Heather Dixon Wallwork's Blog, page 7

Zoo Train

Hey!  I did a cover for the Junior Friend!

We went with a “Zoo Train” theme, which I loved because I got to give it a Mary Blair vibe!  Needless to say, it was a great lot of fun.

Here’s the cover with the text.  (Snappy!)  I’m definitely going to do this style again.

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Basil BFFs

My sister says the only reason her kids have survived childhood is because they make noise when they’re hungry.  (We obviously have the same genes.)

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All that Glitters is AWESOME

My niece Anna has this amazing skirt.  It has layers upon layers of pink tulle over a satin underskirt with a ruffly hem and polka dots made of golden glitter.

I mean, OMGrsh, right!!

She wore it a few weeks ago, and noticed me admiring it.

She was like:

Me:

(Side note:  It’s a beautiful thing when your nieces become old enough to share their clothes with you.  Their clothes are waaaaaay cooler than mine.)

Anna was like:

*dies!*

She gave it to me.

(I love you, Anna.)

It does leave glitter everywhere, but I don’t see that as a problem.

I see it more as marking my territory.

I pair it with my denim shirt and sequin undershirt and it makes me feel like a cowboy ballerina princess.

*dies again*

Last week, I wore it on the train.

When I caught the train home, it must have been the same train from that morning, because:

Fabulous.  Srsly.

I’ve heard there’s an internet shop that lets your enemies buy envelopes full of glitter to send to you.  When you open the envelopes, glitter gets everywhere.

Obviously I need to make more enemies.

GLITTTTTEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

 

In other news…I decorated my porch like the Haunted Mansion!  I really like the Haunted Mansion ride, I’d love to write a novel based on it.  (That, and Candyland.  I’ll add it to the bucket list.)  Anyway I think the porch looks pretty groovy.

The “Haunted Mansion” font is called Ravenscroft.  (Or at least, the knockoff I used is.)

I found the idea for Madam Leota’s head on pinterest.  You turn a fishbowl upside down, fill it with black tulle, and cut out a photo picture of her head.  Gnarly.

The only problem?  No one will see it…my townhouse is tucked away in the corner of the subdivision, and the front door faces a fence.  Bummer.  But at least I can share it here ^_^

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Dreamy Driving

So on I-15 in Utah, there’s these marquis.  UTA often posts motivational messages on these signs, stuff like, “May the Seat Belt Be With You”, and “16 deaths in 2016”  (Seriously, why even bring that up???), and…stuff like that.  Last week I saw this:

It’s a little hard to see (THANKS, semi) but it says “Drowsy Drivers 3x More Likely To Crash.”

At least, I think that’s what it says, I was too tired to see it clearly.  But something like that.

Anyway, it reminded me of an experience my sister, Missy, had one long, lonely night, making the 12-hour drive from Portland to home.

Missy went to school in Portland (getting a fancy patternmaking degree–she’s really good at it, too) but to cut down on her school loans she worked graveyard shift at front desks and delivering papers.

She’s a hard worker.

She really, really wanted to be home for Thanksgiving, though.  So as soon as her shift was over, she beelined it to the car and was on her way to Utah.

It was a long drive.

She figured that the moment she started getting sleepy, she’d pull over at a rest stop and sleep for a few hours.

Just like she guessed, somewhere in the backwoods of Oregon, she began to get sleepy.

So that’s just what she did.  She pulled over at a rest stop

Parked

And got some sleep.

And then she woke up.

Several hours later

Lights on

On an old, remote country road

DRIVING

FIFTY FREAKING MILES AWAY FROM THE FREEWAY

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH

So guess who didn’t sleep AT ALL for the rest of the drive

Missy arrived just as Thanksgiving dinner was starting

And never told anyone about it.

Until she told me, years later.

And now I’m telling you.  And you.  And everyone else.

But most especially my mom, who I wish I could be sitting next to right now to see her reaction.  She’s never heard this story either.  Hahahaha.

(I wish I had a camera)

SO!  The random number generator has spoken, and congratulations to the winners of our Bert print: Vanessa, Katherine Bauer, and Tina!

Vanessa, I don’t have your email address, so if you see this, shoot me an email at storyboarder{at}gmail{dot}com.

