Hello | The Indigo Bunting

Painting with sound

2012-01-22T20:13:00.000-08:00

This week's New York Times magazine features photographs from Martin Klimas, an artist who paints with sound. This one is my favorite, paint moving to Miles Davis' "Pharaoh's Dance." Amazing song, amazing colors.

PS: If you aren't familiar with his work, go to his site and check out his shattering porcelain figures.

Children's Rugs

2012-01-21T12:54:00.000-08:00

I am obsessed with these fun, interactive children's rugs from IVI. I love the bright colors and modern shapes and, most of all, how they encourage creative play.

NEW FOOD SKETCHES

2012-01-13T11:22:00.000-08:00

New sketches over on the Food Sketches site, including carrot pizza, a pretzel croissant, a favorite cookie recipe, and more.

FOOD SKETCH #3: Kimbap (and a new site!)

2012-01-07T18:48:00.000-08:00

I made a new site for all of my food sketches (they'll also occasionally be posted here), just to keep them all organized in one spot -- food-sketches.blogspot.com. I hope you'll follow the drawings over there in their new home!

FOOD SKETCH #2: Japchae

2012-01-03T16:53:00.000-08:00

Japchae - Korean glass noodles with spinach, julienned carrots, onion and egg and sesame seeds.

FOOD SKETCH #1: Dduk gook

2012-01-01T20:36:00.000-08:00

Dduk gook - traditional Korean soup eaten on New Year's Day; it has sliced rice cakes, egg, scallion and nori.

FOOD SKETCHES: A new project for 2012

2012-01-01T20:20:00.000-08:00

This year I'm going to have a little side project here. I love food. And I like to illustrate. So I'm doing an occasional series here where I will create digital sketches of favorite dishes, things I cook and things I eat. I hope you enjoy it. Starting with January 1...

A Happy New Year

2012-01-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

This year I made a simple little New Year's card / belated birth announcement to share with family and friends, and had a small batch letterpressed (I'll share more photos later). So many changes in 2011 (going freelance, having a baby, making more of my own work), so much to be thankful for, and so much to look forward to this new year. Wishing you and yours a happy 2012 filled with joy, love, and many new adventures.

SHOP UPDATE!

2011-12-28T07:53:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!
- The icon calendars and cake prints are now SOLD OUT in my online shop.
But I have a small number of illustrated calendars and accordion calendars left (get them while you can!), plus the screenprinted A to Z posters.
- The shop will be closed December 30 - January 6th for holiday. Any orders made during this time will be accepted, but not shipped until January 9th.
- Also, if you live in the DC/VA area, visit FIFTEEN/ELEVEN, where they will be carrying my illustrated calendars and cake prints.
- I will also be adding some new things to the shop in time for Valentine's Day so check back here or on twitter for updates.
Thanks and hope everyone had a wonderful holiday!

The perfect (and easiest) last-minute holiday gift

2011-12-21T17:08:00.000-08:00

I love magazines. I like the iPad and all, but there's nothing like getting a real magazine in my mailbox each month.

I love to design for them, I love to read them, and I love to receive and give them as gifts. If you still haven't gotten a present for someone yet, they make the best super-last-minute gift. It's a gift that lasts for a whole year, and everyone loves to get something in the mail each month.

First, buy a gift subscription online. I've given you all the links and prices below to some of my favorite magazines to read and give (or that I secretly wish someone would give me a subscription to). If you want to go the extra mile, buy an actual single issue of that magazine at a newsstand (hey, if you are really lazy and last minute, you can even pick one up at the airport before you head home for the holidays). And then, to make it look a little more presentable and like you put some thought into it, I'm giving you a free downloadable card you can give with the magazine (scroll down to download). Print it out on card stock , trim and place in a standard 4 Bar envelope. Or tuck inside your Christmas card. Or tie it to the magazine with some twine. It's the perfect (and easiest) gift to give and receive.

Row 1: New Yorker | Anthology | Lucky Peach (normally $28, but currently on sale for $23) | Milk

Row 2: Donna Hay | Apartamento | Dwell | Uppercase

Row 3: Real Simple | Kinfolk | Bon Appetit | Martha Stewart Living

Row 4: Gentlewoman | Believer | WIRED | New York Times (the Weekender, which includes the NYT Sunday Magazine)

Row 5: Esquire (Amazon has a crazy deal, it's $5 for an entire year, but only if you purchase before Dec 26) | Bloomberg Businessweek | GQ | More

Row 6: PRINT | New York (Same deal as Esquire, only $5 if you purchase before Dec 26) | Monocle | Vanity Fair

Download my free printable gift card design here. (Please note, this design is for personal use only, and will be available here only through the holidays. Enjoy!).

NEW IN THE SHOP: Accordion Calendar

2011-12-15T21:56:00.000-08:00

I've always had the idea to make these small accordion-fold calendars. Printed on both sides, with six months on the front and the other six months on the back. They fold up into the size of a standard business card and come packaged in a sliding kraft box. They make the perfect little gift for a friend . . . or for yourself. I have a small quantity of these calendars left - so go here to get them while you can.

NEW IN THE SHOP: Icon Calendar

2011-12-15T15:53:00.001-08:00

Last year I made this calendar design, but they sold out so quickly! And because I've gotten so many requests for it since then, I've reprinted a small batch of the popular design for those of you who didn't get a chance to purchase one. Like my illustrated calendar, this set includes twelve 8x10" frameable prints.

This calendar design was also featured and published in PRINT magazine's 2011 Regional Design Annual. Go here to purchase this calendar in my shop.

