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Posts Tagged ‘bureau original’
Monster Jeff
Monster Jeff is an enigma and constantly full of contradictions – he can’t even decide what shade of brown to be! To sum this monster up I would call him sweet yet bellowing. Not many make such an effort to get their point across that one of their eyes bulges out of their furry monster forehead.
Monster Jeff measures 5.5 x 7.5 inches and was made using 39 cent felt squares, stuffed animal eyes and faux fur fabric wrapped around the back/stand portion of IKEA’s Ribba picture frame. The stand was left over from my original monster portraits, which only used the frame portion.
Between Here and There
A few weeks ago a friend and I were talking about the fractions of life – how events can shift your course depending on the smallest difference in circumstance or how you handle a situation. I feel this acutely every time I walk around my work neighborhood in Portland, a pocket between the Pearl and Chinatown. In the Pearl, well-to-dos get their nails buffed and highlights touched up, while a few blocks away in Chinatown down-on-their-lucks wait in line for a bowl of soup.
Fractions are funny, my friend and I agreed, in that they are intangible and hard to measure until the repercussions of an action are fully unfurled, and sometimes only become apparent when you stack each fraction of change on top of the other. I am somewhere between these two worlds of well-to-do and down-on-my-luck, but walking the line down 5th Street in Chinatown makes me wonder how many steps there actually are, between here and there. #occupywallstreet
Well Vegan (Hold the Pickled Herring)
The most recent project I’ve been working on, Well Vegan, just launched at the New Year. I enjoy eating healthy food frequently and on a regular basis, so when my friend Katie asked if I would help make it easier for vegans to do the same, I jumped on board. I’m not a vegan, but I have some vegan friends, and seeing some of them struggle with finding a variety of things to make that were also meeting their nutritional needs made this project hit close to home. Katie’s personal motivation to start Well Vegan stemmed from having her young daughter suffer from food allergies that were only ameliorated by switching to a vegan diet.
The first task was to create a logo for Well Vegan. After a short design brainstorm, the theme of “it’s in the greens” bubbled to the top, and resulted in a happy pea pod bursting with, well, veganism.
Well Vegan logo in various color ways.
The second and main task was to design a website. Katie wanted the site to reflect her healthy, simple, and homespun take on veganism. Visually, this is reflected by using the approachable and versatile font Skolar alongside rough-edged and spare illustrations.
The font Skolar pared with a simple illustration style.
Basically, Well Vegan is a repository of vegan recipes that are partnered with shopping lists and weekly meal plans that take all the hassle out of planning how you are going to sustain yourself. Sure, some people take joy in shopping and figuring out each and every meal, but others just want to get the job done without spending hours poring over recipe books and making lists. Using Well Vegan for $9.99 a month gives you all the tools necessary for eating home-cooked meals most every day. And if that’s what it takes for some vegans to eat healthier on a regular basis, I’m all for it.
How the Well Vegan plan works. Pretty simple, and then you're full. Also, beets are pretty rad.
Some people might have the misconception that vegan food is bland, but with the right recipes it can be anything but. A series of illustrations were made to let the ingredients take center stage and focus on the uncomplicated nature of the vegan diet. I’m not sure eating a tofu cube that large is realistic, but it gets the point across! Send me some giant chopsticks and I’ll let you know how it goes.
Food for giants! Or very hungry vegans!
I even got to use my new favorite phrase on the error screen, making this my favorite error screen second only to the consolation trout I made for Under the Table with Jen.
If you’re interested in checking out the site and what Well Vegan has to offer, visit www.wellvegan.com, or follow them on twitter at @wellvegan.
Monster Jen
Monster Jen is one of my best friends, in part because she enjoys eating just as much (if not more) than I do. That’s why I gave her three mouths for all her food-recycling needs. Now she can eat, drink and talk all at once – a feat that has been sighted only occasionally in the human version.
Monster Jen measures 5.5 x 7.5 inches and was made using 39 cent felt squares, googly eyes and faux fur fabric wrapped around the back/stand portion of IKEA’s Ribba picture frame. The stand was left over from my original monster portraits, which only used the frame portion.
Last Year’s Wrapping Paper
Each year when we receive our Christmas package from my Danish grandparents, my sister and I marvel at the wrapping paper that is almost as old as our grandma. With a soft fabric like quality from years of folding and re-wrapping, some of the prints have been in circulation as long as I can remember. There must have been a wrapping paper sale in 1962 that she has been carefully meting out paper from since. Past tape marks and rips are carefully covered, but often too plentiful to be obscured completely. While I admire her resourcefulness, I am also thankful that the presents inside are always new…I think.
Since it’s been a busy month here at the Bureau, I decided I would take a cue from Grandma. Not worse for the wear, here are five winter wallpapers from last year for use on your digital devices.
All The Future Is New
Download options for All The Future Is NewDancing Pole Rats
Download options for Dancing Pole RatsWhite Noise / Let It Snow
Download options for White Noise / Let It Snow (three colors available!)Warm Fuzzies / Cackle Crackle
Download options for Warm Fuzzies / Cackle CrackleMerry, Happy, Joy & Tidings
Download options for Merry, Happy, Joy & Tidings (five colors available!)Monster Dan
Monster Dan is my sister Mollie’s boyfriend, and this portrait was part of a set that I gave her as a birthday present. Dan has “always alarmed” eyes that he uses to stare down his students (he’s an English teacher) and of course a Conjunction Junction button that I bought off of eBay.
Monster Dan measures 5.5 x 7.5 inches and was made using 39 cent felt squares, googly eyes and faux fur fabric wrapped around the back/stand portion of IKEA’s Ribba picture frame. The stand was left over from my original monster portraits, which only used the frame portion.
The Timbers Say Thanks
Here is a nice little ditty I worked on for the Portland Timbers soccer team thru Jelly Helm Studio. I’m not the biggest sports nut around, but I do appreciate the talent and dedication it takes to play a game well. The part that usually rubs me the wrong way is the untouchable icon status that sports figure often inhabit. As my dad would say, “They put their pants on the same way as you do, don’t they? One leg at a time?” Sure enough. So when I was working on this piece, I was pleased that the tribute giving was going both ways. YES, the players are fantastic. YES, the fans are also fantastic. THANK YOU to the whole Timbers community for being what you are, and for the exchange being two way, three way, four way, the best way.
Click the image to zoom in on the notes of thanks from the Timbers soccer team.
Monster Mollie
Monster Mollie is my sister, and I made her this monster portrait for her birthday. Dark brown hair and piercing blue eyes (with an extra eye added just for good all-seeing measure) sit above her bear trap chompers. Don’t want to get in the way of those while she’s arguing or going for the last slice of pie.
