Keep it Simple: a new print and a giveaway!

Back in design school, one of our instructors used to like to refer to the KISS principle (Keep it simple, Stupid). In design, the most simple solution is usually the best, even though not always easy to get to. I learned this lesson over and over while in school and later in my work.

I'm finding that the principle applies to my life more and more as the layers of my life grow more rich and numerous. Simplify, simplify, simplify. The only way I have been able to manage all of the layers of my life is to start by managing my expectations. Not that I always succeed - my natural tendency towards perfectionism is a hard one to beat down.

For me simplifying does not mean settling for less. It just means that I simplify the parts of my life that I care less about (making meals, cleaning house) so that the parts I care about most (time with my family, and creativity) can be more full. Par exemple: Meal planning and prep used to take up a buttload of my time. Eating healthy is uber important to us but I hate the planning part of making menus and lists. Recently I spent an afternoon making 4 different weekly menus with accompanying shopping lists and we just rotate them during the month. It is so simple, and now we rarely have to think about what we are eating.

I honestly made this print as a reminder to myself - it is going to hang right there over my desk. But I decided that if I were going to look at it daily I didn't want it calling me stupid, and my guess is that most people don't want to be called stupid either.

And now the fun part! I'll be giving away one of these prints on July 13. To be in the running, just leave a comment below and let me know how you Keep it Simple in your life, or even if you are struggling to keep it simple, or prefer keeping it complicated. Whatevs! The winner will be picked at random and announced right there!

Sunday sneak peek

New work coming at you this week! Here's a sneak peek.

New Print: Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Slow and Steady Wins the Race  $20  by Pixel & Post on etsy

I'm super happy to show you a new print! Part of my Friendly Little Reminders Series.

With this image I wanted to explore more hand - drawn textures and play around with hand lettering. I even borrowed a crayon from my kiddo's art table for the tortoise's hair and mouth (shhh- don't mention it). His shell went through about a million iterations before I hit on the one I truly loved. I'm super happy with this one and the direction it is taking things.

In case you were wondering, the salt and pepper shakers at the left are from the awesome Shoshonasnow on etsy. The mini camera on the right was my mom's - it used to have real film in it, one of my favorite possessions from childhood.

Here are some detail images:

March Giveaway: Eat 5 a Day!

Oh my goodness! It is already March 16, and I forgot to announce this month's giveaway item - the Eat 5 a Day print!

I'll draw a winner at the end of this week - March 19th - just to give you a bit more time to sign up for my mailing list (you can do so here).

For those of you on the list - a little "e-pology" for my lack of newsletter-ing in the past two months. I have been blogging here so much that I am feeling a little unsure what to report in my newsletter. I'm working on it though, and pretty soon you will see a pretty newsletter in your inbox.

New Print: Bee Yourself

Being yourself (or BEE-ing yourself) means doing stuff like wearing hot pink and white stripes when the rest of the hive is wearing the same old yellow and black. And here's another Friendly Little Reminder print to help you (or someone you love) remember to just be themselves!

I've been thinking about being myself while working on these prints. As I've said before, I'm just having a lot of fun making them, and ideas and imagery are flowing out of me like crazy. I think there is an important message in this new found ease. I interpret it like this: when we let ourselves be ourselves - without apologies, without the worry about what others think, the struggle disappears and our work feels effortless, joyous and crazy-fun. I'm also finding that in being more myself in my work, I am happier in the parts of my life outside of being an artist. Double bonus! Just proof that being yourself will send you buzzzzzing to new heights!

The fine print: $20 will get you this sweet 8 x 10 inch giclee (pronounced gee-clay) print. It is professionally printed in the US of A, on Legion Entrada Rag Bright 290 (a fine art, 100% cotton paper) and with Vivera Archival Inks, giving it an archival rating of 150 years. Please note that the copyright mark will not be on the print.

New Print: Eat 5 A Day

That's right friends, I'm on a roll and having so much fun with this series. Here's the next in the Friendly Little Reminders Series: "Eat 5 A Day". Most of us need to eat more fruits and veggies, and an adorable reminder couldn't hurt. This little print will be right at home in the kitchen, or near your favorite breakfast spot. The print is now available to order over at my shop!

I'm having a blast incorporating these hand drawn techniques with my computer based illustration style. For this one I used pens, pencils, crayons and some found textures too. I'm also enjoying playing around with hand drawn lettering too. I just got the book Hand Job: A Catalog of Type and it is chock full of hand rendered typographic eye candy - you should check it out. I'm feeling great about working this way. It feels so much more genuine and original than my purely vector work. Not to say I'm abandoning working with shapes, but this work is just feeling much more interesting to me at the moment. I hope you are feeling it too!

