Springtime Trio Heralds In Spring

Easter Trio Bag

Springtime is not too far around the corner, we've already sprung ahead in most of the country, much to my chagrin. (I would like that hour back please) I do however look forward to digging in the dirt and making things grow. This however attracts many little furballs to dine in my garden as if it were an all you can eat salad bar. It is ok though, I enjoy their company and as long as the destruction is down to a minimum I can share.

Today I gave a new twist to one of my designs which happened quite by accident. I intended to make a simple trio of my bunny, chick and carrot but when I put it on a tie the pattern was quite nice. So here you have it, Some sugary sweet little critters and a carrot. I hope you enjoy it and it brightens your day.

Easter Trio Tie

Easter Trio T-Shirt

Easter Trio Mug

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Freebies Anyone?

13 Black Cats Designs is growing thanks to all of you. We have a brand new website and exciting news to be found there, hint, see awards shows. I made things easier to navigate and I showcased a few of my extra outside painting hobbies like my jewelry. We also have four new staff members to introduce you to.

To celebrate the launch of my new site and to thank all of you for supporting me I am offering a couple of freebies just for you! Every month (maybe more) I will have a design for you to use and it will be available on my website. Jan, Feb, March and to give you a head start April is posted. There are free recipe cards, gift tags, notes and two cute Easter cards for you to print out. If you want to stay notified when there are new freebies posted just click on over to my Facebook page to become a fan or follow this blog and you will never miss a one. (if you love Zazzle coupons this is the place to be too)

So enjoy your gifts, I really hope you like them!

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Busy, Busy, Busy

My how the last few days have flow by and that is probably because I have been glued to the computer redesigning an all new website. The launch should be soon as I have a few more photos to add and such (and there is trying to take a photo of my new staff members, they just won't sit still) The new design will have much more information and a slicker look and a few surprises just for you.

While I am here I wanted to tell you of a good deal they have over at Greeting Card Universe. when you buy 10 cards they will only cost you $2.29 each plus postage. Not bad really if you think what you pay in a card store. Just use promo code SPRING229. You can mail them now, set a future date or have a whole bunch shipped to you to give out personally PLUS they can be personalized right online.

Here are a few of my Easter cards, some funny pet cards and a line of baby's first Easter cards plus a link to my store. The site also has many more talented artists to choose from if mine are not your cup of tea.

ProKeds Customizable Sneakers

New ProKeds sneakers for men

(and the women who love to wear them)

Zazzle has launched a new line of ProKeds sneakers for men, of course the ladies can wear them too. Available in both low and high tops.

Skeleton Keys Keds Shoe

These sneakers can be easily customized by you right online, no design skills needed. The particular shoe above can become any color with just a click of the mouse. Control the color of each panel of the shoe, the sole and the laces

(the above photo shows different color schemes of the Skeleton Key shoe)

I have been looking at all of the new designs various artists have made and there are some great shoes floating around on Zazzle. Below are some that I personally like:

Kawaii Lilly of the Valley by PeppersPolishMafia	Flowery Pattern by mydeas	Electric Guru! by FairyWoods
Neon SkellaBaby by HahpiStuff	Black Grunge City Don't Stop The Music by malibuitalian	Green Square Pattern by DonnaGrayson
Electric Guitar Keds Shoe by Mousefx	Gothic Black and Pink Hearts by KirstenEdwards	Rockin' Shreds by TheSpottedOliveKicks
Kiss Of Fire by rdwnggrl	KRW At The Hop Retro Records by KRWFancyFeet	BW by KittensCustoms

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And The Catalogs Begin To Arrive

Now is the time of year when seed catalogs begin to grace my mailbox in droves. While today is rather dreary and a bit cold, thumbing through the pages makes it all seem to disappear. I love gardening, I love flowers and I love dirt. I also love growing my own fruit and veggies even if the amount of space I have is small.

Veggie Lover Print

I was insprired to make some vegetables recently, well I made a carrot for an Easter design and it sort of fell along that way. These veggies took all day to make in Illustrator because I was drawing them with a mouse, not an easy task but someday I hope to get a Wiacom tablet.

I started with basic shapes and added frilly brushes and my own patterns to them. Although it took a very long time to draw these I am considering a fruit line and a floral line too (the head of lettuce sort of looks like a peony) I have begun to post them on Zazzle for you to enjoy.

