Inspiration from Tokyo- Part 1

I brought a big suitcase with me to Tokyo and was ready to fill it up! But honestly I didn't end up buying as much as I thought I would. There were wonderful finds though, and I'm excited to share them!
Everything in Japan is shrink wrapped it seems. These books were a mystery to me since I can't read Japanese and know what the interiors were about, but I had to buy them anyways. Turns out they are activity books! I love this Rub A Dub Dub line. SO CUTE! Score!

I've never wanted a tray this much in my life. From Weles-Art by Naomi Tozaki. Check it this link for more goodies!

P714- they were at Design Festa and I had to buy a few little things- including the cutest post-it notes in the world. More on their website-ahhhhh!

Super cute pop-up birthday card that comes with sound.
The sound is a bottle opening, pouring, then two cute voices that says "kampai!" ("Cheers!" in Japanese.) Who...can...resist....

I have MORE goodies but for now I better get back to work instead of taking pics of everything I got. Hope you got your dose of kawaii for now.

**disclaimer: this post was filled with too much use of the word "cute," but I hope you understand.** :-)

Design Festa-Tokyo, Japan

I'm back from Tokyo!!! It was an absolutely amazing trip...I don't even know where to start. I will concentrate on the wonderful art and design graphics that I saw-which is everywhere and absolute eye candy. One of the reasons for the visit was to attend Design Festa, which is a twice-a-year art event that is held in Tokyo. Many artists, illustrators, and designers get together in a huge space to show off their work. I originally found out about this show through Spadazzle- an artist I met online a few years ago that now lives in Japan. And we finally got to meet in person! (Thank you, Sarah!)

I wish I took more pics from the event. Here is a few that I got:

Amazing cut paper and pop-ups: www.atelier-coco.com
This booth was super crowded, I wanted to go back to buy something, but I didn't end up getting a chance.

This owl dude got lots of attention!

Oh my. All the food plushies anyone can dream of.
http://hono.cocolog-nifty.com

I want a plushie playhouse like this.

Creatures made from paper.

Can't go without taking a picture of a Japanese girl in a cute costume:
Mitsune Temo and The Round Earth Committee

There is just so much more-aisles and aisles of art. It was so worth it to go, as I got to see how the art trends are like in Asia. I kept thinking-what if I stayed in Asia and never moved to the US, how would my style look like then? I also felt a comaraderie of sorts; seeing fellow illustrators making awesome art.

I got to play catch-up for now, as I need to get back to business after a fabulous week in Tokyo doing no work. I bought alot of very cute things (ahem, for inspiration, ya know?) so when I get a chance to take pictures of them, I will share them here. So make sure to come back if you like kawaii stuff!

CGD Digistamps-May Collection

Chicken Girl Design Digistamps May Collection now available at I {heart} Papers. They are 300 DPI line art, Greyscale, PNG files you can download for $2.50 each or $8.50 for the whole collection.

Need ideas as to how to use these stamps? Check out these Design Team members' links:
Laura
Carlie
Michele
Tammy
Lori
Loretta
Christy
Cathleen
Carolyn
Gretchen
Kate

I'm off to the other side of the ocean to get inspired! Stay tuned!

Interview over at Zero2Illo

There is a wonderful new site started by Jon Woodward called Zero 2 illo, a site for aspiring illustrators. An interview of me can be found over here (thanks, Jon!) Right now they are in the midst of a 12 week challenge to get aspiring illustrators' careers off the ground. What a great idea- I'm so happy to see these resources are now available and wishing everyone over there much success.

Thanks to the interview, it got me thinking about my journey into becoming an illustrator. It feels like it was only a little while ago that I was just starting out, and before I knew it, there were some pretty cool jobs coming in. People started to say they know my work. (I'm still pretty shocked when I hear that.) Artists emailing and asking ME for advice-which I try to give as much as possible. Funny thing is though, I'm still in my journey; I'm wondering how to get to the next step myself too.

