shimmer studio

Studio Party!!!!! Friday!!! Yo!

2009-09-29T13:24:00.003-05:00

Please join us for a Studio Party to celebrate our new space! Come see where all the letterpress hijinks for Paper Parasol Press and Shimmer Studio will be happening!

3729 N. Ravenswood Avenue, Studio 135A in Chicago.
Friday, October 2nd, 2009 from 7pm to 10pm.

Our special thanks to Delicate Creature for the event design.

And don't forget the Ravenswood Artwalk is this weekend too! Lots of studios open all along Ravenswood (including ours). Come on out! October 3rd and 4th from 11am – 6pm.

Letterpress Openhouse — Saturday, July 11th!!!

2009-07-07T08:00:00.001-05:00

Starshaped Press is hosting a letterpress open house!

Saturday, July 11, 2009
11:00am - 5:00pm
starshaped press
4636 N. Ravenswood #103
(on the west side of Ravenswood)
Chicago, IL

Come check out (and purchase) letterpress work from a handful of Chicago's talented ladies!

Printers include....
Starshaped Press
a. favorite design
Rar Rar Press
Shimmer Studio
Cindy Tomczyk (Paper Parasol)

with sweet treats by Sugarkist

and Starshaped Press will have the studio open for folks to see how printing works

another little custom project

2009-07-06T10:56:00.005-05:00

These signs were so much fun to design and print! I love the way they turned out. Designed by and letterpress printed by yours truly for Vive La Femme which is located at 2048 north damen * bucktown. A fantastic and awesome store!

Announcement Postcard

2009-07-03T11:30:00.004-05:00

I turned one of the Shimmer Studio designs into an announcement postcard! This postcard features the jasmine flowers design on the front and the client's information on the back. The card was letterpress printed with two colors on the front and one color on the back — the ink colors are turquoise and teal. It is a standard postcard size and can be sent at the USPS postcard rate.

To celebrate the custom project Shimmer Studio is going to offer a summer postcard sale! Choose any Shimmer Studio design for the front of the postcard and I'll customize the front and the back. Contact me for special pricing. I'm going to offer the sale price through September.

Thanks for taking a peek at the new project! Contact: info@shimmer-studio.com

hot off the press

2009-07-02T18:17:00.004-05:00

Here's a little peek at three brand new letterpress cards for 2009. All the cards are fold overs and include envelopes.

The above card is gold ink printed on turquoise cardstock.

This is the newest card design and I call it "My Melancholy Butterfly" because she is thinking "Le Sigh." Teal ink on turquoise cardstock.

This last card is named "Cherry Glow" and features pink and gold ink. It really pops!

color studies

2009-05-04T11:17:00.002-05:00

Another method to my madness is how I do color studies. I like to do my color studies by flipping through magazines and pulling out the colors I like and then I glue them in a hodge podge mess and throw them in a sketch book. It looks like controlled chaos but I like doing them this way because I can open a few pages and look at a lot of my personal color picks and see how they interact together at a glance. I do need to focus on doing some more specific color boards right now, specifically a fall color board filled with oranges and reds. I tend toward the cool side so I am going to conciously focus on warm tones. The second color study spread is the one I used for the current Shimmer Studio line of stationery.

Welcome home!

2009-04-20T18:08:00.003-05:00

My Heidelberg Windmill arrived on the scene this AM and that is it outside the Ravenswood building. It seemed to stop spritzing just long enough to move this in without having to worry about the rain. Yay! Below are some photos of how the studio is coming along. I still have some more things to get over there and some major organizing to do. The C+P is Cindy's press — don't they look great together. Her press is beautiful. I can't wait for both of them to be up and running.

Ravenswood — here we come

2009-04-17T14:13:00.002-05:00

Pics of the new space on Ravenswood. It's empty but we will be working to start filling it up this weekend and next week. Cindy's press is moving in Sunday and my press is moving in Monday. My splat flat studio is almost packed up and ready to go. I'm so close but I've run out of boxes and I have to take the bookcases and one more table apart so we can carry them down two flights of stairs. My back is aching just thinking about tomorrow.

a little belated studio tour

2009-04-14T17:07:00.003-05:00

The above pics are of my studio at The Splat Flats. I totally enjoyed my time there and I will miss my cute little studio. But it is time to pack it up and move to Ravenswood and get the letterpress going and the paper flying.

The new digs are at 3729 N. Ravenswood Ave., Suite 135A. I will try to do a better job of posting the move and the new space.

"Lotus Glow" limited edition print

2009-04-13T12:38:00.003-05:00

I have a new limited edition print titled "Lotus Glow" available in the etsy shoppe. It is a four color letterpress print and there are 75 in this edition. This was the first print with more than two colors that I have ever done. I am really excited about how it turned out and to the great responses I have received.

And all the "Mandala" limited edition prints are up in the etsy shoppe as well. They are available as singles or as sets of three or six prints.

inspirations

2009-04-10T10:35:00.006-05:00

I'm lucky to live in a city like Chicago that has some very inspiring architectural details. Above are a few that have caught my eye this winter. I took them with my iPhone so they are not my best photos. I hope to take my camera out many times this summer and focus on more architectural details around the city.

big BIG news!

2009-04-08T15:40:00.007-05:00

So the big mama printer hanging on a country road in Indiana is Shimmer Studio's new big mama printer! Yo! Ed Regan of Regan Printing Machinery Movers took the above photo outside of his warehouse in Indiana (And yes the press is being stored inside—it only had a short stay outdoors on a nice sunny spring day—we did have one of those. So nobody panic). The press technically only had to be moved about 15 miles but because of conflicting schedules it needed to be removed from it's original print shop in Cicero and stored in Indiana until it can be delivered to my new studio on Ravenswood in Chicago. See—big news! The press is a 10x15 Heidelberg Windmill and it is in need of some TLC.

This month Shimmer Studio will be moving into a new studio space we are sharing with Paper Parasol Press. Yay! So here's to letterpress and paper goodness all around. Cheers!

