Birthday Owl

We just had this card printed and assembled. I'll get the product shot today, so I can add it to my Etsy store.

There are a handful of other cards, as well as a six card stationery set that I'm very excited about.

I have a variation of this owl card intended as framed wall art for a nursery. I can get it printed at a larger size suitable for framing. I plan to add that to the store after my next print run.

Thanks for shopping.

Etsy Store Additions Pt. 2

We're in the process of adding "Pick 'ems" to the Etsy store this week. Right now we have a Pick 2, but we'll have different options (all the way up to a Pick 5) coming soon.

We're going to break apart the sets so you can build your own collections and avoid paying for cards that you don't want/need and save money at the same time!

The Pick 'Ems can be seen at our store.

Next up: Print-It Cards, for home use.

Etsy Store Additions Pt. 1

10:06 am - I was able to get out on one of our beautiful Spring days to get some photos of my cards for my Etsy store listings. Tulsa seems to have a park on every corner, so it wasn't hard to find a nice, secluded location to set up my camera. Luckily, the city doesn't spray its weeds, so I exploited these tiny purple flowers for my own benefit.

I'm not terrific with the camera, but I think these turned out really nice. If you didn't know, you might swear that they were taken at a farm in the countryside.

This cake-themed set of four cards was added this week to the Etsy storefront. You can see it and others by clicking here.

At Long Last...

9:23 am - After weeks of false starts and hurdles, we finally got our Etsy site up and running. The listings will grow in diversity over time, but we're happy being humble for now.

You can visit our store to see our products by clicking here. Check back often, as I'll be adding more throughout the day.

Fun with Puns

12:05 pm - Got a little bored this morning and decided to take a stab at illustrating Kenny Rogers. I've figured that Rogers has grown into to some sort of Elvis-like figure, in that there is now "young Kenny" and "old Kenny". However, Rogers did it with plastic surgery, instead of the traditional US Postage stamp method.

I seriously doubt I'd ever make this into a card. It was more of an homage to being unproductive. If you weren't alive in the 70s or 80s, ask you parents to explain the pun.

"You can duet!" -Gambler

Sketches of Paisley

3:26 pm - I sketched about four or five intricate paisley patterns a little over a month ago, but they've sat untouched in my notebook since completion. I'm fairly ambivalent about paisley patterns. Interesting uses are usually few and far between.

However, I liked the sketch enough to warrant an attempt. We'll see if this is strong enough to make it into the next print run.

We had our second print run today, bringing our line to twenty-five cards. I know it's hard to believe considering that I've blown two deadlines so far, but we're honestly very close to our store launch. There will be no more controversial decisions to extend the line before the launch. I just need to commit to a grueling day of product photography.

Summer Solstice

8:57 am - Thanks to a shipping oversight, we're still waiting on our packing materials to arrive. They've traveled from New York to Oklahoma to Texas and are back in Oklahoma (hopefully for good). This is delaying the launch of our Etsy storefront. However, it's also giving me the opportunity to create a few more card sets and get them printed for the launch.

Remember all that reserved anticipation for the arrival of Spring and warmer weather back in January? Well, warm weather is here, and so are allergies. It's making it really hard to maintain focus during this extra week I've been given.

I'm fighting through it. I've got a new card set I'm wrapping up (two designs featured on the left). Nice, bright colors and plants in bloom? Sounds like Summer.

Chasing Ghosts

4:11 pm - I decided today to draw some hog heads for this card series, which is begging to be called Animal Farm. The card won't be a hog head. That would just be creepy.

I'd like to round this group out with a set of four so I can go back to working on some simpler pattern cards and more playful art. Sometimes I draw myself into a corner.

Well, this pig is clearly in trouble for something.

Corey Feldman

This is what I envision Corey Feldman would look like if he were a penguin. I'm not sure what characteristics they share (besides poor posture and cowboy boots), but I mistakenly watched "Dream a Little Dream" on Netflix instant view a few weeks ago, and I can't shake him from my subconscious. Maybe this art is the purging. In any event, he needs a Haim.

I started working on art for a new card series yesterday. This is a pen and ink watercolor from that series. I haven't had a lot of luck with my print reproductions of watercolors in the past, so here's to hoping these turn out.

There is probably a limit to the things I can do with penguins.

Melancholy Panda

Since I selfishly haven't posted much lately, I wanted to share some new sketches that I'm working on. They're tragically under-developed and lacking any real concept, but they are fun.

Samples Arrive!

We were lucky enough to get samples back from the printer before the weekend. We got 12 different designs back and mocked up, and they turned out fantastic. We could actually pass for a professional outfit!

After a mini-vacation this week and the arrival of our crucial packing/shipping materials, we'll officially open up shop with at least a dozen different designs for sale. My goal, however, is to squeeze in three or four more designs to fill out the shop. That will depend greatly on how quickly I'll be able to get product photography for all of these cards.

Wood Paneling, Interrupted

I'm still brainstorming ways to build a set of four cards around this wood pattern I've been keeping in a special place. I currently have a few straggling pieces of art that just might make a group based on color palette. I do like the art, but it's just, well... wood.

I've almost completed my second card set, titled "Daydream". I plan on getting the files sent to the printer this week, so they can be listed on Etsy.

"Just Desserts" Digital Card Kit Nearing Release

We're inching closer to the relaunch of the Antennas Toward the Sky Etsy store. Proof can be found in this singular, grainy image of some random thank you cards.

