Winter Holidays

So I'm celebrating my winter holiday back in the West Kootenay's with my family.  I've been cross country skiing and merry making, and I intend to do plenty more over the next week!

It's been a busy year for me filled with drawing, illustrating, framing, reading, writing, teaching and generally working hard.  I'm thrilled with what I've accomplished over the year and excited for what's coming next.  But it's so important for me to fit in as many outdoor expeditions as I can manage around the edges.

I hope you all are enjoying your own picturesque Christmas!

Green Parent Illustration

I had the pleasure to work art director, Jez Harris over at The Green Parent magazine.  This is the first of a pair of illustrations.  This one is is for the Modern Dad column.  The illustration is of the dad who writes the column, with his three cute little kids.

Milwaukee Magazine Illustration

A few months back I was asked to make an illustration for Milwaukee Magazine.  It was for a wonderful essay written by Carolyn Bucior.  It's about how rewarding hobbies can be.  This is definitely something I can relate to.

My own preferred hobbies include hiking, walking in the woods and knitting.  These activities sure do give me oodles of pleasure!  You can read the article online here.

Thanks so much to Anne Baesemann for being such a wonderful art director to work with on this!

Today's Parent : Debate Illustration

I had the pleasure of illustrating the November Debate column in Today's Parent Magazine.  This debate was about if you, as a parent, would choose to find out if your baby was going to be a girl or a boy.  You can read the debate here.

Thanks to the wonderful Nicole Chung, who was the art director I worked with for this illustration.

Boulder Colorado Illustrated Map

I'm excited I can finally post about my newest map illustration!

It highlights great restaurants, coffee shops and stores in Boulder Colorado.  It was art directed by Rebecca Hechtr and Jim McCann, who were both wonderful to work with.  Check it out in the November issue of Sunset Magazine.  Also, you can read the article online here.

Rhode Island Monthly

During July, I was contacted by Associate Art Director, Carolyn Marsden, for Rhode Island Monthly.  She asked me to illustrated an article about an urban outreach yoga program for seventh and eighth graders.  What an amazing idea!  I wish my junior high school had offered this.

Yoga is an excellent way to reduce stress, improve focus and raise self-esteem ... pretty much things we all would like to work on.  Thanks Carolyn for the great commission!

Seven Days Magazine : Adirondack Issue

Afew weeks ago I was asked to make a cover illustration for Seven Days, an independant Vermont magazine.  It was art directed by Celia Hazard, who was a pleasure to work with.  It was a super tight turn around time (about 3 or 4 days).

The cover includes the Champlain Bridge, tubing in the Adirondack Mountains and a woodsmen chopping down a tree.  All stuff that appears in that issue.

Today's Parent : Debate Illustration

Today's Parent, September issue is out!  And so is the latest illustration I made for their debate page.  This debate was about breastfeeding past age two.  Seems like a pretty hot topic these days.  Hope you enjoy my little suckling piglets!

Today's Parent: Debate Illustration

Back in May I was asked to do another debate page illustration for Today's Parent Magazine.  I love illustrating for them.  It's always such a pleasure working with the art directors there.

So this debate was about how you, as a parent, feel about your kids listening to music with explicate lyrics.  You can read it online here.  Today's Parent always has such interesting topics for this column.

Original Art For Sale

Arctic Synchronized Swim

Over the next couple weeks I'll be adding a bunch of framed originals to my Etsy Shop!

Gardener

Amsterdam Map

The Flooded Home of Corporal Cutty McCloud

Birds and Blooms

Today's Parent: Debate Illustration

The July issue of Today's Parent Magazine came out and I had the pleasure of creating the illustration for the debate page.  The article asked, should you let your kid play with toy guns, read it here.

Thanks very much to the Art Director, Nicole Chung, for the great commission!

Barn, Great Horned, Long-eared

A couple weeks ago, I was commissioned to make an illustration as a gift for a baby shower.  They wanted something not too girly, and not too babyish.  I had a great time looking at all kinds of owl photo reference.  They have such interesting and rather ghostly faces.

Below, I included my rough sketch.

N.E.E.T Magazine

Stephanie, the editor of N.E.E.T Magazine, included a bunch of my artwork in the latest issue.  Check it out here.

Waitrose Weekend

A month or so ago, I was asked to make a cross section dollhouse style illustration for Waitrose Weekend.  The article was about helpful hints for elderly people who are downsizing their homes.  Moving is such a difficult thing for most people.  I know I hate moving.  It just seems a little overwhelming.  But we all gotta do it now and then, and it feels good to go through stuff and get rid of what you don't need.

Thanks very much Steven Trayler for the great commission!

Woodrough Lodge

Woodrough Lodge

I've been living in Ontario for so many years now (11 years maybe?), I thought it was high time to create a special, Ontario cottage country dollhouse.  I wanted to include lots of the great local wildlife.  Some highlights include a moose, beavers, coyotes, red wing black birds and black bear.

I was really pleased how it all turned out matted and framed!  It's hard to tell from the photo, but the frame has nice textured bark detailing on it.

Thanks to Jesse, for taking the photo, it's so hard get a good picture of art behind glass.

Coconut Oil Coffee

Coconut Oil Coffee - photographed by Jesse Ewles

So I'm completely addicted to coconut oil coffee.  It's ruined me for normal coffee!  It's super easy to make and it tastes like the greatest latte you've ever had.

