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Grad Gift Ideas

January 20, 2021 by Jennifer Simoni Leave a Comment

Graduating from college is a big event in one’s life. At the time it’s happening you realize it’s important, but it’s not till 10-15 years down the line do you fully appreciate what was being left behind, and what opportunities and life experiences you have ahead of you. And just like no two college experiences are exactly the same, neither are the grads, and the gifts you give them to celebrate the special event should showcase who they are now, and what they want to be when they grow up.

Many grads take the ‘summer off’ and travel. Whether its backpacking through Europe, driving cross-country, or volunteering in Africa, your grad will love this travel journal to record all the once-in-a-lifetime experiences they’re about to have.

Less sentimental, and more practical is this passport cover. It’s an easy and organized way to help them keep track of perhaps the single most important thing accompanying them on their trip.

Maybe your grad isn’t taking any time off and is going straight into the real world–suit, office, commuting and all. If that’s the case, an inspirational coffee mug to get their day started right is something they’ll use daily. This one can be customized with any text you want, the grad’s name, inspirational quote, or even an inside joke.

Get your grad in the habit of sending handwritten notes. A personal, monogrammed note card set like this simple, sophisticated one can be used for any occasion, including thanking a potential employer for an interview.

Of course, jewelry is a big hit with most grads. Make it special by personalizing it with her name, graduation date, or birthstone. This necklace can house all three in a charm-like design.

Whatever your grad does or doesn’t do after college, be sure to praise them for how far they’ve come. It’s an accomplishment worth savoring before continuing the ride.

Photographic Collages by Matthew Parker

January 19, 2021 by Valerie Williams 3 Comments

Matthew Parker is a photographer with a distinctive point of view, and an incredibly unusual technique for sharing that point of view. He makes photographic collages, but don’t let the word “collage” let you think of chopped up, scattered, and randomly pasted-together images. Matthew’s photographic collages take the same time, planning, and critical decision making that any master painting would take.

Each collage starts out as a sketch. As a trained architect, Matthew is drawn to objects in the built environment, and how structures interact with their space. After sketching out how he would like his subject to appear, the camera comes out. Instead of chopping up photographs to create the individual collage elements, each piece is actually a single, complete, unaltered photograph, which was deliberately framed and angled to follow the lines of Matthew’s original sketch.

In addition to viewing his subjects through multiple angles, Matthew’s collages also add an element of time. The collages are made up of multiple photographs – more than thirty, sometimes approaching one hundred separate images – but they also span multiple time periods. Sometimes the photographs are taken over the course of a single day, or a time span of several hours. Some of the collages include images from several different months or years – all taken from the same spot, and all of the same subject.

Adding the element of time allows Matthew to portray how moods and atmosphere change over the time of day, or seasons of the year. The variations in the images allow the viewer to experience the subject in a way that a single photograph (or even a real-life visit) never could. Matthew’s collages are a totally unique way to understand and experience a subject.

Because of his background in architecture, Matthew is very drawn to the abundance of beautiful buildings in Washington DC. But one of his favorite subjects is the cherry blossoms, because the look of the blossoms change so dramatically in different light. Additionally, images of crowds are another favorite subject. People are never static, and multiple images layered on top of each other really help the viewer to feel like they are actually part of the crowd.

Matthew’s customers also love images of the cherry blossoms, probably for the same reasons he does, but also because they are such an iconic symbol of Washington, DC. If you see one you like, you need to act fast, because all the prints are limited edition, and won’t be available forever. New collages are always being planned, but there is no set schedule on when new ones will be introduced. After all, it could take years to capture all the necessary images!

Matthew is currently working on a collage of the tidal basin that has already been three years in the making. It’s not hard to imagine the difficulty of capturing the cherry blossoms during their notoriously short lifespan, and finding and maintaining the exact spot in the tidal basin days, months or years apart!

There are plenty of amazing collages in his current collection, depicting beautiful scenes of Washington DC as well as other cities. He’s even open to suggestions for new collages. If you have an idea, drop him a line and let him know!

You can see all of Matthew’s work at his online gallery, as well as purchase prints in various sizes from his online store, or from the National Building Museum shop. Also, you can visit Matthew’s web site to find him at fine art and craft shows in the DC area.

Jane Bonbon

January 13, 2021 by Erika Jurney 2 Comments

I’m a full-time vancouver plus size fashion designer, though I do seem to be making more and more things for smaller girls too lately ! Currently, my clothes (sizes 4-22) sell at Planet Claire in vancouver (212 Abbott st. in gastown) Each piece is handmade by me! <3 Jane Bonbon

Red Table Press

January 12, 2021 by Valerie Williams 1 Comment

I first came upon Mike O’Brien’s work at the Fenton Street Market, where a poster of his caught my eye. It was all black and white and a bold sunset orange. As is typical for me, I was drawn to the colors long before I even noticed what the images were or what the text said.

