Valentine’s Day is the prettiest holiday and seemed like the perfect occasion to share
one of my new notebook designs.

This fall, when I was looking around for back-to-school notebooks, I had trouble finding any
good looking, environmentally-friendly options. So I created this mini collection of fashion
illustrated notebooks to fill this gap. The books are printed on FSC Certified papers and are
designed to produce as little paper waste as possible when they are assembled. They have
72 pages and a durable metal binding. And best of all, the notebooks fit easily in an average
sized purse.

Beyond these features, working on these books gave me the chance to play around with a
different style of illustration. Here are a couple of the other illustrated covers.

Happy Birthday Aquarius! Everyone loves a makeover, (especially at this cold, wintry time of
year). So for your birthday this year Aquarius, a makeover is exactly what you’re going to get!

Here she is in her everyday look. You can see that Aquarius is very intelligent. She’s a
compassionate leader and she really cares about the environment. But she has a glamorous
side too.

The new look was inspired by a few of my favorite Aquarian friends. They are all fun,
charismatic, talented people and a couple of them are also great singers. (Some are not
so great.) Whatever your talents are, have a great birthday!

Need a last minute gift or stocking stuffer? Don’t worry, it’s not too late!

There’s still time to order a 2010 fashion agenda or holiday cards. Tomorrow I will be
making last-minute deliveries around Kingston. If you’d like to order, just call 647.981.3057
or send an email to alex@alexperlin.com.

This 2010 calendar was designed as a sequel to the original Zodiac Fashion Agenda for 2009.
The fashion agendas were a big success at the art shows and sales that I vended at this year.

One of best parts about vending at art shows is that it gives me a chance to meet customers
and get feedback from them directly. Those great ideas inspired the redesign and improve-
ments in the 2010 fashion agenda.

No one likes to look like the rest of the pack and this book was designed with that in mind.
It comes in two cover options so you can choose from Champagne or the Red Polka Dots.

These weekly calendars start in January 2010 and now also feature a full year calendar
at the beginning of the book. There are also blank pages for writing down those important
phone numbers or “To Do” list items. The book is 8.5” x 5.5” and fits nicely in most purses.

The cover has a soft textured finish and like all of my products, the paper is FSC certified.
The book is a limited edition and is only distributed locally.

All of the illustrations are NEW this year. Each fashion illustration shows the styles of the
season and corresponds to its month. Here’s a sneak peak at what you’ll find inside the
2010 Fashion Agenda:

It’s hard to believe that the holidays are finally here! And as everyone prepares to take time
off from work, school or whatever they normally do, it only seemed right to dedicate this blog
post to a guy who is working hard this holiday season. So, this one is for you Santa.

There are so many different types of images of Santa and everyone seems to have
their own idea of what he looks like. Back in September, I used this idea when I started
working on my thesis about keepsakes, greeting cards and memory. I used vintage
holiday cards to make this Santa Memory Game as a bit of an experiment. It’s a take on
the classic Memory game, but here instead of matching Elmos, apples or the alphabet
you match vintage card illustrations of Santa!

The rules are simple: Everyone gets a chance to see the cards turned upright before
the game begins. The decides on a time between 10-30 seconds. (Choose the based
on age and ability.) Then flip the cards and play!

Besides being a fun game for the holidays, it was also fun to see how people’s
visual memories are different from each other. While none of us have seen the Santa
in person, we all have a pretty clear idea of what we think he looked like. I found that
people chose Santa images that looked closest to their own idea of Santa. One student
ended up with a bunch of Coca Cola Santas, while others matched all the pairs with
cartoon-like features.

Happy Hanukkah friends! And what did I get for you, you ask? Illustrations of course!

My immediate family celebrates Christmas, not Hanukkah, but our Jewish ancestors would
be proud to see my Dad cooking up Matzo Ball Soup every December 26th. And who can resist
a little gelt? Yum yum.

One of my best friends, Sarah is celebrates both Hanukkah and her birthday in December. Her birthday
party usually has a Hanukkah theme where we play with dreidels and eat Star of David cookies. This year
it will be a Hanukkah sweater party! Sarah was my inspiration and offered help to develop this illustration.

Here is the sketch and initial steps in painting as well as the finished card.

If you are in Kingston, this card is available from Dwell Boutique or Cybil Scott. Or order online in the website shop.

Enjoy the festivities!

This post is dedicated to anyone who is or ever has studied for an exam,
test or done anything worth procrastinating from.

Today, I’m writing a Research Methods exam. Enough said. Sometimes you just want to get away.
That’s the theme of this flash animation that I created for my web design course.
Click the image to watch the animation:

Let’s distract each other. What are you doing to procrastinate today?

One of my favorite blogs Decor8 sent a link to this great website called Odosketch.

Click this image to watch how this was made
On Odosketch you can create your own drawing, or just watch other people’s drawings being created.
It’s very cool. If you have the time, go check it out!

Now… back to studying.

