Introducing creative team member Eva Dobilas!

Last month I selected a team of 10 fabulous crafters to work with my product over the next year.  I selected them because each of them had a unique "something special" about the way they design.  Some love bright and bold...some like a simple graphics approach, some love to make cards, some paper mache, and others are true scrapbookers at heart.  I have had the joy of watching them post projects on my Facebook page that feature the use of my products.  I would love to introduce you more in-depth to each of them over the next week.  


Today, I am starting with Eva Dobilas.  


Let me introduce you to Eva.  She is a delightful person to know...always up-beat and positive and it's catchy...not only in her words, but also in her craft.  I discovered her beautiful work about a year ago, when she did a lovely project with my birdhouse Silhouette die. I loved how she added so much life to this simple die design...and particularly loved the stamps she was using.  To make a long story short...she was the one who introduced me to Unity Stamp Company...and the rest...is history.  I am grateful for that introduction as I have been having so much fun designing stamps for Unity! Eva loves to use bright colors, and pays attention to detail.  Here are some of the things she has been busy making over the last 6 weeks...I bet you she crafts every day...because this is just a sampling of many projects she has created in the last little bit.  She has a true love for design.

To make this gorgeous fall card, Eva used one of my digital cutting files from the Silhouette digital download store called:  2_layer_swirly_leaf_C01028_1921010/19/2010.  I love her choice of fresh gingham ribbon to make this card POP! 

Eva used stamps from the Ippity Fall for You set  (this is Unity Stamp Co. sister company)  to create this festive fall pumpkin. The Thanksgiving sticker is from my Harvest Collection for Creative Imaginations and the label that holds the cute arrangement of  stamps at the top, is one of my digital dies: 1_label_frame_tag_C00885_1921008/09/2010, available from Silhouette designs.  Here adorable project was created with papers from my Harvest paper line by Creative Imaginations.  I love Eva's detail in her rolled flower at the top of her pumpkin!  

For this lovely card, Eva used my fern_artisan_C00375_1921012/17/2009 Silhouette cut set and my Encompassed Grace stamps from Unity. Eva started out with white paper, but she inked it up with Ranger Distress inks--very cute! Love it, Eva!

This cute pair of dimensional projects by Eva, make me smile! She made this adorable little Halloween House with my birdhouse die from Silhouette, papers from Basic Grey (a company I LOVE--they are good people) and stamps from Ippity and Unity stamps.  Eva's second project uses another one of my dies from Silhouette called, spider_web_treat_bag_C017107/07/2009 , which you can fill with candy for your favorite little trick or treater.  She also used Copic markers, which Eva is really good at...as she demonstrates on the witch in this project. The bats are also some of my digital Silhouette cuts, bat_circle_set_C01015_1921010/18/2010.  I think these projects are precious!

Eva created this card base with my Silhouette die: jack_o_lantern_card_C20090904130829_19210

09/04/2009 .  Her card turned out so fun with all of her extra layers and embellishments, including stamps from Ippity.  I sure love it! 

Eva used my Ooh La la paper collection from Creative Imaginations to complete this cute card.  My favorite thing about this card is her choice to add an unexpected pop of blue!  Clever way to add spark!

I have to Credit Eva for inspiring me to design this snow globe die for Silhouette (christmas_snow_globe_C01068_19210)  She asked if I could do it for a project she had in mind...I was happy to oblige...as I knew Eva would do fabulous things with it! I added the scalloped border around the snow globe knowing this kind of motif is something Eva already loves to do with her cards.

Eva used My Wanna Be a Cowboy papers from Creative Imaginations and all the shapes were cut with the following Silhouette digital cutting files:  

10_piece_rectangle_stamp_set_2_C01052_19210

nesting_artisan_frames__C20090810001943_19210 08/10/2009

basket_butterfly_2_C00588_19210 03/22/2010

Here is another card by Eva.  For this card she used papers from my Harvest collection for Creative Imaginations, and coordinating stamps from my Fall Family Memories set for Unity Stamp Co.  Eva also used my artisans_nesting_rectangular_C00685_19210 05/04/2010 available as a digital download on the Silhouette die cut machine site.

Make sure to check out Eva's blog.  She is a regular blogger and always has inspiration to share.  

Pinch me...I think I'm dreaming!

