Basic human decency stuff
I’m grateful these are the only two real tasteless interactions we’ve had with customers in the last 3+ years since starting this business. And I don’t prefer to perpetuate or amplify such ridiculous negativity, but I am just so amused by these two experiences and am reminded that humans never fail to surprise the hell out of me with their award-winning audacity.

All Storms Now Laid
Mike and I recently decided we needed a new, big eye-catching banner for our booth but besides our logo, I was struggling to figure out what to put on it. Ultimately, I decided I wanted something that both represented the art we create and us too if possible since this is very much a family affair.

Upward to Heaven
The original version of this piece (that you may have seen if you stopped by our booth in Houston or Dallas) had the subject’s head inside a birdcage. But even though I loved the concept in theory, there was something about it that didn’t feel right and I didn’t love it

Human Dissections
Essentially, he spent countless hours digitally restoring two diptychs by 18th century French painter Jacques Fabien Gautier d’Agoty and then custom building/recreating the original frames as well. They are at about 1/4 scale of the originals and absolutely breathtaking in person.

Femina Luna
About a month ago my daughter was painting with watercolors and painted a moon with flowers growing out of it (with a little help from me on the moon). When I saw it, one of my first thoughts was, ohh, I wanna create my own version of this.

Friendships
I know this is ultimately how it works, though; people coming and going, many never meant to stay for good. But fuck, it gets harder the older we get, doesn’t it? Because the body count just keeps rising. it also gets harder to make new friends as we get older—or we just don’t have the time or the energy required to build new friendships…meanwhile, many of our older friendships are winding down.

Surrender Boxes
A surrender box allows us to let go of our worries and desires so the universe can take care of them for us. We write down what we want or need to happen and then place the note into a box. By writing and placing our thoughts in the box, we are taking action and letting the universe know we need help and are willing to surrender our feelings.

The Land of Entrapment
New Mexico, we’ve missed you. Excited to be returning to my home state. We’ll be seeing you in 2 weeks at the Oddities and Curiosities Expo in Albuquerque and we come bearing gifts.

Lilacs and brain cancer
In late 2021 Maria had been diagnosed with brain cancer and also happened to be 6 months pregnant. After emergency surgery, radiation and chemo and the birth of her healthy baby girl on Valentine’s Day of 2022, she wanted a tattoo to symbolize this crazy/scary/hard/beautiful time in her life.

Divorce and Break-Ups
10.5 years ago I ended a 7 year marriage/14 year relationship. It was one of the hardest and scariest things I have ever done and even though deep down in my soul I knew it was something I had to do, I still doubted myself every step of the way and it completely ripped me apart. I cried many tears and my heart broke for both of us. I think this is one of those things that you assume is very black and white until you’re in it. This shit is really hard and is accompanied by a very specific kind of grief.

QWN Bee
Prepare the royal jelly, nurse, and warn the drones.
The flowers shall open soon and I must choose a deserving heir to my throne.

A story and a warning to creators
So, I had planned to spend most of January designing and engraving boxes for both the 2024 Oddities expos and our online shop. I deliberately cleared my schedule of everything else. I had only gotten about 5 boxes done when I began getting some strange error messages from our laser engraver. And then it just stopped working entirely.

Woody Guthrie, Cherokee Bill and Bass Reeves
First stop: Highland Cemetery in Okemah, OK to see the cenotaph for Woody Guthrie (1912-1967) (Fun fact: his full name was Woodrow Wilson Guthrie!) as well as the graves of his loved ones. We also went looking for his childhood home before realizing it was torn down in the ‘70s due to the demands of some very vocal locals who were whining that it had become a hangout for teenage hoodlums (when really it was likely they just didn’t believe that “commie” deserved any kind of legacy).

Tulsa Mayfest
Earlier this month I submitted a design for the Tulsa Mayfest 2024 poster competition.

25 Years Ago
25 years ago I was angry with my dad and ignored him completely before going to bed. No goodnight, no see you tomorrow. Nothing.
Early the next morning I would be shaken awake by my mom as she said the most surreal words I’ve ever heard:
Your dad is dead. Get up. Your dad is dead.

Santa’s Happy Pills
A holiday card has been added to our new updated Calamity Card set and because of the nature of this set, let’s just say it is not all sunshine and rainbows. Look, I’m sorry ok, but at least it’s real. AT LEAST IT’S HONEST. Is the truth easy to digest? No. But can we find unity—comfort and camaraderie in our fellow citizens to help ease this burden? Also no.

