bird talk in detail

heres some close up of the recently done and posted new prints. unfortunately the sun still is hiding under clouds of april rain and the light for the photos was just not right. but anyway, enjoy the view ... ;)

all that bird talk

last thursday, i went random in the studio. i felt like making something with no purpose, no production, no thinking, just playing around. first i could not decide what to do, paint, draw, but then i put out my cutting knives and felt the urgent need to cut! catching a glimpse of a tinysized bird swarm photo in my book of birds, i made a rough sketch on the linoleum and cutted away...





these are the test print results on vintage writing paper. need to post a closeup, the details and structures came out quite nice...

printing and packing

i've been busy last weekend! punching and printing hundreds of little paper sticks, sorting them, making little vellum bags and printing labels. promo bags that i send out with the orders. the little bags contain three handprinted paper stickers, in many different combinations. collect them all !! ;D

then i printed labels for my new product, the little paper crane greeting! i used to send out bags like this with bigger orders or for customers who already ordered several times. i also made some for dawanda promotion. the response was great, so i decided to make some altered version for my shop:



i am folding paper cranes for years now, mostly for no special reason or purpose, besides the few birdswarm installations i did some years ago. so almost every day, the basket with little cranes gets bigger and bigger, and i'm very happy i finally found a suitable way to pass them on.

travels to the twilight zone: SOME RULES

here are a few rules to obey, when you are going on a trip into the unknown (which happened to be exactly on Sardegna this time, in the middle of the italian mediterrean sea)


1. sleep veeeerrrry long! everyday.

even though your appartement might not be as romantic and cosy as you wished for, but it offers all you need for a week of doing nothing: a kitchenette, a showerette (tiny, really!), a tv with 3 different italian programs (so no reason to turn it on at all) and a large sunny balcony with spectacular views!


2. enjoy extended breakfast - prepare yourself for the day!

this is me having my second cup of coffee, reading a week old newspaper and j not getting enough from the great sight with palmtrees, mountains, me ;) we usually had breakfast till lunch.
lucky for us, we found the only lonely "supermarket" nearby, offering fresh bread, two sorts of ham, two sorts of cheese and some really tasty canned tomatoes. we went strictly on pasta diet.


3. check out the neighbourhood - make friends with the gang

we met this little fellow, he seemed to have had a big fight, half his face was swollen from a bit. but he reminded me so much of my dear cat fifty, who i miss so much. there was a whole bunch of them street kitties and we pet them and shared our ham with them daily. a nice way to pass some time...



3. take random strolls - get an overview!

but don't go to far! you could get lost. there are some amendments to this rule: a) you definetly need a car, otherwise you are getting nowhere. we cruised the whole night after our arrival through abandoned bumpy little streets with no lights, cars , people to ask or any signs (signs PLEASE!) to find the place where we have rented the appartement. it is no real city, but an area in the middle of nowhere. locazione costa rei, near monte nai, muravera. the photo shows the whole bay and vacation home area, where we had our bungalow, 200m from the beach. we were the only touristicas there at this time, but i guess it's also beautiful when it's "crowded" in main season and the oleander is in full bloom. vast aire for us!
b) remember: no traffic signs when you desperately need them, so get a road map!! even though the isle is not too big, it takes hours to go somewhere. mountainesque roads, goats blocking the way or drivers in little fiat pandas who like to enjoy the panoramic view. adventurous!


