EDITORS NOTE

Spring is FINALLY here! Spring has got to be my most favourite season. Well, summer too because I love warm weather. But spring, I feel, is such a gorgeous time. I love the blooming flowers. I love walking through the woods amongst tall beautiful trees. I love spending weekends at the park, or the city at the farmers markets or cafes sipping on a nice chai latte people watching or working on my embroideries. Its so easy to be inspired during spring time, and I swear the amount of projects I have on my list just about doubled. Speaking of projects, yay, ParasolCraft 3 is here! Its inspired by playful little things, children and of course, Spring! I hope you enjoy the 3rd issue! xoxo Yasmine Surovec Editor + Designer editor@parasolmag.com

Photograph by Victor Surovec

CONTENTS
4. KATARINA CARLSSON 12. JOAQUIMA CASAS BO 20. JACQUELINE ROBERTS 26. AUDREY JEANNE 32. ANNA N. 40. WANDA KUJACZ 46. THE LONG THREAD 50. TOSHIYA WATANABE 60. AMY EARLES 66. MELISSA NUCERA 70. MAI MCKEMY 74. MARIA (CHOCOLATECAKE) 80. JESS QUINN 86. BRITEX FABRICS 94. DOWNLOAD: 12X12 96. PROJECTS: CHRISTY AMULAR 104. IDEA: HAND-DRAWN TOTES 108. GIVEAWAY! 110. WE LOVE BOOKS! 114. DOWNLOAD: BRUSHES 115. ONE ON ONE: PART 1-FINDING YOUR CREATIVE SELF

Clicking on links and some images will lead you to each features website

KATARINA CARLSSON
Location: Stockholm, Sweden Website: http://distractionsbymyling.typepad.com/my_weblog/ http://flickr.com/photos/myling What sparked your interest in balljointed dolls? And how did you develop your skills as a doll maker? I think it was the ability to pose these dolls that interested me at first. I remember being fascinated by the way they looked, that the joints were so visible and yet so integrated into the look of the doll. I think my interest in making dolls comes from wanting to realize characters that I have in my head - to make them real, to make a three dimensional version of them in the physical world that I can pose, dress and use as a model for drawings, paintings, stories.

I have always been very drawn to sculpting and I have made dolls or little creatures for as long as I can remember. For a long time I was disappointed in the materials available to me - I never liked polymer clays, never liked the way paint behaved on these kinds of clays or the fact that you have to bake them in the oven. Then I used paper clay and loved it, the way you can shape it and add more or carve it. I discovered porcelain and I was fascinated with this material, too - the way you work with it, the different stages it goes through. I think working with these materials has done a lot for my doll making - I just love the work process. I also think that I learnt to be very patient and stubborn when

working with porcelain especially, and I think that has rubbed of on my sculpting, I never rush when I make a new doll - I work until Im entirely happy with it. I never took any doll making classes or anything, and I only had some very basic sculpture classes. I dont remember learning that much in any sculpture class - I really learnt more on my own, trying things I was interested in. What is it that draws you to dolls? I dont remember playing with dolls that much as a child, but I remember being very fascinated with miniatures - dolls houses, toy theaters and so on.

I guess I became more interested in dolls as I grew up. I think Im drawn to the craft of making the doll and all of its accessories, the incredible skill behind a perfectly tailored miniature dress and the time spent on making it, as well as being drawn to dolls as tools for imaginary characters and narratives. What inspires you as a doll maker? As an artist in general? I love to look at other artists work in progress photos - I think because I like to see how something is made, whether its a doll or an illustration or some other object - I want to see the materials, the different textures, the way someone shaped it or drew it...I also get very inspired by looking at photos of works paces - I dont know how many workspace/desk-groups that I am a member of on flickr! Also wandering around art supply stores and fabric shops gets me going. I especially love looking at different kinds of paper, sketchbooks and pens. I often buy a new pen or sketchbook if I feel uninspired or bored, so I have quite a stash by now! Another thing I have a stash of, or a collection really, is how to books on painting, drawing, sewing... Some of these books are very silly, but I love them nonetheless and I often have a huge pile of these books by my bed. Who are some of the doll makers you admire? French artist Lillycat, she makes dolls under the name Cerisedolls - I adore her dolls and illustrations. Her creations are so beautiful and unconventional, she has

