Shaunna Peterson's ravings & cravings

juicebox

2011-12-08T10:24:00.000-08:00

Well, if you haven't already heard or seen, since i'm blabbing about it constantly, we got ourselves a 1956 Centennial Wurlitzer. it. is. amazing. and so much fun to be able to see our boys enjoying it as much as we do...B calls it the "juicebox". this is seriously a dream come true for me! not to mention, the awesomeness of roller skating around my house while some oldies but goodies play on it!

it came stocked with the classics!

the guy who sold it to us also threw in a tabletop juke for free! i had to put a bit of elbow grease into both of the jukes, but they polished up beautifully! i also turned this one into a photo album...
took this one of Bunches by the juke for my photo group.

also, it's the time of the season.... and we got ourselves an elf on the shelf. His name is Doodle and the boys adore him!

I've also been getting out to rollerskate when i can, and even got to take Dyl out for a skate! He loved it. plus i think it's brilliant that the "skate gate" now exists! man, we had to learn the old fashioned way, lots of falling, scrapes and bruises.

a great pic of B dancing to The Champs 'Tequila'

and a new commission i just did for a friend...

next stop, Christmas madness! have a wonderful holiday season, however you celebrate it!!

This was Halloween

2011-11-08T11:33:00.000-08:00

i'm heeeeeeeere! well since i've last popped onto blogger, the fam was hit super hard by the flu. it's been two weeks, and luckily everyone seems to be feeling much better, outside of a gnarly cough or two. I drew these two witches while completely down with the flu. pen and ink, they flowed out of me surprisingly well.

we made a couple of trips to the pumpkin patch this year. Here's Dyl and his gal-friend Shannon.

On a different day we decided to go and do the corn-maze as a family. Turns out, Bodie is not a fan.... (really he's not a fan of anything at this point), but that coupled with the fact that we got lost in the corn maze walking around for a good hour pretty much sealed our fate that we won't be doing the corn maze again anytime soon. toward the end, he realized he just had to submit and go with it, since he was tired...

great photo opp of Bunches and Dylan... (Mr. B refused to do any of the cut-out photos). i really want to make a pirate/mermaid version of one of these to have here at the house. it'd be great for wine parties, and whatnot.... on my list of things to do...

our pumpkins... Dylan designed and cut his own pumpkin this year for the first time! back center, it came out great!!

Me and the boys on Halloween night. it's obvious they weren't really feeling it this year. but we tried!

Sloanie came over to help pass out Halloween candy. We had a ton of trick-or-treaters, and blew threw all of our candy by 7 pm. Thanks Sloan for making an emergency candy run!!!

being fancy...

So now things are much better, Bunches even bought me oysters and shucked them for me yesterday!! Shuck yeah!!

and on the art front i've been busily working on cover art for a series of children's board books... i'll share more when i can!

well, that's all i got for now... have to get a little more sketching done today, and tonight - i'm putting on the blond afro wig, some serious fancy fake lashes, glitter make-up and going roller-skating with some friends! peace out y'all..

oh and one more thing... this is for my brother, way to be 8 ft taller than everyone else in 2nd grade. it really showed off your bowl cut.

Delightfully Frightful

2011-10-25T12:11:00.000-07:00

Hey there all you Greasers! Aaaaaaah, one of my favorite times of the year is upon us! That's right, it's time to doll up and get witchy! i love knee-highs!

This time of year is also great to head up the road from where we live to Oak Glen. Scoring fresh-picked apples and seeing a few beautiful birds along the way = priceless!

Speaking of birds... this little baby ran into our window a few weeks back. i went out, held him and talked to him for about 20 minutes. he was so incredibly sweet. He had knocked some feathers off on the other side of his head, and had hurt his eye, but eventually he got his bearings back and flew off. later that evening i walked outside and saw tons of yellow finches feeding on our finch sock. they all got spooked and flew off when they saw me... all except one. yup, my new little friend let me walk right up to him :)

We recently surprised our boys by taking Mr. D out of school for a couple of days and doing an overnight stay at the Disneyland Hotel. Of course i absolutely love the Haunted Mansion and the imagineers totally knock it out of the park by combining the experience with the Nightmare Before Christmas. so much fun!!

Bunches and the Boys on Pirate Island...

Bunches also got me a new winter hat! oh, i love it so!! Looking so forward to wearing this throughout the winter!! I'm a rabid Muppet fan.

took this pic on Paradise Peir just before we left to come on home...

and here's a piece i did for the "Bodies of Waters" show at the Big Car Gallery... Here's the deets if anyone is interested! John Waters himself will be in attendance on Nov. 12th!!! eeeeeeek!!!

and with the fresh apples in abundance, i made my very first, completely from scratch apple pie. i have to say, i loved doing this... it tasted soooo amazing, and i'm ready for more! (i realize this sequence of pics may not be as appetizing coming just under the Divine/poo painting...)

Sloanie came by to help with the pie and play dress-up :) She also brought a batch of her homemade spaghetti sauce, and whipped up an awesome dinner. i love that my friend loves to eat as much as i do...

being vampy...

i scored this lovely little pair of dolls at our local pumpkin patch last night! They're so fancy and adorable that i'm just going to keep them on display all year long. i love them...

my little punkin face amongst the pumpkins...

Dylan and i scored a prop in the corn maze..

Bubba rules..

So that's what things are like here. Just days away from Halloween - yikes! we've been so focused on decorating we haven't even stocked up on candy! I'll send Bunches to that part... in the meantime, here i sit, passing the time with wine and catching snowflakes in the house...
Have a spooktacular Halloween all!!!

yadda yadda yadda

2011-09-23T11:36:00.000-07:00

This past year has been a nightmare of technological woes for me. First my studio computer dumped, then my scanner went fritzing, then in a sinus-infected-crabby-tantrum, i slammed my laptop shut and broke the hard-drive, which contained all the pics from the new Nikon, and scans to pieces that have sold... and then my exterior HD crapped out, and i can't retrieve anything from it. i pretty much feel like the girl in the movie 'Carrie' except i seem to have the power to destroy all things computer-related when i put my mind to it. anyway, i was so excited to get this picture that i burnt it onto disc, printed it out, and sent it to my email to make sure i always have a copy. i love the dragonflies, and i chased them around all summer. this one graciously stopped in so i could get all paparazzi on his azz. thank you Mr. Dragonfly... the happiness i get from looking at this pic almost makes up for losing every other picture i ever took. (well, not really, but i tell myself this to stop the insanity)

i keep trying to get back to sketching every day... but alas it's only here and there that it happens. i like to wear big granny panties. ---- i know, tmi maybe, but there is a point here, and that is - i think a lot of ladies go that route. and i'm exploring the sexiness of the big panty. maybe next i could even explore the sexiness of the sweatpants, or the overalls... okay i'm probably reaching on those.

and exciting news on the growing up front! First lost tooth for Mr. D!!! i put the word out to my FB friends to find the going rate on the tooth fairy stuff these days... talk about inflation!!

and with the summer heat, come the snakes.... i love living in a more rural area, we have quail, squirrels, roadrunner, bunnies and other nature-y goodness literally outside our back door. i went out to water the roses on the side of house a few weeks back, and he was slithering around on my neighbors side of the fence rattling away. i was literally inches from him. scared the bejeezus out of me, but i of course went back to hang over the fence for a photo opp. luckily, one of our good friends is a serious snake charmer and came to relocate him :)

and speaking of snake charmers... here's two of my favorite guys at a recent birthday party.... this past year for Dylan's party, we had a 'Reptacular' birthday party. his friend Matthew loved it so much, that he had a reptacular birthday party as well. so much fun for everyone!

Made it out to the Dig For Fire - Pixies tribute show opening in Venice. Such a great night, especially finally getting the chance to meet the incredibly talented and super amazing Kevin Titzer! We've been 'friends' through the net for nearly 10 years. so great to finally say i met him! thanks again Kevin, you put together a truly great show!! Next time you're in CA, let's hang out!!

this is a group shot of all the attending artists. i know... it's a shocker... i'm in overalls and am partaking in the booze... AND my piece sold, which is always fun!!

here's a commission piece i did last weekend... shhhhh, it's a birthday surprise....

and if you're a resident of Albuquerque NM, my art graces the cover of this week's Alibi!!

in other news, yup... it time to deck out things for Halloween! I got me a set of fangs, and have the inside of the house all dolled up. still more to do though, you can never have too many skeletons and cobwebs around!

Meet you back here soon amoebas!!

In Progress..

2011-08-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

Summertime is coming to a close and Dylan will be starting the first grade tomorrow morning. i'm equal parts nervous and excited.... we've had a good run this summer, a few family trips together, raspberry and peach cobbler (so good i actually made this dish a couple of times - and pretty much hogged it all down by myself)

summer was also about the quiet times, though with two little boys those were few and far between. here's Mr. B listening to the crickets commencing their nightly serenade...

trying to get back to the daily sketching.. and re-visiting using the ol' pen and ink.

And here are some progress shots of the Pixies "Dig For Fire" show piece i did...
First up, idea sketching. i also like to make lists of words to help myself think. oh, and the date and time on there are regarding the boys' yearly check-up and shots... let's just say that check-up ended up being an absolute nightmare and we'll leave it at that...

Coming up with the final sketch for "Gone to Heaven"

transfering the sketch onto the prepped wood..

paint! i think i have about umpteen billion pictures of my palette after i've laid out the paints.. it's pretty much one of my favorite things in life. pristine piles of paint...

getting into it...

closer...
and the palette not-so-pristine anymore..

and here's the finished piece... woohoo! it'll be framed up all pretty-like for the show...

and i just thought this was cool. Dyl made this at the LEGO store a few weeks ago. it's me!!

also, i don't know if this will ever even end up happening. but i have roller derby on the brain. i think i'm too old and too out of shape, but it's given me something to strive for and a reason to get up at 6 am and go get my jog on. plus, it's just pretty awesome to roll around the house at night after the boys are in bed and relive my all-skate days. happy end-of-summer to you all...

Summer Lovin' Having a Blast

2011-07-25T11:35:00.001-07:00

Happy summertime everyone!
Right now i'm working on a piece for this amazing show put together by the incredibly talented Kevin Titzer... you can spy the details here

i snapped this pic in downtown Riverside, on the night of the Sea No Evil show. it was a fantastic turnout! I saw some friends from way back when, and met new ones.. My piece sold as well, so i'm happy she found a home :)

I also just had my 20 year High School Reunion. What a TON of fun that was!! Here's me with the homies Danny and Jason... this is elementary old school stuff right here. Great seeing all of you!!
Playing with props..
Sloan being fabulous and looking just the same... except her moustache appears to have lightened up over the years.

With a couple of the home-girls...

I seriously can't believe how much fun it really was. the night went by too quickly and i hope i get to hang with some of you much sooner than in another 5 years...

Maybe it wasn't the best planning, but the following morning was Mr. B's 'Slimer Carft Party' to ring in his 4th year on this Earth... Here's Slimer, the "disgusting blob" from the movie Ghostbusters. Bodie's obsessed with him, and making art so we held his party at Michael's and the kids made Slimer Masks and pencil boxes. It was a hit!

Mr. B and his birthday cake, that's him on there with Slimer and Stay Puft..

All of the Slimer kids in their regalia!

Now onto the comic relief... a few weeks back Mr. D busied himself by writing notes to Bunches and tucking them under the door to his office while he worked... i love that Mr. Poop signs his name in pen. He also drew a note from Mr. Weenie that is going to be a classic for years to come... too, i was asked if i've ever met Mr. Weenie before... *biting knuckles*

Enjoying the summer and seeing lots of fun visitors to our backyard..

and with the heat has come trips to my parent's house to dip into the swimming pool.. ahhh

Mr. B isn't really into the whole pool thing. Sprinklers are much more his speed.

enjoy the rest of the summer!! i'll meet you all back here soon!

a slice of life...