Thank you, everyone, for entering!  I love giving away prints so keep an eye on the blog for more giveaways in the future.

 

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Bert in the Park {+ Giveaway!}

Will you be in Disneyland this Saturday?

I sure hope so, because it’s the birthday of Mary Poppins!  “Mary Poppins” was released in theaters August 27th, 1964.  Now, in Disneyland, there’s a big unofficial Mary Poppins fan gathering, where everyone dresses up Mary Poppinsy and does Mary Poppins events, like eat at the Jolly Holiday bakery and ride the carousel.

AND get an awesome free print, drawn by this girl with two thumbs and a Mary Poppins obsession!

I designed it to be a companion piece to last year’s “Mary Poppins in the Park” print:

Fun huh!

I’m bummed because I won’t be able to go to the event this year (I’m unemployed right now…ah, the life of an artist!) BUT I do have some good news–I was nosing around in my files and found some extra prints from last year:

SO we’re going to have a giveaway for 3 pairs of these Mary-and-Bert prints!

If you want to be entered, all you need to do is comment “Want!” on this post, and you’re in!  We’ll draw the winners end-of-day Saturday.  Also, if you can’t make it to Disneyland but still want to be a part of the fun, look up the hashtag #MPITP2016 on instagram…there are some crazy awesome pictures and costumes.  Last year some people even dressed up like the carousel horses, and they were beautiful!  I can’t wait to see what this year brings.

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The Grape Fairy

This happened last week.

Hahaha.  Mom knows my fridge always looks like this:

Of course I helped out.

So apparently the grape fairy doesn’t actually exist.

(Why did no one ever tell me??!?!?)

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Serenade for a Spare

Last week was a crummy week, and also, I got a flat tire.

(Here’s a better angle of it.)

However, I’m an independent, self-sufficient, strong, capable female, so I

 

called for roadside assistance.

30 minutes later, a guy to replace my tire came, in a monster of a tow truck.

He had a cigarette in his mouth and a monster energy drink in his hand, no hair, and was completely lousy with muscles.

Eep!!

He climbed on down from his truck and I was all scared-like.  Why didn’t I listen when my dad showed me how to change my own tires???

He paused for a second when he saw my license plate.

For those of you who don’t know, I managed to snag a fabulous vanity plate last year.  Looks like this:

Right??!?  How in the world “Poppins” wasn’t taken I’ll never know.  But I got it.  Hahaha I’m obsessed.

Now you know if you ever see a POPPINS plate on the road, that’s me :)

Unless the jerk driving it just cut you off.  Then it’s totally not me, it’s some other blonde driving my car.

Anyway, the tire guy was like:

And I was like:

And he was like:

I am not making this up.

(He sang it the rest of the time.)

Oh yeah and I got my tire changed :)

I think we all know the moral to this story.

I need to get more flat tires.

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Things My Sister Taught Me

If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you’ve probably heard the news.  My sweet sister Katie had a bone marrow transplant a few months ago, and at first it seemed to be working, but then things began to go downhill.  Her leukemia got worse and worse, and just a few weeks ago, they send her home on hospice.

Katie passed away Thursday morning.

It has been a really, really crappy summer.

Her funeral is today.  In just a couple of hours, in fact.  I guess I should be getting ready instead of doing a blog post.

Isn’t she so beautiful?

*bursts into tears*

Katie was one of the best people I ever knew.  She was Mom #2 to me.  We grew up in a huge family (11 kids!) and so when my mom needed to run errands, or my parents went on a date night, Katie was in charge.

When Katie was in charge, those were some of the best hours of my life.  She taught me pretty much everything…stuff like, how to have FUN.

Example:  She showed me how to make a giant fort in the living room out of blankets, stools, books, and (to my mom’s horror) tape.

We were really pretty fabulous at unfolding all the blankets in the house, piling up the books everywhere, and taping blankets to the walls.

We weren’t really good at the reverse, however.  (My mom loved it when we made blanket forts.)

Katie also was in charge of the TWINKLE TEAM!

I’m not making this up.  She created a club for us kids called the “Twinkle Team” and when mom and dad were gone, we did fabulous things…like rehearse plays that we’d later perform for our parents.  We’d make backdrops out of refrigerator boxes and everything.

