Doodle-dee-do

You might know that before I worked as a decorator, I owned a little sign company, Cheshire Signs, in Fairbanks, Alaska.  I mostly did signs for small local businesses, and specialized in illustrated and antique reproduction styles.  Usually, these jobs involved doing pen and ink logo designs, as well.  I still like to do pen and ink illustrations, so sometimes I do these little mock logos for friends and clients.  Never as fussily perfected as my commercial designs were, just loosely drawn, for the fun of it.

This mock logo is for the clients who had me paint the pantry mural below, which was featured on this blog a few weeks ago.  Not sure how they might like to use it, but I use mine to label baked goods I give as gifts.

 Actually, now that I think about it, I've been doing these mock logos since before my sign shop days.  The first I can think of is one for cookie gifts I sent to my dad, when I was first out on my own.  It was for "Bear-Bear and Josephine", and featured a drawing of my beloved teddy bear (which papa once backtracked 45 miles for, when I forgot to bring him on the family vacation), taking a sheet of cookies from the oven of Josephine, our family's beloved antique wood-burning cook stove.  Had I remembered it earlier this evening, I would have dug around for that, as I'm sure there is a copy here, somewhere.

My favorite chubby rabbit adorns the card that accompanies all baked goods that leave my kitchen.

My own personal logo features Bucko (pronounced Boots' ko), the rabbit from my kitchen cabinets.  I like using it on the card that accompanies cookies or bread that I give as gifts to friends.  These little pretend logos are a fun way of having one's fantasy business, without actually doing all the hard work.  I may love to be up at 4 a.m., but I would hate having to start my work day that early.  Despite the suggestions, I will never be a baker, a caterer, a B & B owner, nor probably a PT Barnum, with a circus of acrobatic folk dancing frogs.  Ah, well.  I'm liking the artist thing just fine.

Lately, I've been doing a lot of pen and ink drawing, tinted with watercolor.  The sample below is a sneak peek at some elements for one of the collages I'm working on.  They're for a book I'm illustrating and co-authoring with Cat Isles, on the art of correspondence  (No comments about this from my big brother Jess will be permitted to stay posted below, so don't even think of razzing me, Bro!). Since my paint work this week and next is a lot of troweled plaster and faux finishing, in the large dining room at Minnetonka Country Club, changing tools and working small in the evenings is a nice contrast.  Yes, when not having fun at work, I have fun working.

The gull and border are part of a series of twelve illustrations.  Each design features an intricate nature themed border, and a different animal, collaged with natural materials, on a background of old letters.  It will be some time before the book is published, but I'll keep you posted!

When I'm not doodling on paper, I do doodle on walls.  Do check out my portfolio at theartofthehome.com.

If you are working on a creative project of your own and have a question you think I could answer, please feel welcome to post it in the comments below, or email me at dawnmariedelara@gmail.com.