I've had 2 cats in my life and both of them loved to crawl inside of my dollhouse to take a nap. I was thinking of them while painting this little piece.

Another one from my sketchbook. Done in our tent during a rainstorm.

Hi Friends! I've been away for a while it seems. I was on an amazing backpacking trip through the Sierra Nevadas. It was a lot of hard work but I also had some downtime to relax and get inspired by the beautiful scenery. I brought a small travel watercolor set, some markers, and two colored pencils. I also had one of these brushes which was so perfect for what I was using it for. There were so many interesting rocks along the trail -  I wanted to paint them all! But of course there was no time for that so take a look at my selection of favorites below. Stay tuned for many more pages from my sketchbook. I have plenty to share!

There's something so nostalgic about summertime for me. When I was little I'd spend hours in the water practicing my synchronized swimming moves. And I remember that one time my brother told me to sniff the bottom of the pool because it smelt like strawberries. Ha. Ha. Good times.

 My mom asked me to make this for her boss's retirement party. I didn't charge her :)

 Also, a big thank you to Comm Arts for featuring me in their Fresh series this week. You can see it right here.

A new painting of an old pair of shoes... jazzed up with some patterns and fun.

This pattern is a part of a series I've been working on. It reminds me of swimming pools and patios.

the South Carolina Speedster

For my under appreciated home state I give you a sweet little old lady who definitely has some Werther's in her pockets.

This is an illustration I recently did for Selvedge Magazine. The image accompanied an article that was about the beauty of simple & everyday items–like snap fasteners and zippers. I have to admit, I didn't know that those little things were called snap fasteners until I worked on this. You learn something new everyday!

I painted these jewelry pieces for the very talented Emma Cassi a little while ago. Emma let me pick which pieces to paint and it was SO hard to choose because they are all so beautiful in their own way. I really love her colors and use of materials. You can see more of Emma's lovely jewelry here and more on her blog.

I made these Valentine's cards for a few of my buddies. And then I wrapped them up in these custom made envelopes shown below. Happy Valentine's Day!

A few weekends ago some of my friends and I flew to Palm Springs to escape the Philadelphia winter (and to celebrate a birthday!). This was my relaxing-by-the-pool outfit; complete with some orangey-red nail polish.

I had heart glasses like these when I was little and I was obsessed with them because they made me feel like Minnie Mouse. I bought this pair at a flea market in Savannah a few years ago. I get really happy and nostalgic every time I wear them. And yes, they still do kind of make me feel like Minnie Mouse.

More state shapes coming through.

The tank top might seem like a crazy choice for January in Philadelphia but it was in the 50's (I also wore a cardigan but it didn't really fit in my composition). The earrings and the necklace are both from this amazing vintage store by my parent's house in New Jersey. The lady has the best deal on earrings. 3 sets for 6 dollars! Can't really beat that.

I scanned this alphabet in from my sketchbook and revamped the colors a bit. I thought that it was too cute to keep it hidden on my shelf. The 'A' is my favorite letter out of them all. I was inspired by the Gromble's shoe styling on Aah! Real Monsters. Such a fashionista.