Coming Home

Today I posted this on my FB and IG platforms:

I've been wrestling with the discomfort of social media for awhile now. It's definintely a like/don't like kind of relationship. On one hand I like seeing all the posts about creativity, cats & dogs, recipes---the list is endless. And that's the rub: It's all too much for my brain that wasn't built to scroll.
My brain is hardwired to ponder, to linger. I think social media is taking me away from my greatest love: daydreaming and solitude. Those two elements were the foundation of my creative life.
I was born on the edge of a tiny town on an acreage. My sibs went off to school and I spent my time wandering outside with my dog. Clouds floating overhead, birds chirping as an occasional train lumbered by on the tracks.
I crave that stillness from all the distractions.
So, if you want to find me I will be over posting on my website occasionally via my visual journal or, my newsletter you can sign up for at katebrennanhall.com

From time to time I hope to offer original paintings/prints via my Etsy shop and new cards via my brick and mortar shops.

All my best,
Kate

Dear Trolls on either site: Much like a trusty house sitter, I have admins watching over my platforms. So go play somewhere else. And for the real folks reading this: Hello! I might just have more time to post on this quiet site now that my eyeballs are free of FB and IG. Welcome to my quiet spot on the Interwebs.

Becoming the Ocean

"Fear" by Kahlil Gibran

It is said that before entering the sea

a river trembles with fear.

She looks back at the path she has traveled,

from the peaks of the mountains,

the long winding road crossing forests and villages.

And in front of her,

she sees an ocean so vast,

that to enter

there seems nothing more than to disappear forever.

But there is no other way.

The river can not go back.

Nobody can go back.

To go back is impossible in existence.

The river needs to take the risk

of entering the ocean

because only then will fear disappear,

because that's where the river will know

it's not about disappearing into the ocean,

but of becoming the ocean.

(This poem is in the public domain.)

Serenity Prayer in Uncertain Times

It’s been a minute. Hard stuff behind the scenes but teensy in comparison to all that’s happening around us. Here’s my favorite prayer to offer to you today. Feel free to share.

Mohair Pear

#TeaTowelTuesday Zippity Doo Dah! Mohair Pear in Cedar Falls sent me an inventory sheet and I'm happy to report they have a few of my towels still in stock. Yay! I've stopped production towel printing so if you've ever wanted one of my handprinted heirloom grade towels then head over to Mohair Pear in Cedar Falls. Fun practical gifts!  Mohair is such a fun store full of so many great gift items. 

Thanks Barb and crew at Mohair!

(I do not give permission to Squarespace to use my images to "teach" AI)

#katebrennanhall #towels #iowamadetowels #handprinted #cats #flowers #bees #iowaflower #iowamotto #floursacktowels #dinosaurtowel #catnip #smallbatchgoods #cedarfallsiowa #iowagifts #weddinggifts #whilesupplieslast

Stockist List

My Etsy shop is taking a mini-break but the folks at my sweet brick and mortar shops/galleries are working hard to provide you with quality goods. They’ll be happy to help you find everything from my towels to cards & stickers.

Letter Writing

It’s been an interesting week. I was part of a zoom call on brain health and research studies. It made me think about how these amazing organs process so much of the beautiful things we experience in life: the faces of our loves ones, creative endeavors, letters and literature, sunsets and fireflies—and all the hard stuff in between.


I recently stumbled upon a treasure trove of letters written to me in a very formative time in my life when everything was in flux and I needed some words of wisdom. Many of these letters were from my brother, almost ten years my senior. It’s clear from his responses that I was asking him all the “Big Questions” about Life. I respected his opinions as he handed them out with wonderful kindness and a sense of humor.


It’s been over thirty-four years since he passed away at the age of thirty-eight. The other day I contacted his adult children to ask if they’d want me to send digital copies of these letters. It’s been wonderful hearing their responses to his letters that included so many vignettes of the sweet and ordinary times of parenting: bathing babies, cooking dinner, attending school programs—their lives seen through their father’s eyes.
More than anything this experience has taught me:

Say it now. Don’t wait to express your love & connections to each other.
Write it down on paper, not pixels. Future generations need hard copies of your love.
Note the little things that bring you delight.
It’s okay to “hoard” letters and photos. (Yep!)


Egg Carton Experiments

I guess you could call this my city version of a barn quilt painting. Minus the barn, minus the quilt design...!

I disassembled a fun egg carton wreath I made a few years ago and used them to create a new house number plaque.

Our current plaque was created out of necessity: We had stopped getting IRL newspaper and when I removed the newspaper box (that had our house number on it) I needed to hide the screws that had held it up and I thought, "hey, I'll create a painting of our house number!"

I'm hoping the poly coated egg carton flowers hold up in the rain and snow!

One added note: When Google street views shoots their photos of our house I can tell when they've been by purely by seeing what painting is in their photo! Kind of fun!

Wrap It Up!

#TeaTowelThursday
I love using my color proofing towels as gifts AND to wrap gifts. They're practical and fun. Nothing ends up in the landfill. You unwrap your gift and then use the wrapping to wipe your dishes!

And best of all: the zany color combos and designs that came in the color proofing process. Fun!

#katebrennanhall #printmaker #screenprinting #handpulled


Healing

Whenever I'm feeling under the weather my mind travels back to a beach on Cape Cod where I drew this crayon drawing (that I *think* resides in a beach house art collection on Cape Cod. The waves lapping, seagulls singing and a happy Sun Dog hovering overhead.