Monster Mollie measures 5.5 x 7.5 inches and was made using 39 cent felt squares, stuffed animal eyes and faux fur fabric wrapped around the back/stand portion of IKEA’s Ribba picture frame. The stand was left over from my original monster portraits, which only used the frame portion.
The Goodie Monster Is Here
Just in time for Halloween! Over the weekend my friend Mark and I put the finishing touches on the Goodie Monster: a vending machine filled with healthy, tasty snacks. Not only does it taste good, it looks good too. Check out the full project process and see more pictures of us sewing and painting nonstop to create a green fur-clad monster complete with a mountainous environment where pears fly south for the winter. Read more >>
Keen “Green Thumb” Type
Here is the last of the type and illustration I did for some Keen videos for their Recess is Back site. The work was done through North, a local design/advertising agency. I am more of a black thumb, but I still enjoyed creating this vine-like typography.
Calling Cards for the Digital Era
One of the projects I’ve worked on recently for Jelly Helm Studio was to design the studio’s business cards. Several ideas were sketched out (monograms, pop-up castles, and a series of tableaus, among others), but early in the brainstorming process we decided that simple was better. To support this direction, internet research turned up calling cards from way back when.
Most business cards from days of yore included only the person’s name. Additional notations on the card (in the lower corners) were left for specific reasons and were part of the intricate etiquette system surrounding the calling card, which are detailed in The Gentleman’s Guide to the Calling Card. We took the calling card structure and updated for the 21st century. Done and done.
Simple does it.
The smaller-than-usual cards were letterpress printed by Kyle van Horn of Baltimore Print Studios with a nice deep plum ink on French Muscletone Whip Cream. During the project, Kyle sent us this slip taped to a furniture cabinet at the Baltimore Print Studios.
According to this, Jelly Helm’s business card size (1.75″ x 3″) is somewhere between a Miss and a Mister. According to me, it’s just the right size to carry the information on it.
Other people get cards too.
A calling card for the digital era.
Title Type for Keen Shorts
Here are a few more pieces I helped North with for Keen’s RECESS IS BACK site. I created the hand drawn typography for these two spots, “Fresh Air” and “Grab a Paddle”, which are part of a video series about outdoor activities. I love the outdoors and this summer went both camping and paddling, the spirit of which I think are captured nicely in these little snippets. Although not quite as risqué as the biking-troll-powering-a-hot-spring “Get Naked” illustration.
The Fullitzer Prize
I like to make things for others, and since NJ had recently received so many trophies, I thought I would make an award for the man who subsidized those trophies: Jelly. But what do you give a man who seemingly has everything? He’s won awards galore and his bookshelf is littered with treasures: a gold watch, a paper hot air balloon replica, gifts from various years of WK12, a dismembered stuffed animal squirrel, some rocks, and an empty juice bottle. It would be a tough act to follow, but I was up for the challenge.
Ladies and Gentlemen, THE FULLITZER.
To give a little background, my inspiration came from three places. One: Jelly’s constant quoting of Buckminster Fuller, a big-picture-thinker, the man who built geodesic domes and wrote Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth. Two: Before going to a conference to give a presentation, Jelly claimed he was nervous because previous speakers had won Pulitzer Prizes. HE hadn’t won one, and what was a veteran public speaker with lofty notions of finding your purpose to do…without a Pulitzer? And Three: At a friend’s wedding, decorations included some exquisite paper balls that I instantly wanted to filch. I didn’t take one, but another guest did.
One. Two. Three. That is how I made and presented the ONE and ONLY Fullitzer Prize to Mr. Jelly Helm. It’s a bit small and delicate, but I think its recipient will find infinite possibilities with it in his possession.
Thanks to the internet, I found some patterns to decorate the Fullitzer with.
If you’d like to make a paper ball and name it something special for someone in your life, here are the instructions. My personal tip is to invest in a circular paper punch so you don’t have to cut out 20 circles by hand. I had one already from doing some wedding invites and my sketchbook project. Once you have one, you’ll want to punch circles out of everything.
Awards come in all shapes and sizes.
Keen “Get Naked” Spot
When somebody calls you up and asks “Hey, want to draw a troll for money?”, you say YES. That is the short version of how I was pulled into a project North was working on for local shoe company Keen – a series of videos offering suggestions for healthy outdoor activities. My role was to illustrate a hot spring scene for Feel Good Anyway, my downstairs neighbors in the Povey Building and moving-picture-makers extraordinaire.
FACT: this image got caught in my spam folder.
After some character sketches and a few tweaks back and forth, we arrived at this diagram. The guys at FGA were great at pulling out the best parts of my illustration and extrapolating on it. It was like they had a magic wand that they would wave at things to instantly make them cooler. Or a BOX of wands. They’re that good. Or magic.
Where the the hot water comes from and where the water gets hot.
During this project I let it slip to a colleague that I was drawing a troll. On a bike. For money. He told me that was how I knew I was a made woman. RIGHT ON. To see the video Feel Good Anyway put together, check out Keen’s Recess site.
Far away, there is a troll pedaling furiously.
The Density of Things
Recently an acquaintance posted a Google maps comparison of where they grew up and where they currently lived. The contrast in density was stark, and made me think about the places I have inhabited – from a small farming town in Central Oregon to a city in Danmark known for its rowdy bar scene.
So I made simple map illustrations of where I’ve lived, presented below in the same scale and in chronological order. Reflecting back on my dwelling places was an interesting study of how I felt in relation to what the maps showed me. Maybe the next step is to make a more interpretive version of these?
Then: an idyllic confinement. Now: a confining respite.
Wayfinding and hope.
Hurry up and wait.
Work, work, work, play. Repeat.
Happy Projects Are All Alike
“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” So starts the novel Anna Karenina, which was the subject of a poster project I completed a while ago. It was the first time I had worked directly for another creative entity (a local theater company), and I was excited to be working on a topic of literature with a fuzzy deadline entire months away.
After talking about the creative process we decided that we would volley ideas back and forth in various levels of completeness, ranging from very rough sketches to more refined digital comps, until we arrived at a final poster design. The first round of creative went over well, focusing on some main themes from the book.
Round 1 Sketches
The art director and I decided the strongest idea was the smoke type (upper left sketch), and that I should explore that further before we chose a final executional style.
Keep reading »
Monster Portraits
I’ve been thinking about monsters lately, so I decided to get them out of my brain by making some monster portraits of my new compatriots over at Jelly Helm Studio. I admit, I wasn’t sure how these would be received. When a child draws garish representations of their family members a mother can’t do anything but reply “Oh, honey, these are wonderful!” But when a grown woman likens her workmates to monsters, well…
Luckily the response from Jelly, Mark and NJ was delight and guttural exclamations (also of delight, I assume), after which we hung the family of frames outside the studio door. Why yes, we have a security system on premises: four fake monsters.