All you do is make a pot of coffee like normal (I use a french press), then when it's ready, you pour it into a blender, add a heaping teaspoon of coconut oil, tablespoon of honey, and a good splash of almond milk.  Blend it for a minute or two and serve it in your favorite coffee mug.  It comes out with plenty of froth on top and a creamy taste.
This is sure to impress your mom (Mother's day is coming up!) and all your friends.

And don't feel bad about drinking coconut oil, it happens to have health benefits!

Gabon Magazine Cover Illustration

Gabon Magazine contacted me to create a cover illustration for a special edition of the magazine to be distributed in China.  The issue was all about China/Gabon trade relations and they wanted the cover to portray this.  It was very interesting to learn a little bit about Gabon while creating the artwork.  It sounds like a very beautiful country with interesting animals and many natural resources.

The chosen cover image is of a Phoenix (a very positive Chinese symbol) holding a lucky coin.  The bird flys over a Gabon landscape highlighting some of Gabon's major trade assets (lumber and off shore oil).

It was a pleasure working with Mauro Perillo, the managing editor!

* The text on the above illustration isn't what was on the final printed version.  It was a general cover template I was given to design around.  But you get the idea.

Today's Parent Paper Cut Flowers

Yay! I am really excited to finally see (and share) this cover!

Back in February, I was asked to make 5 branches of paper cut flowers with little leaves for the May issue of Today's Parent Magazine.  I also spent the morning at the photo shoot cutting and folding last minute extra flowers.  Everyone was super nice and it was great to meet Alicia Kowalewski, the art director, in person.

My flowers might appear in a photo on the interior of the magazine as well.  I'll have to get my hands on a copy to take a look.

Art At Cardinal Rule

Gypsy Summer - Miss Fawn Cuttington's Rustic A-frame - The Gardener

It ain't easy photographing art behind glass.  But you get the gist.

So my art will be displayed at Cardinal Rule for the next 3 months!  Jesse and I put up the show earlier this week, and I gotta say, it looks real good.  There are 10 pieces up in total.

If you're in the Toronto area, you should stop in for a brunch or dinner.

Birds and Blooms

The Flooded Home of Corporal Cutty McCloud

Arctic Synchronized Swim

Amsterdam Map

Stand Fast

Seven Days: Vermont Magazine

Here's a new cover illustration I made for Seven Days, Vermont's independent magazine!  It was for the real estate issue, so I got to cut out a nice variety of little houses.  I think it turned out pretty cute.

It was art directed by Diane Sullivan, who was an all around wonderful person to work with.  The turn around time was really tight (maybe 4 days from sketches to final), fewf!

Today's Parent Illustration

Here's a quick little spot illustration I made for Today's Parent Magazine.  It was done with a very quick turn around time, and I think it turned out really great!

Thanks to the art director, Dave Curcio, for the great commission!

Savary Island Map

Savary Island Illustrated Map

I'm so happy to finally share my newest map illustration!  Click the image to see a larger view.

I created this piece as a gift for my dad and step mom, Janice.  Dad has been building a beautiful cottage on Savary Island for the past ... hmm ... I'm not sure ... maybe 7 years? He's built it all himself, sometimes dragging large, beautiful, drift wood logs from the ocean behind his kayak and incorporating them as beams in the house.  I could pretty much go on and on about amazing stories about my dad, but I should talk a bit about this map illustration as well.

So Savary Island is off the coast of British Columbia on the Sunshine Coast and is filled with beauiful wildlife.  I wanted to include and label some of the most prominent island animals.  Also, I included my sister painting, my dad kayaking, Janice looking through the binoculars and myself wearing my red sweater ridding a bike.

Below you can see the work in progress.

And bellow is my all time favorite Savary Island photo!  I was on that rock posing in the hot sun for 2 days while my bikini clad sister painted me.  (This was clearly used as reference on my map.)

And now you must be curious to see how Kristy's painting turned out ... take a look! Beautiful.  Can't wait to visit again this summer.

Anthology Magazine Illustrations

Early December, I had the pleasure of creating five illustrations for the Winter 2012 issue of Anthology Magazine.  Together with creative director, Meg Mateo Ilasco, I illustrated the Amsterdam Map and four spot illustrations on homesteading.  My favorite of which is probably the "Caring For Chickens" one.

I gotta say, I was super excited when I received this issue in the mail.  It's chalk full of great crafting, decorating and general hand making ideas.  Plus, the cover and a handful of interior illustrations were done by fellow paper cut illustrator, Chloé Fleury.

You should probably pick up a copy. 

Victorian Style Brooches

Arctic Fox Brooch

I've been wanting to create illustrated brooches for a few years now.  And I'm very pleased to announce that I created them at long last!

I love the Victorian medallion style.  Perfect for your coat or cardigan.

Each image is a miniature reproduction of one of my original illustrations and is protected with a clear varnish coating. The pendant hangs from a rick velvet ribbon and a colour that compliments the image.

The whole brooch measures about 2 x 2.5 in
The image area is about 1 x 1 in

Check em out in my Etsy shop, or at Scout in Toronto.

Bird Silhouette Brooch

Evergreen Tree Brooch

Horse Brooch

Rose Girl Brooch

Steller's Jay Brooch