Bumps on a quarter.

Fabric. I love it. I love designing it. I knew I would, but I didn't realize how much! It's like illustrating a book, only without words and there aren't any borders on the page. And instead of following a narrative storyline, I'm focusing on a feeling with color and design. So...ok. I guess they are totally different. But it's been so refreshing to learn the ropes. It's addicting! I just can't stop!

This design sketch didn't end up working with my spring line, but it makes me so happy. I called it "special treasures." I was thinking about when I was small, and all the things I'd pick up off the floor that somehow made me so happy to find. Little things. Little things big people forgot about, didn't need, or didn't see. But I did. And they became my special things. A fallen feather, pieces of jewlery, bobby pins (I had an obsession with those when I was 4) and safety pins. All these things had such remarkable textures and colors when you look at them up close. I remember being particularly in love with the little bumps on the side of quarters and dimes. Did you know that Pennies and nickles don't have bumpy sides? Have you ever noticed?  To my 5 year old fingers, clicking the bumpy side of a dime with fingernail made such a wonderful sound. My mom could tell you stories.

So, this is a little ditty I came up with. Maybe I'll have a chance to use it soon...but for now, it makes me happy to just reflect on the way my mind captured the world when I was 2 feet tall, and closer to the ground then big people. Reminds me to notice those little things. Like bumps on a quarter. Which really, doesn't that just brings a smile to your face thinking about it?

P.S. don't forget: 2011 Calendars are 50% off in the shop!

Monday, Monday.

So, I've looked through  my blog posts as of late, and I realized two things: This blog isn't sporting much photography or art lately!

Which is really ironic, because all I do is spend time with my children all day, and in evenings, all I do is design and illustrate!  But then I remembered:

1) My camera is dying. Yes. A slow miserable death. And a replacement is not in the picture right now...well, the camera that I have been trying to save up for at least. So, thus the lack of photography. It pains me, because I really love taking pictures.  And it's Christmas! It's very sad. I've got to fix that problem, and soon!

2) I've been illustrating up a storm, but nothing I am illustrating and designing I can show you! I hate that I have to be so secretive. But it's part of the job.  I've been busy busy getting fabric designs finished, and working on other book ideas, etc. My sketchbooks are full to the brim! But I found a little snippet that showed up in my sketchbook a few pages back. Balloons are on my mind right now.

Well, happy monday, and I'm back to drawing, drawing, drawing! Oh, and there are some great giveaways this week...so stay tuned!

xo

sarah

Winter Paper Dolls!

O Frabjous Day! Callooh, Callay!

Yes, I have new paper dolls! This only took, oh like  year....but I think you'll love them!

There is enough for each little paper doll to have their own little story: Playing Santa, playing in the snow, Christmas Caroling and even something as wonderful as bringing a winter pet home from the woods.

There are PDF and paper versions available! So either perfect for stocking stuffing, or print your own so you can let the kids rip them up without worry.

There are more coming...I really hope! But in the mean time this is what we are playing with at our house:)

enjoy!

The Sarah Jane Story Part II: Finding my Voice

(pencil drawing, age 10)

The past few months I have actually been rather pensive as I've looked back on the journey I've been on the past 3 years. I had this idea in my head of what I wanted to do (open a shop selling artwork and stationery for children) but in looking back, I realize how unconventional my path was, as well as how unexpectedly I found my artistic voice. I've written and rewritten this post over and over...it's a rather hard thing to write about since I am still in the thick of it! But I wanted to share some of my thoughts as well as some of my path to how I ended up learning how to find my voice as an artist.

I mentioned in the Part I portion of the story, that Sarah Jane Studios began with the intention of getting my husband through a Masters program as well as my need to open up my artistic side. I've always been an artist, and though I am mostly untrained, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life being a mother and living creatively with my art. Ever since I can remember, I'd planned on being an artist and a mother..a children's illustrator even. And when I found myself at that age, my decision remained unchanged.

See, I had put my art on hold, while I spent 5 years studying Musical Theater at BYU, and then a few more years after that while I taught voice lessons to support my husband while he finished his Bachelor's Degree. I craved getting into my art again, but it just wasn't the right time. I had other areas I wanted to develop in myself, and other arts to explore. And looking back, I am really glad I didn't study art. As hard as it was to not take an academic art class in college, I learned more about expressing myself by studying theater.

But when it came time to get back into art again, I was ready to make a living off it. Well, I wasn't ready. That was the problem. But I was in a position where I had to. I knew I could do it, but I also knew that it was going to take time to find my "voice" that was real and truly was my own. That was going to take time.  And I will say right now, that I am still finding my voice...and that my voice is changing...but I needed to find, at the least, an authentic place to start. And I didn't know where.

Pencil Study, 2003

The kind of art that I was familiar with would be considered Fine Art. The classes I had taken and the studying that I had done on my own, was classical in nature: Figure Drawing, Oil Painting, etc. And I loved it. Here are a few sketches that would be considered the work that I studied at home. I'd read books and sketch and paint, teaching myself the best I could.

