ilonka karasz

when i went to my parent's house for for the holidays I noticed my mom laid out a few Christmas books and one of them was the beautifully illustrated "The 12 Days of Christmas" by Ilonka Karasz that she was given as a child in the 50's (I love the colors and how un-"Christmasy" they are). I posted a few pictures of the book here. I noticed that she dedicated the book to Mary Blair (the amazing Disney artist) and I'm curious whether they were friends or she just found her an inspiration. Anyway, I did a little search and found that she was an incredibly multifaceted artist who, according to her New York Times obituary, was an "artist and designer who contributed magazine covers to The New Yorker and other magazines and also was an illustrator of children's books" and "was an expert in decorative arts, specializing in pottery, tiles, wallpaper, toys and lamps. She was engaged with various manufacturers in the production of fabrics, rugs, silverware, china and furniture." geesh.

stamp collection

Stamps are truly one of my favorite things in the whole world. When I was little, I don't remember exactly when or how it started, I began collecting stamps. I would crudely cut around anything interesting on the top right corner that would come in the mail and then began buying up sheets of stamps as they were released to the post office. Then in 6th grade I inherited my grandfather's collection when he passed away and that's how I got the real treasures. A few years later I stopped collecting but I still have a binder with hundreds of stamps and it's one of my favorite things I own. I'm not sure what it is about them.. I've always liked the colors and how small they are. They're like miniature posters and the old ones were often so intricate and detailed in such a small space. I realize now that they were probably my first introduction to graphic design and I suppose it resonated with me in some way.  For my first real post I thought I would share some of my favorites from my collection... 

a new blog for a new website

i'm creating this blog as I launch my new website as a place to post updates about my work and my shop (which I'll be opening shortly - March). i'll also use it to post some inspiring things that I find and anything else that seems like it might fit here..