what what? some graphic design?

i've been idea-ing and medium-ing a lot lately. it feels so good to paint and print with my hands ... but i've also done some logos recently, and gladly, these companies have been really fun, and open to my ideas. which is rare. THANK YOU. seriously.

i am a huge fan of AMPlified Culture, run by my friend Laura Diaz. AMPlified Culture is a blog that reviews local businesses, and explores the "eat, drink, play" of Orlando. she really needs to come back to new england and start an AMPlified Culture, New England Edition. her spunk, openness and passion make for an endlessly fun + interesting blog. i'm so lucky that i got to work with Laura + Erica on this logo.

in the end, we narrowed down to three options, and they let their viewers choose the winner (below). it was really fun to watch the voting. next we're working on some blog header ideas- so stay tuned to see the logo on their website, soon. AND - they got shirts made for a weekend conference, which i love: check it out, here

RPAA- Retired Pro Athlete Assistance, is program at a law firm dedicated to helping retired professional athletes get the benefits they are entitled to for their sacrifices. i did this logo for their website and enjoyed the challenge of creating balance. it felt like right and left brain. science, medicine, law- with visual, physical, emotional representation. their website is a great resource and socially connected space.

and last but not least for today ... wedding invitations and response cards for a family friend. a simple and elegant irish-italian wedding, at a local restaurant with close family and friends, in august. maria's (kelly's mama's) house, was my second home - growing up next door. maria is wonderful, accepting, and so so loving... we go way way back. they danced the night away at my wedding, and now, i'm honored that i can help her create a feel for her's. (to a fantastically good guy, matt.) congratulations!

strawberries

a common theme for me, i have always loved strawberries. not the taste, well, the taste is very good, yes, but more just the visual of a strawberry. i'm visually dyslexic sometimes- i used to call strawberries "tomatoes" and vice versa, as a kid. penguins and pigeons. you know, those things can get confusing, and their names don't matter. i kind of like it. it helps me to see why i really love it, you know, that thing, a tomato or whatever it is, it doesn't matter what you call it . but this "strawberry", i love it how it looks. my very favorite book was "the little mouse, the red ripe strawberry, and the big hungry bear"

so, here are some new strawberry cards in my etsy store

and a lovely treasury on etsy, that my cards made it into! thank you to MyFavoriteSweater and their treasury "strawberry fields forever" ... which is even more fitting when you know that i used to sing that with kelly on the swings in derry, nh.

strawberry picking should be soon, huh?

my recent uptaking with strawberries started again when it felt perfect for merrimack's "spring" onesie, hence her new nickname, she just feels like a little strawberry, but i know that "strawberry" is just something that has been sitting with me forever, and always will. maybe because i could never get it right, maybe because it means summer is here, maybe because i picked them with my mum and sister ... maybe that's what i'm going to be in my next life. i hope it's a strawberry bush right on the edge of the ocean. that exists, i know it does. right jaimie? let's start that.

let your heart guide you (today's yogi tea wisdom)

"where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art." - Leonardo Da Vinci

recap of my mom, Verne Orlosk's, show on Friday night, at East Colony:
lots of supportive currier art center staff + students, red SOLD dots!, tentacles, a more patient than normal father/husband, jelly fish, best friends, a lot of "sister" instant recognition, mussel-love, a goofy pair of brother/sister-in-laws, an excited pair of parents with very sweet british neighbors, 'spend a penny' time, welcoming and food-table-attentive fellow east colony artists, excellent cream puffs, and a very proud daughter.

go mummy!

facebook + twitter!

i now have a facebook and a twitter page for my art! for me, these will be places to share quicker + shorter blips of inspiration and work, and build community. my blog will always be home base for sharing my art + life, but i'm excited that these quicker outlets can connect us all to new people, ideas, and inspirations.

facebook 

twitter

yes, social media CAN feel like this

come along, then! (as said by my grammy shaw)

and holo holo.

 

a messy place

yesterday, i sat down to paint for the first time in a while. highly enjoyable while doing it. then, i sort of felt no so enjoyable when i couldn't pin-point my goal. and then, that i couldn't be okay withOUT a goal. i think more trips to the ocean are in order... "Relax the Mind, Rejuvenate the Spirit, Go to the water's edge." OR. you could also go with, my other favorite quote, "the cure for anything is salt water. sweat, tears, or the sea." today i had to get out of here and go to the gym to get out of my own way. or just some sleep.

a hawaiian fish. this had a simple goal. jay's birthday, in june. but... i cracked and showed it to him when he came home. oh well, he loves it and it's just an early gift. at least now i know he likes it.

i am quote-tacular today. here is a good one:
"To be an artist means not to compute or count; it means to ripen as the tree, which does not force its sap, but stands unshaken in the storms of spring with no fear that summer might not follow. It will come regardless."

re-focus, over + over

 

reading books about making books, inspired by the abstract-ness above, and focusing on... 8 different things, as usual.

etsy shop!

check it out:::   kieleofthesea.etsy.com  ... let me know what you think! all thoughts welcome.

i started with just a few things, but more to come in staggers. soon soon. stayed tuned... but i'll keep you posted here and on FB.

meanwhile

check out this video from the indigo bunting. it's created for an ipad issue of martha stewart living. (and i love the song choice).

... and i just happened to run across these photos i took of a little girl named angelina, who i used to babysit years ago now. every time i find them, i think how they are some of my favorite photos ever.