We're back from 5 days of hawking designs and learning about the latest in handmade/DIY goodness at the Craft and Hobby Association's winter trade show in Anaheim.  Here's me (above) at our display booth trying my best to look snazzy under fluorescent lighting. How to best describe one's experience at a trade show? Schmooze-a-rama.

We had fun planning the Fall launch of our paper cutting book with our friends at Fox Chapel Publishing and meeting paper aficionados from all over the world.  I also landed some key swag.  That smile above is genuine, folks. My nerdy paper cutting self was over the moon at this Elmer's tote bag's retro, minimalist cool.  The folks from Elmer's/X-acto saw my paper cut designs and also endowed me with a 500-count (!) box of their most durable, sharpest blade, the Z-series.  Billed as the sharpest blade on the market, it's supposed to last much longer and be less likely for the tips to snap.  As someone who sometimes blows through 100-count boxes in a month, this is a giant gift to me. More on this product when I sit down to design with these blades. I also got to meet with Tombow, the company that makes my go-to glue.

We also introduced one of my newest products, "A Cut Above" place cards.  People seemed to make a beeline to these first.  Many told us that the motifs would make great all-purpose embellishments.  Great suggestion!  Look for embellishment packets soon on our Etsy site.

 
Here's a close-up shot of the table in the planning stage at the studio, which is pretty much what it looked like at the show.

And finally, our handmade Press Kits, which made a cool pattern when laid out on my studio floor.  Phew -- trade shows are a lot of work!  I guess this blog post is the answer to my friends' question, "Where have you been hiding for the last month?"  Thanks so much to all of the people at the CHA show who stopped by to show paper and pattern love!

 
This is my business card. I've been prepping my exhibit for the Craft and Hobby Association Trade Show this weekend, and found myself silently cursing the demon that possessed me to design these four-layer cards that, at my fastest, take me 40 minutes to turn out just 15.  Below are the paper layers I have to glue together in perfect registration and trim down to 3.5" x 2" before adhering the final printed card. 

As I made a batch, I thought about my failed attempts to learn computer design and my passion for the tactile beauty of the handmade.  I can't be the only nutcase around, given the DIY, handmade, and crafting renaissance and the popularity of Pinterest, Etsy, and Martha Stewart Crafts, to name just a few sites.  I can't speak for everyone, but here are 5 reasons I work with my hands.

1. IT JUST FEELS GOOD.
There's a reason kids go crazy when told "Don't touch!" We are covered in skin with thousands (millions?) of nerve endings -- we're meant to interact with our environment in a tactile way.  I love the feel of paper under my fingertips, the knife blade cutting through the card stock, the bottle as I squeeze glue onto the paper.  I feel connected to my materials, as though there's a direct channel between my body and my design.

2. IT KEEPS ME HONEST.
Working by hand slows me down, making my creative decisions better.  Because I spend a lot of time manually measuring, aligning, erasing, and cleaning my work space, I buy myself time to make considered decisions about color, composition, and proportion.  In the time it takes me to cut out a shape, for example, I'm forced to reckon with whether it's genuinely beautiful, or whether it belongs in the recycle bin.

3. THERE'S NO COMMITTEE.
When you craft by hand, what you see is what you get -- there's no "middle guy" between Art Director and Designer.  It's just me.  There's also no sitting around waiting for the printer to output or to see how the design looks on someone else's screen.  Above, for example, as I cut some place cards I can test what rounded corners do to the design and make adjustments.


4. IT HUMANIZES ME.
You can see nicks, pencil marks, and uneven spacing in my hand-cut pattern art above, but I like being in tune with the process of creating something, even the ugly stages.  It's kind of like live music or theater: there's always the chance of the flubbed line or note.  But those moments humanize us all.

5.  IT'S WHO I AM.
This is harder to explain briefly, but I'll let Frank R. Wilson tell it his way:  "The hand is not merely a metaphor or an icon for humanness, but often the real-life focal point...of a successful and genuinely fulfilling life." From The Hand: How Its Use Shapes the Brain, Language, and Human Culture

Need a sugar-free V-day gift for a special kid, or to congratulate the parents of a February baby? May I suggest: my personalized kids' wall art with a heart pattern that brightens any nursery or child's room.

