A List - Halloween, Fabric, Art, Red Hook, some People & a Dog

Halloween Party

I painted these animals for If I Were A Toy store last year.

I had a great run painting their glass door with a seasonal, often monthly theme for 

about 3 years, before they closed up shop. This was one of my favorites.

and then there's  fabric, I received 2 of my samples from Spoonflower last week.

The printing is pretty good. I'll probably play around with the repeat more. 

I simply chose "mirror" option on the site. 

Margot Kingon has offered to sew a few small purses for me :) 

I'm not sure how much I want to get involved in manufacturing products, but it's 

nice to place some pieces in shops or sell online and see how they do.

I currently sell bags, pillows, prints in my Society 6 Shop, but as other artists know,

the profit margin is quite low. You can place your products and art on the market quickly, 

with ease and get high quality printing, it's just not the most efficient way to make money.

and then there's  Artist House Party Presents

Christopher Joy, of Gorky's Granddaughter, has opened up a gallery on the UES

 The Opening for Diagonal Triangle was Oct 19th and includes my friend 

and fellow scenic, Bryon Finn (with his work below)

As you can see, I failed to take good, or even mediocre, shots of the artwork.

Just visit the site to view paintings by other artists in the show-

 Elana Herzog, Julian Kreimer, Sangram Majumdar & Sarah Walker

or better yet, go see it in person!

It's up for another 2 weeks, the Closing Reception Nov 12th, 2014

*Check out 5 Questions with Bryon Finn on Angela Fraleigh's blog this week- it's fun and insightful!

and then there's  my neighborhood...

I ran into neighbor, Gabriel as he was visiting with one of my favorite dogs in Carroll Gardens. 

This is such a lovable happy pup! These people are very nice, too ;)

and then there's  Graham Willoughby

I've known him forever and he remains one of my favorite people.

On this day, I admired the way he carried laundry on his head, so he could

carry his daughters' small jack-o-lanterns home in hand.

and then there's  Red Hook

I worked on a small job in a prop guy's studio down on Van Dyke Street last week.

This area is just great. 

I lived on Van Brunt Street back in 1991.

My roommate and I had a terrific space and each had our own studio, but the neighborhood is

very different today. Besides, the charming shops and restaurants along cobble stone streets, 

there are the buildings down on the water, like Pier 41. 

I could smell the salt air, hear seagulls and ducks as I painted set pieces and props.

Plus, it was a quick walk to Fairway to enjoy lunch outside.

I somehow missed this Fire Boat last Friday Night, but production assistant,

Ron Pritchard, captured it. Apparently, a fireman had just been married and this 

was part of the celebration.

and then there's  Halloween. I sure loved it as a kid!

I no longer dress up (tho I will if asked ;) Here is one of my 1st -

#tbt

Happy Halloween!

xo, A

Summer in the City

A tree grows in Queens. Thought I'd share some pics I like from June. 

You'll notice I haven't made it to the beach yet or to the great Jersey pool slide 

with Kristine, but soon!

Melissa (bday girl), Leslie & Alice

Zexter had a birthday this month and we kept to tradition by dining at The Good Fork 

in Red Hook, it's always delicious (and really nice people work there!) 

Plus, we saw a naked man staring down from his window. He wasn't shy.

It's probably for the best that we couldn't quite see it all. We called him Steve.

I bet you're looking. Steve wasn't in any of these windows.

Someone's cute red BMW. I love older cars.

Valentino Park

I recently found (parts of) my sculpey versions of Ruben and Cooper under a table in my studio. 

They need some attention. The cat hair on Ruben is a nice touch ;)

I rarely make it up to Central Park, but we had a job there one day. She was not a part of it.

Pretty impressive and I like that she kept her watch on while performing 

in front of Bethesda Fountain

cute trash truck

I also had a job on Macdougal Street last week. The location was right next to Caffe Reggio.

I rarely hang out in the Village, but I sure did in the 90s. My good friend, Nina worked at 

Reggio. I was down in Soho, waiting tables at Cafe Borgia 2 on Prince Street.

It's nice to see how beautiful it remains and the cappuccino is still terrific!

Back to my neck of the woods, the Gowanus can be quite pretty in the right light.

La Slowteria, near my place, has a lovely back patio. 

This mural has been on Smith Street for as long as I can remember. I'm still charmed by it :)

I ordered a couple more of my bag designs, in the small sizes of Gingham Bear and Lotta Buns.

It would be fun to have some of these manufactured myself to sell in some local shops. 

I love the quality of Society 6 printing, but profit margins for artists is, let's just say, minimal.

Of course, it still feels great when someone buys one of my designs, so please don't hesitate

to visit my Society 6 shop - Allyn Howard

Leslie & me

"Banksy is really a girl"

:::

I'm excited to attend the NJ Society of Children's Book Writer's & Illustrators 

Conference this weekend with my talented friend, Yuko.  

Plus, we'll get to see the ever fabulous Kristine while in town.

I'll share what I've added to my portfolio next week.

Hope you can wait that long ;)

:::

*ps* If by chance you are in Milan, Italy

Go see Melissa Zexter's piece in the Triennale di Milano exhibit.

I'm very excited for her and young Mirabelle, who got to tag along!

Have a super weekend!

xo, A

Back to School!

It's Back to School time!

I just painted If I Were A Toy store's door in the nick of time. 

These animals are en route to PS58 here in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn.

Bear and bird chat about summer adventures

Slightly confused mouse goes through the motions

little bunny sports over-sized backpack

Teacher lugs books to class, while a 

couple of critters hitch a ride

Shy, but curious raccoon skips the 1st day

Excited skunk can't wait to begin, hopes to make

teacher's "pet" this year

I love painting this door over & over. I've learned a lot

painting on glass, such a fun smooth surface, the paint simply glides!

:::

My friend, Robin, took the top photo of me with the door

before walking down to Red Hook this weekend to shop some of 

the charming shops like Brooklyn General, Bopkat Vintage, Union Max, 

and Brooklyn Collective which I love! It's expanded a great deal since I was last there. 

I'll post more about these spots next time.

For now, here are a few shots of Brooklyn Bridge Park at the end of the day.

This is my first visit back (besides riding by it) since they began construction.

It's fantastic!

Volley Ball

I actually included information about the development on 

one of my early posts about Brooklyn Heights Promenade

and it's a little embarrassing to admit that I have not gone 

down until now to take advantage and appreciate all they've done!

Above, Robin tastes wine at Waterfront Wines.

A nice way to close the day.

I'll post more about the mini shopping spree next time.

:::

Enjoy the rest of Labor Day!

Thanks for taking a look :)

xo, A