This has been a very busy week!
All of the holiday cards are now up on the website store. Thanks to Wes Bos for the shop
make-over and the cute pink buttons! The new agendas and notebooks
will be posted in the shop very soon. But here’s a sneak peak at them, just for fun.

New notebooks and agendas. Here are two of the five new designed books.

This past weekend, I was at Plaid Tidings. The show was a big success and it was
so much fun to do! If you couldn’t make it, don’t worry…. I took pictures!

Since the show, I’ve been busy trying to turn my art studio back into a livable space.
And while its feels a bit sad having to neglect my fashion illustrations this week,
I’ve made some time to work on other projects, (including a very cool 1980s
music video that will be posted soon!)

Christmas Decor in my booth at Plaid Tidings

Cards and Books at Plaid Tidings

Being a part of these shows is so great because you can get some feedback from
shoppers and other artisans. It is also great to meet the people who are
adopting pieces. This weekend, several original pieces went to new homes
including this painting that is part of the fashion holiday card series.

Plaid Tidings is really well organized, with red carpets, draped walls, helpful volunteers,
and really yummy sweets. (Their banana bread cupcakes were amazing.) I didn’t get
around to explore the entire show, but spent my spare time coveting
Hilary Cosgrove’s adorable owl pillows and French Laundry’s
revamped, recycled, vintage designs.

Thank you to everyone who came out to see the show this weekend!

I’ve been crushing on Jen Storey’s Dwell Boutique in Kingston for quite some time now.
And unlike some of the other things/people that I’ve crushed on, Jen has great taste
and never disappoints. And I’m not the only one who loves Dwell. This month, the
store was featured in Style At Home Magazine.

Check out the full story at: styleathome.com

Pick up this month's issue of Style At Home to read more.

Owned and operated by interior designer Jen Storey, this shop is
filled with unique and beautiful décor objects. Products range from
fabulous furniture to cute and chic objects for the little ones. It’s
also a great place to find a gift at a good price, that won’t look too
“gift-shoppy”. (Perfect for those last minute hostess/host gifts and
stocking stuffers.)

Jen has been single-handily feeding my mom’s addiction to lamps since the store opened.

Dwell offers a wide selection of products from local and Canadian
designers, including amazing crafts from Hilary Cosgrove, artwork from
Lisa McLaughlin-LaRose and paper products from me!

Here’s a little peak at some of Hilary’s work. She makes the most
incredible mobiles and adorable pillows. She’ll in a booth across
from mine at Plaid Tidings with me this weekend.

So if you’re in Kingston or visiting the city, go check out
Dwell Boutique or visit the website at dwellboutique.ca.

Everyone loves the magic of the first snowfall. And its that magic that inspired
this illustration in my new series of holiday cards… Walking in a Winter Wonderland.

We haven’t had snow yet this year in Toronto, but I did notice a layer of frost
on the grass yesterday. Last year, when I was living right in the heart of downtown
Toronto, literally facing the Eaton’s Centre, we had the most amazing snowstorm.
The whole city was empty the next morning, which really strange. That snowfall
was probably one of the most memorable for me.

This year, I’m itching for snow. And it’s not just because of the cute new
winter boots sitting in my closet. I want it to snow so that it really feels like the
holidays are coming. All of the glittering shop windows seem so out of
place in this weather.

For now, I’ll have to settle for illustrating the snow.

Painting... my favorite part.

What are your favorite winter memories?

I’ve been counting down to Christmas since August, and am now finally ready to
unleash my new cards and products! Next weekend, November 20-22nd, I’ll be
at Plaid Tidings (Show and Sale) at Branksome Hall, in Toronto. If you are looking
for something to do next weekend, come and visit my booth!

This week, I’ll be posting a sneak peak of the new line. For today, here’s a bit
of background on the inspiration for this collection.

Vintage fashion illustration, part of the inspiration for the new series of cards.

Because I’m doing my thesis research about keepsakes, greeting cards and memory,
I chose an era for these images that is both nostalgic and glamorous: the 1950s. Some
of the research got me looking at fashion illustration, typography and colour trends.

Gathering inspiration is one of my favorite parts of working on a new project. It is
also a great excuse to get out and shop. I found this adorable pop-up book at
the antique market in Kingston for $4. The book’s original owner’s name and
the date were still inscribed on the first page. She was given this as a Christmas gift
when she was 5 years old, in 1954.

This pop-up book from the 1950s has cute features, like Santa's fuzzy beard.

There's a definite Snow White look to this book.

As you can imagine, shopping can get pretty dangerous. For me, Ebay was a short-lived
obsession that ended with a purchase of about 300 Santa images. That’s when I realized
that I’d had enough. Now I just browse.

One of the 300 Santas. For some reason, this doesn't seem safe.

What I really like about some of the vintage pieces is how they use typography.
There’s so much movement and personality in words. After all the illustrations were
designed, I took a look at House Industries to get a modern take on vintage type.

House Industries Book features a modern take on vintage typefaces.

Check out the House Industries website for typographic inspiration.

Stay tuned to see how this inspiration came together!