I remember this one.  The play was “Got To Catch That Villain” (it had a catchy song and everything) and Katie played the bad guy.  She wore a painted mustache.

Katie tried to put on a circus for mom and dad too…with one small problem.  We are the most uncoordinated children you’d ever meet.

(I remember she tried to teach me to stand on her shoulders WITHOUT grabbing her hands and I remember being scared out of my mind.)

The Twinkle Team Circus, sadly, never got off the ground and I’m still scared of heights to this day.

Katie also would send us on elaborate treasure hunts.  Her clues were HARD.

I still remember this one…it was “All men die at the diamond’s end.”  We couldn’t figure out where that clue was AT ALL.

Katie gave me a love for old movies.  Growing up I knew all about Danny Kaye, Ronald Coleman, Gregory Peck, Greer Garson, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Maureen O’Hara, and all the rest.  I love old movies still, and would rather watch an old movie than a fancy new one in the theaters.

(Do you know what movie this is?  It was Katie’s favorite :)

Katie also taught me how to be a TEASE.  She was a huge tease!

(Mary tried some.)

One day, when Katie was watching my little sister Missy, she bit into an apple…

(thwumpf)

Missy didn’t quite know what to do.

So she decided to go outside and wait for mom to come home.

About ten minutes later…

Thanks to Katie, I am now a ginormous tease and am of course doing all I can to pass it on to the next generation.

I’m obsessed with Disneyland, but Katie’s the one who loved it first, and loved it the most.  Her whole life it was her favorite place.  I remember our family’s first trip there…I was seven…we were sooooo excited because Katie had heard and told us all about it.

This of course was back when they let babies ride Big Thunder Mountain.  You know, back when Disneyland was FUN.

Katie gave me a love for music.  She was the best pianist I’ve ever known…growing up, she’d always be at the piano, practicing for hours a day.  A lot of times really early…like 4 in the morning.

Katie taught her 6 kids the piano, and sat with them every morning.  Even when she was in the hospital, she’d skype them and be there while they practiced.

Katie accompanied me a lot when I did flute stuff (I played the flute when I was a kid…a looooong time ago, lol.)

Katie never, never never complained when I asked her to accompany me on all the recitals and stuff I did.  She was always so willing to help.

And Katie taught me how to be tough.  She went through five years of cancer, and insisted on trying every kind of chemo that might work.

She learned to crochet while she did chemo.

She even ran marathons while going through chemo.  She’d wake up early in the morning and go running.

She’s amazing.

I’ve always thought runners were kind of…weird.  If I had any free time to spare, it wouldn’t be spent running and going nowhere.  I only run to catch trains and get inside Noodles & Company before it closes.

But then, last year at Katie’s fundraiser, a whole lot of runners showed up to run her 5K.  It was freezing cold and raining, but they all grabbed the t-shirt and ran the course anyway.   I was really touched by this.

At that moment, I had an attitude shift.  This attitude shift has been getting me up at 3:45 AM and on my feet to run with my sister, Emily, so I could do 5K’s for other people.

(I’m actually really terrible at it.)

(But I’m doing it.)

And I always wear my Team Katie t-shirt.  In fact, I haven’t washed my Team Katie t-shirt.  Ever.  I’m trying to preserve the memory, you see.

I’m pretty sure Katie would approve :)

Here’s a picture I drew a few years ago of Katie and her family, before all the cancer (and her last kiddo!)

They are the sweetest family I’ve ever known.

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Georgie

♫ Every morning, at half-past eight ♫

♫  I go naa-aaa-aaah to Georgie ♫

♫  And every morning at half-past eight ♫

♫ He goes naa-aaa-aaaah to meeee-eee. ♫

♫  No need to knock ♫

♫ No need to ring, for as I rub my eyes ♫

♫ I open the window, pop out my head ♫

♫ And go naa-aaa-aaah to Geoooorgie. ♫

 

♫ THEN one morning, at half-past eight ♫

♫ I went naaa-aaa-aaaah to Geeooooorgie ♫

♫ Opened the window, popped out my head ♫

♫ Down came the window! ♫

♫ Off rolled my head! ♫

♫ And naaa-aaa-aaah went Geeeeooooorgie! ♫

My family would sing this song EVERY MORNING before scripture study.  I have no idea why.  Probably because it’s an AWESOME song!