NEW IN THE SHOP: Cake poster

2011-12-14T13:18:00.000-08:00

I've gotten so many emails and requests for this print over the past couple years, and I'm happy to announce that I finally have it ready in my shop for all of you who have been so patient. Go here to purchase this poster in my shop!

At the craft sale

2011-12-13T10:54:00.000-08:00

We had a blast at the Holiday Craft Sale at Divine Studios on Sunday. Thanks to everyone who came out. It was so nice seeing friends and old coworkers, meeting some of you, and buying some beautiful things from other vendors. And it was an extra treat to set up our table between the lovely folks of Moontree Letterpress and Something's Hiding in Here / Forage Bowties. But the highlight of my day was when this little guy showed up to take part in the craft sale action.

We sold a lot of the posters, calendars and other items; but I made sure to save some to put in the online shop this week. I'll be updating the shop within the next day or two, so check back here for more news soon!

* By the way, if you couldn't make the sale, here is a list of all the vendors and links to their websites/online shops on the Martha Stewart Craft blog.

NEW IN THE SHOP: 2012 Illustrated Calendar

2011-12-08T20:36:00.000-08:00

I'm so happy to share with you my new calendar design for 2012. Each month features a colorful, whimsical illustration to brighten up your desk or wall. Twelve 8x10" prints are included in each calendar.

Each print fits perfectly into a standard 8x10" frame. You can frame one poster at a time, or hang all twelve together for a beautiful display.

If you frame all twelve, like I did here, you can use these very affordable white frames I found at A.I. Friedman (can you believe they only cost around a few bucks each?). Or give one as a gift -- pair it with a nice wooden 8x10" frame and package both in a box.

View more photos of the calendar here, and visit my shop to purchase them (I have a limited quantity left, so get them soon before they run out!).

2011-12-08T16:09:00.000-08:00

I've gotten a lot of kind emails from people who bought my calendar last year, asking about whether I have a design for 2012. I'm happy to announce that I have two calendars and all sorts of goodies ready for the shop next week! I have last year's calendar reprinted with 2012 dates, as well as a brand new design I'm excited to release.

If you live in NYC, come out to the Divine Craft Sale in Soho this Sunday and say hello; I will be selling my ABC poster, holiday cards, both calendars, and other small surprises (kids' tattoos! fun button packs!) this weekend.

And if you can't make it out, check my blog over the next several days as I share some of my new paper goods, and visit my online shop next week to purchase them. Thank you!

PRINT Design Annual 2011

2011-12-08T15:52:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to have a couple pieces included in PRINT's Regional Design Annual this year: my 2011 illustrated calendar (which I am selling again this year, for 2012, in my shop next week), and my Santa Fe custom wedding invitation. You can find this issue on the newsstands now.

Shirotokuro

2011-12-06T15:10:00.000-08:00

Beautiful new-to-me online gallery site of black and white design and photography. Go here to see more.

Divine Holiday Craft Sale

2011-12-01T10:16:00.000-08:00

Friends, the annual Holiday Craft Sale at Divine Studios is next Sunday, December 11th!

It'll be so much fun, with an amazing list of select vendors (see the list above!) selling their wares -- everything from beautiful handmade crafts, unique paper goods, curated antiques and children's clothing. The sale takes place in Divine Studios, in SoHo and is only for one day. I can't wait to purchase lots of special gifts for people on my Christmas list.

I'll be selling holiday cards, two calendars (including a brand-new one I'll be releasing at the sale!), prints and a couple other surprises. I hope you will stop by the sale and say hello! I'd love to meet you.

(Please note that most vendors will likely be able to only accept cash).

PS: The type that was stitched on this invitation design was done by my very talented friend, Steph. See some of her work here.

Teeny tiny printer

2011-11-29T14:29:00.000-08:00

I love this little printer. Watch the video to see what it does.

(via @designrelated)

NEW IN THE SHOP: Holiday cards!

2011-11-18T08:23:00.000-08:00

I'm starting to put a few things in the shop in time for the holidays.

First up: holiday cards! I have 5 different designs -- you can buy them as a boxed set of 8 cards. Or you can purchase a boxed assortment of 10 cards (2 of each design). The cards are A7 (5x7 size) and blank inside.

Order some in the shop here. I also have prints and calendars on the way...check back here or on twitter for updates!

Also, view more photos here.

Music box business card

2011-11-15T08:09:00.000-08:00

Amazing. Beautiful.

I'm blown away by this music box business card designed by Katharina Hölzl.

See more photos and read about the project here.

(via @presentcorrect)

The new Studio on Fire book

2011-11-14T13:48:00.001-08:00

I just received my copy of the new Studio on Fire book. It's a beauty. The cover is letterpressed, and the book is filled with examples of their impeccable printing work. I've always loved working with them, and it's great seeing all of their projects together like this in a hardcover book. There are also a small number of projects designed by other people in the book, including one of the wedding invitations I designed. You can read more about the book here, and get your copy here.

Art director humor

2011-11-10T14:26:00.001-08:00

Oh man, the campaign DDB put together for the Art Directors Club call for entries makes me laugh. Especially love the illustrations by Rami Niemi. Here are just a few examples. (via designworklife)

There are some videos they made too, with Lewis Black -- see here.

A surprise from Brooklyn

2011-11-09T07:48:00.000-08:00

A sweet friend dropped off this surprise at my apartment the other day, as a thank-you for some design help.

Inside the bag were treats, all made in Brooklyn: Early Bird granola (so delicious), an almond and sea salt chocolate bar from Mast Bros., and this little pot of honey from Three Sisters Honey.

Don't you love the label? My friend tells me that it is drawn by the beekeepers' daughters.

