Starbucks Coffee Perfection features cut paper and block printing

This artful new video spot for Starbucks Coffee is making its way around the interwebs and I'm happy to share it since it features a few of my favorite things! Animator Rogier Weiland used cut paper to create this stop motion film showing where the coffee comes from. It also appears from the behind the scenes photos to use block printing with laser cut laminate wood and coffee as ink.  Hooray for authenticity!

You can also check out some behind the scenes photos on Weiland's website and make guesses about how much time it actually took to make this (answer: loads).  Plenty of other cool paper stuff there as well!

Now announcing the Etsy Shop: Lightheart Paper Company

Finally, I'm proud to announce the launch of my Etsy shop, Lightheart Paper Company!

Here it is

To start, I'm selling some familiar prints as well as some newbies, and slowly expanding to home items. Here are a few of pics of what is available.

Grow wild print

Life of Love woodblock print

Remember this guy?

Roaming octopus woodblock print

And this one, honoring my great home state post Hurricane Sandy, or Superstorm Sandy according to insurance companies.  All profits still going to the Red Cross!

Still Strong NJ print

As usual, I'll be writing plenty of posts showing the creative process for my pieces and giving away all kinds of trade secrets (if I can think of any).  So check it out here and send me any feedback!

Busy springtime

With the collision of weddings, birthdays, and deadlines, it's been nonstop action this April.  My  conversations all begin with my asking, "When is it going to get warm?" to which my boyfriend sincerely responds, "I think this week it's supposed to be nice." And after one nice day, it goes back to 50 degrees.  But now that the storm has passed, I'm looking forward to a few creative weeks before a road trip vacation to the wild, wild west (this one, not this one).  The biggest news: the soon-to-launch etsy shop where I'll be selling my prints!  And now that I've written it here, I'm committed to it.  Here's a preview of the newest woodblock.

Here you are, a message of love. 

I'll be sure to make an announcement when it goes live!

The walls of my new apartment

As I mentioned in a previous post, I started off 2013 with a new apartment. Living by myself, I feel like King in the Castle, and I no longer have to trudge up 4 flights of stairs. On the down side though, I did have to scale down my operation which includes stowing my little desk and having my kitchen table work double duty. I've had to get pretty creative with storage (big kitchen+tiniest bathroom=curling irons in the pantry). Here's a little sampling of some of the decor I've put up, with a few effects added to the photos cover up the fact that the pictures were taken with very poor lighting. At least I'm honest.

Living room

The left image is one of my own prints, it reads "you & me can grow wild together," while the right silkscreen from Brainstorm.

Kitchen

Above my kitchen table/desk, a graphic print of New York City buildings from overhead, a Christmas gift from my big bro.

Bedroom, which is also the living room btw

Perfumes on a cake stand, buffered by my Great Aunt's doily.

The potty

The bathroom, where all my jewelry now lives beneath one of my octopus prints. There's a little bit of a nautical theme going here.

There's just one lingering box that is waiting for me to figure out when recycling day is. Now that everything's in its' place, it's time get through the winter with some new projects!

A summary of woodcut printing

Below are the simplified steps to how the Octopus woodcut print was created.  Now you can view it in one place instead of navigating through a dozen different posts. By the way, after several proofs and buying lots of supplies, I finally got the hang of printing this piece.  I will still be posting a final, well photographed print as soon as I can transport the good paper home without it becoming rain soaked.  

Just to note, I've shifted to the term "woodcut" as opposed to "woodblock" because the former uses wood cut along the grain, and that is what I'm doing.  Nowadays the terms seem to be pretty interchangeable, but it's better to just be correct, right?

In summary, here is woodcut printing:

• Step 1: Get some wood. And yes, I do mean that as a double entendre. 
• Step 2: Create your design. Even if it takes some practice.
• Optional: Prepare the image to be transferred, part 1 and part 2.
• Step 3: Separate the colors, one for each block, if printing 2 or more colors. 
• Step 4: Transfer the design onto the wood.
• Step 5: Cut, cut, cut, and cut again.
• Step 6: Repeat steps 4 & 5 if you are using a second block. 
• Step 7: Oil the wood.
• Step 8: Run prints.

Whoop, there it is, the basics of woodcut printing.