But lets put that all behind us. It's been ages and I've got so many new things I need you all to see! In order to stay alive, sane, sheltered, valid, and worthy...me and Aaron, every so often, steal a minute or two to be actual productive artists. We get so tied up in the packing, shipping, sanding, cutting, gluing etc...that we never get to actually paint or design something new! And aside from the above list...(alive, sane, sheltered etc...) It also makes us very very HAPPY to be productive artists. So that's what brings me back to the blog. Because the happiness gets multiplied tenfold when I get to actually share our new work with other humans! I have a few things to show, and some of them stretch back a while, but I think I'd like to start with the freshest of the bunch because it's the thing that's flapping my flag the fastest. These brand new peg racks! And when I say NEW I mean it....the varnish is still a bit tacky. And their inspiration comes from a July Romantic Homes magazine spread. That's next month...technically the future. Futuristic art. But seriously, many of you have seen the spread. Great close up shots of all the vintage birthday party stuff we love so dearly. The cupcake toppers, sprinkles, vintage boxes of candles, nutcups, candies...all in the pastel palette that we live for. I remember a while back Romantic Home was definitely sagging. They featured a bit too much of that really Romantic stuff. But now, as the magazine world thins out, (r. i. p. Home Companion, Country Home...) we can't afford to be so picky. And I think the surviving mags have caught on and made a lot of necessary changes. A "hipping up" of their content. And in these times of the thinning marketplace I think us readers and consumers would find it to our advantage to be less critical. I've loved so many of the recent issues of Romantic Homes. And just in general it's good to love things. I think me and Aaron, as artists, have grown quite a bit. And although we don't get to produce even a tenth of the that art we'd like to...I think the art that we do make comes directly from loving things. Sure, there are artists who work from a place of protest. Their art is borne from a deep distaste for something. That's not an easy place to come from. Though ,I 100% get it. I'm a huge fan of say...the Deftones. And Aaron is in a band in which the singing hurts the throat and the guitars hurt the ears. But at present, I'm incapable of working from that place. Instead, I love things and like to pay tribute to the things I love. Me and Aar go way back in our love affair with magazines. We once had a very expensive monthly habit. Lately, I've gotten way more conservative...this is largely due to the wonderful world of blogs & Flickr. I find so much perfect visual stimuli right on the screen of my pc. But I think I like magazines so much because they come from the same creative place I'm coming from. All they do is pay tribute to things. They tell us what we should love, what's good, what's new, what we should own. And when I design I think I have all those same motivations swirling around me. There's that Tenacious D song...in which they sing: " this is not the greatest song in the world... no, this is just a tribute! " And that's where we're coming from when we design something. We pay tribute to the greatest stuff in the world. So wait, enough talk...here are the peg racks!
And next on the brand new pile are our new 5" x 7" matted prints. This smaller size is perfect for big collectors like us. You can fill a wall with a collection or spread them out among your varied collection from separate artists. The Keep Calms look fantastic in this size! We also made a bunch more mini plaques...a few of which feature what we're calling our "candy dot collection". And probably because it's summer we're especially loving the ice cream cone! And I also squeezed in a pic of our new painting titled "vintage desserts 2"...which just like some of the candy dot collection, is also available as an 8 x 10 .
***And before I go on let me announce our BIG SALE! (over on Etsy) Buy 2 items and get the third free! (of equal or lesser value...and the free item can't be one of the new peg racks...which I'm sure you understand...because we hand paint those! : ) ) This Sale is 'til Friday. So shop shop shop!!! The sale applies to everything in the shop! Don't purchase your free one. Just purchase the 2 items and then send me a convo or a note upon payment as to which 3 piece you'd like free! (equal or lesser value...and no free peg racks! : ) )***
Ok, now for our vintage inspired jumbo die cuts. We love the die cuts from old time ice cream parlors, soda fountains, diners, etc...And we own a ton of faded and brittle ones from 50 years ago. We knew some of our cake and cupcake paintings would make absolutely perfect die cuts...so we got some heavy duty mat board and mounted them up. They hang by a small length of traditional bakery string that's affixed to the back. We LOVE these!!
You know, I think I may have made a false statement up above when I said the peg racks are our newest creation. This painting right here is in fact our newest. It's titled "cherry topped cupcakes". We once had an all-red theme in our home so we can completely identify with those of you out there who go all out with the cherries and the gingham and the retro tea towels. We are so often urged to stray from our relentless palette of pastels by the dedicated fans of RED. Well, we heeded the call and made sure to keep our palette tight. We didn't throw in aqua...or a splash of pink. We kept it Red and White. We totally get that esthetic and love to paint inside it's boundaries. We hope to find the time for lot's more red.
And finally, I'm a bit ahead of the curve. I've got cupcakes for the next holiday! 4th of July! We love these ones. When we painted these we set up an actual still life with the vintage toppers and all. It's now available in a variety of shapes and sizes...wooden plaque...8 x 10 or mini...and as a print...8 x 10 or mini!
Alright. I'm trying to show some restraint. I don't want to run on and on at the mouth. Remember to take advantage of the sale. Also...a new cupcake painting is coming soon and it may be my favorite! The colors are amazing...but it's not yet done so I can't show it! Darn. Also remember, there is lots and lots of fun going on over at Facebook. I'm able to post things at almost the instant that they're done. I'm thrilled to see how many of you signed up and keep in touch on the minute to minute basis! Well, must get back to work. It's not the greatest work in the world...it is only a tribute!
thanks tons for reading!!!! xoxo, Jenny