This framed, adorably square 6" x 6" piece is made to order with the child's initial of your choice and constructed of layered, jewel-colored archival card stock.  To order, just let me know the letter you'd like and I'll customize, frame, and ship it to you in, um, a heartbeat.

A lot of readers are curious about my paper layering technique, so here's a little Behind the Scenes look at how this design came to be. (Actually this is how all my paper cut patterns are born):

First I cut the top red layer of hearts.

I apply a little (and I mean little) bit of glue to the cut layer.

I carefully adhere layer 1 to layer 2, in this case, icy blue.
Finally, I trim out each upside down heart, adhere a base layer of tangerine orange, and add a child's initial.  This little guy is just waiting for a Michael, Michelle, or Maya to come along....

OK, so you're not an X-acto knife nut like me.  I've done the crafting for you -- I love this stuff!  Happy Valentine's Day planning.

Who says valentines are just for sealing in envelopes?

I express my affection for people by making both art and home-cooked meals, so I combined these two passions in my "Modern Hearts" paper-cut tabletop pieces that dress up a Valentine's Day gathering.  The place cards and wine tags below are available at our main site and Etsy.

Two Products, Multiple Uses
Here's how I put these paper pieces to use when I entertain:

Modern Love Wine Tag
As traditional gift tag: Hang a tag around a bottle and write a love note (or thank you) at the bottom.
As hostess helper: At the self-serve drinks table, label the wine type to keep guests in the know.
As inspirational art: Write a wine-love-related quote in the blank space.  The recipient can even save the tag and hang it in his/her office for a daily reminder of your affection! Here are three quotes I love:

"May our love be like good wine — grow stronger as it grows older.”
- Old English Toast

“Where there is no wine there is no love.”
-Euripides

“In water one sees one’s own face; but in wine one beholds the heart of another.”
-French Proverb

Place Cards
At a dinner party: Write each guest's name (and a love note/quote on the inside).
At a large party: Indicate table numbers.
At a buffet: Write the name of an entree or dish.

Beyond Red and Pink
As a designer, I gravitate to fresh spins on traditional shapes and colors, which explains these atypically shaped hearts in crimson red, balanced by sweet potato orange and cool aqua. 

I hope these paper valentines for your tabletop bring new meaning to the phrase "hearty meal" at your table!  Write or send photos to info@annabondoc.com to let me know how you used these at your party.

COMING SOON: Valentine's Gift for Kids

Though I was laid low by a head cold this week, two bright spots lifted the fog in my brain.  First, our publisher confirmed the title of my forthcoming craft book: Simply Paper: Hand-Cut Paper Projects for Home Decor and More.  The baby has a name!  More on this as events unfold.

Second, while preparing for our company's trip to the Craft and Hobby Association's Trade Show at the end of January, I tried transforming my holiday card into a variety of colorways for year-long use.  As you see above, the card began in traditional Christmas/Hanukkah colors with a solid background.  I then trimmed out the background to render a more filigreed look (right).  This week, I went a step further by experimenting with alternate color pairs in a variety of new (and dare I say trendy) ways, including orange/gray, and yellow/gray.  It reminded me how color can dramatically alter a design's personality.  Once we determine final color choices, look for these cards soon for sale on our site!

I've always dreamed of translating my paper-cut patterns into fabric, so I thought I'd see what I could pull off in my studio using hand-made stencils and Martha Stewart's multi-surface craft paints.  You can make just about any pattern, but here I've combined my love of tote bags and my husband's Gin and Tonic (recipe below) to create what we call the "Perfected G&T Starter Kit". We gave these as Holiday/New Year's gifts in very limited edition to family and friends.  It's honestly not that hard to pull off yourself, and the colorway is purposely evergreen so you can present it as a birthday, hostess, or housewarming gift.

Tools and Materials

Tote bag
Martha Stewart Multi-Surface Craft Paints
Martha Stewart Stencil Pouncers
Stencil Film
Craft knife and blades
Cutting mat
Stencil or artist's tape

Sketch your favorite glassware silhouettes. Place the stencil film atop the sketches and trace them with a thin permanent marker.  I have tested a lot of film and favor Lenk "Cutlass" brand because it's durable yet doesn't crack easily when cut.  Cut the shapes out carefully on a cutting mat using a craft knife.

