Birthday Burn

 For: Brian
Occasion: his birthday

For Brian's birthday card, we have another Debbie Dots first -- burned edges! I took a lighter to the cardstock for this effect, and truth be told it got away from me a little bit. But, the burn is complemented by the raging candles on top of a simple birthday cake. I miss Brian and Liz a bunch and hope they found a fun way to celebrate the big day!

Crested Gecko Birthday

 For: Sam
Occasion: her birthday

I got a tip from my sister-in-law that a Crested Gecko with rainbow colors would make a very special card idea for Sam's big day! So I got to work with watercolors and animal print polka-dot paper to make it all happen. Reptiles are weird, right? I hope Sam loved the card and had a great birthday!

Sound Wave Birthday

 For: Leia
Occasion: her birthday

Leia is wrapping up her Master's in Speech Language Pathology! To celebrate her birthday, I tried to draw a sound wave representation of "Happy Birthday!" This was a really fun card to conceptualize, and I can really almost see the words in the squiggle! I adore Leia and am so impressed with how hard she's been working these past few years. I hope this next year brings the pay off for all that effort!

Puppy Birthday

 For: Allyson
Occasion: her birthday

To celebrate Allyson's birthday, I did a watercolor illustration of her beautiful dog Willow! The blue eyes on this dog, are you kidding me? I hope Allyson has a wonderful day and gets to celebrate all year long with the pup!

O Shaker Birthday

 For: Owen
Occasion: his 1st birthday

To celebrate smallest bud's birthday, I made my first ever shaker card! In a big O for Owen, I put some  sequins between two sheets of tulle that allows for a rattle effect! It's like, a birthday with and toy all in one! I love my little guy so much, and cannot wait to smother him with a years worth of snuggles!

Anniversary Gazing

 For: Michael
Occasion: Our Anniversary

To celebrate our second wedding anniversary, I imagined Mike and I snuggled up on a hillside and stargazing! I used Posca pen paint on dark cardstock to create this look, and am pretty pleased with how it turned out. We could not have imagined what these last two years brought -- surgeries, pandemic, yeesh! The idea behind this card was to show our togetherness and looking forward to whatever comes next. There's no one I'd rather have at my side contemplating the mysteries of the Universe.

Lion Lamb Birthday

For: Aunt Julie
Occasion: her birthday

March is such a tricky month -- in like a lion and out like a lamb! This phrase tickled me as a child, and I illustrated it as an animal party to celebrate Aunt Julie's birthday. Even with all this snow in Colorado, it's not all bad! I hope this card added the right amount of playfulness to her day and that this year is a great one for her!

Birthday Cake

 For: Sofi
Occasion: birthday

To celebrate Sofi's birthday, I did an illustration of a beautiful cake in black and white with candles spelling out "Happy Birthday, Sofija!" Then the background has a splash of water colors to make the whole thing pop. I miss Sofi a lot and hope she had a great time celebrating her birthday. 

Ecstatic Cupcake Birthday

 For: Danielle
Occasion: her birthday

Danielle is 10 and I cannot believe it for one single second. To help her celebrate her first decade of life, I created a little her, sliding down a giant cupcake! The style of this card is awesome (mixed-media, anyone?) and I am particularly pleased with the joy on her face. I mean, take a closer look:

Nothing better than a larger-than-life cupcake on your birthday! I miss my spirit niece and hope I get to see her again soon!

WD-40 Birthday

 For: Adam
Occasion: his birthday

Adam is officially over the hill, and as he often likes to submit requests for his birthday cards, he asked that I "lean in" to his turning 40. Thus, we have a WD-40 can renamed UR-40, with some plucky advertisements:

"Squeaky Joints; Aches and Pains; Stiff Rusted Parts; Drives out Hope," "DANGER: Harmful or Fatal," and "1 MIDLIFE CRISIS/14600 Days."

I had a great time coming up with this card concept, and hope Adam enjoyed his big day, all jokes aside.

Happy Birthday 2 You!

 For: Cole
Occasion: his birthday

Wouldn't you know it--Cole is two, too! To celebrate his birthday of pairs, I played on the to/two homophone with a birthday wish "Cole - Happy birthday 2 you!" The background features doodles in pairs as well -- two circles, squares, triangles and dots! I hope the 2s are the opposite of terrible and Cole enjoyed his Zoom birthday party!

2 Balloon Birthday

 For: Ryan
Occasion: his birthday

"Ryan is 2!" You read that right --  the little guy is another year old! To celebrate, I illustrated two balloons for him to count -- one with stripes and one with polka dots. I love the simplicity and brightness of this card. It was so fun to see him have a special cupcake at his Zoom birthday this evening!

Yoga Birthday

 For: Bri
Occasion: her birthday

To celebrate Bri's big day, I did a watercolor illustration of her in tree pose using her out-breath to blow out a candle on a cupcake! I used some heart paper to be the yoga mat, and the entire card just tickles me. I hope Bri had a wonderful day full of relaxation and wellness!

Sympathy Paws

For: Lex
Occasion: In Sympathy

The passing of a dog is the loss of a very special friend. To acknowledge the sadness of a family member's passing, I sent along this card with a paw print turned into a heart. I hope they are doing okay and that happy memories will provide comfort in time. 

Sonogram Heart Congrats

 For: More Friends
Occasion: Pregnancy

Everyone and their (soon-to-be) mother is pregnant! To celebrate another forthcoming bundle, I sent off a quick sonogram card in response to the sonogram photo text breaking the news. I can't wait to meet this secret tiny human and hope I get to babysit some day!

Party Animal Birthday

 For: Amy
Occasion: her birthday

To celebrate Amy's birthday, I made a stylized watercolor and ink illustration of her with her cat, Catsby, resting on her head. It's got a sleepy feel, which I think is perfect for a low-key pandemic birthday celebration. I know Ames adores this cat, so I hope they all have a wonderful time celebrating her big day.

Basketball Birthday

 For: Doug
Occasion: his birthday

Dougie is friend we made through basketball -- the fates aligned when we were all put on the random individuals team oh those many years ago. To celebrate his big day, I adapted a basketball man image in water color with my white pen for the pebbles on the face. I really like how this turned out and look forward to playing again soon!

Party Hat Birthday

 For: O'Shea
Occasion: his birthday

To help celebrate O'Shea's birthday, I played with a slightly 3D design to depict a party hat with pom pom and fringe. I folded up all the yellow bits for this effect in the third dimension, and then the red hat paper is slightly conical. 

Subtle, but fun! I hope O'Shea had the best day and that all good things come his way this year. 

Candle Birthday

 For: Julie
Occasion: her birthday

For Julie's birthday card, I wanted to send some calm, relaxing vibes like those of a candle's flame dancing. I had a lot of fun playing with my white pen for the glass container around the shape of the wax. Julie is such a good friend to my sister, and I wish her nothing but the best this year!