After debuting the quartet I asked their human counterparts for a first impression interview which are transcribed below, and are 90% accurate to what was recorded on my iPhone during the interviews.
Ten Second Interview with NJ the Intern
Bureau Representative: What were you thinking at the moment this portrait was taken?
NJ the Intern: Erm. Hmmm. Ugghghhh. Tphhht.
Bureau Representative: Unsure?
**NJ reaches out and softly strokes his fuzzy tan fur**
Bureau Representative: How does it feel to touch yourself?
NJ the Intern: Um. Uhhh. Uggg. Feels good.
Bureau Representative: What sound is your little mouth making in this portrait?
NJ the Intern: Glerm.
Keep reading »
Elephant Summer
This summer in Danmark elephants were everywhere. First off, I stayed with my cousin in Frederiksberg in an old Carlsberg beer silo that had been renovated into apartments. The view from the apartment looked out onto the old Carlsberg brewery, whose elephant mascots grace the entryway to the old factory as well as marketing materials and their Elephant Beer.
Welcome to Carlsberg.
What a happy elephant. Looks like he has had one too many...
One of the main art attractions while we were in Copenhagen was the Elephant Parade. Over 100 five-foot elephants were placed throughout the city, each individually designed by famous and upcoming artists. The goal was to contribute to the conservation of Asian elephants and raise general public awareness about the elephants’ dwindling numbers. As a souvenir, I bought a small figurine of Lars Pugholm’s entry.
Elephant #17: Poetry by Lars Pugholm
The Royal Copenhagen elephant out in the city. (photo from tokyorevive.com)
Lastly, during a scenic drive on the east coast of Jutland we spotted a REAL, LIVE elephant outside SuperBrugsen. It was there to promote the visiting circus, which we only learned about later. In the US, this would be like seeing an elephant outside your local Safeway.
As an ode to this summer theme of pachyderms, I decided to make my own elephant portrait.
For Champion Eaters Only
Being a champion eater doesn’t come without some drawbacks, including a paltry wallet and an overly developed mid-section. In celebration of the latter, I made these face stuffer buttons for the launch party of Portland’s 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces.
If you want to make absolutely sure you finish 2011 with a muffin top, beer belly, love handles AND a spare tire, download the Eat Sheet to mark your progress on foraging your way through the dining spots included in the guidebook.
A mule by another name…
I received three figurines in the mail from my friend Sarah, who wrote that she knew I liked horses and thought I might do something fun with these half-inch tall toys. I opened the tissue paper wrapping she sent them in to find two horses…and a baby calf?
I was pretty sure that Sarah knew the difference between a calf and a foal…but what WAS the relationship of my three new charges, and did THEY know that something was off kilter? I have a feeling an uncomfortable confrontation between the baby calf and the Parental Horse Units will be happening soon.
Son, there is something we need to tell you...
Tre Trin Til en Festlig Dag
This summer my Aunt Nete is turning 50, and I am very excited to visit Danmark for the event. The Danes like to celebrate, and this will be no exception! The “three step” party will include a sailing trip on a boat named Dagmar, a luksus picnic at Skanderborg Sø, and finally a live band at their home terrace in Århus so everybody can really party down.
Keep reading »
Ralph Dances
As a child I desperately wanted a pet horse. If not a horse, a dog. If not a dog, a goat. All of my spare time not spent reading Walter Farley books was spent plotting on how I could turn my backyard into a pasture. My birthday wish lists consisted of listing every animal I could think of and rating them with stars and check marks depending on how much I desired them. I think a horse was worth 17 stars and a rabbit garnered 2 stars. How times have changed.
Instead of equines or canines, my parents decided that pet rats were the ticket for their 8-year-old daughter. Small, easily caged, and with lifespans lasting about 2 years, they were low commitment pets. So ensued my doting upon Ratty, Rocky, Rufus, Rex, Ralph, Rascal & Peaches. Later I did own a horse and several dogs, but the rats will always hold a special place in my heart.
So, I drew a little rat and who likes to sing and dance.
Portland’s New Food Pyramid
Enjoy a good gastro-challenge? Love making tiny checkmarks? Need more refrigerator swag? Don’t we all! That’s why my friend Jen compiled the Eat Sheet, a stalwart Facestuffer’s best friend, to go along with her new guidebook. Affix it to your fridge, steering wheel, elliptical machine, or antacids bottle, then Go Forth And Eat!
You can download your very own Eat Sheet right here.
Portland’s 100 Best Places to Stuff Your Faces
For the past five months I have been working on a side project that IS…NOW…FINISHED. Written by Jen Stevenson, it’s a guidebook of all the best places to eat in Portland, Oregon. Between her hilarious writing style, meticulous research (seriously, who else eats three dinners a night?) and single-minded obsession with food, I think this one is a keeper.
Your chance to become a champion face stuffer.
Jen writes the blog Under the Table, and follows the mantra of “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all”. It’s refreshing to work with somebody who focuses on the positive, and we all know it gets a bit tedious to sift through thousands of polarizing Yelp reviews. Instead, Jen only features what she considers is the best, and leaves the rest up to you. How you decide to stuff your face is, as we all know, a personal preference.
Primary Diagram: How to Properly Stuff Your Face.
This project was a labor of love in many ways. As a fledgling self-publisher the budget was in the pro-bono range, so instead of cold hard money I accepted a few free meals, a flexible timeline, and a fair amount of creative freedom in exchange for my efforts. Having a single pro-bono project at a time is also a good way to get some kicks that you might not otherwise get from paid projects. Kicks like hand drawing maps of Portland…
Put a bird on it, Southeast Portland!
To Jen’s credit, she chose the high road in the production phase by printing the book at local Brown Printing instead of producing the book in China or through an online vendor with less material options and size limitations.
With 220 pages of reviews and tips, over 80 illustrations and the afore-mentioned custom maps of Portland (whose streets do not care if you want to be orderly and label things in a consistent manner) this project was an undertaking, but well worth it. If you’re interested in the guidebook, you can buy it directly at www.bestplacestostuffyourfaces.com. If you’re competitive or like checking things off of lists, you can track your face stuffing progress with the Eat Sheet. Enjoy!
Much More, Coming Soon
Here’s a sneak peek at a very large side project I’ve been working on for the past 5 months. Much more, coming soon!
Moveable Type: Cross Country Adventures in Letterpress Printing
The genesis of this project started quite a ways back, in ’05 or ’06 when Kyle Durrie took a letterpress class from me at the IPRC. I teach there frequently, so I see many students come and go with varying levels of interest in letterpressing. Many dabble a bit but never fully embrace the craft of it, which requires patience, skill and more patience. Kyle, however, decided to make it her mainstay and formed Power and Light Press.
