summer debut

Just thought I'd post these two gift cards I did for Target that made their debut this summer. If you get the chance, look for the actual cards in Target because they did a great job with the printing techniques to give them that extra something special. It was a really fun project to work on. It's funny, I remember getting the call from my agent while I was getting a manicure the day before my wedding. So we set up a conference call that same day, right before the rehearsal dinner, and I got the project. Some things you just can't pass up, even if it IS the day before your wedding.



My book signing at Joseph-Beth in Cincinnati went great! Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of this event. I just have this picture a friend of mine took on their cell phone earlier in July. It was a really good turnout for the signing, and I could tell the bookstore did a lot to promote the event. The staff was so accommodating and nice, and I couldn't have felt more welcome. It's so fun to talk to parents and kids afterwards too. I always learn so much. I also got to spend some time with a few good friends, which always fills me up inside and gives me an extra boost of happy vibes.

signing "signs"

My Haiku Baby book signing last Saturday at Joseph-Beth was oh-so fun! The store even sold out of books! I think it's so funny to see signs and posters promoting my book around the stores. Ones with my head shot are especially silly to me because I am so NOT the celebrity.



I loved sitting in front of the fireplace to read my book...it felt like home. I feel like I turned a corner and that I'm starting to really figure out how to relate to a younger audience and make the storytimes and readings a little more interactive. And Jeff helped me mock up an oversized book that really helped keep the kids attention...the little book is tough for reading to big groups.



I also passed out little birdie finger puppets (with feathery wings!) this time, and had the kids hold them up whenever they saw the bird show up in the book. It certainly helped to have the support of so many family and friends there too. It's so important to have cheerleaders in your life, and I think I have the best.

Maybe I had a little help from nature too. I saw this giant halo moon the night before, and I had to pull over and take some pictures of it because it was so amazing and it was such a haiku moment. In my head I was singing Jolie Holland's "Amen, there's a ring around the moon..." song. I felt like seeing the moon was the world's sign to me that all is well and the next day would go well (I get very nervous before these things). My friend Jenny's blog says it was "the full moon of the guru," which I guess means you're supposed to celebrate all the teachers in your life. I thought that was so fitting. In a way, Saturday was partly about paying homage to all those people that helped me on my path. I feel like sharing Haiku Baby with the world is my way of giving back everything people have given to me along the way. I think it was a "haiku moment" for all of us, not just for me, because I think there is a little bit of everyone special to me in this book.

the best job ever

Sometimes I can't believe I ever let myself get stressed out or negative about how I make a living. Today is one of those days when I realize how lucky I am to do what I do everyday. What is my job like today? I am dumping out bags of feathers from the craft store, trying to find "just right" colors and sizes for little birdie finger puppets. And I catch myself being all serious and wishing I could art direct the feathers..."Why can't you be more BLUE?" and "If you were only a tad SMALLER..." And then my husband says "Come on Betsy, they're FEATHERS! They're fine. The kids will love them." He's right, and then I relax and have fun again. I mean, really, who can complain about playing with feathers?

Now you might wonder why I am making finger puppets for my job (and not actually getting paid for this one). Well, I am handing them out at the Haiku Baby storytime and book signing I am doing at the Cleveland Joseph-Beth (Legacy Village) this Saturday at 11am. You can read more info about my book and signing (and me!) in the article featured in this week's Cleveland Scene. Should be a fun time...please join us if you are in the area. Then YOU can play with feathers too!

ICON5 scrapbook

I was in NYC last Wednesday through Sunday for the illustration conference. The trip was so inspiring for so many reasons that I don't even know where to start! It came at a perfect time for me because I'm just finishing up 2 big book projects and now I feel so rejuvenated and ready to move on to new things.

If you're an illustrator and you've never been to the conference, or if you missed this one, you should check out the official ICON site so you can get an idea of what it's all about. Plus, they plan on posting follow-ups and content from some of the presenters, so stop back later too.


The conference took place in the historic Roosevelt Hotel on Madison at 45th. I love the details of old hotels and have to say it was one of the best hotels I've stayed in NYC.


On Thursday I did a studio tour of Curious Pictures in the morning. That was interesting to me because they do a lot of animation for children's series, which is something I'd like to get into someday.


Thursday afternoon I went to Jessie Hartland's studio. I've admired her artwork for several years. I love the naive quality of her painting and that her art really speaks to people of all different age groups. It's so approachable. I especially liked to hear her talk about her experience designing Christmas window displays for Bloomingdale's. What an amazing opportunity! She had this reindeer you can see in the background hanging up at the entrance to her studio.


our tour group on the roof of Jessie's building


From the rooftop, we could see the Brooklyn Bridge with the waterfall installation by Danish artist Olafur Eliasson.


The day before, I got to meet Maria Eugenia, who came all the way from Brazil. She's also represented by my agent, so it was fun to meet a fellow Painted Words artist!

After the day of studio tours, the rest of the conference events were mostly at the hotel, other than some gallery openings in the evenings.


I loved how this table evolved into a place where everyone would leave their promo cards. It was fun to dig through the pile of postcards and find little treasures of art.

