City Helmet Series : San Francisco

I was recently invited to be part of a project called The City Helmet Series in collaboration with Oregon Manifest's Bike Design Project and ARTCRANK. Being a fan of most things bicycle related I was happy to get in the mix.

The objective was to create a hand-painted, one-of-a-kind helmet (canvas provided by Nutcase Helmets) that represented the essence of cycling in San Francisco. After toying around with a few different ideas I kept coming back to my old friends the painted ladies, the SF fog and the hard to miss pigeons that seem to inhabit every street corner.

The result was my interpretation of the fun, colorful, whimsical side of San Francisco. Hipster pigeons on bikes racing by SF's signature painted ladies as the fog inevitably drifts in.

If you are curious about my process you can get a window into my studio here: 

My piece was the third in a series of five artists representing San Francisco, Portland, New York, Seattle, Chicago

If you happen to live in the Bay Area please come out and join me on July 25th when they raffle off my helmet at the SF bike design reveal party to benefit  Oregon Manifest's bike advocacy partner, Pedal Revolution/New Door Ventures!

Here are the when's and where's:

PCH / Lime Lab : 6-9:30 PM

135 Mississippi Street
San Francisco, CA 94107

Grand Opening: Jessica Noel Studio ETSY Shop

I am excited to announce that after much hemming and hawing, a lot of creating, help from some awesome bay area printers, and fun photo-shoot with Ariana Pritchett of Launch Sessions... The Jessica Noel Studio ETSY shop is up and running and open for business!

So if you are so inclined please take a peek, tell your friends, your family, your neighbor's neighbor, anyone you think might be interested in adding a little piece of Jessica Noel into their lives.

Clockwise from top left: Rumble in the Jungle, Bird Brain, Night Rider, Lions and Tigers and Bears...oh my., Monkey Wrench, Frog in the Fog

Rebuilding Together

Some people talk about doing things, and others just get things done. Josh Woods of Rebuilding Together is one of the latter. Rebuilding Together Peninsula (RTP) was founded to take on the challenge of helping people receive needed home repairs and enhancements to improve health, safety, and well-being. 

This Saturday evening April 12th, Josh and Incline Gallery will be hosting a benefit art auction to raise money to help Rebuilding Together Peninsula continue to help people in need who can't help themselves.

I will be participating in this fun event with my newest piece "What a Day for a Daydream". So come join in the fun, bring your friends and bid on some art!

You can also sign up to volunteer for Rebuilding Together at anytime. National Rebuilding Day is on April 26th and there are plenty of opportunities to lend a shovel, a hammer, or a hand.

What a Day for a Daydream 7.5" x 11.75" Acrylic on wood

A Happy Accident : Ink Spot Experimentation

Recently, I came back from lunch to discover that one of my co-workers had left the February issue of SELF magazine on my desk. As I flipped through the pages, I came to a spot she had marked with a post-it and realized that she wasn't giving me tips on how to build my hottest summer bod, or recommendations for the 10 most anti-oxidant rich foods, but rather one of my training short prints had been featured in a full page spread.

Photo Credit: SELF Magazine, February Issue

The most fun part about this particular print for me is that it started out as some experimental ink spots mixed with water and ended up as a bold colorful stripe gracing powerful ladies from California climbing gyms to Colorado running trails.

BEFORE

AFTER

Monkey Wrench

I was fortunate to be asked to participate in the SF ARTCRANK show for the third consecutive year this passed December along with my dear friends, San Francisco based artists Katrina McHugh and John Baunach.

Although I was unable to attend the show due to a conflict with Art Basel, the SF contingent represented big time and I heard that a good evening was had by all despite the rain.

This year's poster Monkey Wrench  was a continuation of the fantastical theme of personified animals on bikes that I started back in 2011 with Night Rider, followed by Frog in the Fog in 2012.

In the beginning there was a thoughtful monkey and a sweet bike...

Monkey see monkey do...where there was one, now there are two!

Pantone brights picked and printed

Hat's off to the mechanics

Left  Monkey Wrench final poster  Right  ARTCRANK SF 2013 official poster

Thoughts on a Thursday

Sometimes you just have to pull up your big girl boots and ride on.

Fancy Lady Project

This past holiday season I wanted to create something handmade yet functional that celebrated all of my lady friends. They are beautiful, strong women on the go who were all in need of a little TLC.