2011-06-16T11:49:00.000-07:00

Got myself a few new bits to play dress-up with. I had hoped to wear this to our summer wine party, but neither my tophat or corset made it in time... oh well, there's always my 20 year high school reunion!

here's a little peek at Jami entertaining us at the wine party:

A shot in B & W of this rad diner - table jukebox from the late 40's. Bunches brought this home a few weeks ago. such character... i really want to explore B & W photography more...

On Saturday, June 25th I will have a piece in the Sea No Evil art benefit in Riverside Ca. My piece is 16" x 20" framed in an open wood frame, and is titled "Caught Between"

I put a super low starting bid on it, so get on out there, help a great cause, and bring some art home!! Here's the website with all the deets : seashepherdartshow.com

I took this pic last week. i liked that translucent quality to the spider, but the cross on his back actually makes this picture.

I also celebrated my birthday this year at the happiest place on Earth. Bunches and I dropped the kiddos off with Nana for the day/night and went to Disneyland.. just the two of us. it was SO great to ride the "big kid" rides! And as an added bonus, our friends Dolly & Paul, and my girl Sloan met up with us for fun & dinner! here's me and the girls, thanks so much ladies!!!

Another cool find by Bunches... the Madam X napkin dispenser/fortune telling machine from the '50's. I put in a lot of elbow grease, and it cleaned up great! love this piece, and it still works like a charm!!

Thanks to Michaels' buddy Mark, we also scored this rad piece. i love skulls, and i think this one fits in really well with all of our other goods!

And here's a little painting i did as a surprise for my dear friends Jeff & Sarah. They're expecting their first baby, and have a Snoopy themed nursery. so, i thought it would be fun to make something for baby Newk! Grats you two!!

And we just returned yesterday from a 3 night/four day stay at Disneyland/CA Adventure with the boys. Lots of fun, huge summer crowds, and sore muscles from all the walking/stroller pushing we did. it's so awesome to be able to do these things with the kids... and see the excitement through their eyes. Mr. D especially was excited to see Lightning McQueen with his new Cars 2 paint job... Mr. B refused to do anything until we got him a churro.... note picture :)

Since I'm still exhausted from the big Disney excursion, and wasn't witty enough to make funny remarks and keep this entry a little more interesting, i'll leave you all with this gem...

ttfn!

a little bit of everything..

2011-05-17T17:53:00.000-07:00

Finally finished the Rhuumba sign this past weekend. one of the most fun commissions i've worked on.. i'm always a fan of big color in my pieces, but it was cool to take it over the top a little bit..

i also re-painted our garden gnome and gave him a wicked-cool moustache. i thought of painting him to look like a little pirate, but Bunches (hubby) wanted to keep the integrity of the gnome. whatever... :)

Also, this morning we were greeted to our kitty Darla going absolutely ape near our glass-front fireplace. turns out a wee little finch had found his way down our fireplace and was flapping around inside. i tried a quick rescue attempt, but when i opened the glass doors, he flew into our house. it turned into a lot of excitement for everyone, as we hustled the cats into our bedroom and begged the bird not to fly upstairs.. he let me catch him eventually, whew! thank you birdie for not pooping in our home.

and i just recently introduced the boys to the joys of listening to records. there's something about the sound of the snap crackle and pop of an old record. i've been having a great time playing my records and drinking wine on occassional nights. oh who am i kidding, i drink wine every night ;) but listening to old 45's makes the occassion especially romantic.

today has been overcast and rainy, but lately we have been getting little teases of summer, warm nights where we leave the windows open for the cool breezes, cricket chirps transending time, and birds singing their praises. i love this time of year.
Also, this time of year brings the flies... and my flytrap couldn't be happier..

been hanging out a lot in the backyard lately... the boys and i have planted new roses, basil, heirloom tomatoes, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, and just yesterday - pumpkins. looking so forward to seeing how my greenthumb works out. we also have a new hummie visitor to our backyard. he (or she) is super small and cute, maybe a baby. Bunches was sitting out in one of the adirondack's the other night and the bird sat and hovered right by his face, checking him out. because i'm such a paparazzi, i had my camera, but just missed that particular shot. damn. blast.

Signing off with an old-school shot of Mom. She's the coolest and i love her. And you can bet she had the most amazing array of go-go boots to match that bouffant. Happy Mother's Day Mom!

time cast it's spell...

2011-05-03T10:42:00.001-07:00

Really..
it's been a month since i posted? well damn. i was really hoping to get a handle on blogging regularly. i'll have to work on that one.

this month was chock-full of flus, colds, and a heinous sinus infection (i'm not sure why this shows up as a link, ew) . seriously not a week has gone by without someone puking, fevering or being layed out on a bed somewhere doped up on nyquil. i love you nyquil!

i'm just now getting back around to working on the tiki sign. there's been some changes, and Marc, i thank you profusely for your patience through it all!

with the return of warm weather *finally* i started doing some planting in the backyard... i've been wanting to put in a little "cutting garden" for awhile now, nothing makes me happier than bringing fresh bouquets of roses in the house. this beauty is called "moonstone"

When Camp Wrightwood closed up shop, Sloan gave me a couple of these old hand-built drawers that were used in the cabins. i painted this one, put table legs on it, drilled drain holes in it, painted some signage, and planted some strawberries for this season's harvest. a great way to see a little reminder from the Wrightwood days... and you know how i feel about strawberries. i would marry them if i could.

And speaking of which, now that Sloan and Joseph are right up the road at Camp Loch Leven, i've been LOVING hanging out with my bestie so much! obviously this was before the ick took hold, but wigs, hats and wine are how we roll ;)

And this past Thursday, April 28, marked Dylan's 6th year on this Earth. Happy Birthday peanut! We had his birthday party this weekend and what a kick! We had Reptacular Animals come out and put on an animal/reptile show for the kids. it was amazing for both kids and adults... there were reptiles, birds and some cute & fuzzy small animals. of course, the baby bunny was Dylan's fav...

Dylan and Bunches..

Bunches shaved off his hot little beard/goatee combo. makes me sad, but he's a hottie any way you slice it.

Surprisingly, my mom even enjoyed the snakes!

A lot of us channeled our inner Britney Spears and took pics with this big guy.. .

My nephew Jordan had a lot on his hands..

Dyl's friend Matthew, and the bearded dragon...

it was such a great time for everyone. Dylan said it was the best birthday party ever. *yay!* now to start figuring out what to do for Mr. B's upcoming birthday in July...

And this was fun. Being on facebook is a really cool way to make contact with my artist friends all around the globe, as well as old school friends.... but this was a real treat. i had a guy contact me wondering if i was the artist on this rendering. this would have been the mid-ninties, and seriously, i had no memory of ever doing this one. but sure enough there's my signature. it was just really cool to see an old piece of art that i'd totally forgotten about, circle back around and show up in front of me again.

And speaking of art circling around. i'm really in awe of how into painting and drawing Mr. B has become. i always assumed Dylan would be the only artist, and B would take after Mike. But he LOVES making art... which i equally love. he drew this one for me last week. it's a portrait of me, holding a paint brush, and painting a picture of he and Dylan among some trees, up about my head. love love love...

and i hope those who celebrate it had a fantastic easter holiday! we are a very pro-bunny household, so i had to bust out my old costume... not a snowball's chance in hell i can fit into the bustierre these days.. but the cuffs and collar are a go!

And finally, with this new fancy camera, i spend a lot of time stalking things, and the moon is no exception... signing off with a gaze at the moon.. until next time, thanks for reading, stay thirsty my friends!

it's the little things...

2011-04-01T13:06:00.000-07:00

well well well... week 1 of vowing to blog weekly and here i am! i did it! i love having this kind of sense of accomplishment. this week i made a schamltzy little video for my boys, because that's how i roll... like a total sap :) also i was feeling a little bit funky this week and i have to thank my bestie Sloan (and cocktails) for raising the spirits... at the moment i am playing nurse to my five year old, who's home sick again from school. it's a shame he feels so lousy because it's totally gorgeous outside. i think i'll sneak out for a few minutes to feel the sunshine on me. i shaved my legs today, which makes me happy by itself, but there's something about wearing shorts and having your bare legs rub softly together... it reminds me of being young in the summertime. *unfortunately* these days my thighs don't so much "rub softly together"..it's more like they're fighting each other for air, but whatever...

Helllooooo Out There!!!...

2011-03-27T16:14:00.002-07:00

Okay, so i let me blog go completely for waaaaaaaaaaay too long! I'm going to try and be better at it... and post at least once a week. *hmmmm.... we'll see* Just got back from a 3 Day Family trip to Disneyland. It was a great time for all of us. it's funny though, because for years now Mr. B has wanted nothing to do with that place. we're such a pro-Disney family, it's crazy having a child who's anti. Mr. B got his very first annual pass this past Thursday... and as you can see, he's totally delighted! hahaha i love this picture so much i can't stand it.

On the art front, i've been doing illustrations, shows and commissions. This is a tiki sign i'm working on. it will be going through some changes.. but you get the idea.

Also, i finally got around to putting up an etsy site. that only took a few years :) i have some small drawings and a few paintings for sale there.

Here's a little client piece i did a few weeks back. i love pirates!

And FINALLY i got a new fancy camera... the nikon d5000. i LOVE this camera. i'm even in a photography group called "52 weeks of Love". There's a theme posted each week.. here are a few of mine...

this was my pic for Week 2: "On the Shelf" I was never into dolls as a young girl, but years ago i spied this well-loved little gal in an antique shop and had to have her. she sits on the shelf in my living room so i can look at her every day. this is Queenie ... btw, this was my first time taking the camera off of auto and going completely manual :)

Week 3: Self

Here's my self portrait. i painted my whole face with acrylics to kind of look like one of my paintings. i wish i'd had the time to paint my whole neck, chest and arms, i think this could have looked really amazing taken all the way.

Week 6: Kissy Faces

This is my husband Bunches. We celebrated 14 years together and 6 years of marriage this past Valentine's Day

Week 5 - Hearts

These are my hearts... Mr. B - my dramatic 3 year old, and Mr. D - my dramatic 5 year old

Week 12: Worm's View... took this one today in the backyard.

At any rate, i keep that camera on me at all times... it's pretty much one of my most favorite things EVER!!! Here's a shot of my little hummingbird friend that lives somewhere in our backyard and stakes claim to both of our feeders. he's a stinker and jam-packed with personality... still thinking of a name for this little guy..

And finally, here's my Sammy Cat.

In January he had a large tumor removed from his spine area that was found to be an aggressive form of cancer. we seriously can't believe how amazing his turnaround has been since the surgery. Sammy's been with me since before Bunches... he's old school... and just an all-around bad-ass cat. Love ya Samel Toe!!

anyway, that's what's been going on in my world... well, there's been a lot more, but i suppose that's why i shouldn't go so long in between blogs. until next time, thanks for reading!

a couple of new pieces...

2010-09-10T10:54:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a really short entry... the boys are both sick and i was up all night last night catering to the needs of one or the other. now i need someone to cater to my needs for a nap.
Anway, here is my most favorite picture to date of me and the boys...

Here's a new piece i did this past week for a fellow artist, Jeff Bertrand...

And this piece is in New York for the "Things to Come" show, opening at Bold Hype Gallery tonight!