Twitter

2011-11-04T15:37:00.000-07:00

I finally joined Twitter (This is consistent with how I'm usually three years behind a trend...I think I was the last person to get a cell phone...).

You can follow me here.

PS: I love this!

Carsten Holler

2011-11-02T13:49:00.000-07:00

Snapshots from Miles' first museum trip. We went to the Carsten Holler show at the New Museum. Goggles that turn everything upside down, strange neon animals, enormous mushrooms, chirping birds and a carousel ride made for a psychedelic Saturday morning.

Calendar and shop update

2011-11-01T11:41:00.000-07:00

Happy November!

The image above is from the calendar I designed last year. I've gotten so many requests for this calendar, and last year I only made a limited quantity that sold out too quickly, so I will be reprinting the calendar for 2012 (although I wonder if people would like to purchase the same design from last year or would like to see a new design for 2012 -- feel free to leave a comment and let me know!). I will be updating my online shop this season with the 2012 calendars, an 18x24" alphabet print and maybe some holiday cards, so check back here for updates throughout the month.

2011-10-29T10:57:00.000-07:00

I'm blown away by Alexander Chen's interactive musical projects. These two pieces are minimal and so smart and beautiful at the same time.

I love this interactive music box of Bach's first cello suite he created. My husband and I both play cello, so this was really inspiring.

And this other project turns the New York subway system into a stringed instrument. When the subway lines intersect, they create the effect of plucked strings. He bases the visuals off the lines from Massimo Vignelli's 1972 diagram, which I think is the most beautiful version of the subway map.

Conductor: www.mta.me from Alexander Chen on Vimeo.

Blues-Rock Wedding Invitations

2011-10-07T11:44:00.000-07:00

I created this custom invitation suite for a couple who love rock music and the blues. Vintage music posters inspired the design, and the suite included a comprehensive map for all of their guests. The bride and groom live in Toronto, Canada, and their friends and family joined them on an epic road trip down south to Clarksdale, Mississippi for the celebration. The wedding map featured stops along the way like their favorite barbecue ribs joint, the Jack Daniels distillery, and famous music landmarks and studios. They provided accommodations for all of their guests at the legendary Shack Up Inn where the festivities would take place ("The Ritz it ain't!"), just a few miles from the Crossroads, down by Highway 61.

And a big thank you to Design*Sponge, for featuring this invitation suite on their site last week. Go here to read the feature.

More photos here.

Hello, Miles

2011-09-28T11:39:00.000-07:00

Our sweet baby arrived last week, right on his due date.

Welcome Miles Isaiah Wu, 8 pounds and 3 ounces.

We love him so much.

A day at Dia

2011-09-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

I'm quickly approaching my due date this week, and the doctor says the baby could come any day now. But I really wanted to take one last day trip out of Manhattan before he arrives. So my husband and I rode the train up to Beacon on Saturday. We went to the Dia on what felt like the perfect fall day. I love it there, and cannot wait to go back -- next time, with our little one with us.

Thunder-and-lightning-and-Thor party!

2011-09-16T16:05:00.000-07:00

My nephews request the coolest themes for their birthday parties. Last year, my 2-year-old nephew asked to have a bagel party. This year, his older brother, J, turned five and requested a "thunder-and-lightning-and-Thor-in-an-airplane party." As usual, my sister planned an awesome party. And I had fun making all the kids these fun favors to take home.

"Super-duper fruit snacks" for the kids -- organic fruit leathers from Trader Joe's wrapped with a purple label I designed.

I love Economy Candy. You can find all kinds of candies in colors you are looking for. Each kid got a purple rock candy swizzle stick with some purple chocolate candies. I felt a little guilty giving the kids so much sugar but I couldn't help myself.

What's interesting and admirable is that my nephew J is scared of thunder and lightning, yet he requested a party with that very theme. It seemed like it'd be a fun idea to make temporary tattoos for J and the kids. I drew a little cloud and thunder illustration with the words "Be Brave" on each tattoo, and packaged them in tiny vending machine bubble containers.

All these goodies, plus a spinning top, went in bags I printed with an illustration I did of my nephew as Thor.

Martha Craft Blog: Guest Post

2011-09-09T04:47:00.000-07:00

My friend, Steph, who works as a crafts editor at Martha Stewart, asked me to write a guest post on The Crafts Dept. blog. My subway aficionado nephew, J, turned 5 recently, so I made him this set of painted subway wooden blocks. Visit the Martha craft site to read all about the process and how to make this: click here.

Baby Shower

2011-08-06T13:49:00.001-07:00

My sister created the most special baby shower for me the other week. The inspiration for it came from this beautiful, little-known Portuguese children's book about a boy's first experiences discovering the world through the senses -- his first time visiting the sea, his first time seeing colors and birds, his first time hearing the wind in the trees, smelling his grandmother, and tasting fruit.

There were so many lovely, handmade touches that my sister made with the help of my very talented friends, inspired by the book's visuals and theme of first experiences.

My friend Eunice, who is a florist, decorated the room with my favorite flowers, in the palette of the book's artwork.

Garlands of photos, and the beginning sentences of the book adorned the room.

My friend Lillian provided market baskets of Rainier cherries and strawberries (my favorite things to eat this summer) as favors, with these handwritten words: One must ask children and birds how cherries and strawberries taste. What a beautiful thought.

Homemade cupcakes and a handmade topper.

My sister made these adorable straws for an assortment of lemonades.

My nephews and my friend's daughter cut out clouds and drew birds that looked like the illustrations in the book, to decorate the table. I love the green bird -- my friend's daughter said it's supposed to be me. See the baby bird she drew inside the green bird's tummy?

