oh i know. i have not been very good at keeping up with this blog, ever since i started the new one where i write about more varied and personal things other than my art/craft life.

it’s also been a fairly slow time for said art/craft life. post-holidays through mardi gras is always slow [...]]]>

oh i know. i have not been very good at keeping up with this blog, ever since i started the new one where i write about more varied and personal things other than my art/craft life.

it’s also been a fairly slow time for said art/craft life. post-holidays through mardi gras is always slow for me, since i don’t really make anything that is mardi gras-focused and the weather is usually crappy enough to keep me from any of the outdoor markets (and from wanting to work on making new stuff outdoors). i’ve had a slow-but-steady trickle of etsy orders, and did get a little bit of a boost from the publicity mentioned in the previous post. but it’s not been anything close to “normal” levels of business. it’s been beyond slow, really.

but here we are in mid-march (how did that happen?). mardi gras is over and st. patrick’s is tomorrow, with st. joseph’s day hot on its heels this weekend. the weather has been absolutely gorgeous for a few weeks; perfect new orleans springtime, with loads of sunshine and temps in the 60s and 70s. (apologies to all the northerners who have still been dealing with winter up until now.) i have been riding my scooter and bicycle a lot, and taking daily walks in city park for exercise, while enjoying the outdoors as much as possible.

i don’t, however, think i’ll be doing a lot of outdoor markets anytime soon. i’m just not making enough money at them to justify the ever-increasing booth fees. the only two i have on my calendar right now are on april 2nd, i’m helping miss malaprop out at the picayune street fair in picayune, mississippi… and then on april 16th i will be at tulane’s crawfest. the picayune street fair is actually a weekend-long event but i think i’m only going up on saturday, unless sales are just so good i can’t stay away on sunday. and crawfest is an annual treat for me; i’ve been doing it for years and it’s one of my favorites, due to the excellent music and all-you-can-eat crawfish!

i am starting to get back outside working on new stuff, though. and i’ll be stocking up for my friend jen’s annual funky lil’ art show in her home during jazzfest, which is just around the corner now. the opening for that will be april 22nd and i’ll have more info on that as it draws nearer. but you should put it on your calendar now to either come to the opening or remember to stop by her place on your way out of jazzfest any night so you can pick up some awesome, reasonably-priced local art and craft. she’s got an ecclectic array of creative friends and there’s always a party going on over there during jazzfest.

that’s about it for now. just a little hello to let you know i’m still here. still making stuff. still selling stuff. still available for custom commissions. and one-color t-shirt runs if it’s simple enough. and if you want to keep up with all my latest creations, bookmark my etsy shop and also my flickr page. i might not always think to make a blog post about things but i almost always take photos of anything i make and post it to flickr.

happy spring everyone!

that is all.

so i’ve been busy over here in the outdoor studio (otherwise known as my backyard), despite the rollercoaster weather. a few weeks back, i decided i wanted to start doing more stencil portraits, of pop culture icons, local (s)heroes, and yes, even pets. i know it’s crowded field – artists doing paintings of people’s [...]]]>

so i’ve been busy over here in the outdoor studio (otherwise known as my backyard), despite the rollercoaster weather. a few weeks back, i decided i wanted to start doing more stencil portraits, of pop culture icons, local (s)heroes, and yes, even pets. i know it’s crowded field – artists doing paintings of people’s pets – but i frankly don’t know anyone at least in new orleans who is doing stencil spray paint/urban folk-pop art style stuff. so i figured i’d give it a shot.

the above piece is my first attempt at doing a cat. my cat, specifically. sticker is his name, but my friend nita calls him mr. toes because he’s one of those hemingway cats (polydactyl) with extra toes all over the place. he has big mitten feet, and he’s a tubby, not very coordinated, princessy feline with a lot of character. i love him dearly. it was challenging trying to get a good one-color stencil that captures his unique look, but i think i pulled it off. after shooting about a hundred photos of him, i found one that worked well as a stencil, even though it didn’t include his funny feet.