A few years later we both became members of Em Space, a printing and book arts group. There I got to know her a bit better, her effervescent nature and gusto for everything letterpress. So I wasn’t surprised when she put up this Kickstarter video for her latest idea: building a mobile print shop and touring the US teaching letterpress.
The project got funded and I was thrilled to imagine Kyle in her trusty letterpress van on the open road, nothing but her and some moveable type. Wanting to get in on the action, I offered up my computer skills so she could have a logo and website to help make her adventure an even bigger success.
Kyle gave me some inspiration to start with, from which I made this hand drawn 3D type reminiscent of both old building signage and of those interchangeable letters that Gutenberg thought were a good idea. Turns out he was right.
Damn, that's some hot type.
A couple of alternate logotype treatments.
Matthew Johnson also volunteered to help out by setting up a wordpress site that Kyle could update with the latest events from the road. Follow along on her adventures, see when she might stop by your town, or request a visit from one of Portland’s leading ladies of letterpress at www.type-truck.com!
Pioneer Rabbit and Danish Dynamite
Last night fifty competitors raced in the Stumptown 40 pinewood derby car competition, and me and my pioneer rabbit were right in the thick of it. It was a night of competition, camaraderie and good old fashioned fun. One of the most fun parts of the evening was seeing all of the different car designs, from the classic racer to gumby-shaped car. My friends Laura and Scott made cars that looked like a pantone swatchbook and a wedge of cheese, respectively.
I gave my car the moniker Danish Dynamite, from the chant “We are red, we are white, we are Danish dynamite!”. Unfortunately, my sister and I were the only two people at Spirit of 77 who knew the chant, so it was a small cheering section indeed. My entry fared well initially, but was finally ousted in the consolation bracket by a car shaped like a bottle of ketchup. Ahh, well, you can’t beat the condiments.
My car Danish Dynamite and driver Pioneer Rabbit make quite the pair!
Pioneer Rabbit Racer
A month or so ago my friend Melissa told me she was entering a pinewood derby car race with AIGA. It sounded like a lot of fun, so I signed up too. Organized by Dave Selden and Ryan Parr, the event is called Stumptown 40 and is the creative person’s chance for glory in the cub scout arena. Selecting my driver for the race was a no brainer: my pioneer rabbit…seen here posing next to his custom rims in his first glossy headshot promo.
I don't know how he signs his pictures without thumbs...
Super Fresh Type
Summer is almost here, and you know what that means…BBQ season! So I’ve created a miniature ode to the two most common condiments used at outdoor soirées, picnics, beach bonfires, camping excursions, tailgate parties and Fourth of July fests. Here’s some typographic ketchup and mustard for all your summer celebration needs.
Bar Gelato Logo and Packaging
I looooooooooove to work on food identity and packaging, so when Substance contacted me to help work on a new gelato product, I was psyched! Their long-time client Gelateria Naia was preparing to unveil a gelato in bar form, and needed branding to support their pilot efforts. While Substance managed the project, marketing and created the Bar Gelato website, I was focused on making a custom logotype and labels for their first run in stores.
After lots of sketching, we agreed a “just gelato” approach was best, using a simple and bold type treatment reminiscent of window signage. Orange worked two shifts as a bright and cheerful color that stood out against the bars while nodding to colors used in Naia’s branding.
Created from a scanned type sample called Kent Sans, and altered generously to become Bar Gelato.
To get into the gelato mindset wasn’t hard, as I often think of what’s for dessert after I’ve finished lunch. And I was in luck, because Naia had sent Substance a batch of sample gelato bars, which I nabbed six of for a personal tasting session. And thus began the Great Gelato Hoarding of 2011. Knowing that I only had a limited supply, each night I cut 1″ chunks off of each bar and then stapled shut the cellophane wrapper to keep it fresh for the next “serving”. Out of 6 bars, I made about 30 mini-desserts (except for the hazelnut bar which I ate in one sitting because I couldn’t help myself). These gelato bars are the most delicious thing I’ve tasted in a while!
Nom, nom, nom. There are plenty more flavors in a select central coast California Whole Foods.
The first roll-out of Bar Gelato in San Francisco and other Central Coast California locations has gone very well, and I encourage any of you Californians to stop into a Whole Foods to try a bar or two. OR, buy some and put them in one of those styrofoam coolers made for shipping things like special Danish hotdogs or other perishables, and send them to me. I will take gooood care of them, I promise.
Label close-up and gelato bar seal quartet.
Thanks for having me, Substance…and to any other artisan food creators out there who provide samples to inspire their designers – bring it on!
Island Mist Logo and Illustrations
I’m excited to finally share a project I worked on at the beginning of 2011 for Boyds Coffee. The project entailed updating their logo and branding for Island Mist, a line of iced teas. Their previous logo used the font Papyrus, and the people at Boyds wanted to nix it…I felt like I had hit the designer jackpot! The new logo is a refined version using a “cool pool” border and some slightly retro island-inspired type.
Left: old logo in Papyrus...Right: new logo NOT in Papyrus
Another portion of the project was to create flavor labels for dispensers in restaurants and convenience stores. Most of the competition used giant images of iced tea in a glass, usually splashing out of it with lots of ice everywhere. It kind of looked like watered down coke. It’s my belief that you don’t always have to SHOW people watered down coke to make them want iced tea. So for Island Mist’s new dispenser wraps we chose the next closest thing to induce thirst: a series of summer beach illustrations.
When I see a tropical beach scene I want two things: sunblock and to know how to swim with my head underwater. But I'm guessing people less peculiar than I will probably want a drink of something refreshing...like maybe an iced tea.
A bevy of spot illustrations were also created to populate the wraps and be used in various point-of-sale and marketing materials. Here are a few of them…
Recycled Raindrops Update
Last month I posted about making some raindrops out of DEX/Yellow Pages for a paper show called Portland Paper City. The show was recently dismantled, so I gave my raindrops a second home hanging above my studio desk. I might be tempting the weather gods, but I wasn’t going to throw 6 gluesticks worth of work into the round file. Here are a few shots of the 7 large raindrops in a cluster.
Sunshine Farts
When I saw this page in the recent Urban Outfitters catalog, I knew exactly what I was going to do with it. I imagine the photographer shouting directions at this young impressionable model…”Pretend like you’re eating the sunglasses and farting sunshine!”. We’ll probably never know what really happened, so let’s go with it.
I've been told that people like fart jokes, so...
Recycled Raindrops
In addition to some paper ponies, I also submitted some recycled raindrops to the community contribution show Portland Paper City. What possessed me to spend hours with a gluestick (well, six gluesticks) and a DEX/YellowPages, I do not know. But the result was nine 3D raindrops that float on a wall.