Lettuce Tie

Corny Cookout Invitation

Radish Grocery Bag

On another note I want to thank all of my customers and fans that follow me. You are most appreciated and I treasure every kind word that is given. You all make what I love to do worth doing.

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Today I Thought I Would Have Some Fun

Today I thought I would ask some friends for inspiration. I sent a message out asking for a color and a basic shape, the first one that responded would get the honors (though until now they did not know what that honor would be)

The first response I received was the color yellow and the shape was square. It came from Shannon Justice of Lollipop Labs Studios, a very talented artist in her own right.

So square it was and yellow, well let's just say it was a bit of a challenge. Although yellow is one of my favorite colors it is very hard to not make it glaringly bright. I started out by playing with a few yellow colors, some on the green side some a bit toward orange with nothing quite doing it. I opened Illustrator up and began drawing squares and that didn't work either so I cheated a little and used the rounded rectangle shape to make a pattern in Illustrator. Back to Photoshop. When all else fails start playing with filters, adjustments and distortions.

I began with a slight noise filter to break up some of the solid color and then applied a cubism effect which turned the noise into a random pattern of squares. I brought the rounded rectangles into Photoshop placing them on top of the yellow background. Still it wasn't right so I thought I would select the rectangles and cut the shape out of the yellow background. I thought some white was needed to break things up and added a white stroke. After playing around with it for a few hours I am happy with it and I began to post it on Zazzle.

Now you might ask what honor did Shannon receive for this little game of mine? Well the design is named after her of course.

Shannon 1" Binder

Cordelia

Cordelia Invitation

This is my latest design for Pen And Ink called Cordelia. It is funny how things can sometimes spark an idea really. Every morning I happen to watch reruns of the tv show Angel. Now I can practically recite the whole series but I just never seem to get tired of it. Recently I took notice of a particular shirt that one of the characters named Cordelia was wearing. It was a bright orange color with giant circles down the front and back. While I personally could never pull off a look like that it really worked for her and it stuck in my mind. Now fast forward a few weeks and something jarred me to actually get that design out of my head and on to paper, well virtual paper anyway and thus Cordelia was born.

I have set this line up with the ability to change the background color to anything you would like. I personally like the orange but I realize orange can be an aquired taste. Cordelia looks great with a light pink background or a darker colored orange. You also have the ability to change the text colors with ease. It certainly will grab the attention to anyone carrying one of your business cards, of course there are other coordinating products to go along with them.

Cordelia Chubby Business Card

Cordelia Tie

Cordelia 1" Binder

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It Has Been A While

Well it seems I have been absent here for a while. Time really flies when you are in the midst of chaos, even if the chaos is a good thing. There are some bright things ahead for me but I will share them another time. Like half the world I am trying to get things done before the opening ceremonies of the Olympics. I have a choice, t.v. or the internet but not both, such are the choices you have to make when you own an old house. I have to choose between an air conditioner or a vacuum in the summertime (guess which one wins) or else I am trudging down the dark, dank basement to flip unmarked fuses. Again I am rambling which happens when my mind is trying to remember too many things.

Recently the North East was pummeled with a ton of snow and while I do not mind the winter or the snow I laughed at my friends complain away and long for the Springtime. That got me to designing some things for Ostara and Easter. I posted the first thing tonight, there are a few more in line for tomorrow.

Gingham Carrot Card

Gingham Carrots is the first in an Easter series and maybe even a new vegetable series too now that I am thinking of it. This design took a few minutes in Illustrator. The gingham I already had made and the carrot was as simple circle stretched out and leaves added via the spiral and arc tool.

Be sure to look for the Easter Bunny and Chick coming soon. It is a carry over from my Always Remember Me shop on Zazzle but it is getting a fresh new look.

Sorry to cut this short, Opening Ceremonies are about to start. Have a wonderful weekend all!!!

Gingham Carrot Veggie Lover T-Shirt

Gingham Carrot Mug

Gingham Carrot Bag

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Hearts For Haiti

Hearts For Haiti

an artist's project

Everyone is aware of the devastation that has occurred in Haiti this past week. We have all seen the images and many of us have felt helpless. Recently a bunch of artists headed up by Jamie of Jamie Creates decided to put their talents to use for a good cause.