Death and Feather Plucking
I applied for a scholarship for an end-of-life doula training last month. I was hopeful. Learned yesterday I didn’t get it. I let myself cry and feel deeply sad about it for a while. Self-indulgent but cathartic. When I have the money, I don’t have the time and vice versa. Standard unfair life shit. And then an actual angel in my life appeared and insisted on covering the cost for me. I kindly declined. They insisted. I agreed only on the terms that I either pay them back or pay it forward when I can. They opted for the latter. Many more tears of course. I have had some low, depleted, hopeless days lately. Unsettled in the unknown. This offer was like a hand reaching down toward me, grasping my own.

Pretty Boy Floyd
“Charles Arthur Floyd (February 3, 1904 – October 22, 1934), nicknamed Pretty Boy Floyd, was an American bank robber. He operated in the West and Central states, and his criminal exploits gained widespread press coverage in the 1930s. He was seen positively by the public because it was believed that during robberies he burned mortgage documents, freeing many people from their debts. He was pursued and killed by a group of Bureau of Investigation (BOI, later renamed to FBI) agents led by Melvin Purvis.”

Grave Hunting
Our newest hobby: going for cemetery walks while looking for graves of notable humans.

Lenticulars
Fun facts: the first commercial lenticulars were patented and marketed in 1906 as “Puzzle Post Cards” or “Photochange Post Cards.” Historically, lenticulars have also been known as "flickers," "winkies," "wiggle pictures," and "tilt cards." I like to refer to them as "real-life GIFS."
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February 2025
- Feb 23, 2025 Sublime Déshabillé Feb 23, 2025
- Feb 9, 2025 The Trouvelot Astronomical Drawings Feb 9, 2025
- Feb 7, 2025 Embrace the Meaninglessness Feb 7, 2025
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January 2025
- Jan 31, 2025 Mora Jan 31, 2025
- Jan 24, 2025 Blessings abound Jan 24, 2025
- Jan 20, 2025 Môniyâw Jan 20, 2025
- Jan 19, 2025 New embossed gold foil cards Jan 19, 2025
- Jan 11, 2025 Lightning Struck a Flock of Witches Jan 11, 2025
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December 2024
- Dec 30, 2024 Thank you Dec 30, 2024
- Dec 12, 2024 Body of a Flower: Luna Moth Dec 12, 2024
- Dec 11, 2024 Cannabis Dec 11, 2024
- Dec 3, 2024 La Loïe Dec 3, 2024
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November 2024
- Nov 14, 2024 Darkness Creeps in Nov 14, 2024
- Nov 3, 2024 Dreams of Battle and Death Nov 3, 2024
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October 2024
- Oct 28, 2024 Fledgling Folly Oct 28, 2024
- Oct 4, 2024 Lady Longfingers of Sorrow Oct 4, 2024
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September 2024
- Sep 24, 2024 You were raped Sep 24, 2024
- Sep 15, 2024 Can I pick your brain? Sep 15, 2024
- Sep 14, 2024 Behold the Body of the Moon Sep 14, 2024
- Sep 12, 2024 Dementia and Alzheimer’s Sep 12, 2024
- Sep 9, 2024 What the Heck Sep 9, 2024
- Sep 5, 2024 Nightmare Sep 5, 2024
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August 2024
- Aug 31, 2024 Three Years Later Aug 31, 2024
- Aug 29, 2024 Eurasian Grass Snake (Tropidonotis Natrix) Aug 29, 2024
- Aug 27, 2024 Body of a Flower: Spiderwasp Aug 27, 2024
- Aug 20, 2024 Retribution Aug 20, 2024
- Aug 18, 2024 Bounty (Hold onto whatever makes you happy) Aug 18, 2024
- Aug 10, 2024 Body of a Flower: Robber Fly Aug 10, 2024
- Aug 10, 2024 World of the Dead Aug 10, 2024
- Aug 7, 2024 The Parisian and tattoos Aug 7, 2024
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July 2024
- Jul 21, 2024 Follow your heart Jul 21, 2024
- Jul 17, 2024 Word Salad Jul 17, 2024
- Jul 12, 2024 Body of a Flower Jul 12, 2024
- Jul 4, 2024 Thus Always to Tyrants Jul 4, 2024
- Jul 1, 2024 Mrs. Maud Jul 1, 2024
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June 2024
- Jun 29, 2024 Gloaming Jun 29, 2024
- Jun 21, 2024 Specter Sorceress Jun 21, 2024
