UniqueLA

Wow-so busy the last few weeks with 2 shows in a row. Here is my booth-actually just a table space-at UniqueLA. They provided the spot, a table and a chair. And I had to try and work some magic.
Here's my spot looking pretty sad.

Starting to unpack...

almost done...

some finishing touches.

Ceramic Bird

I found this little bird at the Long Beach Flea Market. There are no maker marks on it but I love the color and shape.

Upcoming Shows

I'm really excited about participating in Unique LA - a show with over 300 vendors! It takes place May 7-8 in the penthouse of the California Market Center in downtown LA. I've been busily making product for the last 2 months and it is stacked EVERYWHERE! Here's my ad on the Unique LA website. If you get a chance, come for a visit. If you live in the LA area and can attend the show, I am giving away 2 sets of 2 tickets (admission is $10). Just leave a comment below. Winners will be chosen on May 1.

Lovely Clusters

Lovely Clusters is a website showcasing handmade and vintage products. They have just come out with their spring "catalog" which highlights images according to color. It really is Lovely-have a look here.
One of my images is shown on the Teal page. That's my card on the top left.

Never Pat A Bear

This book is another library sale find. A Little Golden Book, "Never Pat a Bear-A Book about Signs" was written by Mabel Watts, illustrated by Art Seiden and was published in 1971. The story isn't much but the fun illustrations and hand done type caught my eye. Here are some of my favorite pages. I particularly like the advice to "never pat a bear until it is a rug".

Turtle and Birdie

This is a card design that I am working on. It was inspired by the vintage turtle playing card (on the left). I'll probably simplify it so I can letterpress print the card, or I might do it as a linoleum block print. Or maybe both!

Letterpress Bird tags

I printed these birds from one of my linoleum blocks. I liked the idea of printing in white ink but I wish it were a little more opaque. I embellished the tags with pen and ink so each one is a little different.

Spring

We have an apricot tree in our back yard. Every spring we ge beautiful blossoms but in 15 years, we have yet to get an edible apricot.

Record Album Art

The antique store near work is crammed with all sorts of stuff that changes all the time. The owner gets a lot of estate sale items so you never know what you'll find. Like this vintage Polka music album for $1.

New Product

More new product in my shop

Book Cover Art

Sometimes, I really do judge a book by it's cover. Who cares what's inside-these vintage books published by King Penguin in the late 1940's have fabulous covers. Oh, and the illustrations inside are pretty nice too.

Bird in Tree Letterpress Note

New product in my shop

Mod Fabric Find

There's a little "antique" store near where I work that always has really cool finds like this mod sixties shirt. It's 100% polyester, and nothing I would ever wear but I love the pattern.

Here is a collage of some of my wood letterpress type. The collage hangs on the wall in my workspace but none of the letters are glued down so I can take the type out and use it when I need it. Getting it back in the right spot is a whole other matter.

I have several of these collages. Someday, when I'm too old to print, I'll do a whole wall of type.

More Valentines

I've been busy with more Valentine product. The card on the left is done with rubber stamps on a reproduction of a vintage postcard from my collection. The red backer card is also stamped with a clear embossed ink. The card on the right is letterpress printed using some of my vintage wood type.



I also had fun making these Valentine Birds-I call them "Fancies". They are also done with rubber stamps, red and gold foil embellishments, rhinestones and red feathers for tails. They are mounted on clothespins and look special tucked into a small pot of roses.

Valentine's Day

I just printed this Valentine's Day card yesterday so it is hot off the press. It's a variation of the design for February that's in my 2011 calendar. Instead of carving a lino block, I had a metal plate made so I could get more detail. The card is available in my shop.

A New Book

One of my new purchases is this children's book from Poland published in 1976. I have no idea what it says but the images are pretty cool.

Tiny Paintings

These are some of the tiny paintings and collages that I had for sale at the Patchwork show in Long Beach.

New Banner

I made this banner for my show booth. I really wanted my logo printed on a nice heavy canvas fabric but I couldn't find anyplace affordable so, I got it printed through Spoonflower. I got 4 logos in one yard of fabric-two got made into table banners and two to hang in the booth. It took longer to pick out coordinating fabric I liked than to actually sew the banners! For those who don't know, Spoonflower is a website where you can get your designs printed onto fabric.

Tiny Owl

After making magnets for my craft shows, I used some left over Sculpey® (oven bake clay) to make this little owl. I added the color with watercolors after I baked it. He's about 1" high, and was so much fun to make that I might have to give him some friends.

2011 Calendar

It took me all summer to design my 2011 calendar, cut the linoleum blocks (some more than once!) and print it on my letterpress. Finally, it's done! Here are some pictures of the finished pieces with the linoleum blocks and the printing in progress. The type was done on the computer first, and then the blocks were printed. It's a limited edition of 40 and it's available in my shop, here.

The Compleat Martini Cook Book

I found this book (and yes, the name is spelled incorrectly) at the Rose Bowl Flea Market last Sunday. The pictures are fabulous, the recipes sound pretty bad (but after a few martinis, who really cares?) The book was published in 1957 and is dedicated to all of the publishers that rejected it. The recipes are simple to follow and involve things like canned soup and frozen peas.

Fall Colors

A collage of fall colors

The vintage handkerchief is from Heirloom Linens
The tiny bird painting is from peace of pi
The jumbo paperclip is from By Belinda and purchased at a craft show.
The vintage button pins are available in my shop Two Hand Too
The fan shaped item is the lid from a ceramic Japanese box.

Squirrel and Owl Embroidery

This embroidery is from a set of place mats that I found at the Rose Bowl flea market in Pasadena, California. The colors remind me of autumn although the tree and flowers are completely fanciful. I like the squirrel peeking out from behind the tree.

ABC Book

I picked up this ABC book at the J.Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles. It was published by the Getty this year and has lots of fun illustrations about all kinds of art. You can purchase the book here