New Look for 2012

 I've finished the new graphics for the blog and my Etsy shop!  If you are viewing this in a reader, pop on over and take a look.  I went with a bit simpler design this time around, and a much more subtle color scheme.  Also, I traded the pinstripes for herringbone.

There are also two new domain names that will point you here: http://design.audzipan.com and http://anthology.audzipan.com, which are sub-domains of my http://www.audzipan.com domain, which sends you to my Etsy shop.  Thanks to my brother Tom for the help with that.  Here is the matching banner I did for the shop:

I love being able to do all my own design.  I'm so glad I got the Adobe suite while I was still in school.  It's been invaluable to me over the years, although my version is getting a bit outdated.  I'm loving this new look, and getting excited about a bunch of new projects this year.  I'm right in the middle of finishing a new batch of place mats, so until they're done, I will be sewing like a machine!

Trilingual Place Mats and Crackle Glaze Preview

It seems like the weather is just trying to get my goat.  I have been waiting for a nice day to spray paint in the backyard, since my garage has horrible ventilation, and every morning I wake up to this:

Lame.  There was one nice day last week, and I already had other plans.  This crackle glaze tutorial is never going to happen the way things have been going, but hope lingers with this week's forecast.  To ease your aching souls, I thought I'd just share a little "before" photo to get you excited for how awesome this project is going to turn out.  It. Will. Be. Awesome.

This is a small decorator's table with screw-on legs.  I got it from a neighbor for about a quarter.  It is supposed to be draped with a cloth and topped with a round piece of glass.  To that, I say, "No Sir, not in my house!"  I have big plans for this little table.  That's all I am going to really say about it to keep some air of mystery about, but one more thing I can tell you is that this project will result in two separate, but equal, tutorials.  Which is also awesome.

I have also been doing a bit of screen printing, so I thought I'd share my latest design with you.  It's been bouncing around the ole noggin for a year or more, so it's great to finally get it out.

Trilingual Place Setting Diagram on Place Mats

Trilingual Place Setting Diagram on Flour Sack Towel

I was having some serious issues with making my screens for a few weeks, but I'm happy to report that I finally got it all worked out.  It was one of those moments where you go, "Maybe I don't know what I am doing here. . ."  I have a few more blank screens ready to go and hope to get some more new designs ready for the summer.  

Interview with ABC4

Today I had an awesome opportunity to do an interview with Brent Hunsaker from ABC4 News in Utah.  I got to show how I do my screen printing and talk a little bit about Etsy.  I was pretty nervous, but I think it went really well.  It's always so interesting to meet people from the news in real life.  It almost seems like you already know them.  Weird.

Even though I do Etsy mostly as a hobby, it was nice to do be able to share a little bit of my creative side.  Plus, in the process of getting ready for the interview, I got my craft room set up!  The closet it still a mess, but I have a great creative work area. 

I also made a new screen design!  I am having some trouble with a new emulsion I am using, so I've blown out two screens trying to get it done.  A blown-out screen means that part of the stencil that I wanted to stay got washed off, which means I have to start completely over.  Once I get things worked out, I think you will be as excited as I am to see the new design.  Hint: It's a completely new type of product for me.

The Etsy story should air sometime in May, but the date isn't completely set yet.  My friends and neighbors Amie and Tanya will also featured.  What fun!

 

Custom Order

Just had to share my latest custom order!  The stitching is in bright yellow, which is kind of hard to tell from this photo.  I've been working on this off-and-on for the last week, along with starting a book club for my neighborhood and painting the bathroom.

Coming up this weekend: A preview of the master suite bedding and paint.  

Personalized Baby or Toddler Shirt

I finished an order last week for a Personalized Baby/Toddler Shirt.  I haven't done one in this font before, and I thought it turned out really cute and fun!

I'm planning on getting some heat-transfer vinyl and doing some experimenting with my Silhouette.  I'll post pictures all about it. 

New Messenger Bag

The Cherry Branch Messenger Bag is back!

This version features three different colors of embroidery floss: red, orange, and yellow.  The branches were printed onto olive fabric.  This is the last bag with the olive color.

I still have two more bags to make, both of which will be on brown fabric, then I am officially out of the cherry branches.

These bags have always been popular in the past, so it may not be around for long!

Etsy Voter

Hey all!  I've got some great news!  My Scarborough Fair Wooden Blocks are in the Etsy Voter this week!

 The theme for the week is gardens.  This is my first feature in the Voter.  I think it's because I never had an item that really fit the theme until now.  

Anyway, if you have a second, an Etsy account, and you want to help, then pop on over to the Voter and vote for the Scarborough Fair Garden Blocks by audzipan!

Really, it would be great.  Happy Weekend!

Latest Messenger Bag

Well, I was going to post about my most recently listed item today. . . but it already sold!  That was seriously the fastest I have ever sold an item on Etsy.  I will share a photo with you anyway, since I am planning on making another one this week.

I also have another project in the works.  I can tell you that it involves tea towels.  And it will be lots of fun.  Look for tea towels soon!