a very unique style and expression. I get very inspired when I see Lillycats dolls, she really makes me want to try new things. I also really like Koitsukihimes dolls - they are just stunning. Whats the most challenging part of your process? What part of the process do you like best? My favourite part of the process has to be the when I first start sculpting something - when the idea for the doll or character is all new and all I have are images in my head or rushed sketches, and then start working with just a lump of clay. I love seeing things take shape, it feels like magic! The most challenging part of the process is finishing the prototype doll and making molds from it. But at the same time this is very comfortable work, very repetitive, which leaves me free to dream up new things in my mind. Do you sell or exhibit your dolls? I started selling dolls a few months ago. Im taking it very slow and have only had a few dolls for sale as its all new to me. What are your goals and aspirations as a crafter? I really want to be able to spend more time on my craft, to get to do what I love, to try new materials and develop new ideas.

JOAQUIMA CASAS BO
Location: Athens, Greece Website: http://etsy.com/shop/KupKup, http://kupkup-land.blogspot.com/ What is the story behind your KupKup set? Kup Kup Land is the name of the land where Kup Kup lives. Kup Kup is a little man who likes rambling around to find treasures. When I was thinking of the name of the character I asked my son (he was 3 at the time) how I should name it and he answered: Kup Kup, which is how we call his small blanket that he uses every day to sleep since he was a baby. How would you describe your work? I always loved to draw, paint, I have studied graphic design and illustration in Barcelona many years ago..but as it happens many times, one ends up working in completely different things. I started to play with fabrics, buttons, sewing and I discovered felt! A fantastic material with which you can create a lot of thinks from illustration to many interesting projects. I have always had special interest in all

handmade, but I am self taught. I did not learn the things I do in a particular place. I have been experimenting always with new ideas. What are the materials you often find yourself using? I love cut and paste!! Sewing by hand and machine, embroidery, draw. I try to combine all these elements. I like to experiment with all sorts of materials but without doubt felt is my favourite one: I like to combine it with fabric and other materials paper, wool... How would you describe the overall look of your craft? My style is kind of pop and baroque at the same time -- at times I try to make

things more minimal but the result never satisfied me so far -- so I guess thats what defines me better. What is the most challenging piece youve ever created? Im having so much fun with my new collage series, and also I enjoy a lot with my sceneries of Kup Kup Land, I love designing pincushions. The scenery idea came from the illustrations of the character Kup Kup and his friends. I thought of passing these characters to a tri-dimesional world and the pincushions just suited very fine for this scope: they are a fantastic object in order to re-create miniature situations and there are many possibilities by playing around with fabrics, felt and beads. I have a great time creating it.

What is your biggest inspiration as a crafter? My inspiration comes from the materials themselves, the fabrics, the colors the drawings and the ornaments etc. The materials make me visualize the idea I have for a creation. I am fond of most Japanese styles in craft making as I am of comics, illustration books for children, nature and life itself. My favorite part of creating is the design stage then taking that idea and turning it into something tangible. I always carry around my Moleskine notebook in which I doodle when ever an idea hits me.

My inspiration comes from the most unexpected places and many of my creations come into my mind during the manufacture of other pieces. Do you sell your crafts and art? Where can we find your work? Yes, You can find my work in my Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/KupKup. What are your goals as a creative individual? Dont give up and be open to trying new things. Be patient and dont ever get discouraged.

JACQUELINE ROBERTS
Website: http://jacquelineroberts.net, http://flickr.com/photos/jacqueline_roberts/ How did you get your start as a photographer? I always liked art in all forms and shapes but never considered it as a serious professional option. I am a self-taught photographer, and like many, I started with my fathers old Kodak camera when I was in my teens. Fast forward 20 years and I got myself a Nikon D80 to take pictures of the kids. I started taking their portrait...and that was it. There was no turning back. Your photographs have an ethereal quality to it that reminds me of classical paintings. How would you describe the look of your work? It is difficult to describe what I do; for me it is easier to just do it. But I like portraits with deep tones, rich colours, and with a certain formality regarding composition and pose... this is what I try to reflect with my photography. I see that many of your photos are children. What draws you to them as a photographer? I started like many other parents, wanting to document my childrens childhood. As I observed them, I tried to detach myself from all preconceived ideas and cliches we

have on children and chose instead to portray them as I saw and experienced childhood, whether theirs or my own. I wanted to include both daydreaming and tears, emotions and snots, conceptual representations as well as life-bites. I tend to distant myself from this one dimensional perception of children as cute innocent creatures; rather, I love their rawness, their dignity, their self-unconsciousness, their uncompromising ability to be as they are, their endearing fragility along with their compelling determination.