What comes first? The studio space or the letterpress? These were the questions I have been pondering for well over a year. The answer? I don't think it matters. Paper Parasol Press had their press before the space and as soon as we joined forces to find space I got mine. Although there were set-backs on space and press, in the end I think it will all work out super duper coolio! Needless to say I am very excited as you can tell by the unnecessary abundance of exclamation points and extra special descriptors.

Shimmer Studio will be starting a great new chapter this summer. While it will take us some time to get up to speed on our new press and to get our studio set-up again we look forward to taking your orders! Wholesale and custom orders will continue to be printed at the time of order so please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery. All Etsy and online sales will continue to be shipped out within 2 business days of order. If you have any questions please email me: sales{at}shimmer-studio.com

color Inspiration

2009-03-20T14:35:00.004-05:00

I like the red against the turquoise background. And there is a little sneak peek of my newest limited edition letterpress print in the background.

A little bit of Green (in the Chicago River)

2009-03-13T11:17:00.003-05:00

In the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, which is March 17th, but will be celebrated tomorrow in Downtown Chicago with the annual dyeing green of the Chicago River and a parade, I thought I would post a snapshot from a few years ago (of the River, not the parade). Unfortunately my photo does not really do the color justice. Imagine if you see it in real life as more of a neon green — a freaky bright green.

Here's a link to a cool time lapse YouTube video on the dyeing of the river. And this link gives a little bit of background history on the tradition.

I'll be thinking of the green river as I head out of downtown to take a look at a letterpress and letterpress goodies. Woo Hoo!

color Inspiration

2009-03-09T09:37:00.000-05:00

I really have a thing for purple!

Indie Fixx's A Greener Day Galleria

2009-03-06T08:30:00.000-06:00

Shimmer Studio has a shoppe over at Indie Fixx's A Greener Day Galleria. Head on over to check out all the great designers! I'm jonesing for some handmade perfume from Sweet Anthem. Here's to Greener Days ahead!!! I'm thinking SPRING!

Click the photo above to go to the Shimmer Studio Greener Day Shoppe.

Mandala Letterpress Set

2009-03-06T07:50:00.000-06:00

Spring may be around the corner any day now... I really hope it is anyway. The mandalas are inspired by flowers and suns and feature bright colors like turquoise, fuchsia, teal and purple! The mandalas will also be available in larger art prints soon.

Goods for Goodness Sake!

2009-03-05T09:04:00.002-06:00

There's a great new website called Goods for Goodness Sake and they donate 100% of profits to customer selected charities. Goods for Goodness Sake features products created by small businesses and supports smaller charities. Shimmer Studio has two designs for sale in the Goods for Goodness Sake store and these two designs are now exclusive to them!

Here is one design available exclusively at Goods for Goodness Sake. It features two lotus flowers printed in blue and green inspired by water and the sea. These are folded cards which are blank on the inside and include coordinating envelops. Purchase here.

Here is the second design available exclusively at Goods for Goodness Sake. It features two elemental butterflies printed in blue and purple inspired by vibrant butterfly wings and flowers. These are folded cards which are blank on the inside and include coordinating envelops. Purchase here.

Shimmer Studio Brocade

2009-03-04T08:55:00.003-06:00

A new folded letterpress card is available on etsy! This letterpress card features the Shimmer Studio Brocade pattern printed in silver ink on turquoise card stock. The card is blank on the inside and includes a metallic silver envelope! You can purchase a set of six here.

Playing around with pattern

2009-02-13T08:00:00.001-06:00

I was inspired to start playing around with repeating patterns again. Here's one I whipped up a couple nights ago as I watched nothing happen on Lost again. I wish I had a job running around Hawaii.

And here's the post about how I made the pattern repeating.

color Inspirations

2009-02-12T13:43:00.003-06:00

Just a few colorful inspirations today!

some odds and Ends

2009-02-06T08:00:00.001-06:00

Above are some mirrors with shimmer studio designs on the back. One features a bumble bee and the second one features a butterfly design. They are both in the etsy shoppe now. I love these types of mirrors. They are so easy to slide into a pocket or take a quick check of things.

Here are the little one inch button designs.

color Inspiration

2009-02-05T08:00:00.003-06:00

I love gladiolas. I buy them at the Farmer's markets in the summer. Usually I like to get dark rich colors like purple and red but I find this color combination so refreshing and tranquil right now. It reminds me of summertime and I look forward to spring and summer coming. I love the green with the pink.

turmeric Veggies! (a recipe)

2009-02-04T08:00:00.003-06:00

A little background about this dish and the creator first. The recipe turmeric veggies was created by my husband T and it is based off a traditional dish his mother and grandmother made called green beans thoren. T's family is originally from a southern state in India called Kerala. I do not have any clear amounts and measures of anything so this might require a spirit of adventure and the willingness to taste the dish as you go. We do not have any written recipes for the curries we learned from T's mother — we just had to remember what she taught us and go with it. Maybe I will do a curry recipe in another post. One of the best recipe books for southern Indian cuisine I have found is "Curried Favors" by Maya Kaimal MacMillan. I have made some dishes from this book and my husband thought it tasted pretty close to his mothers and wondered how I had done it. Good enough endorsement for me!

Ok, on to the turmeric veggies recipe. One note first: T calls it "turmeric veggies" because you can make it with any vegetables you want. We usually do a base of green beans but it would be tasty with broccoli too. You will notice in the picture above we threw some green bell pepper in as well. Red bell pepper looks pretty and adding mushrooms makes it earthy. Another note: get black mustard seeds from a specialty or spice store. My favorite spice store in Chicago is The Spice House and my favorite in Detroit is in Eastern Market (Oh how I miss you Eastern Market!) and is called Rafal Spice Company. Of course, any Indian grocery stores should have black mustard seeds as well. Turmeric should be widely available.

