Big Plans & Updates for 2013

Let's see if I can get this cranked out before the little pink thing wakes up.  

Do you want the good new or the bad first?  The bad?  Okay.

The Bad News

Okay, it's really not that bad, unless your cheap, in which case you probably never buy any of my cards anyway.   Effective February 15th, I will be raising the prices of all single cards in my shop by fifty cents, from $3.50 per card to an even $4.00.  Prices of all sets will be raised accordingly, though I have not determined exact pricing yet.  That said, sets will still be the most cost effective way to buy more than one card.  I already readjusted my shipping prices to reflect the USPS' recent postage increases, so my shipping rates will not be changing.  A little good news, though:  I will be reducing the cost of all my 8x10 block prints to $17.50.  Not a huge price drop, but hey, it's something, right?  

The Good News

I'm going to be focusing less on block printing and starting to move back toward illustration more.  My recent posting of my latest series of Art-O-mat illustrations on my Facebook page was met with much more response than I have gotten in a long time.  It has shown me where I need to be putting my efforts and I thank you all for the support I received for all those tiny little drawings.  

So what's the plan?  I am going to see how feasible it is to have some of my older illustrations printed from digital images I have (hopefully with the help of my lovely husband, color corrector extraordinaire and owner/operator over at Nightowl Pictures).  If successful, I will get some prints done and put them up for sale in my shop.  In the meantime, I will also be working on new illustrations and some new version of old ideas.  

And of course, I have an ultimate goal in mind.  If the sales of said prints go well, I intend to invest in a high quality printer and start doing them myself, hopefully making illustration my full time job, while producing art that's still affordable to you guys.  And this way, I can actually hold onto some of the originals.  I know there are certainly some paintings I regretted giving away over the years.  

If you'd like to be of assistance, I would love to hear which of my old artworks you loved the best and would like to own a print of.  Where to start?  Try right here and here.  Easiest way to let me know?  Comment on the pictures you like.  Thanks again!

An Artist's Bucket List

Yup, I have a bucket list specifically for all things art-related.  Sure, I want to skydive and ride a horse down the beach like everyone else, but there are a few things the artist side of me has always wanted to do that are a little more specific.

1.  Visit the Met Costume Institute.
Actually, I've never even been to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, let alone New York, but if I could only visit one part of the Met, the Costume Institute would be it.  One of my favorite things to draw, strangely enough, has always been ladies in old-fashioned gowns, so I would love to see a few of those in person for some inspiration.  I stumbled across this House of Worth gown online, once upon a time, and it's been the catalyst of a few drawings in and of itself.   Anyone who says fashion isn't an art form is lying to themselves.

2.  Have more than a few completed works in my possession.
I love to draw, but I have--in the past-- had a bad habit of giving away paintings and illustrations almost as soon as I complete them.  I think I have never had more than four of five works lying around at one time.  Why?  Well, this leads into number three....

3.  Participate in a gallery show.
I draw because I love it, but have never truly pursued it as a career the way most artists do.  I would love, just once, to have a few pieces in a show. A group show is fine since, with my bad habit of giving art away, I'll probably never amass enough for a solo show.  Even better if the pieces sell, preferably to people I don't already know.

4. Take a pottery class.
Simple, I know, but I never seem to get around to it, find the time, or have the money.  Being a stay-at-home mom who doesn't drive doesn't really help.  Pottery has always looked like something that would be relaxing, sitting at that wheel, hands deep in cool clay.  I might end up being terrible at it, but I'd still like to try.

5.  Get a bachelor's degree in art.
I never went to college.  When I was younger, I always thought, if I went, the only things I would want to major in were art or English, and I had heard (and stupidly believed) both were useless degrees.  Here I am, a decade later, just discovering things like block printing and how to work in pastels, and I think about how much sooner I would have made these discoveries if I had went to college and majored in art, worthless degree or not.  And of course,  a decade later, I am finally smart enough to realize any degree is better than no degree.  So one of these days, when the kid is a little older, I think I'll go back to school.

And while I'm there, maybe I'll take a pottery class.

