Several years ago I designed a logo for a start-up bakery business in NYC. Earlier this week I heard from Janine Frank, my client, after her long, labor-intensive business development period. The result: an online and in-store product line with an up and running website! Currently, she has a mouthwatering line of cookies with plans to expand her specialty bakery offerings.

I thought it would be of interest to show some of the rough initial studies (these four were not chosen) I submitted to Janine when we first started the design process. Here are four approaches I took using both positive and reversed images and lettering:

Naive-style, very legible lettering was roughed in and combined with line drawings for the bakery images. It was important to keep in mind that the artwork would be applied to labels, a website, and all advertising materials. A handmade character was essential for the identity of the company.

The final lettering is shown below, outlined in lavender. There is an image that was completed but it is not currently being used. To visit the bakery and order some premium, homebaked cookies, click on the logo!

After a summer of being focused more on learning about chickens than on doing artwork, I have once again picked up my writing tools and paintbrushes. The August colors and fragrances of the garden have inspired me. The piece I'm working on isn't finished, but in looking at the sequential photos I've taken of the progression of it, I found myself enjoying the detail photo below of the floral bouquet part of the composition. The colors of daylilies and dahlias together in a vase struck me as so beautiful. The watercolor was first painted on Arches cold press watercolor paper, then the sumi ink was applied from a very fine-tipped bottle. The full piece will be posted at a later date.

As a professional illustrator, I've completed numerous assignments that include bird images. It's rare to be able to draw birds without the aid of photographs. Not so with the plentiful gulls of the Pacific Northwest! My drawing group trio met at Brackett's Landing in Edmonds, WA one perfect summer morning a couple of weeks ago. A low tide, sunshine and calm winds made it comfy to sit on driftwood logs and sketch. And who should be waiting to serve as our models? The gulls!

After doing the pencil and watercolor studies above, I thought I might use them for personal notecards. Then I decided that there is something kind of grumpy and a little grim about the group. So, here they will remain in all of their varied poses.

My drawing group buddies are new to drawing birds, so the pensive gulls made for ideal subjects. Soft pencil was used on the resting seagull, and pen and ink for the standing bird.