Ingredients:
1 Yellow Onion (cut into thin strips, not diced)
Black Mustard Seeds
1 bag frozen Green Beans
Any other vegetables you like
Ginger
Garlic
Salt
Cayenne Pepper
Red Pepper Flakes
Turmeric (the namesake)

Directions (as best as I can describe them): Put some oil in a wok or pan (we like olive oil). Add about 1-2 Tablespoons black mustard seeds to the oil and then add the onions. Add garlic (we like 3+ cloves) and 1/4-1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger (to taste). Saute the onions until they are carmelized. Add the green beans and any other vegetable and cook until they are tender. Season with turmeric, salt, cayenne pepper and red pepper flakes to taste. If you can't handle spicy leave out the cayenne and red pepper flakes. The turmeric is not spicy. I don't have a specific measurement on turmeric because T just keeps adding turmeric until it gets that green/yellow color you see in the picture. Here's where you keep tasting to see if it's seasoned the way you like it.

I hope you like the recipe!

some new Greetings

2009-02-03T08:00:00.000-06:00

A few new letterpess stationery designs available in the etsy shoppe! All three designs are flat and letterpress printed onto 100% cotton paper and include a 100% recycled envelope.

A shimmer studio sun design and "Brilliant" is printed with a vibrant fuchsia ink. This is the perfect card to send to anybody who deserves a little pat on the back! Or go ahead and announce how brilliant you are. It's brills, baby. Purchase this card here.

This card features a lotus design and the word "om" printed in reflex blue. This makes a perfect note to send to someone who loves yoga or lotus flowers. The back is blank and waiting for your thoughts. You can purchase this card here.

Well, "hello sunshine!" This card is printed in bright orange ink and features the shimmer studio sunflower. It's a great card to send to a friend just because! And maybe it's a hint of warmer weather to come... someday... soon... I really hope. You can purchase this one here.

let the Love shine in!

2009-02-02T07:00:00.001-06:00

Shimmer Studio has a small selection of Valentine on etsy! The Valentines are Gocco printed onto folded cards and feature a shimmer studio sun and heart. It reads, "let the Love shine in." There are two additional colors available. The card above is silver ink on a red card and includes a silver metallic envelope. The second card features red ink printed on pink card stock and the third is red ink printed on strawberry card stock. Both the pink and strawberry cards come with a metallic quartz envelope.

www.shimmerstudio.etsy.com

Hello History!

2009-01-20T09:00:00.003-06:00

Happy Inauguration Day! Wow! Today we know without any doubts that history is not just being made but it will actually be recorded and reflected on for years to come. It is an interesting feeling knowing that today will be something that everyone will always remember. I am very happy for my friends who have the opportunity to experience history first hand. I look forward to seeing the future of this country and moving forward in time with it. Congratulations President Obama.

colored pencils are swell

2008-11-28T08:00:00.003-06:00

I like to do color studies with colored pencils if I plan on doing a painting. For printing I like to do my color studies with markers which I will talk about in a future post. There really is not too much to say about colored pencils. I think the Prismacolor brand are very good and they are pretty good at blending. I sometimes have a difficult time sharpening them so I waste more of the pencil than I would like. For a cheaper alternative I also really like Crayolas colored pencils. I have used those for years and recently I just purchased the kind that you swivel the lead up like a mechanical pencil but those leads are much harder so I would use them for flatter (less blending) applications. But they can travel without a sharpener.

happy Thanksgiving to you!

2008-11-27T10:03:00.001-06:00

The kitty sez "happy turkey day!" Safe travels!

Love my Cindy Tomczyk painting!

2008-11-26T10:55:00.004-06:00

This painting is by my very talented friend Cindy Tomczyk and it is titled "Spending Her Time." I love this little painting so much and it makes me very happy to look at every day! I love every sinlge little detail. She is very talented and an amazing painter and artist. You can purchase a print of this painting from Cindy here. Cindy also sells stationery products under the name Paper Parasol and they are gorgeous!

If you are in Chicago this weekend Cindy will be at the Bucktown Bazaar, November 29 : 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. + November 30 : 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. This is at the Holstein Park Fieldhouse.

Tina Fey is my new hero!

2008-11-25T16:52:00.006-06:00

The new poster is in the shimmer studio etsy shop now! The unofficial title of the poster is "Tina Fey is my new hero." I had a couple requests for the design to be made into stationery so if you agree let me know! I would like to start printing more art prints and next week I should be listing some matted mandala prints. I better go and get stuff done!

DIY Trunkshow pics

2008-11-24T13:57:00.009-06:00

Here are a few pictures from my table at the DIY Trunkshow. It was a great show! I had a lot of fun and met great people! That was my one and only holiday show this year. Please visit my etsy shop if you would like anything. If you don't see the design you want please email me anytime! I will be adding a lot more to my etsy shop in the next couple of weeks.

Speaking of adding to my etsy shop. I designed a new poster and a sneak peak is pictured below. That will be going up in the etsy shop tomorrow. It is a limited edition letterpress print of 32 and it is printed on creamy white card stock. It is a Tina Fey quote from her guest appearance on Weekend Update on SNL this year (before all the great spots of her as SP).

Like I said DIY Trunkshow was my one and only holiday show this year but there are lots and lots more great shows coming up in Chicago. So if you have some free time check out these: the Bucktown Bazaar, the One of a Kind Show, the Renegade Holiday Sale, and many more! Metromix is a pretty good place to search for holiday happenings around town.

And I know this is not a handmade show but I just love this crazy little German Christmas town (christkindlmarket chicago) the city does from Thanksgiving through Christmas in Daley Plaza. Mmmmm... mulled wine and strudel!

news: DIY Trunkshow: Saturday: Chicago: Please come!

2008-11-20T22:47:00.005-06:00

Hello, Hello! WOW, winter certainly has blown into Chicago and trees and holiday decor are going up around town. And even better Shimmer Studio will be at one of the first holiday handmade shopping extravaganzas — The DIY Trunkshow (woo hoo!). I'm really excited and I have been trimming cards feverishly all week. I will also be debuting my first letterpress poster design (it's a little poster but it's a lot of letterpress). There will also be some new pocket mirrors, buttons and, of course, HOLIDAY CARDS! The DIY Trunkshow is this Saturday, November 22nd from 10am until 5pm at the Pulaski Park Auditorium (1419 W. Blackhawk, Chicago, IL 60622). Shimmer Studio is Booth #11 in Gym 2. Please check out the DIY Trunkshow website and take a peek at all the great vendors!

some yummy local food & produce!

