Skylaar

New Poems

2012-01-31T13:49:00.000-08:00

My poem "Rehabilitation" was just published in Issue #3 of Lingerpost. There are some great poems in this issue, and I am very happy to be included. Thanks to Kara Dorris at Lingerpost for accepting my work.

"The Fisherman's Plea" is forthcoming in the inaugural issue of Belletrist Coterie, which is exciting for me because it's one of my favorite poems I've written. I hear the issue will include a piece by the legendary Jane Yolen, so that is pretty awesome company.

Lastly, I'll have "Resignation" published by Fault Lines, a local Portland journal of Pac NW writing.

I'll be sure to post an update here on the latter two journals when the issues are published. Thanks to all the editors reading, considering, and publishing my writing!

In other news, I'll have some whale paintings to post here in the coming days that are part of a book I'm working on. In the meantime, here is a cover idea I'm working on.

Woo, another finished toy!

2012-01-24T14:53:00.000-08:00

Bub is one of Kidrobot's Mini Munnys. He looks like Moomintroll to me, but I made this one into a salty Sea Cap'n.

Pelican detail

The Cap'n dressed down

Buds

The Cappy looks pretty good next to Miss Cachalot, if I do say so myself!

ScienceOnline Art Show

2012-01-23T16:51:00.000-08:00

Check it out, I have a cartoon in the ScienceOnline Art Show!

Science Online is an international science conference in North Carolina that took place this last weekend. The art show was displayed during the conference and is currently online on the Scientific American Symbiartic blog. There's a range of cartoons, scientific illustration, and other science-themed art in the vid (my piece is around 4:45):

I want to thank Glendon Mellow for arranging the show and a big shout-out to all my fellow nerds! To the Power of Science!

New Custom Munny

2012-01-23T11:00:00.002-08:00

I just finished painting a DIY Munny. I wanted to just paint this one (sans sculptural elements) to see how it would go. I didn't really have an idea until I started working and then it came to me. I like working on Munnys because they can be part figure and part landscape, which is a weird concept but one that somehow works well. I like to call her Miss Cachalot 2012, haha.

Side view details

Sea star and whale

Ship

Sky and birds detail

Sperm whale detail

Pages from my new book

2012-01-10T09:39:00.000-08:00

I am working on a new book about the nature of remembering--fictional memories, fragmented memories, fantastical memories--and the way shapes and patterns can remind us of moments and decisions. Here are a few pages I am working on. I think this book will have 20-25 pages when completed. It will also have an interactive element--a paper steamer trunk you can cut out and assemble to store all your baggage--I mean memories.

What Do Ukulele Players Eat?

2012-01-06T10:40:00.001-08:00

I am excited to share some illustrations I've just completed for the second edition of "What Do Ukulele Players Eat?" a cookbook produced by the awesome Australian uke player, Rose Ertler. The first book included great recipes by some of the uke community's best players. I can't wait to see the second book and am so honored Rose asked me to contribute!

Thanks, Rose!!

Upcoming Shows

2011-11-30T12:00:00.002-08:00

Hi Peeps,

Two shows coming up to tell you/remind you about. First up, the Reading Frenzy Cheap Art Show, opening December 1. This show features dozens of artists' handmade work, everything under $50. This is a great place to do some holiday shopping and you'll be supporting local artists and Reading Frenzy which is a cornerstone of independent media in Portland and a great supporter of self-publishers/zinesters/artists.

I'll have a bunch of small sea creature plushies like these for sale in this show! Reading Frenzy is on SW 9th and Oak downtown.

Second up is the Big 200 show at People's Art Gallery, opening December 10. This show has hundreds of 8x8 pieces all for $40 a piece, which is a ridiculous deal.

People's Art is in Pioneer Place Mall on the 3rd floor. This show opens on a Saturday and I hear has fun stuff for kids, too, so no excuse not to come by.

I'll have six pieces in the show. They are all sea-themed and are soft sculpture on board.

LaBaleine in Reading Frenzy Cheap Art Show

2011-11-18T13:20:00.000-08:00

I am participating in Reading Frenzy's annual Cheap Art Holiday Show which opens December 1. Lots of artists, lots of art--all under $50! Stop by and check out my small plushies and newly-designed fact cards. I'll have Dire Whelks, California Mussels, Pacific Blue Mussels, Fat Gaper Clams, and Sea Urchin shells on sale! Lots of other artists are participating too and it's a great opportunity to buy awesome, hand-made gifts!