- Jun 14, 2024 The human + animal bond Jun 14, 2024
- Jun 10, 2024 No womb. No gloom. Jun 10, 2024
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May 2024
- May 28, 2024 Going Stag No. 5 May 28, 2024
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April 2024
- Apr 29, 2024 Basic human decency stuff Apr 29, 2024
- Apr 22, 2024 All Storms Now Laid Apr 22, 2024
- Apr 7, 2024 Upward to Heaven Apr 7, 2024
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March 2024
- Mar 4, 2024 Human Dissections Mar 4, 2024
- Mar 3, 2024 Femina Luna Mar 3, 2024
- Mar 2, 2024 Friendships Mar 2, 2024
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February 2024
- Feb 26, 2024 Surrender Boxes Feb 26, 2024
- Feb 25, 2024 The Land of Entrapment Feb 25, 2024
- Feb 19, 2024 Lilacs and brain cancer Feb 19, 2024
- Feb 17, 2024 Divorce and Break-Ups Feb 17, 2024
- Feb 11, 2024 QWN Bee Feb 11, 2024
- Feb 6, 2024 A story and a warning to creators Feb 6, 2024
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January 2024
- Jan 2, 2024 Woody Guthrie, Cherokee Bill and Bass Reeves Jan 2, 2024
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December 2023
- Dec 26, 2023 Tulsa Mayfest Dec 26, 2023
- Dec 17, 2023 25 Years Ago Dec 17, 2023
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November 2023
- Nov 21, 2023 Santa’s Happy Pills Nov 21, 2023
- Nov 11, 2023 Death and Feather Plucking Nov 11, 2023
- Nov 11, 2023 Pretty Boy Floyd Nov 11, 2023
- Nov 5, 2023 Grave Hunting Nov 5, 2023
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October 2023
- Oct 19, 2023 Lenticulars Oct 19, 2023
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August 2023
- Aug 26, 2023 Fire’s Remorse Aug 26, 2023
- Aug 7, 2023 Memento Mori Aug 7, 2023
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June 2023
- Jun 7, 2023 Source cards Jun 7, 2023
- Jun 6, 2023 The morbs Jun 6, 2023
- Jun 3, 2023 Touch Grass Jun 3, 2023
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May 2023
- May 30, 2023 Femina Marina May 30, 2023
- March 2023
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December 2022
- Dec 20, 2022 Time is the Devourer of Things Dec 20, 2022
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October 2022
- Oct 13, 2022 Going Stag No. 2 Oct 13, 2022
- Oct 6, 2022 Childbirth and Puerperal Fever Oct 6, 2022
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September 2022
- Sep 30, 2022 Gaunt Jaunt Sep 30, 2022
- Sep 16, 2022 New Life to Old Frames Sep 16, 2022
- Sep 13, 2022 Paper and the Birdcage Sep 13, 2022
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August 2022
- Aug 25, 2022 Going Stag Aug 25, 2022
- Aug 5, 2022 Anatomicam Cardiocorum Nervorum Aug 5, 2022
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July 2022
- Jul 31, 2022 Insect and Terrarium Building Jul 31, 2022
- Jul 27, 2022 Maria Celeste Jul 27, 2022
- Jul 20, 2022 Eye and Amazonite Jul 20, 2022
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June 2022
- Jun 28, 2022 Nitimur in Vetitum Jun 28, 2022
- Jun 6, 2022 Surrender Box Jun 6, 2022
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May 2022
- May 1, 2022 Who were you— May 1, 2022
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September 2021
- Sep 4, 2021 Tulsa Punk Rock Flea Market 2021 Sep 4, 2021
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August 2021
- Aug 25, 2021 Notebooks Aug 25, 2021
- Aug 9, 2021 Death and Pollination Aug 9, 2021
- Aug 4, 2021 Topographical Maps Aug 4, 2021
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July 2021
- Jul 31, 2021 Jewelry Jul 31, 2021
- Jul 27, 2021 Dark Bird Jul 27, 2021
- Jul 24, 2021 You’re the Moon Jul 24, 2021
- Jul 13, 2021 Saudade Jul 13, 2021
- Jul 11, 2021 Memento Mori Jul 11, 2021
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June 2021
- Jun 26, 2021 Engraving on Agate Jun 26, 2021
- Jun 24, 2021 Engraving on Canvas Jun 24, 2021
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May 2021
- May 19, 2021 Heart and Soul May 19, 2021