I especially love the question, "what are your illustration goals for the future?" I've been asked that alot lately for reason, perhaps a question I'm asking myself too. One definite one is to write and illustrate my own childrens' books. Other goals are more abstract and scattered. The problem is, there are so many new and shiny things opened to illustrators; personally its more important that I focus on a few things rather than try everything.

I'm off to Tokyo next week for some major dose of inspiration; and when I get back I will be blogging plenty about it then. So stay tuned.

And another Chicken Girl Design digistamps release is coming up Monday! So I'll be back here to post that before I leave. Cluck cluck!

Chef Kitty is back!

(click on art for a larger view)

I first found out about this fun blog called They Draw and Cook from Roz (check out her adorable entry here). They invite artists and designers to draw/render a recipe. Since I love drawing food, I had to do this piece. Anyone can participate and submit, so go check it out! Thanks to Nate and Salli for this wonderful idea.

Chef Kitty first appeared when I made some recipe cards. With all her top secret recipes, I'm sure there is a picture book story somewhere. I also forgot how much I love illustrating and designing at the same time. I want to get more of those projects.

On another note, I want to thank Megumi for the sunshine award! Check out her adorable work here.

Its been officially a year...

My chicken wedding cake deserves a special appearance here today. :-)

April Digistamps

This month's Chicken Girl Design Digistamp Collection is now available at I {heart} Papers. Its been wonderful seeing how the design team uses them. I'm very inspired by their pick of fresh color combinations. (Alot of "oh wow, how come I never thought of using those colors?") Check them out:

Christy Tammy Judy Lori Loretta Shelly Kate

I will be rolling out a new collection every month, and what a great learning experience its been so far. Being more aware of the holidays/seasons and the way crafters think.

Happy Stamping!

Print & Pattern, The Book

Many of you know the popular Print & Pattern blog recently came out with a book. Just got my hands on it yesterday and not only is it a great source of inspiration, I'm also in it!
I'm so proud to be one of the 120 designers in this book. It should be in everyone's inspiration library. I love the pattern initials of each designer's name on the upper corner. A well edited book with tons of eye candy. Highly recommended- get it on Amazon.

New Season, New Banner

Thanks to the many nice, encouraging words about the bear and chicken on my last blog banner update, I've been playing around with story ideas for them. Since the weather is so nice now, its time for a Spring look.
Bye bye, Winter! (and the old banner.)

And a thank you to Julissa for giving me the Sunshine Award! Check out her beautiful children's illustrations over at her blog.

P.S.-Happy Easter!

Spring Promo at Illustration for Kids

Enjoying the spring weather as I work on my own book dummy and a piece for our spring promo over at Illustration for Kids:
And a thank you to Lori West at Curledupbooks.com for nice review of The Great Matzoh Hunt.

Thats about it around here. I've been taking a slight break from Facebook and Twitter, and giving myself more time for personal projects. Also I need to start doing some research on my upcoming trip to Tokyo. I can't wait!

Recipe Card Mock Ups

I ended up mocking up some of the recipe cards and made a little package tag to go with it. The paper is textured and cream colored- something I had left over from my wedding invitations.
The ink color turned out to be more muted than I originally intended- but now its one of those happy accidents in which I like this alot better. I'm always striving to pick a more "sophisticated" color palette in my work but always end up using bright, primary colors. I guess my printer is trying to tell me something?

Handmade @ Blue House

When I moved to Ann Arbor 6 months ago, I was looking for an artist/crafty community I can join and be part of. I discovered MICE, which stands for Michigan Indie Crafters of Etsy, and from there I was able to meet alot of wonderful crafty people in the area.

And now, there is a creative space opening up, called Blue House Ann Arbor, which sits right across the street from The Big House (and for those of you who don't know, its the University of Michigan stadium.) It is a crafty place where there are workshops and events, work from local artists, and they are celebrating their opening this weekend with a show, Saturday March 20th, from 11-5pm.

I will be there at the show with some of my art prints and goodies. I can't wait to see the space, and please come by if you are in the area.

