Bicycle season!!!

Created this illustration for the upcoming event Bike In The Park. June 18th Washington Park will be taken over with bicycle lovers. The day will include a ride from the Park to Stumpjack in Two Rivers and back. A vintage swap meet, kids art, bike art, raffles, food and more! The proceeds for this event being put on by my pals George and Jason from the fabulous Broken Spoke bike shop are being given to Melanoma research.

I created this little piece for an art display at Stumpjack in honor of the event and I will also have prints available at the park along with some cute bike themed jewelry and other prints.

Coincidentally the theme over at Illustration Friday also happens to be bicycles this week! So head on over and check out everyone's interpretation of this fabulous subject.

Now hop on your bike and ride.

Artful wording.

I love words. To me just writing a word the right way is art. Sometimes when I doodle before bed (I know most people read but not me) I get fixated on a word. I will write it 100 times in different handwriting, cursive, printing, block or bubble letters. When I find the right feel for that word I work on how to bump it up even more giving the word the feeling I want it to give. When I get THE word down I come up with a little ditty that has the word in it and do the same with all of those words. Add some doodles (in this case of noodles) a little color and walla you have a little word art. I am hoping to teach this creative word class in a venue or two this year. Actually am even thinking of doing a little retreat right here in Manitowoc in spring. If that sounds fun to you let me know what other classes and what teachers you would like to see in a Midwest affordable retreat! Now go get some paper and doodle your words away!

New stuff around the corner.

So I have been busy busy busy getting my space reorganized as an open studio. It has really made me aware of how much great stuff I really have. I definitely should be on the hoarding show but they thought I wasn't hoardy enough??? Oh well I am fixing it myself. I will show pics when I am done but for now I am keeping it a mystery! With my new look I will be using my new name for my art and jewelry line I will be selling at other stores...Lost + Fond. I came up with this name years ago but thought with the launch of really getting into wholesale it was a perfect time to start using it. My earrings and jewelry will come in these cards and I hope to tag everything like ephemera packs, ACEO's and other little art in cello bags with a similar heading.
I am so super duper excited about all these changes and cannot wait until it is complete. I took a bread yesterday and made some stuff in my new jewelry station and am in love with my new found organization. Now I just have to prove everyone wrong and keep it that way for more than a week. The organizing is easy compared to that major feat. Anyhow stay tuned for pics of the newly organized space coming soon!

Holiday Hullabaloo!!!!

So so so excited to announce a new little holiday show I am putting together for the first Saturday in December! So far the funky art and craft fair features 10 of my favorite local artists and I hope to get about 10 more to participate! There will be everything from natural bath products to recycled art to fine art to well you name it! It will be in the back hall at Manitowoc Coffee. Make sure to tell all your friends! It is going to be a hullabaloo you will not want to miss.

For more information visit the Holiday Hullabaloo Blog!

The fabulous poster was designed by the hugely talented Tina Kugler. Hire her to make your posters, children's books or logo. You will not be disappointed!

Fun times

Me and Pato Banton at Stumpjack. Pato and the Now Generation played there and it was awesome! Thanks to them for coming to little ol Two Rivers and spreading their love.

We also went to the Manitowoc Company open house. My dad has worked there for 37ish years and I love going and seeing where he works. It amazes me to see what my dad does. It is so complex I can't imagine doing his job. I think it would be a great thing for everyone to tour a factory so they realize the importance of our fantastic labor force in this country and all it takes to make the things we use in everyday life. This picture of Molly is taken next to an unbelievably huge crane they made. I couldn't resist a pic of her in her hardhat with the Manitowoc behind her.

Still a little bit of warm weather ahead to enjoy the weekends but time is winding down. I will cherish all the wonderful weekends we had this summer. We are planning one final week long vacation up north to enjoy the colors and quiet. I long for that quiet and cannot wait!

Spring Art Tour!!!

Come join us for a weekend of art and fun for the 2009 Spring Art Tour. The tour will be starting off with an open reception at We Are Art at Brenda Lynn Burtard Studios at 1006 Margaretha Street in Two Rivers. The reception will feature music by Pick and Squeeze, refreshments, and great art. There will also be a silent auction of original birdhouses created by members of Art and About. Prior to the event you can see the birdhouses on display at the Rahr West Museum. The proceeds for the birdhouse auction will be donated to Hayden's Hope. Hours for the opening reception are 6pm-9pm.

