Boo!

This is one of my Halloween card design sold in Hallmark Gold Crown Store. Hope it is not too late to wish you guys a safe and fun night! Happy Halloween!!! :)

Pumpkin Carving Day at Kearney

Today a couple of people from my staff went to our company's Kearney studio to carve pumpkins. Unlike last year's sunny day on the farm, today it was cool, raining and foggy, but I loved every bit about it! It is weather like this and all the colors on the trees make me enjoy fall so much! I carved one pumpkin with mustache and then spent the all afternoon curled up on the couch with friends, watching "Rosemary's Baby"... yup! (A little disappointed because they never showed the baby's face in the film...) It was perfect!

Here are panoramic views around the studio. (Pardon my awful camera and photos that are pieced together... but you get the idea.) Isn't it lovely?

Sketchbook Doodle Animation: Fox Hat

From today's sketchbook

Something to cure your Monday blues...

They Might Be Giants' super cute music video from the Grammy-winning "Here Come the 123s" DVD & CD set, directed by David Cowles (co-directed with Sean McBride).



Great... now it is stuck in my big giant head...

This Morning's Random Office Moment

What's that on the kitchen table?



Closer...



LOL!!!

New Hallmark Books

How are you, my friends? We've been having weird & chilly weather here in the Midwest. The sun was hiding from us for the whole past week but is finally showing its face again now. A breezy, sunny Autumn day... for that reason alone, it's worth celebrating! On top of that, I am going to show you two more new books from Hallmark; I'm sure they are going to put you in an even better mood!

The first one is "Ultra GoGo's Party Fun Book". It's a collaboration between my friend Sarah Anderson and writer Linda Morris, and it took years from the very beginning of the project to finally having the book on the market. It's a labor of love, and the end result definitely shows that! It's a super super fun book for tween/teen girls (or even grown-ups like you and me), full of "Quizzes, Games, and Recipes for All-Time Wackalicious Party Fun"! It's a spiral-bound book (easy to lay flat) with thick cardboard cover and a cute sticker sheet at the end. I will let the pictures do all the talking:




The second book is "It's Not Easy Being Brave". It's written by Megan Haave, and collaboratively illustrated by Maura Cluthe and Mirna Sutbbs. It's is SO CUTE!!! (Just look at the little monster plush toy tucked away in the pocket!!! His name is "Pip", by the way.) Pip is the smallest monster in the world, and he is good at being scared, especially by other monsters! It's a really cute story with very well done artworks. Your little ones, or yourself, will for sure enjoy it (I know I did!)




To get your own copies, check out your local Hallmark Gold Crown stores. If you have any comments or feedback, you can email them to booknotes@hallmark.com.

Encaustic Doodle #3

Mixed-media encaustic doodle on 6" by 8" wood panel. From the side you can see beeswax dripping down... I kind of like that.

A Little Encaustic Box

A little mixed-media encaustic box with shellac, 3" across.
I've been having fun with beeswax... I love how imperfectly perfect the result could be.

Encaustic Doodle #2

Mixed-media encaustic doodle on 4" by 6" wood panel

Encaustic Doodle #1

Tonight's project: encaustic doodle on 4" by 6" wood panel.

It's really chilly over here (I think we skipped fall and have winter instead...) and I have to crank up the furnace. A toasty studio + bees wax + paint + hot tea=best night! : )

Awesome New Hallmark Products

Yesterday I was browsing our card shop and came across a lot of awesome kids products which are recently released by Hallmark. There are so many great ones, but here I am going to show you two that I especially love.

The first one is the "Monster Mash" card game by Kelly Green (I've introduced Kelly to you guys back in July.) There are 60 cards in a deck, with 20 different monster characters. And look at the packaging! Isn't it the most adorable packaging ever? I like it so much I ended up buying two boxes.

The second one is a children's book titled "The Most Awesome Pet In The World", illustrated by Bob Kolar and written by Molly Wigand. You can personalize this book with your pet's photos at the very end. It's fun, quirky, and full of cute animals even a grown-up will love!



This is all I can show you. To see all the new kids products you have to check out your local Gold Crown store in person. I believe if they don't carry it, you can ask them to order it for you. : )

What I Wore Today + How I Feel Like

Doodled during lunch time. I've also added this one to the "What I Wore Today" Flickr group.

And this is how I feel like right now...

Artwork for The Kyrie Foundation

My friend and crazy talented artist Tuesday Schmidt invited me to do an artwork for The Kyrie Foundation's second annual fundraiser, a silent art/gift auction, and all proceeds go to the research of pediatric brain cancer. Here is my little humble contribution, mixed media on 6" by 6" wood panel (the frame makes it 6.5" by 6.5"). I had fun doing it and I hope it will go to a good home while earning some much needed money for the cause. The event will be on November 12, 2009. Location: 2131 Studio | 2131 Washington Street, Kansas City, MO. For more info or to purchase tickets, click here.

Diary: This Weekend

First, my mom is here visiting me for 40 days... so if I am less productive during this time, that's why. :)



On Friday Robert and I went to the regular monthly "first Friday" treasure hunt, and I got lucky again (last time I got the "Mixies", remember?). I got two awesome framed owly prints by Margaret Layton, titled "Blinky" and "Winky". Look like they are some sort of hand-colored prints, and they are really lovely. I do need to replace one of the glass, re-paint the wood frames, and add mats for both of them. But I only paid $38 for the pair so I am not complaining.



Also I got a little owl container as well. I already had one of this; now I have two!



Because it was the "First Friday" (On the first Friday of each month, Kansas City's Crossroads district's art galleries, studios, and restaurants open their doors to showcase local and national artists, and the area is always packed with people.), after work we went to Mattie Rhodes Art Center for their Dia De Los Muertos exhibition. After that we stayed and listened to a blues band playing on 18th street (pardon my bad camera). It was kind of chilly but the perfect weather for such an activity.



And today I took my mom to Mattie Rhodes Art Center again and showed her around the artsy neighborhood. It was a perfect fall day.