New Things for Fall

Well, hello all! I am such a cliche, sitting here with my laptop in a cafe. I seem to have transported myself back to the 90s! At least I have an excuse though, it is the only way for me to get anything done! 

Fall is on my mind, it is back to school time already and the summer is winding down. I wanted to share with you some of the new things I have been working on. They will end up on etsy as soon as I can find the time to post them. I have been doing some illustrating, but I have also been getting excited for the fall and Halloween! It does seem early to be thinking about Halloween, but when I start thinking about fall I can’t help but include Halloween. It is one of my favorite holidays after all.

I have been seeing geometric patterns all over the place and felt inspired to create my own. I have been doing a lot of silhouette art as well, so I thought why not combine them? Kitties are so complicated that of course it seemed like the perfect marriage. Sprite decided to be my model and I think the print suits her personality, I know she is the smartest little creature in the house. Geometric Kitty is born!

The end of summer has me thinking of soft, warm colors so check out my new ginkgo print as well. I love ginkgo trees, and I am thinking of planting one in my front garden actually. This print features two delicate ginkgo leaves with a lovely green and nude pink palette. I am thinking of adding these as a notecard as well? What do you think?

As I mentioned, Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Fall in general is such a gorgeous time of year and Halloween is part of it. The air is getting crisper and you just want to curl up with a good book. In celebration of spooky Halloween I have two new card designs to add to the shop. 

The first design, Happy Halloween, uses a lovely palette for fall with warm orange, and chocolate and includes warm curry yellow envelopes. A small Happy Halloween on the front adds some character. These cards would be perfect for a quick note to your friends and loved ones. Halloween is such a fun holiday to surprise people with a card because it is unexpected.

The second set, Ghost Cards, is more playful and features a pair of quirky ghosts. They are simple and fun and also include curry yellow envelopes. I like the color combination of the grey and the yellow, also a little twist on the traditional Halloween color combinations. 

All these items will be added to the shop shortly so stay tuned. If you would like to place an order and  you don't see them in the shop just send me a message and I will get it going for you!


Let me know what you think of the new items and I will treat you to a free card! The first 2 people to comment get a free card of their choice!


{all photos are by Monkey & The Whale of original copyrighted artwork by Monkey & The Whale}

Slinkachu

Hello everyone. Yes, I have been missing in action for some time now. What can I say? Time has been slipping through my fingers, but I have been doing some work here and there. I just haven't been able to blog about it all yet. I will post about my latest projects soon!


For now, I want to share a fun artist that I came across the other day, Slinkachu. This artist is rather reminiscent of Lisa Swerling of Glass Cathedrals who impressed me so much at last year's Renegade. Slinkachu creates miniature installations in cities and then photographs them. I came across Slinkachu while visiting the deYoung museum. It was nice to steal some time to admire some art and get inspired. Somehow I ended up in the gift shop and Will showed me a book, "Little People In The City." The cover intrigued me instantly...an image of a man with a shotgun, a young child behind him, and a dead bumblebee a few inches away. This piece was titled, "They're Not Pets." I had to open the book and see more!


According to his (?) bio, Slinkachu sums up the work like this: "It involves the remodelling and painting of miniature model train set characters, which I then place and leave on the street. It is both a street art installation project and a photography project. The street-based side of my work plays with the notion of surprise and I aim to encourage city-dwellers to be more aware of their surroundings. The scenes I set up, more evident through the photography, and the titles I give these scenes aim to reflect the loneliness and melancholy of living in a big city, almost being lost and overwhelmed. But underneath this, there is always some humour. I want people to be able to empathise with the tiny people in my works."


The work is often humorous, warm, sometimes sad, and always compelling. It is creativity like this that most inspires me. I hope this gets you all going with your own ideas, or at least gives you a smile this week. Take a look at more of Slinkachu's work here.