Wondercon 2008

I went to this beautiful event yesterday, at the Moscone Center South, in San Francisco. I had little expectations, considering I have attended a comic book convention in several years. I have a control issue when it comes to certain series (Batman the Detective, Conan the Barbarian, Uncanny Xmen, and most current: Marvel Zombies), and anything related to Sailor Moon.
It's a little embarrassing to think about a five year old me falling in love with this leggy blonde while I'm at my babysitter's waiting for the bus. I remember that it came on at 6:00am for a while, and I wouldn't go back to sleep after my parents dropped me off at 5:30am because I didn't want to miss that rerun. My obsession is more on the healthy side now, I only pick up a few new pieces a year.
Back to WonderCon! The Moscone was PACKED. The amount of people in costumes that clearly took at least several weeks was impressive. Amongst the most impressive included two babes fully representing the elves of Lodos War, Doctor Who, FatBoy (the burgers...), a very little girl as Sailor Jupiter (kawaii!), and... SAILOR MOON! Yikes. I need to turn down my inner nerd.

Although there were tons of great finds that I definitely could have thrown down some green for, I exercised every ounce of restraint that I had and only picked up a copy of "Hand Job: A Catalog of Type" by Michael Perry. As much as I covet an original paste-up panel from Albert Moy based in Bayside, New York, I need all of my interest to be focused on becoming the best designer I can muster.
"Hand Job" looks absolutely gorgeous. I'm sure that I will write about more in depth once I finish the two books I'm currently working on.
And finally, I discovered Last Gasp which is a graphic book store. They are hosting a release party for "Best Erotic Comics" at the Cartoon Art Museum this coming Thursday.

Sketches

More or less just seeing if my india ink was still good.

These BlackBerry posts have to stop!

My charger for my iBook has gone kaput! Quel bummer. I haven't been updating because my bigger projects have been presents to my friends/loved ones... and I can't post from home. Grrrrrrrrrrrrr.
This is a CREDO Mobile poster that is currently on BART. I hope the color translates well. It is a slightly desaturated blue and desaturated orange. Both have been modified by adding black, which is easier on the eyes and makes the poster able to keep your attention longer.

Craft-minded; A Guide To Puppy Stitch and Bitch Fashion

When I have free time, and for a while I had nothing but free time, I recreate things. Recycling, I think is the greatest idea ever. So I picked up a baby onesie from Goodwill for a dollar while I was visiting my Mom's, and have just recently gotten around to revamping it for Villainy to wear.
So onto the tutorial...

Step One: Do not do anything until after washing and drying the clothing to make sure that it will not change shape after alteration. Preshrink, preshrink, preshrink! Take the unfitted onesie, flip it inside out, and get your loving model to try it on. Gather the material around the ventral (tummy!) side of the pup. I used a Sharpie to baste-mark where the garment needed to be taken in. I would NOT recommend using a Sharpie, or any sort of marker. I only used this because I wasn't sure if it was going to work or not, and it was more just a test. I used small dots on both sides in three different locations.

Step Two: Remove the garment, and fold in half so that the dots that you had previously marked are touching. Connect the dots, and pin the line. This is where I would make a judgement call on where the shirt is going to end. I sketched mine on to the shirt so I could make a visual decision. Sew down your new line to create your ventral seam. Make sure you back-tack at the beginning and end of your new seam, this is going on a puppy after all! See below:

In the last image, you can see the artifacts left behind by that pesky Sharpie. What was I thinking? Ha.

Step Three: I used a zigzag stitch pattern inside of my seam to give the shirt a bit more resistance against the movements and strain my puppy was going to be putting it though. Trim your latest seam. Also, cut your shirt to the length that you want it to be, allowing for hemming, so I would recommend at least a half inch.


Step Four: Pin your hem, and sew along the bottom of the shirt. Make sure to be careful around the new seams, and again back-tack!


Et voici: c'est fini.


Most importantly, take pictures of your puppies.

More Linoleum Prints - Hot Off the Press!

We were told in my printmaking class to pick two objects that make a statement... My house isn't exactly full of interesting objects currently, so I walked a around a bit and decided on something a bit more iconic. It also relates to what I've been thinking about lately, my finances. My original sketches were very realistic, and because linoleum doesn't lend itself to photorealism very well, I warped my image so that it could be more expressionistic. So voila: my piggy bank and hammer that I got from Ikea.

It's been a long time...

...Since I have worked on anything printmaking related. I'm pretty sure that whenever I get a set of cutting tools, one of the first things I cut is on of my finger tips. Safety last! These are trial runs of my current favorite subject, tentacles, off of a linoleum block. I really enjoy working in relief, it gives you a sense of how value really works. Working backwards to expose light is always a challenge, even if just a very subtle one.

I've been just exploring the nerd today

KillRockStars' Deerhoof has made a page for fan art basically, and I'm not really sure how I got there, but there was a very simple animation done by Alex Fregon that I couldn't help by smile at. It also helped to reaffirm to myself that not everything has to be completely polished and streamlined to be effective.

Done in Free Time

Not the greatest picture of it, but this is an octopus that I painted on wood using acrylics early 2007.

Just Waiting On Approval

Nearly finished, I need to talk to the boys in Troublemaker and find out if they have a set logo. Check the date, February 1st... YES

Oh, S.Jane

When I attended the Maine College of Art, the new media department was very, very, small. Amongst those who made up the fab five (maybe six) was Sarah Lomba who is now creating the adorable incarnate.


sjane on etsy