a small printing project.. part two

The final stages of the printing process have been completed.  The shirts turned out great.  A clean simple design.  This was my biggest shirt order to come out of the Zerby Print Shop.  Once I got in the groove, efficiency increased and shirts started flying off the press.  It's definitely more efficient to do a large order than printing one shirt at a time, which is the whole purpose of printmaking.

The first two layers..

Registering for the third layer..

A piece of acetate (a plastic sheet) is used to line up the image..

The third layer is printed and the whole image comes together..

If you have ideas of your own for single shirts or group shirts, contact me, and together we can create the perfect shirt.  Check out other shirt designs at rebeccazerby.com or visit the ZerbyShop on Etsy.

Be Inspired. Be Bold.

peace&love

Rebecca

National Margarita Day

Saturday, February 22nd was National Margarita Day.  Who could say no to celebrating on this great day.  It was nice a warm, a brake from our very cold and bitter winter, so a margarita just seemed right. Last summer I had been ding some research and experimenting to mix the perfect margarita.  I don't like  using the mixes that tend to be overly sweet and syrups.  I found that using fresh simple ingredients made the perfect margaritas.  The recipe has boiled down to this

1 shot tequila (I like using silver)

1 shot cointreau 

1 shot of fresh squeezed juice (I have become a fan of grapefruit and some fresh squeezed grapefruit juice is the perfect combination of tangy and sweet.  You can also experiment with using different juices, shown below is a blood orange italian soda.)

Adjust quantities to your liking.  Garnish with a lime slice and a gold pom pom stirrer and enjoy!

Enjoy Responsibly. 

peace&love 

Rebecca

a small printing project.. part one

In todays world of technology and machines, I like to stress the art of handcrafted products.  I love to embrace techniques and processes that enhance the hand of the artist.  I try and stay away from computers, creating all my images by hand.  In my screen printing process I don't use the photo emulsion process, which often uses a computer to create the image that blocks the light creating the image on the screen.  I hand paint each image with drawing fluid then flood the screen with screen filler, creating the screen in which prints are made.

There is a beautiful hand quality that is added to each print that is often lost in the mass produced machine made prints.  I have found beauty in the process.  Each step is unique and important to the process.  After completing the screen, which is a big part of the process (prepping is a big part of any artwork), the fun part begins, the printing.  Just like weaving, I get into a rhythm, whipping out prints.  It's a repetitive dance, going through the motions, each time getting a little faster.  I am always looking to increase my efficiency and beat the machines.

This printing project is for a hockey tournament, one of my biggest projects with 145 shirts to print.  It took planning to get the most efficiency; From images on the screen to the order and time management of printing.  The first stages of the process from the drawing fluid to screen filler to the stack of shirts to be printed to the first layer.. shown below...

Darwing fluid.. in blue

Screen filler.. in brown.  The drawing fluid is then washed out creating the open area in which the ink passes through, creating the image below.

The stack of 145 shirts to be printed, ranging from youth XS to adult 3XL

The first layer.. doesn't look like ugh but a few layers later it will all come together.  3 layer in total.

In the end, it feels rewarding to have created something with my own two hands.  A product that someone will use and enjoy.  

Be Inspired.  Be Bold.

peace&love

Rebecca

Going for the Gold.. Party Decorations part two

An Olympic part needs an Olympic menu.  I continued with the Olympic theme by using the colors of the rings as a backdrop to highlight this delicious menu.  To make it fun and festive, I paired event names with the dish names.

The Menu
Alpine Skiing Swedish Meatballs
Pigs in a Bobsleigh
Speed Skating Shrimp Taco Bites
Freestyle Skiing Caprese Tortellini Salad
Biathalon Caramelized Onions with Goat Cheese Bites
Luge Asparagus Wrapped in Ham
Ice Hockey Hummus
Skeleton Bread Stick Twists

Nordic Combined Cupcakes
Gold Medal Almond Meltaway Cookies

White Russians

I filled cups with colored candies to represent the Olympic rings.

