8.31.2009

10 Things Self-Portrait



I was tagged by Leeanna to do another photo "meme" (here's my previous 16 Things About Me meme), so I needed to take another self portrait. So I took some more pics of myself and had fun experimenting with layers in Photoshop.

Here is the 10 Things About Me List:
1. I've eaten crickets and ants willingly. I ordered them at a restaurant. :D
2. My favourite comfort drink is tea. I drink it every single day.
3. When I was 3yrs old, I assumed the identity of a rabbit for almost a year. My parents were very worried. lol. (Story is here.)
4. I have 2 tattoos and want to get more. The only thing holding me back is deciding on a good design, and the fact that I faint around needles. :S
5. My dream is to live in Europe someday. I've been wanting to do this when I first visited the UK with my Grandmother when I was 12.
6. I used to have a Japanese penpal and we wrote letters back and forth for years. We have since lost touch, but I'm happy she was a part of my life.
7. I swear my cat has OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)... he gets totally stressed out if I don't go to bed at a certain time every night.
8. I'm very indecisive with almost everything in my life... except for when it comes to art.
9. I love Spring + Fall, and don't like Summer + Winter. I don't like extreme heat or cold. I like it just right.
10. I'm not religious at all. It has no place in my life.

Press: Vinyl Pulse + Twitter

I haven't posted in a week because I came down with a bad cold and it knocked me out for a few days. :( Luckily I'm over it now, but being sick has pushed back my projects by a week, and now I have lots to catch up on. I missed a very important deadline I was aiming for -- more to come on that. :S

Anyways, Vinyl Pulse wrote a nice post where they suggested me as someone to follow on Twitter! Isn't that sweet! :)

8.24.2009

Weekly Window Shopping #10: Anthropologie

This week I’m featuring the online shop called Anthropologie. They sell beautiful (and very expensive) clothes. I love their colour palette as well as the style and cut of almost all their clothing. If I had money to burn, I would shop here. They also sell furnishings and accessories for the home, but I'll leave that feature for another week. :)


[Left] Shoestring Boots - $218.00
[Middle] Inverness Trench - $188.00
[Right] Chipper Tote - $199.00


[Left] Felice Cardigan - $98.00
[Middle] Idyll Respite Necklace - $38.00
[Right] Promenade Cardigan - $78.00


[Left] Citizens for Humanity Dita Petite Bootcut - $158.00 (I wear petite size jeans)
[Middle] Angles & Angles Cardigan - $88.00
[Right] Squeezebox Hoodie - $138.00

8.20.2009

In Progress: Kalua Moola Custom, Part 3

Here's another in progress pic of my Kalua Moola custom for the Artist Crossover Series with Argonaut Resins! As you can see, I've painted a bit more on this guy since my previous post. I added a teal cloud to the bottom part of his body and his ears, and I've drawn the tribal-styled designs on his forehead and I'm painting them in dark purple (I know it looks a bit like black, but it's really dark purple). Still got a ways to go...

8.19.2009

In Progress: Kalua Moola Custom, Part 2

Below is a pic of my Kalua Moola custom with the first 2 or 3 coats of purple paint on him. This paint is very thin and takes several coats to build up a nice smooth opaque look (it took like 10 coats), so that's why it looks a bit "patchy" right now. I left parts of him white because they will be painted different colours. You can see my design + colour key sketch in the background. ;)


In this next pic, I've finished the purple base coat (you can see it's nice and opaque after lots of layers), and I've started painting his eyes. I like to start with the eyes because I think that really starts to bring the character and personality alive. Do you like the yellow paint? :) His nose, ears and bandages will be a different colour, so I've left them unpainted for now.


Next I added an outline around the eyes. I think his personality is really starting to come through. You can see what colour his ears will be....


More to come soon...

8.17.2009

Etsy: Woodland Animals on Canvas!