Okay, hopefully there's some sleep and some healthy children in my future.... have a great weekend everyone!

a long time away

2010-08-15T10:38:00.000-07:00

Wow! I didn't even realize how long it's been since i've blogged on here. Time to step up my program. This summer pretty much flew by, thanks to a lot of fun, and a whole month of being incredibly sick. Dylan starts his first day of kindergarten tomorrow morning. I can't believe it, time certainly does have a habit of slipping away. SO to catch everyone up....

This summer was filled with fun and frivolity with friends. Here's a video from Wine and Wig night :) thanks girls!!

Oh and here's another tattoo that Michael got from the amazing Mr. Jason Gallo. Now he's got Mom with him for all time :)

This summer i decided to keep a sketchbook and draw from life everyday. I actually fell out of sync on it though when i got really sick... and since then, i've been so busy playing catch up with everything, i still haven't gotten back to it. But i will, it feels so good to just sketch a little bit for myself. Here's a few of them... the birdbath outside one morning...

Mr. D watching tv...
Mr. B watching cartoons....

I love to draw hands....

This summer brought a nice array of roses... which also helped keep my spirits up while i was sick.

Mr. B has taken quite the shine to painting this summer. Makes me pretty happy. Dylan has always loved to paint, and i just kind of thought maybe B wouldn't care so much about it, but he seems to really enjoy making art now.

We spent lots of nights jumping into huge pillow piles this summer.

We also visited Ventura again, which was a really nice get-a-way. Mr. B has also become quite the gardener, and had this message for my bestie Sloan:

Here's our family picture at the beach. Very fitting really, that Mr. B chose to turn his back on us, and sit 8 feet away. He is a most independent little cuss..

And here are a couple of new paintings for shows... This is "Love Potion #9". It's on display at Thinkspace Gallery for the "Love Conquers All: Artists for Equality" show.

a crop...
And this one is for "Playboy Redux" celebrating the 50 yr anniversary of the opening of the first playboy club. My painting is titled "Wisdom and Virtue"

a close up of the bunnies...

Okay, i think that's about it for now... thanks for peeking peeps!

aaarrgghhh!!!

2010-05-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Finished up a 2'x 3' commission piece of pirate-y goodness! I don't normally work this large so this was a treat and a good experience!

some close ups...

and this weekend was our first overnight outing as a family. We took the boys to visit Sloan, Joseph and all our friends in Ventura. I hope the weekend made great memories for the boys... Mike and I were so proud of how well they did the whole time! Here's Sloan and I dipping into the water...

Dylan playing at the water's edge. I love how the light plays on the water.

And some more pirate-y goodness came when the Wench Fiona Hackaway of Ventura surprised the boys by stopping in for a visit! Thank you Fiona!!

I made this video for Michael. I was going to give it to him as a Father's Day card... but instead I decided to just show him tonight. I realize you should tell and show the people around you how much they mean every opportunity you get. My love letter for you Hon...

Voila!

2010-04-08T16:08:00.001-07:00

This weekend is the opening for the Lunchbox Show at the Alcove Gallery in Decatur GA. Here's my contribution to the fun! "Voila!"

And right now I'm working on a 2' x 3' commission piece. Yay! Pirates!!! Here's the sketch...

and here's some progress... this is going to take me a few more weeks. So much fun to paint this one!

We said good-bye to camp a couple of weeks back :( *sniffle* but Hello to new opportunities for two of my favorite people in the World! See you soon Sloan & Joseph!

Spring is officially here! And so is the wild mustard! I took this picture on my walk with the boys yesterday

and it's no secret that i love mustaches.... so i gave myself one with marker. it almost makes me want to put one on everyday. maybe tomorrow i could do a pencil thin John Waters number :)

hope everyone is having a lovely week, enjoy your weekend!

Real Quick

2010-03-22T22:10:00.000-07:00

Well, first off, it's official. i'm a soccer mom.
We've also been trying to get up to Camp Wrightwood once a week. Sloan and Joseph will be moving back to Ventura in a week or two. Our fun days at CW are coming to a close. very sad about this, but it's been such an amazing opportunity for all of us!

Have gotten some fun things in the mail this week. Thank you James, for this! He knows i love me anything 70's/80's. he sent this as a get well present.

And Amanda Crum sent this notebook made from a vintage album cover. she knows i love me some Cat Stevens! I have the most amazing friends.

A commission piece i finished this past week. All my deadlines are completely screwy since i was so sick for three weeks. thank you to my clients for being SO understanding about it all! Here's the sketch... there ended up being changes to the hat...
...and here she is in paint.

And finally, Michael got his tattoo finished. Thank you again Jason! This is truly a work of art!

Okay, now back to work for me!

tattoo you

2010-03-04T11:24:00.000-08:00

I've been sick for three weeks now. The first week was horrible sore throat/laryngitis. my voice was completely gone. week number two brought ear infections to the table and this week i have been blessed with a major case of conjuctivitis... and now it seems i'm getting a sinus infection. my face hurts. dude. fml.

Here's a piece of art "The Blessed Bird"
And last night we went to Soul Expressions Tattoo so Michael could get his very first inkin'. My incredible artist friend Jason Gallo hooked him up with this amazing sugar skull design/tattoo. Jason and I went to RCC together many moons ago, and it's so cool to have a piece of his art on hubby :) If anyone out there is looking for an amazing tattoo artist, go see him!!!

I masked my conjuctivitis for the day by pretending to be hip and wearing big sunglasses.

I can't begin to explain how amazing the detail in the piece is. This is above and beyond anything we could have imagined. Michael goes back in two weeks to finish out the color. Thank you again Jason!!!

And on a side note... my sammy cat, a.k.a. samel toe, big man, samurai, etc. is starting to noticably slow down, can't really jump up on anything without falling. it bums me out seeing him getting old. you're a good boy sam i am !! you'd better stick around awhile.

Hello Lover

2010-02-14T21:15:00.001-08:00

Here's another little gal i did for a client of mine. I need an apron like this...

Also, finally got some glasses to help me see while i work. Taking a moment to ponder Alice...

So today is our wedding anniversary. Hub and i have been married for 5 years (someday Dyl will do the math on that) and we had our first date 13 years ago today. Honey bought me this bunny bench as an anniversary present. I totally have a thing for garden statuary. LOVE THIS!!! It does have a bit of an Alice in Wonderland feel to it, too.

I also scored a cute little bouquet of flowers. Thank you Bunches, you are an amazing Husband/Father!

Last night we went up to Camp Wrightwood, just he & I. Sloan & Joseph invited us up to come have a relaxing anniversary eve. we had a wonderful time with great company, lots of laughs and plenty of wine ;) We slept in the lodge on a cozy bed in front of the roaring fire. And for a nice little surprise, Sloan had found these. Our wedding took place in the backyard of our first house. There were about 20 guests in all. It was incredibly intimate and personal. I made these little packets of love poems for each of the guests... very fun to look at and re-read together. thank you that Sloan.

...And a few pictures of things i look to for inspiration. I found this Hennessy bottle at a yard sale years ago for $5. It's pretty huge, a couple of feet tall, and totally looks like something that was aboard a pirate ship.

I collect dressforms... they are always a source of inspiration to me.

and this is a latch from an old armoire i got at an antiques store. i love the patina, and wear and tear on this piece.
Signing out with a picture of me & hon exchanging vows. Here's to many more years!

Finding the Balance

2010-01-27T20:25:00.000-08:00

Happy 2010 to you all! Here's a little snapshot of me & Bunches on New Years Eve to start things off
I've been really busy these past few weeks. Which is always good, but i tend to start feeling very 'spun out'. Seems i have a hard time finding the balance, and i start to get overwhelmed. It's a very tough job trying to be a full time Mom and then some kind of full time artist in there as well. A lot of the time, i end up with a sense of being too divided, and not feeling like i really get to focus my attention on one or the other. That's one of the things i need to work on in 2010, finding the balance for myself. Here's a sketch for a personal piece I'm starting on. "Ask Alice", i think i want to go a little bigger with this one than i usually do. i'm pretty excited about going to paint on her.
Here's a crop from a commission piece i did for Marisa Kestel. Oddly enough, Marisa and her hubby Scott are the owners of Brand MOJO interiors, whom i purchased my incredible refinished factory cart from! Visit they're store! The work is incredible, the attention to detail amazing.

Doing a fun series of gals for another client ... i'll let you know more on this one when i can :)

Two weeks ago brought an onslaught of sleepless nights for Bodie Bear, and, subsiquently, me. First he ended up with this incredible fever that went on for days... by day three the fever broke and he ended up with a rash all over his body. Turns out, he had Roseola. Once the rash subsided he got double ear infections... and followed it all up with a urinary infection.
The first night of peaceful sleep for him brought nightmares for Dylan. So after a week and a half of not sleeping, i decided to escape for the evening. Michael was wonderful about watching the boys and letting me retreat to the camp with Sloan & Joseph for a bit of R&R. Here's a little picture of Sloan and I at our fireside chat :) I felt so centered after that. Just to leave the house by myself... pretty amazing.

Last week brought a full week of storms through SoCal. Wild weather, tornados, flooding... and here in Yucaipa, we were treated to snow at the end of it all.

Dylan and I walked around the neighborhood in the snow, but i couldn't get Bodie to join us.

It snowed off and on all day... into the night as well. We even made a little snowman. It was a magical day in many ways...

and a heartbreaking day in others...
My dear cousin Todd and his wife Lisa lost their 9 month old son Jagger on Friday, the 22nd. These things should never happen. A friend of mine shared a quote with me that says, "the death of a child is so wrong that even the angels weep."
RIP Baby Jagger, you touched so many lives in your short time here....

The end of the year blog...

2009-12-30T22:09:00.000-08:00

Oh it's been ages since i've gotten on here and blogged. there's a resolution for 2010... more blogging. Doing a few commission pieces on the art front, and i just did this one for my awesome conductor friend Manuel Aybar. Manuel & I went to jr high and high school together. We recently hooked up on facebook and i got the chance to work with him on this project.I'm so proud of Manuel, he just got a gig to go and conduct in China this next year. WTG sir!!!

For a group show at Distinction Gallery in Escondido, CA
For a group show at MModern Gallery in Palm Springs, CA...
Actually these past couple of months for me have been about spending good time with my friends. It's been a long while since i've had this much interaction with everyone... and i must say, you all helped end 2009 on one very sweet note. Here are a few pics from this year's Fall Retreat. Hopefully not the last, but bittersweet... it's the last one we will be having at Camp. Due to budget cuts they're shutting down Camp Wrightwood. booo...hissss....
Me & Sloan enjoy the red, red wiiiiinnnnnnee....

The boys had a table-full of hilarity...

and, just like a dream, it snowed on fall retreat night. not enough to be a problem, but enough to make it magical.
Made a lot of cookies this year with the boys.... another resolution... take off the 8 pounds i packed on over the holidays. another booo... hisssss....

Also, thanks to the internet and facebook, it is unreal how many old friends have come back into my life. amazing really. Here's my old pal Mike Ehlers from the camp counseling days at Arbolado. He and his wife Melina came through for a visit. i hadn't seen him since i was 19.

Me, Sloan and Phil Beebe. We went to Jr. High and high school together. Had no contact with him since graduating... another lovely internet connection. i like Phil's stoosh.

And here's Sloan, James & I on WAFFLE DAY. The funny thing about this one is that none of us ever talked in jr high or high school. It's a long story... I stalked James at age 14. Thanks to good ol' facebook though, I'm finally getting the chance to know him.

The beautiful Christmas tree. I love flocked trees...

The Carrillo Christmas card for 2009. Dylan did the snowman painting on the left, i did the snowgirl trying to be thin on the right.
Christmas Eve was a great time. We had all kinds of friends and family over. Here's Mom and Bodie...

James with the drink tag Sloan picked out for him...

And the sweetest little boys around :) Christmas was very good to all of us this year!