My husband created our baby's "first playlist" with the essentials -- his first Coltrane, his first Nirvana, Bill Evans, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, and Bach.

Homemade wrapping paper. I love it.

Even my sister-in-law thoughtfully mailed over some special Seattle sweets and treats to share.

But the most meaningful gift of all was this framed art my sister made. The tree and leaves were inspired by the endpages of the book. She asked our friends and family to write one thing they could not wait for our little boy to experience in life -- his first ride on the D train, his first Mariners game, his first hiking trip, his first McDonald's french fry. My husband and I pored over this gift, reading and rereading all the things our friends and family wished for our little boy, realizing how much he is loved already.

Branding: Fifteen Eleven

2011-08-05T06:14:00.000-07:00

I've been working on the logo and identity design for Fifteen Eleven, a curated paper goods store that is opening in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia this September. It's been so wonderful working with Suann. She wanted a logo that was clean and minimal for her store's branding, and with a little bit of a vintage touch. She has such great taste, and I am excited to see what goods she is planning on selling in her store this fall. Check out the store website here.

Another sneak peek

2011-07-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

A small preview of a custom wedding invitation set I just finished up. This project was such a treat to work on because the wedding is taking place just a ferry ride away from where I grew up in the Pacific Northwest.

Made with love

2011-07-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

One of the most thoughtful gifts we've received for our little one on the way is this baby blanket from my mother-in-law. She started crocheting before we knew whether it was a boy or a girl, and I love the colors. It means so much that she made this herself and spent so much time on it. We will cherish it for years to come.

George Kovenchuck

2011-07-13T19:24:00.000-07:00

I love these illustrations by George Kovenchuck.

2011-06-30T08:45:00.001-07:00

Here's a little preview of a custom wedding invitation I just finished and am packing up to mail to my lovely clients.

Ruth Ansel

2011-06-30T06:23:00.001-07:00

Magazine work by Ruth Ansel, who was co-art director of Harper's Bazaar in the 1960's (one of the youngest art directors in the history of magazines), and design director of The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair and Vogue.

Swedish studio Hjarta Smarta released a series of books on legendary female creatives called "Hall of Femmes." The first in the series is on Ruth Ansel, whose work I was unfamiliar with until recently. The series aims to "bring female graphic designers and art directors into the spotlight," which is something we could use a little more of (this has been on my mind, especially with all the recent discussion about women in design).

(Here are some excerpts from an interview with her, published in 2005, Step magazine)

On women in the design workplace:
"More women are in the workplace but they’re not getting comparable recognition or salaries with their male peers. Women are still working in a man’s world. It is especially difficult for an independent outsider type of woman, whether she is a graphic designer, an architect, or an interior designer, to really achieve a top position, even if she is an exceptional talent. Think of Eileen Gray, and how she spent most of her life having her work ignored, while her famous collaborator, Le Corbusier was celebrated worldwide. She did not become famous until shortly before she died in 1976. I admit I had never heard of her until then as well. There are certainly more talented women out there, more than men I believe, but I still think the glass ceiling exists and they get discouraged."

On magazine design:
"Unpredictability is a gift, especially in creative hands. Designing a magazine is a little like designing a face. No two faces are alike but each has the same essential structure—two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. Each magazine, even each advertising campaign, pretty much has the same ingredients. Whether it’s fashion, beauty and accessories, or home, architecture, and lifestyle, what you must do is constantly rearrange and reinvent the relationships, pay attention to the content and context, pay attention to the time you live in, pay attention to what is newly creative and who is creating it. If you do that it will work and live on as good design."

2011-06-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

Some snapshots from a recent trip to the Greek islands.

Unpublished

2011-06-23T05:10:00.001-07:00

One of the first projects I worked on last year when I started at Martha Stewart Living was to create an interesting design for the Table of Contents page in the July issue. The issue featured crafts, inspiration, and recipes from all 50 states, so the idea was to somehow represent that concept on a page. I spent a few days creating this paper construction (click on image to view larger):

Each state was handcut from thick stock and attached to pins at various heights. I attached string to some of the pins, so those states could be annotated with text on the page. Sadly, the paper art idea got killed at the last minute, but it was still fun to create this. Hopefully I can use this idea for another illustration assignment sometime!

In Martha Stewart Weddings

2011-06-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Two of my invitation designs are featured in the current issue of Martha Stewart Weddings magazine (Summer 2011). The story features creative D.I.Y. ideas for embellishing your wedding stationery.

One idea is to add an ombre effect to your letterpress cards. My Handdrawn invitation for Bella Figura was given a wash of watercolor paint to give a beautiful ombre look. Bella Figura prints on such lovely, thick, textured stock, so the watercolor paint holds well on their paper.

Another creative idea is inspired by my Polka Stripe invitation suite. You can purchase custom stamps from Bella Figura that match the design I created, so you can stamp away on your envelopes or other printed pieces to match the invitations.

2011-06-19T15:15:00.001-07:00

"Every major conversation I had with the guy during those years occurred in that booth, over lunch. I had quit football suddenly. I'd banged up the car. I'd been in a fight. I'd cashed out my savings bonds without telling him. I'd paid for a girlfriend's abortion. Through all this we ate. In this way, we got through it. Food filled the silences. Onion soup. Escarole and beans. New potatoes flecked with skin. Spinach — always spinach. T-bones. Hard rolls. French fries with grilled onions. Over time, my father told me his share, too: that he'd been married once before, that his new boss had refused to pay him for nearly a year, that his business seemed to be at an end. At these times, I could see that he was eating with a purpose: He ate like he meant it."