The fine print:
$20 will get you this sweet 8 x 10 inch giclee (pronounced gee-clay) print. It is professionally printed in the US of A, on Legion Entrada Rag Bright 290 (a fine art, 100% cotton paper) and with Vivera Archival Inks, giving it an archival rating of 150 years.

The frame is not included with the print. It is a $17 frame I bought at Target of all places, you can find it here.

Enjoy!

New Print: Go out on a limb...

Hey folks! Here's the latest in my series of Friendly LIttle Reminders, titled "Go Out on A Limb (that's where all the fruit is)" I'm super excited about where these prints are going. I have sketchbooks full of little characters like this and until my recent breakthrough they were just hanging out in my sketchbooks, waiting to be released.

This saying struck a chord with me recently. Showing this fun, loose, wacky side of my work is still feels a bit risky for some reason. I need to be reminded to take chances, and I have to believe that the good stuff is out there if I just GO to where that is. So, look for lots more fun and wacky imagery coming your way.

Happy Friday everyone!

The nitty-gritty on the print: $20 will get you this sweet 8 x 10 inch giclee (pronounced gee-clay) print. It is professionally printed in the US of A, on Legion Entrada Rag Bright 290 (a fine art, 100% cotton paper) and with Vivera Archival Inks, giving it an archival rating of 150 years.

February Giveaway!

I'm sharing the love this month! Enter to win one of my "I Only Have Eyes For You" prints from my Etsy shop (your choice)! To enter, simply click the link at right and sign up for my mailing list.

I'll be drawing one lucky winner on February 14th!


By signing up for the Pixel & Post mailing list, you'll be the first to know about any breaking news, shop sales, and top secret stuff I don't share on the blog, and you're automatically entered to win my monthly giveaways. And, I keep your info top secret too - no sharing or selling of lists.

Happy Tuesday everyone. Stay tuned for another fabulous installment of Wall Wednesday tomorrow, and a new print on Thursday!

Illustration Friday: Focused

It's getting mushy over here.

When I was sketching out images for my "I Only Have Eyes for You" print I had these two ideas. The first was the grid of wonky eyes with heart eyeballs, and the other was of some heart shaped glasses and big 'ole hand drawn type.

And in the new spirit of experimentation and general "why not -ness" going round my head these days I'm giving you both! I figure there is a little something for everyone in each of these images.



Both images celebrate being so in luuuurve that you can't stay focused on anyone or anything else. Like the song by the same name (I like the version by The Flamingos - yes I know it is cheesy bear with me) that goes:

You are here
So am I
Maybe millions of people go by,
but they all disappear from view.
And I Only Have Eyes For You.

Both are part of the "Friendly Little Reminders" series, and both 8 x 10 prints are available in my shop for $20 buckaroos.

A new print: I only have eyes for you..

As promised - I added a new print to my shop tonight titled "I only have eyes for you". Part of the "Friendly Little Reminders" series.

$20 will get you this sweet 8 x 10 inch giclee (pronounced gee-clay) print. It is professionally printed in the US of A, on Legion Entrada Rag Bright 290 (a fine art, 100% cotton paper) and with Vivera Archival Inks, giving it an archival rating of 150 years. Please note that the copyright mark will not be on the print.

The image area is about 5 x 7- meaning you can purchase a ready cut mat, and slide it all into an 8 x 10 frame and look like a super star this Valentine's Day.

Here's an image detail -


I had a lot of fun with this image - it is all hand drawn, scanned in to ye olde computer, and the colors were tweaked using Photoshop. This is all part of my recent revelation in my work - busting out the traditional art supplies instead of the computer - and it makes me happy!

Look for another love themed print later this week. I just can't seem to stop myself.

Illustration Friday: Clumsy

I started this drawing the day before this week's Illustration Friday topic was revealed, and when I saw that the word was 'clumsy' it was a great motivator to get this little illustration ready to roll.

This marks the beginning of an exciting new series of small affordable prints, I'm calling "Friendly Little Reminders" that will be available in my Etsy shop starting today!

Selling for a wee $20 bucks, these giclee prints measure 8 x 10 inches and will slip easily into any store bought frame, making a perfect little gift or a friendly reminder to hang on your wall.

I read this quote a few weeks ago from a book of "American Proverbs" and the image of a banana peel laying in wait popped into my head. We all get tripped up, slipping on little things along our way - but slips are just slips. So true!