I think i'll end the 2009 blogging on this note :)

Get 'er done

2009-11-13T23:15:00.000-08:00

It's time to start cranking on work for upcoming shows. I'm such a procrastinator... but not on purpose, the days just seem to melt into each other and then suddenly i'm staring a due date right in the eyes. But here's something that made my life. Years and years ago i was perusing an old copy of Country Home (i love that mag) and saw a picture of this old factory cart that someone was using as a coffee table. I immediately vowed to have one of my own someday. Well, fast forward several years, and recently i bid on several on Ebay and kept getting outbid at the last minute, and by the way if you're one of those people... you suck... so decided if i could find the chance to "buy now" i would. Well whaddaya know, i found the most beautiful specimen of the factory cart ever!!!! Here's my baby. Pre-1900 even. Love.

And here's a little synopsis of my painting steps. This was for an upcoming art benefit auction in December. It's based on the movies that inspired us as kids. Of course, i had to go with the Muppet Movie. That was my first drive-in flick and i LOVED it!!! Anyway, first i prime the board, then i size the sketch in photoshop, and then transfer the drawing onto the wood, not unlike the tattoo process.

Lay out my palette. I don't know how many pics i have of my newly layed out paints. I love it.
Hi Darla in background giving me the stink-eye.

then i just go for it, usually staring with filling in the biggest bits first.

and then onto the smaller bits. No real magic involved... just me... paintin'.

Finish up with a little aging and viola! I'm done.
thanks for peekin'!

Man, what a busy week!

2009-10-26T23:04:00.000-07:00

So the OC Weekly issue came out on October 8th. On the 10th we were invited to go party in Laguna to celebrate the Best Of issue. I guess every year there's a big bash centered around this very issue. This was the first time i got to see it all in print. Very fun, especially the burlesque dancers & free beer! Also cool to overhear people talking about how great the cover looked. Made me happy :)
Mom & Dad showed up to support their daughter. Thanks you two!

And Bunches, enjoying the night and looking tres chic in his new glasses.

As an added bonus, my bestie Sloan surprised me by making it out! Had so much fun that night, thank you all!
My good ol' friend Jeffrey Newcomer popped in this past week. We put down quite a bit of wine and ended up dismantling the TV. whoopsie. Seemed like such a good idea at the time. Anyway, Jeff, great to hang with you... and anybody who needs shirts made, or embroidery, see him and the lovely Sarah at Embroid Me Northrigde!

This was an unexpected gift this past week. Somebody in the neighborhood BOO'd us, and left this bucket of goodies on our doorstep. I love shit like this!

..and obviously, it was a wonderfully fun surprise for the boys!

Also, this past week was the annual visit to the pumpkin patch...

Then onto Disneyland with the Soto's. Just me & Dylan on this trip. Had a great day with my boy!
And this is fun... I'd always heard about Walt's wife Lillian's favorite horse on the carousel Doubloon, and that he sports a gold tooth. I'd never found it, and am always on the hunt. Anyway, I'd just finished telling Jeff Soto this very story when blammo.... he finds the horse!
cool.
Also this week I took the boys up to Camp Wrightwood where Sloanie works. Sister Heather was here for a visit with her three boys, so we made it a Girl-Day-surrounded-by-Little-Boys day. What fun having the run of the place with 5 little boys to chase!

The leaves on this maple tree glowed. It was just too beautiful for words!

And also this week, we went to a pirate party put on by our friends the Racine's! I cannot even describe how awesome all the decorations were for this party! Thanks guys. Here's Michael munchin'

and some good ol' pirate chests! Craziness.

Here's a small illustration I did in the midst of all of the hoopla...
whew... i'm beat from this week!

OC Weekly "Best Of"

2009-10-08T21:09:00.001-07:00

So here's the finished product on all the hard work. I can't tell you how much fun I have had doing this project. I have a handful of the cards posted on here, but they can all be seen on the OC Weekly site

I was especially happy with the cover. She turned out really sweet, yet still sexy.
The following are the full-page illustrations....

and these cards were made for 1/4 page illustrations...

Dylan staked claims to the Small World piece :) It made me happy to see him so in love with it.

So anyway, that's what I've been doing with myself lately. I can't wait to get my mitts on a copy :)

The happenin's

2009-10-05T21:56:00.000-07:00

Okay, well here's a small sneeky peek of the OC Weekly cover in progress. It comes out this Thursday, so I'll post more art then.
Dylan is now in Pre-K and had his first field trip this past week. Luckily my Mom went with us so I didn't have to try and manage both boys by myself. Thanks Mom. We went to Parrish Apple Ranch in Oak Glen, just up the street from us. Seriously, the yummiest cider EVER!!! Plus we got to sample some apple pie!!! mmmmm....

And these past few months have been crazy with fires in our neighborhood. This picture was taken of one from our front yard in September...

And this one was taken from our backyard last week.... It's pretty crazy there was a 16 year old boy arrested after this latest one. He's responsible for about 12-14 fires in our areas dating back three years.

View more news videos at: http://www.nbclosangeles.com/video

Here's a sneaky peeky at Bodie's Halloween costume. :) This makes me smile. And this past Friday we went to Disneyland for Mickey's Trick or Treat Party. Bodie stayed home with Nana, so me, Dyl & Honey went. This rocked my socks, here's Sally & Jack walking around the park. I'd never seen this before and these costumes were phenominal!!!

Here's me trying to lop our boys' head off with my sword...Honey went as a jailbird, and of course, Dylan as Lightening McQueen!

Me & Dylly... whew, I really wish i had more excuses to dress up like a pirate. I love it.

And my bunny is molting... poor Ollie.

2009-08-14T21:59:00.000-07:00

Life is pretty busy right now. I was lucky enough to be asked to do all the artwork of OC Weekly's "Best Of" Issue. It's a pretty intense job, 6 full page color paintings, full color cover, and 50+ spot illos, all full color as well. But I'm having an absolute blast on this project. I"m very proud of the work I've done so far on this one. I think it's due to come out October 8th or roundabouts there. If you're a local, watch for it!
And, as some of you may know, I'm really big on making our backyard birdie friendly. So this last project was a simple one, but one that I've been wanting to do with boys for awhile. We gathered up some pine-cones on one of our morning hikes, slathered them with butter and rolled them in oats. Tied them up to the trees in the backyard and tada.... eco friendly bird feeders. The boys get so excited when they see the birds eating off of something they made.
And this past week we took them to the "JumpZone!" in Redlands Ca. I am all about this joint now. It's pretty much like walking into Pleasure Island sans cigars, pool, and donkeys...
it's a kids dream come true.

My lovely friend Hilary and her son Noah joined us for some of the action. Actually Hilary is the one who told me about this little jem!
Dylan on the off-road slide
Bodie in the basketball castle. I was kind of wondering if adults can rent this place out and just go nuts for the night. Man, that'd be a party.
And here's a little picture of me and boys taken today.

It may be awhile before I can sit down and blog again. On a pretty strict deadline with everything...but I'm super excited to show things off when I can! I'll be back!

burlesque & bunnies

2009-07-08T21:15:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick little painting I did for this crazy book thing about a pair of Siamese twins who are burlesque dancers. The story gets really creepy & strange when they hook up with this guy and the sisters end up with this total jealousy/power struggle thing happening. Anyway... a bunch of illustrators were asked to contribute to the project by making a piece of art dealing with the story. Pretty neat. Here's mine
I really like this gal. I don't understand why, but sometimes when you don't have a lot of time and you can't fuss with things... they just come out with a really nice energy. I was really happy with the brush strokes on her.

And my birthday was in June so Hubby got me this little guy *Ollie*
He's a Jersey Woolie and I am in LOVE!
The boys dig him too!

I need to get back to the grindstone on the painting front... but I've just been dealing with this incredible level of exhaustion. The boys neither one seem to sleep through the night...so I've had little, or totally broken sleep for like, 4 years now. Plus I cut out caffeine....maybe not the smartest move right now... but hell, I'm down 15 pounds thanks to drinking tons of water and eating better...and a crazy morning hike/jog with the boys every day. I've just been trying to listen to my body lately and it keeps sayin' "More Sleep Sister!!!"
And I can't believe it, but we're gearing up for Bodie's 2nd birthday this Friday. Sadly his birthday party will be rather tiny...this is such a busy time of the year for everyone. Now...if I can just control myself around that birthday cake...

Ex.Arte

2009-05-28T21:18:00.000-07:00

Not that I even pretend to be considered in the same league as the rest of these guys...

I am happy to announce Hobbs & Kent ex.arte cufflinks have officially launched. This project has been in the works for about a year... and I can't wait to see them in person. They're sending each artist a few samples this next week. The first series of artists are Gary Baseman, Jeff Soto, Gary Taxali, Ray Ceaser and myself. The theme had to pertain to "foursome" so I chose the four cardinal directions.

And here's a shot of me at this weekend's wine party partaking in some Absinthe. Cheers!

FIRE!

2009-05-08T14:34:00.001-07:00

From the San Bernardino Sun:
"YUCAIPA - A wildfire started about 3:50 p.m. on Thursday in the hills north of Oak Glen Road and west of Yucaipa Regional Park. The fire came within 75 yards of homes along Golden Crown Way in the Chapman Heights neighborhood before fire fighters had it under control.
"My mother-in-law opened her front door and yelled, 'fire!'" said Diana Gamache, who lives on Golden Crown Way. "The flames were coming right at our houses."
Fire fighters had the blaze extinguished at about 5:30 p.m."

Yeah, so this is what happened at our house yesterday. The fire broke out right behind our next door neighbors' house. Me and the boys were out back, saw the smoke/flames...and got out of there. I didn't really know what else to do...all I could think was "just get to a safe spot". Luckily, the conditions weren't bad... there wasn't a lot of wind. But pretty scary all the same.

That white house in the picture is our next door neighbors' Tom & Bonny's home
Michael got home about an hour after the fire started and snapped some pictures from the backyard.

It all turned out okay, thankfully. Dylan was a tad traumatized last night because the firemen were still up behind our house working to put out any flare-ups, and it still smelled like smoke. I'm going to be a bit more nervous during the hot/dry times living here.

It's about time

2009-05-06T23:55:00.001-07:00

Okay, I know... I know... I've been just terrible on the blog updates. So this one will be a bit long. Here's a little piece I did for MModern Gallery's Russ Meyer Tribute show. It actually opened a couple of weeks ago. "Vixen's Fishin' Hole"
And finally, some new merch my way!!!! I happen to be a fiend for tote bags... I love 'em. These are $20 apiece/ plus $5 S&H available through my website:

See here to purchase either of these fun little bags. And big thanks to Embroide-Me Northridge!
I've been feeling a bit crafty these days... so I whipped up a couple of these chalkboards to put up around the house. I thought it would be fun to have one by the dining table... for menus, or good quotes... whatever.
Took Dylly to Disneyland for his birthday a week ago. I didn't know this, but if you're a season pass holder... instead of paying your way into the park for your birthday, they give you a gift card for $70 to use in the park. Awesome. So Dylan got his giftcard and went nuts. It was a really great time. Both Mike's parents and mine joined us for the day there :)
Here's Mr. B in Toon Town.
And Mr. D giving a good birhday pose!
And I never get handmade things... I'm always the one making them... so I was tickled to get these two surprises. First a great door hanger for my studio made by the very wonderful Amanda Crum. See her delightful blog here. Thanks Mandy!
And some May Day Goodness came my way this past week. A very wonderful, yet secretive, neighbor made this beautiful Mayday basket and left it on our doorstep, leaving me giddy with excitement. Thanks You ;)
and, alas... Spring is here, Spring is here... it's the best time of the year!!!

