Blog With Me At Tumblr!!

So, I've opened up a Tumblr account and now am completely addicted. Most of my blogs will likely be posted there from now on, so blog with me! http://chrissycat24.tumblr.com

Exciting News For The Emma Collection!!

I'm currently working with fellow artist and designer Katie Campbell, who is making clothes for the Emma dolls!! The designs are really trendy and absolutely adorable. Pictures will be posted soon, and select styles will be available for purchase Fall 2011. Stay tuned for updates!!

Free Comic Book Day!!

I'll be at Blu Planet this Saturday, May 7 for Free Comic Book Day! Come on down and take advantage of the great deals that this way cool shop will be offering, and don't forget to stop by my table and say hi! I'll have some great deals on prints and artwork too. =0)

My Love Affair With The Harry Potter Books

So after nearly 12 years of avoiding the fandom, I published my first ever Harry Potter fanart to deviantART today. And I love it! All my life people have been telling me to read Harry Potter, ever since the first one came out. My friends, co-workers, even the kid I baby-sat for at the time told me it was right up my alley and with lines starting up the day before book releases, how could it not be?

Well, after never reading a book or seeing a movie for all that time despite the crazy involvement of all the people around me, I finally saw my first HP flick when my best friend pulled the whole "It's my birthday and this is what we're doing card" back in December when Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 was in theaters. So I went and sat with hardcore HP fanatics, the 7 people I was with included. Now, out of a 2 and a half hour movie I had absolutely no idea what was going on for like the first hour and 45 minutes, but one scene in particular caught my interest (aka obsession) and I got caught up in the hype. Maybe it was the fact that that night was one of the most fun nights I'd had in a long time, or maybe it was because everybody around me was so excited that it was contagious, or maybe it was because I was just so deliriously tired from work that day, but something sparked inside me and the next day I bought the first 3 books. A week after that and I bought the next two. Not long after, I bought the last two.

I also ended up watching the movies right after I read the books. I would read a book, watch a movie and so on and so forth until I have just recently finished the 6th book and the 6th movie. And in disguise as a true Harry Potter fan, I went out and got the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 dvd the first day it was released. Although I haven't watched it yet...

I don't even remember anything that happened in the movie save for the one scene that caught my attention, and that's great because now I plan on reading the 7th book and watching the first of the last movies before I go this summer with my friends in Harry Potter fan fashion to the conclusion of the series. I should note that yes, I did watch the trailer when it was released the other day...

So, I had so much fun drawing the Harry Potter characters today, with no reference buy my imagination and my memory of the descriptions in the books, I might add, that I think it's safe to say that my obsession will continue long after the last movie is released. As a matter of fact, I'm planning on taking the character portraits that I drew this morning and turning them into an actual fanart scene. And that's just to start off with. =0)

ChristineCaton.Com Gets A Makeover!

After a few months of planning, I've finally launched my new website! ChristineCaton.Com has moved to a new server and is now hosted by Weebly. I'm super excited for this change as the site now has a fresh, simpler look and is much easier to navigate. I'm sure my artwork will be happily displayed in its new home for a long time to come! Please check out the new site at http://www.christinecaton.com and be sure to let me know what you think!

Introducing The Emma Collection: Fairytales Series!!

The Emma Collection: Fairytales Series features a unique interpretation of classic fairytale characters in the Emma Collection style. This series began in September 2010 and was first introduced at New York Comic Con. View the series here: http://www.christinecaton.com/theemmacollection/id30.html

Please Help Me Support A Friend And An Important Cause!!

Hello Everyone!

This Sunday, September 26, my husband and I will be participating in the Hydrocephalus Association's Walk 2010. I will be walking on Team Allison in honor of the daughter of one of my co-workers and a dear friend. Last year, with your help, my husband and I were able to raise almost $2,000 for the cause. I'm hoping you can sponsor me for the walk. Here is the link for my donation page. From there you can also find a link to the Team Allison page. http://walk4hydro.org.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=346211&lis=0&kntae346211=00FDC477279C4FC1A5CAC4AC9630B9FD&supId=304984623.

