Dancer Birthday

For: Alyssa
Occasion: her birthday

Dance is a big part of Alyssa's life, and I realized I had yet to make her a dance-themed card! To rectify that, I created this silhouette of a dancer in front of a watercolor splash that I Xacto-knifed and then covered in glitter (whew!). The overall effect is very neat, and I hope Alyssa liked it!

Balance Birthday

For: Theresa
Occasion: her birthday

When I think of Theresa, I think of nature, creativity, and balance. This bird and fish, land and sea watercolor captures a lot of those ideas, and has a very "Theresa" feel besides. 

I miss Theresa so much and value her continued presence in my life--here's to a great year for her!

Retro TV Birthday

For: Tom
Occasion: his birthday

Tom got me some of the greatest colored pencils in the whole world as a thank you for helping him propose to his wife, so for his birthday card, I wanted to feature their awesomeness! I ended up drawing a retro TV with lots of SMPTE color bars to show off the color va-ri-e-ty. 

Flying Pig Birthday

For: Uncle Jim
Occasion: his birthday

For Uncle Jim's birthday, I went with a flying pig watercolor because another year has flown by! Or because I really wanted to paint a flying pig and I thought he'd be okay with it. 

I got to see Uncle Jim at The Twin's wedding and even got him to dance a little bit! He's a great guy, a great dancer, and I hope he has a great year.

Birdy Baby Shower

For: Erin
Occasion: Baby Shower

Erin (my second-cousin-once-removed-in-law) had a baby shower last weekend for baby Nora; to help celebrate the forth-coming bundle of joy, I created this adorable baby bird! The theme for the party was "tweet baby girl" and I could not be happier with how this feathered friend turned out.

It was so great to see Sean and Erin, and I can't wait to meet another distant relative!

High-heeled Birthday

For: Lidia

Occasion: her birthday

Lids always looks fabulous and has lots of great shoes. I remember once she and I bonded over the idea that one can never have too many red shoes--and it's true! I had a great time creating this watercolor of some high heels from behind. I really love how it turned out (and got to brush up on my hash marks too!). 

I miss Lids so much and hope all her wishes come true this year!

Tie the Knot Wedding

For: Christy and Nathan

Occasion: their wedding

I did the wedding invites for Christy and Nathan's wedding, but the original art was destroyed in an unfortunate water damage incident. I was able to save the caricatures of the main invite from the wreckage, so I carefully Xacto-knifed their image and placed it on a glitter background. I think it looks great, and I am glad I was able to use some of the original art for the celebration.

The wedding was absolutely wonderful and I was so honored to be a part of their big day. 

Photographer Birthday

For: Marie
Occasion: her birthday

Christy has recently reconnected with Marie and I got to jump on that bandwagon and I am so excited! Marie is bubbly and wonderful, and it's been great to see her over the last few months. Marie is very creative and an awesome photographer, so I created this playful watercolor of her snapping a picture of the viewer. I love the knit hat in this card and her braid. But most of all, I love Marie and hope she had a great birthday!

Robot Birthday

For: Justin

Occasion: his birthday

Johnson loves robots and will have discussions about them whenever he can. For his birthday card, I created a watercolor of a sweet flying robot that has a birthday balloon. I Xacto-knifed the robot and put it on a spotted background. 

I think this card is awesome and I hope Justin had a great birthday!

Mountain Jar Birthday

For: Conor
Occasion: his birthday

Conor is a big explorer who travels the world on all kinds of different adventures. For his birthday card, I created a mountain scene that I then put in a jar. When I was thinking about my hopes for Conor this year, I found myself hoping that he could carry the memories from his different trips with him. I added a quote to help capture my thoughts: "Take only memories; leave only footprints."

I hope Conor had a great day and I can't wait to see him when he comes out to Colorado!

Little Things Birthday

For: Krystina
Occasion: her birthday

My birthday wish for Krystina this year is that she "Enjoy the little things." She has recently made an awesome life change and moved out to California! The little things that I'm hoping she enjoy are letters, wine, balloons, bows, rain clouds, lollipops, ice cream cones, flowers, and lady bugs, among life's other gifts.

Krystina is such an inspiration and I'm looking forward to catching up with her soon!

Fall Scarf Birthday

For: Laura
Occasion: her birthday

For Laura's birthday card, I created a stylized watercolor of her enjoying the spoils of fall: a sweater, a cup of tea, and an awesome scarf. The scribble that outlines the image reads "Happy Birthday Laura" which is a fun hidden detail.

It was so fun seeing Laura for a hike before all the aspen changed! I can't believe she lives out here now and I hope we get to hang out again soon!

School of Fish Birthday

For: Aunt Sherry
Occasion: her birthday

For Aunt Sherry's birthday card, I went with an aquatic theme in watercolor. I had a great time painting this swirl of fishies to celebrate her big day. The font was particularly fun too--it's kind of fishy looking!

I hope Aunt Sherry had a great day and that her little fishies took good care of her!

Coffee Birthday

For: Warren
Occasion: his birthday

Warren is a big coffee drinker--he goes to Starbucks every morning and always fills up on the stuff before hiking. For his birthday card, I featured a festive cup o' joe in his signature color: orange. We had a great time exploring Holy Cross City and having pizza at Mountain High Pie for his big birthday hike.

I hope Warren has a great year and lots of good coffee!