Dylan and I made these really cute ladybug stones to put around our garden. I'm really loving our backyard right now... and terribly excited about the hydrangea plants blooming this year. Last year would have been the first year for blooms... but Bodie fell into them and broke off all of the stems. So fingers crossed for this year!
So that's my update. Now it's off to bed... our beloved little Bodie Bear has begun sneaking out of his crib during the night... so tomorrow we build the big boy bed for him. Man, they grow up fast.

Crazy days

2009-03-31T22:20:00.000-07:00

So I'm outside with the boys today, and Dylan climbs up onto the slope in our yard to pick me a flower... he's up there for about 2 minutes, and he comes back and says "I need a bandaid for my owie"...I look at his arm and discover a damn snakebite! I'm freaking out because he said he couldn't feel it and the only snakes I've ever seen around our house are rattlers. It starts to get real red and swell and I had no idea what to do... ice? a bandage? All I knew is that if it was a rattler there might be some ugliness coming. Well, long story short I got on the horn with the hospital... they went through a bunch of questions...told me to keep a close eye on him...told me what to watch for...and luckily none of that real ugly stuff ever happened. This pic was taken about 6 hours after the bite, no more swelling or redness. But a real big lesson learned about living in a more rural area....and sadly this was the lessor of terrible things to happen today...but I can't even begin to get into the other. Thhhpppt on today.

However, this weekeng Hubby & I hosted a wine tasting party that was an absolute blast. Here are a few pics... Lots of cheeses to try...

lots of mingling....

LOTS of wine :)

Friends Byron & Laura.

The girls of Colden Crown Way, Bonny & I.

Bonny goes for a quick nap while Hubby talks up some of the local wine...

Tom, Donaldo & Bonnie havin' a great time! We really can't wait to do it again... that was just too much fun!

Okay, I HAVE to get back to painting. Our youngest, Bodie, has had major ear infections in both ears... so there hasnt' been much sleep around here. Subsequently, not much work getting done either ;)

2009-03-23T22:18:00.000-07:00

For a long while now I've been wanting to make little signs to hang around our backyard. I originally thought about painting directly onto the fence itself... but hesitated with the thought of the elements ravaging it. Instead, I decided to make a sign I could hang... and then just take inside when the weather gets rough. So here's the first sign to grace our backyard... an ode to my sweet little family :)

I did it the other night while I was sick, so I wasn't sure how it was going to go... but I like it.

I got some good ink in "Deadbeat Magazine", this awesome Australian publication... just got my copy this weekend and was blown away by the quality of it...

Not only some seriously gorgeous photography, but the color, the thickness & weight of the paper it's printed on... all top notch. I am really flattered to be a part of this issue.

it's a quarterly mag, which I always find nice... plus there are some insanely amazing cars and chicks in this bad-boy! Thank you Sarah, for contacting me about this! I need to get to painting on for the Russ Meyers tribute show at MModern Gallery... but first, some sleep after last nights' lost "blankie" fiasco. Oh, and big Congrats to the Soto's on welcoming their new little one into the World today! Yay Natalie Rose!!!!

City Pages

2009-03-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

I did the cover for this week's City Pages in MN, and had so much fun doing this illustration! I think the type at the bottom of the page really capped it off.
also did an interior illo to accompany the story. Wanted to do a blacklight poster kind of thing.

The boys have been keeping me busy. It's cool though, they're really starting to learn to play together and are having a lot of fun with each other. Here they are pretending to take a nap in Dyl's bed. Bodie looks as confused over the date stamp as I was... Mom hooked me up with her camera after mine recently broke... but I just now figured out how to get that stamp off. Thanks again, Ma!
We have a new park in the area that just opened up so I've been taking the boys on a walk every morning and ending it at the park. Here's Bodie and his little homie Noah. Noah's Mom and I go walking together on Tuesdays & Thursdays... so they have been getting their playdate on!
Okay... there was no sleep to be had here last night, so I'm going to hit the hay, after I finish my wine of course! Nite all!

Bonzai!

2009-02-22T21:43:00.001-08:00

Commission for a good friend of the fam, JB Clegg

some art...

2009-02-17T15:22:00.001-08:00

For an upcoming show entitled "Le Petit Morte" in IN.
My piece is 10" x 10" and called "The Moment After" Acrylic & gold leaf on wood.

And now... it's on to J.B.'s piece. He's a good friend of the family that wanted to somehow mix his love for martial arts with drag racing. Here's my sketch... now on to paint!

Love is in the Air

2009-02-14T12:16:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day to you all! Me and Hubby are celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary today... and its' also the 12th anniversary of our first date. Love ya Hon!
It's been nice and chilly here in Yucaipa with these winter storms coming through. We keep getting occassional snow flurries.... which are fun for the boys and just beautiful to look out the windows and see!
This little hummingbird was sitting in our Wisteria tree watching me and the boys... and the snow falling.

Dylan showing off his snowflake catching skills.

So I've been meaning to put up pictures from the opening of the "Pin It Up Babycakes" show. Absolutely the most fun I've ever had at an opening! To make it even better though, our good friends Sloan & Joseph met us up there. Here we all are in one of the rooms before leaving for the show.

Here's me & Honey by my artwork inside 111 Minna Gallery. Emma Mount's amazing work is to the right.

A shot from inside. I took these earlier in the evening, by the time the show was in full swing the place was packed.

Sloan & Joseph sitting by my paintings.

Artist Christine Benjamin and myself. Photo courtesy of Christine.

Artists Ben Walker & Michael Slack came to peep out the festivities. I'd had a few beers at that point...

We staked out a table right in front for the burlesque show. Here's Bombshell Betty, Jessica Whiteside and another dancer, pre-pasties...

This gal was a blast to watch! She made me want to own a pair of feather fans!

This was the first burlesque show I'd ever been to... and I can now say I'm hooked.

All shapes & sizes... playful, cheeky and wonderfully sexy!

Alice Stribling and Jessica Whiteside, the brains behind the magical evening, thanks the crowd for coming out!

Me & Sloan before heading back to the Hotel

So much fun!

2009-01-22T13:28:00.000-08:00

Still finishing last minute business for the "Pin It Up Babycakes" show. I was really happy with how this painting one came out. "Puffing the Magic Dragon" is 12" x 36", acrylic on wood. I'm slowly trying to start working a little bigger... and I think it might really help move my art forward a little bit. Change is good.

A close up...

the scrollwork...
And here's a small piece called "Sucky It Up" 4" x 6" She's in a cute little frame as well. I decided with the times, I should probably do a few smaller, more affordable pieces for the show.

"Princess Corsets"

Still have two more little pieces to finish up, then ship everything out *hopefully* on Saturday.We recently took the boys up to Camp Wrightwood for the day to get in a little snowplay and sledding. Had such a good time, Dylan talks about going back every day.... literally.

Okay, that's my little update... I'll post the other two pics for the show soon! Bye for now!

Santa was here!

2008-12-28T23:43:00.000-08:00

working...working...
We had a few family members over for Christmas Eve, and this dude was posted right outside of the door as people were leaving that night. We always have the freakiest things waiting outside, ready to leap into the house.

St. Nick brought Bodie a Quad. He's not so into it yet... instead he's always wanting to ride with big brother in his new ride...

I hope you all had a really great Holiday. I know the Carrillo's sure did. Back in April or May Dyl & I were watching youtube videos of Lightening Mcqueen when we stumbled across a little vid of the power wheels car. Dylan got all flustered, started to stutter and freak out..."I I I need that. I HAVE to have that!" I've never heard him act that way before or since. At the time I told "well maybe Santa will bring it if you're a good boy", thinking we could totally do that. Well then the economy and Mike's work went into the shitter. But Dylan had faith... Santa was bringing him that car. He talked about it incessantly. But the fact was, there was just no way to do it for him this year. We had kind of resigned ourselves to the fact that we would be spewing out the words of the 'old man' in A Christmas Story when Ralphie says he "almost" got everything he wanted..."Well, that's life". But then the real Santa's in our lives stepped up and made it happen. Thank you Mom & Dad, and Nana & Pops for making a little boys dream come true!

'Tis the Season

2008-12-19T22:57:00.001-08:00

I'm working on art for an upcoming show called "Pin It Up Babycakes" at the Minna Gallery in San Francisco in February. I'll try to post a few images soon. But until then... here are a few of the things going on here.

The boys are excited for Santa's arrival. Dylan wants the Jolly guy to bring him a Lightening McQueen Power Wheels car. He's got this whole scenario in his head that he talks about all the time. He's going to pick up his friend Shannon, and take her for a cruise up to the mountains in his Lightening McQeen car so they can make snow angels. He says he'll be driving too fast and Shannon will be telling him "Slow down Dylan! Slow down!"
Bodie's just kind of along for the ride this year. He's excited over everything, but is more interested in seeing how many ornaments he can bust up before the tree goes away. Ya gotta love Captain Adorable.

This past Wednesday the storm blew in a few inches of snow to our neck of the woods. Dylan and I stayed outside until 9 that night playing and having snowball fights with the neighbors. I love the cold weather! It totally puts you in the spirit of the Season.

And here are some other things that put me in the spirit. People in Yucaipa love to do it up at Christmas time. There are some serious light shows around our neighborhood. These are two of my favs. This guy and his two neighbors have lights EVERYWHERE and they have a radio station that you tune into while the lights flash around in sync to the holiday tunes. It's really cool. Plus the guy has the Grinch on one end of his roof...

... and Jack Skellington on the other. Last year he had a snow machine in Jack's bag that would go off occassionally. They also invite people to drop off canned food for the needy... and invite people to join them for hot cocoa. It's really something to see in person.

And then there's the people who decorate their house up like "A Christmas Story". They have Ralphie in his bunny suit in one window, the awesome leg lamp up in another, and Flick stuck to the flag pole with a huge sign reading "I Triple Dog Dare Ya" out front. Great job Yucaipa!

And last week was the amazing Riverside Art Museum opening of Jeff Soto's "Turning in Circles"
Jeff's the nicest guy ever, and I can't really explain how proud we all are of what he's done. If you're anywhere near the area.... GO!

The almighty Sotofish balloon out front...

Me and Jennifer Soto.

Jeff addresses the crowd, thanking everyone for being there...

This installation is insane beyond words....

a small fragment of that installation...

The wonderful thing about Jeff's work is looking around at all the details and texture and just falling in love with every inch of it.

One of his earlier pieces...

Jennifer, Shannon and Michael...

Me, Jeff and Travis "Buckle" Chatham! Art Center REPREZENT
It was great fun seeing faces I haven't seen in a long time. Not only Buckle, but also the Clayton Brothers. Also, Lola, and Nathan... I forgot to take a picture of you guys... it was so great to meet you in person finally!

An Amazing display of talent, well done Mr. Soto!!!!

Fall Retreat '08

2008-11-30T21:33:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a busy past few days here at the Carrillo Camp. Thursday we did T-day at the Carrillo house, Friday T-day at the Peterson's. By the way, kudos to my vegetarian mother on a pretty awesome turkey meal ;)
I stayed up painting this piece after the boys went to sleep that night until 2 am on Saturday. My girlfriend Hazel was having her baby shower on Saturday afternoon and I made this for the baby's room. Looked nice matted and framed.
I didn't get to see her open it though, because we were on our way to Camp Wrightwood for Fall Retreat '08. It's always such a good time. Mike & I were especially looking forward to this year because year '06 I was pregnant, and year '07 we had Bodie Bear with us... So this year was kid free and carefree! Here are some pics...
This cool bat skeleton they have on display.

Our neighbors and good friends the Poopies joined us this year for Fall Retreat.