Five Things I Didn't Expect About Being A Mom

Being a mom (or dad), there are a lot of things you think about as the birth of your child comes closer.  You worry about whether they'll be born healthy, what they'll look like (I really wanted my baby to be born with hair).  You think about what the nursery will be like and how soon before they'll sleep through the night.  I was one of those people that read a lot--internet articles, books on baby's first year, parenting guidebooks.   But there are some things all the reading and preparation and decisions about nursery themes and diapers and feedings just can't prepare you for.  I'm sure this list is very different for every parent, but here's mine.

1.  I am obsessed with my baby's sleep. Other mom's are obsessed with how many ounces their baby eats at each feeding, or how many dirty and wet diapers they make.  Me, I want my baby to sleep.  My husband and I both have crappy sleep habits (watching TV in bed, staying up too late, hitting the snooze twenty times in the morning) and I am determined not to instill that on my kid.  I carefully note each little block of sleep and how she got there both on my smartphone and on a chart.  I'm like a scientist watching over an experiment.  Or maybe I just want to brag about how my baby sleeps 11 to 12 hours at night.  And complain about how short her naps are....

2. Her cute little feet. I am not a foot person.  I will massage any part of my husband's body before I touch his feet, whether his feet are aching or fresh from a shower.  But Amelia?  I probably kiss the soles of her feet ten times a day.   More if it's making her smile at that particular moment. This is not even stopped by the fact she always tries to put those adorable feet in her poop whenever I change her diaper. (Don't worry! I clean them before I kiss them)!

See how cute they are?

3.  The habits of a crazy person are suddenly the most precious thing in the world if your child is doing them.   If you saw a man standing on a corner, trying to put a spoon in his mouth and missing over and over again, you'd probably back away slowly, right?  Well, yesterday, I watched my daughter try to put her pacifier in her mouth for five minutes straight, half the time not getting it near her mouth, the other half smashing it against her lips the wrong way.  It was hilarious.  I eventually went over and put it in for her when she started to cry.  

4.  I don't mind getting poop on me, nor do I honestly notice half the time.  The first week Amelia was home, she pooped explosively (yes, babies really do this) as I was changing her diaper, shooting it outward so it landed on my feet, arm and the bed.  I laughed and kept changing her.  I can't even count the number of times I've realized I have a poop smear on my hand when I haven't changed a diaper in at least an hour.  This may have something to do with being an artist and always having ink or paints on my hands and under my nails.  That said, I have become much more thorough about sanitizing my hands before cooking or eating. 

5.  I didn't know it until I had a kid, but I have ninja-mom-bat ears.  My husband and I can be sitting on the couch, in the living room, watching TV and eating dinner and if Amelia makes the slightest peep, we immediately have this conversation:

                               Me: What was that?

                               Him:  What was what?

                               Me: I thought I heard the baby. 

                               Him:  I didn't hear anything.

                               Baby:  Waaaaah!

                               Him:  Oh. 

I could list a few more things I didn't expect about being a mom, but I figure one thing on the list with poop is enough.  

Naptime Worktime

The baby suddenly started taking normal naps again yesterday.  And, by normal, I mean more than fifteen to thirty minutes long.

A thirty minute nap is one of two things.   One, it's annoying in the sense that it takes almost as long to get the baby to go to sleep as she actually stays asleep.  Two, the baby stays asleep just long enough to get me really into whatever I'm doing before she starts stirring.

I'm one of those slow-build kind of people, so when the little bean falls asleep, I make a cup of coffee, have a snack, start doing dishes...then I get into the cleaning and I start doing laundry, and then I've got the vacuum out and the mop... then WHAM! She's awake and the floor is half mopped or the laundry is in a pile.  If I was working on my shop, maybe a listing is half-edited, or I was in the middle of a batch of photographs that needed to be tweaked.  Then, I hear that gurgling sound that means she's up and I think two things. One is too profane to post here and one is just too gushy.

Needless to say, I am very glad she is sleeping for one to two hours at a time.  But it now presents a new problem:  I have so much to do, that I haven't done in so long, I don't know what to do with myself or how to do it.  This morning, I finally photographed some new items for my shop which were designed and made mid-way through my pregnancy.  But I hadn't used my camera in so long, I couldn't remember the best settings and most of the photos turned out meh, so that's going to take a few tries to get right.