Turns out it was a poster for a concert, and although I was unfamiliar with the band, the first thought that popped into my head (after “wow, what a gorgeous orange”) was: I haven’t been to the Black Cat in a really long time.

Not only was it obvious that Mike had a great eye for color, it was also clear he’s really into music. A lot of Mike’s artwork is for concerts, bands, and musicians, and his love for music is evident in the energy of his illustrations. He loves the DC music scene and is inspired by punk rock and its DIY mentality, and it really shows, to spectacular effect.

Mike is a graphic designer with a passion for screen printing. Although he studied journalism in college, he was secretly much more interested in drawing comics for the school paper than writing articles.

After figuring out his true calling was in illustration rather than in writing, Mike found himself intrigued by the process of screen printing. His natural DIY spirit led him to experiment on his own, with zero background knowledge on screen printing, which (as anyone with a DIY spirit is familiar with) led to mixed results.

Mike eventually began collaborating with a friend Kevin Gomes, a much more experienced screen printer, who was happy to show Mike the ropes and the finer points of the process. Mike fell completely in love with screen printing, so much so that he built his own equipment! And the rest, as they say, is history.

Technically, screen printing is still Mike’s hobby and graphic design his job, but the two are so closely related for him that the lines blur quite a bit. “Graphic design is the organizational aspect of illustration – ie figuring out where to put what,” he explains. “Illustration is the raw creative aspect of graphic design – developing the imagery that then gets organized.”

Whenever he is able, Mike is creating images and using his home screen printing studio to replicate them by hand, in what he calls “an exercise in patience and tactile precision.” Although both his illustrations and his graphic design work start out as sketches in a notepad, his illustration work keeps him “grounded in the analog world.”

Visit Mike’s website to purchase his artwork, and to find out where to find him at DC area art events.

Picnic Time!

January 9, 2021 by Ellie Thouret 2 Comments

Last weekend was the end-of-summer Bank Holiday in England and school will be starting again soon. There’s still time for a picnic though (weather permitting)! I’ve put together this product showcase full of unique handmade items to make up the perfect picnic.

Spread the word about your picnic with this adorable invitation design from Paperslice. The design is customized just for you and conveniently sent via email so that you can print as many or as few invites as you need!

Why not have a breakfast picnic featuring this gorgeous “Menage a Trois” marmalade? Lyn of Marmalady has been making marmalade for years and selling at farmers’ markets as well as online. Lyn explained that the combination of Seville oranges, lemons and grapefruit is very popular as it blends the sharpness of traditional marmalade with a touch of sweetness. When renaming her products a couple of years ago, Lyn wanted to move away from bland descriptive names, so her “Three Fruit Marmalade” became “Menage a Trois” as it is the perfect marriage of three fruits!

You’ll need something pretty to sit on, of course! Instead of the traditional blanket, spread out a pretty tablecloth like this one by Ellen from Tuwhittuwhoo. The Betty Brown tablecloth was inspired by a vintage charity shop (thrift store) find. Ellen especially loves how each of her tablecloths looks so different with a change of colour and fabric pattern.

Cupcakes are essential picnic food and these sweet EAT ME cake toppers by Rowena from Crafty Pagan Design would be a great decoration! Just like me, Rowena was caught up in Alice-in-Wonderland mania and was searching to create new items that could work well for lots of occasions whilst still having a touch of whimsy to them. The cake toppers have been used in Alice in Wonderland weddings, birthday parties, book club meetings and bridal and baby showers. The toppers are fully customizable.

In England, bad weather can often ruin even the most well-planned picnic. If rain should occur, don’t fret! Move your picnic inside and decorate with bunting and food-themed artwork. The inspiration for the ‘American Foods’ picture (top) began when Kitty put a print up on Etsy of an illustration she had made with all her favourite foods, which were mainly hearty English dishes! Kitty was then asked if she could make a similar illustration but with lots of American foods, and here is the result. Kitty is now planning to explore some different countries’ edible delights too!

Heidi started making bunting earlier this year for fun and relaxation and her boyfriend Will came up with the perfect name for her new line: Good Will Bunting! Heidi decided to develop a small range and sell it through her Etsy shop, which focuses mainly on fine art prints. At the time she was preparing for a summer holiday to New York with friends and decided to make Stars, Stripes and Denim bunting as a tribute to our friends in the US and their Independence Day celebrations.

Have you peppered your picnic with handmade delights? Share your links here!