Who would you say are your influences and inspirations? There are many photographers whose work I love and admire. I could mention Sally Mann, Jan Saudek, Richard Avedon, Jock Sturges, Julia Margaret Cameron, Joyce Tenneson, Rineke Djkstra o Helen van Meele...but by all means, for me the Old Masters remain the Masters... What are some of your favourite photos in your portfolio? My favourite photo is usually the last one...until I move to the next one. Do you work primarily on commissioned portraiture or editorials? I do some editorial work (book and magazine covers) and I am now starting to take commissioned portraiture...so I look very much forward to work with different models. What are some of the projects that you are currently working on? Do you have any upcoming shows? I am in the process of setting up my photography studio... in the meantime, ideas come and go, but I am working on a series called Ever after... on mundane episodes in the life of a child. I am also starting to explore wet plate collodion photography, a 19th century photographic process using glass negatives...which is ultimately the technique I want to use for my work.

AUDREY JEANNE
Location: Caen, France Website: http://audreyjeanne.blogspot.com/, http://audreyjeanne.bigcartel.com/ What sparked your interest in craft? My first interest was in art. The emotion that I could felt in front of a drawing by Picasso was a revelation to me. Myself, I always felt the need to draw. It make me feel happy. My interest in craft appeared later and gradually, discovering the Bauhaus movement for example. I like to make life more beautiful and attractive and I think craft can contribute to make this possible. What are the things that you usually make? And what materials do you usually use to create your products? I use mostly pencils, paper and my computer. My drawings are made with pencil on a blank paper. I scan them and then I make improvements to my drawings. I add small touches of color, patterns or other details with my computer. Then, I reproduce my drawings on different objects such as postcards, badges, pocket mirrors or bags. Are you a full time crafter? I am not a workaholic, I need time to daydream. But even when I dont create, Im always gathering inspiration. In that way I am a full time crafter. I dont think

you can be an artist from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you are an artist, you are an artist all the time. Even when you watching TV or when you go shopping at the supermarket. I love your sweet little characters. What inspired them? I always liked the little characters. I am an only child and when I was a child, I surrounded myself with a lot of plushes or various figurines to avoid being alone. I think the little characters that I draw today are a remnant of that. How would you describe to us the overall look of your craft? I dont know why but Ive never been good at describing my artwork. I would say my craft is minimalist, in sweet tones, perhaps poetic, sometimes childish. And I hope touching. Where do you sell your products? I sell my products in my online shop and in several shops all around the world. To name a few : Renegade Handmade (http://renegadehandmade.com/) Les fleurs (http://boutiquelesfleurs.typepad. com/les_fleurs_la_boutique/) Little circus (http://littlecircus-shop.com/) Petit Deco (http://petitdeco.shop-pro.jp/) Galerie Doux Dimanche (http://2dimanche. com/) Mm (http://mumboutique.canalblog.com/) What are your goals as a crafter and small business owner? First, I would have quickly my website. Secondly, I would like make drawings for other items such as rubber stamps, metal boxes, patterns for fabric or dishes.

Then, I want to maintain the desire to create and ensure that inspiration does not dry up. Finally, I wish earn enough money to live off my work. Who are some of your favourite crafters, designers and artists? My tastes evolve but there are some artists who rest important to me : Pablo Picasso because he was the first, David Hockney, Silvia Bchli, cute characters from Yoshitomo Nara, the discrete strangeness of certain artworks by Camilla Engman, Min Perhonen for its textiles as beautiful as paintings, Banana Yoshimoto and Haruki Murakami for their stories

which transport me. And many others who are different every day.