In addition to the inspiration I gained from all of the presenters, one of the big highlights for me was meeting new people, developing friendships and spending time with old friends. My dear college friend Megan O'Brien was with me at the conference and made it that much MORE fun and meaningful, and I also got to reconnect with Jeanine Henderson and meet some of her NY buds. We all had a blast together and tore up the dance floor at the closing party. I'm sure there will be some interesting (and probably embarrassing) dance photos of us that end up on the ICON site, but for now, here are my favorite friend-time pictures:


rooftop patio bar at our hotel


Megan and Jeanine, my silly mojito girls!


who knew it could still be so fun in the rain?


lovely megan with her parasol


4th of July...see the fireworks waaaaaay in the background?


Megan at dinner in a French cafe in SoHo




Princess Megan and Mardi Gras Jeanine at the closing party


no, it is not New Year's Eve...this is just what happens when you get a bunch of crazy artists together for a party

So, those are the ICON highlights. Good times. Hope to see all my ICON peeps back again at the next one!

mosaic game.

I found this little fun game circulating on a few blogs I visit from time to time. So I thought I'd pass it on.

Here's what you do:
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
b. Using only the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's mosaic maker.

And here are the questions:
1. What is your first name? Betsy
2. What is your favorite food? avocado (at least, right now)
3. What high school did you go to? Nordonia
4. What is your favorite color? aquamarine
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Dr. McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey)
6. Favorite drink? mojito
7. Dream vacation? tropical island
8. Favorite dessert? my own tiramisu
9. What you want to be when you grow up? marine biologist
10. What do you love most in life? serendipity
11. One Word to describe you. dreamer
12. Your flickr name. don't have one

Now it's your turn!

*This is just for fun, but if any of the copyright owners of these photos object to being represented in this mosaic, please send me a comment and I will remove your image pronto.

happy birthday haiku baby!

It's finally here! Today is the official release date for my first authored book, Haiku Baby, published by Random House Children's Books. Special thanks to my agent, coach and friend Lori at Painted-Words, who discovered this opportunity for me, to my amazingly talented editor Heidi and art director Tracy, who believed in my vision from the beginning and have helped me feel at home with Random House, and to my enthusiastic publicist Emily, who is the ultimate cheerleader and is always one step ahead of me.

It's been such a special experience to create a book from concept to production...a dream come true really. It was November 2006 when I first submitted concepts to Random House (also the first time I'd EVER sent concepts to a publisher). I was prepared for rejection, but was soooooo excited to find out they liked THREE of my books ideas and trusted me enough to not only illustrate but also write them too! I still remember my agent Lori's e-mail, titled "Get out the champagne!!!" That was a good moment, when I knew this little thumbnail and haiku I sent off to Random House was about to grow into something much bigger.

So this little idea, that I had finally gotten out of my head and onto paper, became this sketch...



...and then this sketch became this "haiku moment."



And right now is a good moment too, to have my book officially out there in the world. My Haiku Baby has been born.

For another sneak peek, check out the newly launched www.haikubaby.com!

7 things.

At last, I am blogging again! It's been a busy month, with an office flood and a quick temporary set-up of operations in our living room (it has truly become our "living room"). But we are getting by alright, despite the tight quarters and lack of storage. And I have a girls' beach trip planned for this weekend, so that will be a nice change of scenery.

So, a while back I was tagged by my friend Jenny to post my "7 things," which apparently can be ANYthings. I've decided to do my seven in the moment moments, though it's so hard to limit it just to seven. It's funny, with things like this, it seems like no matter how many I'm "allowed," it's never enough. Why is that? Here goes:


1. I can't say I remember this exact moment, but it is Jeff's favorite kid pic of me, and look at me, I have to be in the moment here. I'm sitting on the porch of my family's rustic mountain cabin, feet dangling, perfectly content to eat my cracker and ponder life's big questions like, "I wonder how many salamanders I'll catch today." I'm pretty sure I'd do the same thing today.



2. Riding my bike has to be way up there on my list. I like to feel the wind in my hair and hear the sound of the gears clicking. Today, my bike is yellow, but when I was little, I had the best pink banana bike with streamers, a goose horn, and a white plastic basket in the front.



3. Though I hardly get to do this anymore, I LOVE ice skating, especially outside. There's nothing like it.


4. Well, I'm cheating on this one a little....sort of a 3 for 1 deal. But isn't art about pushing boundaries? Artistically, this image is about both printmaking and watercolor. This is a white line woodcut I did in a workshop at American Greetings, where I actually used watercolor paints instead of oil-based inks. Printmaking and watercolor on their own are such different processes, but both are activities where I can really get lost in the act of making. With printmaking, it's the mark-making, the layering of colors, and the sounds and smells of mixing and rolling out the sticky ink for that "orange peel" texture that means it's just right. With watercolor, it's the happy accidents, the bleeding of one color into the next, the letting go that I embrace. And then, artistic processes aside, Jeff and I really enjoy the experience of wine...learning about it, visiting wineries (especially Napa and Sonoma), and yes, tasting it.


5. Sand and water between my toes, and a flowing Hawaiian skirt dancing in the breeze...ahhhhh.


6. Whale watching is one of those incredibly religious experiences for me and I do it whenever I can (which is not too often since we do not have whales in Lake Erie).


7. Walking down the aisle at my wedding...I thought it might be this surreal "spotlight" out-of-body experience that would just go too fast, but I remember being very conscious of taking it all in, that moment with my dad, the faces of loved ones smiling back at me, the stone floor, the rose petals, the spots of sunlight and shade, and looking up to see that man at the end of the aisle, waiting for me. It was so much more comfortable that I had imagined. Photo courtesy of our good friend and talented wedding photographer, Donna Von Bruening (who happens to have a very inspiring blog too).