C'mon down December 1. Reading Frenzy is on 9th and Oak, just around the corner from Powells. Thanks Chloe for having me in the show!

Some new work

2011-10-25T14:22:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share a few details of the new work I've been making, which will be exhibited in the People's Art Gallery Big 200 show this December. This is a new style for me and I'm not ready to publicly share all the work yet, but I am excited about how it's turning out.

People's Art Gallery is located in Pioneer Mall and all the work is cash-and-carry for only 40 bucks. It's just in time for crazed holiday shopping. Be there or be chumps.

Two Poems in Prime Number

2011-10-19T11:02:00.001-07:00

I have two poems published in the current issue (13) of Prime Number! My poems, And the Dreams of Vaudeville Follow Us All Home and Memories of Ukulele and the Girl Who Loved Her, can be found here. There is a short interview afterward. This issue of Prime Number contains lots of other awesome stuff, too--like a poem about Big Bill Broonzy! Thanks to Val Nieman and everyone at Prime Number for publishing my work!

Plush Troller

2011-10-16T14:56:00.000-07:00

I just completed my first plush fishing boat! This is a small troller common to the Pacific Northwest.

I added small details like orange buoys, an oversized anchor, outrigger poles, and a hold.

It's in my etsy shop right now! Woo!

New Flatback Journal

2011-10-07T15:18:00.000-07:00

Here a few pix of a book I bound for a friend/client out in Wyoming. It was fun to make a big book with lots of pages, it's been a while!

Thanks, Fawn!

NWSE Donation

2011-10-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple pix of the donation I dropped off today to benefit the Northwest Science Expo. Donating free work certainly doesn't pay the bills, but how can I say no to the power of science?

Finny "the Fluke" Flukorello Custom Munny

2011-09-28T13:46:00.000-07:00

Yeah! I just finished my new customized Munny. (This one is technically a Rooz.) Fincente Flukorello is the alleged boss of the Whale Mafia, part of a series of drawings/characters I created last year. He's got a mean grimace, cigar, bowler, and reclaimed harpoon! Watch out, fatcats! He's finned and dangerous!

I kind of want to go crazy and make all the Flunkies next!

The Daunting Horizon, Pt 3

2011-09-26T12:30:00.001-07:00

The Daunting Horizon, Pt 2

2011-09-25T12:30:00.003-07:00

New Nudibranch

2011-09-24T13:57:00.000-07:00

I've made a new and improved Lemon Nudibranch. This guy is part of a donation I'm putting together for the Northwest Science Expo. This nudibranch and one of my plush whales will be part of the NWSE silent auction to raise money for the science fair.

Yeah, the power of science!

Zen Cartooan

2011-09-23T12:30:00.001-07:00

The Daunting Horizon, Pt 1

2011-09-22T12:30:00.001-07:00

Future, Pt 3

2011-09-21T12:30:00.001-07:00

OMG SEALZ MORE CAKE

2011-09-20T12:30:00.001-07:00

OMG SEALZ FATCAT BREKFUST

2011-09-19T12:30:00.001-07:00

Your Resume, Pt 2

2011-09-16T12:30:00.001-07:00

Your Resume, Pt 1

2011-09-15T12:30:00.006-07:00

Future, Pt 2

2011-09-14T12:30:00.001-07:00

Future, Pt 1

2011-09-13T12:30:00.003-07:00

Latptop Hellmouth

2011-09-12T12:30:00.002-07:00

OMG SLEAZ

2011-09-09T12:30:00.003-07:00

OMG SEALZ CANT U C IM BUSY

2011-09-08T12:30:00.001-07:00

OMG SEALZ NO TOUCHING PART 2

2011-09-07T12:30:00.001-07:00

OMG SEALZ NO TOUCHING

2011-09-06T13:09:00.002-07:00

Fossil Record, Pt. 3

2011-08-29T14:13:00.000-07:00

Red Flabellina Nudibranch

2011-08-28T17:41:00.000-07:00

Here some pix of a new plush nudibranch I made over the weekend!

New Plush Tidepool Stuff

2011-08-26T15:02:00.000-07:00

Here are a few new plushies for the tidepool: a giant green anemone ready for my etsy shop and two new designs which I need to make flashcards for. The first is a sea lemon (a nudibranch native to the Oregon Coast) and the second is a gumboot chiton (everyone's favorite chiton, am I right?)

