Products for Mudpuppy giveaway over on mer mag!

hop on over to mer mag for a chance to win these princess finger puppets and ballerina flip draw book that I illustrated for Mudpuppy!

Custom pencil portraits on Daily Candy Kids today!

Hello friends! So we all know it's helpful to drop a few hints before Mother's Day to let our loved ones know what would be extra special for us, right? And Daily Candy Kids is here to help us out! Today they were so kind to mention my individual pencil portraits, found in my shop here, as a great suggestion for Mother's Day, and I couldn't agree more!

If you are considering commissioning a custom pencil drawing, here are few helpful hints on how the whole process takes place. To start, you can go to my shop and purchase the individual pencil portrait. From there I would then need to you to send me (either via email or Etsy convo) at least 2-3 decent sized, up close and clear photos of your child (these don't have to be professional or studio quality, just well lit, and enough detail to really see the person in the photo). This helps me to really get a feel for not only what they look like but what their personality is like as well.

Below are some before and after shots that showcase some great initial photography (the clients also provided a number of other photos the helped me with clothing choices, true looks and personality).
 


I then ask for a two week turn around time, not including shipping, to complete the portrait. So that means if you are looking for a portrait for Mother's Day this year, Sunday May 13, then you would need to order asap :)!

Once the pencil portrait is complete I will then send a jpg version along to you in an email to make sure you are happy with it. If you need a few tweaks form there, I'm happy to work that out for you  (most are super happy on the first go around and providing great photos from the start helps to make this happen!).

So if you are in the market for some Mother's Day magic, get those photos of your little darlings together and get on over to my shop (or have your loved ones do it for you :)) and purchase the portrait today! I can only do so many before Mother's Day and slots are guaranteed to fill up fast!

Illustrations for animated NIX lice commercial

It was so exciting working on these illustrations for the animated NIX Lice Treatment commerical, airing in Canada.

It's such a delight to see my illustrations brought to life. And seeing my creepy crawling lice running around, well, that's pretty fun too.

Mudpuppy Finger Puppets

OK but I'm over the moon about these finger puppets that I was able to create for Mudpuppy. Isn't the idea so cute! And for only $6, well I should think you need some too, right?

couples portrait

I gave this watercolor portrait to Jon for our zero dollar Christmas gift exchange last year. See more about the exchange here.

CYBER MONDAY SALE!

How was your Thanksgiving?! Are you stuffed to the gills and sick of the Black Friday crowds? I love how on Monday we can all sit in our jammies, recuperate, and...shop some more online!!! And...In celebration of Cyber Monday I'm offering a buy one get one deal in my Tuesday Mourning shop!

Just purchase the first print and mention in a convo which print you want for free!! I've listed a slew of new prints that you'll love and your tried and true beloved prints are there as well! Happy Holiday Shopping!

Mudpuppy Flipdraw book

OK, but I've been dying for this to come out! Who isn't obsessed with Mudpuppy and their incredible design and line up of great artists? Well I know that I am so when I got the call that they wanted me to do a flipdraw book I couldn't have been more over the moon! And now my FIP & DRAW book is finally up on their sight. I can't wait to see it in person...like for real...

Wouldn't this make the best Christmas gift or stocking stuffer? I certainly think so.

free downlodable gift tags!

Hop on over to Creature Comforts Gifted guide to find my free downloadable gift tags. Go to page 136 and download away. And be sure to browse the guide for many lovely gift ideas for this holiday season. Happy head start!

Turkey Monster Thanksgiving series

I was fortunate enough to be able to illustrate the repackaged paperback covers for Ann Warren Smith's Turkey Monster Thanksgiving series. I loved working on these and the stories are lovely. And a perfect book, just in time for the Thanksgiving season, don't you think?!



Tales of Spring Break and Bittersweet Summer are out and available to purchase as well.

custom illustration for Annabel of Little Pin Cushion

Loving this fun custom illustration for Annabel of Little Pin Cushion. She was such a doll to work with!

New "hello" print available in the shop

Get it here. Enjoy!

part of Babble's top 50 Etsy Moms. woo hoo!

I was delighted to see that I was chosen to be numbered among Babble's Top 50 Etsy moms. What a wonderful honor! And I got a #5 ranking within the art category. So very cool. Check it out.

2 prints on Babble's top 45 Nursery Art Prints

Babble high-lighted two of my prints, Lovely Love, and Peter Pan, in Babble's Best 45 Nursery Art Prints on Etsy!

Thanks Selena Burgess and Babble!

Libby Boom up on Nie Nie today

What a surprise to find Libby Boom up on Nie Nie Dialogues today. So super fun!

Thanks Nie Nie! So glad you like the book.

Buy Libby Boom here and Catherine, the author will sign it :)

interview for the new Kylie Jean series

Hop on over to Scrib to see an interview with me concerning the new Kylie Jean series, by Marci Peschke.

And while you are at it, pick up a few Kylie Jean books. You'll fall in love with her instantly.

Got to love the front page of Etsy...

Maisy and Alice have their treasury up on the front page of Etsy today and my yellow biciyle print was included. Got to love that!

I was also told by a friend that my pencil portrait was included in a pencil drawing roundup in an Etsy email. So fun!

Thanks Etsy!

Kortnee Kate photography

A New illustration for Kortnee Kate photography. Aren't they just the cutest couple?

Signing at the Book Castle on Saturday, Dec. 10

Hello friends! I will be signing at the Book Castle in Valencia tomorrow, Saturday, Dec. 10 from 2-4pm. If you are in the neighborhood stop on by and say hi to Catherine and myself and of course, Libby Boom!

Maggie Brooklyn!!

I'm so excited that the first book in the Maggie Brooklyn series, A Girl's Best Friend by Leslie Margolis, is out and available at your local bookstores! Like so many projects I'm working on these days, I was so very delighted to be a part of this. I once lived in Brooklyn NY and when walking alongside the many brownstones lining the street it's not hard to feel a bit of magic and mystery, like you find in this book. I loved learning more about Maggie and finding out who she really is. This is also one of the first books where I did all of the hand lettering for the title and author's name as well as the top banner with the brooklyn skyline. I'm really happy with how it all turned out.

This morning while going through my emails I found out about this wonderful interview by Melissa Walker with author Leslie Margolis which highlights Leslie's perspective on how the cover came to be. When people find out that I am illustrator I often get asked whether or not the author has any input or feelings on how the cover, character, etc. turns out. This interview is a wonderful, up close and informative excerpt that shows just what the journey is like from the author's side of things. Thanks so much Melissa and Leslie. It was a treat reading this!

And speaking of reading...I highly recommend you go out and get this book and get to reading it as well!

**Oh and I just found out that there is a Maggie Brooklyn website! check it out!

SLC signings - a great success!

Thank you all who came out to see Catherine, Libby Boom and myself at the Midvale and Salt Lake City signings. It was great to see everyone and as far as Catherine and I could tell, it was a wonderful success!

Thanks again!