Mostly, though, I just sort of wander aimlessly from one chore or spot of work to the next (the same way I'm kind of rambling through this post).  The way my brain works now is this:  I see the bouncer needs to be moved back into the kitchen, so I do it and as I'm doing it, I see the dog bowl, so I feed the dog.  While I'm getting food, I see dirty dishes, so I go to do those, but I realize my brayer for rolling ink is drying in the rack, so I take it to my desk.  I see on my desk a half-finished design, so I sketch a few lines, look up and see a dirty glass...you get the point.  I get a little of everything done, but nothing really gets completed.

Maybe it's going to take a few naps to figure out the settings on my camera again and a few more to get that print design finished, but there is one bright spot:  that smile I get every time she wakes up.

The Nursery

So the one artsy thing I managed to do while I was pregnant was decorate the nursery.   It was already painted green from when it was my studio (I like being surrounded by color).  I went with a forest/bird theme, and put everything together myself, from the birch tree decals on the walls to the goldfinch shadowboxes.  Have a look:

Wide view of the birch decals.

Opposite corner of the room.

Goldfinch shadowboxes I made. These were the inspiration for the room.

I got cheap art by cutting prints out of an old Audubon book I picked up for $2. 

Birdhouse mobile I made for less than 10$.

I still feel it isn't quite complete.  I plan to add some brightly colored birds among the birch trees to match the colors on the mobile.  Soon, if I have time, I'll do a tutorial on how I did the birch tree decals (which also cost less than ten dollars to do)!

WAHM, SAHM, Thank you Ma'am

There are acronyms for everything on the internet these days, even for moms.  If you've spent any time whatsoever on any kind of baby or child forum, you're probably already familiar with the two or three most common: WAHM (work-at-home mom), SAHM (stay-at-home mom) and FTM (first-time mom).

Well, today, I'm making a new one.  I am redefining myself as a CAHM.  Create-at-home mom.  I really don't think WAHM fits, because creativity is an elusive enough beast when you aren't distracted by a very small person.  It doesn't schedule itself.  I can't get my husband to watch the baby and hope my muse shows up then.  I just have to cross my fingers and hope I can remember that idea long enough to write it down when Amelia is playing or sketch out that new design while she naps.

This has nothing to do with the post, but I think baby hands are cute.

I mean, I don't know if you've noticed, but I have not added an entirely new design to my Etsy shop in nearly a year.  Not a print, painting or card.  I did do some creative things while pregnant (I'll have to do a post on the nursery soon!), but nearly all of them were for the baby.  The simple truth is, pregnancy fries your brain (at least temporarily, though I admit to still feeling like a dunce most days).  So it was hard enough to come up with ideas then, let alone carry through with them.  Thankfully, I feel like I'm back on track these days.  I don't know when my muse is going to pop in, but I'm scattering a bunch of drawing pens around the house just in case.  I also think I might have a new one, hidden in a tiny, chubby face.

So, yes, I feel being an artist and a mom deserves it's own acronym.  When you're trying to sketch out an idea with one hand while jiggling a cranky baby with the other, you totally get to make up your own title.

And am I writing this while the baby sleeps, three days in advance of posting? Hell yes.

The Long Absence

Soooo...you might have noticed it's been, oh, eleven months or thereabouts since my last post. "What have you been doing?" you may ask. "Where have you been for so long? I missed your treasury posts and tutorials and seeing what you were working on!" Or maybe you didn't. Sorry I disappeared for ever so long. I was working on my largest and most important project yet:

Her name is Amelia and she is now two months old.  I hope, now, that you understand my absence.   If that is not a good enough reason for you ("Why didn't you post during pregnancy?" you ask, indignant).   Well, I had morning sickness worse than you can ever imagine.  By the time that was over, there was a baby to prepare for, and by the time preparing for the baby was over, there was, well, a baby.  

So what does this mean for my blog? My art? My life?  No worries.  While little A has become the center of my world, I refuse to become one of those moms where she is the only thing in my world.  It does mean the scope of my art will probably change, and certainly how much time to create it (I've already experienced the thrill of speed-printing while rocking a whimpering baby with my foot).  And certainly this blog is going to change.  After all, I find it hard enough to schedule a shower these days, let alone blog posts.  