Raindrop strips before they are curved and sealed shut.
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Paper Ponies
Recently I submitted some 3D paper ponies to Portland Paper City, a collaborative art show. All around Portland there are old hitching rings in the sidewalks from days gone by. Tied to some of the hitching rings are toy horses and ponies, thanks to The Horse Project. Whenever I see them they make me smile, so when I was asked to contribute something “Portland” to the show it didn’t take me long to decide on these little curbside ponies. It didn’t hurt that between ages 6 and 16 I spent 98% of my waking hours drawing horses, thinking about horses, and riding horses. Yep, I’m a horse girl.
(click on the images to zoom)
Did you know that there are two classification of Paint horses, or Pintos? Overo and Tobiano. Now you can surely use this information to win at trivia night sometime!
I think this one is on steroids. I hope he didn't get them from Snoopy.
Being a horse girl, you can bet that I researched this thoroughly. There is a great Flickr set called “All The Tiny Horses” from which I picked my charges. I hope to draw some more of the horses later, because frankly, I spent wayyyyy too many hours as a child developing my equine drawing skills to let it go to waste. Yes, and after that I’ll re-read all of Walter Farley’s books!
I had a few of these fuzzy horses as a kid. Apparently this one got stolen from its ring shortly after being put out to pasture.
I thought it was a little too morbid to recreate the decapitation scene.
The process of putting my pony drawings into 3D was a challenge. After some prototypes and a short stint of being sidetracked by origami, I decided to put the ponies on display using an open-air type diorama with a built in stand. Below are the dioramas without the stand.
Here is a shot of Charging Steed mounted to the wall at the show.
Eat Eat Eat
Whether I’m stuffing myself silly, drawing food while thinking about my next meal, or planning my next smorgasbord, food is always at the top of my mind. So, below I have outlined the major events that will be taking place today, involving Blenheim’s Ginger Ale, some frikadeller and homemade chocolate-chip-walnut-oatmeal cookies.
Hoo boy, today is going to be a good one!
For all you font people, the top font is hand-traced from a sample called Marbleheart, the middle font is from my food-addled mind, and the bottom font is Phosphate.
A Sticky Shadow
This page from my sketchbook is a long time coming. The character was inspired from a stint I spent filing at a previous job. After about 3 weeks, I felt like my own head had turned into the very same label maker I was using so diligently to organize an entire room’s worth of documents. I started drawing this poster in memory of what I called File-a-palooza, but never finished it. I probably had some banner ads to design, or something.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Peanut Butter Pattern
I especially like this page from my sketchbook, part of my participation in The Sketchbook Project. I remember as a kid my mom always bought Adam’s peanut butter and I just wanted JIF, because you didn’t have to stir it. Now, I feel the opposite.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Stick ‘Em Up
(Click image to zoom) Here’s another spread from my sketchbook, some smoky shady type from an embroidered gun. Yeah, I imagine someone shouting “Granny, get your gun!” and then an 80-year-old lady whips out her crochet hooks and makes this.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Campfire Smell
One thing that sticks is campfire smell. Isn’t it great? Here’s another page from my sketchbook, part of my submission to the Sketchbook Project organized by Art House Coop. The type was traced from Telephone Gothic.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Boys and Girls
(Click image to zoom) The theme of my sketchbook for The Sketchbook Project is “adhere to me”. So I titled my book Things that Stick. Variegated hand drawn hair, wooden eyes and fiery words.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.That One Song
Another page from my submission to The Sketchbook Project, a community participation based movement that involves taking thousands of sketchbooks on a book tour. Yeah, I’m a groupie. Are you?
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Pins and Needles
It’s the in betweens that are a stickler. Somebody told me they wanted to eat this page – I think it was a compliment. I thought, that’s going to hurt going down. Just another page from my sketchbook, part of my participation in the Sketchbook Project.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.Mister Museum, The Debut and Making Of
At the end of last year I was lucky enough to help create branding for an idea called Mister Museum. Sometimes when a new client crosses your path, you just KNOW it was meant to be. Here is a stylized version of the Bureau’s first meeting with the man behind Mister Museum.
MM:
- I’d like to promote the content that museums and educational institutions curate, but in a more interesting manner so that it engages the general public. Basically, this would be a venture for increasing art and science literacy, with a point of view.
BB:
- LEARNING IS THE COOLEST!
MM:
- My target audience is people that are curious about things in general with access to up-to-date technology.
BB:
- THAT’S ME! SCREW INTERNET EXPLORER 6!
MM:
- I don’t want this to be any old museum-y logo. It should be fun!
BB:
- I LIKE FUN!
As you can see, I was psyched to help build a voice for such an interesting client. We decided a logo, website and e-newsletter were the best things to start Mister Museum off on the right foot. So, I got to work. I started with a typical brainstorming exercise, the word cluster, a very useful tool in case you get stuck in a creative fire swamp.
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Late Nights, Lost Time
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.A Good Book
Months and months ago I signed up for a project put on by Art House Co-op called the Sketch Book Project. The gist is that artists receive a blank moleskin, fill it with whatever they want, send it back. Then the collection of books go on a tour similar to a concert, but much more quietly. Well, I’m just now starting to fill my sketchbook, and here is one of the first pages.
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Update: the finished sketchbook is filed under my side projects at Sketchbook Project 2011: Things That Stick.All The Future Is New
Today is the final day of Free Wallpaper Week at the Bureau. “All The Future Is New” was created from cut letters folded up from their original sheet of paper to make shadows. I hope you’ve enjoyed the freebies and spread the wallpaper cheer across the screens of the internet and eternity.
Download “All The Future Is New” in the following sizes:
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Please share these wallpapers following the guidelines of the Creative Commons “Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives” license. Basically, you can share the heck out of these, but always remember to attribute the source and please don’t alter or sell the art. Thanks!
My Gift To Santa: Pole Rats
Free Wallpaper Week at the Bureau is wrapping up. Today’s wallpaper features Rascal, Ratty and Rufus – three very talented pole dancing rats. Inspired by the pet rats I had as a child and some party straws that a friend gave me, this one doesn’t make much sense. But it’s fun to look at. You’re welcome, Santa, now bring me that dobro I wished for!
Download “Pole Rats” in the following sizes:
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Please share these wallpapers following the guidelines of the Creative Commons “Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives” license. Basically, you can share the heck out of these, but always remember to attribute the source and please don’t alter or sell the art. Thanks!
White Noise / Let it Snow
Just another day of Free Wallpaper Week at the Bureau. Spending hours shopping for the holidays or putting up with your drunk Uncle Charlie’s antics while decorating the tree/menorah/yak hut can drive many a sane person batty. Sometimes you just want to tune it all out. Now, instead of staring for hours at your computer’s default screensaver, you can use this white noise pattern to take a mental intermission from the stresses of December (or any other month). Enjoy!