I love Tom Chiarella's writing, and this essay he wrote a couple years ago for Esquire, about eating with his father, comes to mind this Father's Day. Read it in entirety here.

Pretty fantastic business card

2011-06-15T00:58:00.001-07:00

A special gift

2011-06-07T07:09:00.000-07:00

Years ago I showed my husband some artwork by John Dilnot. I was thinking about saving up to purchase one of his colorful screenprints of birds, plants and animals for our home, but I never did get around to buying one. But the other week, for our fifth anniversary, my husband surprised me with the most special gift. He had contacted John and commissioned a custom piece for me -- a small wooden box with three indigo buntings flying over our neighborhood. It is such a meaningful gift. My husband and I are expecting our first baby this September, and this will always remind me of this time in our lives, of the start of our little family, and of the place we call home.

Rhubarb-strawberry pie

2011-06-05T07:49:00.000-07:00

I bought rhubarb for the first time from the farmers' market this week. Ever since I tasted this rhubarb-strawberry pie months ago at a photo shoot I've been waiting for rhubarb to come in to season so I could make it at home. This is such an easy, delicious pie to make (recipe from the June issue of MSL here). I think I will need to go out and buy several more pounds of rhubarb to freeze so I can keep making this pie after the season for rhubarb ends.

Redesign: Oh Happy Day

2011-06-01T13:59:00.001-07:00

I worked on the redesign for the homepage for Jordan Ferney's site, which was just unveiled yesterday. She is a crafting, party-planning, blogger extraordinaire and it was such a pleasure working with her on this redesign, timed with the five-year anniversary of her site's launch. Her blog was one of the very first design blogs I started reading, and still remains one of my favorite sites. The design reflects her colorful, cheerful, playful and happy style. Read more about the redesign here.

At Oh Joy!

2011-05-18T10:59:00.000-07:00

Joy kindly asked me to participate in her Closet & Casa feature at her site. Read it here, enjoy!

Wood type

2011-05-18T08:28:00.000-07:00

Type inspiration for a new project I'm working on...

From the Hamilton Wood Type catalog, 1899 (the entire catalog is scanned and viewable here; originally seen on the Hoefler & Frere-Jones site)

National Stationery Show

2011-05-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

I got to drop by the Stationery Show yesterday, and had a fun time meeting new designers and reconnecting with old friends. Some highlights:

Lovely, simple, graphic prints from Banquet. I liked how clean and minimal her booth looked.

It was wonderful to meet Jill Bliss from Portland. Her detailed style is distinct and unique in the sea of work that felt really similar at the show. I liked her bold color palette, and the personal stories behind her creations. My favorite print had illustrations of plants that she grew in her garden and ate.

Lovely to meet Hijiri, the designer behind these fun alphabet cards from Heartfish Press. She was displaying her cards with the Ladies of Letterpress.

I would love to buy one of these blue hand-carved wooden birds from Urubbu to add to my collection of indigo buntings. An artist in Brazil creates each of these birds by hand using reclaimed wood.

Morse code cards from Yellow Owl Workshop.

I had a good time meeting the ladies behind Fomato and Carolyn Suzuki in their shared booth. Really, really nice ladies, and fun cards.

It was refreshing to see such detailed, hand-painted work from Dear Hancock.

I was happy to finally meet Cyd, Harold and the folks at Bella Figura (who are so nice!) in person, and see my designs in their display. And it was wonderful to meet and talk with the talented ladies behind Austin Press, Gold Teeth, Fig. 2 Design, and Ink & Wit.

Screenprinting

2011-05-14T06:46:00.000-07:00

I took a screenprinting workshop recently.

Here is the screen.

And here's what was printed. Orange on white, white on black and blue...

2011-04-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

I love these images from Leanne Shapton's illustrated series "A Month of..." over at the NYT site. Go here to see the four series completed so far.

Video: Make it Beautiful

2011-04-18T19:15:00.000-07:00

A stop-motion animation video I created for the May 2011 ipad issue for Martha Stewart Living. I came up with the concept, folded and created the origami elements and lettering, and directed the shoot. It was a real labor of love -- lots of paper folding...
Photography by Johnny Miller and video editing by Philip Leaman. If you are having trouble viewing it here, click here.
You can download the May iPad issue here.

*and a thanks to Justine, at the lovely paper art site, Upon a Fold, for her kind mention. There is so much inspiring paper art to be seen at this site, visit her site here.

Video: Spring Cleaning

2011-04-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

A stop-motion animation video I created for the April 2011 ipad issue for Martha Stewart Living. I bought a lot of colored hand soap and we made a lot of bubbles...
Photography by Johnny Miller. Click here if you cannot view the video.

Facebook illustration

2011-04-06T19:32:00.000-07:00

Illustration I did for Fast Company Magazine, March 2011 issue. For their "50 Most Innovative Companies" story. I illustrated a mash-up of Mark Zuckerberg and Jesse Eisenberg. Commissioned by art director Florian Bachleda.

March Well Opener

2011-03-26T20:27:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun time-lapse video I worked on for the March 2011 ipad issue for Martha Stewart Living. Stacey Hirvela from the Gardening department planted fast-growing radish seeds and photographer Johnny Miller captured their growth with a photo every hour over eight days. It's so amazing to see how the plants move and sway. I designed the type at the end of the video, and our video editor Dustin Bowlin helped give the type that growing effect.

If you cannot view the video, click here.