Tape one end of your stencil onto fabric (I recommend test fabric first).  Squeeze a quarter-sized dollop of paint into a bowl or flat plastic surface, dip the pouncer into the paint and blot.  Then, using your non-pouncing hand, press the stencil as flush as possible to the fabric surface and begin pouncing (in a pogo stick-like motion) within the stencil window.


After some trial and error, I achieved the crispest edges by pressing hard with my non-pouncing hand's fingers along the stencil edge of the areas I was filling in with color. 

It's best to paint one color/shape at a time, allow it to dry completely, then move on to the next shade.  Applying darker colors over lighter achieves a charming overlay, as seen here where I stenciled "Pond" blue over "Carrot" orange.

I used a circle cutter to cut the the lime circle's base ("Spring Pasture" green) then stenciled on "Scallion" pale green for the fruit interior.

I ordered the gusseted, extremely sturdy blank totes (as well as the stencil film) from my old standby, Dharma Trading Company.  And as for the bag's contents, there are two key ingredients: Breuckelen Gin (pronounced "Brooklyn") and Fever Tree Tonic Water.  The floral crispness  of the gin and the not-too-sweet tonic make a huge difference.  Try it and see for yourself.  I also threw in key limes and the recipe.  The huge smiles, toasts, and cheer made the endeavor utterly worth it.

Cheers to 2012 and new craft skills, everyone!
 
The Perfected Gin and Tonic 

1 1/2 ounces Breuckelen Gin
1 small bottle Fever Tree Tonic Water
2 key limes (or 1 regular lime)
Ice cubes (not crushed)

Fill a tall glass with ice cubes to the 1/3 or 1/2 mark.  Pour enough tonic to reach halfway up the glass.  Add the gin, up to 2 oz.  Top with the remaining tonic, but leave enough room for the lime juice.  Squeeze the lime juice into the glass, then garnish with a lime rind.

I waited in 3 different lines before I even set foot in the new Islamic Art wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art last Tuesday.  A guard who heard me heave a sigh advised, "Listen, Miss, we're expecting 70,000 visitors today.  Come back another time."  But one look at these 14th Century carved Minbar doors from Egypt and there was no turning back.

Any pattern lover worth his/her salt should see this show (which is thankfully permanent).  Take a gander at some of these images I snapped in between elbowing my way through the exhibit and you'll see why I was smitten.

17th century pierced window screen, India

15th Century textile, Spain

16th century dish, Turkey

16th century loom fragment, Turkey

Oversized folio from a Qur'an commissioned by Timur

Even without the use of a flash, the images capture the power of the craftsmanship, mathematical precision, and beauty of centuries of Islamic art in this exhibit.  If I hadn't been so weary and overwhelmed, I'd have spent an entire day learning important cultural history through art.  I hope these designs and colorways make their way into my pattern designs.

If this were a movie trailer, a deep, booming voice over would begin:

"In a city by the sea, an artist wields her knife.  Not a sword, but a small craft knife with a #11 blade.  She cuts a single shape in paper, then re-cuts it.  She layers paper beneath the first, and cuts some more until an object covered in delicate patterns is made.  No computer -- just a blade, paper and glue.  She then turns to you, invites you to take up a knife, read her book, and follow. You feel faint of heart, but you agree. After all, no one can resist the call of...The Paper Cut Artist."

OK, that was a little melodrama to put us in the mood.  Here's what's really happening: my first Do-It-Yourself craft book will be released by Fox Chapel Publishing in Fall 2012 and will be available everywhere in craft stores, bookstores and online.

The Fox Chapel editors have asked me to teach paper lovers and crafters how to use an X-acto knife, colored paper, and glue to create modern and chic stationery, tabletop and holiday decor, gifts, and wall art. The book will feature a thorough tutorial on basic cutting techniques plus about 15 unique projects with step-by-step photos and signature pattern stencils.  I'm biased, but I think the color combinations, designs, and craft ideas might knock your socks off.