Shrimp Taco Bite Recipe

Caprese Salad Recipe

Asparagus, blanched, and wrapped with ham.  Needed a smear of dijon mustard and a thinner slice of ham, or prosciutto.

Whole Foods Hummus, the best hummus!

Everything Twists.. always a hit

1 1/2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
2 teaspoons caraway seeds
1 1/2 tablespoons dehydrated chopped onion
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
one 14-ounce package all-butter puff pastry, thawed if frozen but still cold
1 egg beaten with 1 1/2 teaspoons of water

1. In a bowl, mix the sesame, poppy, caraway, onion, salt and garlic powder.
2. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry into a 14x11 inch rectangle.  Brush with egg was and sprinkle with the seed mixture.  Cut the pastry crosswise into 3/4 inch thick strips.  Twist the strips and transfer to the baking sheets, leaving 2 inches in-between.  Freeze until firm, 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 375.  Bake the twists for 20 minutes, until golden.  Switch the pans top to bottom and back to front halfway through baking, until golden.  Let stand until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes.
**The unbaked twists can be stored between layers of parchment paper and frozen for up to 1 month.
foodandwine.com

Chocolate Cake Recipe
Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting Recipe  This frosting was one of the most delicious frostings I've ever made!  Definitely worth the three sticks of butter!!

Almond Meltaway Cookie Recipe

Not Pictured from the this Olympic Sized Menu

Alpine Skiing Swedish Meatballs- from Ikea, still the best Swedish meatballs I've had.

Pigs in a Bobsleigh- Mini Hotdogs wrapped in crescent rolls.  Bake at 375 for 12 minutes.

Biathalon Caramelized Onions with Goat Cheese Bites Recipe.  I've made this multiple times and its always a hit.

Make sure when creating your menu to be well balanced in your food choices.  I like to have one meat, one seafood, a bunch of veggie based dishes, keep it savory and bite sized.  And have some delicious desserts to leave your guests with something sweet and memorable!  

Be Inspired. Be Bold.

peace&love

Rebecca

Going for the Gold.. Party Decorations part one

I'm decorating for an Olympic party and I decided to go for a gold medal theme, along with the Olympic Rings color theme.  Naturally I started with a hand full of pom poms, gold coins and some skewers.  I created some great drink stirrers of different heights, gold coind on toothpicks for cupcake toppers, and they also look pretty cool just chillin in cups as decorations.  Depending on your color scheme, you can apply these same crafting principles to any party theme.

Stay tuned for the rest of the Olympic themed party decorations.

Be Inspired.. Be Bold. 

peace&love

Rebecca

all that sparkles.. VEGAS part three

I found some great patterns, textures and interesting use of materials in the store fronts at the shops of various casinos and hotels.  Of course they are all high end boutiques so the highest quality is expected.

Beautiful tile work on a column.

Butterfly marble work.

Yves Saint Laurent storefront.

Tiffany's storefront.. textured wall treatment.

Chanel.. great use of fabric for a wall treatment.. high contrast

Gucci and Prada.. gold on black.

Wall of vintage Singer sewing machines.

DRINK.

Textured wall paper

Fendi.. a nice contrast of stone and wood.

Beautiful floor with art deco doors.  Paris Hotel

Be Inspired.. Be Bold

peace&love

Rebecca

all that sparkles.. VEGAS part two

Day two continues with a full day at the KBIS show. There were a lot of great new products, ideas and textures.  Another overload of he senses but here are a few highlights of my favorite colors, textures and some great ideas that I can't wait to tryout and use when I get home.

Kallista had some great mirrors and tiles.

Viking's beautiful range.

Richelieu had walls of wood and some other great space saving tables and islands.

Le Mosaiste.. Moroccan tiles

All that glitters studs and trim pieces.  Oh the possibilities..

At the builders convention, creative new ways to stack a brick wall.

And end with a pink palm..

Be Bold in your Design.

peace&love

Rebecca