2008-11-08T12:00:00.001-06:00

Here's a just discovered happy thing. I just read about Chicago's Downtown Farmstand from a local Daily Candy email and I almost immediately ran out (in the rain) to get some veggies that I could turn into a dinner. My fridge is perpetually under stocked. At any rate Chicago's Downtown Farmstand carries produce grown within 250 miles of the city and to my extreme happiness they carry a few local favorites including Frontera chips and salsa, the Old Town Spice House's spices (seriosuly, if you are in Chicago or ever visit this is a must stop!). And even better there were pies, quiches, soups and full meals from First Slice! I love First Slice! They have a pie cafe at the Lill Street Art Center which is where I take silkscreen classes. There is nothing better than art and good food (ok maybe some wine too).

Back to Chicago's Downtown Farmstand — for dinner we purchased a bacon and onion quiche and a vegetable chowder soup all by First Slice. They were wonderful! Best quiche I have had in a long time and it was the best veggie anything soup I have ever had. Yummy!

Chicago's Downtown Farmstand is only supposed to be open until December. Go support them and maybe we can convince them to stay open all year long. I will be back for more goodies and produce!

happy thing :: the Wacom Tablet

2008-11-05T11:51:00.005-06:00

Slowly but surely I'll manage to finish my list of twenty things that make me happy. I hope it does not take until 2009.

My Wacom tablet makes my life easier while working on the computer. It saves my wrist from a future of carpal tunnel plus it makes it easier to draw. There is a learning curve but if you get one I encourage you to take a deep breath and jump in!

That is a picture of my current Wacom which only retails for about $99 and comes with a mouse. This is the basic model and I purchased it because cost was an issue. It works great for me and it is small enough that I can slide it into my laptop bag or take it with me to an on-site freelance gig. Eventually I would like a higher priced model but honestly this one works great and I love it. Here's a link to my process post where I mention my Wacom.

yes we can!

2008-11-05T11:37:00.004-06:00

I am so happy for President Elect Barack Obama!!! That is all I have to say. The city of Chicago looks lovely too!!! Ok now I am done.

happy thing SIX: pantone formula guide

2008-10-22T09:32:00.004-05:00

My Pantone formula guide is invaluable for selecting and mixing colors for printing! It also helps me with any graphic design projects I may be working on. They are a little pricey and I do need to purchase another one that lets me see the CMYK formula next to the Pantone color. The guides are essentially to help make sure your colors come out predictably. Of course since I hand mix my own inks and I letterpress print instead of offset print my colors will be slightly different from the books but they are still great guides and I usually start with a Pantone when mixing my inks and then customize from there. If you have a pantone book make sure you keep it stored in a dark place. Pantone suggests you purchase a new one each year but if you keep it stored away from sunlight you can usually extend it's life.

Splat Flats 4th Annual Open House

2008-10-10T22:37:00.003-05:00

Splat Flats 4th Annual Open House! Saturday, October 11th!! 4pm until 10pm! Lots of studios and artists. My studio is on the East Side and it is 35E (third floor)! I will have some munchies, wine and stationery. Maybe a little letterpress demo if I can pull it together. Stop by if you have a chance.

happy thing FIVE: My Circle Templates

2008-10-07T09:04:00.002-05:00

I have already waxed poetic about my circle templates in my process post. These little things are really the key to a lot of my hand drawn illustrations. Most of my drawings are based on circles, especially my newer obsession of mandalas.

remember the 20 happy things?

2008-10-06T10:16:00.003-05:00

I've swerved a bit off course with the new studio and some of the updates but remember the 20 things that make me happy? Well tomorrow we are going to get back to it! For today here's a little refresher.

I'm going to post 20 things that make me happy and I was inspired by a regular feature in Domino magazine. I am trying to alternate between art/business happy things and my personal happy things. I think I have only done four so far so we have a ways to go. The last one was coffee which honestly crosses both categories. A lot of my things will probably cross both categories because honestly even if I did not have a business I think I would still need a corner rounder! I am an artist so I do have a lot of art supplies and without a business I would still be drowning in art supplies. I just wanted to point out things that make things a little easier and that I use frequently during the course of my business. Plus I wanted to talk about bags, jewelry and make-up!

So follow this link for a recap of the happy things posts!

Computer Design Bootcamp

2008-10-03T10:16:00.003-05:00

My computer design bootcamp class will be next weekend at Evanston Print & Paper. Below is the description of the class. If you would like to sign up call 847-475-7674.

Want to know how best to translate your designs into letterpress friendly files? This two-day workshop will help you take your design ideas and prepare them for photo-polymer processing. Don’t have a design idea, but want to learn what works? We will have a class project for you to hone your skills. We will work with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to learn what works best in letterpress and what to avoid. This is a hands-on class, so it’s best to have Illustrator and Photoshop, and even better to have them on a laptop you can bring to class.

Saturday & Sunday, October 11th & 12th, 11:00 – 5:00 p.m.

Hint: you can download free 30-day trials of both Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator at adobe.com but wait until just before class to download so you can really optimize the trial time. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

color inspirations

2008-10-02T09:30:00.002-05:00

Isn't this a fantastic example of why I need to incorporate some orange into my color mix? Pretty clementines in my turquoise fruit bowl.

update: the moving thing

2008-10-01T08:58:00.003-05:00

The move into my studio is complete, other than a few odds and ends I keep uncovering around my house. Woo Hoo!!! It took longer than I wanted it to! We started with the most difficult thing possible — my cast iron table-top letterpress, Blu. It weighs over 100 pounds and was not easy to get up to the third floor (no elevator) but it is there in it's new home. I don't want to move it again!

I pretty much have everything put away but things are not quite organized very well. I need to make one more Ikea trip for some bulletin boards, a rug and an office chair. When I get the studio into a little bit better shape I will try and snap some photos.

The Splat Flats is having it's 4th Annual Open House October 11th from 4pm - 10pm. Please stop by if you have a chance!

news: the second holiday card is printed!