ANNA N.
Location: Moscow, Russia Website: http:// flickr.com/photos/27241019@N04/, http:// diary.ru/~magic09/ What is your most favourite among your dolls and toys? My favorite doll is my Blythe doll Tobermori. Shes named after the cat in the Nocturna movie. I love her to bits and just cant imagine we can ever part. And among my handmade dolls I love Sleepy Mouse Girl most for her permanent dreaming. What is it about dolls that you like? My fav dolls are the ones that can make you believe they are alive, not only in the photo, cause picture cant show you the dolls soul. It can only show the soul of the photographer, but there are dolls that are alive in the real life too, some antique dolls, handmade toys or customized dolls. I mean when they are filled with the emotion of their creator, they are unique in their own way. You have such a great eye for photographs, and your dolls are styled so well. What would you say are your influences as a crafter and as a photographer? Thank you for the compliment! Well, I felt like doing something with my hands since childhood and I think that every book or picture I saw and liked had some influence. But still I think that most important are books by Gianni Rodari, Ernest Seton-Thompson, Lewis Carroll and Julio Cortazar. Who are some of the artists and crafters you admire? I really love works of Chris Sickels (Red Nose Studio), Vladlena Sheveleva (bellz), Vera Torohova (ligreego), ElifKarakoc, reneefrench, on flickr: Ragazza, Evangelione, Makidra, Maries Garden, addio.lula, Lenaah, Super Ninon, Paola Zakimi and a lot of other amazing artists who inspire me. I just cant name them all. Outside of flickr and the online world, what is it that you do? I make toys, customize dolls and study economics. Im a very timid and boring girl. What inspires you as a creative individual? It can be anything: a beautiful person in the street, a movie or new book, photos and dolls from my fave artists.

WANDA KUJACZ
Location: Enghien-les-bains, France Website: http://flickr.com/photos/--wanda-kujacz--/

How did you get your start as an artist/ photographer ? It took some time but it did!

Do you make your living as an artist ? It begins.

How would describe your work ? Hard ! I think it would be the same answer The problem is that I used to be a very good pupil and student when I was young- if you asked me who are you ? Because my work takes as many different ways as er, so that every body encouraged me to become a prime minister or an engineer, I can feel in a week, in a day or in a minute!!!! and it blinded me...But we cant lie a life long to ourself. I couldnt and one day, quite suddenly, I stopped my brilliant and My work is sometimes funny when I make promising studies to enter a Parisian Mov- huge multicoloured sculptures in paper maie School, and I was happy. I wrote stories ch. It can become darker with black and white moody pictures...I dont ask to my and directed short films. Some traveled all around the world through international self what are you going to do as a picture today ? I do it. I do it as I feel, as I really festivals and were prized. feel that Im working like Im breathing.

What are the tools that you use to generate your images ? Technically my cameras, my computers, my pencils, and above all, like every body, my past, my background, essentially when I was a little girl, I grown up near Paris with my polish eccentric grandma. She never met Reality. What inspires you as an artist ? The moods I feel, music, colours. Who are some of the creative individuals you admire ? Karl Lagerfeld. I admire his sensibility, his competencies, his personality, and he makes me laugh!

Outside of art and photography, what do you do ? Well I have a life with my 11 years old daughter, who sometimes accepts to be my model, and my husband. What interests you ? Music, image, watching and listening to people creating. What are your goals as a creative person? To feel free when I create a piece. I mean to get ride of what has already been seen, to get ride of fashion, to get rid of what I know, to get rid of my fears, and to go always farther in my world.

FEATURED BLOG:

THE LONG THREAD

Name: Ellen Luckett Baker Location: Atlanta, GA USA Website: http://thelongthread.com

When and why did you start blogging about craft? I started my blog over two years ago in an effort to promote my machine embroidery business. I never felt passionately about my business, but enjoyed writing the blog far more. Who are some of the crafters or artists who inspire you? Oh, there are so many. I was first inspired to sew by an article I read years ago about Denyse Schmidt in Martha Stewart Living. I didnt get a sewing machine for another 5 years and still dont make quilts as much as Id like, but her powerful combination of modern and handmade left an indelible impression on me. Soon after that, I discovered the quilts of Gees Bend, which were

created not far from my home town in Alabama. What is your most favourite craft project(s)? Sewing, definitely. Ive become more interested in fabric dyeing techniques, printmaking and hand embroidery. Im hoping to work more with quilting in the next few years. With a growing readership base, what are some of your favourite and least favourite aspects of being a blogger? Putting myself out there is still a challenge for me. I tend to have a less personal blog than most other crafters, but I feel a need to maintain some privacy.

