Really love this

Great conceptual thinking.
By designer Joey Roth.
via swiss miss.

S is for swing prints ready

My screen and inks

First pass of orange ink for the skirt

Squeegee action

Ta da.
(the first pass never looks much like anything!)

Applying the blue ink

2nd layer much more satisfying!

Here is the framed print as it appeared in Wish magazine

I have been working on my s is for swing prints all week and they are now ready!
They measure 15" X 22" and are printed on acid free Canson paper which has a beautiful deckled edge.
Please email me if you are interested in purchasing an unframed print.
They will be available framed at Hollace Cluny.

Yay Mad Men is back

Mad men is back and Don Draper is as intense and troubled as ever.
The opener was worth every penny of my 3.49 download from itunes!
Great interview with Terry Gross + creator/writer Matthew Weiner on NPR'S Fresh Air here.

Hello Heartbreak

Here's the cover I recently illustrated for Hello Heartbreak by Amy Huberman. It was a fun job as I love drawing cropped figures + hand lettering. Art director = Justinia Baird-Murray of Head Design in the UK. Published by Penguin UK.

Sketches

Everything sounds better in french.


The patterns on the goblets are inspired by 1950s textiles by Lucinenne Day and David Whitehead.

Here is the sketch with some pink added in Photoshop.

I visited lots of food + kitchen shops in Montreal including Les Touilleurs and Arthur Quentin. (Both dreamy)
The visit inspired me to do these sketches.
ps. Other nice Montreal shops = Buk + Nola and Emiline + Annabelle. (the Montreal equivalent of the workroom)

Lots to think about: Spark 104

Today Spark rebroadcast an episode from February which explored Personal branding and Online friendship. Was a fantastic episode with very smarty pants guests which left you with lots to think about.

A few nuggets:
NY Times writer Anand Giridharadas on BRAND ME
-The internet has forced everyone to become a marketer
-Online people have become more corporate and corporations have become more personal
-Ensuring that everything one posts aligns with your personal brand can be exhausting
-He worries that the emphasis on reputation + explicit self packaging is taking away time from actually working on one's product!
Sadly I agree on this point!

The Online friendship section contained a very sparky debate between Danah Boyd and Bill Deresiewicz (author of Faux Friendship).
You can listen to the whole episode here. Highly recommended.

Decor purchase: Wire hallway organizer thingy

In a shop on Saint Laurent St. in Montreal I found this fantastic wire organizer thingy which I thought was ideal for a big space with no closets! I loved all the storage possibilities with the multiple hooks and I am a sucker for anything made of wire!! - so it came home on the train with me. I think it'll look great holding my bicycle helmet and stuffed with scarfs + mitts.

Soon My Home Sweet Home

So here finally is a pic of my new loft aka the big white box!
Did I mention it has no closets? Oy vey!
Starting mid September you can follow along as I turn this cement box into a warm + welcoming nest!

Mon Vacance

A few pics from my vacation

My friend Kim's beautiful Summer home "Fox Folly" in St. Adele, Quebec

Voici le fox! (I love quirky door knockers)

Lovely view of the Laurentians

Very cozy guest room

Beautiful pool

Je suis en vacance

I am on vacation in Quebec.
Back soon.

ps. Mr. Burglar man don't get ideas... I have a friend house sitting for me.

Design for Good Egg Tote

Client requested a happy farm scene...


Some sketches

More sketches
These pigs did not make the cut!

Another idea

Final design

Here is the final design for the Good egg tote.
It will be printed in black ink on a very sturdy last forever jute bag.

Reminder: Apartment for Rent October 1st

Reminder: My apt is for rent beginning October 1st.
It is a very spacious 2 bdrm apt on 2 floors with a roof top terrace, 1 1/2 baths, custom built cabinetry, built in closets and great landlords. oh and it's in a dreamy neighbourhood!
The Open House is this Sunday July 18th and Monday the 19th 6 pm- 8pm. Please reply to this ad if interested.
http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/apa/1838450081.html

July

Whoops I think I missed a few months there and I am late with this one!
This is the July page of the calendar which I illustrated for Workopolis.

Score! Vintage book with Ben Shahn cover

At Balfour Books today was thrilled to find an old copy of S.J. Perlman's The Rising Gorge with Ben Shahn's gorgeous cover. I love Shahn's very expressive + blobby line, off register colour and wonderful unique type. He has been a big influence on my work.
ps. Balfour Books is moving In September so all books are 1/2 price!

New edition of A Room of One's Own Finished

Printing the black layer of the print

Prints drying on the Rack

Celebratory pizza and rootbeer!

Jeff was really stylin' at the studio today.
Nice combo of blazer with red long johns and nerdy Clark shoes.

I finished the second pass of my A Room of One's Own print this weekend.
We celebrated at the studio with Rootbeer and Pizza!
The prints are now tea stained with coffee + tea and ready to order.
They measure 26" X 40" and are printed on a beautiful acid free paper with a deckled edge. This is my fourth edition of the print and it is an edition of 20.

Please email me if you are interested in a print.

Strategies for Creative thinking: Long Streetcar Rides

Nicholas Carr was on cbc today discussing the effects of the internet on our brains. His research shows that when we read text with links in it (like in the sentence above!) we are continually experiencing small disruptions which impede comprehension and deep thinking. He feels that if you want to do some deep thinking (which he defines as research woven together with personal experience) you need to unplug!I heartily agree.

One of my favorite ways of making room for some deep thinking is to take a long streetcar ride.
There are 3 Rules:
1. Don't go in rush hour 2. Bring journal 3. Don't bring your iphone!