Download White Noise/Let it Snow in Blue
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Download White Noise/Let it Snow in Silver
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Download White Noise/Let it Snow in Charcoal
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Please share these wallpapers following the guidelines of the Creative Commons “Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives” license. Basically, you can share the heck out of these, but always remember to attribute the source and please don’t alter or sell the art. Thanks!
Warm Fuzzies (Cackle, Crackle)
Free Wallpaper Week at the Bureau continues! Today’s wallpaper is anti-cute in response to the previous saccharine submission. It’s kind of like chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but not. Don’t take this one too literally, and I hope you’ll help spread the wallpaper cheer!
Download “Warm Fuzzies” in the following sizes:
320 x 480 (iphone) • 640 x 960 (iphone4) • 1024 x 1024 (ipad)
1440 x 900 (laptop) • 1600×1200 (full screen) • 2560×1600 (wide screen)Please share these wallpapers following the guidelines of the Creative Commons “Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives” license. Basically, you can share the heck out of these, but always remember to attribute the source and please don’t alter or sell the art. Thanks!
Like a Glove: A Love Story
A personal project I’ve been working on this fall is finally complete! It’s wintry tale of smitten moose, fuzzy creatures and a house in the woods. Is it a drama, documentary, romantic comedy or porno flick? The verdict is still out.
Printed on a variety of colored papers using white flocking (fuzzy stuff, fun to touch), the poster is for sale in the newly constructed Bureau Shop. You can see more pictures and read about the process here.
Merry, Happy, Joy and Tidings
Yep, it’s Free Wallpaper Week at the Bureau. For the season of giving I’ve made some wallpapers that you can use on nearly any mobile device you can think of! Today’s wallpaper is available in 5 colors of holiday orientation (except for strawberry, which is more of a June color, which I guess is good for folks south of the equator). Each of the color combinations can be downloaded as a spot illustration or a tiling pattern. I hope you enjoy them, and spread the wallpaper cheer!
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Sneak Peek: Like a Glove – A Love Story
Here’s a quick peek at something I’ve been working on that I’m very excited about! A giant pallet arrived at my loading dock the other day, soon to be disbursed in the mail for your enjoyment. For now, I’ve got to get back to work, but you can be sure that I’ll be posting more on this very soon.
Kahuna Gift Company Logo
In September I landed one of the larger projects I’ve tackled since going solo – branding and packaging for a start-up Hawaiian gift company. I love to work on packaging, especially if it is food related, so this was a great gig. Unfortunately, due to a macadamia drought, the packaging component was put on hold midway through the project. Major bummer! Designers get used to strange things derailing projects, but I never imagined a nut shortage would be one of those things.
Nuts or no nuts, the client still needed a logo and website, so I finished up those elements while we waited for the macadamias to make a comeback (still waiting).
Kahuna Gift Company logotype
I created a straightforward logotype with tone-on-tone sky and surf colors, intentionally steering clear of the clichéd palm trees and hula girls that adorn many a Hawaiian logo. The logo needed to be used in various situations, so a few options were created to accommodate different uses.
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Oui, Oui: Halloween 2010
This year for Halloween I dressed up as Avant Garde French Toast. It was a subtle costume, and not exactly a crowd pleaser. There were a few French Toast embracers, but for the most part it was a flop. It wasn’t a pop culture reference, gory or scary, a knight or a princess. It wasn’t an outfit that had been “sexified” with skimpy college-era duds (although one person told me that “Sexy French Toast” would have been a better outfit). It didn’t fit into a category, and that doomed my Toastness to strange stares and obligatory “ah, haaaa, hmm, yeah OK, I get it”. I guess my outfit was more avant garde than I expected.
So, I figured I would make my first foray into creating moving pictures and shoot a short short about it. I even wrote a part for my dog Lucy, who turned out to be the consummate professional on set.
Drypoint and Chine Collé Printmaking
I took a class at Em Space recently which was taught by two master printmakers from Japan. Ritsuko Ozeki and Takahiko Hayashi were both visiting from Tokyo because their work is on display at the Froelick Gallery thru November, and they agreed to give a three hour workshop on drypoint and chine collé.
Examples of work by Ritsuko Ozeki and Takahiko Hayashi
Let me tell you, it was one of the funnest printmaking classes I’ve taken! Twelve students were all able to create an etching on plexiglass using a variety of sharp tools, and then make a print of it using fancy japanese paper samples the teachers brought with them.
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One Bit Emotion
I took part in a training course at Xplane recently where we learned about super duper accelerated sketching techniques that can be used in meetings to summarize complex ideas in real-time. One of the Xplane designers, Tim May, gave us tips on how to use just 3 different types of lines to create a range of emotions. Super simple, one bit emotion. Sometimes that’s all you need to get a point across.
MMMM, FOOD
Did I ever mention that I like to eat? It comes up every once in a while, so I thought I’d share a compilation of all the illustrations I did for “Under the Table with Jen”, an online compendium of all the best places to eat in Portland, Oregon. Check out the site at www.underthetablewithjen.com.
Proverbs Revisited Poster
As part of a letterpress print exchange centered around Poor Richard’s Almanack, I made this poster to trade with other printers in Portland. “Opposites Attract” takes some of the Almanack’s most commonly recognized proverbs and reinterprets them with math symbols, drawing inspiration from Franklin’s interest in both the literary and scientific fields. Proverbs revisited…
Proverbs: love and be loved • two wrongs don’t make a right • do as I say; not as I do • birds of a feather flock together • the pen is mightier than the sword • six of one…half dozen of the other.
An edition of 10 is available for sale – if you’d like one send me 40 bucks and I’ll put it in the mail. Printed on Cougar 80# cover, size is 12×18 with an image area of 8.5×15.5 so you can either trim to the print area or hang as is with a white paper border.
Waiting in the Driftwood Room
While waiting for some friends at Hotel DeLuxe, I used my extra found time and Draplin’s field notes to draw a picture. Of note were a crazy chandelier, a stuffy chair, and two dachshunds that arrived with a man who ordered a gin and tonic. His wife got a double.
Fly Like an Eagle, New Guitar Logo, Fly!
Sometimes a client knows exactly what they want, and we can get right down to business! When I recently worked with Pro Guitar Shop to create some merchandising logos, the direction from the client was wings, wings, and more wings! It’s the same thing I chant when I go out to dinner with Jen, so it wasn’t hard to get into the mindset. Plus, drawing lots of wings is a nice illustrator workout for designers.