Hearts 4 Haiti is a Zazzle store that features donated designs by various artists. All of the designer's fees will be donated to the Hope For Haiti relief efforts. I am proud to join my fellow artists with a design that I have donated.

My Design: Give A Little, Gain A Lot

Haiti Relief Valentine Stickers by Hearts4Haiti

If you are an artist and would like to make a contribution to the store please visit the Hearts For Haiti Facebook group for instructions.

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Wow, What A Week!

Well it has been quite a week for me on Zazzle and I have been blown away by the success of my relatively new store Pen And Ink. Zazzle has chosen it to be a featured store last week and has awarded me two Today's Best Awards and I am honored.

It is funny sometimes where inspiration comes from. All last week I have noticed people putting old retro photos of themselves on Facebook. It started me thinking a bit of my childhood and the summers my family and I would spend down the shore. Most of my childhood was spent in Wildwood, New Jersey at a place called The Siesta Motel. It is funny how some things can fly you back in time and for me it was the colors of this motel. It was a throwback from the fifties even if it was the early seventies at the time and it was all done up in black, white and baby pink. I remember it as if it were just a few moments ago and I remember it clearly. After time they remodeled the place and it was painted in the neutral colors of brown and cream, not nearly as special as it once was. Sadly the hotel has been knocked down to make condos but it will forever live in my memory.

Siesta Motel 1" Binder TBA winner and Most Viewed 1/15/10

Siesta Motel Recipe Letterhead TBA winner

Siesta Motel Business Card

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Gifts For Gardeners

I admit, I haven't been updating here as much as I should but in my defense I have been a bit busy trying to tie up loose ends in my stores. That includes adding to existing designs like my Spring Tulips.

Spring Tulips Garden Journal

The one thing I have always wanted to see Zazzle carry is journals (and address labels but that is a different story) Anyway I decided to take the already existing calendars and make one myself.

I love gardening, I love flowers and all the things they attract. I like mud and the smell of dirt too and I don't mind worms and bugs. I have a very large shoebox filled with little envelopes of seeds, old favorites and new ones on the market. I will try it all although not to full success but where is the fun in that? I am not by any means an expert gardener either, I just love to sit in my backyard on the hammock my dad once sat in and stare at the blooms gently swaying in the wind. I could do that for hours.

Above is a garden journal that I had designed for myself. There is plenty of room for notes, different seeds and plant types and in the back is a few pages set aside for recipes. I have already started filling mine up with my favorite plants that are just waiting for spring thaw. I think if you are a gardener, you just might like it. Zazzle was even kind enough to award it with a Today's Best Award.

I added some more products to the Spring Tulips line. I had made this background for a design from my Pen And Ink store. I thought it would go perfectly with the tulips. You will find binders and letterheads that can also be used for gardening and a whole array of matching products too.

Spring Tulips Garden Binder

Spring Tulips Letterhead

Spring Tulips Bag

Next thing to tackle is a very outdated website, oh where to begin with that...


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It's Party Time!

Ahhhh, the holidays have come and gone and I can come out from hiding. While I was ducking behind the couch I was playing with some color. Anyone in the Northeast right now can tell you it is cold and today the wind is raging to the point of almost being frightening. To keep the thoughts off of the rather large tree in my backyard I decided to add to my Celebrate section as it is not very full by any means. I can say I had quite a bit of fun doing this design and it didn't take me very long in Illustrator but did take quite a while in Zazzle.

Party Hats Photo Card

First off I wanted to take advantage of the great photocards Zazzle now offers. I set this one up in both horizontal and vertical with thoughts of using them as announcements or thank you cards for after the party. It is easy to personalize, just upload your photo and type in the name and it is ready to go.

I added a whole line of party supplies, things for the birthday boy or girl and some things for the professional party planner too.

Party Hats Card

I'm The Birthday Boy Party Hats Shirt

Party Hats Invitation

On another note though I had planned another tutorial for everyone as I was working on an illustration for the Owl and the Pussycat. Well as I was drawing and inking the design I realized that I had mixed up two nursery rhymes in my head and there is a moon jumping cow where she is not supposed to be. Make sure you look for the NEW version soon, as for me I am going to call it an early day of designing.


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