On Saturday you can tour 9 local galleries/studios. Take a peek into the environment where artists create their works! With demonstrations throughout the day you will get to see the techniques and materials used to create beautiful works of art that will also be available to purchase. For exact demonstration times and locations you can pick up your map and tour guide and any of the galleries/studios listed below! Here at Persimmons we will have guest artists Dani and Adam Morantez and illustrator Annette Wimmer. Come watch Dani and I make some mixed media art, listen to Adam sing and watch Annette sketch! Weather permitting much of the action will be in the backyard! Many of the participating galleries and studios will also have a giveaway for a chance to win art originals! It is a great FREE event that is very family friendly. Hours for the Saturday tour are 10am-4pm. Hope to see you there!

The Dolan Gallery....4910 Nicyssa Lane, Manitowoc

Petals Plus Gallery and Gifts....7014 Center Road, Manitowoc

Full Circle Products...1332 S 26th St., Manitowoc

Gallery East...930 S 7th St., Manitowoc

Best Western Lakefront Hotel Cafe...101 Maritime Dr., Manitowoc

Persimmons...314 N 8th St., ManitowocEvans Custome Jewelry...1119 N 12th St., ManitowocMartin Pottery Studio & Gallery, LLC...1304 Memorial Drive, Manitowoc

We Are Art...1006 Margaretha St., Two Rivers

Fall Art Tour

Don't forget to get out this weekend and do the Fall Art Tour! This tour is going to be a good one. It kicks off with a reception at Petals Plus at 7014 Center Road in the outskirts of Manitowoc. We will have a pumpkin carving contest (weather permitting) live music, refreshments and lots of art chatter. It is sure to be a great time. Any questions visit our blog or give me a call at the store!

920-684-3006

I will be closing early on Friday too so come to Petals Plus...not Persimmons tomorrow after 5:00pm.

Saturday you get to tour my studio! Yeah you get to see my organized chaos with your own two eyes. I am sure it is a sight you will not soon forget. You may even look at me in a totally different light knowing what my favorite space in all the world looks like???? I have a lot of stuff.

Board Books.

I got a bag full of tiny board books a few weeks ago from Vinnie's. I looked at one of them the other day and decided to tackle it. I started by giving it a coat of primer. I just used the primer from our walls instead of buying gesso. Works just as well. I let that dry and then added a coat of yellow acrylic. I stuck the pages together while they were wet and then pulled them apart to give the inside pages a cool veined effect. See it in the corner of this picture...Then I came up with a theme. I decided to go with follow your heart you'll love where it takes you. It just so happened there were just enough pages to fit a word a page. I started layering papers, stamps, labels, paint, oil pastels, ink and whatever else I grabbed. I got lost in this project and didn't want it to end. After I got the ephemera and art just so I drilled a few holes to add charms and such. I put some yarn in the spine...using leftover pieces from crochet projects...never throw anything away...and hung all different fun things from the ends.

I could have kept going but decided to stop and call it done. It was lots and lots of fun and I can't wait to make more!

Treasures galore!!

I hit the best garage sale today!!! Plus I went to a pretty great estate sale last night. Look at this great table of loot! I love those sales that just make you lose track of time and how much you are spending. I got a lot of great pieces to use in my assemblage stuff. I cleaned the studio yesterday and just kept thinking I have too much and then I go and buy more?? It's a sickness but a good one.

Rainy Days...

Are so good for production! I got 28 pendants made today. I am kicking back and taking a break after that with a yummy cup of Alterra coffee and peppermint mocha creamer...yum. It will be a short break though because I am excited to turn these babies into some kick butt necklaces! Watch the etsy shop....

I love making jewelry.

A great new necklace I just listed on etsy. I am seriously on a jewelry roll here folks. Can't get enough of it. I made 15 new pendants today too! Watch for them soon.....

Meet the blockbots

These little fellas will make their debut at Sputnikfest this Saturday in my first ever real outdoor booth! I got these blocks at the thrift store the other day and when I got them to the shop all I could think about was robots so here they are. I made 7 of them and they will be just $24 each!!! What a great Sputnikfest souvenir!

This one is a very bad blockbot.

Be there or be square

This weekend!!!! Get ready for a wacky tacky good time. For all the juicy details visit the official Sputnikfest Website here. I still have about 20 posters left for a measly $18...get em before they are gone!

I've been published!