Drawing inspiration from retro signage, hotrods, and vintage cars and of course guitar parts (all things the main audience would dig), I created a few winged logos for Pro Guitar Shop to use on their wares. Below are the two final logos.
It's a neckless guitar...at least it has wings to get around.
The Guitar Pick Grill, where guitars and cars mingle over shakes and curly fries.
Happy Pony, Dance Pony
The second attempt at following a friend’s advice, which was to relax more when I drew things and not worry about the end result. The first try was a bit gloomier. I’m not sure how long this experiment can go on before the watercolor police shut it down.
Scared Pony, Run Pony
A friend told me I should relax more when I drew things and not worry about the end result. This is what happened. Maybe I’ll try “Happy Pony, Dance Pony” next.
Happy Dog Pictures Make People Happy
Dogs make a sound that is considered laughing in the canine world…studies have shown that hearing this sound makes other dogs happy as well. When Lucy got her new squeaky newspaper, her laugh was immediate, and I think you can tell.
I Sew Flat Things, So I Made an iPad Case
When my live-in bought the latest and greatest Apple technology (we’re a few months behind here at the Bureau, so I’m referring to the iPad), it needed a protective case so it didn’t get scratched by the myriad of other Apple products that usually travel with it. Enter iPad case made to match a Jack Spade bag with a brown plaid outer fabric, two layers of quilting and a dotted orange liner.
The Early Years: 1981-1989, A Retrospective Told in Buttons and Pins
During a recent basement cleaning, I came upon my childhood button collection. Looking at my buttons from days gone by, I wondered…would they reveal anything about my childhood that I had forgotten? Would they say anything about my current state, 20 years later? Given the current button craze, how would my buttons stack up? Was it time to finally purge my button collection, two decades too late?
Any which way, I wanted to spend a little more time with my buttons, so I compiled my favorites (namely, the ones I actually remember) into a mini-autobiography…see the full collection.
A Night at the Drive-In
Now that summer is firmly in place we decided to take a road trip and enjoy a movie at the drive-in with a few friends. Even though we arrived over an hour early (and on a Sunday, no less), the lot was nearly full when we got there.
Black and White Behind Bars
While creating some watercolor shapes for another project I got frustrated and started randomly throwing water and ink onto sheet after sheet. The result looked like a 3rd grade classroom had been let loose in an art supply closet for the colorblind, but the details seem to rise above the initial awkwardness of my untrained hand. Give your mistakes a second chance, I guess?
How to Make a Pocket-Size Bird Guide
My Dad sure liked his digital bird guide that I made him for Father’s Day, so a few days later I repurposed it into a paper version for my officemate’s 6-year-old daughter. I used a form factor that I learned at Em Space that allows you to create an 8-page pamphlet out of one 8.5×11 sheet of paper printed on one side.
To make a small guide for scouting fowl, download and print a PDF of my Pocket Size Bird Guide. Or you can make any kind of miniature booklet using this template for reference. Heck, make a whole library!
Also, here is a quick video tutorial on how to fold the booklet. I use a bone folder to crease the edges of the paper, but you can use the back of a spoon if you don’t have one. Likewise, a scissors will suffice instead of an exacto blade. I recommend you put on some nice background music while watching this.
The Original: Mr. Rankin’s Foolproof Bird Guide to Central Oregon
A Trip by Model T on the Oregon Trunk Railway
For my birthday my Dad bought tickets for a Model T tour of Central Oregon’s Trunk Railway. The Jefferson County Historical Society organizes a Model T trip each year as a fundraiser and this year it was led by Jerry Ramsey. June is a tempestuous time in Central Oregon weather, but luckily there were clear skies and minimal Model T breakdowns during our daylong adventure.
Man sitting on the rails on the Oregon Trunk Railway running beside the Deschutes River near Warm Springs, 1915. From the Oregon State Archives.
I had gotten a new camera for my birthday earlier that morning, so I took lots of pictures…
Gravy Gone Bad
Microwave mishaps don’t always involve a stack of CD’s, a ball of tinfoil, or a cow stuck in the stairwell. Sometimes they just involve a vintage pyrex dish and some over-ambitious gravy. Hey, it’s Monday and my mind is in a pork-induced haze from my mother force feeding me pork ribs all weekend long.
Who knew that 0:45 was 0:15 too much for a small bowl of liquid pork fat?
Mr. Rankin’s Foolproof Bird Guide
Since you now know about my friend Mark’s wily ways, you’ll understand the motivation behind my Father’s Day present this year. Like every other dutiful 7-year-old daughter, I drew my Dad a picture.
My Dad is retired and one of his joys is to watch birds from our Central Oregon home. A bird book and binoculars are always perched at the living room bay windows which look out on no less than 3 bird feeders and a bird bath.
When Mark discovered Mr. Rankin’s love of bird watching, it took him about .00017 seconds to find a way to torment him with the very thing he enjoyed. While standing at the window Mark would shout “Wow, check out those birds!” to the effect of Mr. Rankin scrambling to the window to see whatever winged creatures were available. Of course, there was never a bird in sight as Mark stood by and took pleasure in my Dad’s gutted reaction to the bleak, birdless landscape.
So, for Father’s Day this year I made my Dad a foolproof digital bird guide, so no matter what Mark does, my Dad can always have some birds to watch. Happy Father’s Day Dad!
A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned
Ever since I participated in the Ben Franklin Print Exchange with local Portland letterpress artists last fall I can’t keep Poor Richard’s Almanac proverbs from popping into my head. When a recent discussion about my thriftiness started getting long in the tooth, my mind wandered into this interpretation of “A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned”. File this under “30-second-designs” for time thrifts.
Remember When We Ran Through Sprinklers?
Eighty-Five was a good year for sprinklers. The kind that go back and forth and form tunnels for dashing through, the kind that spray wildly in every direction, and the kind at the park that can be a hit or miss depending on how fast you run. Summer, where are you?
Wordcake Cards
When friend and food blogger Jen Stevenson of Under the Table wanted to start her own writing business, she came to me asking advice about collateral. She had chosen Wordcake Communications as her business name and needed a logo, business cards and a simple website to get the business going. “I was thinking I could have a big cake, with the word Wordcake on it!” she said, giving me creative rein with a theme. I replied with a somewhat muffled “Let’s see what we can do with that…”, and got to work.
Riffing on the idea of frosting, I found this typography sample in an ornaments and borders book and transformed it into Wordcake.
Before
After
The idea of a sophisticated take on a “cake on a platter” appealed to me since Jen is the epitome of a hostess with the mostess, even when she is stuffing your gullet with stinky cheeses and sweet confections. However, Jen wasn’t rolling in dough from creative writing (yet), so an economic solution was needed that would still help her stand out. I scoured the internet for an oval punch that could take the place of a diecut. Turns out, crafters have thought of almost everything, so after a bit of sleuthing I found several oval punches, perfect for the miniature platter shape that her business cards would become.
