Sunday Snippets

As promised, here are a few close-ups of the "Night in the Orient" poster, showing some of the work in a much higher resolution. These are digital photos of the piece, so forgive any cloudiness/washiness of color. First off, let's have a look at our model from the waist up...

As is my habit, I've tipped her turban with metallic ink - a scanner-friendly method of capturing light, without clogging up the works via the tinsel I'm so fond of using (shown in the trapeze artist piece, in the last entry). I stuck with my trusty Prismacolors for her plumage, much as I did for that of her peacock friend...

Admittedly there are spots of ink in the tail, but largely the colored pencils are doing the work. Peacock feathers are a near-obsession for me - I love drawing them, and observing their incredible sense of fluidity and spectrum. I remember, years ago, a friend telling me that her family refused to allow them in her home - an old cultural bias, stating that they brought bad luck. I'm so grateful that my mother didn't believe in such hash, liberally distributing them throughout our home... particularly in the late 1970s. Her sense of style clearly influenced that of her daughter...
And finally, a little feature time for our feathered friend. His chest and tip of his tail have sadly been a touch washed thanks to the camera, but this will do. Granted, this poster reflects the all-encompassing attitude characteristic of the Oriental fox trot - that is, doing all that's possible to capture the cultures of the Middle East, as well as Asian countries. Thus the peacock, alongside a concubine and hookah. This type of music was a purely American invention, much like other pseudo-cultural crazes our country was so fond of getting wrapped up in during the early 20th century - I figured this was a suitable illustration to convey that sense of presumptuous exoticism, for lack of better term.

As an aside, another peacock memory has been stirred. My father, who was a deeply accomplished classical tenor, had a true knack for mimicking peacocks. If I had a dollar for every time he got those birds going during our Cincinnati Zoo visits, I'd be rolling in dough...

A Night in the Orient

How could I have forgotten this latest illustration? I meant to post this in my last entry - the advertisement poster for the recent, aforementioned "Night in the Orient" concert. Everything but the photograph and banner font was hand-illustrated - with luck, I will post close-ups in the next entry. For now, enjoy this peacock-focused flight of fancy!

A Sheik, His Sheba, Several Skulls... and an Aerialist!

So, after a rather longish absence, I've returned with the final version of the earlier post - my trapeze artist, part of a local opening in September. The last entry showed the "bones" of the matter - here she is in finished form. As is my standard practice, I used Prismacolor pencils with pen and ink - there are also details of tinsel and metallic ink. A close up of her face:

She was a delight to work on - the colors are joyous, and the subject matter consistently brings a smile to my face. Happily, I'm currently at work on several other illustration projects - to be posted here, naturally!

And now, I present the Sheik and his Sheba...


Matt's orchestra, the Singapore Slingers, held a truly landmark concert on November 19th: "A Night in the Orient" - an evening devoted to the Orient-inspired popular music of the 1910s and 1920s. We both knew that he needed a suitable sheik's robe for the event - and rather than rent one, I felt it would be much wiser to make him one. After much searching through the racks at local fabric shops, fate arrived in the form of a Moroccan festival in a neighboring town. We snapped up beautiful woven blankets, an embroidered shirt and leather slippers - and I got to work. Thanks to an older (and relatively accurate) costume pattern, I made his robe, and fudged my way through his head scarf and zarouelles (draped pants). I couldn't have been more thrilled with the results, to be honest - and luckily, I was able to dress accordingly myself, in a ragtime-era costume I'd made two years ago. Here's another photo of Matt in action, during the show...


On other sewing fronts, I bumped into a fabulous remnant of material - just in time for Dia de los Muertos:


I had just enough to put together a 1950s reprint pattern - a circle-skirted, sleeveless dress with bias-tape shoulder bows. It's an ingenious design, and I get complimented every time I wear it. Here it is on the form, to give an idea of length and drape. If you look to the right, you can see the adorable doll I made about 12 years ago, during my time in New York City. He's based off of my illustrations, and has been a well-dressed traveling companion ever since. Someday I'll devote a blog entry or two to his creation - it was a remarkable experience.

So there you have it, at long last - the blog has been updated! Stay tuned for further news, no matter how soon or how late... I'm bound to stop by. And thanks for your patience - as I manage to become better organized with each passing project, things will pick up again on the posting front. Best wishes - and happy holiday preparations to all!

Practically Naked!

