Steph's parents...on a lawn mower apparently.

There isn't much I can think of to say about this shot, other than it's completely absurd...and I love it.


Stephanie's parents (William and Kathy) at home in Monroe. On the lawn mower. In their back yard. After a crawfish boil. A for serious crawfish boil.

Her family is the most delightful kind of odd.

Eucalyptus Sketches

These sketches are from a dried eucalyptus branch that was part of our wedding flower arrangements. They looked a lot better a couple of months ago, but somehow the afterlife of this branch remained in this wonderful windswept form.

I had to draw it. It wasn't easy. I drew it to actual size by first laying it down on the page and plotting some points. The leaves all wove into each other so it was hard to capture any depth in my sketches. I didn't mind the flowing flat lines merely suggesting leaves in the early sketches, but as I continued in my sketches what became more suggestive was the wind to me, and less so the leaves.

Material Girls

New Material Girls Ad is running!

shopmaterialgirls.com

Jessica & Anthony. American Gothic revisited.

Back at Memorial Day we headed down to Monroe to hang out with Steph's family and to celebrate Jessica's graduation. Seemed like an appropriate holiday to revisit American Gothic.

Ryan

As mentioned, Ryan told me about the bleaching, so here is a photo of him.

Troy + Fuji FP100C45 recovered negative

OH SHIT. My world just got asploded.


As mentioned, I went out to San Diego to hang with Jon Canlas and while there Ryan Muirhead told me about recovering the negatives of Fuji FP100C (and in my case 100C45) by bleaching the back. This means I shoot the instant film, can give that away to whomever, keep the other chunk you normally throw out...let it dry...take it home and bleach off the black crap...and...I've got a negative.

OH MY GOD. I kept 8 of my "negatives" from shooting at Film Is Not Dead and bleached them out today. I have 6 more to scan...but here are two more (one this post, one next post).

This is Troy, one of the many people who came out to be our models...he and his wife Clare are awesome and both bring a great style to being photographed...makes our jobs easier for sure.

Above is Troy's negative. I converted it to black and white as it had some weird green blotches..which translated really nice in monochrome.

Caleb

Caleb. New York, May 2010.

Here Comes the BRIDE!!

I am becoming spoiled!! I have three FREE hours each morning now that Katie is busy with summer activities. I almost don't know how to handle it!!! So I have been sewing and coloring and now painting too.
I just had the best time painting this little bride!!

She is painted on a 9"x12" Italian water color paper... I thought about making her a doll at first, then I thought well, why not paint her. Next I want to do a bride with the flower girl...won't that be fun?
Well, my "Three Hours" are almost up. If you are interested in a print of this little bride you can find it in my Etsy shop!! www.mommylion.etsy.com

scan of steph's dad's beard

It has only grown since this. This was photographed over memorial day weekend in Monroe on Fuji 100C45. #nerdnotes

more yam, more ascani

Nesting Dolls Everywhere!!

I've spent the past two weeks designing some nesting dolls. I have always loved the little Russian wooden dolls! I started out making three fabric dolls. They I saw my daughter coloring on some brown paper bags with colored pencils...MY Colored Pencils!!! But it looked great!!! So I took some of my coffee/ vanilla baked tags and did a few drawings on them. These are not prints...they are the real thing!!!
See what you think.

Oh yeah...I've added a new "Lion image" to the back of all of my 2010 dolls. Just in keeping with my Mommylion theme!!

YamAscani

John

I feel that this is truly John Yam.

Catching up...

Gonna try to catch up a bit. I have so much stuff hanging around I just haven't had time to get it out.

First, here is Alison. I shot so photos of her and long-time friend and general badass John to celebrate their engagement.

She's first...John is next (in terms of posts).

More mobile electric lion crap

More jank from the road. Can't wait to get scans together from a billions rolls.


(phone photo of fuji 100c45 instant film)
[ed. note: reuploaded scanned image later]

STAMP'S!!

STAMP'S!!, originally uploaded by MeredithNo.

for an ad in the free press for Stamp's Superburger yumm...

Sketching in Fairmount Park

Drawing and painting in the landscape. We did that ten years ago in Vézelay, France during a week-long drawing camp organized by Chris Zelinsky, then a professor of drawing in the Graphic Design Department The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. There were over twenty of us alum. This past weekend we had a mini reunion organized by Andrew Iskowitz. A handful of us showed up, myself included, and this time in more humble settings — Fairmount Park in Philadelphia.

