Tales

Illustration Friday's theme this week is "Tales and Legends".

jordan crane

Having been a fan (and collector)of Jordan Crane's comics and silkscreen prints for many a year, I was super excited when he released a postcard book. I bought my sister a copy for her birthday and when it arrived and I felt of its' soft, smooth pages and saw the vivid, striking designs I went ahead and ordered one for me. These pictures aren't so great, but you can see them all on his site.

oh craft

I found these black doilies at the art/craft store the other day. I had visualized them in some framing capacity but wasn't sure exactly how. After some thought, I came up with my plan. Using only materials I had at home I sewed up this pillow for our bed. And then I stepped back and worried, is this too crafty ? There's was no gluing whatsoever so I don't think it's too crafty.
I like it though and Tony does too, especially since it's obviously little creature adaptations of us, sleeping soundly. Obviously.

White Chili Recipe

This is one of my most favorite winter recipes. You will have to believe me when I say it's really yummy and easy to make. do it.

1 Onion, chopped
4 Cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs. Ground Turkey (or soy crumbles)
2 (4 ounce) cans of green chili peppers, chopped
1 Tablespoon ground Cumin
1 Tablespoon ground Oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground Cayenne Pepper-more to taste
3 (15 ounce) cans Canellini beans (I prefer Goya brand)
1 Can Chicken broth
1 (8 oz. block) Monterey Jack cheese
Sour Cream

1) In a large pot over medium heat, combine the onion, garlic and ground turkey (salt and pepper) and saute for 10 minutes, or until turkey is well browned.
2) Add the chili peppers, cumin, oregano, cinnamon and cayenne and saute for 5 more minutes.
3)Add 2 cans of the beans and the chicken broth to the pot.
4) Take the third can of beans and puree in a blender/food processor.
5)Add this to the pot along with the cheese. Stir well and simmer for 10 minutes, allowing cheese to melt.
Serve with dollop of sour cream (much recommended!).

Free Valentines Postcards!

I know it is a bit early for Valentines cards, but see here: I got a really good deal for printing some postcards of an illustration I did a few years back. So I thought it would be fun to offer some free (say 5-ish per person?) to anyone that wants some. So just let me know and they'll be headed your way within the next couple of weeks. Sound good? Good.

some sparrows

Last night my sister Sam came over to hang out and eat some food. I like her.
Thought I'd show some of her Christmas gifts from me before it's too far away. I made the sparrow shirt using contact paper (cut out in the shape of the birds) and acrylic paint. This technique has always worked well for me. The shroom necklace is painted wood and the vest I made using my own pattern*. I really like how it all looks together, especially the Samantha part.


* Outright lie. I bought it.

I thought I'd share one of my favorite comic book artists, James Kochalka. For the past decade he's produced daily comic diaries that are both entertaining and touching. I have two copies of American Elf, one just for lending out. Well actually, it was going to be a gift for a friend and then just recently some red wine got spilled on it's back pages....so now it's the lender, but still. Just recently, he's changed his website so you can view his daily comics as well as his archives (those used to be for monthly subscribers only). Check it out.


Another daily comic that has recently caught my interest is i feel awesome, by Pete Toms. It looks like he's just recently started posting these and they're pretty funny. I found this while reading the blog, Wool and Water by Amy Earles, a super talented artist who creates beautiful little illustrations. (She actually posted the same picture from above)

check!

new sketchbook: check ! (blank book found at a thrift store then painted a bit)
new pocket calendar: check ! (found at smosh.com)
new ideas to fill aforementioned sketchbook: CHECK ! (double check.)