Rumblebea's pet treats >> logo design!

I've been working on a handful of illustrations with this sweet couple who whip up homemade gluten free pet treats for their furry friends. The logo was the first piece (more are up on my website!) featuring Rumblebea the black lab, an orange cat, and a pet rat.
This nifty little package was part of my gift to my parents puppy Oreo, and she absolutely loved the treats!! If you're interested in a package of your own, get in touch, I can send the owner your way!

snowflake kites >> starbucks commercial

i just saw this last evening & I can't get the imagery out of my head, the snowflakes are so whimsical & dreamy. i've been contemplating making paper snowflakes to hang- its now definitely on my crafty to do list. enjoy!

christmas card peek

up close shot of (so far, there may be more) all three designs.
must start writing them out & sending them off!

december inspiration + promo mailers!

my latest arrangement on my inspiration board has a mix of reds and greens to celebrate the season. the snippet of green polkadots is one of my holiday wrapping papers this year, swoon!



finally got to take a snapshot of my recent promo mailers featuring the piece ocean swept in deeper blues. i sent a batch out a couple weeks ago, must beef up my client list to send out the next round.



i am loving the back layout & design, it's only natural for me to handwrite my information... using a typical type just doesn't mix well when trying to showcase myself. hope you enjoy them as much as i do!

a little winter forest

a quiet little forest created for the trees galore exhibit/silent auction at the lancaster art museum in december. my favorite thing about creating this was experimenting with the layers/opacity of the trees. really, i could spend hours mocking up different versions, its oh so fun!

a sample of colors

I love how different each version of this same pattern looks. Its amazing what color can do/super fun to play around with. I so want to make these into 12x12 scrapbook sized paper. or wrapping paper. or journals. (I normally like to add blog images to flickr, they tend to have a higher quality but the colors in this one turned "hurt your eyes fluorescent", so I hope you enjoy the slightly smaller but the intended muted palette here.)

autumn leaves >> inspiration

yesterday i spent the unseasonably warm afternoon outside drawing and collecting leaves.
i think i may do some quick color studies from them before they become brown and crunchy.

october inspiration + nested

my new october inspiration board... i decided to go through old magazines/catalogues for this one and my eye was caught by creamy neutrals & hand drawn line work. 

another illustrator piece! i sketched this same idea next to the previous, ocean swept, so i think they have a similar feel. blogger seems to have really desaturated this one making the greens/browns look gray-ish. flickr has a better version (on my screen at least!)

shades of blue

i've been playing around in illustrator, my ultimate default program is photoshop, so its been a bit of a transition... but i'm finding out there are a lot of cool/easy/super fun tools that i didn't even know existed!

i first started with this scanned ink drawing (i'll spare you from the two watercolor attempts)


first color-way here in light blue/seafoamy greens


second color-way in deeper blues


i'm not sure which is like best?! its fun working digitally because with the click of a button you can re-do/un-do everything!

snap-shoot>> new swatches!

new spoonflower swatches have arrived!! its exciting/nerve racking opening up that little package!

the second in the nature walk series turned out a bit orangey than I imagined, so i've made a few adjustments and plan to proof the new version soon.



the tea cup flowers in shades of gray turned out perfect and is up for sale now!!





warning: i think its safe to say spoonflower is officially feeding my obsession with patterning. so be on the look out for new designs by becoming a fan on facebook where you will see them first!!

new & old >> leaves!

spent a bit of time yesterday playing in photoshop trying out new (to me!) techniques, patterning some ink drawings & discovering new color palettes.





its fun to see my style evolve in just under a year. this pattern was made last october.

nature walk >> on fabric!

didn't i mention yesterday how anxious i was to see my first ever spoonflower swatch??



the colors match perfect, i couldn't be happier! i just love seeing my ink drawings on fabric, i want to make curtains and bedsheets and tablecloths!
this design is now up for sale, go on take a peek!

nature walking

hello blog, it's been far too long!
here are the latest designs i've been working up... a nature walk inspired series.
i must say this summer was hot, like super hot to the point of not being able to enjoy outside-ness. when i tried to escape it, that pesky heat followed me (it was 90 degrees in maine last week!!) since it's finally cooled down to a livable temperature i've been able to enjoy walking some trails and discovering new plants/shapes that inspire me.





i ordered a swatch of this design from spoonflower, and i'm overly anxious to see it! it got lost in the mail while i was away so i'm crossing my fingers it gets here this week!

new doodles

just a couple of new ideas that keep popping up while I'm drawing away...

3x3 nuts & bolts conference

from my experience the first annual 3x3 nuts & bolts conference this past weekend was a huge success! getting to see/hear each illustrators progression from student to working professional was truly awesome and inspirational. each speaker had a specific topic to elaborate on ranging from children books, to self publishing, to protecting you work... it was overwhelming to hear one person after another but in a good way. 

Charles Hively (who is photographed here taking a picture of the whole group) opened the conference by saying even if you take just one thing away from this, it was successful/worthwhile. that stuck with me.

home from the woods...