I'm pretty excited to be making nudibranchs! What's wrong with me? :)

The Fossil Record, Pt. 2

2011-08-26T11:34:00.000-07:00

Plush Nudibranch -- N. purpurea

2011-08-25T20:16:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post some pix of a plush nudibranch I made for an etsy customer (to give as a gift to a teenage nudibranch-enthusiast!) recently. This little guy is known as Noumea purpurea and lives in the Indo-West Pacific (i.e., Japan, etc.) He was so fun to make and I am really happy with the finished product! I believe it's been happily received by now, so my post won't ruin the recipient's surprise!

I also made this little identification tag and scientific flashcard to go with:

I'm excited to make another sea slug, one native to Oregon!

The Fossil Record

2011-08-25T16:18:00.000-07:00

Munny is Done-y

2011-08-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

I finally finished my Humphrey Owlgart Munny! Painting it took a little longer than I expected, but I am pretty happy with it. Lots of little details help make it old-timey, I think. I picture him singing My Walking Stick and sipping on his jugga 'shine.

I think I'll make Finny the Fluke next, using Kidrobot's Rooz!

OMG SEAL-Z

2011-08-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

OMG SEALZ NO LONGLINE

2011-08-23T11:29:00.000-07:00

OMG SEALZ I CANT HAS JOBZ

2011-08-22T14:51:00.000-07:00

OMG SEALZ DO NOT WANT

2011-08-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

New Munny

2011-08-18T19:37:00.000-07:00

I'm halfway through completing my new Munny, just finishing the sculpture part today. This guy is modeled on my Owl character (the one that everyone thinks looks like a penguin) aka Humphrey Owlgart.

He's wearing a little suit, bowtie, and cummerbund. I made a little moonshine jug and straw hat, too. He has a lot of little details, like a feathered tail, buttons, heeled shoes, and a feather in his cap. I can't wait to paint him!

OMG SEALZ I CAN HAS ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR

2011-08-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

OMG SEALZ I CAN HAS CHILLUNS

2011-08-17T13:29:00.000-07:00

Munny Customization, Part 2

2011-08-14T12:39:00.000-07:00

Finally, I've completed my first customized Munny in the style of Miss Edna Bloom's latest incarnation, Seal Head Girl! It took a little bit longer than I originally hoped because I got sidetracked with a big order for Paxton Gate and the Zine Symposium. But now that all that stuff is wrapped up, Edna is all done! Check it out:

The Munny and the Magic Sculpt I used to make the seal skin were both really easy to paint. The hardest thing was figuring out how to make clothes and body parts since Edna normally has legs. I'd like to get some more Munnys and figure out how to convert them into some of my other characters, and maybe work on adding more details.

OMG SEALZ I CAN HAS TEMPER TANTRUM

2011-08-12T19:28:00.000-07:00

OMG SEALZ I CAN HAS SALMONBURGER

2011-08-11T12:37:00.000-07:00

Post-Zine Symposium Wrap-Up

2011-08-08T14:22:00.000-07:00

Another successful Portland Zine Symposium has come and gone. I had a really great weekend, tabling for the fourth year, getting some good zines, and making some money!

Here's me at my table bright and early Saturday morning before the show got going and before the venue became stifling hot (probably the only downside to the weekend).

I didn't know what sort of reception to expect to what I was calling "Shell Zines," essentially my sea creature plushies and science flashcards. People were very responsive and liked them a lot for the most part. Of course, there were a few requisite confused glances and comments, but I did sell a few and made a couple fans.

My new books were received well, although I only sold a handful of both. Now I have ten different books on my table, which I still sell decently. My biggest sale was definitely to the Multnomah County Library zine librarians. This year the library purchased four books (six copies of each!) so I am really looking forward to seeing these in the library catalogue soon. In the meantime, I already have four books in the Multnomah County Library catalogue, which you can check out right now!

I met a few folks who also make ocean-related zines and I'm excited to sit down and read their comics now that the show is over:

I met a friendly dude (Luke Mahan) who makes a comic called Orcaskine about an orca and printed on moleskine. Nerdy!

I also met a friendly gal (Lucy Bellwood) who makes a comic called Baggy Wrinkles about working on a sailing ship! So awesome! Check her out! I am so jealous she works on a ship.

Other than zine-related madness, I just finished a custom plush nudibranch for an Etsy customer (and will post pix soon). I can't wait to make an Oregon-native nudibranch next!