Whenever I am feeling like it is all just too much I like to retreat to the tub with a good book, some bath salts, and my toe poised on the hot water spigot to add more when needed without having to emerge from the bubbles.

I decided to create a small batch of bath salts with the intent of creating a sea themed label with a whimsical girly feel. My thinking was that even if they didn't enjoy baths as much as I do, the bottle might be something they would want to display.

Here is my initial mood board:

The feeling I was going for was reminiscent of a vintage perfume bottle with a hand illustrated look. I really liked the colors of these old book bindings combined with a corked bottle. I initially wanted to somehow incorporate a seahorse but in the end it felt like too much.

My process started with some initial pencil sketches and then I layered different inked elements with tracing paper to decide on the layout.

I liked the structure of the bold caps versus the script and decide to go in that direction. I scanned all of the elements into the computer and then played with finalizing and coloring in photoshop.

And here is the final label and application...

Invigorating Peppermint, Sweet Rose, or Relaxing Lavender...do I have to choose?

Sweet Treat

True confession...I have a sweet tooth. Ice Cream used to be my kryptonite but since coming to terms with my lactose intolerance {insert a river of tears here} I have needed to get a little more creative with the treats I can enjoy. 

Here is a one of my recent concoctions. Mix your non-dairy "Ice Cream" of choice (I prefer Vanilla Coconut Bliss) and fancy lavender infused honey (Thank you Toni!). Scoop it on a sugar cone and you're in business.

I {heart} multi-colored chalk

I have really been digging hand-drawn type lately. (Who am I kidding, I am always into hand-drawn type) so I was happy to oblige when the HR ladies at The North Face asked me to work on some signage for the community board in the cafe. 

Initial sketch

Coming together slowly but surely

Beauty in a box...it's like candy.

Campus Life friends...ready for action. 

Studio Sneak Peek 04

A little something I worked on for my Pops for Father's Day. I have been drawing cards for my dad since I was in preschool. He has been featured as a bear, a popsicle, a bearded stick figure and a monkey. This year he is a fish.

initial sketch and inked drawing

Final inked drawing, ready for watercolor.

Finished card. Papa fish, sister fish, brother fish, swimmin the sea of life.

Toni + Ben

I recently had the honor of designing wedding invitations for my dear friend and pen pal Toni Carnes. 

I love receiving hand written snail mail ( long live the post office! ) so imagine my excitement when I opened my mail-box yesterday and found a stickered and stamped envelope containing my colorful creations.

Here is a window into my process: 

Sometimes I am lucky enough to do a little drawing outside the studio. I never know when I will get the urge to put pen to paper so I always keep my sketchbook handy...even poolside.

A little joy in the mail-box goes a long way. It's going to be a foot stomping, tamale eating, good time. Olympia or bust!

Out Of Order

Last weekend I was back in my hometown celebrating the long weekend, and my little brother's birthday with a family dinner and an unexpected trip to the OUT OF ORDER mural exhibit in downtown Santa Rosa. I was happily surprised to see a couple familiar Oakland artists including Ghost Owl. Here are a few of my favorite murals from the show.

Specialized Helmets in Stores!

When Specialized asked me to work with them on their 2013 line of children's bicycle helmets I was more than happy to roll up my sleeves and jump in. Children's product always lends itself towards the whimsical side of design and this collaboration was no different.

I am excited to announce that the toddler helmets I illustrated are now in stores and available for purchase! The two that made it through to production are the Fruit Dance Party and the Tree Frogs.​

Fruit Party for your little peanut's dome piece

It's a jungle out there...wear your helmet little buddy!​

I See Your True Colors

One of the things I appreciate most about participating in a group show is that it brings together like minded people and gives us a place to communicate visually and verbally about something we are all passionate about. 

There was so much more art in the gallery than I was able to capture on camera, and I am so proud of everyone for taking the opportunity to put themselves out there. Here are just a few pieces from my fellow artists.

Brandon Coleman is an aspiring graphic novelist, current footwear designer, and a damn good illustrator. I love his quirky characters and the stories they tell.​

Bonnie Dominguez was the HBIC of this Art Show. We wouldn't have had an event without her, end of story. This show her colorful oil paintings focused on Bay Area city-scapes but she has also been known to paint over sized junk food and voluptuous women.

