I'm sorry I fell off the face of the internet.

I was preoccupied. I have no better excuse for my blogging negligence. The good news is, I've spent so much time away from the computer that I actually made some new things to share. I'll probably be blogging at double speed this week so I can report on last weeks makings but still stay current on the fresh things!

Other than cafe renovating, I spent most of my time away puttering with my submission for This American Life's t shirt competition.

My design incorporates two branches and a vintage radio. For me, the drawing has a very institutional feel like an ivy league school emblem and the radio even looks vaguely like a religious piece. It feels solid and timeless and even a bit royal. I liked the classic feel of the design but I felt it could also be seen as stale. I realized my color choices would be very important and serve to freshen or add femininity to the grandfatherly symbol. I went through countless color permutations and ended up feeling felt much better after infusing the image with magenta. Pale gold and ochre followed quickly after my commitment to magenta because pink and yellow may very well be my most favored color combination. In the end, I think the way it came together really suits the show.

I fear that my decision to make the design on a pink shirt may diminish my chances of winning because I know many men (and women too actually) who refuse to wear pink. I may make an alternative choice using green but, for now, my heart insists on pink.

I actually made three different sketches before deciding upon the one above. The first was of two radio towers with connecting wires that spelled out This American Life in prettily slanted script. Shamefully, that design was quickly discarded when I remembered that radio towers do not need wires because they transmit through (of course) radio waves! I felt very foolish and I'm glad I realized before spending too long on it.

The second design was based off of one of my favorite episodes and depicts the scene where a goat is standing on top of a cow and there are old letters scattered along the ground. I drew the goat and cow as if they were far in the distance and the letters scattered up to the foreground. I made all the letters addressed to This American Life and had Ira Glass's face on the stamp. I gave up on this design too because it was quickly becoming convoluted. It was a pretty obscure episode to begin with even though the whole thing perfectly aligns with my cute animals in absurd situations aesthetic.

There is one week left before the submission deadline and that gives me the chance to change my mind and you the chance to submit something too!