Some New Artwork and Thoughts About Projects

All these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff.

 My friend Connie from Life Uncork'd is pretty awesome. Summertime is full of berry, peach, and apple picking and Connie is right out there...and she makes wonderful jam. For my birthday, she gave me three small jars, and we've been enjoying the heck out of them. Especially Olive and I...especially Olive. Ha-ha-ha!

 

 Working on handmade commission pieces and personal illustrations at the same time allows me to experiment with different color combinations and techniques in a way that I may normally not be able to. My emotional stance towards this learning process has changed a lot over the years.  In school there was a lot more "wild" experimentation, with strong colors and heavy washes. Now as I work I think more about control and thin washes effecting how the colors work together.

 

 A couple of weeks ago I put a shout out on Instagram and Facebook mentioning that I was going to be doing some marker drawings as warm-ups and asking friends and followers what they'd like to see. There was a great range of suggestions from Olive dressed as a Super Toddler to Batman trapped in Candy Land (complete with sweets and disaster). I'm pretty happy with this little drawing of Pinky and the Brain, I thought it might be funny to sort of switch their positions...

 We're getting work done on the Fairy Tale book and Calendar. I have drafts of several of the stories from my writer friends that are working with me on it, and about a third of the book illustrations are put together. Here's a little teaser of the witch from The Seven Ravens. It's really cool seeing this project come together, and I'm looking forward to sharing more bits of it with you over the next month.

Thanks for stopping in! Until next time, take care and be good!
Your friend,
Jeffrey

Some things I'm into right now,

Tiger in a Jar:  Tiger in a Jar makes beautiful, rich videos and photosets featuring among other things handmade products and lifestyle. If you like quiet moments in the midst of adventure, this is the place for you.

PBS Digital Studios: A network of web originals from PBS on YouTube. I've been really enjoying their idea channel show, as well as musical remixes like this one featuring Mister Rogers.

Photo Roundup For The Third Week Of May

I can't believe that I forgot to post these on Monday!  This seems to just be one of those weeks :) So here's this weeks photo roundup, all these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff.

 

Sitting outside on the swing, I was checking mail while the kids played and Abby asked me to take her picture. This is her pose...with her eyes closed. Ha-ha-ha! This is actually intentional, and just cracks me up!

Abby's god mother got this book for her for her first birthday, and it's probably one of my favorites. It's hard to beat a combination like Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess in the first place, but the poem is just fantastic, and speaks about the things fathers want for their daughters. I don't want them to be perfect, but do want them to be happy, healthy and responsible. It often frustrates me how little good literature there is out there for little girls, but it IS there.

 

Working on some new peg people. I've seen several on pinterest that are pretty nice, but not really what I'm looking for...This is what happens when someone with art training and several years as a serious miniature hobbyist/gamer  becomes a crafter. I hope that this first set of Doctor Who peg people are well received. If not, then I had fun making them!

 

Speaking of art, I do graphic design and illustration as my day job. (In case you didn't know, ha-ha-ha!) These are a couple of character drawings I did last week. I'm thinking if I don't have time to get the new Daily Life finished this week I might throw some color on them for Friday's post. 

 

The girls and a little Crafternoon Delite.  I forget sometimes just how capable Olive is, because she doesn't really talk yet...That kid is smart. A lot of construction paper, foam stickers and cutting going on here.  It's cool seeing how into making things they are.  Speaking of Crafternoon Delite, Tonite (Wednesday, May 23) we are hosting a crafting event at Fusion in chesterfield mall from 6:00 to 9:00. Grab some of your handwork and come on down and hang out with us!

 

We found these costume glasses the other day at Deals, for a dollar. Olivia thought they were really cool, and looked SO cute in them...unfortunately, they broke the next day. It kills me that even something that only cost a dollar has no real longevity.

Well, that's it for this week! Until next time then, take care and be good!

Your friend,

Jeffrey

Photo Roundup For The First Week Of May

All these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff.

It's been a busy week! We started things off with Olives second birthday, spending the morning at Monkey Joes playing on inflatable bounce-climbers and then went to Dunkin Donuts for lunch. I just can't resist their coffee, and honestly is there any difference between having donuts for breakfast and having them for lunch?

 

I wonder sometimes whether the projects I work on outside will convince my neighbors that I'm a terrorist...This is three sets of tent weights to hold our tent down when we do outdoor shows and festivals. Actually, only one of these sets is ours, the other two I made for some crafty friends.

 

I learned a lesson on this project...if you listen to the subversive, anti-authority, indie-crafter in your head and ignore the picture of a guy wearing gloves that's on the concrete bag (who by the way, your 4-year-old was smart enough to point out), your hand will end up looking like you tried to destroy a horcrux.

 

Our tent set up at the first Tower Groves Farmers Market here in St Louis. We were expecting rain all day, but all we had was heat. I wasn't about to complain about that :) It was a really great start to the show year, and I'm looking forward to going back this week! If you're in the area, come on down and say hi!