Watch for the new Somerset Holidays and Celebrations coming September 1st.....
...and turn to page 31 for my full page Joy ornaments!!! The pictures are almost life sized! It got me inspired to make more so on Friday and Saturday I made 12 more to list in my etsy shop and put in the store. I really liked this little witch one using lots of butterflies. They are fun to make and I am still finding glitter between my toes! Molly even joined in the fun and made one of her own!

Friday August 15th...be here or be square!

Because my good friend Tina (or go here for her professional blog) is having her virginal solo show of her totally fantastic illustration art and the unveiling of her fab Sputnikfest poster (featuring that hot little number above). She had a limited number of them printed and will be signing them just for you. She is so super talented and I am honored to show her work at Persimmons. So come on Friday...we will be here 6-9 selling posters and Tina's other great stuff!

Fishy.

I made this new little beauty last week and have it listed in my etsy shop. I thought it would be a good picture to go with the story of our trip to the beach this weekend. We went to Stumpjack for our Sunday morning coffee and decided to stop at the beach in Two Rivers. It was stunning! So clean and soooo many people. We were kind of bummed that we didn't have our suits so we went home to get them and then decided to try the beach in Manitowoc. I wish we wouldn't have gone to Two Rivers first because it kind of kicks Manitowoc beaches butt. Ours had lots of seagull droppings and ciggie butts. Made me sad and want to form a group to clean it up. I actually think I am really going to do it. So if you read this and are interested in helping come in and see me so we can talk about it!

Krazy Daze!!!

It's coming soon to beautiful downtown Manitowoc. If you have never experienced Krazy Daze it is worth the trip! There are wicked sales, fun free entertainment and great food. This years theme is outta this world savings and I don't think the lovely and very super duper talented Tina could have made a better poster. She Rocks! Here at Persimmons we will be hosting a lovely little backyard vendor market and vintage stuff rummage sale. In the store my jewelry will be 30% off and vintage books and magazines will be a measly 50 cents. So mark your calendars and fly into Manitowoc on July 12th for a wacky good time.

Artta This World.

Are you an artist or fun and funky crafter living in Wisconsin? If you are you should apply to be in this totally different fun new show. It is going to be on Saturday September 6th in conjunction with the totally wacky tacky Sputnikfest. We are closing down North 8th Street in Manitowoc and you will set up just one short block away from the impact site (A hunk o Sputnik landed in the street in 1962). The booth fee is just $50 and the beautiful thing about this show is that we encourage artisans who do a variety of things to join. I have always had a problem with shows because I do so many different types of things and cannot categorize myself into one medium. We are also going to have fun art wars all day to keep in the Sputnikfest mode and will have prizes for best in show in both fine art and funky art categories. It is going to be a great show and Sputnikfest has already gotten some national attention so it should also be a very well attended show!
So if you haven't applied yet go to www.sputnikfest.com and download the form. The show is juried and the deadline to get your application is July 15...which isn't so far away so get that application in today!!

Metrojam

So thanks to these two guys...Bob and Tom...we have a very fun FREE music event every year in beautiful Washington Park downtown. It is so much fun and I always look forward to it. This year the headliner was the Knack. You know their song My Sharona. They were really good but I really liked the band that played before them...The Redwalls. When they announced the lineup a couple of months ago they also let us know that they were going to be on Leno soon. I stayed up late to watch them and was really impressed. I love their sound it is very different than anything out there. Unfortunately I forgot to get the CD that night but I am hoping my friend Jim at Dr Freuds has it there. Anyhow one of the perks of knowing those two guys above is that I got to sneak in and get my picture taken with the band. They were really sweet guys and they smelled good. I of course made a fool out of myself and said stupid things when I was talking to them but oh well.
After the music we went to The Riverbank. It is a fantastic little martini bar that is smoke free. It is nice to come home smelling like nothing. I had my first mojito. I think I like them. Actually I am thinking of having a mojito party for my birthday. Yum.

Sex and the City

I almost forgot to blog about this! There was a fabulous little fundraiser that a couple of wonderful women from our community put together to benefit breast cancer. The evening included a pre-movie premiere party with a fashion show, guest speakers, food and of course a cosmo. The ladies then walked from the party 5 blockish to the movie theatre right across the street with their memory balloons. It was a fun parade of women all looking pretty. They released the balloons and then saw the movie. I was very jealous I wasn't with them! It was a great event and a big round of applause to those great women who put it together!