If you ever see me, ask me to sing it, and I will.  I’ll do the hand actions and everything.

I’ll also sing the one about the kid who goes down the bathtub drain.  (Another family favorite.)

I know…my family is the coolest ^_^

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How to Sell a TV Stand

A few weeks ago, I ordered furniture online.

This was a really stupid idea, because I can’t put things together.  Unfortunately that didn’t stop me and the box arrived on my porch.  There were so many pieces inside, it sounded like a giant box of legos.  I was a little disappointed it wasn’t.  Haha.

Because misery loves company, I invited my little sister over (the Taylor Swift one) to help.  She knows as much about assembling furniture as I do, which was:

STEP 1:  Get a screwdriver.  (THE POWER!!)

STEP 2:  Read the instructions.

STEP 3:  Cry.

By the end of 3 (frustrating) hours, it was pretty clear we would never get this TV stand together.  I still have no idea how to get those glass doors in.

I also (stupidly) did not measure the space I wanted to put it in…so imagine my surprise when it turned out to be half as big as I expected.  My face was:  |:-{

Hours of banging a hammer against it produced no results (it remained the same size), so I did what any sane person would do:  I decided the sell the stupid thing and get it out of my life.

I posted it on KSL.com.

I knew that not a lot of people would be in the market for a badly-put-together TV stand, so I…*cough cough*…jazzed it up a little.

Here it is.

Hahaha.  It was dumb and silly and a lot of fun, and took about as long to write as it sounds.  My family got a big kick out of it and my sister shared it on facebook.

…and then other people started sharing it on facebook…

And before I knew it, the thing had thousands of views!  It went viral!  Both my alma mater’s newspaper (good o’ BYU!) and KSL picked up on the ad and after some quick interviews, my TV stand was in the papers!

The ad really went viral then!  My phone rang crazy off the hook.  This was the dumb thing I hadn’t thought of…my actual phone number was listed on the ad.

Here’s a sample of some of the calls:

###-####:  Oh my gosh, that was the funniest ad!  We’re totally reading it at the office over here!  Hilarious!

Me:  Hahah!  Thanks!  Would you like to buy it?

###-####:  Hahaha!  No!  No one buys TV stands anymore, lol!

 

Overstock called.

OVERSTOCK:  Oh my gosh, we are so, so so sorry…

They offered a partial refund, which of course I didn’t take.  It’s not their fault I’m a dummy.

 

And another:

###-####:  (gruff voice)  Hi.  I saw your ad on KSL!

ME:  Aw yesss!

###-####:  I’m not actually interested in buying it, but…I am single.

ME:  Oh.  Oh my.  Um.  Oh my!  *cough cough*

Most of the calls were this, which makes sense, as it reads like a huge, desperate singles ad, because I’m a huge, desperate, lonely spinster so…go figure.  I got a lot of creepy calls lol.

The correct answer is: Peppered.  Because I like REAL MEN!

Oddly enough, even though I soundly made fun of all the candidates, only the angry Bernie Sanders people got in touch.

BERNIE SANDERS FAN:  You are totally wrong about Bernie Sanders and I thought your ad was immature and stupid.  I hope you enjoy your 15 minutes of fame, you immature child.

ME:  Oh yeah???!?  Well you’re just a poopy head!

(I didn’t actually respond with that…I just really, really wanted to.)

 

 

In 1 hour, the ad had gotten over 300,000 views, and I was overwhelmed with all the attention, so  I marked the ad as “sold”…which removed the picture.  It immediately quit going viral…but I was ok with that.  The views tapered off, and I think the final count was around 330k.

One thing I didn’t expect at all was how many companies called.  I had several furniture companies call, including RC Willey, and offer a free already-put-together TV stand (which was very sweet of them!)  Also, (lololol) a beef jerky company hahaha.  I knew they were thinking of a mention on this blog (which was awesome and flattering!) but as I don’t have a huge readership and I’m conflicted about monetizing anything, I was just grateful for their kindness ^_^

In the meantime, my sweet neighbor saw the ad on Facebook and bought it.  The TV-Stand Drama had a happy ending :)

I still haven’t bought another TV stand, so I spend my evenings staring at a blank wall.

Which is almost just as entertaining ^_^

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