Free knitting pattern: Vintage Baby “Helmet”

My friend requested a hat like one she had found at a secondhand store, so I did some digging and found this “helmet” pattern. Won’t come off the wee one’s head so easy! Despite the lightweight yarn, this was a pretty quick knit. Want the pattern? Click here: Helmet pattern

Kate Beaton is hilarious!

Recently, Josh attended the Writer’s Festival and the panel included Kate Beaton. He purchased her book Hark, a Vagrant! and it’s completely hilarious. History comics! Who’da thunk it? Check out her site for more good times.

Red Ribbon Gala

My last two clock dioramas will be on auction at the Red Ribbon Gala for AIDS Vancouver this year.

This is the 2nd year I’ve donated artwork. When a piece (or two) doesn’t sell initially, it’s nice to know it might sell for a good cause at an auction like this one!

Bucklin’ down (hardy har har)

The Eastside Culture Crawl is coming up, Nov. 18 – 20, here in Vancouver. Josh’s cousin is participating in the crawl as a member of a wood shop. He makes handsome belt buckles from purdy pieces of wood. He asked me to add illustrations to a few of them and we’ll see how they sell at the Crawl. They will be for sale at Parker Street Studios, but they are a very limited edition, so come early!

Here’s a preview – pre-varnishing.

They were a very enjoyable exercise in “enabling constraints”, or restrictions which prevent one from being overwhelmed by choice (as I often feel with a blank sheet of paper!) but allow for a variety of responses. Finding clues to illustrations in the wood grain also reminded me of drawing on my Dad’s scrap wood as a kid. Fun fun.