Ruta Puuc

My favorite moments in Mexico were definitely the times that our tour guide took a detour from the touristy places and allowed us to see and experience the culture there. When we left Uxmal we had a long drive back down the Ruta Puuc (or the Puuc Route) on our way back to Mérida. The Ruta Puuc is a beautiful scenic road that passes through several ancient Maya sites. It led us to the home of the locals I talked about in the last post and to the Ecomuseo del Cacao where I saw fresh cacao plants and banana trees and tasted some of the best dark chocolate I've ever had. It also led us to a ceramic workshop where two locals spent their time creating the most beautiful pieces of Maya art. The gentlemen crafted the ceramics while the lady painted on them. She referred to a reprint of one of the few surviving ancient Maya codices throughout the painting process so that her characters would look exactly like the ones found in Maya art, before the codices were destroyed during the Spanish conquest. I really enjoyed seeing them work and getting a peek into their workshop.

Christmas Card Giveaway

I know I have a bad habit of saying that every single giveaway is my favorite – and I genuinely like everything that I agree to giveaway – but this giveaway more than any other takes the cake! It's not just because they're adorable Christmas cards that any girl would love to receive, but it's because they were created by my super amazing, beautiful, and talented sister, Kristi.

I'm so thrilled to see that she's using her artistic talents again. She just opened a new etsy store for her greeting cards called The Flight of Thought and she's decided to keep making cards for all kinds of occasions throughout the year!

To win this set of cards, all you have to do is add Kristi's shop to your favorites on Etsy! Be sure to leave a comment with your email address. I'll draw a winner at the end of the week. Keep in mind that the more cards you buy, the more Christmas presents I'll get. ;) Just kidding. xo!

Congratulations to Talluah! You're the winner of the Five and Two giveaway.

Richard Merkin & Anais Nin Inspiration

I think my life is finally slipping back into 'normal mode' since my return from Bonnaroo on Monday. It was quite an adventure I had there, and I appreciate all the kind comments you guys left in the previous post but man am I happy to be home. I can't believe so many of you read the entire thing, but hopefully, if you made it through, you feel like you have a better understanding of what to expect from a music festival. I went out yesterday and took some photos for the first time since coming home, but I'm trying to do some tricky editing with them and may not be able to show you until the weekend. I want to show you everything now, but I really should wait until I have it all completely ready. Hopefully this weekend!

Until I get those ready, I figured I'd show you some of the inspiration I used for my newest blog graphic. The 'outfit' graphic was inspired by a Richard Merkin piece on the front of my Anais Nin book, Little Birds (good book and great author, btw). It says it's from the 'Richard Merkin Collecion', but I'm not sure if that means Richard Merkin drew it or if the rights are just under his name? I know he was an artist, but the rest of his work carries more of a cubist, cartoony feel to it. One of the pieces that appears if you google his name is the Coon's Chicken piece from Ghost World. It's just a little cigarette holder, but I'd love to know if Richard Merkin had anything to do with it or not!

I guess it really doesn't matter though. Even if Merkin didn't do the Little Birds drawing, I still love it. It's very sweet and innocent and makes me think of prissy little girls in the 20's. I'm terrible with keeping accurate proportions when I draw, so it helps to look at other drawings as I go. I didn't do a direct copy of this piece but studying the proportions of the legs and arms was the only reason I was able to execute it. 

Just so you get a complete understanding of my process from paper to computer, I broke down my steps in the photos below. First I draw it, then I scan it. After that, I add whatever colors and text I want, resize it, and voila; it's ready to slap on my blog!

The Unicorn Diaries

I love The Unicorn Diaries.

The Unicorn Diaries

Victorians & Flapper Ladies

A modern day artist who paints gorgeous illustrations of
flappers doing the Charleston??
Yes, pleasssse!

I just found Charlotte's web(site) today, and I'm sooo IN LOVE with here work. Kinda spooky, sometimes wicked, and always pretty, Charlotte's drawings are inspired by women and fashion in the 1920's all the way through to the 1950's with the occasional Tim Burton-esque Victorian girls in there too. I was so excited when I read that Aubrey Beardsley was one of her biggest influences since he keeps coming up in my book, The Eighteen Nineties. He was only around on the art scene for about a decade before dying of tuberculosis in his late twenties, but his work was phenomenal and has proved to live on long after his passing.

Yay for young artists and their predecessors!

For prints or brooches, visit Cserpent Art.

Miss Chung & Sketch Illustration Tees

It's probably no surprise to hear that I'm all ga-ga over the uber stylish Alexa Chung's wardrobe just like the rest of the blog world. She cute as can be with a British accent and the most flawless taste and I don't know where we'd be without her fashion influence.

I was particularly smitten with this layered look when I saw it a while back on various blogs and fashion sites. My favorite thing about the outfit had to be that black and white sketched John Belushi tee. It looks so simple and comfy with that outfit and in such neutral colors, a great piece to have around.

And it's wearable with skirts or pants.

I've kind of had my eye out for something like it ever since I saw those photos and finally I came upon something I liked, a lot!

I couldn't decide between that one or this one, but decided to go with the ponytail gal for the simple fact that it's black and white.

I just stumbled upon Caitlin's blog for the first time today and immediately knew I had to have one! I know this seems a little contradictory to my previous post, but I splurged on this with my birthday money I've had since the beginning of August. I just couldn't justify spending my bday cash on bills or food.

Now for the worst part, waiting for it to get here!

Clarence Coles Phillips & "Fade-Away Girls"

I'm falling in love with the fin de siecle...

All the influential artists and writers, the "new" adjective, the materialism, the dandies, the socializing, it was the birth of culture, an optimistic time full of creativity in the fields of art and literature. I've immersed myself into Holbrook Jackson's take on the 1890's which was an important time for artists and writers who began publishing their works in different quarterly journals such as the "Yellow Book" and "Salome".

This book has been a great reference for me on my quest for inspiration!

It led me to this to this genius which I've also fallen in love with.



His name is Clarence Coles Phillips and he was an illustrator in the early 1900's for various ads and magazines such as Life, Good Housekeeping, Liberty, and Vogue. His drawing were so well liked and quickly labeled as the "fade-away girls" because of the way the women were blended into their backgrounds. His first one like it (the one with the chickens) is perhaps my favorite because of his awareness of shadows and highlights. It's a simple drawing that is so unique because of Phillip's perception.

I find his work to be inspiring and quite thought provoking.

And I've barely even started my new book...
:)