about a year ago on one of my daily walks around the neighborhood, i salvaged four small weathered cabinet doors from a rotting set of cabinets on the curb out for the trash. i just really liked their look, and they’ve been sitting in my shed ever since, waiting for just the right project to come along. so when i did the first portrait in the series – frida kahlo (yes, i know she’s overplayed, but i’ve been a fan of hers since the early 80s and looking back through books of her work actually did help get me out of my funk, so i thought she deserved to be the first portrait i tried in this new style) – after testing it out on a scrap piece of plywood, i just jumped right in on one of these cabinet doors and started to play. i think it turned out pretty cool:

i love how using the cabinet doors makes it look like a readymade, already-framed piece of art. and gives it that folk-art feel. i had originally envisioned making mixed media pieces, putting various paper items as a background that would then be painted over such that parts of the print peeked out of the paint blasts… but i just spontaneously started making this one and decided i didn’t want to wait for all that mod podge to dry (usually takes overnight) so i just went with layering paint and design motifs. and this is what i ended up with.

i also did another rachel maddow piece, because, well, i’m obsessed. clearly. those of you who’ve been following me for a while know that i did a bunch of rachel maddow pieces a year or two ago that were really labor-intense 7-layered stencils. while it was a really good challenge and fun to do, once the stencils started deteriorating, i quickly realized i didn’t really want to keep recutting 7 different layers of facial features over and over again. i was able to make about 4 small canvases and a handful of prints on paper with them, but decided that was it for that particular incarnation of rachel maddow in stencil form. so this time, i chose a different picture to work from that was easy to turn into a one-layer stencil. whew.

so that’s 3 out of the 4 cabinet doors. not sure what i will do with the 4th, though i’m considering doing my other cat, the mighty hunter, stencil. but after playing around with the photos i took of him recently, i’m realizing it’s going to be much harder to do. as an all-black cat, it’s hard to create a one-layer stencil that isn’t just a silhouette – that actually gives him some dimension and features. but i’m going to keep playing with it. he’s already jealous of sticker because he has the extra-toes thing going on – i don’t want to slight him, you know? i love him just as much!

so yeah. that’s what i’ve been up to. i’ve also been making a bunch of love signs and posting up more stuff on my etsy site – valentine’s is coming up soon. but i’m hoping this new direction with the stencil portraits ends up being something i can market and turn into some steady income soon.

let me know what you think.

well surprise, surprise. just when i thought the arty-crafty biz was in the shitter… suddenly, without me even really trying much, stuff is selling. (thank you, universe!) i put very little effort into marketing this holiday, i made very little “new” stuff (i made some bottlecap signs and a handful of clocks and printed [...]]]>

well surprise, surprise. just when i thought the arty-crafty biz was in the shitter… suddenly, without me even really trying much, stuff is selling. (thank you, universe!) i put very little effort into marketing this holiday, i made very little “new” stuff (i made some bottlecap signs and a handful of clocks and printed some scarves, but no new designs), and i only had 3 markets in december. but all the markets turned out pretty ok, especially last night’s “last stop shop” which was actually pretty great. we had a lot of fun and a good crowd and for the first time in a long while, i sold lots of stuff! it was nice and reassuring.

and then today, i’ve had a big sale on etsy – the last of my rachel maddow stencil paintings, which i’d basically given up on selling and hung on my own wall, FINALLY SOLD (along with a clock in the same order) – and have had a few custom orders via email come in. and there’s still a week left before christmas, so i think i’m gonna put a little effort into trying to list everything i’ve got left up on etsy and maybe even craigslist, to see how much i can get rid of.

see, i think the key to me finding new inspiration is to GET RID OF ALL THE OLD STUFF that’s cluttering up my view. i have this problem, in that, i actually LIKE much of what i make – and really, most of the things i make and sell started as something i made for myself, to decorate with, to wear, or to give as a gift to someone i love. and then i started making more of them. but so, i often end up decorating my own house with some of the things i make, making them hard to let go of… and also, making it hard to come up with new ideas. maybe it doesn’t make any sense to anyone else, but i have often found, when i don’t have much of my own work around, then it makes me want to come up with new stuff. but whenever i have lots of it still around – like now – it’s harder to feel inspired. instead i feel defeated because so much of my stuff hasn’t sold, like nobody actually likes or wants it, besides me.

so yeah. hopefully the universe – and shopping friends and strangers alike – will help me get rid of more of the current inventory, so i can start fresh in the new year, and hopefully find some new inspiration for new creativity. but between now and christmas (and probably new year’s), i’m just gonna try really hard to sell what i’ve got. (i will of course always make custom orders, if someone wants something i don’t have in stock – a different color of clock or sign or whatever. just ask!)

anyways. big thanks to all who have been supportive – either by purchasing stuff, recommending me to others, or even just offering encouraging words – this holiday season. it really means a lot to me. and apparently it’s helping!