The cards were printed digitally and then hand punched by Jen in about an hour, after which she claimed she’d sprained her thumb. I told her she would have to toughen up, because once The Onion started calling and she had to churn out snarky story upon snarky story in record time, her thumb would have no reprieve.
Punch, punch.
Punch, punch, punch.
Many punches later.
Little paper hors d'oeuvres.
Wordcake Communications : Jen Stevenson : Pen for Hire
What Not to Wear?
Not every day can be a fashion hole-in-one; I thought it was OK to tuck my teal sweatpants into my cowboy boots until I was fourteen. Admittedly, middle school was not kind to me. Luckily those days have passed, but traces of my oblivious self still remain, and made a reappearance when I emerged Sunday morning in my special Sunday outfit.
Within 0.3 seconds my husband bleated in dismay. I think his exact words were “No, no, no…no, nooooooo!” He bullied, he cajoled, he pleaded with me to change into something more norm-pleasing. But I was adamant. My beloved puff paint souvenir t-shirt from my 4th grade birthday party was not going to be shoved to the bottom of the drawer. Nobody puts baby in the corner!
Drawing this outfit in pen and ink just wouldn’t do it justice, so I went the extra mile to give you this graphic representation of my technicolor fashion clash.
I rode Portland's Sunday Parkways in this outfit. I estimate about 750 people saw me. At least.
Last Friday, in Food
I tend to metabolize quickly, to the point that I consider it a defining feature of myself. As far back as I can remember, much of my waking time is spent thinking about food. Having a Danish mother reinforced the importance of food; being raised in a culture that reveres Julefrokost isn’t quite sane, or so I’ve been told. Which might explain my actions last Friday, in which I consumed enough food for a bus full of teenage boys.
I admit, it wasn’t the first time I’d overdone it in the food department. One time my uncle Henrik asked my sister and I what we wanted for dinner, and we simultaneously yelled “fried octopus rings” and “stuffed turkey”. So he made both, and threw in some bacon-wrapped pork chops for good measure, because he’s nice like that. After our menagerie of meats and their appropriate side dishes, we feasted on a solid marzipan cake until my aunt brought out a liter of ice cream, plopped it in front of me and declared “If you don’t eat it, it will melt!”. You can’t argue with that logic.
So, yes, I tend to eat a lot. If I had traversed the Oregon Trail I would have been the first left behind, huddled next to a barrel of flour and a sack of jerky. Put in perspective, last Friday’s trail of foraging doesn’t really compare to my previous gluttonous episodes, but seeing as I was out of eating shape, it sure made my gut question my mind. Would I do it again? No questions asked. Now, I think it’s time for some pie.
“Rid of Me” Trailer Site
A while back I helped James Westby, director of Film Geek and The Auteur, put together a trailer site for his new film. Check it out at www.ridofmemovie.com. (Update: looks like the site has since been revised by Bitclone).
Remote Explosion
When Sudafed, NyQuil, Emergen-C and the neti pot just don’t get the job done, you might resort to more drastic measures.
Don't try this at home, kids.
Canary Clay Finds His Wings
This weekend I stopped by the Stumptown Comics Fest to see my friends Graham, Stumptown Underground and of course the IPRC. As I was making my way through the participants I came across Atrox Comics and Beastlies, who make comics using 3D sculpted figures of the monstrously cute kind.
I bought one of the smallest figurines, dubbed him Canary Clay, and promptly took him on a walk around his new neighborhood.
Canary Clay surveys his new 'hood in appropriate protective tree-climbing headwear.
The neighbor's bird bath got some use.
Canary Clay makes a new friend, Rhonda the Flamingo. He invited her back to the bird bath but she would have none of it.
Canary Clay rests in some foliage and wonders how Mini Cooper got a hold of his proprietary color.
Mustache Finger Once Removed
In preparation for attending my friend Michael’s beard art show “Keep Portland Beard” at the Tribute Gallery, I created this little accessory so I would fit in. Michael writes the blog Beard Revue, so he was the perfect person to curate such a show. Portland is full of the hip sort that sport facial hair with varying levels of irony, so a take on the mustache finger was just what I needed to blend into the crowd!
I present you the mustache on a hand on a stick or "stick of irony".
How to be an ironic hipster and ironic at the same time.
Registration Print Process
Em Space, the local book arts center I’m involved with, put on their first anniversary show recently and asked members to submit a small printed piece so we could send a Petite Print Suite collection as a thank-you to people who had helped the organization in its first year. The theme was “print terminology” and I chose registration (basically, lining up two or more colors when printing, usually using a guide such as a X or dots to align colors). Little did I know that registration would be the least of my worries when producing 100 copies of the bar-4 card.
I chose to do a linoleum cut because 1) I am frugal, 2) I thought it would be easy, and 3) I had waited too long to get a plate made. I settled on my design and started carving away…
Carve your linoleum block backwards. It should take you two tries or less.
My linoleum had a dead spot in it, right around where Oregon should be.
To compensate for the dead spot (I like Oregon, it shouldn’t get the shaft because of some printing problems) I used torn newsprint to build up the area underneath the blank spot, so when the paper made contact with the linoleum block the surface receiving ink would be even, thus giving Oregon and the Western US its full due.
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Book Bot makes his first appearance in print
Stumptown Underground’s 8th Issue “Everybody Do the Robot” is in production, and Book Bot made the cut! Come to the release party Thursday, April 22nd at 8pm at The Fez. Book Bot’s evil cousin, shown here using his books for nefarious purposes, will NOT making be making an appearance. He had to stay home and polish his shoes, because he’s vain like that.
Turkey: 1, Mormon Boyfriend: 0
A while back my friend Jen from Under the Table was promoting an event called “It’s Not You, It’s Me: Stories from the Dark Side of Dating”. She asked some of her food loving friends to contribute their disastrous food-related dates…my submission unfolds as follows in a story I like to call: Turkey: 1, Mormon Boyfriend: 0.
Bringing your new boyfriend home to meet the parents is always a bit stressful…especially when said boyfriend is of the Mormon faith and your parents are of the faith where herpes, safe sex and religion in the Middle East are liberally discussed at dinner (maybe even at breakfast if the coffee is just right). Apart from anticipating the rousing and explicitly vulgar games of charades my family usually plays after dinner, I thought our first meal together would be a fairly stress free affair.
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Stumptown Underground Submission
Stumptown Underground sent out a call for submissions for their 8th issue, all about robots, and I answered. Book Bot had a few iterations but ended up in this get-up, which I equate in human terms to yellow tube socks and a strategically placed towel. He has his books, what more could he need?