Yeah, making stuff!

Getting Ready for Zine Symposium

2011-08-05T10:00:00.004-07:00

Woohoo! The Portland Zine Symposium is finally here! I'll be tabling all weekend (August 6 & 7), debuting two new books and a whole bunch of shell zines (plushies with illustrated fact cards)!


Shell Zines!


New Books and Mini-Comix!

Stacks of Books!

Merch!

I think I'm about ready! C'mon down to Refuge this weekend and check out Action Bookbinding, LaBaleine, and the rest of the show! It's free!

New Plushies

2011-08-04T16:06:00.000-07:00

I've been hard at work on new sea creatures. I'm excited about my new barnacle and how this batch of stars turned out. I'm about to start working on a plush nudibranch and hope to have some pix next week. In the meantime, these guys can all be found at Paxton Gate PDX!

Munny Customization, Part 1

2011-07-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

Ooh, I'm excited to have begun customizing my very first Munny! So far, it's been fun and easy.

I'm using Magic Sculpt to turn Munny into Seal Head Girl, adding a seal skin, nose, shoes, and hair details.

The resin is in process of drying and in a few days, I will begin sanding and painting her!

Yeah!
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Two New Books in the Shop

2011-07-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

My two new and aforementioned books, Chumptown! and I Would Be Lost Without You, are finally for sale in my etsy shop! They are both printed in color and are handbound by me with a pamphlet stitch (with red and blue thread, respectively).

If you're just dying to get your hands on these and can't wait for the Portland Zine Symposium (first weekend in August), head over to etsy and give me your money!

Wild West and Science in a Red State

2011-07-18T11:58:00.000-07:00

Wow, Wyoming. We got home from our Wild West trip last night. It was a whirlwind visit of family, kids, and so many MUSEUMS. My absolute favorite was the Wyoming Dinosaur Center and Dig Site, an amazing museum in Thermopolis, Wyoming, which houses a comprehensive and beautifully displayed collection and is next to an active dig site! I love this museum because it is informative and educational and hasn't bowed to the sensational edutainment exhibits of many museums (cough OMSI cough) that provide very little actual information.

Crinoid assemblage

Giant fish skeleton

Love for the fishapod exhibit!!

roaming crinoids, maybe 8 feet long

The Wyo Dino Center is made famous by its supersaurus

Another crazy thing in Wyoming is Lou Taubert Ranch Outfitters which has a million kinds of cowboy boots and tons of authentic ranch gear, not to mention authentically died-in-the-wool old western guys on staff.

(I borrowed this pic from the Lou Taubert website)

The store is huge and of course there is requisite taxidermy all over. I'm freaking excited about my new boots:

I found a lot to love about Wyoming and Montana (Bozeman has an amazing art center and natural foods co-op) but there were some scary things too:

Styrofoam is everywhere and recycling seems to be theoretical


There is a ton of stereotypical Indian stuff everywhere

A lot of places look like this

This crap is on billboards everywhere

I'd say Wyoming and Montana were about what I expected (although I wasn't sure what the landscape would look like, never did find a tumbleweed). It was a little less scary than I thought it might be, but I would say I felt much more liberal than the residents. There was a lot more science than I expected and the museums didn't hide evolution or anything like that.

Seriously, there are antelope and deer everywhere.

Wild West Recommendations:

Tate Geological Museum (home of Dee the Mammoth)
Werner Wildlife Museum (crazy amounts of taxidermy)
Wyoming Dinosaur Center and Dig Site (transcendental fossil experience)
Thermopolis State Park (stinky hot springs and buffalo viewing)
Wind River Canyon (One of the most beautiful places I've ever seen)
Museum of the Rockies (Bozeman dino museum)
Emerson Center for the Arts (Bozeman art center, even has a letterpress!)
Bozeman Community Food Co-op (food oasis in salt-soaked, meat-heavy area of the country)
Battle of Little Bighorn (formerly Custer's Last Stand)

Preparing for Zine Symposium and the Wild West

2011-07-06T15:03:00.000-07:00

July has been busy, and we're only a week in! I'm excited to be preparing for the Portland Zine Symposium (August 6 and 7, at Refuge). I will be debuting two new books, both handbound with a pamphlet stitch and in full color thanks to the awesome dudes at the Lazerquik in downtown Portland.

