I've got zen mode on this year (or at least I'm trying!) and I'm thinking of spending my Tuesday just relaxing.
Maybe ever devouring a good book.

It'll be the first day in a long while that I've actually taken a day off, but I think I'm going to do it!

Wish me luck! Another year, another adventure.

Keeping it simple : Succulents

Keeping it simple today!
I had a great trip to the Como Conservatory today with Chris and it was AWESOME! Man, I have been craving some living plant-action!
It's been so white outside and it seemed like a nice Sunday outing. I did a couple tiny drawings this morning while I was at this new coffee house near my house, Parka and just ran with them for this pattern.

I was making loads of little terrariums last summer and I was having flashbacks when I was making this pattern. I really ought to do that again. I think I just might!

I usually frown at white backgrounds on patterns but for some reason this one just felt right. I had this one a couple other colors before I finally just left it alone. So here you have it! Little tiny cuttings from some of my favorite succulents!

(I'm also channeling some 70s art vibe in here. Inspired by a pic I saw earlier today while I was in a used bookstore near my house!)

Snowy Day

I wrote a post about the snow with a couple cute pics for the Light Grey Art Lab blog and wanted to share them here as well!
We had a ton of snow last night and it is absolutely beautiful here! Here you go!


10 inches of snow and counting

I thought you guys might appreciate seeing what it's like out today. I know that most of us have seen a snow storm, but man, we got hit hard last night and everything looks amazing with all this snow. It started last night as I was teaching over at MCAD and just kept going. I got the chance to chat with Teagan White, a wonderful person and very talented illustrator, last night over coffee. She came over to MCAD for a bit to talk to my product design class about her work and process and afterward we headed to the Spyhouse (a local coffee shop down the street from Light Grey) with Francesca to sit down and warm up.

It kept snowing even after we parted ways and I dropped Francesca off at home. Even so, I was still surprised to see all of it this morning.


A view down the block towards the prestigious Minneapolis College of Art & Design. The streets are super quiet.

Commuting to work today wasn't that difficult because Minneapolis has this snow-removal thing totally under control. I'm thankful for that, for sure. Still, it was amazing to walk the block or so up to work and see that absolutely everything was covered and looked really beautiful.

It's strangely quiet on the streets because of the snow, too. So it's almost like being wrapped in a cold, white sweater.


Chris and Atari head inside to get to work

I'm going to try and enjoy the snow for as long as I can while it looks this good. I know that city snow doesn't stay beautiful forever!


Twinkle, our other studio dog, is a little black blip amongst all the white

Ferns on Linen

I have been wanting some new kitchen towels and I made this linen-y pattern with them in mind. Ahhh I wish they were real!
I was inspired by two new shops in the Minneapolis area -- Forage and Parka. One is a really cute furniture shop that sells a lot of local and hand-crafted furniture (nice, mid-century inspired stuff!) and the other is a new cafe with awesome coffee. Both shops are minimalist and really nice -- lots of natural colors plus white.

I got the chance to sit down and really take a look at ferns with this pattern, too, which, if you haven't had a chance to look at one closely, are super crazy. They're amazing -- or as Chris would say "They're natures fractals".

The rest of the day was spent running around to Menards and getting some home fixer-uppering stuff, and talking for hours to my parents about big ideas and future plans.

My last week has been really interesting. Filled with lots of teaching at MCAD and preparation for Light Grey. This past friday I did a lecture on Happiness and Success at Light Grey to a room of about 20 people. It was really exciting talking to so many people about collaboration and committing to doing something that gets people involved. I talked about everything from the difference in our personalities and what stops us from doing the things we do, to more up-beat things like the idea of support and what it means to work altruistically. I had read so many interesting pieces of information on things like the non-zero sum theory, and 'the big five' elements of what makes up our 'subjective well being'... among other really interesting topics.

I thought a lot of about personalities and how they play a part in how we do things. Sometimes I think about the Meyers Briggs test and my obsession with personality tests -- and how that might come into play with how we get things done (or how we don't get things done).

I truly enjoy these times of 'research', and the times when I get to sit down for a second and learn something. I'm a huge non fiction fan and the more science, or history, or nature that I can take it, the more I enjoy what I'm doing.
We should be posting a link to the lecture online in the next day or so, and when we do, I'll make sure to post it here. I think some of you guys might get a kick out of it.