Profile of Kenneth, 2005

I can't tell you the amount of times I'd spend in Fine Art galleries with goosebumps all over me from a pencil sketch of the movement of the human figure and the mood that it created from just the gesture. Or the way that an oil painting, when painted with layer upon layer of a certain glazing technique would motivate me to start a new painting.

Portrait of a friends house, 2004

Not only did I love this style of art, but that is also what I had studied. Most, if not all of my art created up to that point, was hours and hours and hours of work.

Portrait of Kenneth, 2005

This portrait for instance, created when Addie was just starting to walk, was the last oil painting I did to date. I started painting in oils when I was 10 years old, so it's very natural for me because it's where I started painting. But in trying to decide a medium of art to make money off of,  I knew that oil painting wasn't for me because 1) it took too long, and 2) I didn't have the academic training to keep up with gallery artists. Academic painting takes years and years of studying and time. Something that  young mother of 2 babies and a husband who was teaching and going to school didn't have time for. And to be honest, I didn't really want to. I wanted to do something in the children's industry. But what?

I started exploring with what I knew was popular. This was an interesting road. If you ever want to know what do NOT do, do what you think is popular! But I had to start somewhere. And just as I studying and copied artists as a teenager, I learned that when you are starting out, it's important to see what has already been done, so that you can venture off and do your own thing.

At the time, hand painted personalized wall art was the rage, so I tried to take my own spin on that.  Ugh. It was painful. I knew I wanted to stay in the children's art world, but how? This was an interesting time in my life. I had a deadline for opening a shop by October 2007, and it July. I realized after a good 2 months of this that it just wasn't me, It wasn't challenging enough, and that I wasn't born to do what everyone else seemed to be doing at the time.

That realization left me with an entire summer of doing nothing. I had spent a good 6 months creating art that I thought would be marketable, but never enjoying a second of it. I had to find MY voice. And it just wasn't coming. This was a really hard time for me, because if you know me, you'll know that I get really excited about things, and I tend to go all the way with it. I don't like giving up on dreams. It's very depressing. But I wasn't finding what seemed to fit me, and what I could market. Taking time off was the only thing I could do.

But by early September, the inspiration started to come. I decided to start drawing again...in the way that I enjoyed most. I wasn't worried about what it looked like, or what was going to be "good." Here's a portrait of Ian during that time, when I was just illustrating from my heart.

Portrait of Ian at age 18 months

I realized, by stepping back, my true voice was in illustration. As much as I enjoyed fine art and painting, what I enjoyed the most was line work. Most of what I studied and was attracted to as a child was illustration and print. And though I had spent a lot of time learning about the fine art side, the way my brain saw the world was in a much simpler form....line drawing and more simple illustration. And as a mother, I noticed that so much of art decor at the time was painted  canvas type art, but where was the illustrative art? (This was over 3 years ago, remember).  Old School, retro and vintage was trending again, and my favorite illustrative art was vintage picture books. So, it seemed to make sense that I needed to focus my art in that direction. After all, it was what I enjoyed most, and there seemed to be a need in the market.

(E.H. Shepherd study, age 14)

I was going through my art files, and I pulled this illustration out. I had done this ink and pastel drawing when I was 14. This isn't traced, but an enlarged study from the Winnie the Pooh stories we had in our house growning up. At around 14, when I stopped taking art lessons, was when I began to spend hours in my room at home studying the line work of illustrators: not fine artists, but illustrators. I went through a short phase as a teenager of trying to build a portfolio in illustration (I wanted to be a Disney animator!) and I had forgotten about that. And I've always been inspired by Maurice Sendak, Rie Cramer, A. A. Milne, and the work of other brilliant illustrators with a gift for line work as well as story telling. That, I remembered, was what I wanted to do.

I felt a door had opened up...as though all those years of fine art, studying theater, having babies, collecting vintage children's books taking time out to just live my life authentically was coming together. I realized I had something to say in a voice that I knew how to say something. I wanted to illustrate childhood: the simple, timeless aspects of childhood that are appreciated so much in books we collect and consider vintage now...but to add my own voice to it. Fresh color, simple line, etc.

Here are some of my first illustrations I created for the shop: These paved the way for me to start with what I already knew...but allowed me to ask myself an important question:

How can I apply what I already know so I can market myself in the world of design, decor and print?

Asking myself this question was the best thing I could have done, because it opened up my creativity to applying myself in marketable ways.

"Storytime" 2007

"April Showers" 2008

"Winter Cheer" 2009

"Take me for a walk" 2010

I feel a bit awkward talking about my "voice"...I mean, if your voice is a natural extension of the person you are and the things you believe in, then isn't is always changing? It should...because you change. I have changed. And my art continues to change.