If you checked out the Comic Show at People's Art a few months back you may have seen the pieces that my new books are based on.

I am really excited about Chumptown! because I've been thinking of ideas for it pretty much since I first moved to Portland four years ago. Chumptown! is a satire of all things Stumptown: comics, scenesters, posers, artists, cheapskates--you name it. With love though, right?

The second book I will be releasing at the Zine Symposium is called I Would be Lost Without You. It is a series of comics and slant rhymes using some familiar characters--Pirate Edna, Humphrey Owlgart (poor little guy still looks like a penguin)--and a few new ones.

In other zine news, the Symposium put out a call for postcard art, and I finally completed and returned my postcard:

The mailman at my neighborhood post office was pretty excited about it and suggested I sell them online because he thought they were "very good!" I should give him a business card next time I stop by!

By Portland (the town of last minute work and missed deadlines) standards, I'm way ahead of the game in terms of preparing for an event. But I'm type A like that plus we're about to leave town for the better part of two weeks, and I'll need to spend the last week of July handbinding all my zines! Dan and I are headed back to Wyoming where he grew up to visit family. I'm so excited to go to the Tate Geological Museum, home of the Dee the Mammoth skeleton. I saw a cast of the mammoth skull at the Black Hills Institute last summer, but the nerd in me says it won't compare to the real thing. I've been experimenting with making plush fossils, so I'm excited to do some firsthand reconnaissance in fossil country!

I've never been to Wyoming. I'm scared it will be like this:

But I hope it will be more like this:

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Seal Head Mini Sculpture

2011-07-03T15:34:00.000-07:00

I've recently started drawing a new character (an Edna variant) called Seal Head Girl or Sealskin Girl, and I thought I'd try my hand at sculpting a mini sculpture (future vinyl toy?) version of her. It was my first time using Magic Sculpt. It was a little softer than I expected and I had to fight gravity a couple of times, but I think it came out alright for a first try!

Here she is pre-paint:

Her sealskin is actually a separate piece.

And a few more views of her when finished:

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Sea Stories

2011-06-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

I have some sea-related poems in the current issue of Sea Stories! Sea Stories is an online literary and arts journal and is an off-shoot of the Blue Ocean Institute, an ocean conservation organization--it's a perfect fit for me! I'm really happy to have discovered both Sea Stories and Blue Ocean and hope to work with them again.

The Sea Stories journal publishes art, poems, prose, and more--all about the ocean and if you have interest in the sea, it's really worth checking out!

Thanks to Sea Stories editors K.R. Copeland and Casey R. Schulke for publishing my poems!

For Clarence

2011-06-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

Some love for LaBaleine and the power of SCIENCE!

2011-06-16T12:28:00.000-07:00

The Artful Diner put together an awesome list of her favorite science-related Etsy items, including one of my plush chitons! This gal has a true and abiding love of science -- just check out her lab photos!

I love the list she put together, especially the soft microbiology book! Art and science come together to form an unbreakable sense of discovery!

Thanks, Lorien!
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A Poem in Cirque

2011-06-13T09:30:00.000-07:00

I have a poem in the latest issue (Vol. 2, Issue 2) of Cirque Journal. You can check it out online or in print! Cirque is an awesome journal out of Alaska that publishes writing from the North Pacific Rim. Thanks, Cirque!

826 Donation

2011-06-07T14:17:00.000-07:00

My friend Alicia at 826 Seattle asked for a donation for the annual Dance Your Cash Off fundraiser. I made this Giant Green Anemone, which will be a prize for one lucky dance marathon dancer!

It of course comes with an illustrated science card, and I included a bunch of miscellaneous LaBaleine / Action Bookbinding ephemera (postcards, bookmarks, stickers).

Dance Your Cash Off is June 26. You can help by sponsoring a team or by making a donation to 826, which in case you don't know, is an awesome organization that provides after school tutoring, writing classes, and general amazingness to kids everywhere.

My new sketchbook

2011-05-27T10:00:00.000-07:00

I bound a new sketchbook for the first time in a while. I hope the fresh start will help generate some good ideas and get me out of my drawing funk. The cover is a Japanese screenprint paper with Paper Source bookcloth over the spine. End papers are some fall-off green cardstock I had lying around, I think it's Canson. The guts are Zerkall Smooth of course. Oh, Zerkall, you are so creamy and impossible to find in Portland!!

I've been using Lineco PVA for a while. It seems like they improved the formula from a few years ago when it would curdle easily. I also like that it's in a squeeze bottle.

