new mens shirt design!

I have a some black shirts that I thought would be good for a more masculine design for the Muku Mania line. I might do a few of the geo-crystal design in light blue ink on some black ones, and this geo-eye design on the others.

This is just a quick photoshop mock-up to see what it would look like.

Geo Crystal Shirt Design

Here is my newest shirt design. These will be printed in either black or dark blue ink on hand dyed robins-egg blue gradient 100% cotton t-shirts! The text reads, "Muku inherited his power from a magical ice crystal found on Mt. Kruos". Which is a small excerpt of the Muku Tale. (Click on images to enlarge). What do you think?

Muku Mania Mid Term review!!

Last Night all of the Illustrators at PNCA had to meet with 3 different panel members to talk about our Thesis Projects. Of course we are all in the midst of our projects so process was a big part of the discussion as well as what is and isn't working. My 3 panel members were: Nick Cline from Mutt Industries , Aaron James from Math Dept. and Mutt Ind. as well , and Kent St. John designer from Nike. They gave me a lot of helpful feedback and insight on how I can really make my final presentation shine and how that will translate well at Point of Purchase in the retail environment. They really focused on the narrative aspect of the line and we discussed ways that I can make the story more clear before people take the time to read the story in the envelop-tags. We also talked about how my work is so detailed and intimate. It makes the viewer really want to get close and discover all those interesting little intricacies. Maybe having a grandiose large scale installation will take away from that intimate experience that the viewer has when they look at my work? We'll see what I end up coming up with! Only 6 more weeks to go!!

Plush Toys!!!

These hand sewn plushies make for fun and decorative pillows and soft, cuddle buddies! They are made of 100% wool, Cashmere, craft felt and cotton as well as touches of faux fur and hand embroidered details.

Hand Sewn Plush Toys

Here are a few of my Plush toys before I have stuffed them and sewn them shut, so you can see them all laid out flat. I made a Blue Whale, Muku the Cyclops Owl, and two Mountains that will accompany the larger mountain, Mt. Kruos. I shot the front and back images, so you can see what they look like when they turn around. The Fabrics used are mostly wool, but I also used cashmere, cotton, faux fur and felt... as well as embroidery thread! They are so soft and cozy!

Hand Dyed Fabric and sample T-shirts!

I used Procion MX Fiber Reactive Dyes and soda ash that I bought from Art media in SW Portland to hand dye my 100% cotton fabric and 100% cotton T-Shirts. I bought the fabric from Mill End Fabrics in SE Portland and the shirts from Fred Meyer in N Portland. I also ordered some more fancy t-shirts from cheaptees.com that I will be dying soon. I'm really glad I dyed the cheap t's from Fred Meyer first because it was a bit of an experiment. I tried to get a gradient from dark to light with the dye, but it only really reads well in the avocado color. This is partially because I did this color last so I learned from experience and also because it is a darker color and the details are more noticeable. The Robin's egg blue fabric is too light and subtle of a color, I think I will try two different shades of light blue next time to achieve the gradient effect. The gold turned out okay, but I didn't mix the dye well enough and it ended up staining some of the fabric darker in tiny spots. I'm sure I will get it just right when I go to dye the nicer shirts that I bought.