A common view in the old towns here in Italy…seemingly infinite rooftops going on and on…

I am loving the creation of repeating of patterns and experimenting with variations. For this rooftop pattern, I keep tinkering with the sizes and window placements.  I know it’s been done before, but still fun to do your own.  Maybe I can print some fabric from this as well!  Here are a bunch of color variations I created. What do you think?

Infinite possibilities of infinite rooftops! This pattern is also my last minute entry for Illustration Friday – infinite theme. I’ve been busy and distracted with so many other things this week, but it’s nice to stop and just do something else – not on my list of to do’s!

Posted on September 25, 2009 at 11:10 am | patterns | 20 comments

I am loving Spoonflower and all the great designers currently using their platform. It’s not cheap to design and print your own fabric, but the satisfaction of having created something from scratch really drives you to make the best possible product in the end. I also love the empowerment their platform is giving to designers such as Liz Scott, who  runs Wonderfluff on Etsy – her own fabric designs printed using Spoonflower. I can’t wait until they go out of beta and enable you to sell your fabric designs direct to the public.  It’s great innovation and a grand opportunity for all of us.

I’ve seen so many great designs and professional fabric patterns from independent designers, it’s really fantastic that so many people have been empowered. There’s also a great community as well – designers who are all passionate about textile design. Very cool stuff! The internet has given all of us the possibility of communicating worldwide and now there are companies popping up to help with business and manufacturing – Spoonflower, Etsy, Lulu, Blurb…to name a few. I wonder what other innovations will pop up via the internet for independent designers and artists? It’s definitely a fast changing world out there and supremely exciting!

After creating my birdie pattern and realizing it would make great fabric for PJs, I signed up with Spoonflower and ordered a swatch to see how the colors will turn out.  It’s so exciting to be able to have such power of creation upon my hands…woohoo!  Also, there was a special theme presented for competition on Spoonflower, a fabric design with spoon and flower design(s) incorporated somehow.  I decided to take part and created a spoonflower bud pattern.  A simple repeating design with bright colors that I think would make a nice tablecloth or napkins! What do you think?

Posted on September 24, 2009 at 12:00 pm | patterns | 3 comments

Lately I’ve been trying to experiment with many different mediums and not be locked into any one method of art and design. Although I’ve primarily been working digitally, I have always been intrigued with the watercolor medium. I totally love the wispy loose lines and colors you can create and many of my favorite prints come from Irisz Agocs. You should definitely check out her work, if you haven’t seen it before.

Of course, it’s one of those things that looks simple, but really has so many layers of techniques.  I actually have pretty shaky hands, so it’s a challenge especially to do details and smaller pieces.  Still lots to learn, but it’s a very fun medium that is portable as well as easy to clean up, very nice for journaling on the road! Although I’m just starting out, I’d like to share a little illustration I created that translates very well into a shopping list.

Download Printable Buy More Cookies Shopping List PDF (631 kb)

Cookies always make me feel better, so don’t forget to stock up!  Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the freebie for your personal use.

Posted on September 21, 2009 at 12:06 pm | free goodies, watercolor | 6 comments

I have a love-hate relationship with the Italian postal service.

First of all, I absolutely love receiving old-fashioned written correspondence because it means so much more when someone has taken the time and effort to write manually. Even though I appreciate digital forms of communication for the convenience and speed, nothing beats holding that envelope in hand, feeling the texture of the paper, inspecting the stamps and date marks and finally opening up the mail to reveal the precious contents within.  It’s a beautiful thing that makes me appreciate and love the postal service.

However, I soon realized that the Italian postal service is not very speedy and sometimes loses mail. Although, I suppose I cannot confirm that anything has been lost as it may still be on its way to me…one day…maybe. I never had any issues in the States, so it was quite a shock to lose my confidence in mail order delivery. I was really shocked during August vacation when everyone – including the postman – went on vacation.  Yup, major delay in mail delivery. Thus, I hate the postal service because it can take months for something to arrive, if ever.