From here on out, things are going to be a lot more freeform around here.  No more Treasury Tuesdays and Feature Fridays, or whatever I had going before. Besides, did you really enjoy all those Treasury Tuesdays?  It got a little tedious, didn't it?  Yes, yes.  I thought so.  

So, now, I'll write when I write and I plan to actually write.  It will still be about art and craft, but now it's going to be about art and craft while trying to juggle being a mom.  Also, I've been nagging my wiz of a graphic designer husband and hopefully we'll have a new look (and new location) coming soon.  

Big changes are coming, friends.  And some are already here. 

Treasury Thursday: Dove Grey

'Dove Grey' by cursiveart

too far far away vlad $112.00	Grey Dove Cabochon Ring... ElektraLoadedD... $10.00	Organ 8x10 Print of Ori... virginiakralje... $30.00
Sterling Silver Eerie B... MarKhed $72.00	The Blue Teacup Forest ... myfolklover $25.00	Bird Stuffe Animal Tuft... bubbletime $14.00
Hello Cat Card blackoutwell $2.00	Moonlit Shadow Dove Gre... Indigofawn $30.00	Vintage Swan Flower Fro... bellalulu $72.00
Light grey heather 2x2... JewelKnits $50.00	Ratatouille the metal d... BrownDogWeldin... $45.00	The Bikes 018 6x6 Origi... aptrick $25.00
Magnolia Porcelain Micr... elementclaystu... $95.00	Grey Dove 5x7 Print BlackCottageHa... $12.00	handmade felted wool bo... hold $36.00
White Feather Dove stam... TheLonelyHeart $4.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

The Christmas Season Is Upon Us...

...wait.  What?

Yes, I know it seems early.  It's still ten days out from Halloween.  For those of us trying to sell Christmas goods, though, we realize it helps to get started early.  And probably, you should, too.  Perhaps you want to get your mom a hand-drawn portrait of her favorite cat this year.   Maybe you want to get your knitting-crazed grandma a yarn bowl.  Well, these things take time to make, and your favorite craftsman will be more than happy to do it for you.  And if you think about it, we're only a few weeks out from Thanksgiving.  Next thing you know, it's time to send out Christmas cards....

And speaking of Christmas cards, not only do I have some new ones available in my shop this year (and plan to pull out a few new designs in the coming weeks), but I am always available to custom design and print cards for you.   So keep that in mind, if you want to send out cards this year that will make your family and friends jealous of their awesomess....

But, back to the cat drawing.

I think with all of my block-printyness (that is so totally a word), I think people sometimes forget I am also capable of drawing actual things.  Yes, all sorts of things.  Yup, I can draw that.  And that, too.  I know what you're thinking and I can draw that as well, but am not going to.

Point being, the time is now to start thinking about awesome art as Christmas presents.  And all I'm saying is, keep me in mind.  I'm probably more affordable than you think.

Have a question? Shoot it my way  right here.

30DDC: Days 8 and 9

Day 8


This challenge was to draw my favorite animated character.  I am not a big cartoon watcher, so decide to go with my favorite graphic novel character, one of the Endless, from Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" comics?  Which Endless? The Sandman himself, of course.  Good ol' Morpheus.
Drawing time: 4 minutes (two to sketch, two to ink it in with a paintbrush).

Day 8


On the eighth, I was to illustrate my favorite TV show.  Once upon a time, that would have been a grumpy and sarcastic doctor with a cane, but I think that show has gone downhill in the last couple season (House MD, if you don't know to what I'm referring).   I am now in favor of a much older, but much younger-looking doctor.  The Doctor.

And in case you didn't know, I take all my photos in my iPhone and email them to myself, because I am too lazy to do it any other way.  So please excuse the somewhat mediocre lighting.

30DDC: Days 5, 6 and 7

Day 5 


The day five challenge was to draw my best friend. Sadly I could not find a great picture of her, so after several frustrating attempts, you're stuck with this.  She has lovely eyes, kind and always laughing.
Drawing time: Minus failed attempts, three minutes.

