Because I'm A Fairy Princess Dammit Poster

She's a snarky little spitfire.

Available on Etsy

Life Should Come With A Command Z Button Poster

The poster has a modern message and Bauhaus style format. Available on Etsy

Cool Cats Beatnik Hipster Paperback Book Poster

I love the look of vintage paperback books and this one was inspired by the Penguin Pelican books that were popular back in the 1960s. These fun images were in Illustrator's symbols palette and the elements came together like paper dolls. I chose Jack Kerouac as the author since he was such an icon of the Beatnik era.

Available on Etsy

Woohoo Bunting Banner Poster

Celebrate whatever!

Available on Etsy

UPC Code Art Frank Zappa Quote Cow Poster

Frank Zappa said, "Art is making something out of nothing and selling it." This poster was inspired by the cover Mr Zappa's last album, Lather. Some say Lather was a parody of the Pink Floyd cover of Atom Heart Mother.

Available on Etsy

World Clocks Black and White Poster

It's a little geeky but I still think a wall of clocks showing global time is cool. When I was younger, knowing the time around the world was exotic, not just a Google search.

Available on Etsy

Steampunk Flying Machine James Taylor Fire and Rain Quote Poster

The fun illustration came from an 1870's science publication. The quote "Sweet dreams and flying machines" is from the James Taylor song Fire and Rain. The background is a subtle blue and select portions of the etching are white to add depth and interest.

Available on Etsy

Vintage Farmer with Quote by E. B. White Poster

The fun illustration came from an 1880's Industrial History book. The quote "A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus" is from E.B.White who is famous for writing Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little.

Available on Etsy

Dead As A Dodo Skeleton Poster

What do you mean dead as a Dodo? I ran across this feisty looking skeleton in an old book and loved his attitude.

The illustration was processed in Illustrator so it could be made into a vector.

Available on Etsy

Picasso Inspired Art Poster with Pablo Picasso Quote

The word "art" offers a glimpse of a Picasso styled illustration that I did for this project.

The quote is Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. Pablo Picasso

Available on Etsy

Upside Down Underwater World In A Light Bulb Poster With Sharks

The Minneapolis skyline is visible in this strange view of reality. The city is encased in a light bulb—the ground upside down—sharks are swimming around the city. The background text is from the beginning of the Jules Verne classic, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Available on Etsy

Do Be Do Be Do Striped Honey Bee Poster

In the immortal words of the Frank Sinatra hit Strangers in the Night, "do be do be do". The bee is hovering over khaki stripes and the text is in a honeycomb like hexagon.

Available on Etsy

Digital Quilt Poster

Quilters make pretty things that warm the heart.

The quilt was made in Illustrator, no cutting and sewing, using Illustrator symbols.

Available on Etsy

Complementary Colors Cows Poster with A Purple Holstein Cow

A purple cow is in fine company with a heard of like minded Holsteins in complementary colors. The other cows are green, red, blue, orange and yellow. The text says "be complementary".

I was asked to make a landscape version; it's not my favorite but it works. Behold the power of oddly colored cows.

Available on Etsy

How To Fake a Simple Framed Artwork Display Image in Photoshop Tutorial

It's nice to show what your framed artwork would look like, particularly if you want to sell it on Etsy or some other venue.



You can use any photo of a wall, I found this one on Morgue File, it's a nice source for free images. You open the background photo in Photoshop. I keep the icon on my dashboard and simply drag the photo onto the icon.



Now you want to put or art on top of the background photo.
file->place->image
drag it into position and click the check mark to place it on the page



This is what the layers palette will look like on CS4. Note the second image is on it's own layer. The file names will be different. It's good to give files better names than the one in the example.



Now we give it a fake frame. Go to layer->layer style->stroke.



Make sure preview is checked. Choose the size color and position. The stroke can be centered, inside or outside. I like inside since you would lose some of the image in a framed piece.



You can now see the stroke indicated in the layers palette.



A real framed picture would have a shadow so go to
layer->layer style->drop shadow



check the preview box
choose the opacity and distance that looks good with your image. Don't forget to adjust the angle. I like my light source to be on the upper left which gives me a shadow on the lower right.
click OK



You now see the drop shadow indicated on the layers palette.



layer->merge down



Note how the layers palette has changed.



To crop the image click the square with a diagonal line through it and indicate the width and height. You can can choose pixels or inches, since this is going on the web I picked pixels.



Drag your cursor across the screen. When you are happy with the size and position, click OK. The circle with a line through it allows you to redo the crop.



Ta Da, it's cropped. Now you need to save it.



To save it for the web go to
file->save for web and devices



Check your settings and then click save



Name your file and choose where you want it saved. Click save.

 
Available on Etsy