As a crafter, what are your most favourite materials to work with? Lately Ive been buying vintage sheets for projects. Maybe its because spring is finally here, but I love the bright colors and bold floral prints. Name some of your favourite blogs or websites. I dont have any individual blogs that I consistently follow, but when I have time, I check in with Maya Made, Angry Chicken, Bloesem Kids, Posie Gets Cozy and CraftyPod, among others. I do visit Craftzine and Etsy just about every day. Aside from craft, what are some of your other interests? I am wrapping up a sewing book for Chronicle

Books that will be out next year, so the book and my children have been my exclusive interests over the past few months. Im boring. What are some of your favourite online resources? I love The Purl Bee, Design Sponge and The Crafty Crow, who never let me down by providing loads of wonderful project ideas. How do you see your blog evolving? I plan to make some changes this summer and I assume that Ill be making more changes as my book comes out next year. Right now I link to lots of other tutorials, which I think people enjoy, but Id like to consolidate those and focus on my own tutorials.

TOSHIYA WATANABE

Location: Tokyo, Japan Website: http://flickr.com/photos/toshiya-w/

AFSANEH TAJVIDI

Location: Toronto, Canada Website: http://joojoo.me, http:// joojooland.etsy.com

AMY EARLES
Location: Evansville, USA Website: http://pushedunder.com, http://woolandwater.etsy.com

MELISSA NUCERA

Location: Ambler, Pennsylvania, USA Website: http://ThisYearsGirl.Etsy.com, http://JanuaryWish.com

MAI MCKEMY

Location: Asheville, North Carolina Website: http://woodlandbelle.etsy.com, http://woodlandbelle.com

MARIA
Location: Madrid, Spain Website: http://caprichin-chocolatcake.blogspot.com/, http:// flickr.com/photos/chocolatcake/

JESS QUINN
Location: Bristol, England Website: http://twistedyarn.typepad.com, http://quinnknits.etsy.com

PARASOL

s BRITEX FABRICS

Address: 146 Geary St. San Francisco, CA 94108 Phone: 415.392.2910 Website: britexfabrics.com, shopbritexnotions.com, blog.britexfabrics.com Located in one of San Franciscos business shopping districts, Britex Fabrics carries an AMAZING selection of fabrics, notions, trims and more. Established in 1952 and spans 4 floors of crafty amazingness, Britex is definitely a must-see for crafters, hobbyists and designers.

THIS IS WHAT YOU SEE WHEN YOU ENTER.

A WALL OF BUTTONS!

TRIMS!

LOTS OF FABRIC!

DOWNLOAD: 12X12

Spring Garden

Kit by: Yasmine Surovec Resident Crafter: Christy Amular Website: http://sweettidings.blogspot.com, http://sweettidings.etsy.com

SCRAPBOOK CARD

A great mix and match cardmaking project to celebrate Spring and Mothers Day! Materials: Board paper Digital files: tiny butterflies, geo, mini dots Butterfly template (free templates available on the web) Paper cutter Double sided tape Bone folder Hot glue Glitter jewels Painted wooden flowers (handmade or purchased) Colored raffia twine

Directions: 1 Print digital files on board paper. 2. Cut tiny butterflies paper into 10 inches x 7 inches size. Fold into half using bone folder. 3. Cut geo/mini dots paper into 1.75 inches x 5 inches size. 4. Assemble and lay-out materials using double sided tape of hot glue. 5. Embellish card with hand cut butterfly and other scrapbook embellishments.

BUTTON ORGANIZER

We cant get enough of ric rac! This is a cute way to store and organize your button stash. Also a wonderful gift giving idea for crafty friends! Materials: Board paper Digital files: ric rac Rubber stamp alphabet set Stamp ink Buttons Double sided tape, cut into inch squares Directions: 1. Print ric rac digital file on sturdy board paper. 2. Cut printed board paper into 4 x 4 sized cards. 3. Hand stamp desired title on button cards. 4. Segregate button stash by color/design and attach buttons to button card using double sided tape.

MINI JOURNAL NOTEBOOK COVER

Add a splash of spring beauty to plain notebooks and journals with this easy and chic project. Also a great gift giving idea! Materials: Tracing paper, 92 gsm, letter size Scissors Digital files: cream flowers Colored printer Green leather strip White bond paper Double sided tape, transparent tape Blank journal/notebook approx 5 inches x 7 inches size Directions: 1. Print cream flowers digital file on letter sized tracing paper. 2. Neatly cover plain notebook or journal with white bond paper. Secure flaps with transparent tape or double sided tape. 3. Cover the notebook with the cream flower tracing paper. Neatly secure sides with double sided tape. 4. Tie leather strip around the book/ notebook. You may adjust the length of the leather strip as desired. You may add leather tassels or other embellishments as you wish.

