February Studio Recap

Is it summer yet?

Even though February went by fast, it certainly didn't go by fast enough. The winter here in Northeast Ohio has been brutal. With temps in the -0's and constant snow up to our knees, the best thing to do is stay indoors and make stuff!

February brought us:

• Our first several orders of Personalized Graphic Tees thanks to a wonderful Valentine Sale this year! 
• I also sold/designed/printed/shipped approximately 200+ personalized art prints from the Near & Dear Etsy shop. 
• I worked on several home illustrations this month, one of which has become my new favorite. 
• Designed and released for free download, 'You are my favorite' Valentine and it was shared by many on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest with your own favorite people!
• I added over a years worth of new placement prints and coordinating patterns to my Society6 shop and my Cuckoo Clock design was selected by Society6 to be a part of their official store!
• And, in case you thought I had any free time, my most favorite online art class started back up again - Lilla Rogers Make Art that Sells Bootcamp - bringing on the cuckoo clock obsession!

See all that along with images from our creative family life when you follow me on Instagram. Please say hi when you stop by!

All said and done, I'd say it was productive month and I can't wait to see March brings to our little studio!

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All designs, illustrations and intellectual concepts are © 2014 - Brooke Witt Art & Design, LLC

Happy 2014 everyone!

I can't believe it's 2014 already! Happy New Year everyone! We're back in the studio with tons of catching up and new year planning to do. With much gratitude, we ended 2013 with a BANG! Here's a bit of what the studio looked like just before our holiday break.

We had a very nice winter break - spent time with family, painted and put new floors in the kitchen, fixed framing issues with the barn, got the wood stove installed and started really and truly unpacking. Not relaxing, but definitely in our pj's a lot!

I have a feeling 2014 is going to be an amazing and busy year. We're welcoming my mom on board (keeping Near & Dear Designs a family business!) for admin and research. I've got feelers out for licensing and corporate commissions as well as some plans to start a second Etsy shop... hmmm... :) And, to add more joy to our life, my husband and I have plans for a new collaborative startup we hope to get going this year!

Happy New Year everyone! Wishing you all lots of love and luck in 2014.

The BIG Move - Shots from the new roost

November has been a big month for us - hence being MIA around the blog lately - because Gavin and I purchased our first ever home on November 5th! Being both full-time freelance artists and independent business owners, we're feeling very victorious that we've been able to purchase a home solely by doing what we love!!! It's been a long road filled with opportunity and trust (ok, a lot of panic) but yes, folks, it *IS* possible. Please don't ever give up!

Here are few images from around the new roost since we've moved in. We have so much planned for this place that our ideas sometimes seem like pipe dreams. But we're doers so we might surprise ourselves.  But for now, it's just perfect for the 3 of us along with lots of space to grow our home businesses - which was #2 on the search list; #1 was good schools.

Lots of outdoor space, 1.73 acres, and a rather larger barn for the blacksmith shop. The barn will need to wired with ample electric but we'll think about that tomorrow. :)

First Sunrise

First Near & Dear shipment in the new studio!

First fire.... awww....

yes, yes.... I had to take a #selfie in our new home!

A rather large population of deer live in our woods - we guess their to be about 11 or 12 all together. Oh and the other night, we heard packs of coyotes too!

First compost 

Thrift store birthday treasures (my birthday was the 19th)

Thrift store birthday treasures 

Thrift store birthday treasures 

Thrift store birthday treasures 

 Getting to work!

All in all, it's still a crude setup and we're making do with what we have and a few purchases from resale shops. We made a promise that we're only going to purchase resale, handmade, conservation-minded or made in America products whenever possible for the house during our new home adventure.

The print studio is up and running for the holidays and we're ready to keep on keepin' on!

I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving and keep an eye here or over on facebook for our Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday sales! We have some great deals you won't want to miss!

Birthdays Galore!

Get this - my mother, my husband and my mother-in-law, all celebrate a birthday 3 consecutive days in a row - February 20, 21 and 22nd. I'll tell you, that made for a busy week last week!

Here's a quick photo recap of our week:

Cleveland's Historic Westside Market re-opened last week after a terrible fire at one of the vendor stands that closed the 100 year old market for three weeks.  There was a great local effort by several companies, including CLE Clothing Co. (yep, got me a new t-shirt!) to raise funds for help the market vendors. The restoration job was done beautifully and the Market sparkled like it was new!

So, Mom and I went down on her birthday to do a little shopping.  We purchased everything from fresh fruits and veggies, to fresh meats and sweets.

Momma J scoping out the cupcakes!

For my husbands birthday, we took off for the afternoon and went to visit the Western Reserve Historical Society (sooooo up his alley). The Western Reserve Historical Society is the resource for history, artifacts, archives and events for Cleveland, Akron and all of Northeast Ohio.

All these beautiful artifacts that document the history of Cleveland and it's impact on American History and all I can do is baulk at the graphic design.

I also had an eye out for pattern inspiration.... Can't wait to get started working from these!

The typography on the old maps just took my breath away.  Needless to say, the historic society had both of us at "hello". 

Late night birthday love.

And then Saturday morning, to celebrate all family birthdays, we all met at Nick's Diner in Cleveland for brunch amongst the work of local artist "The Sign Guy".  Food was fine, nothing to rave about - nothing to complain about - the atmosphere was superb and so was the company.

And lastly, to round off the weekend right, Gavin and I decided to go thrifting and we stumped upon the most truly awesome Suite Lorain.  I'll admit, a bit sketchy from the outside, but inside?  Oh.... you're in for a surprise!

Picture this: 8,000 square feet of a Vintage Department Store with items from Deco to Mid-Century

1920's to 1970's

• Vintage clothing for men & women

• Costume jewelry, hats & purses

• Vintage fabrics

• Books, records and magazine

• Ceramics & glass

• Kitchen kitsch

• Home furnishings & decorative accessories

• Collectibles

• Clocks, radios & small appliances

I ended up purchasing this vintage wooden desk chair with the teal blue seat. I've been needing a new chair for some time as my back has been aching and I thought a good ol' sturdy vintage desk chair might do the trick. All the lumbar supports, wheels and fancy hydraulics of my old chair seemed like it was doing more harm than good.

I wish I would've taken more pictures.... next time (and yes, there will definitely be a next time!) This spring I've got yard sale on my mind so I justify going back!

And there you have it - Happy Birthday to my family!!! Love you all.