I've launched some brand new items in my Etsy shop -- Felt Art on Canvas! These canvases measure 5x5 inches, and are ready to hang on the wall. I'm starting with this trio of woodland animals, cause I think they're the cutest. ;)

Animation: My Demo Reel

Want to see what I do for a living? This is my demo reel featuring animation I did for G-Force, Alvin And The Chipmunks and Everyone's Hero. :)

Weekly Window Shopping #9: Tokyo Jazz Panda

This week I’m featuring the online shop called Tokyo Jazz Panda. "Chester's cutest boutique store! Stylish and fun homeware, kidswear, gifts, snacks, mobile accessories.... We even have plenty of Hello Kitty!" If you're in the UK, they offer free shipping on orders over £20!


[Left] Petit Babie (Colour) - £1.99/each
[Middle] Frog Storage Cart - £19.99
[Right] Strawberry Spoon in Case - £3.99


[Left] Mushroom Clock - £7.99/each
[Middle] Decole 'Daruma' Stamp - £2.99
[Right] Mamegoma Star Strap - £3.99


[Left] Strawberry Mouse Pad (Red) - £3.99
[Middle] Momiji Randoms (Silly Billy) - £11.99
[Right] Strawberry Key Cover - £2.99

8.14.2009

In Progress: Kalua Moola Custom, Part 1

Here's a snapshot of my blank Kalua Moola figure waiting to be customized. Look at how tough he is! He's so ready for me to bring on the paint. I've drawn up a few ideas already (you can see some in the pic), and I'm very close to deciding on my final design and I can't wait to slap on the first layer of paint!

I couldn't believe it when I first received him -- he is hand cast! I'm so used to the factory made vinyl toys, and have never held an original hand cast vinyl toy before. It was like seeing an original painting or something, very exciting! If you'd like to customize your own Kalua Moola figure, then you're in luck! Argonaut Resins is selling 8 DIY KM figures in their online shop. Grab 'em now because they're going to sell out fast!

8.13.2009

Etsy: More Mini Ghosties + 1 Plush Deer

More plushies hit my Etsy shop today! 7 Mini Ghosties and 1 plush deer:


  • Mini Lime Green Ghostie promotes new growth in any situation.
  • Mini Yellow + Blue Ghostie helps to revitalize you if you are feeling burnt out from too much work.
  • Mini Red Ghostie absorbs all the fears and anxieties around him in an effort to try and make things stable again.
  • Mini Pink + Blue Ghostie helps bring peace to a hurtful relationship.
  • Mini Light Pink Ghostie helps to show there is love in a situation that might seem hopeless.
  • Mini Blue + Pink Ghostie helps bring peace to a hurtful relationship.
  • Mini Lime Green + Pink Ghostie helps to bring out your inner beauty.

Strawberry Cupcake Deer works in a French Confectionery that makes the best sweets available in Deerville. When she’s not selling sugary treats, she likes to browse the local antique shops for treasures and afterward enjoys an afternoon tea at her favourite local cafe.

My very messy Craft Table!

I always like seeing what other people's craft tables look like, so I thought I'd post a pic of mine as of right this second! It's so messy and completely unworkable at the moment, but that tends to happen when you have a billion projects on the go. I added some tags + description to this photo which you can check out over at Flickr.

8.12.2009

In progress: New project in the works!

As you know, I like to keep myself busy with lots of art projects. So after deciding that my list of things-to-do wasn't long enough, I decided to embark on a new project. Here are a few sneak-peeks:



What's it going to be? Don't worry, everything will be revealed by the end of the week! :)

Drawings: Kittehs!

I know it's been a while, but I finally have some drawings to show (wow, really?). I've been trying to push myself to keep drawing more... for several reasons. First because I'd like to, and second (most importantly), because I've been commissioned by my brother (♥) to do some illustrations for the political campaign office he works in (pics will be posted when finished). I need to get all the ugly drawings out now so I can start drawing good stuff! So, I've been doing some life drawing of my tuxedo cat Lucky. I think pets are the perfect life drawing models because well, it's free, and they're always lying around in the cutest positions. I think cats have such a beautiful round and fluid shape. They can stretch their bodies and torque their spine into crazy shapes. I love how their ears are always listening to the sounds around them. Okay, enough babble, here are my drawings:



I originally drew them with a blue Col-Erase animation pencil (the best type of pencil to draw with, IMO), scanned them, desaturated them, and then bumped up the contrast. Cheating a little? Maybe. But I wanted them to have a nice and crisp presentation, rather than the faded blue pencil.