4. take a nap on the beach

this is the most important rule. after all this major stress of the day, its time to relax. go to the beach, pick up some rocks, dip your toes into the icy water, let the warm sun tire you out and lay down your head. beware, there may appear some pirates or carribean schemes in your dreams (maybe some stupid dolphins, too ;)
i wonder what j dreamed of here...he looks so peaceful, like a stranded dolphin. haha...

well, maybe there are some rules i forgot, but nevermind. you can survive this easily... just listen to the ocean....get lost.

more sardinian photos on my flickr www.flickr.com/fuchpanzer

a beautiful place to get lost

can you hear that sound? do you see what i see??

this is the wonderful costa rei on sardegna, a truely abandoned island in the beginning of april. this is where i have been hiding for the last week, starting the day with extented breakfast on the balcony, palms, mountains, the ocean in sight, accompanied by hungry sparrows. then taking a stroll to the beach, to decide what to do for the day and almost every day getting totally lost . strolling up and down this beach for hours, picking up polished rocks in all colors. the beach on our own, no people, no nothing. you expected the black pearl to appear any moment on the horizon. pirates, secret bays, grottas, woods, rocks, flamingos, snakes, cats, lizards, flowers, goats, the ocean. a beautiful lonely bay and another one just around the corner...



so....yes, i totally got lost in the doing-nothingness, i tell you, it felt GREAT! and now i'm back to the ususal routine, back to the desk, catching up with everything left over from past week, thinking about next stuff to do, doing it, thinking about more stuff to do, then sorting photos and not being able to decide which ones to post, they are so many, at least posting some, typing in some greetz and then ... back to work ... good night you all!

work+leisure

So, this is it! Tomorrow my long dreamed of vacation begins and i'll leave this desk and all my work behind for one week. Almost can't imagine! I'm so addicted!! We are going to Sardegna, see the ocean, the horizon, take walks in the wood, hop from rock to rock and build sandcastles on the beach! Phheeww. Eat grilled fish every night! Alone the outlook on this makes me feel very very tired. Today I really feel like being asleep with eyes wide open. It' s been a lot, tons of work the last weeks and months. this year so far has shown me life in all aspects, beauty, pain, super highs and super lows. at the moment, i would say i have a modest high, i really enjoy my time being. a lot! i love what i do and can spend 24/7 with my work. it's a good choice to spend your time like this! it pays off in so many lovely ways.... :)

so, THANKS to all the people, friends, family, you out there - who showed me love and respect during the last months, it's a bless!

Oh and - before I'm off to Sardegna, here are some pics of how i spent my time the last days:

in the studio, printing:
first, choose a print plate! here are some of my many linocut plates.

second, choose color. i use a transparent printing medium and mussini oil colors for printing. love this avocdo green! then print first two layers. i cut this circle of leafs yesterday.

blend more colors....
and there you go: new edition of tomtit prints! i am quiet satisfied with the test print results.


and then at the desk at home, still not outpowered enough, i thought i would be nice to make a new stamp. there was this little doodle of a rabbit in my sketchbook and i thought this would make a funny stamp. what do you think?

i already made him sit and stare in little collages and on my new moleskine. but enough posting for to day, now it's time for packing up my luggage. wish you all a happy week, see you soon, all freshed up :D

elisa

i have ordered this lovely pouch two days ago and its already here!! found it in elisa's shop on dawanda and its a pouch for keeping your books in, to prevent them from bending or loosing the reading marks and whatnot. love the nostalgic pattern of the fabric, the color, and ribbon which says "forget me not". also its sewn very neat. i am sure it will become my new favourite companion, finally my sketchbooks will travel safe :)

check out her stuff at www.elisa.dawanda.com

j's big B-day !

last week was my dear love's j 30th birthday! finally!! i thought he will never make it. welcome to the club, baby:)



and this is what i made for him as gift. a little stone carved rabbit, to please his hands. i love making things like these and its been quiet a while since i made one last time. unfortunately the stone is too soft to carry it around on a daily basis (!), but j fell in love immediately. like me, i had to stop myself while working on it, i really enjoyed. it took me two days to carve it. i just followed the given forms of the stone, very patiently, and there it was, bunny love!!




of course he got acake, too. we call it "marmorkuchen" like "marble cake". a chocolate and vanilla delicacy, simple, but love it. the flowers are mine, j brought them the day we had his birthday party, for all the cooking and stuff i did. so sweet...

(unfortunately the pic is quiet poor and blurry, but the only one i have and i like the colors so much)