Hello! It’s July here at Icefall Studio, and I have a newly redesigned and mobile-responsive website, a brand new Facebook page, and along with these things, a renewed sense of energy and purpose for updating them in a timely fashion.
It happened that the website crash and redesign occurred almost exactly on the summer solstice (within a few days of it, at least). I can’t think of a better time for starting a new venture, especially here in Alaska, with our 24/7 daylight and the corresponding sense of energy and industry that goes along with it. It also has special significance for me as my wedding anniversary (16 years this June 20th!). So this is a good month to get back into the swing of regular blogging.
What’s going on around the studio this July?
A Kickstarter, mostly! I am finally running the Hunter’s Moon Kickstarter that I’ve been promising for years, for a print volume of Hunter’s Moon, the first Kismet book. It’s going great; we’re already funded and into the final days (it ends on July 6). The Kickstarter also includes a print version of the second chapter of Sun-Cutter, the currently running Kismet storyline, as a higher-level reward. So most of what I’ve been doing over the last few days has been Kismet-related, prepping the books and working on art.
I am also gearing up for autumn/winter shows. I’m slowly getting back into the swing of doing shows, and here’s the current list of upcoming shows and conventions. Senshi-Con and the UWA Bazaar are confirmed and paid for. Pop-Con is questionable since they haven’t announced whether it’s happening again (and, since it’s a university-affiliated activity, we probably won’t until the new semester starts in September). At these shows I’ll have a selection of art cards and hand-painted ornaments, like last year, plus the Kismet and Freebird books. I am not sure at this point if there will be new card designs available. Maybe??
I also have a new just-added event, which is a First Friday opening in March with Ellen Million of Ellen Million Graphics. We are doing coloring books together and will be presenting a new one. Our first collaborative coloring book, Wildflowers of Alaska, can be purchased on Ellen’s site or on Amazon, as well as from numerous vendors around town including Gulliver’s Books.
Garden? Garden!
My garden is … well … hmm … yes. This has been a very strange year, weather-wise. We had an extremely early spring, followed by a cool, damp, rainy summer, which means that in spite of getting an unusually early start, things have been not really growing much. (On the bright side, though … no forest fire smoke!) This photo from a couple of days ago is looking down from the upper deck at the garden area — see raised garden beds at the top, if you can find them in all the weeds — and a brand-new patch of “lawn” being very slowly reclaimed from gravel pit. The WEEDS are doing great. Everything else, not so much. I’ve been harvesting lettuce for a week or two, and I have a bunch of green tomatoes set in the greenhouse, with the squash starting to flower … so it’s not going to be a disaster. It just isn’t turning out to be the awesome garden I’d envisioned back in May.
However, my orchids look GREAT:
On the personal side of things, I’m turning 40 on July 26, and my mom will be turning 65 on the 21st, so we’re making plans for a party on her birthday and then a couple of days in Homer for mine. I’m really looking forward to it; I’ve only been to Homer once, back in 2001 0r 2002, and it’s a lovely little town. I’m very excited to go back!
And in conclusion, here’s what the front side of the house looks like right now: my irises are almost bloomed out, my pansies are looking bright, and the grass is swallowing EVERYTHING. Have a great summer!