2008-09-25T21:34:00.002-05:00

This is the second Shimmer Studio holiday card for this year. It also features a Shimmer Studio brocade design and reads, "Happy Holidays!" It is folded and the inside is blank for your personal correspondence. This holiday card is letterpress printed on Italian Startdream metallic cardstock and includes a coordinating envelope. The cardstock color is a light metallic aquamarine and the design is printed with a turquoise ink. Both holiday cards will be available for sale soon!!! Here is a link back to Shimmer Studio's Alternative Holiday.

news: little blog break to move!

2008-09-18T11:36:00.003-05:00

I will be moving all things Shimmer Studio (and most things artsy and DIY related) to a new studio space in Wicker Park this weekend and I am very excited to be a part of the Splat Flats studios. I am pulling my home office apart Friday in order to move things on Saturday. It will be so good to get all my art supplies out of storage where, sadly, they have been lingering since the end of June. I have been missing so many random things I find it impossible to complete any single project... but that's all going to change this weekend.

So, I guess I have not made much progress on my happy things list yet but that is ok since a majority of goodies are in storage. Expect lots of happy art supplies after I get my new studio space situated. I will try to take pictures along my journey.

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Rock on!

four: mmmm... COFFEE!!!

2008-09-18T11:36:00.002-05:00

Well, most coffee makes me happy! But this is my favorite coffee — Intelligentsia's Quetzal Breakfast Blend. Intelligentsia is a local Chicago roaster and coffee shop. Lots of local restaurants serve their coffee and you can purchase the coffee in most local grocery stores. I'm not sure how they are distributed nationally but if you are in Chicago and want to try a local company please give them a try.

And if you are a tea drinker i recommend stopping into an Argo Tea if you are in Chicago. Sitting in Argo Tea sipping yummy tea concoctions with my friends makes me very happy!

news: Alternative Holiday Card

2008-09-16T14:32:00.006-05:00

I just finished printing my Alternative Holiday card today and here is a little preview of it!!! I am so excited with how they turned out. These cards are folded and letterpress printed onto Italian Stardream cardstock and they come with a matching envelope. The cardstock is a metallic gun metal color and the ink is silver metallic. The envelope is also a metallic paper. The design is a shimmer studio brocade pattern and they say, "happy whatever & merry everything else." I can't wait to send out a stack of black envelopes for the holidays — how about you?

I do have another holiday card option that I will be printing next week. It is also on metallic cardstock and comes with a matching metallic envelope but the paper color is light blue and it will be letterpress printed with a turquoise ink (shimmer studio's signature color). The design is a different shimmer studio brocade pattern and it will simply say, "Happy Holidays!"

three: Printing Ink

2008-09-15T23:13:00.004-05:00

Oops I am getting a little behind in my list here! So something that may seem kind of strange that makes me happy is the smell of printing ink. The other thing that makes me happy about ink is mixing up colors but it is the smell that gets me. My favorite part of being a graphic designer is always going on press checks and I love the way press shops smell. I did not realize I needed to start spending some time doing the actual printing. I would not want to run a gigantic fully motorized Heidelberg but I will keep on Letterpressing (it's time to make that a verb isn't it?)! I'm printing holiday cards tomorrow!

two: Baggage

2008-09-12T14:46:00.005-05:00

Today one of the things that make me happy personally are handbags or purses, but really almost any bag will do! I have to stop myself from continually purchasing new grocery shopping bags (and I think I noticed that Trader Joe's has a new one). Currently my favorite brand of handbags are Tano. The hobo bag pictured above was my very first Tano which I bought on my first trip to NYC. And yes it is in my favorite color — Turquoise! A fantastic website to purchase Tano bags from is www.musthavebag.com. My new fall purse is another hobo and it's purple! I need to spray it with some protective spray before I bust it out for fall. The purse below is the Tano I used all summer long. I really like how casual and a little retro it is.

Tano is my current obsession but I was previously very obsessed with 1154 Lill and I still use my Lill bags quite a bit. I am always switching around bags! I also like to make my own bags. I just purchased a new Amy Butler patter (the Birdie Sling) and even bought fabric for it but sadly I haven't had time to make it yet. Someday soon hopefully.

one: Corner Rounder

2008-09-11T17:18:00.003-05:00

I spend a lot of time rounding corners and here is my corner rounder — Model 50B by Lassco. It makes me happy because rounded corners make me happy and they give that little extra something something to shimmer studio stationery. Spending hours rounding corners has to be love.

Intro: 10 things that make me happy

2008-09-10T10:28:00.007-05:00

I love the magazine Domino. On the final page of each issue they feature a different person who lists 10 things that make them happy right now. I thought I would follow the format and kick-off a theme for the month of September only I'm going to do it with a slight twist. I'm actually going to go through about 20 things that make me happy — 10 things that make me and Shimmer Studio happy professionally and 10 things that make me happy personally. They will appear throughout September in no particular order. After the initial happy fest maybe I can post one thing a week — after all lots of things make me happy. Here's a little teaser of what I have in mind.

Two things that make me happy are (1) my sterling silver Lotus earrings by Satya and (2) purple ink pens (currently my favorites are the Pentel RSVP and they can be a little hard to find). I don't think you can have enough purple ink pens. When I find them I buy about three boxes at a time. I hope they don't discontinue these. If you go looking for these on the internet make sure you check the ink color. Sometimes the barrel color will be purple but the ink will be black or blue.

photopolymer plates can be recycled!

2008-09-05T14:30:00.003-05:00

Photopolymer plates are awesome! I love these crazy yellow sheets of plastic that you process in a plate maker machine with your negatives. For letterpress printers it means we can digitally design projects and then make plates or have plates made for us to print from. I have kept every single polymer plate I have ever made because I did not know what to do with them after I was through. Incidentally you can keep your plates a pretty long time and print a good number of prints with one plate.

