Babymoon in Beantown!

This past weekend Mark and I were in Devens, near Boston for an ultimate tournament. Since we were so close to the city, we made it an extra long weekend so we could get into the city and explore. I can't believe I haven't been there before — it's not really that far from Ottawa, about a 7-hour drive. And what a great city! Such history, beautiful architecture, great eats, very walkable, and right on the ocean! We walked and walked and walked, exploring some of the sights on the Freedom Trail, eating at Quincy Hall, and relaxing on the grass in Boston Commons. Our B&B was across the Charles River in Somerville, so we were also within walking distance of Cambridge and Harvard's beautiful campus.

We had a near hiccup with our accommodation: our B&B owner accidentally double-booked our room... so he offered us a smaller, less-nice room in his house for free. And after so many unpleasant accommodation experiences in Asia, of course this room was perfectly fine (albeit quite hot without AC, and the bed was a bit too short for Mark, and we both hit our heads numerous times on the low-angle ceilings), but we didn't argue him refunding our money! More money for chowder!

I think after this short trip and the one we took to the Berkshires a couple of years ago, that I love Massachussetts; in fact, all of New England — such beautiful states, and I'm so glad they're so close!

Wandering around Harvard.

So many of the grave stones at Copp's hill had this amazing Tim Burtonesque quality.

The Greenway Carousel. The most amazing carousel I've ever seen!

Ceiling of Quincy Market / Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

The Old State House.

We stopped in Montpelier, VT on the way back and had lunch at this great little vegan café called the Tulsi Tea Room.
(We also stopped at the Ben & Jerry's factory on the way down, because, you know. I scream.)

Gnome stuffie

Whether you want an extra Gnome to live in your Gnome Home, or a new little pocket friend to accompany you on your travels (and photobomb your selfies!), this wee little Gnome is the perfect companion. But be sure to keep an eye on him, because he has a tendency to wander!

This double-sided stuffie features my own hand-drawn illustration printed onto a linen-cotton blend, and is now available in the shop!

Shop update: Gnome Home

My Spoonflower fabric order arrived, and I've busily building Wee Fabric Houses and puppets, and will reveal my new designs over the coming weeks. First up: the Gnome Home, now in the shop! I'm really excited about this one — I had a lot of fun illustrating all the travel-themed details inside, and all the flora on the outside.

The permanent home of the traveling Gnome! When he's not off galavanting the globe, Gnome calls this forest dwelling Home. Surrounded by flowers, mushrooms, and sheltered by a thick moss roof — Gnome curls up by his fireplace, reading travel books, and getting inspired for his next adventure (suitcase always at the ready)!

Each Gnome Home comes with a wee Gnome stuffie.

Even though he travels light, Gnome still needs to get caught up on laundry when he gets home.

Dandylions, tiger lilies, mushrooms, acorns, and clover.

Mementos and souvenirs of his travels — including, of course, a selfie in front of the Taj Mahal!

His front yard offers a peaceful respite from all the business of traveling.

Globe and travel books for planning the next adventure!

Festival of tulips

This year marks the 61st annual Tulip Festival in Ottawa. A festival that was established in 1953, after Canada granted safe haven to the Dutch Royal Family during the German Occupation of the Netherlands during the second World War. In thanks, tulips have been given to Canada every year since.

The National Capital Commission (NCC) plants lush, dense gardens of tulips all over the city, but the largest display is in Commissioner's Park, beside Dow's Lake, where nearly 300,000 tulips are in bloom! It is a stunning effect, and people visit from all over the world to come and see them.

Unfurling

After seeming like it wasn't going to arrive at all, spring has fully sprung here, and it is glorious. The daffodils are trumpeting, the tulips are exploding, the trees are budding, and everything else is unfurling in infinite shades of green.

Over the last week, the rhubarb has gone from just a tiny shoot to flowering!
Me thinks some rhubarb crisp is in my immediate future :)

Not sure what this plant is, but the leaves hold diamond-like beads of morning dew (or rain) all day.

We somehow completely missed harvesting our fiddleheads this year!
We blinked, and we missed it.

Forget-me-nots in the front lawn.

Hydrangea.

I love how the grape vine tendrils look like rusted metal.

Chickadee stuffies — now in the shop!

Just added to the shop: chickadee stuffies! Whether you want an extra chickadee to live in your Chickadee House, a new little friend to carry around in your pocket, or just a toy for your favourite feline to bat around (that won't harm any actual chickadees...), I've got chickadee stuffies for all!

In the last blog post I shared a little bit about my process, and today I thought I'd illustrate the entire process in pictures, from sketch, to finished stuffie.

It begins with a sketch...

Then that sketch is traced, and the trace is scanned...

And then I paint (digitally), layers of texture and colour...

I upload my final files to Spoonflower, and they arrive a few weeks later, printed on fabric!

I sew them together, and add them to the shop!

Behind the scenes: a sneak peek at my process

A lot of what I make is directly tangible from the outset — the Wee Fabric Houses that I make from upcycled thrifted fabrics come together physically, piece at a time. On the other hand, the houses and puppets that I make from fabric custom-printed with my illustrations have quite a lengthy process behind them before there's anything physical.

I've been working away on some new house and puppet designs, but since it will be about a month before my latest fabric order arrives, I thought I'd share a bit about my process, and give you some sneak peeks on what's coming!

When I have an idea for a new project, I begin doing some preparatory sketches, and then move toward refining those drawings. Each piece for each puppet or house is drawn separately using template pieces that I created for myself, but if I've got a new house shape in mind, then I create a new pattern to work from. For instance, my Japanese Teahouse and Chickadee House use the same pattern (except of course for the hole/door in the side of the birdhouse!), but for my Gingerbread House, I changed the width of the house and the pitch of the roof, to suit what I was trying to achieve.

After I'm happy with my pencil drawings, I trace them with a marker-like pen, which gives me a looser, more expressive quality of linework. I then scan these tracings, and begin the process of colouring on the computer. Through a series of layers with various digital brushes, I build up tone and texture, often reworking areas repeatedly until I'm happy with how it's coming together. Each new house takes about a week and a half to finish illustrating, and each puppet about 4 days.

I then prepare my files for uploading to Spoonflower, fitting my pattern pieces as efficiently as possible (like Tetris pieces!) into the 42" by 36" yard dimensions. After submitting my order, I *patiently* wait the 3-4 weeks for my fabric order to arrive, then cut out all the pieces and sew them together into happy little puppets and houses, and voila!

Sketch for one of the sidewalls for a new Wee Fabric House: The Gnome Home!

Each Gnome Home will come with a wee Gnome stuffie.

Gnome after he's been digitally painted.

Sketch for the head of a new puppet: a raccoon!

Preparatory sketch for a new fox puppet. 

Finished cover for my new fox puppet kit (yes, kits!)

Sketches for a new Wee Fabric House: a barn, complete with farm animal finger puppets.

Some of the final pieces for the barn, laid out for printing.