Even if you can't help out with a monetary donation, it would still be fun to walk together! The event takes place on September 26 at Belmont Lake State Park. The Walk begins at 10am, but registration starts at 9am. Your support in this cause is greatly appreciated!!

Thank you,
Christine =0)

New Website Design!!

I just decided out of nowhere to re-design my website. I'm a creature of habit and was really attached to the old look, but it's time for a change. Check it out here: http://www.christinecaton.com!

Oh, Tablet.. Where have you been all my life??

So.. I got a tablet yesterday. Best purchase I ever made!! Seriously, I wish I would've done this a year or so ago. Then I could have been practicing all along! But it's okay. At least with NY Comic Con to get ready for, I have an excuse to do nothing but play. =0)

Here's my first attempt at drawing with the tablet:



This was my second attempt:
Yay!! Toy Story Peas In A Pod!!















Here's my third attempt:

My First Ever Attempt at Making a Boy Doll

Of course would have to be Woody from Toy Story!



This one took about 9 hours to do (from concept to finished product) because of all the detail.... He's a 6" poseable doll made of muslin with polyester fiberfill and a small wire armature. I used the fibre craft pattern I use when making my Emma Collection dolls.

The shirt took a really long time to do. It's painted on, but there's tons of detail in the shirt. The boots, hair, and face are also drawn on. The pants, belt, buckle (with hand-drawn detail), vest (with hand-drawn detail), sheriff's badge, and hat (with hand-drawn detail) were all made of felt. The hat took the longest to make because I couldn't find a pattern for a hat small enough. It was a lot of trial and error, but I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

I think the pullstring might be my favorite part... it's just a small white ring with a piece of string sewed to his vest.

Since Woody has really long legs to begin with, the next time I make this character will be using the 14" version of my Emma Collection dolls. I also plan on doing a 6" Jessie.

New Convention Dates!

Come see me in the I-Con 29 art show!! March 26-28 at SUNY Stonybrook. Visit http://www.iconsf.org for more information on the event.

I will be bringing tons of great stuff to the show-- lots of prints and postcards, more original artwork than ever before and even some Emma Collection dolls, including a never before seen Gwendolyn doll! I am very much looking forward to this show as it is surely to be a blast! Hope to see you there!

The Magic is Back!

So I saw The Princess and The Frog last weekend. What a movie! Drama, suspense, romance, angst, horror... this one's got it all! P&tF was definately worth the 5 year wait for Disney's return to traditional 2D animation.

The backgrounds were gorgeous, the animation was flawless, the whole color palette of the movie was just beautiful. The costumes were amazing, the voice acting was great, the music was astounding! There were these three little girls sitting two rows ahead of us and they actually got up and danced whenever a song came on! Randy Newman hit it big with this score! And the writing was just amazing. There's a very important lesson to be learned from this movie. And of course, it's a love story within a love story!

The thing I never liked about the different versions of this story was that the characters never learned anything. In the Grimms Brothers' "The Frong King," the princess is a spoiled little brat who is horrible to the frog and in the end gets to marry the king without learning anything or going through any kind of transformation of her own. Sadly, the same is true in many Mother Goose versions of the fairytale, as this is the one that those are likely based on. In "The Frog Princess," by Alexander Afanasev, it's the woman who is under a spell and the prince who is a spoiled, selfish brat.

Thankfully, Disney has done the classic story justice as each and every character, from the two main heroes to the dastardly villian, to the spoiled friend and cute animal sidekicks, learns an important lesson about the difference between what they want and what they need. The journey to this realization takes place through such emotional songs as "Almost There," "Dig a Little Deeper," "Ma Belle Evangeline," etc.

The whole movie, from beginning to end, is absolutely beautiful. The ending, however, is perhaps the most beautiful of all fairytale endings where everything is just as it's meant to be, but in a way that's the complete opposite of what the viewer (and the characters) would expect. What an inspiring film!

More Toy Story Accessories

Just because there aren't enough Toy Story accessories out there! I made this out of pajamas. The bag part is the shirt and the handle is the pants. Or was. I wrote "There's a snake in my boot!" on the back in orange, but it wouldn't come clear in a picture.