I had a particular vision in my mind in anticipation of this weekend so when I saw the park landscape before me with its majestic trees and cultivated bushes and an expansive view, I knew I had found it. Sitting on the grass under a big tree, shading me from the burning heat of the summer, I began to take in the view before me. And I began to sketch.

The first sketches were about taking in the essence of the landscape — light/shadow, differentiation among the trees, the composition. Later, quick reference sketches freed me to finding a way of capturing and translating the landscape. These look most like scribbles, but they are dynamic and probably my favorite. So much of my work is about expressing the line, discovering a language of the line. In these the landscape, depth, and detail give way and an impression remains.

Go here if you'd like to see more sketches.

Totally bobo mobile electric lioning

I'm still on the road sans computer so here is a totally bobo phone post. It's a phone picture of a 4x5 fuji 100bw45 of Garrett in his awesome backyardpatiothing. I shot helen back there too, but differently. Film shot to come eventually.

We just went to council crest and saw mountains. Pretty great.

We head to San Diego today by train and we are both pretty excited about it. I'm hoping to find a way to shoot 4x5 out the window or some such.



[ed. note: fixed the image...uploaded a scan later]

Damien

I have so much freaking film to scan....until then...here's a shot of Damien playing at the bottletree.

mommy lion: Now Offering DOLL PATTERNS!!!

mommy lion: Now Offering DOLL PATTERNS!!!

Now Offering DOLL PATTERNS!!!

It has taken me a long time to make doll patterns, but I have finally finished and listed a few of your favorites!!
Now you can make your own plush bunny doll! And the Plush Pumpkin Halloween Doll.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/mommylion

It's a great time to start your holiday gifts. Now you can make your own dolls for gift giving, displays, and craft shows!! Just please remember to give credit to Mommylion for your design!!

Fourth Of July Fun

I hope you all had a wonderful and safe Fourth! My husband set up a tent in our backyard for a sleep out night. Our little Katie was so excited! We had a BBQ complete with toasted Marsh mellows...Boy, I had forgotten just how good those are!! Have you had some lately...they shoot you right back into childhood!!!

I got to work on my dolls for a few minutes when they went to sleep. But then our new Pit Puppy got very unhappy when she couldn't stay out with them. So off to bed for all of us!

Here is a little Raspberry Bear that I got to finish. Just listed her in the Shop! Happy Summer!!

Amber Fort Sketches

In January I went to India for the second time, this time with my dear friend Chris. It was such a different trip being with her — and artist with architect's eye for space and light and detail, she turned me on to seeing the Amber Fort in Jaipur as if for the first time. What I saw was the light hitting the mirror-inlaid walls, the soft cool random arrangement of the marble-tiled floors textured with years and worn of walking feet. I was mesmerized, almost intoxicated by what I was seeing and at every turn and corner there was more. I couldn't stop photographing. I kept imagining my studio, at my desk investigating these images.

Back home in my studio, this is what became of it, or at least the start of it. It's the line structure that draws me in — the lines, and what I could do in expressing the lines. It's a new direction of mark making for me, and I'm excited to see where it will go. See more images of this series here.

Cupcakes Anyone?

Before I had my little girl Katie, I was a freelance designer doing work for Zweigart, DMC, and several other cross stitch companies. I found it VERY hard to keep deadlines with an infant, full time teaching job and all of the things that go with it! So I stopped designing for 7 years...well it is time to design once again. I always loved the cross stitch world...so gentle and relaxing to me.

I am still making dolls and I an even designing a few of my dolls for cross stitch.

I have just listed my little frosted cupcake design on my Etsy shop. You can get the pattern only or a kit. It is a quick stitch design...Enjoy!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/50661365/sweet-pink-frosted-beaded-cross-stitch

The Bottletree, loved by many. Specifically, Sarah.

There are pros and cons of living pretty much everywhere. There is green grass almost everywhere I've been (though I don't think anything could get me to live in Knoxville again). Some towns are overhyped and some don't get the love they deserve. Birmingham (and Alabama) has its fair share of pitfalls, but we've got a ton of great things as well.

One of these is a venue/bar/restaurant called The Bottletree that has, over its three years, really made a name for itself by having an outstanding atmosphere, solid food (with veggie and vegan options), welcoming staff, and an endless supply of tchotchkes all over the walls (it is hard to choose a favorite weird LP from the walls).I'm not trying to make some sort of half assed review of this place, I'm just saying people love it and it lives here. That makes me happy.To back me up, here's Sarah showing some love. (To be fair, I asked her to give me a thumbs up, and I fully know this is super cheesy, but whatever.)