Slipping into something different

I know some of you follow me on Facebook and may have seen that I've been dipping my toes into the ceramic world. And by world, I mean it is totally different from painting. There are so many steps and variables. For a (ahem) control-oriented person like myself, it feels good to let it go. Opening that kiln fills me with childlike giddiness and anticipation!

I have been working with simple, organic shapes in porcelain, a nice contrast to my color-filled painting realm. Going between the two has made me more creatively complete and inspired. I look forward to painting each day more than ever..and squishing clay in the in-between times. I'm so lucky to be able to do both.

Feel free to check out more of my porcelain pieces at my new etsy shop.

Notecard Sets

I ordered some note cards a while ago, but wanted to see them before I put them in my etsy shop. I am very happy with how they turned out! The paper is super thick and glossy. I kept the pictures small to give them a nice border of white. They are available in two sets: landscapes and shoes. These are the first prints I've done of my artwork and I'm pleased that these little paintings can live on after the actual works have sold!

This Weekend!

I am about ready for this weekend's Davis Art Center Holiday show. It's a three-day inside event where it will be nice and toasty..and filled with beautiful artwork. I'll have all the new pieces I've been blogging about. Come see them in person and say hello! All the details are here. It's wonderful to live in a community that celebrates art and the importance of handmade.

Crickets...

It's been really quiet on the painting front. Keeping too busy at home and indulging in some much needed friend time last weekend has made me a bit unproductive. However, I am very excited about the new business cards and banner I ordered from Vistaprint. They always have these crazy deals going on for custom printed goods. If you can stomach a good deal of annoyance in your inbox, it's worth it when you need to perk yourself up with snazzy new business cards, postcards or labels.

My Corner

I'm sorry I don't have any new paintings to share. The sudden burst of sales caught me off guard and I really wanted to get all those little bits packaged and in the mail before the weekend. Painting is getting to be so central to my life that I have set up my little easel in--you guessed it--the center of our house. It's great to be able to look at works in progress off and on during the day and come back to them to make adjustments. This is working out so much better than my former studio. Instead of isolating myself, I'm surrounded by the chaos of everyday life..it keeps me from getting lonely. Note how I cropped out all the dirty dishes!

Have a great weekend! I'm on my way to SF for Renegade to vend some of my sewn items. It's a great show full of amazing, talented people. I always come back home inspired!

New website!

My talented friend Amy Cluck finished up my website this week. I'm so excited about it! I love the clean look of it and the simple design really makes my paintings pop. Thank you so much Amy!

Check it out at laurenbrandy.com!

Etsy front page!

Thanks to a fun treasury created by PonyAndPoppy, I made it to the front page! Woot! View the whole Hit the Road treasury here. It made my day!

Post Show

I had a wonderful time on Saturday in front of nina and tom here in Davis. The new display boards looked great and I loved the neat, clean look of my paintings against them. The weather was toastier than expected but it was fun to chat with my neighbor and friend Melissa and meet some new creative souls. I even sold a few things! Woo-hoo!

The nice feedback was so rewarding (and needed). Nina has been kind enough to invite me to hang some work in her shop, too. So I'm going to sort through my etsy listings to make sure I've removed the ones she would like to hang. Most importantly it means I need to get painting to fill up the inventory again!

In progress...

I try to have at least three paintings in the works at any time. Just when I need a break from one, I switch to another. And then there are times when we need to actually use the dining table so I have to pack it all up for a few days!