Botanical silhouettes

2011-03-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

Art direction and design for a story on botanical silhouettes for the March 2011 issue. Beautiful projects created by crafts editors Silke Stoddard and Athena Preston, styling by Tanya Graff, and photography by Roland Bello, who was so wonderful to work with. I really wanted to incorporate the headline into one of the projects, so I cut out the letters of the word "nature," Silke made multiple sunprints of the flowers and the type, and we shot the fabric being rinsed in water. Here is a behind-the-scenes video of our photo shoot (video by Philip Leaman) that was created for our ipad issue, which can be purchased here.

If you cannot view the video, click here.

February stories

2011-02-28T20:28:00.001-08:00

Some stories I worked on for the February issue of Martha Stewart Living:

Art direction and design for a story on inspiring collectors and their unique collections. This was such a fun story and photo shoot to work on with Fritz Karch and Quy Nguyen. Featuring Martha Stewart with her brass collection, Lisa Congdon and her Scandinavian enamelware, Katie Hatch and her vintage clothing patterns, John Derian and his collection of landscape oil paintings, Shauna and Stephen of Something's Hiding in Here and their tin dollhouses, and others. For the iPad we recorded interesting stories from each collector about some of their favorite pieces in their collections. Photography by Jose Picayo.

Art direction, styling and design for the February well opener. I stamped the chocolate liners with custom letter stamps I had made, and for the ipad, created a stop motion animation of the chocolates being eaten to reveal secret messages. See the video here.
Photograph by Johnny Miller.

A bagel party

2011-02-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

My nephew turned 2 last month and he asked for a bagel party. My sister threw the sweetest party for him and wrote the most heartwarming entry about her little boy here.

For his party I made some favors for guests -- a bag of a dozen cookies that look like bagels. I used this Martha basic all-in-one cookie dough recipe and shaped them into little bagels. I flavored one batch with cinnamon and raisins, kept one plain, and sprinkled the rest with sesame seeds and poppy seeds.

I also made a big poster for a bagel toss game the kids played. I made it look like my nephew and cut out his mouth for the bagels to be thrown in. The kids had a lot of fun throwing mini bagels around.

See more photos of my nephew's party at my sister's site here.

My new designs for Bella Figura

2011-01-30T09:07:00.000-08:00

Here are three new designs I created for Bella Figura's 2011 collection.
They are a wonderful letterpress company, and the quality of the printing is beautiful. You can customize any of my designs with your own wedding colors; if you are on a budget you can also choose to print with just one color too.

1. Polka Stripe

2. Garden Vine

3. Handdrawn

View more photos here and here.

And a nice post from Chelsea over at Frolic the other day.

Cover illustrations

2011-01-25T18:51:00.000-08:00

Last year I worked on the cover illustrations for The Good Neighbor Cookbook, and just last week I received my copies of the book. I like that it's a cookbook filled with dishes that are meant to be shared -- with neighbors, new parents, a friend who is sick. It is written by Sara Quessenberry and Suzanne Schlosberg, and you can check out some of their recipes here.

2011-01-17T13:05:00.000-08:00

Found over at Things Magazine. Animal Families, an Abbatt Toys game.

In Real Simple Weddings

2011-01-16T12:28:00.000-08:00

My custom invitations were featured in this year's Real Simple Wedding magazine. The story shows ten examples of out-of-the-box wedding stationery.

A book for Dylan

2011-01-12T20:51:00.001-08:00

Our west coast nephew (my sister-in-law's son) turned one in December. He is such a sweet boy, and my husband and I were happy we could be there for his first birthday back in Seattle.

Here's a board book I made for his birthday (like this one). My husband wrote the story and I illustrated and designed it. The story is about a day of fun spent with the people (and pug) who love Dylan.

Some more photos here.

Snowy days

2011-01-09T16:43:00.001-08:00

I love this photo and the story that goes with it. From my sister's blog here. She is a wonderful writer.

Martha Stewart - February preview

2011-01-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

Here is a sneak preview of our February ipad issue. It has all kinds of awesome videos and extras. Check it out.

One of the videos in the February ipad issue is this short I made with photographer Johnny Miller. It was a lot of fun to put together. We'll be creating a video like this each month. Hope you'll check out the digital issue -- it's available to purchase on January 17.

*click here if you cannot view this video in Google Reader!

January stories

2011-01-03T19:47:00.000-08:00

Some stories I worked on in this month's Martha Stewart Living magazine.

Art direction and design for a modern quilting story. Projects by Silke Stoddard and styling by Ayesha Patel.
Photographs by Ditte Isager.

January well opener. These beautiful eggs are from Martha's farm.
Photograph by Johnny Miller.

Design for a story on Tartine bread.
Photographs by Eric Wolfinger.

I love Tartine Bakery. It is one of my favorite places to visit when I am in San Francisco, so it was fun to work on the design for this story. It features Chad Robertson's famous Tartine loaf and several recipes using this bread, from when it is freshly baked to day-old, then week-old bread.

I'll be visiting San Francisco in a few weeks and I cannot wait to stop by Tartine and order a sandwich made with that fresh bread.

View more work here.

2011-01-01T22:32:00.000-08:00

It's a new year!

(work by Sister Corita)

SHOP UPDATE

2010-12-09T18:49:00.000-08:00

WOW!
The 2011 calendars are already sold out.
I will be updating the shop with some more items in the new year.
Thank you to everyone who made purchases, the calendars will be shipped to you within the week.

My calendars for sale!

2010-12-08T05:51:00.000-08:00

I am selling a limited number of my 2011 calendars this week. The calendar is a collection of 12 prints with a new illustration for every month. Each print fits perfectly into an 8x10" frame and can be hung as wall art (frame not included). Please visit my shop here!