Day 6


Day six's challenge was to draw my favorite book character.  I found this a challenge as (a) I love a lot of books and have no one favorite character, let alone a single favorite book and (b) most of the characters I do love have already been rendered somehow.  So I opted for Yvaine from Neil Gaiman's "Stardust."  Obviously, this is my version and not Claire Danes.
Drawing time: 10 minutes

Day 7


Yesterday's illustration was to draw my favorite word.  Funnily enough, I already have the word, "serendipity" tattooed on my leg.  I took the challenge to literally mean design typography rather than draw the meaning of the word.  I really enjoyed this one and thought my little font came out quite nicely especially for not bothering to design it properly (measuring serifs and all that).
Drawing time: 15 minutes (I had to go back and redo some of the spacing before I inked it in and it's still      not perfect).

30DDC: Day 4

Yesterday's challenge was to draw my favorite place. I spent most of the day overthinking this one.  Was I to draw Copenhagen, one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, or Disneyworld, where my husband  and I spent our honeymoon?  Should I draw the beaches of Sarasota or the Carolina mountains?  Then I realized I was thinking about it all wrong and realized there are two places I love to be the most: either in bed with my husband as a pillow, the puppy at our feet, watching a movie; or in my studio, art supplies surrounding me, music drifting from my iPod.  

My husband is harder to draw than a desk so I opted for the later.  By the time I made this decision, it was nearly midnight, so this ended up being a very rough drawing.  Too much time thinking not enough time drawing.

Estimated drawing time: 5 minutes.

30DDC: Day 3

Day 3


Day three's theme is favorite food. I love sweets, but especially eclairs.  We have this amazing bakery here in Charlotte called Amelie's and every time I am nearby I have to stop in and grab one, and usually a salted caramel brownie, too.  Pastries make me very, very happy.

30DDC: Day 1 and Day 2

Day 1 


The first challenge was to do a self-portrait.  I took one of my favorite photos of from my wedding and drew from that (and, of course, took out all the 'bad' parts).  My husband referred to this sketch as the 'Disney princess' version of me.  I am totally happy with that description.
Total drawing time: about 15 minutes

Day 2


Day two's challenge was to draw my favorite animal.  I love my little black kitty and spent quite awhile trying to draw her specifically before I realized how effing hard it is to draw a black cat.  And since I would like to actually enjoy this challenge, rather than ending up hating it, I finally just did a simple stylized version of a cat.
Total drawing time:  20 minutes, if you include all the failed drawing of my cat; 3 minutes if counting just this illustration.

The Thirty Day Drawing Challenge

For any of you that follow my Facebook , which has been around about ten times longer than this blog, you know that once upon a time I attempted a 365 day drawing challenge, where I drew something every day for a year.  If you know that, you probably also know I only made it about 100 days.

Well, I decided to try something like that again, except on a much smaller more manageable scale.  Thirty days, with a list of things I have to draw.  Here, dear readers, is the list:

I wish I knew where this originally came from, but I don't so sadly I cannot credit it, but I found it via Pinterest.   I shall be posting these here, on a mostly daily basis (just because I do a drawing every day, doesn't mean I'll have time to upload it right away).  I will also link to here from my Facebook and Twitter.  Feel free to play along!

This starts tomorrow and continues through the day before Halloween.

Treasury Thursday: Out of the Blue

'Out of the Blue' by cursiveart

A collection of cool (colored) things.

Aqua Turquoise Sea Cora... UneekGlassFusi... $120.00	Knit Baby Hat, Giant Po... KnitzyBlonde $27.00	Necklace Turquoise Ston... Christinesjewe... $25.00
Concho Belt-Silver-Turq... brokenwing2 $1200.00	Pin Cushion Handmade Ha... HeartfullySewn $12.00	Peacock ART- watercolor... Splodgepodge $14.00
Large Aqua Stoneware Bo... patspottery $36.00	kitchen sign cook sign ... OldNewAgain $56.00	Turquoise dress 50'... nairamkitty $38.00
Big ring Handmade turqu... AndreaBacmanJe... $49.00	Architectural Art, Orna... SketchAway $18.00	Seashell Earrings Aqua ... GlassRiverJewe... $31.00
Baby Ruche Bag in Blue ... jennyndesign $204.00	Vintage Canisters Turqu... GlassnMore $30.00	Scandinavian Dala Horse... sugarloop $20.00
Glass lampwork beads An... radiantmind $5.25

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.