The book actually lays pretty flat and is easy to draw in! I cheated and used museum board for the case because I hate cutting Davy board so much!!

LaBaleine at Paxton Gate PDX!

2011-05-05T16:00:00.020-07:00

I have some exciting news. A whole bunch of creatures from the plush tidepool are for sale at Paxton Gate PDX, which is basically the coolest store in Portland!

Anemones, starfish, a bunch of shells, and even some blubber are gracing the shelves right now!

Ochre Star

Giant Green Anemone

Mossy Chiton


Whale Blubber, Cross-section

Thanks, Andy & Susan! Everybody: check out Paxton Gate in the Mississippi neighborhood! They have an amazing selection of natural wonders and local art.

Treasures from the Sea

2011-05-05T13:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Dan and I took advantage of the weather and headed over to the coast. We visited the Seaside Aquarium and Cannon Beach, making a stop at the amazing viewpoint at Ecola State Park, and walking along all the beaches. I found some special shells.

These are great specimens as I work on perfecting my Eccentric Sand Dollar plush.

The aquarium has some great curios:

Whale vertebra

Giant squid

Crab miscellany

Skate egg cases: Mermaid purses

Helpful diagrams

Grey Whale

Bye-bye, ocean. I already miss you.

Happy Easter

2011-04-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

Sneak Peak

2011-04-10T11:43:00.000-07:00

Here's just a tiny detail of the work I dropped off for the People's Art Gallery Comic Show.

Show opens Friday, April 15th. Pioneer Place Mall, 700 SW 5th Ave, 3rd Floor, Ste 4005. Check it out...unless you're too big of a CHUMP!

Just a couple new pix

2011-03-07T09:58:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of a Giant Green Anemone I made for my friend Alicia:

Seattle Aquarium

2011-03-04T14:40:00.000-08:00

Up in Seattle this weekend for Emerald City ComiCon and had to make a trip to the Seattle Aquarium! Got some good inspiration for sea creature plushies!

Touch Pool

More Anemones

Brain Coral!

Seahorse!

Porcupine Fish

Halibut v Flounder: Battle Royale

I need to make one of these!

Ridiculously Cute

Mmm, Mussels!

Northern Fur Seal

The Nose

Me outside the Aquarium--reminding the whales I still love them.

Chitons!

2011-02-28T13:05:00.000-08:00

I love chitons. I love making chitons. I love looking at chitons. Here are some I made recently.

I also made this nerdy card to go with:

Coupla New Designs

2011-01-25T18:01:00.001-08:00

Been working on shells (whelks, limpets, turbans, and chitons). A couple are starting to work out:

New whelk design:

Also getting a hang of the chiton:

I suppose I'm basically satisfied with my tide pool progress so far... but is it good enough to apply for the Plush You show? I'm scared!

Veritable Plush Tide Pool Garden!

2011-01-22T10:58:00.000-08:00

In the last couple months, I've come up with a lot more designs for creatures living in my plush tide pool. It's exciting to see them piling up and starting to look like a real shoreline. My latest creation is this giant bull kelp (up in the shop right now):

It's over 6 feet tall!

I've also been working on making these illustrated fact cards to go with my plushies. They include a little bit of scientific info, such as habitat and range, and a water color illustration. I just printed up a proof run and laminated them:

Some other new stuff you may or may not have seen:

Pretend Ambergris

Barnacles

Bivalves

Blubber Cross Section

Red Tube Worms

Purple Sea Star

Green Sea Anemone

Would you believe there's more? Well you can find it here and here!

Party Like It's 1846

2011-01-03T09:00:00.001-08:00

Crank up the oil lamp and douse your favorite gal in perfume because I've got all your cetacean-based products right here. If you have the political and ecological sense of a Victorian Fatcat and the wits of an inbred eighy-year-old, look no further!

Blubber!

Covering up that tasty whale meat illegally hunted by several countries that shall remain nameless, blubber has many enticing properties.

Uses:

lamp oil

soap

varnish

paint

cream

textiles

Scrimshaw!

If you can use just one tooth from the sperm whale, it'll be worth the trouble of killing an ancient, sentient being. Those black sheep of the sea keep us stocked in necessary products. Am I right, ladies?

