Woodrough Lodge

Woodrough Lodge

I've been living in Ontario for so many years now (11 years maybe?), I thought it was high time to create a special, Ontario cottage country dollhouse.  I wanted to include lots of the great local wildlife.  Some highlights include a moose, beavers, coyotes, red wing black birds and black bear.

I was really pleased how it all turned out matted and framed!  It's hard to tell from the photo, but the frame has nice textured bark detailing on it.

Thanks to Jesse, for taking the photo, it's so hard get a good picture of art behind glass.

Coconut Oil Coffee

Coconut Oil Coffee - photographed by Jesse Ewles

So I'm completely addicted to coconut oil coffee.  It's ruined me for normal coffee!  It's super easy to make and it tastes like the greatest latte you've ever had.

All you do is make a pot of coffee like normal (I use a french press), then when it's ready, you pour it into a blender, add a heaping teaspoon of coconut oil, tablespoon of honey, and a good splash of almond milk.  Blend it for a minute or two and serve it in your favorite coffee mug.  It comes out with plenty of froth on top and a creamy taste.
This is sure to impress your mom (Mother's day is coming up!) and all your friends.

And don't feel bad about drinking coconut oil, it happens to have health benefits!

Gabon Magazine Cover Illustration

Gabon Magazine contacted me to create a cover illustration for a special edition of the magazine to be distributed in China.  The issue was all about China/Gabon trade relations and they wanted the cover to portray this.  It was very interesting to learn a little bit about Gabon while creating the artwork.  It sounds like a very beautiful country with interesting animals and many natural resources.

The chosen cover image is of a Phoenix (a very positive Chinese symbol) holding a lucky coin.  The bird flys over a Gabon landscape highlighting some of Gabon's major trade assets (lumber and off shore oil).

It was a pleasure working with Mauro Perillo, the managing editor!

* The text on the above illustration isn't what was on the final printed version.  It was a general cover template I was given to design around.  But you get the idea.

Today's Parent Paper Cut Flowers

Yay! I am really excited to finally see (and share) this cover!

Back in February, I was asked to make 5 branches of paper cut flowers with little leaves for the May issue of Today's Parent Magazine.  I also spent the morning at the photo shoot cutting and folding last minute extra flowers.  Everyone was super nice and it was great to meet Alicia Kowalewski, the art director, in person.

My flowers might appear in a photo on the interior of the magazine as well.  I'll have to get my hands on a copy to take a look.

Art At Cardinal Rule

Gypsy Summer - Miss Fawn Cuttington's Rustic A-frame - The Gardener

It ain't easy photographing art behind glass.  But you get the gist.

So my art will be displayed at Cardinal Rule for the next 3 months!  Jesse and I put up the show earlier this week, and I gotta say, it looks real good.  There are 10 pieces up in total.

If you're in the Toronto area, you should stop in for a brunch or dinner.

Birds and Blooms

The Flooded Home of Corporal Cutty McCloud

Arctic Synchronized Swim

Amsterdam Map

Stand Fast

Seven Days: Vermont Magazine

Here's a new cover illustration I made for Seven Days, Vermont's independent magazine!  It was for the real estate issue, so I got to cut out a nice variety of little houses.  I think it turned out pretty cute.

It was art directed by Diane Sullivan, who was an all around wonderful person to work with.  The turn around time was really tight (maybe 4 days from sketches to final), fewf!

Today's Parent Illustration

Here's a quick little spot illustration I made for Today's Parent Magazine.  It was done with a very quick turn around time, and I think it turned out really great!

Thanks to the art director, Dave Curcio, for the great commission!

Savary Island Map

Savary Island Illustrated Map

I'm so happy to finally share my newest map illustration!  Click the image to see a larger view.

I created this piece as a gift for my dad and step mom, Janice.  Dad has been building a beautiful cottage on Savary Island for the past ... hmm ... I'm not sure ... maybe 7 years? He's built it all himself, sometimes dragging large, beautiful, drift wood logs from the ocean behind his kayak and incorporating them as beams in the house.  I could pretty much go on and on about amazing stories about my dad, but I should talk a bit about this map illustration as well.

So Savary Island is off the coast of British Columbia on the Sunshine Coast and is filled with beauiful wildlife.  I wanted to include and label some of the most prominent island animals.  Also, I included my sister painting, my dad kayaking, Janice looking through the binoculars and myself wearing my red sweater ridding a bike.

Below you can see the work in progress.

And bellow is my all time favorite Savary Island photo!  I was on that rock posing in the hot sun for 2 days while my bikini clad sister painted me.  (This was clearly used as reference on my map.)

And now you must be curious to see how Kristy's painting turned out ... take a look! Beautiful.  Can't wait to visit again this summer.