Over the years, many have looked at my artwork and said to me, "I could never do that."  The teacher in me sees that as a direct challenge to prove you wrong.  Come, friends, join forces with me and become a Paper Cut Artist.

  
I admit it.  I geeked out. 

A week ago, it was my turn to host my book club's monthly dinner.  At my suggestion, we came prepared to discuss Suzanne Collins' best-selling young adult trilogy, "The Hunger Games".  Food plays a significant role in all three novels (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay).  So I decided to combine my recent experimentation with stencils to see if I could pull off a visually arresting dessert.  

Capitalizing on the success of my brownie sugar stencils, I sketched a "Mockingjay" motif based on the novel's cover art and trimmed it out of polyester stencil film from Dharma Trading Co.  The last time I made brownie stencils, I cut the designs out of card stock, but stencil film is more slippery, requiring a very steady hand and sharp X-acto blade.  The advantage, though, is that see-through film allowed me to place my sketch beneath it and trace the design directly onto the film with marker. Also, the stencil film can be easily rinsed and reused.

After baking a perfect, rich brownie recipe from Cook's Illustrated online, I let the brownies cool for almost 2 hours, then flipped the pan over and marked a cutting grid with a 2 7/8" diameter biscuit cutter.  I added graphic punch by cutting circles rather than squares.  The key was to press down on the circle cutter evenly and quickly to avoid cracking.

I laid the Mockingjay stencil atop each brownie circle, poured a bit of confectioner's sugar into a wire mesh sieve, and dusted the brownies to create the sugary shapes.  I got quite a response from my fellow readers! We all devoured the books with gusto, so it was only fitting that we got to do so in a more literal sense. 

Who says that Southern California doesn't have seasons?  OK, they're not as obvious as when I lived on the East Coast, but in my house, Fall shows up in my menus and choice of botanicals.

Every Sunday, my family and I load up shopping bags at the Hollywood Farmer's Market with local, seasonal organic produce.  This week, Bartlett Pears looked divine, so I decided to make a Pear-Almond Upside Down Cake (courtesy of one of Deborah Madison's cookbooks).  I love that the entire cake is baked in a cast iron pan and that by simply laying carefully cut slices of pear in a circle, you can create this dramatic "sunflower" effect.  As I flipped the steaming cake onto a plate, my daughter declared, "Mommy, that looks like Summer turned into Fall."

 And how about these amazing "Pumpkin Bushes"?  I've been buying these every Fall at the Farmer's Market since I first moved to LA about 13 years ago.  For just $6, you can have this fire-breathing orange and espresso brown in your home.  I love how they dangle like lanterns and last for a loooong time -- sometimes almost a month.  The deep orange-brown color way has been an inspiration for some of my paper cut art. Happy Fall, everyone.

With just a simple paper stencil, acrylic paint and foam pouncers, my friend Deborah Wolsh and I turned an ugly situation into a creative opportunity.

Deborah, who owns ethel, my favorite Los Angeles women's clothing boutique in the popular Third Street shopping district, called to tell me that vandals had thrown "a small sized boulder" that smashed her large store front display window.  She was forced to board up the window with not-so-attractive plywood.  Not one to take things sitting down, Deborah asked me to decorate the plywood in a way that let people know that ethel was open for business.  Here's the stencil pattern I came up with:

First I sketched a dress and mannequin.

 Next I drew my final sketch onto 80 lb. card stock and cut it out with an X-acto knife to form my Master Stencil.

A recent blog post documents my new love affair with stencil making, and by coincidence I had just bought some new Martha Stewart stencil tape and foam pouncers.  Deborah's husband and I took turns dipping  the pouncers into red acrylic paint and stenciling. At first, the paint lines were nice and crisp, though I should have covered the master stencil with contact paper before I cut out the image.  After the second round of pouncing, the paint had made the paper soggy, and the stencil begin to rip.  But we persisted with stencil tape and flattening the paper and it held.

Deborah also sells my pattern art in her store, so as she put it, now my designs are "both inside and outside ethel."  Thank goodness the plate glass returns in a week.  But the stencil fun and the smile on Deborah's face made it all worthwhile.  It was the least I could do to repay her for hosting my business' launch, not to mention all the beautiful clothes she has sold me over the decade I've known her. 