A nice little table-scape before the meal. I wish I'd taken pictures of the food. Sloan made two Prime Rib Roasts, A rack of Lamb, garlic mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, & spinach with a balsamic sauce. Killer.
Here's Joseph and the pups.

I busted on some tree cookies like the old camp counselor days. I decided that it would be my yearly contribution. Everyone who goes up for Fall Retreat gets one.

So everyone got a little owl painting. I was quite impressed with myself that I managed to do all of this after drinking a hundred glasses of wine.

After dinner, hanging out, slapping bones, lazing by the fire...
L to R are Sloan, Matt, Christa, Julie and Tom

Sloan and Joseph had a coyote get hit by a car and die out in front of their camp last year. It was in really good shape so they found a taxidermist and had him stuffed. He hangs proudly on the wall of the lodge. Pretty cool.

Yeah, Sloan, I don't think we drank enough that night....
and what was this about anyway?

Super cute picture of Mike & Jami with their pups Lenny & Gigi.

Man that's always a good time. Thanks Sloan & Joseph for the good food and the hospitality. We seriously can't wait for '09!

2008-11-25T21:42:00.000-08:00

So here are the other two pieces for the Hank of Oz show. I sent off the artwork today. "Flyin' Monkey Airlines"

And "Glenda's Beauty Salve"

This past week has been so busy. Last weekend we were double booked on Saturday night. Here's Hazel and I at her baby shower/ last hoorah. She looks so adorable pregnant. I can remember how weird it was for her to see me pregnant with Dylan.. and that's how I'm feeling now. It's just so surreal to see her this way.

And then it was onto MModern Gallery in Palm Springs for Brandon Steen's solo show "Gunky Gave me Cash". Here are Mike & I with Brandon and his lovely Miss Jane...

His work looks SOOOO super amazing!

I really like this picture of the two of them!

Saturday night they came out our way for some grub and some good company. The Soto's came by as well, which was totally cool! Here are Dylan and Shannon doubling up in Thomas.

Mom and Bodie Bear...

I really love this shot of all of us together. It was such a memorable night. I enjoyed it to the hilt!

Whew! Then if all of that excitement weren't enough... we took the boys to Disneyland on Wednesday. It was Bodie's first time to the Happiest Place on Earth. The carousel became his true love. We had major issues every time it stopped and we had to get off...

Dylan's a big carousel fan as well...

Watching the Pixar Play Parade. Dylan loves it... Bodie was left a little mistified.

That was a great time. And it was the most empty I had ever seen Disneyland in my life. We walked right onto every ride imaginable. awesome.
Welp, we're gearing up now for the Holiday weekend. Thursday meal at Mike's parents' house, Friday meal at my folks... and then Fall Retreat '08 on Saturday!!! Whoopee!

Heartless

2008-11-15T10:02:00.001-08:00

I'm going to have a few pieces in the upcoming Alcove Gallery show "Hank of OZ"
It's funny, I never really saw the movie growing up...I actually saw it once and that was while I was in Art School because I was doing a painting involving flying monkeys. In a weird twist of fate, it was actually on television last night. I thought I'd try and sit the boys down and watch it... but that didn't really work out. At any rate, here's the finish on the first piece "Heartless".
I thought I'd include a pic of the sketch. I enjoy seeing the sketches behind the work.

And in paint...

Some close up bits....

The boys are staying the night with their Nana & Pops tonight. Our good friends Mark & Hazel Delgado are having a baby and tonight is their Baby Shower/ Last Hoorah....we'll have to leave the Hoorah a little early and scoot over to M Modern Gallery to meet up with Brandon Steen for his solo show later tonight! Then he and Miss Jane are coming over tomorrow for some good eats and hang time. It's going to be a fun, full weekend for us... and of course, I ended up with a zit right between my eyes. I thought that was supposed to go away with puberty.
Pictures of the weekend and other Oz paintings coming soon!!

Happy Halloween!!!!

2008-11-01T21:04:00.001-07:00

Hope you all had a fantastic one! I had so much fun this year, I can't wait to do it all again in 364! On Thursday, Dylan and I carved our pumpkins while Bodie napped. Here's Dyl striking a rather jack-o-lanternesque pose...

And here are the finished products. I love carving pumpkins... it's a shame there aren't more holidays that require it.

This year we roasted the pumpkin seeds!

Friday morning Dylan's preschool was having a Halloween party and trick-or-treating throughout the school offices. Here's a little girl from Dylan's class. This could very well be the best costume EVER!

Nana, Bodie, and Dylan. Yes... he's Thomas the Train. We found a train conductor outfit at Toys R Us, and then I threw down on a cardboard box with some poster paint. I thought it came out pretty cool.

Yummy, scary cupcake cakes!

And here's Dylan all ready to go trick-or-treating later that night.

I was all set to dress Bodie up as a lion. But when I tried to get him into the costume that day, I belatedly discovered he was too tall and too big for it. Looked more like a little stuffed sausage than a lion. So a quick plan two was to make Bodie a train conductor also. Oh well, I really wasn't expecting him to do the door-to-door thing, and he didn't. That's not his speed yet. He was much happier rolling in the stroller just watching everything.

Our friend Leslie brought her niece and nephew over to do some Halloweenin' in our neighborhood.
After the kids were wiped out, and we were back home, I painted up Leslie's face for a Halloween bash that she was going to later that night. I've never done any face painting before... it was pretty fun. Plus it was cool for Dylan to see the transformation process. It gave him a better understanding that some of the scary costumes he saw last night were just plain ol' people with make-up on.
I'll sign off with the BOO-ti-ful jack-o-lanterns!!! Happy Halloween everybody!!

A Great Big Sigh of Relief

2008-10-29T21:56:00.000-07:00

For months things have been bad on our horizon.... Michael happens to be in a field that is a combination of the two worst things in the World right now... banking and realestate. Today, after months of literally being sick with worry... we got the news that Michael still has his job. We still have some big hurdles to get past... it's been a really tough year for the Carrillo's... but this was seriously sweet news. Albeit bittersweet...his boss, who had been with the company for 30+ years was let go today. There's a really bad feeling in your gut when you think that while we're breathing our sighs of happiness and relief... his boss and coworkers are cleaning out offices, and are dealing with the "what now?". It's such a crappy time.

Dylan and I made another birdhouse for our backyard.

And here's "Gigantor"! I traded Paul Loghridge some artwork for this badboy. I love him!!!

Check the hand letterin on the old volt meter. awesome.

We actually got news about Hubby's job scene today while we were at the Pumpkin patch. That would have been a real buzzkill had the news not been good...
Here are Bodie and Dylan at the petting zoo.

Jennifer Soto brought Shannon over to meet us at the patch. There's a lot of love between these two. Shannon always talks about marrying Dylan. She plans on dressing up as Belle on the big day.. and Dylan will be dressed as the Beast.

Here's Jennifer and Shannon amongst the pumpkins.

Dylan sits atop a really big pumpkin. Tomorrow we carve!!!!

And finally here's a picture of me and the pilfered frogs. There's a house down the street from us that went into foreclosure, and the people left in the middle of the night. I have a huge thing for frogs, and they left this little statue behind. I decided I would snag it up while neighbor Bonnie and I were on our nightly walk. But when I ran up to the porch to get it... the neighbors pulled up and shined their headlights right on us. Nice. So Bonnie and I pretended to be tying our shoes... instead of stealing frogs... at least until they went inside.

Alright, Michael and I are going to crack open a bottle of champagne... and celebrate the days good fortune.

Art & Crafts

2008-10-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

My wonderful artist friend Brandon Steen will be having a solo show at MModern this November and asked if I'd like to throw down on a painting together. His show is called "Gunky Gave Me Cash" and is inspired by the man himself. Here's our collab on the Girl From North Country...
Here's Brandon's side of things...

and here's the final on our girl...

Thanks Brandon for letting me have fun with it. I'm so looking forward to finally meeting Brandon and his beautiful wife, Miss Jane. They live up in Canada, so for years we've talked via email and phone... but have never met in person.

Michael's parent's had the boys for a sleepover last night, so I worked on that painting and then did a few crafty things that I've been thinking about. First I Mod-podged this little painting Dylan did at preschool to a piece of wood. It'll be sweet to break this out and hang it on the door year after year.
Then I finished up this funkin. I silver-leafed it and painted flames. I have two more to do still... I wanted to make some things to decorate the inside of the house with every year. I have a ton of little crafty Christmas things... but with two boys now, I figure I need to beef up Halloween.

The Hap's

2008-10-15T22:45:00.001-07:00

I'll start this post off with a cute little drawing that Dylan did. It's cool to see him starting to draw little characters and animals already. Note the belly button...
And here's a couple of shots from the Baby Tattooville visit to Jeff Soto's studio on Friday, October 3rd. It was really cool getting a chance to say hello to some of the artists that were there. I even got a chance to slurp down the first oyster I've ever had in my life... and I can now officially say I love them.

The next morning Mike and I road tripped up to Santa Clara California for the "Cosmic Art of Robots" show at Sonya Paz Gallery. Here's our Bodie Bear waving bye bye and seeing us off.
The boys stayed at the house with Nana & Pop's overnight while Hubby and I tripped.

The Gallery was a really cool space. The layout, the archetecture, and the vibe of the joint were all killer.
Michael flanked by Sonya's art and standing next to a Paul Loughridge bot.

Paul Loughridge's "Steampunk Steer".

As an added bonus for the night my bestest Gal Sloan had to make a trip up to Santa Cruz, so she ended up staying in the room right next to us at the Marriot and going to the show.

Here'a all of the artist's together: L to R Tracy Cox, Christine Benjamin, I'm the Brick House in the middle, Sonya Paz, and Paul Loughridge
On a sidenote... after seeing myself in these photos, I've since been walking my ass off (down 5 pounds!) and have chopped my hair into a cute little bob. I'm on a mission to get my Mojo back, dammit.

Here's Sloanie with Sonya's cute little dog Miss Sami. We laughed about this picture because Sami looks like she poses for pictures quite often.

I had such a great time at the show. Obviously I don't have the time to get out much right now, so it was such a joy to hobnob with the other artists. I totally had an amazing connection with Christine, she's someone I wish I could hang out with regularly. I had been a fan of Paul "Lockwasher" Loughridge for a little while thanks to Flickr, so it was really amazing to see his stuff in person. I had told him I would love to see what his workspace looks like, and he told us to cruise on by since he'd be on our way back home. Paul's a totally great dude, with a fantastic sense of humor. I would love to walk around inside his brain for a day to see what his thought process is like. His work is amazing.

And his workspace (the garage) is equally amazing. He has stuff everywhere. By the way, that small 8" x 8" space on the table there is actually where he works.

a shot of Paul and Michael in front of the nuts n' bolts display case.
Thank you Paul so much for the hospitality!

And on Wednesday, we took Dylly back to Disneyland. I'd never been there at Halloween time, so it was really magical to see all the decorations. They had this really amazing dia des los muertos display up near New Orlean's Square. Here's Michael and Dylan by the all dead band.

Free day of the dead face painting. Dylan opted for his arm.

I got a cute little skull on my face. I think next time we go we'll be taking Bodie with us. We hadn't taken him yet because he's really sound- sensitive and has that stranger anxiety thing going on... but I'm dying for him to experience this with us.

It's been a busy, busy time this past week. I did a little work for an iphone project, and then finished up another super cool project that I'm dying to show... but I can't yet.
I'm also working on a joint piece with Brandon Steen for his upcoming solo show at Mmodern so I'll post pics soon. Then it's on to painting for the Alcove "Wizard of Oz" show, and the "Pin it Up Babycakes" show at the Minna. Whew, there really aren't enough hours in the day right now.