happy holidays, y’all.

and remember, i do custom work also… so if there’s a [...]]]> freretstivus market, that is. TODAY! noon til 5pm – i will be there. come enjoy the beautiful day before we get more nasty weather tomorrow. and don’t forget about the last stop shop at the big top on thursday, 6-10pm (1638 clio street).

and remember, i do custom work also… so if there’s a clock or sign design you like, i can make it in your favorite color combo and have it done in plenty of time for christmas. i even have some blank scarf material in stock and could print up the scarf of your choice. so don’t be shy – just ask!

happy holiday shopping, y’all.

i love the bayou boogaloo. for all the years i was away in kentucky post-federal-flood, i was so sad i could never seem to make it here during memorial day weekend (too soon after jazzfest) so i could partake – either as a vendor or just a mid-citizen – in the boogaloo. i mean, [...]]]>

i love the bayou boogaloo. for all the years i was away in kentucky post-federal-flood, i was so sad i could never seem to make it here during memorial day weekend (too soon after jazzfest) so i could partake – either as a vendor or just a mid-citizen – in the boogaloo. i mean, come on – a music festival in my own neighborhood! (well i guess an argument could be made that jazzfest is also a music festival in my own neighborhood, but the boogaloo is more of a community, grassroots event, and even closer to where i live than the fairgrounds.) last year, i was FINALLY able to participate as a vendor, and it was glorious. so much fun, so many sales (thanks everyone!), and so great to see so many of my mid-city neighbors!

this year, i have been looking forward to the boogaloo for months. the new orleans craft mafia is again, like last year, offering a free t-shirt recycling workshop adjacent to the kid’s tent, in the “eco” area of the festival. (see the festival map below.) we’ll be out there both saturday and sunday – saturday from noon til 5pm, and sunday from 1-4pm – teaching people how to make tote bags, halter tops and other fun stuff out of old t-shirts, with a minimal amount of sewing. we have a good stash of donated t-shirts already, but we’re still accepting donations – just bring ‘em on out to the fest and throw ‘em in our bin. if you don’t have any t-shirts to work with, don’t worry – we got ya covered. oh, and at the end of the weekend, we’ll have a little fashion show at 5pm on sunday for you to strut your stuff with your new creations, too!

so yeah. i’ve been looking forward to it. but at the same time, freaking out… because a) i had a really successful jazzfest show at jen’s and sold a lot of t-shirts and signs – which is good, yay for money and sales, but also has left me with not as many of the signs and t-shirts i would like to have to sell at the boogaloo; and b) i started this census job that has been kicking my ass! it’s been a long time since i had any kind of “real” job (meaning worked a job outside of my own house), and it’s been a hard adjustment getting used to both that aspect as well as the strange start/stop nature of census work. for example, on any given day, i: have a daily meeting at 9am for a half hour; might go out to make rounds on a new block i’ve been assigned in the morning for a couple of hours; come home for lunch; spend an hour or so going over all the paperwork from the morning to make sure i have it all correct; go back out to a different block for 2nd or 3rd or 4th rounds, trying to find folks who weren’t home the first time; come home again to cool off and do paperwork; go back out in the early evening trying to catch folks coming home from work who i’m having a particularly hard time trying to find; come home, eat dinner, and maybe even go back out again after dinner before dark, for the pesky hard-to-find folks. and then spend more time on paperwork when i’m home. (and then collapse!)

and all of that only got me like 6-7 hours of actual on-the-clock work. but i’ve been working since 8:45am! so it’s been a big adjustment, to say the least. and has left me little time to think about things like ordering t-shirts to print (much less finding time to actually print them), cutting/sanding/painting wood for signs, and making clocks. and, to top it all off, though i did well at jazzfest at jen’s, it’s the only good market/sale i’ve had in months, so i’ve been begging/borrowing/stealing to pay my bills and am deeply in debt… and we’ve only gotten one paycheck so far from the census. so i didn’t even have the money to invest in buying t-shirts to print, or paint to make signs, etc. (much less the booth fee for vending at the boogaloo.)

so this all came to a head on saturday night, as fae and i were hanging out at home and i was surfing the internet, trying to find some wholesale outlet that actually had the style/color of t-shirts i wanted to order (all my usual outlets were sold out of at least one size and most of them several sizes) so i could order them in time for them to actually arrive in enough time to be able to print them… and i realized, what am i doing? i don’t even have the money to pay for these. nor do i have the money to pay for my booth. and even if i could scrape that up, there’s no guarantee that i’d make it back… just because i sold a lot of 70119 t-shirts last year at the boogaloo doesn’t mean i will this year. sales at markets has SUCKED overall so far in 2010, so why would the boogaloo be any different?