Last June I was offered the opportunity of a lifetime...to create a line of home decor products.  Did I just say that out loud?  REALLY...that's HUGE! I have been over the moon about it for months...but cautiously, as I just didn't know how it was all going to go down. I worked many late nights and weekends to pull off the magnitude of this project, and today, I got to see it come to fruition.  My samples were ready to view!  I had no idea what to expect, and so I was floored to see it all come to life. I quickly snapped a few pictures to give you a preview of what we created. I cannot take all the credit as Mark and Kristen Tuttle shopped overseas for what my artwork would be laid into...wooden frames, clocks, marble coasters, frames, wall tins, magnets, wood wall art and more! So together, their choices of products combined with my art...we came up with this:

This is just a sneak peek at the products that will start selling in January at the gift market trade show in Atlanta.

 The Pear stacked wood prints are among some of my favorite pieces in this collection.  Actually...there are three collections if you break it down into Pears, Owls and Flowers, and black and white.

 This is just a small sampling of the owl and flower collection.  These are prints done on metal tins.

This is a close up of some of the flower designs...

 This is a close up of some of the owl prints.  

I'm crazy excited to see this go to the next step...and that is being presented in the VIP International booth in Atlanta at the trade show in January.  Here's to hoping this line will see much success!

Silhouette Build a Damask Set

Well a great idea came through on my Facebook fan page on Tuesday from Angela Thomas, for a Silhouette die design, and I ran with it. (I still have other requests on my list that I haven't gotten to...so there is a good chance your request will still be created, if I told you it's on my list. However, as an artist, I sometimes get carried away with one idea, and it spawns another...then another, and soon I am on a snowball of ideas--growing and gathering more as it goes. When that happens, I can't stop...as that is all my mind can think about. Building a damask just happened to be one of those ideas.)

Angela asked for a damask pattern that she could make a stencil out of...something where the pieces could be bigger so that she could stencil her wall. So I started making pieces for a damask...then one flourish inspired another...then a string of related borders...then soon, I had all these pieces I could use to build a damask. So I tried to decide how I would arrange them, and realized that there were endless options. So I decided that I would just give you the parts and let you decide how to arrange your damasks...or use the pieces independently as elegant flourishes. I'll start you off with some inspiration with some patterns I came up with...the pieces that I used...and then you can duplicate or make variations of the samples I show. To make a pattern use as many or as few of the pieces as you want, duplicate and reflect pieces...ungroup the designs and use just parts of the images if you want to simplify the look. I was planning on a project to go with these designs...but my husband just told me we are going camping today (we are a very spontaneous family), so that will have to wait until next week. But just to get you started...here are some of the patterns that I created...






I would LOVE to see what you come up with and how you use these pieces. So please send me a picture of your project when you finish show I can share your inspiration with others here on my blog or here. PS...there is no right or wrong way to do this, so feel free to explore and get creative!

New logo...New Outlook

This past year has been a year of "awakening" and growth for me in my designs. I've had my share of "growing pains" in the past with my art where things didn't always work out how I hoped--I was busy juggling other good things, and my art was constantly taking a back seat. Which is not bad, as I was busy with my two beautiful babies which I had practically back to back in 2006 and 2007. Between 2003 and 2006, I went through a period of infertility and miscarriage between my oldest son and my middle daughter, which made me think that I wouldn't be so lucky to get pregnant right away if I tried for a third. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I found out I was pregnant with my little boy, Colin, just one month after we started trying. Go figure! You can imagine the excitement I had, and the nervous feelings of inadequacy in reaction to my fast growing family.

Besides my focus changing dramatically, there really are numerous reasons why I felt stuck in such a rut with my art. Number one, not knowing the computer well enough as a design tool (I was known in college for my thick impasto oil paint style, the computer was truly my nemesis. However, oil painting is not exactly kid-friendly, so learning the computer seemed necessary.) Number two, not getting out enough to explore for inspiration. I think I missed what was going on beyond the walls of my own home and neighborhood for a good 2 years. Number three, being diagnosed with ADD (attention deficit disorder) and battling whether or not to try medication as a means of help. Number 4, not practicing drawing on a regular basis--you ever hear of the concept: you don't use it, you loose it? Well, rusty was what I was becomming for sure! Numbers 5-100... just so many things going on in my life during that time, that my art was starting to lack a certain freshness.