Making a Banner + Upcoming Craft Shows

Last night, I played around with making a Chickengirl Design banner using circle punches. I wanted to make one since I'm participating in two craft shows, one coming up this Saturday at Blue House Ann Arbor, and the Flint Handmade Spring Market show in May. More info coming up!

Recipe Cards

I've wanted to do this for a while now, design some recipe cards and print them up. The funny thing is- I DO have recipes now. Who would of thought that I would become...domesticated?

Honestly, this was something to distract me from working on my book dummy. Now let me get back to work.

Chicken Girl Design Stamps go Digital!

My Chicken Girl Design Stamp Line is going digital! Today I celebrate the release of my first 9 digistamps at I {heart} Papers. It was fun to come up with some Easter and spring images. Its been nothing but snow for the past few weeks but its been freakishly warm this week. I've heard that Ann Arbor doesn't usually have much of a spring. Just the cold and all the sudden its summer. I guess we'll see.

Anyways, if you are not familar with digistamps: they are line art (non-colored), 300dpi transparent PNG files you can download and use for whatever personal projects you like. Check it out here as to how it works.

Each individual image is $2.50 or you can get all 9 images as a March Collection for $20. The clear polymer sets are still available, but once inventory runs out, thats it!

And if you need ideas as to what to do with these stamps, check out what these talented ladies are doing (aka The Chicken Girl Design team!):

Christy Judy Kate Loretta Lori Shelly Tammy

Happy crafting!

New York + Tim Burton Exhibit @ MoMA

More traveling this past week- this time back to NYC for fun, family, and friends. I finally got to see the Tim Burton exhibit at MoMA. No pictures inside, so this is the only picture I got in the main lobby. The exhibit was incredible but it was way too crowded. I could of spent a few more hours in there really looking at everything but it was just impossible. Thought it wouldn't be so since the show has been running for quite a while. Perhaps it wasn't wise of me to go when it was the opening weekend of Alice in Wonderland?!?

I do have an all new respect for Tim Burton, and the show made me want to go draw something weird and twisted.
Along with trying to see friends, go to old hang outs, I also spotted The Great Matzoh Hunt at the Barnes & Nobles in Union Square.

A little injection of city life and now back to work!

Illustrating Children's Picture Books

There is a great book out right now that I'm so honored to be a part of. It is called Illustrating Children's Picture Books, written by Steven Withrow and Lesley Breen Withrow. Don't you just love the cover?
I feel really humbled to have gotten a double page spread artist profile...along with other artists I admire such as Steve Mack, Bob Staake, and Meomi in the digital dreams section. (I'm not worthy!)
I find this book fresh, modern and very extensive. A complete resource and well-rounded guide to creating picture books. There are alot of tips on visual storytelling, tutorials, and of course, inspiration.

Its weird-I've been getting little signs from the universe that this is the year where I'm going to complete my picture book dummy (write AND illustrate.) Yes, I've been working on that more than ever lately, and this book gave me a little spark to push me along. Thank you, Steve and Lesley, for including me. Get it here on Amazon.

100% Digital Finger Painting

With a 4 hour train ride from Ann Arbor to Chicago, I had some time to kill. So I had fun playing around again with the Brushes app on my iPhone. I wonder about the possibilities on a bigger screen (aka iPad)?!?

I had a wonderful time in Chicago. When I stepped out of the train, I saw the tall buildings and concrete and felt instantly at home. I forgot how much I missed the cityscape. The Art Institute of Chicago had an impressive collection and it was welcomed break from surfing the internet for inspiration. It reminded me I should go to the museums more often. Other fun things: wanted to buy everything at Penelope's, t-shirt for husband at Threadless, crafty pilgrimage to Renegade Handmade, walk at Millennium Park, dim sum at Chinatown, grilled octopus at Greektown. (we didn't end up having deep dish pizza though. I suspect my loyalty is still with the NY thin slice!) This trip was just what I needed- already planning to try to go back soon!

Rounded Corner Love

Thanks to Print Click for featuring my business cards in their 35 Outstanding Rounded Cornered Business Cards Designs. Check out the post for some fabulous inspirations.