I have always loved drawing cats, and drawing Lucky made me remember how much fun it is. Okay, waaay off tangent, but it's time for a story: One of my favourite artists who draws/paints animals is the German Expressionist painter Franz Marc. He created amaaaazing paintings of red deer, yellow cows, blue pigs and blue horses with gorgeous round shapes and some cubist influences. This Google search shows some of his amazing paintings. I LOVED Franz Marc in high school, he was definitely one of my art heroes. I loved him so much that one of my high school projects was of two brightly coloured cats curled up sleeping on a cloud in the sky. I painted everything in bright colours. I might have that painting somewhere in storage... who knows. But the models for those sleeping cats in my projects were my kitties. Like I said before, cats are the best life drawing models! :)



When I used to draw a lot (in College), my art teachers would say that for every 100 drawings, you'll maybe get 1 that's good... or something like that. They were really strict on us (man, do I have stories!). We were taught that unless your drawing was amazing (or got an A), you might as well throw it out and do it over again. So I would throw away my sketchbooks filled with drawings that I didn't like. My Mom was completely appalled and would rescue my sketchbooks from the garbage all the time (which annoyed me greatly, lol). But it's kind of silly because I really think you need to draw bad drawings to get good ones anyways. There's nothing wrong with that, it's just a part of the creative process. So now that I'm drawing again and showing my stuff without fear of criticism or bad marks (since I'm doing it for fun), well, it reminds me of my Mom rescuing the drawings I thought were not good enough. I know she'd be happy that I kept these and posted them on the internet! :)

Kalua Moola Artist Crossover Series w/ Argonaut Resins

I'm so pleased to announce that I've been asked to be an artist in the Artist Crossover Series with Argonaut Resins! I'm going to be painting a Kalua Moola, designed by Lord Mesa and sculpted by Eric Nocella Diaz. I'll be posting in progress pics as I go along. Below is the figure I'll be customizing. Just look at how cute and tough this little bugger is!



Here's a sneak-peek at what the packaging for the box will look like. I think it rocks!!! EEEEE! (That's me squealing in excitement, lol) I'm soooo super excited about this! :)


[Pic by Argonaut Resins]

8.10.2009

Mighty Muggs Show: Pics!

This weekend was also the Mighty Muggs Charity & Art Show at The Labyrinth in Toronto. Here are some pics of the show from The Labyrinth's blog:



The customs on display look awesome. Two of Spades is happy to hang out with Hellboy. :) On a side note, check out all the art books in Dan's shop! Can you see why it's the best art book store in Toronto? If you're in Toronto, check it out and donate some cash to charity by voting for your favourite Mugg! And then go buy some books! :)

From what I've heard, the Munny Grubbers show at Just Blazed this past weekend was very successful. On Friday I found an article about Munny Grubbers published by the Phoenix New Times and they mentioned my name and Brigitte in the article (and us shaming Barbie)! LMAO. How rad is that! I'm still waiting for someone who attended the show to post pics, but for now there is a video showcasing all the pieces in the show. You can see Loved Unloved and Brigitte's awesome yellow Slade custom in the video too. :)

Weekly Window Shopping #8: Mish-Mash of Etsy Shops

This week I'm changing it up a little and featuring items from various Etsy shops. Etsy is of course, the best place to find handmade items! Here is a selection of lovely things that are currently for sale:


[Left] Dinner 4 two print - $16.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28150253
[Middle] It's raining hearts PRINT - $30.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28307784
[Right] The Time Is Now - Original Small Painting - $20.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26132395


[Left] Fawn print - $15.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=27247984
[Middle] ouija - $15.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=25985223
[Right] DO WHAT YOU LOVE - $30.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=29019815


[Left] Owl Under Glass - $70.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21339303
[Middle] Happy Ghost Brooch - White & Black - $7.00/each http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28404405
[Right] Fawn Wall Wear - $70.00 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=24248346