Take that, vandals.

Last week, I was lucky enough to step away from my cutting mat and computer screen to spend a glorious 6 days in Kauai with my family.  

I use lots of negative space in my pattern art, and I also try to incorporate negative space into my life.  So the mellow island lifestyle and stunning outdoors were just what the doctor ordered. Yet I couldn't help but think about work during our tour of the Ahonui Botanical Gardens in Princeville.  Founded by a retired San Diego couple, the garden is a terraced, lovingly tended outdoor museum to the lush, sometimes otherworldly flora of Hawaii, such as the wild ginger pictured above.  

Just look at all the natural patterns I found:

(Above) The fruit of just one of the many varieties of palm trees

 (Above and below) The bristly yet soft Annato plant; when crushed, the seeds create the red pigment used to color margarine.

Even the various leaves and bark made me think of gorgeous fabric (below).

And how about these unearthly reds and pinks? I found myself blinking to be sure that I was registering the hues correctly.  But no -- no Photoshop here.  It's just Hawaii.

If you find yourself in Kauai, don't miss a trip to Ahonui Gardens; call to make reservations for a 2-hour tour. You'll learn about plants with medicinal and gastronomic properties.  And you'll also get to sample chocolates handmade from the garden's very own cacao plants!  

Next up on the blog: more Kauai found pattern.

If you've ever been stymied by using an X-acto knife to cut paper artfully, read on.

A former studio mate who is both wildly creative and crafty saw my paper cut patterns and asked if I could give her a cutting lesson. I figured that she could just buy an X-acto knife, #11 blades, a self-healing cutting mat, and card stock to practice on.  She still felt nervous, so I invited her to practice cutting while I watched.  I was surprised by how she struggled to make even the most basic straight cuts.  

Like most novices (which I was myself not too long ago), she needed urging to push down harder on the knife in order to dig into a cut rather than glide along the paper's surface (dangerous!) Even more important was her basic hand posture. Drawing with an X-acto requires a broader range of motion than handwriting, meaning your hands must be strong and in motion.  The image above shows the way I held my knife like a pencil when I first started. Not terrible, but notice how the right side of my hand rests on the paper.  This inhibited my range of  motion, and if the side of my hand had dirt on it, well...


This next image shows how I hold my hand when I'm cutting out intricate shapes. Notice how my hand rests on its pinky: this normally resting finger turns into the metal point of a pencil compass, steadying your hand as you  pivot, angle, and swivel the blade. (OK, so I exaggerated a bit in this photo, but you get the point.)  That's how art gets made with an X-acto knife.

PHOTO CREDIT: Roxanne Davis

I go through a lot of paper.  But I'm also passionate about conserving trees.  What's a green-minded paper artist to do?

Here's one small way for paper crafters to do their bit for the environment with beautiful results.  I needed to organize my paper alphabets so our summer intern, Roxanne,  trolled the Container Store and brought back this jewelry organizer, which I ended up using to house my "scraps with potential".  I hang it near my art desk and I hoard shapes that often become new patterns.  Its cheerful windows filled with colorful geometry inspire me when I'm feeling stale. 

Exhibit A:  these orange curved shapes were cutaways from my children's car pattern wall art, "Bumper to Bumper".  One morning while tinkering in the studio, I got the yen to glue them down in a nested composition and add the yellow shapes (that had been the wall art's windshield) on top.  The result was a bold, graphic geometric pattern.

Sometimes designers get lucky and are asked to do a pro bono job that's a delight from end to end. This was one of those projects.

Dr. Kristin Droege, Principal of Larchmont Charter School West Hollywood (LCW), asked me to create door numbers for all classroom doors. Dr. Droege knew that I specialized in paper cut designs and gave me free rein -- the only stipulation being that the numbers be "bright and fun." So I capitalized on the school's affiliation with Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard Project  and crafted patterns with garden vegetable motifs.




If you look closely, each pattern illustrates its corresponding numeral. For example Door Number 3 features trios of Eggplants topped with triple-leaf stems and 3 shades of purple. Proof that designers and math play well together!