Uses:

Lamp oil

Candles

Perfume

Scrimshaw

Growing Tidepool

2010-12-15T14:33:00.002-08:00

I'm working up several new ideas & prototypes of what I'm calling The Forgotton Ones: strange sea creatures living at the tideline, shoreline, and, in the case of tube worms, dockline (if that's a thing). What do you think of the progress?

A basalt rock hosting barnacles and a sea anemone.

Gooseneck barnacles.

Red tube worm (i.e., calcerous or plume tube worm).

Tube worms among friends.

Bivalves (mussel, razor clam, geoduck): a work in progress.

Butter clams.

Questionable limpet prototypes.

I found this fossil while I was doing field research. Looks like a scallop and some sort of winkle embedded in sandstone...

Studio Reno

2010-12-09T12:27:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited about my reorganized studio! I now have a new table and chair at a good height to hopefully minimize back & neck pain--along with my existing sitting and standing options. The new desk (in the middle of the room) is going to be for sewing and maybe drawing.

Mysterious red door.

My old table is the new bookbinding and cutting area, and my little desk is still in the back corner for drawing.

Ready for Action.

Secret drawing in the corner.

I finally organized all my fabrics and sewing stuff; hopefully I can find what I need and keep the scary basement spiders away now that everything is off the floor.

OMG Supplies.

Paper!

Bring it on, Keith Smith.

The Archive.

Making the studio more comfortable and less painful was one of my first goals for my "hiatus" (read: breakdown/quitting my job). I like clean and organized spaces and am almost excited enough to want to make a book again. I have a secret idea that's too vague to start yet, but soon! In the meantime, I've started making more shellfish and mini tidepools and will post pix soon.

As Ishmael said, "O, Time, Strength, Cash, and Patience!"

Action Bookbinding Feature

2010-12-03T13:40:00.005-08:00

My zine Wants: Is That So Much to Ask For? was featured over at My Girl Thursday! Check it out! People still love them some Edna!

You can also download a couple of my mini comix on Thursday's blog for FREE! DIY!

Thanks My Girl Thursday!

A New Chapter

2010-12-01T09:23:00.003-08:00

A lot has happened since my last post. Mainly--I quit my job! My chronic pain/health issues, combined with the stress and liabilities of a job I didn't enjoy, sealed the deal. Now I'm working on a self-imposed rehab for my body (a slow process), but even I can't spend all day doing that. In between walks and physical therapy, I'm finding time to make a little work again, mostly plush sea creatures. Hopefully I will be drawing again soon, but I am trying not to pressure myself, hoping I will again find my creative identity naturally, being away from a negative situation and getting healthier. Here's a bit of the progress:

Sea anemones!

Starfish!

There are a bunch of other anemones and stars up for sale in my Etsy shop and I'll add more this week!

I'm also working on a few jellyfish prototypes and expect to unveil a finished jelly in the next week!

New Plushies!

2010-10-02T14:53:00.000-07:00

A few anemones and mussels are finally posted on Etsy!

Stars, Mussels & Hope

2010-09-21T12:12:00.002-07:00

I continue to work on my mussel and star patterns, trying to find a balance among cute, realistic, possible-to-make, and interesting. It's not as easy at it sounds...

I like these mussels a lot! The pic is kind of dark, but I think the black really works.

Another star...

A pile of starfish.

I also made another lumpy anemone.

Now I really need to get my game together and figure out how to package, brand, and market these things... all while preserving the artistic process and continuing to make things for the right reasons. Although arranging plush tide pools in my house is fun, it doesn't exactly bring fame and fortune. Poor marketing skills aside, I continue to dream of a simpler life of making, living pain-free, and hearing the ocean while I sleep. Kanye was right: giving up is way harder than trying.

Action Bookbinding Etsy Sale!

2010-09-15T12:16:00.001-07:00

All Action Bookbinding comics are now only $5.00! Right now! You should probably go get some! Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell the people you only sort of like but not really, it's just convenient!

Anemone Nirvana

2010-09-14T09:30:00.017-07:00

Over the weekend, I made this cute, little sea anemone in pink and white. I'm so happy with how it turned out!

I used an old polka-dotted shirt for the top and some sort of athletic jersey material for the body.

Yay! I want to hug it!

Starfish Galore

2010-09-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

I finally forced myself to slow down and follow my starfish pattern on the sewing machine (instead of just "winging" it). Funny how deliberate action and planning can actually lead to the result you are looking for! I have to make myself learn the skills with my hands and mind before I can let my creative heart usurp the project, but I am impatient to create art rather than craft. However, I'm very happy with this starfish prototype, and I finally learned the slip stitch to close up a plush toy properly and cleanly.