.. and on our way to the city.
it's been a busy, jam packed week.
matt & i just got home from a short trip to westmoreland virginia where we made these delicious bald eagle marshmallows (that were dipped in white chocolate, rolled in coconut, and stuck on an oreo cookie. yum.)



and painted these rocks & shells found on one of our walks. that big blue one i'm going to turn into a whale by drawing on it with a handy dandy pen/marker that works on crazy surfaces!



we are heading up to NY tomorrow for the nuts & bolts conference hosted by 3x3 magazine. it should be pretty excellent because 
1. it's being held at the society of illustrators
2. we are going on a studio tour
3. we get to meet amazing illustrators working in the industry doing what they love day in and day out
4. well, do i need any more reasons? it's going to be a fantastic experience.


also this weekend is the drawgasmic show in st. louis where (former classmates/current illustrators) matt, amanda, joe & myself have pieces on display/for sale!! i wish i could attend, i'm sure the show will be spectacular.

a trip to the brandywine

we ended up at the brandywine river museum on thursday & it was absolutely beautiful. matt had never been so it was definitely extra special.

we purchased the general admission and the NC Wyeth home/studio tour. 

the studio. was. well, still is amazing. unfortunately we weren't able to snap photos inside, but this photo below is the north facing window of the studio. it had the most amazing light.

this is the path between the studio and the home.

from my own experience of the trip... even though i don't paint like the masters on display there, it is (beyond) amazing to see where/how illustration started. just to be in the same room as those works of art is jaw dropping. the history. the significance. and to put it simply, the talent. it was truly a fantastic day filled with inspiration.

our mini collection from the trip... the 2 postcards on the right are paintings by Andrew Wyeth & the bottom postcard is from inside NC's studio.

happy july

can you believe the year is halfway through?
it's another beautiful day out & both matt and i are off, so the plan is to enjoy the lovely non-humid weather!

happy day doodle

the humidity has finally gone away & it's beautiful outside! oh happy day indeed!!

the green bib necklace

this beaded swag bib necklace from anthropologie  catches me eye every time i see it. i could never pull it off though, i tend to wear simple jewelry if anything at all.. i think i love it so much because of the gorgeous green color annnd that it reminds me of all my tiny circle drawings. 

oreo the dog!

yesterday was my mom's birthday & in hopes of breaking the tradition of the same ol gifts we give her.. i tired my hand at something new. i drew her something. come to think of it, i don't think my parents have any recent artwork of mine!



this is a portrait of their dog oreo, who is a mostly black (with a tiny bit of white) cockapoo. she is still a puppy and is full of energy, and of course very adorable! i tired a few different versions.. one with her name and the big O, an actual oreo. but i went with this and was inspired by the design on the cookie as the background pattern.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevendepolo/4596906329/in/set-72157608772318264/ by stevendepolo

today will be awesome

the past 2 days have been filled with lots of tiny little ink drawings, watercoloring, photo-shoots, photo editing, printing, cutting, resizing.. and well, you get the picture. it was super productive!
i've been drawing up a lot of these handwritten mantra's & i love them! they inspire me, so i hope they can/will inspire someone else!



ok, so today isn't very sunny & thats OK. matt and i are heading to hershey park for some roller-coaster/water-park fun. we will enjoy the cloudiness for we both have fair skin... and maybe it won't be so darn hot.
today, in fact, will be awesome.

prints + paper crafting

happy friday!! it's been a gorgeous few days here ie. not too hot, no rain.. so i was able to snap some shots of my latest fun. first up are 2 (out of 4) prints for a sunny beachy series i'm doing for a friend.



and i purchased this lovely blue & white yarn yesterday and just had to put it to good use. i made a fun little bunting! my original idea was to make one so i could take some lovely product print photos.. this white fence is the perfect backdrop!

super fun modcloth flats

these state fair flats from modlcoth are super adorable! they make me want to slip them on and hop on boardwalk rides all night & eat nothing but funnel cake.

also, sign me up for doing designs for insides of shoes!! how adorable is that?? my whole sketchbook is filled with birds!

leah duncan bike print + a curious catt

i was so excited when i took a peek in leah duncan's etsy shop last week... she has just recently added tea towels- swoon!
annd i've always loved her bike pattern.. lo and behold! it is now a limited edition print! it was one of those things... i couldn't not buy it. it arrived on my doorstep yesterday and i'm now the proud owner of this oh so lovely print! thanks leah!!!

happy june!

can you believe it's june already?! i certainly can't!


here's a little piece i finished the other day for a friend's birthday (which i believe is today!)
she loves owls. i love owls. it worked perfect.

here's just the background of leaves. i kind of like it. a lot.



and the finished piece!
happy june! & happy birthday sara!

endless eyeballs

i was a little stumped this morning on what to draw. i have a fun little series of beachy drawings i'm starting for a friend to give as a gift & i just couldn't get started with it. (i think i may need to go to the beach to get a little inspiration, ya know?)
so i flipped through my sketchbook and saw i started just doodling owl eyes. i think i could do a whole page each one different from the other! it may also make a great surface design pattern. oh, the possibilities!