For some people, Valentine’s day means roses and candy; for others it means Harlequin romances, dart boards and voodoo dolls.

While I was in school, we were given an illustration assignment to design a mock cover for the New Yorker. “Cry Day the 14th” was on the list of concepts that we could choose to illustrate from. I was never really happy with the painting that I made, but I loved this idea. So I decided to revisit it for this year’s Valentine’s Day post.

Thanks to my friend Derek, who kindly lent his photo for the dart board. This illustration will be available as a custom print where you can have your ex’s face put on the dart board! Or as a friend suggested of her own boyfriend, you could use a photo of your current partner if he proves to be a disappointing Valentine.

Hope you have a lovely afternoon and a very happy Valentine’s Day!

There’s nothing that makes me feel more in touch with a “typical” Canadian experience than meeting people from other parts of the world. On a recent trip, I introduced some new friends to the old campfire classic, (and the only song that I can play on guitar and ukulele), “Land of the Silver Birch”. I love how Candiana has come into fashion in recent years. It was that combination of fashion and kitsch that inspired this illustration. The painting draws from the folk song’s lyrics and some the most common Canadian stereotypes. This piece was so much fun to make… I think that I may need to make it a series. What do you think?

This week, I’ve been busy planning an art exhibit and holiday party to be hosted by Catwalk Boutique this Thursday…. (More to come on that!) This means that I have spent many “productive” hours on pinterest.com, troving through pretty pictures of holiday décor in search of inspiration for invitations and displays. Having grown up in the 80s, I’ve seen many a pink-and-blue-bedazzled Christmas. But this week’s inspiration comes from an updated version of the pastel palette that, when handled artfully, produces all of the charm of traditional holiday décor. I especially love the rose covered tree!
What do you think?

This week, we had our first snowfall across Ontario and it really put me in the mood for the holidays. I don’t think I’ve experienced a white Christmas in years, but still, nothing feels more festive than the first snowfall. The snow is gone now, but my holiday spirit is not… It’s Black Friday after all. So, without further delay, I would like to introduce 4 new holiday cards that I created as part of the 2011 Holiday Collection.

This year’s additions are designed around some of my favourite holiday themes: cardinals and winter clothes; glittering holiday parties; kissing under mistletoe and skating under the stars (with reindeer watching, of course.) I hope you like these new additions!

The cards are available at select retailers and through my updated Etsy shop.

Have a fantastic weekend! And to my U.S. readers, Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that you had a great weekend! I spent the weekend hard at work, putting the final touches
on new holiday cards and calendar illustrations for 2012. I’m really excited about the new
illustrations and couldn’t resist showing a sneak peek! Stay tuned for the finished pieces!

Flowers are the starting point for many of my illustrations and designs. When I saw these
roses, I fell in love to the bright marigold colour and couldn’t wait to design an invitation
with it. I hope that you like the end result! If you’re interested in these invitations for your
own event, contact me at alex@alexperlin.com.

Here’s a look at a watercolour and digital painting that I did for the 2011 Agenda. Because
you have sent such positive feedback on posts that include process work, I’m trying something
new this week! “This to That” is designed to show you my starting inspiration and finished
piece side-by-side. Some of you might recognize “This to That”, which is based off of one of my
favourite blog topics over at Oh Joy! Can’t wait to hear what you think!