I'm very excited about my latest project, something of a surprise that's come up within the last week or so. A circus-themed gallery show will be opening in Dallas on September 18th at the Fallout Lounge, and I've been invited to participate. As a bona fide junkie for all things circus history, I couldn't turn down such an exciting offer - and so, I currently sit at my desk, working on two new pieces. The first is a trapeze artist, and I'm so eager in my sketching that I've decided to give her a bit of premature exposure - consider it a tease before the final piece is unveiled.


I almost never share sketches - with anyone - I honestly feel nearly naked in doing so. As such, this is a rare treat. Expect photos of the final pieces, but for now relish in this little gal's graphite goodness. I figured it'd be fun to share the bare bones of an illustration, after all this time.

Life Savers, Each and Every One

In keeping with my last entry, I wanted to post a photograph of my latest poster - aimed at the greyhound community, but more so, toward honoring fosters. Across the country, many retired greyhounds spend time with caretakers trained to help them transition from their prior lives (as racing animals) to their future, as family pets and companions. These caretakers, "fosters", are invaluable in the adoption community - they ensure the successful adjustment of these wonderful dogs, helping them to understand aspects of life such as house rules, climbing stairs, avoiding glass doors - many of these things are completely alien to greyhounds just off the track. Fosters give them the gift of a future... a new life.

This poster is one that I'd been wanting to work up for some time - I appreciated the idea of fosters truly being "life savers", and as such, I pursued a nautical theme. The life ring itself was a given - what I hadn't planned on was the metallic lettering, and wooden scroll. But the more I thought of the incredible carvings I'd seen in maritime museums along the east coast, the less I could resist incorporating that element. The gold lettering falls into that vein as well - the 16th-century galleons featured vast amounts of skillfully-applied gold leaf. In short, this was a great deal of fun to create. Some detail photos - the last of which was taken up close, and at an angle, to show the textures of the pencil and inks.





I hope to have this poster run into a series of prints very soon - along with my other work now on Etsy, I think it could do a lot of good in raising further funds for the Greyhound Adoption League of Texas, as well as other groups down the line.



And if you're wondering, the two dogs are Desiree, my late fawn girl, and Martin, a very special brindle boy from the Fort Worth seizure, mentioned in the last post. Their fosters, Lynne and Holly, are both wonderful people, tireless in their efforts to help animals adjust to a happy future. This one goes out to both of them.

Renewed Inspiration

Some of you folks may know that for several years, I ran a small, mobile business that helped to raise funds for greyhound adoption groups, and research to fight animal cancers. For four years I hopped around the east coast, attending greyhound picnics, reunions, charity events and more - selling tee shirts, prints, cards and such that featured my greyhound-themed illustrations. Sadly, my life saw some major upheaval, and the business fell by the wayside - but not without my hopes of seeing it restored someday. Very happily, it seems that day has finally come.


I am an animal lover - anyone who knows me in the slightest is keenly aware of this fact. But greyhounds have a very special place in my heart. I had wanted to share my life with one at the age of sixteen, when I first learned of their plight (post-racing career adoption was a much rarer thing in those days) - and when I finally adopted Desiree fourteen years later, my heart was won completely. The business came along only months later - and by the time I had attended my first show as a vendor, I had adopted Brick as well.

But to the present. For a couple of years, my prints, cards and other paper goods had been in storage, waiting for their return to the market. Prohibitive expenses and policies on a certain auction website had caused me to close my online store, thus cutting off my Internet presence. I began to focus on other aspects of life, almost forgetting this important part of my career.


Until the Fort Worth 28.

This group of 28 greyhounds and greyhound mixes was rescued last month, as part of an emergency Animal Control seizure in Fort Worth, Texas. Most likely victims of an illegal racing operation, the dogs were reported to AC by a local water company employee - caged in a backyard, starving, covered in ticks and fleas... as good as left for dead. As the story branched out via news reports and the Internet, the appalling truth drove people to action. My first moment of awareness was the resultant death of Braden, found outside of the property in horrible shape... he died within days of his rescue of kidney failure, resulting from starvation. Three more dogs, all beautiful, loving souls, expired from distemper - a completely preventable illness. One dog in particular, Martin, grabbed my heartstrings - clearly a wonderful soul, just learning to play with toys, understand love and happiness - taken by the disease after his golden moment of life, in a caring foster home, touched by kind hands and words for the first time. The fact that I've met his wonderful, supportive family of foster caretakers only brings it home all the more.