and, as an aside, i have been wracking my brain trying to come up with an oil disaster related design, which i thought might be the biggest seller due to the timing, but i haven’t even been able to find the time to work on coming up with that. (and even if i did, i’d be donating the proceeds to the gulf restoration network, so it wouldn’t be something i’d be making money off of. which i still really want to do, but, it was just one more piece of the puzzle that wasn’t coming together for me.)

so. all of a sudden, it came to me. i can’t do the boogaloo. i can’t afford it, i don’t have inventory, and i don’t have time to think about it. and the second i started thinking about not doing it, i instantly felt relief. i immediately posted something on my facebook page, and thought i was done with it. i slept better and the next few days i didn’t think anything about it. it was actually really nice. sad, but also stress-relieving.

and then yesterday, my friend rachelle offered to share her booth with me, which was so sweet. i thought about refusing, but then i figured if i don’t really need to spend any time making stuff and i just take what i’ve got and make as much fit as i can in part of rachelle’s booth, around her stuff, then it doesn’t have to be stressful and maybe i’ll still make a little money anyways. and i always have fun hanging out with rachelle at markets – we almost always set up next to each other. so thanks, rachelle.

so now i am once again doing the bayou boogaloo. and of course, i am going to try to make a few signs this week, maybe a few 70119 clocks. but i’ll only have a literal handful of t-shirts, and a weird assortment of clocks and signs and cufflinks… and that’s it. not a big effort. but at least i’ll be there.

hope to see y’all there!

last friday, i dropped off a fresh batch of clocks to my friend erica at tulane’s in exchange shop. if you’re on tulane’s campus, you should check that shop out. not [...]]]> i’ve been making clock faces and signs like crazy this past week, in anticipation of my big weekend ahead. tis the busy spring season!

last friday, i dropped off a fresh batch of clocks to my friend erica at tulane’s in exchange shop. if you’re on tulane’s campus, you should check that shop out. not only do they have an astonishing inventory of defend new orleans t-shirts (apparently they are part of the tulane undergraduate uniform), but erica stocks lots of local artists and crafters work as well as fair trade items from makers around the world. she’s got lots of cool stuff there. even if you don’t have a reason to be on tulane’s campus, checking out all her unique inventory is a good excuse to stop in. it’s located in the student center on the quad side – there’s a map on her website. (and keep an eye out for in exchange out at the congo square crafts area at jazz fest!)

yesterday, i dropped off a bunch of my stuff to my friend jen, who for the past several years has hosted a fun, funky little art show in her living room during the two weeks of jazz fest. she lives over near the fairgrounds, close enough to catch a lot of the entering/exiting traffic to/from the fest, and knows a gazillion people, many of whom make a point of dropping in to sit a spell on her multicolored porch during and after the festivities. it was a brilliant idea when she conceived it, and i’m so grateful she continues to host the show every year in her home.

this year, the artist count is up to 17, the most yet. some folks might only have one piece in it (larger stuff), but many have lots of smaller pieces, all of which take up every available inch of space on her living room walls. this year, i have a few clocks, a nice array of signs and some skull and 70119 t-shirts for sale there. the opening for the show is this friday evening from 6-9pm, and then the show will remain up through both weekends of jazz fest. (but it’s good to go to the opening, as all the best pieces always get sold that first night!) leave me a comment if you want an invite to the opening on friday or need to know her address. (since it’s in her home, i don’t want to broadcast her address over the internet, but am happy to let interested parties know on an individual basis.)

wednesday, i’ll be helping out my craft mafiosas, stuffing our fashionable new tote bags (pictured above) with all kinds of free swag from indie businesses around the city and country, which will be given out to the first 100 paid attendees of the alternative media expo this saturday. the new orleans craft mafia is a co-sponsor of the event, and this year’s swag bags are gonna be the best yet (and in high demand)! we’ve got all manner of stickers, buttons, product samples (jewelry, tiny art, books, etc.) and other cool promotional items to fill them with. so definitely get there early so you can get a swag bag. you’re gonna be bummed if you miss it.

