A little Japanese inspiration.

This project no. 6 is created out of the HOW magazine paper product advertising inserts from the October 2005 issue.

I have noticed that these older issues have more paper ads, I guess with the economic times being what they are advertising has decreased in recent issues.

Check out the rest of the collage pieces in the gallery so far.

These were some totes I made from vintage pillowcases that I found in second hand shops around Toronto. I chose to mix and match two patterns together to make it more interesting, and finished the edges with colourful bias tape.

I also stenciled the Japanese word Kaizen on each tote, which loosely translated means “continuous improvement”. Which I thought was fitting seeing as the totes were an improvement on its former existence as a pillowcase, and secondly it serves as a replacement for such things as plastic bags.

There were only six totes made, and all of them sold within a few hours at the Cabbagetown Arts and Crafts festival this past September. I am already scouting the second hand shops now for next years stock, or if i get my act together earlier maybe these can be this years Christmas gift? We shall see.

This project no. 5 is created out of the HOW magazine paper product advertising inserts from the August 2009 issue.

You can’t really tell from this scan, but the yellow bar like objects behind the wolf are actually made of this fantastic gold paper that reflects so well in real life. But you will have to just use your imagination.

Check out the rest of the collage pieces in the gallery so far.

This project no. 3 & 4 is created out of the HOW magazine paper product advertising inserts from the December 2008 issue.

There were so many great paper ads in this issue I was compelled to make two pieces.

Check out the rest of the collage pieces in the gallery so far.

This project no. 2 is created out of the HOW magazine paper product advertising inserts from the October 2009 issue.

I enjoy reading this magazine and often keep the issues for references. And one thing I noticed in every issue were these great paper company ads showcasing some great paper finishes, laser cutting and vivid images. But at the end of the day they were still advertising, so I thought since they are not an integral part of being a reference, I thought I’d give the paper ads a new life in my collage project. My rule is to only use the paper ads, seeing as they are the only ads that are two sided  and do not have articles on the backside.

Check out the rest of the collage pieces in the gallery so far.

This is my first posting for my Upcycle Collage Project. This project is where i take ordinary junk mail/paper/advertising and upcycle it into a 4×4 inch collage. My goal is to eventually take all my 4×4 pieces and put them together as a kind of upcycled paper quilt Art.

This project no. 1 is created out of the advertising inserts that I received in my swag bag from the Sony Style Fashion show and Market put on by Women’s Post Media.

Check out the rest of the collage pieces in the gallery so far.

I had the fun task of designing Dinosaur Comics most recent apparel design. It was a re-worked design from a previous one I had done for fun, but this time I incorporated the T-rex from the comic strip (as requested by Ryan North) and made the design special to Dinosaur Comics. You can check out the merchandise if you like, the design is available on T-shirts, hoodies and tote bags.

This was my first experiment with gumpaste. I had the pleasure of making the cupcake toppers for a friends 30th pirate themed party. I had fond memories of my old FIMO (bakeable clay) making days while fashioning these toppers. I’m thinking this might be a fun next career!

Check out the rest of the topper creations in the gallery