Cosmic Robots

2008-09-29T21:47:00.001-07:00

I got stung by a bee this past Friday. My foot is still so swollen, Im considering wrapping it in burlap a la the Elephant Man.
A couple of robot pieces for the show.
"Night"... kind of harkens back to the days of the tree cookies....

"Slim & Jim". These are both painted on wood, and matted & framed.

"The Cosmic Art of Robots and Space" Show includes myself, Sonya Paz, Tracy Cox, Doug Horne, Lockwasher, and Christine Benjamin. Opens Saturday, October 4th 5- 9 pm at the Sonya Paz Fine Art Gallery in Santa Clara, CA. All of the artists will be on tap for the opening. Michael and I are doing a quick turnaround for this trip... so if you're in the neighborhood, stop in!

Here's a fun picture of me , Dyl and Hubby posing with Kevin Titzer's "Toothpuller"
I had meant to post that picture a long time ago, but never did. And here's to the sweetness of a one year old. Bodie rocks.

I joined a Mom's group last week. I haven't actually attended any of the playdates yet, but I'm pretty amped on the idea of getting out, and meeting other Mom's... and getting the boys some good ol' fashioned socializin'. I love playing with the boys, but things can get a little lonely conversationally... and believe it or not, I am actually starting to tire of hearing Dylan chatter on about "Poop" and "Penises". He's very concerned about the fact that I don't have a penis, he even asked me "Do you have a butt?"
I told him "oh, it's back there... ya can't miss it."

I Dream Of Weenie

2008-09-17T23:10:00.001-07:00

Another Robot...This one is matted and framed and looks pretty nice all dudded up.

And me, working in the studio at night. That's pretty darn near all the time I get to work... makes for really exhausted days, but I think all of the work at this next show will look really good together.

Okay so today Mike has to hit up the Vons across the street on his way home and Lo' and Behold what does he run into? My favorite vehicle in the whole World. Years ago, at a drag race in Sonoma Ca, the Weinermobile was parked at the same hotel as the Peterson's for the night.. so I made my Mom videotape me salivating over it. But today, friends and neighbors, I got to introduce my boys to the joy of the Weinermobile.
Here's me and Dylan Hot Doggin'...

Bodie wasn't really feelin' it...

And Joy upon Joys, I gots me the coveted Weiner Whistle!!! Man, today was a good day.

And here's a shot of today's craft project with the boys.... tiger masks.

And on a funny, yet creepy little side note...
This dude stayed parked outside of our front door one day about this time last year. He was just a little guy, but I got all up in his face to take this picture... not knowing anything about snakes. Well, I just found out today that he was a baby rattlesnake.. a pit viper. Hmmm... note to self... best not to get right in a snakes face the next time I want to take a picture. Well, hindsight's 20/20 I guess.

Bullseye Blasto Ray Guns!

2008-09-12T22:57:00.001-07:00

I think I could spend half my day watching the little birds in our backyard. It's one of the most relaxing things ever. They're so sweet.
Here's the finish on "Bullseye Blasto Ray Guns"

And some close up shots...

And my boys, throwing down on the paints :)

Spy vs. Spy

2008-09-08T23:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday we had a small art crew get-together. Levon & Lila Jihanian
and the Soto's. Unfortunately, Dylan picked this night to have his worst night ever... but we all managed to have a great night together despite the crazy preschooler. Plus, Levon did this awesome drawing on our box of doughnuts...

Last night neighbor Bonny brought over this guy. I was floored, I've never seen a caterpillar this big in my life.

His coloring was absolutely breathtaking. It's pretty much my favorite color ever.

And thank God, when my parents house was recently broken into, and ransacked, this piece of literary genius was spared!

Apparently Mom kept me in Toughskins and Cords... noisy ol' pants!

Aaaah... I think that's how I nabbed Michael. And yes, we spy together. (kidding) Anyway, here's a work in progress.

Now go getcher spy on Kids!!

Perhaps He Knows Too Much...

2008-09-02T09:43:00.000-07:00

Here's another piece for an upcoming robot art show.

We went to Disneyland again last week, and I actually got to go on the Pirates of the Carribean ride by myself. Man, I was all smiles. I love the new Johnny Depp additions they made to the ride.... but was a little bummed that they took out the sound bite of the creepy voice saying "Perhaps he knows too much..." I always loved that part.

Cult 45

2008-08-25T22:04:00.001-07:00

First of all, I discovered a fabulous new way to prime my canvases...
plus he's kind of earning his keep this way.
Here's a new piece for an upcoming Robot show "Moe's Moonbar".

Some close ups...

And a little pause to celebrate nature's beauty....

Me and the boys spend our mornings hunting for these guys. It's pretty fun.

Aaaah, morning glories.

And now onto the craziness. We went into L.A. this past Friday for the opening of Gallery 1988's "Crazy for Cult 2". It really was crazy. Nuts to Butts as we say...

Eye Candy overload. Amazing work everywhere!!!

The doorman was a weenie. But that's all I have to say about that.

It was SO hard to manuever around because there were so many people. And yes, it did smell oddly like sausage (thanks Chung for putting yer finger on that one).

Got to hang with my favorite Awesome Asian, the Chung! Big thanks to Dave for waiting for my ass to finally show up!
They were showing old cult movies on the wall in the back alley by projector. That seemed to be where the real party was. Oldskool batman and Colt 45.... now that's an opening! Unfortunately, I was in fear of partaking since there were no public restrooms.

Crazy for Cult

2008-08-15T23:43:00.000-07:00

And now, to satisfy my love for both Tim Curry and Drag Queens, I present "Sweet Transvestite Candy". This piece will be at the Gallery 1988 Crazy for Cult show.

It's 15.5" x 24" and will retail for $1500. Mike and I will be in attendance on this one, so hope to see some of you there!

The Good and the Bad

2008-08-11T22:42:00.001-07:00

I'll start with the bummer stuff first. So my parents, being the retired, fabulous, drag racing rock stars that they are, leave Thursday night on this four week hiatus to go race at Indy and hit up this awesome car show in Detroit....
and today their house gets broken into. WTF people...My brother is going to stay at the house for the rest of the month, but that just totally blows. AND on top of totally ransacking the house...the douchebags poured bleach all over the carpet. I hope Karma kicks these people in the ass.... bigtime.
Anyway... Mom, Dad... stay up, and have yourselves some fun on the trip... we'll keep an eye on the fort.
Man, there's just such a creepy feeling that comes with this kind of violation.
Anyway, that's my rant. Here are the skate decks. I'll be shipping them off this week. They'll head to Australia... Melbourne & Sydney... then they'll go on to Taipei. Kind of fun.

And on the good tip... lollipop, a couple of weeks back Mike took Dyl by the local firestation to inquire about when they might have an open house for kids to check things out... and Fireman Eric told him, "you can check it out right now". Pretty sweet. So Dylan and I made him a thank you card. I cut out the shape of the truck, and Dyl threw down on the wheels , the window and the ladder. Even did his own cutting. He and Honey dropped it off this past week, and Eric let Dylan see the engine again.

Thank you Fireman Eric! All little boys should have pictures of themselves on a firetruck :)

And, aaah, I do love the summer nights. Nothing beats the boys laughing and running around to the safe, comfortable sound of crickets chirping...

"A cricket's chirp can transend time. You can ride it in your memory back to the summers of youth when the sound blended with the taste of watermelon and the earthly aroma of night. The song of summer usually commences around dusk, sneaking up without fanfare like the dew. One moment there is silence, then the cricket begins his nightly celebration... that sweet, reassuring refrain indicting summer has reached it's zenith"- Mark Sauer

Working on the crazy for cult piece right now. Here's a really big hint...

Damn I love a man in pearls...and drag

Tracing the roots

2008-08-05T23:41:00.000-07:00

Finished up one of the skate decks, working on the other one right now. I need to get a proper scan of it.... here's a pic of the top half...
I've been thinking a lot lately about why I chose this profession. It's hard... and it's really hard when you're trying to be a Mom at the same time. But I guess it's always been a part of me, and I really couldn't imagine doing anything else. I thought it might be fun to show a little of my own progression as an artist. I'll start with the first buck I ever earned as an artist. I won a dollar for this contest... I still have it framed today...

Dad bought me my first art book on how to draw Cartoons. I spent hours trying to master them.

Some drawings of my original creations. It's funny to see that my subject matter has remained the same... sexiness & booze.

When I was 15, my parents let me paint my cartoon creations all over the walls of my bedroom. I didn't take art classes in high school... just a lot of ceramics courses. (I had a mad crush on Mr. Bellah the ceramics teacher... he was pretty cool)

After High School I did some time as a camp counselor for fifth and sixth graders. I painted these tree cookies for each of my kids every week. I always wonder if any of them still have their little paintings... jeez, those kids would be in their late twenties now,... probably not.

I started Riverside Community College in the early nineties. Back then, fairies were the subject matter I was drawn to. These are watercolors. Again... naked chicks...

An in-class pastel of a model...

I did a few posters for the NHRA....

Then, in 1998, I started Art Center. Here are a few head studies in charcoal...

Some figure work...

PIRATES!!! From one of my sketchbooks, I thought I'd get into character design at some point.

One of the most sacred pages of my sketchbook.... signed by the man himself :)

I took a summer off during my years at Art Center and for kicks I did these master studies in oils and sold them on Ebay for $300 a pop. They only took a few days to knock out, and it was an excellent way to strengthen my painting skills.... plus I sold 10 of 'em :)
This was a John SInger Sargent "The Sulfur Match"

Rockwell...
A self portrait in oils done that same summer... Man, I need to bust out the oils again....
For a class with Rob Clayton, I painted these stripper portraits onto old cookware. I once had a girl tell me "Oh, I get it... the whole Bitch in the Kitchen thing, right?"

The Marilyn Manson sock monkey.
This is actually the biggest piece I've ever done. I think it's like, 4 feet tall. I was comfortable doing a drawing that size, but painting large really freaks me out.

During school, one of my best friends battled cancer, and lost. I spent a lot of time making art that centered around that experience.

Aah, St. Stoned. My heroes in all their angelic glory.

Well, there was a little walk down my memory lane. It's actually nice to go back and look at some of the things I used to do. Sometimes I'm so busy making art on a deadline, I forget about some of the techniques that I love. Good to refresh my memory :)

old school cuz we're some old fools...

2008-07-30T22:24:00.000-07:00

So here's a story. Back in high school my friend Sloan and I were super tight with a boy named Matt. I think we actually used to even call him "MATT- GOD OF ALL", but anyway we were dorks....
Long story somewhat shortened.... we lost touch with him our Senior year of high school, and about 7 years ago, while I was in Art School, Sloan and I dutifully spent hours on the computer searching for him. We found him in Florida... and sent him a random postcard with my website and "For a Good Time Call...."
He called.
And we've all been in some kind of touch ever since. Well, Whaddayaknow, Matt came to L.A. on business this past week, so he and Sloan toodled over my way so we could all hang out like old times. Man, it's been like, 15 years since we've seen him... but Damn it was fun. I guess with a truly great friend, years and years can go by... but it's like time hasn't skipped a beat when you see them again. Anyway, Sloan, Matt... I'm so glad we could do this!!!
And I know Matt, this is slouchy picture... but I liked it... and it's my blog.

Oh, and you had to know I was going to do THIS.....HAHA!!!!!
*Please ignore the sorry-ass painting in the background... I was 16*

Friends like you guys are hard to come by... talk soon Homies!

I'm painting some skate decks for a show in Australia right now.... here's a preview.

These things inspire me...

