All set up and ready to rock! This place is already so beautiful, but now we get to ghoul it up! Bonus! Come down for a sneak peek of the first ever squishy version of Oliver the Squonk! Perhaps even more to come?…. 😉

It’s been a crushing last couple of weeks, and I’m now essentially a corpse, animated through the power of coffee, necessity, and spite… BUT! More importantly! I’m back in Victoria for the Crafts from the Crypt Fair!

Some days, it just be like that… Don’t forget to unplug and go breathe the outside air if ye can 🩵

Sometimes I like to ramble. And sometimes I decide to actually jot down my thoughts on the questions I keep getting from other artists at shows and workshops. SO! This one’s for my fair friends who’re looking for good references and inspiration! https://www.patreon.com/posts/references-aka-138533875

First event in a couple of months is coming up quickly! I have a couple little newbies being shipped, but the most fun will be playing with my ever changing setup. If you’re in Nanaimo this Saturday, dip in and say hello (and watch the chaos!)…

The smoke has finally eased off at least, though the smell lightly lingers… It’s been an awkward last couple of months, but my next show is fast approaching, so I’m pulling things together once more.

After getting most of my to-do list done today, I realized just how overheated I’d become in the house, and after some relaxing creature-doodling, the house coyote demanded time in the shade, water, wind.

Ahh the familiar feeling of needing a pencil extender… Also, why are the “blackest blacks” reserved for paint?

I’ve been wrestling down the roiling anger and frustration by turning my attention more to my community, and to outward environmental stimuli that demonstrate calm, love, and resilience. A perfectly coiling creeping vine in my garden. A wide, calm, and open summer sky. My snoozing house-coyote.

The monsters of my world building project “Ænim” don’t just have humans to contend with- there is a healthy population of invasive Earth animals as well, and I’m looking forward to adding their stories to the growing pile for my ongoing collection…

Needed to really dig into something, so I pulled an original creatures sketch scan out of mothballs, and decided to start sketching up a fresher paintover….

Welph…I decided to dig in and add elements. Because…bonus puppies. The picking away grinds on…..

Managed to sneak off to a fantastic local coffee shop this weekend, and dig into an older sketch I’d left buried in a sketchbook…

Getting my work days sorted out again, mostly by doing several things at once, so that nothing gets truly accomplished in a reasonable amount of time! It’s the ADHD way! 💪🏻☕️☕️⏱️ Cuz the grind don’t stop!* *If the grind don’t stop for more than 6 days without a finished product, seek professional help*

I, uh…. I have been really enjoying this, so I decided to randomly share it. For those of us who need to read up on exchange rates or giant squid on a whim? udm14.com: An easy-to-use shortcut for an AI-free Google search. (Try it!) udm14.com

Big plans are rolling for my entire display/inventory/everything else… but I’m starting small this week, and brightening up my framed display prints. We’ll see how they look this Saturday!

Sudden change in plans = I’ll be back out with my creatures in Cedar on the 17th! So from decompression from Curious ComiCon, to back into prep mode- this time, outsiiiiiide! Ooooooo! 😳🫠 But first, some recharge time with my four footed Human Resources manager…..

……what? It’s been a long-ass day, OK?….

Just a little doodle before I jump back into my regular workflow.

Kinda……kinda feeling judged while I’m working today…. 🤔

I’m back, baby- good ol’Curious ComiCon! Got some newbies to share too, so come say hi if you’re in the area, yeah?

Spring-O-Ween is kickin’ on day 2! Come see the me-shaped blur at my table if you can, eh? 😜 At Market Square in Victoria, BC- @halloweenmarketyyj.bsky.social

Aahhh Victoria construction! 😭😱🪦 Yeah, I’m not sure how I’m still even alive y’all. But we’re loaded in for this weekend’s show at Market Square in Victoria! Come on down and see which version of me survived Friday’s misadventures… *pictured: show info, plus my mental state before and after arrival*

My head has been full of metamorphosis lately, leaving me playing with ideas… that said, shows come around, so I’m back to prep as well…

Good lordy do I actually hate making reels, y’all 😆 Sigh…. I actually dislike posting online in all its forms right now, but it does suck less here? So hey- happy Monday my bsky-buddies! I hope you all find something to smile about today 🩵 www.instagram.com/reel/DIcKSc7...

Just…. Working and vibing. Another original creature getting a re-fab. It’s cool, grey, damp, and “meh” outside, and I’ve been feeling much the same. So it’s time to take that energy and transmute it….

Oliver is feeling a bit suspicious and under-caffeinated currently… Some shows be like that.

Aaaand I made it. All set up at the Langford Island FanCon!