Most of the ones I no longer need are ones that (a) I messed up (which means I messed up the film and previously the digital files which does happen when I try to do things at 2am and (b) the plates can get dry and cracky. Plates should stay nice and flexible and even though I have stored my plates in complete darkness they have dried out enough that I can not print from them any longer and I can even snap them into pieces which is very very bad. The other thing about polymer is after I've processed my plates I cut a lot of waste away that in the past I did not know what to do with.

So where I am going with this tangent? Boxcar Press will recycle letterpress photopolymer plates, either exposed or unexposed! So I can send my hard cruchy plates and my polymer waste pieces to Boxcar for recycling—I feel better now. Well I am a little upset about my dry crunchy plates. So why did some of my plates get dried out? I think my apartment is not humid enough for them. I solved this by moving all my new plates that I made this year into my bathroom—seriously! Goodbye xtra hair products and hello plates! So far that really seems to have solved my dry plate problem. Funny but true. I've read basements work really well too. The keys to preserving those plates is dark plus some humidity. Of course all this being said everyone's places are different so experiment for yourself where to best keep your photopolymer. If you are just starting out with photopolymer keep a close eye on it to see how it is holding up. Here's the link to the recycling program at Boxcar!

RedBall Project by artist Kurt Perschke

2008-09-02T15:10:00.006-05:00

It's big and Red and roving the streets of Chicago until September 25th. What did I do on my birthday? I went to see a giant red ball. Here's the link to where the RedBall by Kurt Perschke will be next. I love the interactive nature of this sculpture. On September 1st it was at Millennium Park near Pritzker Pavilion and in order to continue forward you had to walk around the big art installation blocking your path. I can't wait to see it in some of the other locations.

repeat it!

2008-08-21T16:25:00.004-05:00

At the end of my process post I mentioned repeating patterns and how I had a couple of excellent links that teach how to create them. I actually learned the first technique about a year or so ago. This is one of the few things I have learned where I honestly felt like I was given the best kept secret ever! Creating a repeating pattern seemed impossible to me but it is so simple it's mind blowing.

The first technique is demonstrated brilliantly by super talented artist Julia Rothman when she did a guest blog for Design*Sponge. Follow this link to get to that post! I haven't quite mastered this technique yet but it is fun to play around and draw up new designs and then cut them apart. I think I'm having problems with the scanning and getting my design to scan nice. My scanner cuts off the edges and if I don't align the paper against the edge I can't quite get it to be straight and that will effect the repeat. Of course this wonderful trick for repeats doesn't quite help me out with all the illustrations I already have in Illustrator. Problem number 2 for me. To get my patterns to repeat do I need to add a third step of taking things into Photoshop and then back to Illustrator? As I saw myself needing to come up with a new process for repeating patterns I did another google search and I came across an answer!

I thought it must be possible to repeat patterns in Illustrator and I knew I could define patterns and use them as fills but I couldn't get anything to work how I wanted it to. This is technique number 2 and it is for creating repeating patterns in Illustrator. It is by Jess Volinski and is posted on Digital Arts UK. Follow this link to get to that tutorial! It looks daunting but if you go step by step it makes sense and I've simplified it even more.

The following won't make much sense unless you read the tutorial and I recommend you use that exact method before you try changing anything because you need to get a hands-on feel for how it works. Essentially once you master the technique you can get rid of using the grids and the initial bounding box that you created. Just keep in mind the overlap of images concept in the tutorial and make sure you keep everything aligned and copy your guides with your objects so you end up having the 4 guides. Then at the end you can create a box that resides within your guides and set it to no color and send to the back. Group everything (except the guides) and define the pattern.

Another note about this is that my pattern below wouldn't work when I was snapping it to the grid so I had to simplify the method. If I'm trying to build a design like in the tutorial I would probably use the technique as described in the tutorial but it's good to know there are options.

Below is the example I created. The blue square over the design on the left is where my invisible box is and everything outside the box is outside my 4 guides but you group everything and use that entire grouping to define the pattern. I think that invisible box is the glue that holds the whole repeating trick together! On the right is my pattern applied as a fill. Works pretty darn good! I had no idea you could create a repeat pattern with all this overhang and it works perfectly if you keep everything aligned. I love Illustrator even more than I did before!

If you are a Photoshop person there is another way to create repeats using the offset filter which is discussed in this link. I haven't tried this method but it looks like it will work well. You can google "Photoshop offset filter" and find a few thing discussing this method in addition to the link I posted.

walkabout

2008-08-20T15:48:00.005-05:00

It is such a beautiful day today that I decided to take my camera for a little walk. Above are some of the things I saw today that inspire me and are just beautiful. I absolutely love sculptures and one of the great things about Chicago is that they sometimes just appear randomly although the two sculptures I photographed today have been around for a little while. My new favorite sculpture is the one of the woman on the left side (I call her the faerie) and her lower section is a trellis for the vines to grow up. She is by Congress and Michigan Avenue. I absolutely love this sculpture. I have not been able to find any information on her on the internet but I will keep looking. The other sculpture in the collage is at the Art Institute and is titled "Large Interior Form" by Henry Moore. The photo directly below the Henry Moore sculpture is a close-up macro shot of the one of the Lions in front of the Art Institute. The Lions are Bronze and the aged patina is a beautiful color. It is so interesting to see humans artistic mark on the world alongside nature. Then the sculpture almost becomes a part of nature because it is then subjected to the natural world and will age on her terms.

I love all types of sculptures. Maybe it's because I don't think in 3D — I think and visualize in 2D. My most successful attempt at sculpture was eaten by my dog in High School (it had a milk patina and my doggie loved milk so there you go... don't soak artwork in your dog's favorite treat). The flowers are from Millennium Park and along Michigan Avenue. I love the colors in the flowers — purple, pink and orange. It was a great day to be outside and take a little walk.

my process

2008-08-19T12:54:00.011-05:00

It's been so long since I last posted... I don't know what happened. I had so many ideas of what my next blog post should be about and then I fizzled out. A long time ago I had decided that I would post about my design process and I even took pictures of my brand new Moleskine sketchbook (below).

I was finally inspired to blog again and post about my process when I came across printmaker and fabric designer Lizzy House's blog about her story and her new line of fabric called Lizzy Dish. I came across her blog because she was featured on the wonderful print & pattern blog.