The survivors are healing well, but funds will be continuously needed for their recovery. As well, even more dogs have been rescued from a terrible situation - 11 this time, in a case unrelated to the FW28. Clearly this seems to be an ongoing issue - and I've suddenly found myself driven to help out.


As a result, I've donated a number of my prints to the fund raising auctions to help these dogs in their recovery - as well, two custom portraits, which will be auctioned off this fall and winter. My prints will also be placed on Etsy - the existing pieces from my store, as well as some new offerings. My plan is to donate 10% at the beginning - a greater percentage as time moves along, and the store establishes itself.

I didn't expect to get back into this business so quickly, but inspiration comes unexpectedly. And these dogs certainly can use all the help we can offer them.

Engaged, Married, Thrilled!

Time has passed since my last entry, but so much has happened! With a joyous wedding having taken place, I can now return to my blog - a happy, refreshed, marvelously married woman. I also want to take this opportunity to feature a few of the engagement photos that our dear friend Brittany Oswald took, just a week before the wedding - Matt and I couldn't be more thrilled. But first, the nuptials...


Matt and I were married on June 12, at the Unity Church on Greenville Avenue. The ceremony was officiated by Matt's youth minister, Andy Stoker - he was wonderful. Surrounded by our loved ones, and accompanied by our closest friends and family in the wedding party, the event was incredibly beautiful. And now for the creative, blog-focused aspect of the wedding - the gown!


As I mentioned in an earlier post, I was miraculously fortunate enough to acquire exquisite materials for the gown - silk duchesse satin, crepe and impeccable soutache lace went into the construction. The pattern itself is an alteration of a late 1990s Simplicity costume design, based on the film "Titanic" - the piece is affectionately called the "swim dress". The veiling tulle arrived the morning of the wedding - I whipped up a piece immediately. Although you cannot see it well here, the headpiece is a band of petersham ribbon, trimmed with vintage earrings and nazar boncuk charms.


The gown is a bit more visible here - you can also see more of the bodice front, finished with my late mother's antique cameo. Matt's handsome, circa 1938 tailcoat tuxedo is just marvelous - our dear friend Robert stands to my left. He provided the ragtime selections for our ceremony, and the exquisite lilies I carried down the aisle. I was lucky enough to find the perfect satin heels at David's Bridal - I had them dyed to match the gown, and finished them with petersham ribbons (ideal for fox trotting). I'm very proud of this piece - the hand-finishing through the lining is wonderful, and the fit is perfect. Just enough of an architectural nature to shape the body into that ideal, late Edwardian silhouette.




And now back in time, to see the engagement photos! Brittany Oswald is a deeply gifted photographer, and her sense of aesthetic came into full play with our shoot. We started out in Oak Cliff, a Dallas neighborhood - a lakeside park served us perfectly. We brought along our own props - as you can see, our love of vintage musical instruments, phonographs, antiques and ephemera tends to follow us around! Despite the simmering Texas heat, we had a great time in the park... Brittany had us laughing (and spooning) to beat the band...



Funny enough, until now I had forgotten that this dress is one I made two years ago. A Vintage Vogue reprint of a 1950s pattern, in white eyelet - one of my favorites. And now to the next location, Curiosities - an eclectic antique shop in the Lakewood neighborhood!



We changed beforehand - Matt into his 1920s beltback suit, and I into my walkaway dress (another one made at home). In this environment, we wanted a truly Technicolor experience, and we surely achieved that!



The above shot was initially unexpected - I had bumped into the corset just before, and in my enthusiasm, tried it on. Brittany hopped in as Matt lifted his cuff to show off his garters (an enormous weakness of mine) - and I lifted my skirt in a sense of unity. A power couple? You tell us.


I'll include the last photo - in fact a completely candid one, taken at Campisi's, a local Italian restaurant. This was between locations, giving us a chance to cool down and have a nibble. Matt did exactly that, and Brittany caught the moment.



He is an utterly wonderful man, and such a joy to be married to. Here's to an enchanting life together! And, for good measure - a photo of us, at the Singapore Slingers performance that took place three days after the wedding. Matt's playing "Mariutch" on the Baldoni accordion, and I'm doing a hootchy-kootchy dance, while wearing a circa 1912 bathing suit, and early 1930s egret fascinator. Such a beautiful life...