In trying to see the cup as half-full instead of half-empty, I admit that when I do receive mail, it is even more wonderful and pleasantly surprising. For example, today I found the latest issue of MixTape in my mailbox.  Score! I usually purchase digital copies of zines because that ensures delivery, but I had won a hard copy after listening to the interview of editor/publisher, Justine Telfer, on a CraftSanity podcast.  I really like MixTape because it provides articles pertaining to the craft community with some music and eco/green topics thrown into the mix.  It’s also very well designed and I always learn something new. Moving forward they will be upgrading to a bigger format, so I am definitely looking forward to new issues.

Shout out to both MixTape and CraftSanity for the giveaway – I appreciate it very much.  Isn’t it lovely that zines and podcasts exist to help inspire all of us?  I also listen to CraftyPod and Art Biz Blog podcasts as well as read ArtTrader Magazine, Ten Two Studios The Monthly Muse, Pikaland’s Good To Know, and most recently found Parasol Craft. Do you know of other inspirational zines and podcasts?

Posted on September 18, 2009 at 7:42 pm | inspiration | No comments

Inspiration can come from just about anything and yet, artists spend a great deal of time searching and even waiting for that special spark. I am inspired all the time, seeing new patterns and designs in everything that surrounds me. The swirls in my morning cup of coffee or even the splotches on the ceiling of my bedroom inspire. Images suddenly come to mind when I hear certain phrases in conversation, especially since I am learning Italian and practically every word is a new discovery.

Being online for a large part of the day, I must also mention the many blogs out there that inspire with words and photos. You can see my blogroll on the sidebar, but there are many more in my trusty RSS reader.  I’m always excited to see what others are up to and I think we fuel each other with our creativity. I also follow theme websites such as Illustration Friday and Inspire Me Thursday. They offer a weekly word or phrase to be interpreted in any way you see fit. There’s also Creative Every Day and Monday Art Day…what blogs and theme websites do you find inspiring?

All this inspiration can sometimes feel like information overload.  Thankfully, we all have that trusty tool called a sketchbook.  I have always found myself jotting down lists of ideas.  Very stream of consciousness and seemingly random as my mind leaps around a lot. Unfortunately, inspiration isn’t executed upon all the time, maybe just a few here and there are followed through to the end. In reflecting on this, I realize that I’m an idea person. I just love brainstorming most of all. No limits, no boundaries, just spout out anything and everything.

I thought it was such a shame that my lists of ideas usually get left behind and forgotten. I’m already on to the next idea after all. But wouldn’t it be better if I shared my lists? No worries on how silly some might seem…I would rather give it a chance – for the possibility of promoting some creativity somewhere.  I offer it all with no strings attached because it seems better that an idea can be nurtured rather than lost forever – effectively unused potential.  Think of all the amazing things that could be created if the right idea was matched with the right person to execute it? It makes me happy just thinking about sharing ideas, so moving forward I will do just that along with posting the one idea I personally do follow through with. So here goes…

In Good Company is the theme this week at Inspire Me Thursday and honestly the first thing that came to mind was the movie, In Good Company.  (Duh!) But from there my stream of consciousness went on…

• your hands gripped together, like in the movie during the speech by the big boss, good graphic poster
• something about people, family and friends together
• I like hugging, snuggling – even with your pets, kawaii!
• drinking wine and hanging out – the wine glass and bottle make me think of merry jolly times
• anything together especially in cold weather, seems like a good time to snuggle
• thinking of warm colors – tans, browns – earth colors – in the midst of the cold white snow
• roasting chestnuts over the fire, even smores over campfire
• camping, always good company around you, cozy
• animals in their burrows, very cozy together – babies with mommy in burrow smushed up together
• baby sleeping with teddy bear or hugging blankie or sibling babies cuddling
• babies in yin yang formation
• idea of fitting together perfectly
• ultimately the feeling of comfort, security and love with something else = in good company
• the holidays come to mind, xmas especially

I could go on, but I stopped on something I wanted to illustrate, fluffy birds snuggling together on a cold winter day!  I decided to make it a repeating tile because patterns are just so darn cool.

Cute little pairs of birdies looking cozy for you.  I hope you feel in good company on my blog, because I do appreciate your visits and comments.  Thanks for sticking around on this amazingly long blog post.  Ciao ciao!

Posted on September 15, 2009 at 11:55 pm | inspiration, patterns | 8 comments