So without further ado... my process (with some ramblings in between). I felt it was time for a new design phase and nothing kicks things off like a brand new sketch book. My favorites are the Moleskine sketchbooks. They are a good size and I can fit them in many of my handbags (I usually don't purchase a new purse unless it passes the sketchbook test). I'm not exclusive to the moleskines but they house a majority of my illustrations. Sometimes when I am having trouble finishing off a design just right I will pull out tracing paper or marker paper and start tracing my designs so I can draw new version a little faster.

Another handy dandy thing I cannot leave home without is my circle template. I really like the template that is in the photo above because I can make really big circles with it!!! People think I have magical circle drawing powers but I don't — it's the circle template, baby! I think I have about 5 of them now but one or two are always lost. It's a rotating schedule of unfindable items.

Below is the first illustration in my new sketchbook. This design will probably not become anything but I like the clouds and the flowers streaking out of the clouds design I came up with so that has the possibility of becoming a part of another design.

When I sketch I just like to let ideas flow. Sometimes I have very specific things I am trying to reinterpret but a majority of the time I just draw. This method also means that I really need to draw A LOT because out of 5-10 illustrations I may only have one that I want to develop further or it takes me 10 tries to get the illustration where I want it.

After I have an illustration that I know I want to take to the final design phase I scan my hand drawn illustration into the computer and then I use Adobe Illustrator to redraw it. At the computer stage I am sometimes struck with new inspiration and my design may change slightly or not at all. The best way to redraw in Illustrator is to use a Wacom tablet. Instead of a mouse you use a pen-like tool to control the cursor on screen and it is easier to draw with than a mouse. It is also a great way to avoid carpel tunnel syndrome. The mouse kills my wrist if there is a lot of clicking and cursor-action involved and since I am a designer that's pretty much all I do (especially when I use Photoshop and Illustrator). Below are a couple examples of the hand-drawn illustration (on the left) and the final versions in Illustrator (on the right)

Here's the big question — Why do I redraw things in Illustrator? Couldn't I just scan my original illustrations and use those? The answer to the second question is yes I could do pretty much all my letterpress with just hand drawn images scanned into the computer and outputted properly. The reason I redraw everything in Illustrator is so I will always have my illustrations in a very high quality digital format that I can resize and edit easily. I can also then take multiple illustrations and create new composites and repeating patterns. Sometimes it is also easier to print an old design and trace new concepts over it then look for that original sketchbook. Those randomly get lost as well — they are usually having parties with the lost circle templates. Most designs aren't perfected until the computer phase anyway. It is also a completely perfectionist and time-consuming thing to do and I am very persnickety about design things.

Well there you have it... The ramblings of me! Did it make anything clearer or are you more confused? Next time. Repeating patterns. I have some great links to help clear up this little head scratcher.

oh Lolla!

2008-08-05T10:57:00.008-05:00

pictures: TOP - Lolla entrance. MIDDLE - Radiohead, BOTTOM - Jack White of the Raconteurs and the White Stripes

Well we did it again this year... we went to Lollapalooza here in Chicago. We said we weren't going to do it this year but then Radiohead headlined the Friday of Lolla weekend. We only went to Friday and it was of course hot and humid. Every year the Lolla peeps do something slightly different and this year the changes were kinda stupid. First it took us forever to get into the show because they were putting wristbands on people at the gate instead of, like in years past, when you had to get your own wristbands before the thing starts and put it on yourself. The second thing they did is lower the main stages a little??? I could not see a single stick figure dancing around on stage! My favorite Lollapaloozas are my first one back in the day at Pine Knob (Michigan) and the first Lolla they did here in Chicago when it started back up again.

Following are some of the bands we saw at Lolla 2008. The smaller BMI stage was the best overall stage and we liked every band we saw and the sound was always spot-on, the bands were; The Parlor Mob, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, and Your Vegas. Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears were phenomenal!!! They are my favorite discovery this year! Rock, Soul, and Blues all in one.

On one of the main stages we saw The Black Keys who I really like but their sound was terrible this year (sound consistency and quality are a problem at Lolla). I saw them the first year at Lolla Chicago and they are an amazing live band. Too bad about the sound this year. On the same stage we also saw the Raconteurs and they were awesome and their sound was fantastic even though at some point they blew an amp (according to Jack White—I couldn't tell)!

After the Raconteurs we journeyed all the way to the other end to see Radiohead. In the middle I stopped and snapped a quick photo of Buckingham Fountain (below). This was the first time I saw Radiohead and they were amazing but the Lolla crowd was kookie. People talked through the entire show and we could hear the chatter over Radiohead until we went and stood by a speaker. They played songs from all their albums and I hope I have an opportunity to see them again with a crowd that can appreciate their music.

All in all I think I'm done with Lollapalooza for so many varied reasons. I have gone to all four of the Chicago Lollas and I think I need a break. I've had fun and it's been a good run! Next year you will see me wandering around Grant Park just outside Lolla soaking in some free sounds.

I leave you with this question... Who talks during a Radiohead show?

a little time away

2008-07-28T13:15:00.004-05:00

I got away from the big bad city this weekend and I met my sisters in Manistee, Michigan! It was lovely to see Lake Michigan from the other side this weekend and nice to spend a little time in the outdoors with my family. I have not had an opportunity to go to Northern Michigan for a few years now. I have really missed it. As you can see it is beautiful.

The top left photo is from the beach in a little town called Frankfurt and we did walk out all the way to the lighthouse. It was a little scary at the end and we discovered the lake water was too cold to go swimming for us! We were hit by a couple of waves on our way out and back. The water was brisk (as it usually always is)! The picture on the top right is of some Lavender in a little park in Frankfurt. It smelled divine. The middle two photos were taken in Acadia at a scenic look-out. Acadia is between Manistee and Frankfort. The bottom photo is of some rocks in Lake Michigan. I love rocks especially rock walls! I think my favorite rocks are those huge ones in Central Park NY that look like they are from some prehistoric time. And Kentucky has some great rock walls.