But this year, I have come to know that there truly is a time and season for all things, and perhaps now, I am starting to come into a season of art discovery. That is one of the beauties of art and design...it is flexible, it will be there for you when you are ready for it, it will evolve, grow and change over time, and is naturally an expression of the many things that influence you in your life. My little ones are now a little older (2 and 4), and are better at self entertaining...allowing me a little more Mommy time. I have also forced myself to learn the computer and discover what it has to offer as a design tool--I'm actually liking it a lot, and do I dare say that my nemesis is now my best design friend? I have been able to get out a whole heck of a lot more with my little ones being older...I'm able to see what's going on in the outside world...and when I'm not able to get out as much as I would like in a week, I treat myself to an "internet exploration trip," and see what hot trends are creeping up into popular culture--this can be dangerous though, as this practice has fed my shoe addiction all too well. As for my ADD, after a long inward battle, I decided to try ADD meds, and have been pleasantly surprised at how well they allow me to focus and organize my life, while I still attain my creativity and imagination. Heck, I don't know why I was so apprehensive about going that route, as it really has been such a Godsend to me (and my family.) I have also been practicing my drawing skills on a daily basis with all of the digital dies I do for the Silhoutte Store each week. This single activity has probably contributed to the largest amount of growth I've seen in my art in the last year. It's fun to create little images, without having to commit to the whole concept of a product line...and ironically, by making little drawings and images every day, I am OVERFLOWING with ideas and concepts for my other larger projects. Making little pictures has literally taken out the intimidation of getting started on a paper or fabric line, so much so, that my little notebook is full of little notes, more than an year's worth of ideas planned out...just waiting to escape and leap onto my Adobe Illustrator art board. Yippee!

I am so grateful for all the experiences that I have had over the past few years which have brought me through this growth in design. With the literal evolution in my creative processes, I thought that it was high time to celebrate it with a brand new look in my logo. I am changing my plain black and white signature logo to a colorful logo that symbolizes creative freedom (through the bird and olive branch), and the belief that art exploration should be continuous and is good (this is symbolized through the curling swirls extending beyond the frame which hint at this out-of-the-box continuous creative exploration) also the idea that I should "keep it fun, but real" which is symbolized in the playful color scheme grounded with brown. I am excited to unveil my new logo which epitomizes my new outlook on design and art.

Old logo...

After coming off a HUGE string of deadlines...I've finally come to the eye of the storm where there is a calm before the next string of deadlines. Don't get me wrong...there is plenty of stuff to do on my "to do" list--even in the eye of the storm...but this week, I am taking a little break from design work and just doing the minimum...but I'm maximizing on Family time.

On Sunday, I went for a walk with my kids, then visited my parents, then went to a family dinner at my in laws. On Monday I painted my daughters toe nails and organized her room while searching for my wedding ring (that's the last place I remember seeing it 2 weeks ago, but I didn't find it...sniff sniff.) Yesterday I volunteered at my 8 year olds school and then perused through the book fair and brought home way more books than I care to admit (hey, it was buy on get one free...and for a great cause!) Then in the afternoon, I read books to the kids--almost all of them that I purchased, but not the chapter books. I've also started studying scriptures at night before bedtime with my 8 year old son. I made dinner from scratch three nights in a row...and I contemplated organizing my pantry--it's evolved into one of those cartoon scenes where the character quickly opens the door, grabs what they need, then shuts it before the whole closet comes down on them...(I'm not there yet with organizing the pantry...but the idea is heavily brewing.)

The start of this week has been full...but I have only worked a few hours...so it makes me wonder...how do I get it all done on weeks where I work 40-70 hours. One thing's for sure...I've learned that sleep is overrated...I do some of my best work between the hours of 9pm and 2am. I've reinvented what the word weekend means...my husband usually works weekends, so I kind of forget it's the weekend until I wake up Sunday morning and frantically realize that I need to get moving if I want to get to church on time with the kids. Today...I got my hair done--it hadn't been cut or colored since January...I think that may be a new record for me for shortest time between beauty shop visits--I typically put it off until the very last possible minute (usually the day before CHA, and I look in the mirror and realize that I'm a little too grey and shaggy.) Then I browsed on e-bay for a new purse (typically, I only do shopping on line unless it's groceries, Costco, or my favorite thrift store) My current purse is so gross...let's just say my kids have lived in it with their banana peels and snacks, and diapers, and candy wrappers, and mystery items that need not be discussed. It's been nice to unwind a little.

In my unwinding, I also perused through the Silhouette Flikr group and found some wonderful creations using my designs. It's designs like this one by Eva Dobilas that motivate me to design. She made this amazing little birdhouse using my Silhouette birdhouse die, and Ippity stamps. The detail on this project just amazes me! That's why I have to share it with all of you! I love seeing what people do with my designs. It motivates me to make more stuff. The thing that thrills me is that 3 crafters can use the same fabric, paper, die, or whatever, and come up with a totally different project than the other crafters. The possibilities of what to do with the designs is virtually endless, and in turn...so inspiring.