Happy Anniversary, Emma!!

Today marks one year since the debut of The Emma Collection at Big Apple Comic Con in New York City. When I look back over the past year, I can't help but be excited about my dolls and the experiences they have brought to me.

I'd like to take a moment to thank all of the amazing people in my life who have played an important role in this journey: Thank you to my husband Mike for being patient and flexible, especially during those first few frustrating months. Thank you to my parents and my sister Lori for not laughing when I once again announced that I wanted to try something new. Thank you to my manager Alex for the encouraging pep talks that make me feel like I could fly if I tried to. Thank you to Alan for having me in that first show. Thank you to my Aunt Corrie for the awesome enthusiasm about my doll collection. Thank you to Alexis for being the best assistant ever at that first show. Thank you to my mother-in-law and Aunt Kathy for being my first fans on FaceBook. Thank you to all my friends and all the people at the store who offered constructive criticism along the way to that first show. Thank you to the great people at Friends of Lulu for their support and interest in a multi-tasking artist. Thank you to all of the people who have purchased an Emma doll to take home with them, especially the little girl from the Wizard World Philadelphia show, who totally made my day by showing not one, but two of my dolls more love than maybe even I did while I was creating them, if that's even possible.

One day I got the idea to try making a doll. Months later, on a hot August afternoon in 2008, I put the idea to work and loved the way it came out. I'd known that I would be appearing in the Artist Alley at Big Apple Con that November and decided that I wanted to have more dolls so that I could display them with my artwork and see if maybe they would sell. Less than three months later, I had nine handmade dolls to bring with me. And so The Emma Collection was born!

Over this past year, I have been lucky enough to enjoy two successful shows, a handful of commissions, and the launch of The Emma Collection website. I can't wait to see where the next year will take Emma and all her friends! Happy Anniversary, Emma!!

Support

I'm wearing this bracelet for you and I won't stop until you get better.

This Is What Happens When I Get Bored...

When I have too much time on my hands, I get Sharpie happy. Too bad I don't have a "before" pic. This was actually a really fun way to make old shoes look new!!

Help Me Help a Friend!!

I will be walking on Sept 26 in honor of Allison, who is the daughter of one of my colleagues and a dear friend. Please help out if you can!!


http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1488&AID=752&PID=100443

Summer Reading

I don't think I've done this much reading over the summer since I was in high school!! But what a great summer of reading it was!

Here's my reading list:

Fairy Haven and the Quest For the Wand, by Gail Carson Levine
Insperatus, by Kelly Varesio
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of The Dawn Treader, by C.S. Lewis
The Vampire Diaries Volume I: The Awakening, by L.J. Smith
The Vampire Diaries Volume II: The Struggle, by L.J. Smith
Curious George At The Aquarium, by R.P. Anderson
Where The Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak
The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger
Fairest of All, by Serena Valentino

I love the feeling of being in another world completely and luckily this summer, I had the concentration time to do it. Of course the dreaming doesn't end here with the season. I'm going to get started right away on my "Fall Reading List," which includes the rest of The Vampire Diaries, a companion to Narnia, several puppetry books, American Gods, and more! So excited for three days off next week!!

Thinking In Words

I've got so many ideas for art projects, but they're all coming to me in words. Which is really strange, because normally I think in pictures, not in words. Now it's the opposite. These words, phrases, fragments, sentences keep popping into my head and entice my creativity. Too bad I'm not a writer!

Home is Where the Heart Is

This is the place we picked out to live together.
This is the town where we know everyone.
This is the town where everyone knows us.
This is the place we invite family and friends to.
This is where you carried me over the threshold the night we got married.
This is where we come to after a long day's work or a week's vacation.
This is where we stay up all night talking, or reading, or watching tv.
This is where we wake up in the morning.
This is where we feed the cats.
This is where I cook all my meals for you.
This is where we planted our first garden.
This is where Teddy has his cave.
This is where our "offices" are.
This is a very nice place with a lot of love.
My home is with you and we are in this house.
This is our home.