Gabe Phillips is a footwear designer and uber-talented oil painter. His attention to detail and fantastical subject mater will catch you staring at his pieces from about 2 inches away.

Seth Fields engraved wood prints were impressive as always. I love the variety in his subject matter from Mr. T to running shoes to landscapes. Madaly Ahmad's eerie circus images were captivating and his cross hatching technique meticulous.

Scott Ellison was clearly just as excited about the show as I was. You can see more of his beautiful photography at www.lostwall.com​

Brandon Baker is not only a painter and illustrator, he is also a talented photographer. Brook Shinsky Hopper returned with her large scale oil pastel portraits along with her latest creation, a sweet baby girl.

Doni Conner showed a group of beautiful multi-media paintings done on re-claimed wood. You can see more of her work on her blog.

Seth Jeppesen is a product developer for The North Face as well as an adept multi-media artist. Lindsey Fischer's collage pieces had dynamic  color and interesting layers.

Brent James' photographs were a hot ticket item and Stephanie Turner's watercolors were soft, light, and thought provoking.

You came...you saw...you imbibed

Thank you to all those who helped make Moonlighting III a complete success. We had a great turn out and as far as I could tell everyone had a good time. Although I could barely walk by the end of the night, the new shoes were worth it as was all the blood sweat and tears I put into this show. ( I'll be honest there was no blood, but there were definitely tears of exhaustion and sweat on my brow after we were done hanging all of the art!)

Here are just a few highlights from Friday night...

This is how excited I was to be done hanging the show...pretty excited

Pre-show treats from upper left: Stephanie's red lipstick and gorgeous necklace, my fancy lady heels and artist indicator peonies, a gift bouquet that welcomed guests, so many sweets!​

Beverages and more... We were fortunate enough to have multiple kegs donated from New Belgium Brewing, thanks Jen!

For those of you who were unable to make it, here are some snaps of the work I showed.​

 Peace Keeper in all his glory. Get up stand up.

Peace Keeper details

Rumble in the Jungle​

My buddies Benjamin, Raymond, Walter, Margot, Edgar and Phil​

You came, you saw, you drank beer and ate donuts with the best of them...and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

Moonlighting III

Our one night group show, Moonlighting III, is officially less than a week away. This means a couple more late nights, and possibly shoving cereal in my face for dinner with one hand while I paint with the other. It ain't pretty but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do.

I am looking forward to sharing a few new pieces with everyone. It should be a fun night filled with ​Art, music, good people, and if that isn't enough for you, free beer, wine and cheese! Hope to see you there.

Work in progress

Eat, drink, look at art, come say hello!

City Country Blog Feature

A couple of months ago I did a piece called, See How High She Flies, for my dear friend Molly, the hardworking talent behind The Urban Smith jewelry line. Not only did she feature it on her website but it made it on to all of her marketing materials for MAGIC (the trade-show in Vegas, not the gathering).

A couple of days ago I found out we were also featured on a design, fashion, and food blog called City Country. Thanks for the mention Sarah!

New ring design from The Urban Smith

See How High She Flies

Studio Sneak Peek 03

Here's a portion of a larger piece I have been working on for my group show on April 26th (more details coming soon!)

A Different Kind of March Madness

This past weekend I went home to celebrate a very special birthday. I always know it is March in my hometown when there are carpenter bees buzzing around our wisteria and the lilac tree is in full bloom...and more importantly when my mom calls me March 1st to start her birthday count down.

My mom isn't the type of woman to just celebrate her birthday...she celebrates her birthday month...for the whole month. Although some of you (my dad in included) may find this a little extreme, I find it inspiring. There are very few occasions where we allow ourselves to unabashedly celebrate how special and unique we are and I appreciate that my mom honors that in herself at least once a year.

It should also be said that she is the first one to wish you well on your birthday. If you are so lucky as to be in the inner circle she might even hang up a sign, string balloons from the ceiling, send you a card in the mail with stickers on it, and bake a cream cheese frosted carrot cake with chunks of pineapple and walnuts (or at the very least buy you one at Oliver's).

My mama is a nurturing, free spirited, foul mouthed, wild woman who has taught me to stand up tall and be proud of who I am...and I am proud of her too.

Studio Sneak Peek 02

A couple more characters appeared this week...including a nice showing by my studio guard dog Lola. As long as she doesn't mind listening to the Mayer Hawthorne Pandora station she is more than welcome to join in the fun.