I swiped a cell phone image (from my desk) of a few pieces from the digi-pack. I'm hoping to cash in on the Apple leak hysteria that precedes a new product launch. Somehow, I doubt there is as much interest in an art pack targeting crafters.

While I'm not going into any details at this time, I will say that I have design notes on four more digital art kits, as well as plans to offer physical sets of cards in the near future.

Busy times.

Free Art Friday!

11:28 - Ready the traps. The art has been released. Click here for download. Do something great with it.

You'll need some sort of editing software to use this pattern. The file is a PDF.

This is the part where I tell you that a credit or link back to this blog would be nice, but I know you're not going to do it so I won't pretend to demand it. At the very least, tell a friend or show me how you used it. This art is free of any licensing restrictions. You can do anything you want with it except sell it.

As always, if you need a specific piece of art or would like this piece of art on, say, a wedding invitation, I'm available.

Marathon Man

The first time is always the hardest. I've learned this lesson through many home remodeling projects. It's full of complications and missed deadlines (not to mention blown budgets). However, experience always remedies the complications. I'm looking forward to a smoother process where I can focus on the art, instead of the technical details.

Without giving too much away, we've cut the pool of art down to the four final patterns. I'm one solid day of work away from finishing the design. One more day for formatting and testing and we'll be ready to unveil this delicious card kit on the crafters of America. Of course, as I stated above, deadlines are commonly blown when you're exploring new territory.

Work around here ebbs and flows. On one hand, we've yet to set a price point for these card kits. On the other, we've started development on two new card kits and have the art completed on a new card.

100th Post

12:23 pm - It doesn't feel like I've been contributing to this blog very long, but I can see a marked improvement in the quality and complexity of the art I've produced over the past year+. I can't help but feel that this blog is largely responsible for that, because it's given me the motivation and focus to get better at what I do.

To celebrate my 100th contribution to the Antennas blog, I'd like to announce that I have begun work on "card kits" for my Etsy store. These kits will contain digital high-res files for the home crafter to assemble cards for friends and family. All of the elements in the card kit will coordinate, making user design fail-proof. You'll simply pick your elements from the kit, print to card stock, cut out and assemble.

The first kit (containing elements for four full cards) has a vintage Americana look. This pattern is called "Macaroons".

We're very excited to finish the design phase on move on to testing. I'll release details as I progress.

Hostage Situation

For hours now, we've been held hostage by the wild animals in our back yard. We received their initial demands:

1. Two scoops of food
2. Access to the couch fully restored
3. Delete The Dog Whisperer from the DVR

We've notified the authorities and are currently in negotiations.

*Note: That is, in fact, our designer draft blocker from Etsy. It's filled with the finest pinto beans money can buy.

Holiday Hangover

9:35 am - Late last year, we converted part of the office into a photo studio for a few weeks so we could properly tackle a holiday gift bag presentation for one of our national chain clients. You've heard of them. We'll call them "Bullseye".

We staged and shot about twenty different scenes to appear on bags in anticipation of getting about eight into the stores. As is usually the case, they selected a different assortment (that we also showed), and this group entered the gift bag orphanage in the hopes that another national chain might adopt them for Christmas 2011.

Admittedly, the art for this group falls somewhere in between "boutique" and "mass market". It's not too high brow for the average consumer, but it's upscale to say the least.

The call came last week that another (albeit smaller) national chain was interested in seeing this art. Of the six that were selected to show, three have made it to final consideration. Unfortunately, this decoupaged ornament bag was cut again.

General consensus around the studio is that this was the strongest art of the original twenty bags. It's a shame that this art is in danger of never making it to a shelf. I decoupaged the ornaments by hand, painted the pine cone and shot the scene myself, so I take this one a little personally, I guess.

I'm not completely confident in my technical photographic ability, so I am still holding out to get one of my shots in TJ Maxx as some sort of personal validation. Or maybe this never gets onto a bag and I reclaim it for my personal endeavors.

Free Art Friday!

8:32 am - Look who's on his game today. I haven't even had my morning tea, yet here I am giving away some free art.

This pattern is pretty versatile. You can put it on a 45 degree angle for some variety. Free, from my brain to your eye. Enjoy it, you must!

Click this link to download.

You'll need some sort of editing software to use this pattern. The file is a PDF.

This is the part where I tell you that a credit or link back to this blog would be nice, but I know you're not going to do it so I won't pretend to demand it. At the very least, tell a friend or show me how you used it. This art is free of any licensing restrictions. You can do anything you want with it except sell it.

As always, if you need a specific piece of art or would like this piece of art on, say, a wedding invitation, I'm available.

The Almost Blank Page

Stormy days are always the best to get away from the computer for a little hands-on art sourcing. Maybe it starts when we're in grade school. Rainy days equal inside recess, and with them comes excitement. Maybe it's that we haven't had a proper storm in months. Maybe I'm afraid lightning will destroy my computer.

I have a great big, glass-top art table right next to the window of our building. I'm constantly seeking out excuses to sit at it and daydream.

In any event, I got to play with watercolors today. I also broke out the first sponge ever manufactured to create a background texture. This is my favorite part of creating art because you aren't limited by the constraints of some programmer in a cubicle in California. Sometimes it's important to get a little dirty.