2008-07-20T11:38:00.000-07:00

I saw this on Chris Ryniak's site awhile back... it made me cry

Dear little lad
Here is the story of my life
I lived on the moon
Grey flying snakes along
the mountains of destiny while
the three tailed monkeys
were drawing the stars.
Light from the Sun and I
hide myself on the dark side, alone
I’ve run so far
to find my way
Then I dream again… alone

Dear little boy, Listen
to the voices of your soul
it showed you the way
Of silence and peace
Follow your thoughts and fly
Choosing all the things that you desire
Giant Waves, fireflies…
Your dreams will be your only shell
Your secrets, your hiding place, my son
Don’t let them try
to crush your brain
let you go far
….my son

I lived on the Moon

Whippin' Cream

2008-07-18T21:59:00.000-07:00

You and your pals are invited to attend the "SuperHero" exhibit and party during San Diego's Comic-Con on Thursday, July 24 from 7 PM to Midnight in costume or not. This is a free warehouse party featuring over 50 inspired "SuperHero" paintings and live music performances by the Modlins and SSI. This is an exclusive event hosted by Effen Vodka, Hi-Fructose Magazine, Ninthlink and Murphy Art Books.

where :
Warehouse Space : 1616 National Avenue : San Diego : 92113

cost :
There is no cost for this event. Cash bars will be available. 21 and over, with a valid ID

sponsors :
Sponsored by Effen Vodka, HiFructose, Ninthlink, Murphy Art Books

Here's my piece for the show... "Whippin' Cream". She's 12" x 24" and is selling for $1500

Michael and I are still not sure if we'll be in attendance to this one. The boys are both going through their own little rough patches right now... it makes it hard to do things involving long driving times...but I'm real happy with how the piece came out.
I worked last night until midnight, then Dyl got us up at 2 am wanting some chocolate milk. Back to bed for an hour, then Bodie got up at 3.... and never went back to sleep... I'm tired...

stinky cheeziness

2008-07-13T22:20:00.001-07:00

For my birthday one year a friend bestowed on me the book "The Stinky Cheese Man & Other Fairly Stupid Tales" by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. I've always thought this book was pretty awesome... but it becomes even more awesome when your own child catches it's magic and you suddenly experience it through their eyes. Dylan is obsessed with this book, in particular the Stinky Cheese Man story itself. I read that story approximately 40-50 times a week... it's gotten to where he's got parts of it memorized and we do the voices of the characters together.
He loves the pictures in that book so much that he started begging me to make him a stinky cheese man... so I surprised him with this piece of cheesy goodness. I opted for corduroy & suede fabrics instead of real stinky cheese. It should last a lot longer that way. Anyway, here he is...
"WOW! My own Stinky Cheese Man!!!" was his response. Followed by "I Love You, Stinky Cheese Man"
I was pretty happy with how he turned out. I got enough fabric to keep on tap in case Bodie ever yearns for a stinky cheese man of his own.

And speaking of Bodie, the little man turned one last week... so we threw together a small shindig this weekend to celebrate. Here he is opening gifts. He tuckered out after this and had to nap for a few hours.
But the rest of the crew stayed and played. Here's Dylan weighing down the teeter totter...

A group shot of all the guys together.
Right now I'm working on a piece for a "Superhero" show that's being put together for the Comicon by Mark Murphy. Post pics on that one soon!

Genius

2008-07-02T21:15:00.000-07:00

So our house is apparently chock-full of monsters these days. I was lamenting about our monster problem to Jeff Soto the other day and he gave me what could very well be the most fun little nugget of parenting info I've recieved to date. He'd read in Parent's magazine that you should get a squirt bottle and make a little label for it that says "Monster Repellent"... then the kid can feel a sense of relief as he sprays away the monsters. So today, after Dyl found a monster in the bathroom, I used this little trick... telling him "Daddy just picked up a bottle of this at the store, aren't we lucky!"
It was really awe-inspiring to see what a sense of relief this gave him... and to see how much fun it suddenly became to look for monsters.

As an added bonus I decided to just wrap up our bottle of Febreeze. That way Dyl could do a little multi-tasking by de-monstering and deoderizing in one swoop. Thanks for the tip Jeff, it worked wonders... and our house smells pretty darn fresh.
"Monster B Gone"... pick yours up today!

Other than that, just keeping cool in the pool! Happy Fourth o' July everyone!

Two things that make me super happy

2008-06-21T16:55:00.000-07:00

1. He requested I give him a mustache and skull so he could be a pirate for the day...

2. That this woman exists

Somewhere in Between

2008-06-17T23:11:00.000-07:00

SO I got this awesome piece in the mail from Jason Limon the other day. It's called "Somewhere in Between".
he's a really cool dude, on top of the rad art...

Plus, like Colin Johnson, he sent extra goodies in his package. I dig these buttons like all get-out. I need to get my own little thing like this, some little extra surprise to pack away when I send out work. It's so much fun to get things like this.

Neighbor Bonnie was dogsitting this weekend. The pup is adorable, but we'll just say that Bodie was NOT a fan...

And speaking of pets. I revamped our little fish tank for Max & Ruby. I had all of this natural looking stuff in there (except for the tiki), and then it dawned on me that a kitschy fish tank is a fun fish tank. .. so now the've got colored rocks, a pirate's treasure chest, and some glow-in-the-dark plants to go with the tiki. The boys love looking at it.... and Max & Ruby seem mighty happy.

Much Love

2008-06-11T22:47:00.000-07:00

Sent off my Tiki Mug today for the Gala Tiki show at DVA Gallery in Chi-town.

The type on it says "Aloha Nui Loa" which means "Much Love"

Just some real simple, sweet little gals...

And I just had to throw in a couple pics of Bodie. He's so cute right now, with that one front tooth. I think he pulls off the hillbilly look rather smashingly.

Also sent off a piece today for a trade with Jason Limon. I'm so excited, I LOVE getting new artwork for our walls! His stuff rocks, I'll post pics when I get it...

Birthday Hi-jinx

2008-06-06T21:49:00.000-07:00

So back when Sex in the City was on HBO, my girlfriend Hazel and I would have our "girlnights", we'd make chocolate covered strawberries, watch the show, and of course, have champagne... then retreat to the jacuzzi at Hazel's house to drink, giggle and tell our innermost secrets.
When the movie came out this past week, Haz put together a Sex party...and 15 of us went to the movies together to enjoy our long lost friends, the girls from SITC. Hazel, in keeping with the tradition, made chocolate covered strawberries, and we cracked open wine and champagne in the theatre because we're fabulous like that.

God I love being a girl.

This past Wednesday, it was back to Disneyland with the Soto's to celebrate mine & Jeff's birthdays. Plus we've been planning on taking the kids there together for a long time now. They had a ball together. Here's Dyl and Shannon conquering the temple of doom.

...and the Jungle Cruise...

Running amuck on the treehouse

the ultimate in pirate booty...

Jeff and I sporting our Disneyland Birthday buttons. It's cool, you get all kinds of special attention when you're wearing one of these things.

Last night we had the neighbors over to celebrate my actual b-day. Bonnie picked up pizza and made her amazing hot wings, Mike got a cake, and I made Sangria. This is the result of mixing Sangria and a badly placed baby gate. My wrists have been messed up for awhile now. I've had a real hard time for years with my left wrist... and lately it's gotten really bad. I'm not sure if it's arthritis, or carpel tunnel or what.... anyway, we have this babygate we put in the laundry room to keep Bodie from chowing down on cat food, and I (with all the festivities) A- Forgot to remove it... B- Forgot it was there, and C-totally plunged over it head first, landing on tile with the really bad wrist to brace myself for the fall. So I ended my birthday on the floor of our laundry room in tears. My wrist and elbow are so jacked up. Such a bummer ending to a really cool week.

Flight of Fancy

2008-06-02T21:37:00.000-07:00

I'll be showing in New Jersey this month at Crybaby Art Gallery. The show opens this Saturday, June 7th, runs through July 6.
Bethany Marchman has a solo show"Fauna" going on, and I'll be showing in "Flight of Fancy" with Kukula, and Pilar Alvarez. Here's one of the pieces I have in the show... "Dad's White Bread"

A close up...

And on the crafty tip, I made some stepping stones for our backyard to memorialize the boys while they're small. Everyone always says it goes so fast.... but when your in the middle of it, and waking up several times a night for feedings, spending your days tired as all hell and trying to work at night... it seems like they'll never get bigger, or more independant. I'm sure someday I'm going to look at these little hands and feetprints and cry, missing them being little...

And this past Sunday we actually got to enjoy a family day at the San Bernardino County Museum. My Dad always took us here when my brother and I were little, so I get really nostalic at this joint. They have a lot of really cool exhibits, here's a peek at the rocks/minerals.

The first time I ever saw one of these things, I was dropping off work for a show in L.A. and almost stepped on it. It seriously grossed me out.

When we would come here as kids, this guy scared the shite out of my brother. He's probably about 11 feet tall...
Once, when I was in my early 20's I came to this museum to be by myself and "soul search". It was Halloween, and I was the only person in the whole place. I have to admit, it WAS really spooky to be around this guy by myself. I kept thinking he was going to start moving or something.

Here' s me and the boys. They were a little preoccupied with the giant moose across from us...

The bird rooms. These were always my favorite. Although, on soul searching day... they freaked me out, too. That's a lot of little dead eyes looking back at you.

My bra was apparently also on display...

The museum has rows and rows of eggs to check out...

Dylan and I got all excited over the Road Runners, we see them all the time when we're out walking. We have them running through our backyard on occasion, too.

The Museum has this really cool exhibit about architecture going on right now. Here's an amazing dollhouse replica of Edward's Mansion.

And here's Michael braving the tarantula.

Going to Disneyland again this Wednesday! My birthday is this Thursday, June 5. Jeff Soto's is Tuesday, June 3rd... so we're diong a family b-day bash together at the happiest place on Earth. Dylan's SO excited to go there with Shannon...

A Bowling pin, a Big Boy Bed, and Disneyland

2008-05-18T23:23:00.001-07:00

So awhile ago I was in this really cool bowling pin show with Kirsten Easthope, well after the show we ended up working out a trade, which was totally cool because I had admired her work for a long time. She wanted the pin I had done for the show... it was a "Ro-bowling pin", and after the show ended I sent it her way. Things got busy on her end, but she would always get in touch and let me know she hadn't forgotten about me. This past Saturday I received this gorgeous gal in the mail. Thank you Kirsten!
Yup, she's a beauty... AND a pirate... ya can't shake a stick at that!

This past week was filled with all kinds of excitement. Dylan got his "Big Boy Bed"... it's actually half of a bunk bed set that he and Bodie will eventually share. Man, is that little guy happy about his bed. He kept yelling out "I LOVE IT! It's so cool!!" During our days we make several trips into his bedroom ("Mom... let's go look at my big boy bed...") just so he can eyeball it. Here he is just after we put it together, jumping and singing.

And last Wednesday we took him back to Disneyland. We were actually going to go this week, but Michael has a huge week in store... and last week ended up working out much better. Michael got us the annual passes (an early birthday present to me), so we'll be going back quite a few times this year. Anyway, we had promised Dyl he could go back when he started pooping on the potty. Yes, that's right. He's a potty trained big boy now! That's a pretty awesome milestone to hit.... I'm tellin' you. It seemed like we had even more fun this time. I think because he had some kind of frame of reference for Disneyland, so he was just as excited as we were to go back.

In toon town again...

We took him over to the California Adventure park to check out the Pixar Parade. Here he is hearing, but not yet seeing, Lightening McQueen...

I had to take a picture of his happy little face as Lightening rolled around the corner....

These bumper cars were his favorite.

Yeah,... that was a blast. I'm already dying to go back.
Getting some last minute things done for a show in New Jersey. I'll post pics and more info on that one soon!