Bell Jar » graphics

a whole lotta lotta

Celia — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 22:17:52 +0000

I’m back from a much needed hiatus…and without further adieu…I am thrilled to introduce the amazingly talented Lotta Jansdotter and her design work in screenprinting on textiles, stationery and ceramics. Much of her inspiration comes from the natural forms, colors and textures of her native Åland (an island between Sweden and Finland). I first became a fan of Lotta in the late 1990s and I remember embarking on a special road trip from Los Angeles after she started her retail studio in San Francisco…just so that I could get my grubby little hands on some of her beautiful designs. She has since relocated to New York and her goods are available in various specialty boutiques and also through her online shop. AND she’s also got some amazing do-it-yourself books on printing and sewing (and they come personally signed by Lotta when purchased from her website). Here are some of my favorites from her current inventory…(All photos from Lotta Jansdotter’s website…clockwise from upper left: baby bib, notecards, linen dress, page from Lotta Prints book, teal textile, and small multi-purpose tray)

my website: first draft

Celia — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 06:01:46 +0000

I’ve been working on a new design for my website and it’s been a great (yet humbling) learning experience so far. AK has been instrumental to my progress…he provides constant feedback on the overall design concept, teaches me about various technical tools, and advises me on the fundamentals of website functionality. Lucky for me that he is a web programmer by profession and I don’t have to pay him since I am his wife. So here is the first draft of my website…and I’m posting it because I already know that it is going to change quite drastically. I think it’ll be interesting to see the progression of changes as I get closer to the final result. At this point, there’s still a long way to go.

Here is a full page view…

And here are some close-ups of the details…

custom planner pages

Celia — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:31:28 +0000

I’m always attracted to all kinds of stationery, writing utensils and various paper crafts…so it’s no surprise that I refuse to give up my Franklin Covey planner that I’ve had for the past decade. It’s been a yearly ritual for me to purchase the following year’s planner pages and enter all important dates and events before the new year starts. I lug this thing around with me all the time and I am completely lost without it.

AK has constantly pushed me to go digital and to join the rest of the 21st century…especially since I love my iPhone so much and could easily transition to iCal (which I understand would make my life so much more efficient). But there’s something about handwriting things in my planner with color-specific pens that gives me a great sense of calmness and satisfaction. The only drawback is that I’ve always hated the Franklin Covey designs because of various reasons…some are too corporate and stuffy, some are not in my preferred format (vertical weekly), and others have cheesy motivational quotes that annoy me more than inspire me.

So this year I finally designed my own pages, formatted all the months/dates, printed out all the pages for the entire year, trimmed and hole-punched each page, and finally entered all of my important dates and events for the year. I even recycled my old monthly tabs and designed coordinating graphics. Needless to say, it was a bit more work than I anticipated but I’m pretty happy with the end result.

Here are some sample pages showing a week’s view and the coordinating graphic for the monthly tab page. And following are photos of the pages in action after being placed in my good ol’ trusty Franklin Covey zip-around planner…I’ve already noticed some things that I’d like to change/improve/experiment with (like printing on different kinds of paper), but this is a good start and I can’t wait until I get to do the next one for next year!

chinese seals

Celia — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 22:31:34 +0000

Some of the things that I admire most about my Chinese heritage are the historical traditions in art, calligraphy, literature and poetry…and most certainly they are always iconically stamped with the creator’s personal seal…and always in red ink. These stamps are little pieces of art in and of themselves…usually carved out of wood, stone or bone by a master carver especially trained in this craft. Not only do they carve the bottom of the stamp where the actual name seal is located, but sometimes (depending on the material chosen) they also carve the top of the seal (usually in the form of the name bearer’s corresponding Chinese astrological sign or some other fortuitous dragon/lotus/phoenix bird symbol). I think almost everyone in my family has at least one stamp of their own…and when I got married, my mom commissioned a pair of stamps to be made for me and AK. I will include a photo of the actual stamps once I dig them out of our packed boxes, but here are the actual name seals for both AK (left) and me (right). Each of our names consists of three characters and are meant to be read vertically from right to left…with our surnames as the first character.

bumble ink

Celia — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 23:17:40 +0000

I have been a long-time fan of Bumble Ink, a greeting card design company featuring some of the cutest and funniest graphics I’ve ever encountered. I was visiting their site again recently and discovered their ongoing comic strip, which I think is hilarious and I can’t wait to see more. Here is the current frame featured on their homepage…and please check out their entire product line…especially since they’ve got some great holiday designs right now – www.bumbleink.com.

weho craft riot

Celia — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:37:47 +0000

I know it’s been a long time, but I’m slowly getting back into my crafty things and I’m excited to be vending at the upcoming craft fair in West Hollywood. Up for sale will be loads of handmade beaded necklaces, bracelets and earrings…some all-purpose blank stationery cards…and maybe some other handmade surprises …all designed and made by moi. Please stop by for some merry holiday shopping…I look forward to seeing you! Here are all the details and some samples of my goodies…