Destination: Florence, Italy

With eight family and friend weddings this summer I was bound to be asked to do at least one invitation design. And here it is! Alyssa and Dan met on a study abroad trip to Florence, Italy, so it was only appropriate that their big day have some Italian flair.

 

The invitation typography mimics a ticket or boarding pass with a romantic edge while the customized "Alyssa and Dan" passport stamp and fleur de lis drive home the Florence theme.

Thank You Reader

So, I have at least one reader (or someone who stumbled across my site) out there that I don't personally know! I got a message from someone wanting more info about the Toy Story baby shower! Here are the additional photos that I promised.  They aren't great because the room was uber-sunny, but it's what I have to remember the day by.

 

The shower was a success and both mommy- and daddy-to-be had a great time!  I still find myself looking for Toy Story stuff while shopping and have to remind myself to move on.

It's a Boy!

Today I am co-hosting a baby shower for my friend, Megan.  It's a co-ed party, and because the daddy-to-be is a HUGE fan of Pixar we went with a Toy Story theme.

The invites were fun to make because I love Toy story too.  I also happen to like doing digital illustrations, and Baby Buzz turned out pretty cute, if I do say so myself!  I will post photos from the event later so that you can see the diaper cake, favors, and decor that match.

Happy Birthday Dad

This is the invitation that I designed for Dad's last birthday (the BIG 5-0). It was fun to take my mom to Paper Depot to pick out paper, and isn't the picture of little Kenny so cute?

 

Happy Birthday Dad, love you!

Read more about how to do your own invites here.

Auggiesaurus

In 2007, I was asked to design a dinosaur for the Diggin' Dinos Citywide Summer Celebration to Honor 100 Years of the Science Museum of Minnesota. My dino was sponsored by Augsburg and lived in Murphy Square located in the center of campus for the summer. Murphy Square, the oldest park in Minneapolis, was also turning 100 that year, and the park and surrounding community became my theme. You can read more about the Auggiesaurus here.

 

 

Creating this dino was the most unique experience I have ever had! It was also a TON of work.  I even made a small model of the dino where I drew out where everything would go before I went to the "paint-off" at the River Center in St. Paul. I spent a few days working on him, and it was rewarding to work side by side with other local artists and their dinos. We all started from the same mold, but it was surprising to see how different they all looked in the end.

That fall, Auggiesaurus was auctioned off with the other dinos and taken away from Augsburg and Murphy Square.  A year or two later my dad saw a green dino on the banks of the Mississippi during a kayaking trip near our home. He couldn't quite tell if it was Auggiesaurus, but I like to believe he has a new home overlooking the great Mississippi.

Studio Art Portfolio

I've been digging back into my old art projects recently, and it has been fun to see what I was busy with a few years ago. It also makes me a bit sad that I don't have time to do this type of work now. After an eight hour day trying to be creative on the computer, I just don't have the brain power to paint a watercolor. Hopefully after I finish my psychology classes I will be able to use some of my free time to get back at it!

A piece of work, like a good song, can bring back some great memories:

 

Eggs was one of my first projects for a drawing class freshman year of college. I was encouraged to enter the piece in the Student Juried Art Show and it got in. It was so exciting to get recognition as a freshman. This piece now hangs in my mom's sewing room, and every time I see it I chuckle because it's just a drawing of eggs.

 

This is another favorite. This was my last drawing for a life drawing class I took the summer after my sophomore year.  I felt like this was the first time I really "got" how to draw a face.  Of course, I don't think I could do one now since I am so out of practice, but it feels good to know that I was capable of this. I call this guy Captain because he reminds me of Captain Hook, and he might just have a hook for his right hand—you never know!

Addicted to Instagram

 

I love instagram... and it's a free iphone app! It doesn't get much better than that. Here are some photos I took on our recent trip to Vegas.