But for me in 2007, I needed a place to start. A place to feel that I could put myself out there without feeling like I was riding on the coat tails of someone else.  I needed to start with something I already knew, something that would be marketable but an adventure in learning at the same time!

So, that's how I got started!

While I was in theater, I learned something very important: I learned that the best performance is when you aren't stepping in the shoes of someone else, but rather letting the person you are portraying influence the person that you already are. And I look back at my 30 years, and see that the art that I was surrounded by, and the art that I studied had it's place in giving me the tools to ultimately find my own voice. That lesson alone was better than any art degree.

Tokyo

If you've been following along on the blog, you know that this is the second print in the Children Around the World Series. (You can read about how I started the idea here)  But I have to say that I've had such a great time creating the Tokyo print. Though I've never been to Japan, I have a strong tie to the people there.

I think I've mentioned before, that my Mother's side of the family comes from Hawaii. Oh gosh...I can't remember dates, but somewhere like 1915 my Great-grandparents went to Japan to serve a mission for our church. They had a baby there, and when it was time to leave (and go back to Idaho of all places!) they decided to not go back to the mainland when they stopped over in Hawaii en route. They loved the Japanese culture and people so much that they stayed as close as they could while remaining in American Territory, and stayed in Hawaii after that.  And my family has been there since. Well, kind of. They all went back to the states eventually, but if you've been raised in Hawaii, you never leave. I'm the first generation born in the states then I guess.

This picture is my Great Grandmother with I have no idea who, but I have to say that until I was a young adult, I always thought my Great Grandmother had adopted herself as Japanese or something because her hair was always done just so (and it was naturally jet black) and she dressed in the Japanese fashion of the times...at least in pictures.

My Grandmother would tell stories of her mother (pictured here) speaking (and cursing) in Japanese, and since that time, our family has been tied to that country in a wonderful way. I'm going to go sometime.

This print as well as the London print are in the shop! Wanna know the next stop? Paris. Coming Dec. 1

I love this kind of travel. No sleepy kids. No jet lag. Enjoy!

PS: This print will be offered without the text and without the tower for those of you who would like it to represent Asia in general.

P.P.S: Come by tomorrow for the best giveaway yet. I can't wait!

Getting ready.

So a coupla things on the list today:

*There's a major blog redo in the works to be launched by tomorrow, so stay tuned! Finally I'm getting around to making things a bit more organized so you can search things better, and find things better and enjoy a pretty space. And it's time for a good fall cleaning anyways!

*If you are here from Nie Nie dialogues, welcome! It's good to have you! We have lots going on right now like giveaways every weekend, new paper free paper doll downloads coming soon, and some festive ideas in the works.

*There's only a few more days left to order Halloween cards and prints before it's too late! We've got some Halloween cards we're trying to get rid of, so we've marked them down super low so you can grab them before the big weekend.

Have wonderful day! See you on the new blog. I can't wait!

xo

sarah

Birthday Giveaway!

It's Party Time!

Remember how October is a special month in these parts? It's the month I started my little shop here, and so this weekend I'm having a party.

But even better than that, we're going to be starting a Holiday Tradition on the blog with giveaway's every weekend until Christmas. How's that for fun?

So, to start off the celebrations, I'm offering a giveaway this weekend! And guess what walked into the shop just now....

The 2011 Calendar!

Yes, we'll still be offering the "Her Month by Month" Calendar that so many of you have loved. But this year, I'm bringing in a new one. And it's called:

The Best of Sarah Jane Calendar: Featuring 12 images from Sarah Jane Studios. I can't say they include all my favorites, but I think you are going to be super happy with it.

GIVEAWAY RULES:

  • FOUR winners this time!
  • 1st winner: $50 gift card to the shop
  • 2nd-4th winner: FREE calendar and card of your choice
  • Enter a comment below to be eligible!
  • Make sure to leave an email address in your comment so that I can reach you!
  • Giveaway ENDS Sunday night at Midnight EST

And this will be a random drawing, so no need to out comment someone...although super nice and funny comments are always welcome.

So, I know you all just shared your opinions on the photoshoot...but I think you'll be happy to comment again to enter into the drawing.

And speaking of the photoshoot...wow you guys! Thanks for all your comments! It’s kinda strange to have so many people comment on my face, but hey. We’re all friends here, right? I think there was one comment that said something like: “You have guts to have people comment on your picture” and yes. I have guts. And I am glad I put it up there….so thanks! In the end, I think I have to agree with the majority of you and say it’s between 1,3 & 6. I think 3?s the best…so that’s what I’ll be sticking with for the book!

And remember! This is the first of a series of giveaways! So check back every Saturday morning to see what's being offered!

Happy Weekend!

**And Again: this blog will be under construction for a bit. Watch things get cleaned up....but don't mind the mess:)

EDIT: And the winners are: Karin, Stephanie, Elizabeth, and Sophie! You have been emailed with the info. Congrats!