Long-Sleeved Robot Shirts and A Design Revelation

First off, I would just like to let everyone know that the Long-Sleeved Kids Robot Tees are almost sold out. These are the quantities and sizes still available:

24M- 2 left
3T- 1 left
4T- 1 left
5T's are sold out

Secondly, I will not be making any more of this shirt. I realize that I have been trying to accommodate every person's every desire and have every size of every shirt always available. The truth is that I am not a factory. And I don't want to be one.

Most of the designs currently in my shop will be retired this spring. All of the inventory that I still have will be sold, but then no more. I want to make new designs!

I think I will probably hold onto the crest screens for a while, since they were done more recently, and I still haven't had a chance to print any apparel with them. I might keep the robot, since it is so popular. But I am thinking of making a new screen and turning it into a two-color print.

These designs will be washed out: Cherry Blossoms, Grass, Craft Tools, and "Home". Once these designs are sold out, they may never be printed again.

I am looking forward to a new set of designs. I hope you are too. Any requests?

Cherry Branch Stitched Messenger Bag

Yippee! New messenger bags! I have had this idea for a messenger bag for a really long time, and I finally made it! Some of the pillow covers I originally made ended up slightly flawed in the corners, making them unusable for pillows. I didn't know what to do with them right at first, but I held onto them and came up with this.

It's hard to see in the photo, but I stitched the fabric onto the bag with fuchsia embroidery floss. With the red-orange fabric, the fuchsia is actually a bit toned down.

So glad to see this project turn out! See the listing here. I also have olive and brown fabric. Email me (audzipan{at}gmail{dot}com) or send me a convo on Etsy to set up a custom listing.It was a lot of hand-stitching, but I was really pleased with the result. I think that, over time, the fabric will acquire a lovely frayed look as well.

What do you think of the new design?

Allgrey, Part #1

Here it is: our first two-color print, and our first messenger bag print!

It turned out pretty well. There are still parts of the process that need tweaking, but overall it was good. I will be listing the prototype on Etsy as soon as my camera battery charges and I can take more than one photo.

The Meaning of Audzipan

Everyone always asks me, "Where did you get that name?" Well, here's your answer. It is simply a nickname I acquired during my schooling years.

Start with my first name, Audrey. Subtract the end, and you have "Aud." Ok, that part is pretty obvious.

Moving onto the more mysterious part- "zipan". Many of you have probably stumbled across the website Homestar Runner. One of their characters is named Marzipan, just like the almond paste. My college roommate in 2005 had a friend named Mariah and frequently called her Marzipan. Since Mariah lived in another state, the moniker quickly passed to me, with a minor adjustment.

So, there you have it. Audzipan!

Progress Report: Our First Two-Color Process

We have been diligently working on our first two-color process! The screens have been exposed and rinsed; now we just need to calibrate and print. The screens turned out really well, even with the things that I thought might get in the way. Let's review:

1. Screens were coated with 6-month-old emulsion. Recommended shelf-life for emulsion once it is mixed= 1 month.
2. Screens have been coated and sitting in the cold storage room (aka darkroom) under a fleece blanket for 4 months.
3. I usually rinse out the unexposed emulsion using the garden hose with sprayer attachment in the backyard. This set-up is great in the summer. Under a foot of snow, not so much. Turns out, the sprayer attachment on the kitchen sink works just as well, if not better!

Overall, this round of screen-making was a huge success! Everything got blown out that was supposed to, but nothing that needed to stay. I couldn't have asked for more. 100% perfect.

And here's what you have all been waiting for: what is actually on the screen. I am not going to post the artwork, but it was all completely drawn by me in Adobe Illustrator, including the text. I will, however, describe in detail the design.

Picture if you will: a shield, topped with a crown, flanked by a unicorn and a stag with a mane, with a banner beneath that reads, "allgrey 2009". The shield (or crest) includes a sword, stripes, a four-pointed star, and double-layered stripes. Whew!

Can't quite picture all that? Don't worry, I will post photos of the final product. Printing will commence tomorrow.

Wondering what "allgrey" is? Allgrey is the name of my newest product line. Targeted directly to men, we are imagining sophisticated, classic, and simple, yet cool enough to wear!

Check back tomorrow to see the finished product, and another Etsy shop spotlight on Friday.

Robot Tees

I thought for today I would share our most popular shirt, the Robot Tee. This shirt was designed and printed in-house. Currently, it is available as an unfitted adult tee (in black and brown) and a fitted women's tee(royal blue or peach). We are ready to start the photoshoot for kid's tees, which come in various colors of green and blue, ranging from size 24M to XXL in boy's. These t-shirts will hopefully be posted to our website during the week. We are also working on our first two-color process print.

The Audzipan Anthology

Welcome to the Audzipan Anthology.

Time to get the ball rolling on this blog! Audzipan Design has evolved into something that we like around here. We specialize in screenprinting our original artwork onto t-shirts, muslin covered wooden blocks, messenger bags, and pillows.

Our newest items will debut here, along with sneak peeks of the process and works in progress, spotlights of other artists/items we like, inspiration boards, etc.

We hope you enjoy reading!