We all picked up some super yummy natural soaps and lotions by Creation Soap from the Frankfurt farmer's market.

inspirations

2008-07-24T17:36:00.001-05:00

Shimmer Studio @ Beckman's Handcrafted

2008-07-20T18:57:00.004-05:00

don't forget! booth 7-4065

2008-07-16T11:56:00.003-05:00

Beckman's Handcrafted Show starts Saturday July 19th at 9am and runs through Tuesday July 22nd. Shimmer Studio is booth 7-4065 on the seventh floor!

Above is a photo of the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. It is a convenient location and there are plenty of amenities for a day of perusing giftie goodness. Starbucks is on the first floor as well as a wine store that has yummy gourmet paninis.

I am excited for the start of Beckman's and I start setting up tomorrow so expect pictures (I hope I can find my battery charger)! Of course I am overwhelmed doing another trade show but I can't wait to meet new people and talk to other artists. I think my booth will come together nicely if I finish my boards (LOL)! Time to start wrapping up all those loose ends.

website updated

2008-07-16T11:41:00.005-05:00

The Shimmer Studio website has been updated! It is just a little modification — I added a couple of pages and made sure users could get to the stationery catalog from the home screen. There is also a new wholesale page! In the future I plan on adding search functionality and an online store. I plan on using the free Google Custom Search (which was hard to find so I've attached the link in case you want to muck around with a search feature too!) The free version pops-up with advertisements so I'll see how that works. I couldn't launch the new version of the site with the search functionality because I need to submit a sitemap so it works properly. Currently Google does not have much of my site indexed. I will see how it all goes!

I added this photo I took in Florida to the wholesale page.

inspirations

2008-07-15T21:07:00.000-05:00

hot off the press

2008-07-01T17:25:00.001-05:00

Well, maybe not hot of the press but it was just last week!

Beckman's Handcrafted Show :: Booth 7-4065

2008-06-30T17:32:00.006-05:00

Shimmer Studio will have a booth at Beckman's Handcrafted Show July 19th – July 22nd. Our booth number is 7-4065 on the seventh floor of the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Beckman's Handcrafted Show is part of the Chicago Gift Show: Living and Giving.

We are very excited to be a part of this show on our home turf.

PrintingPrintingPrinting

2008-06-13T16:30:00.006-05:00

I have been consistently printing since I returned from New York and I will be at it again next week (and probably the week after)! I love the process of printing so I am not complaining! For now I rely on renting letterpress time at some fantastic local Chicago spots but I hope to purchase my own press soon! Below are some photos of the Vandercook Universal I at the Center for Book and Paper Arts. I hope I can find myself a Vandy one day!

Letterpress videos on YouTube

2008-06-10T10:03:00.004-05:00

I've never really been a huge watcher of YouTube, except for the occasional muppet snippets and music videos. As a matter of fact my all time favorite YouTube video is, "Me Lost Me Cookie at the Disco!" (it really is a must see). So on one of my many random googlings of the word "letterpress" guess what I found? Letterpress videos on YouTube. I'm so ecstatic! I haven't gone through and watched a lot of them yet but here is a link to a good start for all you other letterpress nerds out there: http://www.youtube.com/user/DonBlackLetterpress.

FYI, I use a Vandercook press to print most of my stationery but I do have a Sigwalt table-top platen press which I use for little things here and there.

YouTube is pretty spiffy!

Happy bloggings to me!

2008-05-27T11:31:00.007-05:00

Ok, well I'm doing it — I'm starting a blog (or restarting but we won't go there). Hello out there on the web. I'm the founder and the artist behind Shimmer Studio. We just made our debut at the National Stationery Show in New York. I just got back a few days ago and I am still exhausted! The show was fantastic. I met a lot of great people!

I was very lucky and stayed in NYC a few xtra days to hang out and shop with my best friend! We had a great whirlwind of a time. We saw two Broadway shows, Young Frankenstein and Legally Blonde. I loved both shows and they were both a lot of fun. We also made it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art which has the most amazing Egyptian collection I have ever seen! The image below is a column from the Temple of Dendur exhibit. We also somehow found some time for shopping in Soho! I can't wait to go back next year!

shimmer studio

Studio Party!!!!! Friday!!! Yo!

Letterpress Openhouse — Saturday, July 11th!!!

another little custom project

Announcement Postcard

hot off the press

color studies

Welcome home!

Ravenswood — here we come

a little belated studio tour

"Lotus Glow" limited edition print

inspirations

big BIG news!

color Inspiration

A little bit of Green (in the Chicago River)

color Inspiration

Indie Fixx's A Greener Day Galleria

Mandala Letterpress Set

Goods for Goodness Sake!

Shimmer Studio Brocade

Playing around with pattern

color Inspirations

some odds and Ends

color Inspiration

turmeric Veggies! (a recipe)

some new Greetings

let the Love shine in!

Hello History!

colored pencils are swell

happy Thanksgiving to you!

Love my Cindy Tomczyk painting!

Tina Fey is my new hero!

DIY Trunkshow pics

news: DIY Trunkshow: Saturday: Chicago: Please come!

some yummy local food & produce!

happy thing :: the Wacom Tablet

yes we can!

happy thing SIX: pantone formula guide

Splat Flats 4th Annual Open House

happy thing FIVE: My Circle Templates

remember the 20 happy things?

Computer Design Bootcamp

color inspirations

update: the moving thing

news: the second holiday card is printed!

news: little blog break to move!

four: mmmm... COFFEE!!!

news: Alternative Holiday Card

three: Printing Ink

two: Baggage

one: Corner Rounder

Intro: 10 things that make me happy

photopolymer plates can be recycled!

RedBall Project by artist Kurt Perschke

repeat it!

walkabout

my process

oh Lolla!

a little time away

inspirations

Shimmer Studio @ Beckman's Handcrafted

don't forget! booth 7-4065

website updated

inspirations

hot off the press

Beckman's Handcrafted Show :: Booth 7-4065

Printing*Printing*Printing

Letterpress videos on YouTube

Happy bloggings to me!

PrintingPrintingPrinting