Pen Jar Productions is featured in the Toronto Star
December 6, 2019
A little dance around my drawing desk!
A year and a half into my illustration biz and I have my first serious piece of earned media, as the PR folks like to call “press.”
Thank you, writer and artist, Mary Vallis (@maryvallis @canadianstitchery). This means a lot.
I will be tabling tonight and tomorrow at the Algonquin Island Association Christmas Boutique 2019. And, yes, I will have to take the ferry to get there! Please come and visit me!
Proudly printed in Terano/Trawno/Tronno/Taronna/Torontoe by Notion
Home decor items featuring my art can be found at PenJarProductions.com
Algonquin Island Christmas Boutique
November 27, 2019
I love it when I get up early to make art.
I especially like imagining the features of my city through line and colour.
Reading about Toronto in a novel or seeing its what makes it unique through an illustration is a really good way to step outside of our ourselves and our routines and get a fresh sense of who we are and what we have to offer the world.
I will be joining a group of wonderfully talented artists and crafters participating in this year’s Algonquin Island Association Christmas Boutique 2019.
There will be spiked eggnog. Come by my table and let’s catch up!
DATES
Friday, December 6: 7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Saturday, December 7: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
TRANSPORTATION
Take the ferry to Ward’s Island from the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal, and follow the signs to Algonquin Island and the Algonquin Island Clubhouse (AIA)
Ferry Schedule: 416-392-8194.
Featuring gift ideas from my shop: PenJarProductions.com
Who knew?
November 18, 2019
I met my friend Sam for lunch last week. We caught up on work and life.
Then he told me that walking into his living room and seeing the Watches Pillow I made for him was like receiving a little jolt of Wes Anderson. I’ll take that!
The things you learn about your designs from the people living with them!
Sam, this drawing is for you!
Peace out.
30 Gift Ideas For The Month of November
November 6, 2019
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: Every day for the month of November, my store Pen Jar Productions will be posting a different Holiday Gift Idea.
I like coming up with designs that make people smile or sit up. It makes me feel like I’ve just looked you in the eye and found a way to turn down the volume on your stress.
Let’s conspire: I’ll help you start planning your Gift Giving Strategy for family, friends and co-workers this holiday season.
Here’s how it works: I feed you the unique gift ideas > you take all the credit!
Over the past year and a half, I built a small online store and filled the shelves with one-of-a-kind Throw Pillows, Tote Bags (many with a Toronto theme), Custom Chiffon Scarves, Tees, phone and laptop art, and my first enamel pin of Jane Jacobs.
I only focus on Badass Women who have moved mountains.
Here are a few pages from my 2019 Holiday Gift Guide. If you see something you like, click the image and it will take you to my store at PenJarProductions.
Coming soon
October 25, 2019
Preparations are already underway! Plus, I’ve hired Buddy and Hermey to help me out in the Pen Jar Productions workshop (my Shopify Store).They’re good at making unique gifts!
I made a zine
October 21, 2019
Thank you, Art Gallery of Hamilton for mounting the thought-provoking show, “This Is Serious: Canadian Indie Comics.”
And a big thank you to Meredith Park for spending time with us over the last six weeks and showing a group of eager students the ins and outs of journaling through comics (we each made an 8-page zine!).
Co-curator Alana Traficante best captured why I think I’m “drawn” to comics at this stage of m
y life: “The format of comics is one that uniquely compels readers through literary and visual experiences, and when used to recount personal, nuanced narratives, can awaken an essential, critical understanding of ourselves and one another.” My comic is another episode in a strip I started last year called, “Monetize That: Living in a Success Culture When a Soul Culture is More Your Style.
The future
September 28, 2019
Photo and Illustration by Alison Garwood-Jones
Josh is in the fifth grade. He likes history and basketball.
Photo and Illustration by Alison Garwood-Jones
Adelaide likes hearts and story time.
Today, I joined forces again as a portrait artist with my wonderful partners at @JamiiEsplanade.
It was their 10th year organizing @culturedays and the program, “I am me. I am mighty,” a celebration of iconic female characters in books and stories that inspire us to be who we are.
We gathered at the St. Lawrence branch of the Toronto Public Library (@TorontoLibrary). By day’s end, I felt complete.