I post this today as a shout out to all those we know who are dealing with another case of Covid. May you have time to rest as you head towards healing from this nasty virus.

Listening

I was flipping through my pile of visual journals yesterday---the ones from my Sunday Sketches 2020-23. Most are based on sermons by Revs Dr Dave Kivett and Johnny Janssen. I learn so much through the process of drawing while listening to sermons, podcasts, etc. The concepts seem to "stick" to my mind a bit better when I'm "listening" with my pencil, marker, paint brush or glue stick.
Here are a few of my favorites:

Documenting

When I can’t stop and sketch a scene my camera steps in to document it.

I love how in a second how my camera captured the feeling of 2023. We’re looking forward to a better 2024.

Passenger Seat Sketching

On a recent road trip I brought along my sketchpad to document the scenes through my passenger window. When I wasn’t driving I was either soaking up the beauty all around us or quickly trying to capture it with my trusty markers and sketchpad.

Lots of laughter ensued when we hit the bumpy patches as I tried to keep my marker steady!

Holiday Cards

I know it's not even Thanksgiving but smallbatch creators like myself have to carve out enough time to stock our shops for the upcoming season.

Here's my "Peace" card that I've offered the last few years because, well---we welcome more Peace in this world.

The second one sprang from a Sunday morning sketching session. It feels like a little cabin set in a winter wonderland scene.

And the last one sure feels like a fun way to send greetings to family & friends.

Available via my Etsy shop https://www.etsy.com/shop/KateBrennanHall...

and via Hatchlings & Hens CF

#katebrennanhall #holidaycards #shopsmall

Internships + Printing Nerds

"Outdoor Fun"

B & W silkscreen print

16 x 20 inches

Available via IN Tandem Arts & Authors gallery in Des Moines.

I created these illustrations for a weekly column in a Twin Cities newspaper. I was a student at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design and I contacted the paper's art director to see if I could get an internship with them. I was trying to get more illustration experience while earning college credits over the summer.

Funny note: When the Career Center at MCAD heard about my efforts they wondered "how" I created that internship. Huh? I thought it was a trick question. (MCAD has gotten much better about such things since my graduation)

Flash forward to a few years ago and my youngest spotted these illustrations in my archives. She urged me to put them together for a larger print.

I'm happy to report that I was able to "hold" open the small details of my pen & ink drawings when I was exposing my screens. The screenprinting nerd in me loved that!

My Trusty Watercolor Kit

Whenever we travel I take along my trusty watercolor kit because I never know when I will come upon a scene I'd like to paint. This painting is from a camping trip in Wisconsin during the fall of 2021. It was off season so it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. Crisp fall mornings that led into warm afternoons for hiking and stopping to record the beauty all around us.

You've shared such kind thoughts about my travel paintings. I have to believe it's because of all the joy I felt while painting. So grateful.

This painting is available now at IN Tandem Arts & Authors gallery in Des Moines, IA. It was kind of hard to part with it but I gotta do my duty in spreading some joy---right?

Birds!

Such a funny morning in my studio today. I'm not sure how she snuck in--- but a tiny wren was flying about my studio and didn't want to leave (!). Biscuit, our pup, was going bonkers. We popped open a window and gently urged her to fly out.

I think she was trying to remind me to fill our bird feeder!

Here's a small two-color postcard screenprint edition I created for a show over in Ames a few years ago. The theme was "Heroes" and I chose to create this image based on mine: Rachel Carson, author of "A Silent Spring" https://www.rachelcarson.org/silent-spring

And now, just as I was typing this post, a wonderful Red Headed Woodpecker just knocked on my window and sat there for awhile looking in at me.

Whenever I see one I think of one of these birds I think about one of my childhood classmates who for whatever reason thought it funny to chant "Look it's Woody the Woodpecker! " whenever I was in her presence. I guess my crown of red hair was amusing.

Happy birding day!

Lighthouse

Below is the description of a new decal I just created. Raise your hand if you're like me and have always loved lighthouses. I love their history, design and the way they telegraph warmth and security.


"Lighthouse"
People standing at the top of a lighthouse with heartshapes and flowers.
It speaks of the future, sending love and light out into the world and to family and friends who need a little something tucked into a card to light up their day.

Available now via my Etsy shop and soon locally and in my brick and mortar shops.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1566146422/lighthouse-decal?click_key=bf26fcaf51791b09b39a4455da62b86841f5099d%3A1566146422&click_sum=3a3354ef&ref=shop_home_active_1

I can't wait to show you all the different designs I've added to my collection. I'm phasing out a few of my designs so I can offer these new ones to share with you.

Creativity

"Thinking of You" (Red Roses)

It was a gloomy day so I mixed up a batch of bright yellow gouache and painted a full page of that glorious color and set out to see what would happen. Years before, my eldest had carved a rosette shape out of an eraser and that stamp was lying on my painting table. I mixed up some red gouache and dipped the stamp into it and started stamping away. I loved how it left bits of yellow peeking through with rough textured edges. That led the mixing up different green paint for the leaves...

I sat back and thought: I think I know where this visual came from: my grandma's quilts!

Creativity is a funny thing. You never know where your mind will take you on a given day.

I just posted this new card in my Etsy shop: KateBrennanHall (card section)

#katebrennanhall #greetingcards #etsyshop #smallsmall #smallbatch #cards #illustratedcards #gouache #stamps #patterns #floralpatterns #surfacepattern #cheerfulyellow #feedsacks #1930s #mygrandmasquilts