sadly, i will not be vending at the alternative media expo this year. i love that event and usually do participate, but this year it’s occurring on the same day as tulane’s crawfest event, which was very lucrative (and fun!) for me last year. i had to make a tough business decision and decided to do crawfest. so though i will miss being with everyone at the alternative media expo, i’m hoping for great weather and huge crowds at crawfest. they’ve got an AMAZING musical line-up (dirty dozen brass band, jon cleary, the radiators, trombone shorty, and more!) and 16,000 pounds of crawfish! the event itself is free and the crawfish is free with a tulane student i.d. ($10 for all you can eat for everyone else). last year was a beautiful day on the quad so i’m looking forward to another one just like it. friends rachelle (of greenkangaroo) and christeen (avantegarb) will both be out there too, so stop by and say hello if you make it over there.

if i manage to get out of crawfest before it’s over (it goes til 9pm, but last year we packed up as it was getting dark), i’m gonna try to make it to the big easy rollergirls‘ bout that night, too. they are taking on the hard knox rollergirls of knoxville, tn – a formidable opponent. advance tickets available through their website, or you can pay at the door for a few more bucks, too. it’s always a good time out there. i just hope i have the energy to make it there after my long day!

by sunday, i’m going to just want to pass out! but i better rest up, cuz the following two weekends are jazz fest! oh goodness. well, it’s all in the pacing, my friends. happy spring everyone!

first things first: can i just say how relieved and happy i am that susan guidry won the city council district a race against jay batt? i am THRILLED! makes me proud to live in a district that has some common sense. (yes, i know only 13,000 of them voted, [...]]]> it was a busy weekend.

first things first: can i just say how relieved and happy i am that susan guidry won the city council district a race against jay batt? i am THRILLED! makes me proud to live in a district that has some common sense. (yes, i know only 13,000 of them voted, but thank god those that did chose guidry almost 2-1.) now if we can just get rid of david vitter….

one of my newest stencil signs

saturday was of course the freret market and also one of the most gorgeous spring days ever. the market was very busy and i got to see lots of friends and acquaintances i haven’t seen for weeks or months. i felt like i had finally come out of winter hibernation. sales weren’t all that great – though i did sell a ton of $5 clearance t-shirts, so that was good – but i had a lovely time hanging out with my friend rachelle and just generally enjoyed being outdoors in such beautiful weather.

also, my friend kerry had organized free cholesterol/glucose/blood pressure screenings for all the vendors by touro, in memory of regular freret market vendor rudy rowell, who so tragically died on his way home from the december freret market in a car accident after suffering a heart attack. i’d never had my cholesterol checked, and i’m relieved to report that all my readings were within the acceptable levels. some were close, so i shouldn’t be too cavalier, but i was expecting worse. my blood glucose, also good. my blood pressure, however, was high, which is strange for me, as my entire life i’ve always had low blood pressure. but it could have just been because i waited to get mine checked until i was done setting up and i had been physically exerting myself. and also, i don’t like the sight of blood, which they had to take for the glucose and cholesterol readings. so i’ll keep tabs on it. but it was a really awesome service for the vendors, many of whom are artists who don’t have health insurance, like me, and don’t have regular access to health care. i’m really grateful.

after the market and a quick trip home to unload my stuff, i went to the big easy rollergirls season opening doubleheader. wow, was it crowded out there at uno! i’ve never seen the parking lot so overflowing. i hear they sold out (1200+), which is a helluva way to start the season! both bouts were really riveting, too. BERG’s b-team, the crescent wenches, beat huntsville handily, but the a-team/travel team lost to northwest arkansas. they were neck and neck at halftime and pretty much halfway through the 2nd period, but then they lost steam and the killbillies pulled ahead. it was still really fun to watch, though, and the pussyfooters, rolling elvii and 610 stompers kept everyone entertained in between the action. i love the roller derby!

last night’s oscar’s also deserve a brief mention, namely that kathryn bigelow and “the hurt locker” won for not only best picture, but more remarkably, for best director. it’s the first time a woman has won that category in the 82-year history of the awards, and only the fourth time a woman had been nominated for it. what a great way to celebrate international women’s day today, right? (i was not amused, however, that the oscar’s orchestra played helen reddy’s “i am woman” after she accepted the award – seemed a bit cheesy if not downright condescending.)

today i will work on my next music column, which is already late (again) – there was no way last week to get any writing done with fae sick as a dog and neither of us sleeping properly. and cross your fingers for me, will ya, that i get a focus group gig i’m trying for. it’d be nice to be able to pay my bills this month without so much stress.

more later when i take a break.