COOKIE TOPPERS

Heres a cute bake and craft project using Parasol + Craft Issue # 3 exclusive paper downloads. Its cute way to package baked goodies for holiday, birthday and special occasions. Materials: Dots digital files Cello plastic Double sided tape Scissors or cutter Sturdy board paper Directions: 1. Bake cookies or your choice. 2. Print 12x12 minidots2 files on sturdy board paper. 3. Place cooled cookies inside a cello sleeve (cello sleeves of various sizes are available on ETSY). 4. Measure the top width of the cello sleeve. Machine or handcut printed board paper to fit the top width of cello sleeve. Fold using bone folder. 5. Apply double sided tape on the insides of the cello topper flaps. Never use stapler wire when packaging baked goods. 6. Fold cello topper neatly in place. You may decorate your dotted cookie favor packages with handmade stickers, tags or bakers twine. Enjoy!

NEAT IDEA! HAND-DRAWN TOTES

Project by: Yasmine Surovec

Screenprinting, appliques, embroideries--how else can we personalize a plain canvas tote? One of the art materials I always keep on hand is a black, fine point marker. For this project, I could have used a fabric marker. But Ive drawn on fabric using permanent markers before and theyve turned out fine. I do think that depending on what fabric you use, regular markers may bleed a bit. But for a nice, sturdy canvas tote, my marker inks did not bleed and the lines were nice and clean. This isnt necessarily printmaking as you are hand-drawing the image on. Personally, I love hand-drawn things as they are unique.

Some tips when drawing on fabric: Option 1.) For my example, I just drew directly on the fabric. Id practiced several times on scrap paper until my hand was warmed up and I was ready to draw the design on the blank tote (which I'd purchased at a craft store). Option 2.) If you have a graphic in mind, print it out as a nice crisp black and white image-kind of like what youd do using a graphic for screenprinting. Once printed, using a soft lead pencil, generously shade the black parts. When done, place the part of the paper where the image has been shaded facing the fabric. Using a spoon, rub the back side of the drawing hard enough so that some of the lead from the shaded parts of the drawing is transferred on the fabric. Once done, trace the shaded parts with a fabric or permanent marker. After you are done drawing, iron over it. This will help with the permanency of the image. And you are done! Yay!

GIVEAWAY!
Oh my goodness! This issues giveaway is a...

$100.00
Gift Certificate from

Fred Flare!

To enter, email us at: editor@parasolmag.com with the secret code on the subject line. We will pick one winner and announce it on parasolmag.com and aprintaday.blogspot.com on May 15, 2010!

SECRET CODE: UNICORNDREAM

WE
1

BOOKS!
2

1. Hand Dyeing, Yarn & Fleece, Gail Callahan, 2. One Yard Wonders, Rebecca Yaker 3. The Handmade Marketplace, Kari Chapin 4. An Illustrated Life, Danny Gregory 5. A Dollmakers Art: The Creations Of Nancy Wiley, Louise Fecher 6. Birthing the Elephant, Karin Abarbanel, 7. Keys to Drawing, Bert Dodson, 8. Designing the Doll, Susanna Oroyan

If you Craft, Youll ParasolCraft! Click on each image to preview!

ART & ILLUSTRATION PROJECTS & TUTORIALS DIGITAL DOWNLOADS aprintaday.blogspot.com

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B R U S H E S
To upload in Photoshop, go to WINDOW + BRUSHES + LOAD BRUSHES + SELECT BRUSHES.abr And its ready to use!