Friday’s almost here, and after cutting backing boards for prints, and doing a ton of photo and website editing, I’m…. Kinda crippled. Right arm hates this sorta stuff (hEDS suuuucks). But I’m still STOKED for FanCon! I have new stuff too- if you’re around in Langford this weekend, come say hi!

Hey………. Got some new lil’ monster stickers to bring to my next shows…. Just ugly-cuteness today, my friends. If ya need it. I’ll be adding them to my web store (once I fix all the weird issues I found recently…sigh). I should really live out in the mud somewhere- tech stuff is exhausting for me.

Just vibin’… Working on some ideas. Prepping for an upcoming convention. Getting merch ready. And….. being in my mood…

I decided to sneak off on my own and battle the “drained” feeling that was threatening to derail my day by checking out a new coffee shop. Of course, I wasn’t going to bring any work with me. Nope. Nuh-uh- I need a BREAK… So there went that plan. But hey- Brix and Mortar in Nanaimo? Solid coffee 💪🏻

At last, my brain must return to “show-mode”… Thanks to carefully curating my social media time, and balancing little positive actions with staying informed (not overwhelmed), I…. Still feel grim but determined? Anyway, it’s time to get my beasties out into the world where they belong.

I got an update tonight on a story I’d been waiting on (details not important for now), and it was bittersweet. No… wrong words. Dark and quiet. A dark, quiet, somewhat sad but somewhat angry silent feeling. So I’d like to offer “dog obsessed with fern”, and “boba tea defender WIP” in trade.

Welp, it’s Tuesday. I’ve a con coming up at the end of next month. So… pitter patter, let’s get at’er, eh? I like to have music, podcasts, or shows on in the background while I work. Silence =intense thinking, which is worrisome… Fellow #ADHD peeps- what are your fave“productivity aids”?

Step one: feel feelings Step two: place pencil on sketchbook page Step three: post results…and probably call therapist? 🤔

How DOES one express oneself …. My own brain is currently a fluid chaos of emotions, most of which are…. pretty vicious and “intemperate” actually. But I try to keep breathing and looking around at all times. So I often let the shapes just figure themselves out…

Winter decided to “bulk” this past week, and hit Vancouver Island with our full yearly snow allotment all at once. My dog has been THRILLED. 💪🏻 And when she finally gets tired out, I just bundle up and drink an entire pot of coffee whilst working on multiple projects at once, apparently…

ARTISTS! Let’s do an art share! There are now nearly 31 MILLION Bluesky accounts! In a world that feels particularly chaotic, let’s take a moment to find each other and celebrate one another. Spread the post to reach the most! 💙

Had some folks asking about Oliver, our resident rescue squonk. And he’s…. He seems… He seems fine. About average really.

Aaaand the truck is in for repairs, I’m still having stubborn coughing fits, it’s been bleakly grey and rainy all day…. So I might as well finish this up and get back to work 🤷🏼‍♀️

Sometimes the monster-creature-things get a bit…thespian?…around here. The iPad has been brutalizing my hand and wrist over the past few weeks, so a lil break for traditional sketchbook stuff felt in order…

Things to consider for daily enrichment (just suggestions of course): 1- look up. There’s something about a sunset that reminds you how vast and dynamic the real world is. 2- make art. Something that reflects your individuality if possible. And 3- pine cones rule (aka “relish the simple joys”)

….. that weird feeling when you realize just how much Jerry Goldsmith’s film scores sound like Vaughan Williams….. 😐 Why…. Why did this not click with me at literally ANY earlier point in my life??

Today’s studio buddies represent the perfect duality of moods for such nitpicky work… ….Bricks bricks bricks bricks…

I spent my birthday roaming solo on a windy beach, pondering…everything. Afterward, a visit to a favourite local coffee shop and some self indulgent digital doodling was in order. I might have gone a bit overboard on the sundae. 😐 This year feels like it’s going to take every kind of creativity.

“I’m going to take a quick break from commissions and just doodle around with one of my creature drawings- nothing too fancy of course…” THREE HOURS LATER …. WHY AM I LIKE THIS??!…

Ha! Take that, turkey soup drip- y’all don’t know me!💪🏻😆 Also, meet my new fren- a recently discovered blob-headed fish. Look at’it. That fish might just be the energy I need to give off this year… 🤔

Welph, looks like late night doodling for me, since someone’s unhappy with the fireworks… So hey! Have yourselves…. a New Year… hopefully a happy one? Maybe just hang in there? Whatever it is, have a sporting fist-bump from me and the monsters, yeah? 🩵

I know what will really set off this drawing…. Turkey soup spatter, obviously. Sigh…time to pretend this “happy little accident” was all part of the master plan. 😐