I also made this silly orange & sequined star, which turned out a bit blobby because of my stubborn determination to use stretchy fabrics on a sewing machine not equipped to handle it.

A few lumpy guys, still working out the kinks:

The Magic of Kelp

2010-09-10T08:30:00.063-07:00

I can't stop thinking about the bullwhip -- maybe kelp is my spirit plant. I made this neat kelp stamp yesterday:

I don't fully understand the magic of kelp or the ocean -- or mysterious spells of back pain and glass floats -- or years of whale dreams and whale eyes -- but I know the origins of the magic, at least for me.

And here my troubles began:

Part 3 of the Labor Day Weekend Making Extravaganza

2010-09-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

BAM! GIANT SEA ANEMONE! TOP THAT, PTOWN!

Giant sea anemone ate a starfish! Raar!

Poor mussel didn't stand a chance.

It also basically ate an entire fish! Is that even possible??

Raar! I am like two feet tall! I will devour you!

Part 2 of the Labor Day Weekend Making Extravaganza

2010-09-07T16:17:00.000-07:00

I went crazy making another giant bull kelp. I think it's a good 8 to 10 feet long.

See, it's really long!

There's the bulb.

Crazy fronds.

The holdfast - my favorite part!

A giant pile of kelp.

Tomorrow: the exciting conclusion unveils the giant pink sea anemone!

Part 1 of the Labor Day Weekend Making Extravaganza

2010-09-07T12:19:00.002-07:00

The Portland Zine Symposium two weekends ago was more fun than I expected and I felt inspired to make a new sketchbook for the first time in a while. I also got crafty and made some stamps!

Gold leaf whale's tail

End paper

Super flat back


Fancy.

Crying eye stamp for Alicia's awesome 826 Seattle project!

A uke stamp for me!

For some reason I also made a goat stamp.

The stamps themselves.

Stay tuned for Parts 2 and 3: Plush Kelp and Giant Anemone

Plush Tidepool - Starfish and Mussels

2010-08-23T09:00:00.011-07:00

More starfish and mussels in progress...

End result of the weekend's hard work.

Plush Tidepool - Perfecting the Sea Anemone

2010-08-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

Some progress on the plush tidepool. I'm starting to understand the forms more and each one I make is better than the last.

My favorite anemone so far.

In the Kelp Forest

2010-08-17T09:28:00.000-07:00

Pix of my new bull kelp. I think it's about eight or nine feet long - see kitty pose as a measuring stick in the fifth picture.

Plush Tidepool - A Work in Progress

2010-08-05T18:59:00.000-07:00

I've been working on prototypes for a plush tidepool. I'll recreate the entire ocean if I have to, before we lose it.

I Love Uke

2010-08-04T12:59:00.001-07:00

So much ukulele love in the world, and etsy is no exception:

So I made a treasury of etsy's great ukuleles.

Etsy whales

2010-08-02T18:30:00.000-07:00

In lieu of selling any of my own whales, I'm enjoying updating this etsy treasury of whales - and the occasional fish.

Pink Ukulele

2010-07-26T11:55:00.000-07:00

Another plush ukie...

Monotony 3

2010-07-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

Here are some drawings on monotony and making art.

Monotony 2

2010-07-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some drawings from my series on monotony.

Plush Ukie

2010-07-22T09:52:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of my plush ukulele prototype. I'll add more details, like frets, to future ukies.

Monotony

2010-07-21T14:47:00.001-07:00

Here are two drawings from my series on monotony.

Custom Whalies

2010-07-17T13:53:00.000-07:00

A colleague at work asked me to make her some whales in custom colors. I was so excited by the results, I'm offering to make whaleys in any color! Check out the custom listing in my new etsy shop!

La Baleine is open!

2010-07-15T13:30:00.000-07:00

My new Etsy shop is open for business! I'm selling whale plushies, prints, and poems, all in support of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and my love of the ocean!

I'll send $$ to Sea Shepherd from each sale, either toward their anti-whaling campaign or Gulf cleanup campaign. Please help me spread the word!

Show Pix

2010-06-10T12:37:00.000-07:00

A few pix from my recent opening at the Sequential Art Gallery in Portland, Oregon:

Forty days

2010-06-03T10:00:00.000-07:00