*Note: I only have a limited number of calendars available. Orders will only be accepted through Sunday, December 12. All orders will be shipped out via USPS Priority Mail on Wednesday, December 15.

One idea is to get twelve frames and display the entire year's worth of prints in a grid on your wall.

(and thank you Cup of Jo, for the kind post!)

Preview: Holiday cards

2010-12-02T20:11:00.000-08:00

Here are five holiday cards I illustrated and made; I will be selling them at the craft sale this Saturday.

Ho, ho, ho

Rudolph

Bubbly

Partridge in a pear tree

Panettone

Day together

2010-11-26T12:54:00.001-08:00

It was my husband's birthday recently. I planned a Saturday together in the city and gave him these drawings throughout the day to give him clues about each destination.

---> Breakfast at Shopsin's (slutty cakes = pumpkin pancakes with pistachios and peanut butter)

---> Baldessari exhibit at the Met (this is one of my favorite pieces)

---> Amazing sandwiches for lunch here. (My poor sketch is supposed to be a slice of salami. Abe thought we were eating pizza.)

---> Shopping for a new down jacket

--> Dinner and cocktails at Freeman's

--> A movie

--> Tea and dessert at Spot at St. Mark's Place

Preview: 2011 Calendar

2010-11-26T11:46:00.000-08:00

Here's a 2011 calendar I designed and illustrated that I'll be selling at the craft sale on December 4. There are 12 posters, one for each month and they fit into an 8x10" frame. Here are some press check prints I have, untrimmed and unassembled.

More photos here.

Martha Stewart Craft Sale

2010-11-22T19:43:00.001-08:00

I'll be selling some cards, posters, calendars and a few other things at the Martha Stewart Holiday Craft Sale this year. The craft sale takes place at our office and is open to the public on Saturday, December 4th from 12-6pm. My coworkers are making some beautiful jewelry, prints, ceramics, and knitted gifts that I can't wait to see. Over the next couple weeks, I'll preview some of the things I'll be selling. Find more information about the event here.

WORD.

2010-11-12T16:39:00.000-08:00

Love this print, from here.

2010-11-11T06:06:00.000-08:00

The new Martha Stewart Living special digital issue is released today.

The stories in this issue are all original content, and really beautiful. You can purchase it and find it here.

A video about the issue here.

Esquire Menu

2010-11-05T20:58:00.000-07:00

Here's a recent freelance project I worked on for Esquire magazine, for their Best New Restaurants feature in the November issue. I created the design of the menu photographed on the opener (photograph by Ken Kochey).

ABC Kitchen (I love this place and it's in my neighborhood) won Restaurant of the Year. See the complete list of this year's best restaurants here.

Emily + Dan wedding invitations

2010-10-18T20:23:00.001-07:00

Here's a custom wedding invitation suite I worked on for Emily and Dan, a fun-loving couple from California.

They wanted their invitations to reflect their love for pattern, mid-century modern design, and red and vintage blue colors.

The RSVP cards:

Emily and Dan wanted a way for multiple guests to choose their meal options. I thought it'd be fun for guests to draw lines to what they wanted.

I made an illustrated houndstooth pattern for the envelope liner. This was also letterpressed.

Precise, meticulous letterpress printing done by Coeur Noir Specialty Printers in Brooklyn.

View more photos here.

(Thanks for the nice posts, Black*Eiffel, Seesaw Designs and Oh So Beautiful Paper.)

New job, new work

2010-09-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

Art direction and design for a bike story in Martha Stewart Living (August 2010). Awesome photographs by Lucas Allen. Shot on an iPhone with some Hipstamatic magic. Collecting editor Quy Nguyen developed the story and found all the vintage (and vintage-inspired) bikes and accessories.

And a fun Great Finds opener (August 2010).

J's party favors

2010-09-20T19:33:00.000-07:00

My nephew, J, turned 4 this month. He is the sweetest little man. My sister always comes up with the most creative birthday parties, and she threw him a "Sid the Science Kid" themed party at the science museum. I made these favors for him and his friends.

Each kid got a mini notebook (these are the perfect little size and are from MUJI) with their name on it, and a pen / a bunch of crayons (for them to jot down their scientific observations!).

They each got some bug stickers, a ladybug windup toy, some M&Ms, and a magnifying glass. I slipped in a card with a tiny secret message on it for them to read with their new magnifying glasses.

J and his friends are the coolest kids in Jackson Heights.

Details from the museum

2010-09-20T19:11:00.000-07:00

My last TOC pages

2010-07-18T10:22:00.001-07:00

I changed jobs in April, and have been meaning to post some of the things I worked on at Esquire before I left. Here are the last table of contents designs I created.

May 2010:
I went back to doing a photo collage for this one. Paris Hilton + Carol Bartz + Lady Gaga + Padma Lakshmi + some photos of real women = a strange resemblance to one of the judges from The Next Food Network Star!

April 2010:
I thought it'd be fun to transform the photos into paper fortune tellers.

Esquire design

2010-07-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Some stories I designed for the April and May 2010 issues of Esquire.

Survey of the American Woman:

Eat Like a Man:

I love this piece about offal meat. It's so well-written. Read it here.

Tina Fey:

That's me, right under Tina Fey's armpit (photo on the left). See all the funny photos and quotes here.

Nina + Ross wedding invitations

2010-07-06T19:01:00.001-07:00

I loved working on this custom wedding invitation for Nina and Ross.

They had a classic New York City wedding at the Central Park Boathouse.

They met working at a magazine. The groom is an editor and a really good writer. That's why the text throughout is actually fun to read.