Ever since Heath Ceramics opened its Los Angeles store on Beverly Boulevard in 2008, I’ve been crushing on their gorgeous tableware and home decor. Sometimes when I need a hit of Mid-Century Modern eye candy, I drop in and am cheered by the artfully arranged products. As you can see from my “Found Pattern” shots, the staff understands that beauty can be found in repetition.

Below is Part 2 of our blog post, "Wearable Art for Kids"  (PART 1: GETTING READY)

PART 2: PRINT YOUR SHIRTS

4. Prep the Work Area: Clear a wide, flat table and cover with newsprint or grocery bags. Work near a utility sink or keep a bucket of water handy for rinsing sponges or paint-covered hands.  Lay out plastic lids and spoon 2 tablespoons of paint onto them.  Wring wet sponges until just damp and place 2-3 sponges on each paint tray. Tell kids that each sponge shape must stay with its original color to prevent unwanted mixing. Finally, lay clean cotton tee shirts with printable area side up. Insert cardboard rectangles inside the tees to prevent ink from bleeding through to other side.



5. Print! Dip sponges into paint, blotting or scraping off excess paint.  Beginning in the top left-hand corner of the shirt, place the first shape down and lift off.  If paint is too faint, re-dip and re-position sponge, then tap the sponge in areas where the paint didn't transfer.



7. Keep old rags nearby so kids can wipe their fingers to avoid splotching and fingerprinting. Mistakes are inevitable; this is an opportunity to make beauty out of them!



8.  Allow paint to dry (overnight is best) on a rack or hanger.  If kids want to print on the back side or sleeves, repeat steps 4 ff. and allow to dry overnight again. Follow fabric paint label instructions and heat set with a very hot iron.  Wash inside out.  Wear and enjoy, or present as gifts.



TIPS
* Use no more than 3 colors and 3 shapes maximum.

* Ask children to repeat their pattern aloud (AB, ABC, ABCA, etc.) as sometimes they get lost in the process and lose their way. 

* Some children prefer to print up and down rather than left to right.

* Use this same process on dyeable tote bags, table runners, flags, banners, etc., all available at Dharma Trading Co. 

Photo Credit: Roxanne Davis

It's summer break. Have the kids said "I'm bored" yet? Get kids' (ages 5+) creative juices flowing with this engaging art project that lets them print bright, geometric patterns on tee shirts.

My daughter's kindergarten teachers and I devised the project to enhance students' pattern/math skills. First, we let them play with sponge patterns using tempera paint on paper.  After a couple of tries, they were warmed up and ready to print with permanent paint on fabric.

Materials
I ordered fabric ink, compressed sponges and ready-to-dye tees from Dharma Trading Co., a fantastic, affordable online resource for teachers and parents who want to do any kind of fabric painting.



You Will Need:
* Pencil
* Compressed Sponges (regular sponges are ok, but compressed are easier to cut)
* Scissors
* Fabric paint (non-toxic, water-based such as Versatex)
* Cotton tee shirts
* Old shirts
* Old rags
* Recycled plastic container lids
* Plastic spoons
* Newspaper or brown grocery bags
* Recycled cardboard rectangles (approx. 8" x 10")
* Bucket of Water



1. Cut sponge shapes: Use a pencil to trace simple geometric shapes (circle, diamonds, squares, triangles) onto sponges. Shapes should be about 1" to 1.5" in width or diameter.  Avoid tiny or complex shapes with intricate edges.  Adults or older kids can cut shapes out with sharp scissors. All kids should have a chance to drop the compressed sponge shapes into water -- they'll get a kick out of watching them magically expand.



2. Plan patterns: Create patterns (AB, ABC AABB, ABCA) using alternating shapes, colors, or a combination thereof. Show kids how to place one or two clean fingers between each shape as they move from left to right and up and down to ensure even vertical and horizontal spacing. 

3. Prepare fabric paints: Mix fabric paints to desired color, adding a little water so that the consistency is that of slightly runny pudding. I found the out-of-the-jar colors too "acid" for my taste and mixed more subtle purples, yellows and light blues. 


Photo credit: Roxanne Davis

NEXT: Wearable Art for Kids: Part 2, Print Your Shirts! (Coming Thursday)