Things are a little quiet here on my blog since I'm visiting the beautiful city of Chicago at the moment. I forgot how much I missed the tall buildings, the concrete, and the city sounds. It was just the little zap of energy I needed.

Lunar New Year

Chinese New Year falls on Valentine's day this year. Its the year of the Tiger! It seems like around this time of year, I always mention how much I want to do more Asian/Chinese inspired work, and I end up doing just one piece. Well, I really enjoyed doing this particular piece and it sparked some good story ideas, so hopefully I will keep it up.

High Five Magazine

Check out this month's High Five Magazine- featuring this spread I illustrated called Fix the Flat. Also in the same issue is my friend and fellow Illustration for kids member Anette with her awesome double page spreads- check it out here. Yay!

Creating a Board Book Cover

I thought I would share my rounds of sketches in creating the book cover for The Great Matzoh Hunt. Even though this was a simple board book, a dynamic cover is a must to grab the attention of kids (and parents buying the book.)

• Round 1: When I think of matzoh, I think of matzoh ball soup. Thats why Duck is holding a ball. Oops! There are four characters in the book, yet all of them on the cover seems a little too crowded.

• Round 2: The matzoh is fixed and three characters are now on the page. Although all three characters are given equal attention but Duck is the one who finds the matzoh.

• Round 3: Duck is scaled bigger for a much better layout. Ready to go to color!

• Round 4: Question about the bunny's gesture- does she look like she is searching?

• Round 5: Testing out a different gesture on the bunny- maybe she needs to be on her hands and knees? Shaved duck's "feathers" on his head too. Hm....

• Round 6: The first bunny was OK afterall. The pale yellow background was changed into a brighter green for a bolder look. This is the final-hooray!

• With the type and on the book!

The Great Matzoh Hunt

I illustrated a board book that was just released a few days ago called The Great Matzoh Hunt, a companion to Light the Menorah, both published by PSS. A funny coincidence: this is the second book I've worked on in which the title starts with "The Great..." (the other, The Great Reindeer Rebellion.)

Anthropomorphic animals going around the house looking for the matzoh? Oh yes, I did like this job very much!

Its also a lift-the-flap book, and I had the freedom of coming up with where the flap was and what was underneath. I hope the kids will enjoy the fun little things I put there while they look for the matzoh with the animals.
If I can get away with drawing anthropomorphic plates and cups, I will do so!
I also sneaked in some chicken goodness in this book (which I actually try to do in all my books.) A little teaser for you to go and check it out in the bookstores at least! Also available on Amazon.

Breaking into Freelance Illustration

Lately I've been getting quite a few emails asking for advice on becoming an illustrator. Sometimes I'm quite surprised (and flattered) that people want to ask ME for advice, when I'm still learning and finding my way everyday. However, I've realized that I've been doing this professionally and full time now for about 4 years. I've learned a thing or two along the way and would love to pass it along.

Thanks to Holly DeWolf, I got to contribute to her book, Breaking into Freelance Illustration. She sent me a comp copy back in December- with the holidays and traveling I didn't get a chance to blog about it here. It is a great read for people starting out and even professionals who sometimes need a reminder on a few things. Alot of familar names and blog friends are in it, be sure to check it out if you are interested in becoming a freelance illustrator.

I'm thinking of writing more posts on topics like this, such as what I've learned so far as an illustrator, and my journey of getting there. I feel like I need to pay it forward, as when I was starting out, I looked to bloggers like Keri Smith and Danny Gregory for encouragement and inspiration. So stay tuned.

**OTHER AWESOME NEWS** I'm so excited- I'm going to Japan in May! Just booked flights there for a vacation AND it will be the same week as DesignFesta- which I did purposely so I can attend that as well. It will be a heavy dose of creative inspiration...hope I don't OD! :-)

New year, New Banner

Happy New Year! Kicking off the year by changing up my blog banner. These new colors and textures are the kind of style I'm striving for lately. Doesn't seem to match the rest of my blog right now but it feels like the right direction!