Quotes frame the envelope on the back of the invitation. I love this Annie Hall one.

"A guide from us to you/y'all." (She's from New York. His family's from Texas.)

An RSVP postcard and a map inside.

I made a little illustration of the Central Park Boathouse for the RSVP postcard.

And I drew a custom map of Manhattan for the couple, annotated with their favorite places in the city.

Printed by the lovely folks at Studio on Fire.

See more photos here. UPDATE: Thanks for the post, Design*Sponge! See here.

Farewell, W train

2010-06-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

Check out this post on my sister's blog to see the cutest farewell party for the W train. So long, W...we'll miss you.

Awesome

2010-05-17T18:30:00.000-07:00

I love this so much. A hand-painted wall of the names of some favorite lunch spots at the NY Wieden + Kennedy office. By Attack.

Featured in New York Weddings

2010-05-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

Yowza! Two of my designs were featured in the Summer 2010 issue of New York Weddings magazine. They had a feature on nature-inspired wedding stationery.

This letterpress design is called Meadow, and I created it for Bella Figura. You can purchase this invitation set here.

This one is a save-the-date card. It comes with a custom-designed pin.

View all the other nature-inspired invitations here!

Guest blogging at 100 Layer Cake...

2010-04-26T16:29:00.000-07:00

I'll be guest blogging this week at 100 Layer Cake (a really lovely wedding site full of all kinds of inspiration, real weddings, and DIY projects).

Over the next few days I'll be sharing some ideas for thoughtful gifts you can give bridesmaids, the groom-to-be, and wedding guests. Today's post talks about the details that can inspire a custom-designed wedding invitation, with some examples of my work, including a little preview of the most recent invitation I worked on. Hope you'll stop by 100 Layer Cake!

New cards

2010-04-24T17:53:00.000-07:00

I had some new cards letterpressed. The lovely folks at Studio on Fire printed up my design for me.

At The Bride's Guide

2010-03-25T20:44:00.000-07:00

Over at Martha Stewart's wedding blog, The Bride's Guide, some of my sketches for Joo and Jacob's wedding invitations are up. You can view the post here and see some of the brainstorming process and my sketchbook. And you can view a gallery of Joo and Jacob's wedding photos here.

On the sidewalk

2010-03-21T08:45:00.001-07:00

Rubik's cube Table of Contents

2010-02-27T14:45:00.000-08:00

For the Table of Contents page in the March issue of Esquire, I decided to rework a couple Rubik's cubes.

All the colored stickers were peeled off, then I made new stickers for every face of the cube out of the photos from the issue. Twist parts of the cube to make all kinds of combinations of faces out of Leonardo DiCaprio, Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty, Roger Ebert, Tracy Morgan, the old man from "Up"...

King Kong party!

2010-02-10T09:18:00.000-08:00

My nephew (we call him Baloo) turned 1 last weekend and my sister and brother-in-law threw an awesome party for him. Baloo is like a big gorilla, climbing all over the place and grabbing at everything in sight. It only seemed fitting for the party to have a King Kong theme.

For favors I made my own chocolate chip banana nut granola and packaged them in Bell mason jars with some stickers and labels I designed.

Kids got lollipops with a googly-eyed gorilla face.

And guests had fun posing and taking pictures with this silly cardboard cutout poster I made one day (all you need is an exacto knife, a huge piece of cardboard and some acrylic paint).

Happy Birthday, Baloo!

See more photos from the party at my sister's site and on my Flickr.

Heart invitations

2010-02-07T20:05:00.000-08:00

Here's a custom wedding invitation I made recently for a couple in San Francisco. Donna and Matt had a red and purple color palette and a heart theme carried throughout the wedding. The bride wore these awesome Vivienne Westwood heels with hearts on them (like in this lovely Once Wed photo shoot), and their dinner reception was held in a red velvet room.

Each invitation set included an accordion-fold heart die-cut card, an RSVP postcard and a paper band to hold the pieces together. Envelopes had custom mailing labels addressed to each guest.

The couple loves Polaroid pictures and had a Polaroid photo booth at their wedding. I incorporated it onto their response cards, and guests could write them a note or draw a picture in the blank space.

View entire set of photos here.

2010-01-24T09:52:00.000-08:00

Thank you brides.com for including one of my custom designs in the Best of 2009: Invitations list. The twelve invitations they chose included some of my favorite designs from Anna Hurley, KenzieKate, Black Pearl Press, Rifle Design and Linda & Harriett. View the full gallery of invitations here.

Paper cubes

2010-01-24T09:41:00.001-08:00

For Esquire's February Table of Contents pages I made these paper cubes using the images from the magazine. (Above: pieces of Obama + Jay-Z + Blake Lively + Dana White + Pelosi + Blagojevich + Lou Dobbs)

Help Haiti Rise

2010-01-18T19:52:00.000-08:00

There are many ways to give and donate our resources to Haiti at this time. But I just wanted to share one small idea of how to give here. Mike Fretto from Rosa Loves (I got to know Rosa Loves a couple years ago when I designed a shirt for them that benefited a children's center in Bangladesh) has just designed and printed a t-shirt called Help Haiti Rise. 100% of the profits will go to an NGO called Partners in Health that provides health care for the poor and injured in Haiti. You can purchase the t-shirt here ($15 with free shipping).

Featured in Real Simple Weddings

2010-01-12T06:03:00.000-08:00

One of my custom invitation designs was featured inside the 2010 issue of Real Simple Weddings magazine!

They have a feature on 13 out-of-the-box invitation ideas.

This design and another were also featured on Real Simple's web gallery of 50 of their favorite invitations, save-the-dates and programs.