ONE ON ONE
Part 1: Finding Your Creative Self
When I was about 8 years old, I knew that I wanted to be an artist and fortunately, my parents were very encouraging of this. Instead of a lemonade stand, my mom propped a table for me in front of my grandmothers house where I could sell my drawings for what would be equivalent to about 25 cents. I remember it being hot and humid and felt that maybe selling drawings was not the best idea. But later in the day, Mrs. Beltran, our elderly neighbor who lived at the end of the dead end street, fumbled through my drawings and asked, Would you like to paint a picture of Mr. Beltran and I for his birthday? Not knowing what to say, I ran inside the house to tell my mom and she told me to run back out to say yes! This was my first commissioned piece. For 50 cents, I painted our neighbors portraits using my aunts leftover poster paint. She was a visual communications major at the time and had a lot of paper and paint on hand. Once dried, I proudly walked towards the Beltrans home, rang the bell and I was greeted by the Mrs. Im going to frame this! she exclaimed. She gave me my 50 cents and let me pick star fruits from the tree behind her little house. I was so ecstatic by the fact that someone was willing to pay me to do something I absolutely loved and knew at that point what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Now, I know that this is very elementary, and as grown ups, life is a wee bit more complicated than what I just described. As we grow older, we carry a bit more baggage, more preconceived notions, more factors such as debt, taxes, mortgages, relationships, the ups and downs of the economy, competition...fear. And sometimes, we end up doing things we dont always necessarily like to make ends meet. When this happens, I believe its important to set aside a bit of time for yourself to explore the things that you love. We arent robots--were humans. And as humans, we are naturally creative. We have needs, desires and emotions. In my case, Ive always worked as either a freelance or in-house designer or illustrator

for major companies. Ive also shown at galleries and public spaces, but design and illustration has been my bread and butter. But while my career may be perceived as fun and creative, like anything, it can also be draining. Its still a job after all, and I often found myself burnt out. Being creative on demand, and on someone elses time and dime can be a bit much especially when you have expectations to beat, budgets to meet, and numerous people to please. And these arent just colleagues. These include customers--people such as yourselves! So at the end of the day, what do I do? I take out a skinny binder of scrap paper, and I draw. I write. And I do so without caring about what anyone has to say because this book is just for me. I draw and write whatever my heart tells me to. And let me tell you, my journals are what kept me sane and inspired. But aside from my paper journals, Ive always kept a blog around after college. Its allowed me to share a few of my pieces with friends, family and people Ive met online. Viewing was limited at the time as my blog was private. But it wasnt til I made my blog public and started sharing my work that I started to meet so many supportive and generous people. Opportunities started to knock from companies wanting to purchase my designs to licensing inquiries to more freelance work. I realized that in order to grow in my creative career, I had to share a bit of myself. Even with cost factors, market studies and trend reports, people can still appreciate work that comes from the heart. Yes, it sounds corny, but let me tell you, there is nothing more satisfying than being appreciated for doing something that you love--whatever that may be. And somewhere inside me, my 8-year old self is telling me that Im doing an pretty good job. Now, here are some tips that have worked for me: Make time for yourself. Give yourself an inspiration day. Dont just look at blogs and magazines. Go out. Do things you wouldnt necessarily always do. Read things that you wouldnt necessarily always read. Observe the world around you. The world isnt very pleasant all the time, but its still beautiful and inspiration abounds from the tiniest crack on the street to the lady trying on lipstick at a WalGreens to the mountains or buildings that embrace the landscape...The world around you is actually quite amazing! We are best inspired when the mind is refreshed and stimulated! Keep a journal. It can be an old notebook or a binder with loose paper. Anything that you can afford. Write or draw about what you see or hear or smell or touch. What is it that appeals to your senses? What is it that excites you? Is it that vintage dress youve been eyeing at the thrift store? Is it the scent of freshly baked cinnamon rolls from your neighborhood bakery? Is it that attractive person who sits across from you at the 8:15 bus? Once youve figured this out, write or draw about it. Your grammar doesnt have to be perfect. Your lines dont have to be perfect either. Its all about you.

Be around people who are passionate. It is easier to be enthusiastic about life when you are around people who love what they do and are enthusiastic about it. This is whats great about creative communities both online and in real life. Its great when you find people who are excited about being creative and are generous about sharing their knowledge and work. I find this to be very inspiring and personally, I can only hope that I am able to share the same enthusiasm and passion with others. This may not always apply, but as someone who is in the creative industry, I think that it is important to make decisions based on the things you love, rather than that things you think would make you money. Great things always come when you are passionate about what youre working on. And based on experience, satisfaction always follow when you are true to yourself and your work. Dont be afraid of criticism. Dont be afraid of failing. Treat all obstacles as a learning experience and free yourself of all preconceived notions of how certain things should be done. Some of my best work comes from not worrying about what others think. Yes, its good to listen to constructive criticism. Its part of the learning process. But the most important person who you should listen to is yourself.

Photograph by Victor Surovec

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Photograph by Victor Surovec