 

These two love each other and really do enjoy spending time together. I guess sometime I should get a picture of when one hits the other so you all don't get the idea that everything's perfect all the time...but usually they're pretty good to each other.

Until next time, take care and be good!

Your friend,

Jeffrey

Photo Round-Up From The Second Week Of April

All these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff.
We went to the zoo this week with the Hunters, and spent a couple of hours playing in the children's zoo area. The girls had a lot of fun in the "farm yard" digging, moving the fruits and vegetables, playing in the little houses and feeding the wooden sheep. It was a beautiful cool spring day too, which was just icing on the cake!
A bit later, we all stopped for a snack. A curious chicken came over to check us out...after we were all settled, a second chicken came charging out of the bushes! We had to pay close attention, because these friendly birds would snatch crackers right out of the fingers of the unwary.
Abby showing me what the chickens were so excited about. A couple of cheeze-its and the birds are all over you. Ha-ha-ha!
Olive is at that age where stairs are just about the coolest thing ever. I think it's a "mastery over your environment" thing. When we go downtown to check out the shops, or in this case to go to a friends art opening, there are stairs aplenty.
It's hard to explain how much I love the orange warmth of our living room...when it's clean. I moved the little kids activity table over by the kitchen this week to make room for the train table that I rotated in from the basement. This was taken in the evening in that quiet time after the kids were in bed, and before I went to work in the studio.
And finally, our friends at the Foundrie are reopening this week. If you're in the Chesterfield area, you should totally go check them out! This photo is one I took in preparation for a blog interview I did for the Fusion blog.

Until next time, take care and be good.
Your friend,
Jeffrey

Photo Roundup from the first week of April

All these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff.
We're really into "back to basics" toys around these parts. This wooden train set is AWESOME! There are tons of parts (and available expansions) so it is able to be put together in several different layouts. Plus, the pieces are easy enough to put together that even Olive can do it.
Abby's tiny hands peeling the backer paper off of foam star stickers. It's amazing how much time this activity takes her, and fascinating to see how she arranges her stickers on the paper. Often it's in rows, but just as often they are all over the place.
Abby's clothes hanging cheerfully on the clothes line. I just love that little splash of color in the yard.
Several months ago, Abby and I went to story time at the library. We heard some camping stories and did a craft. Abby's campfire is pretty awesome, I think.
Abby and Olive in their new Easter Dresses.

Until next time, take care and be good.
Your friend,
Jeffrey

Photo Roundup from the last weeks of March

All these pictures were taken on my iphone and processed with instagram. You can follow me if you want too! My user name is redherringjeff

We were borrowing Amy's parents car while they were in Hawaii, so the girls and I were able to make it out to the park more often. I miss having two cars...
Mrs Handmade, all set up for our first show of the year.
We met my friend Leighton Conner of Hex games and his family at Laumier Sculpture park this weekend. Here's our two abbys sitting on what we think must be a giant robot that was buried and is waiting to awaken and save Saint Louis.
Olive looking at notebooks while we wait for Nana and Daddy Jim to finish shopping for a picnic.
I finished four new Ghostbusters marker sketches.
And finally, a photo/ideaogram that my friend Holly made for me on facebook. We all had a good laugh over it!

Until next time then, take care and be good!
Your friend,
Jeffrey

Weekend Roundup

It's a good life, and don't let anyone tell you it's not. Trying to keep up with a couple of different blogs, and get stuff made is...interesting. Unfortunately, it's our correspondence with you all that seems easiest to let fall to the wayside.
Things are busy here, as we wrap up outdoor chores in the last few beautiful days of autumn and prepare to bundle up indoors with indoor games and projects and cabin fever.
Mr. Handmade rearranged the living room, and gave it a much needed deep cleaning. No more dustbunnies under that couch!
The air was a bit chilly (it IS November after all), but the diapers, socks and shirts looked so festive blowing in the wind and sunshine.
Our little adventurer. Olive knows no fear, and insists on climbing everything at the park and going down the slides all by herself.
Just love this little peeking smile around her milk. Ha-ha-ha!
Abby was just in a fingerpaintin' mood the other day. She did four or five paintings...of camels? We wonder where she got the idea of painting camels from, but 4 times out of 5 when she makes something, it's a camel. Or a mail box. Mr. Handmade asked her if it was all ready to go in the shop. She said "Yes, that's why I'm making it all beautiful."
Speaking of the shop...Mr Handmade put this new display together for his marker sketches. He'll do a proper post about them soon. As soon as he gets the calender he's illustrating finished.

At the park.
Mr. Handmade's friend, Chet's car. It's currently being dismantled by the boys to be refinished.
Don't you just Love Olive's monster feet?
Mrs. Handmade hard at work making capes in the studio.

Not pictured:
-Getting together with our crafty friends at Fusion for our Pre-Holiday meeting/pep rally.
-Our trip to the Store Supply Warehouse to pick up fixtures for art and craft shows, fairs and festivals.
-The look on Abby's face when I made her eat Cream of Wheat
-Trips to the shop to drop off custom orders (did you see Mrs. Handmades breast cancer apron?)