J. Scott Campbell - Comic Book Artist

While clicking around on Deviant Art the other evening, I happened across a comic artist by the name of J. Scott Campbell. His work is just astounding, his women sexy without being trashy... just the way I strive to draw my fairies, mermaids and other ladies.

J. Scott is a comic book artist and creator who has worked in the field of comics for over a decade. He has both created and co-created such books as the long-time fan favorite 'GEN 13', the mega hit 'Danger Girl' and the highly innovative 'Wildsiderz'.

Campbell has created a line of fantasy fairytale pin-up girls... beautiful sexy ladies in classic story book settings. He has everything from Sleeping Beauty to Snow White, the Princess & the Pea and Little Miss Muffet... and the villains too: the Wicked Witch of the West, Maleficent and the Evil Queen. You can see these lovely ladies in the 2011 "Fairytale Fantasies" calendar.

Campbell's Deviant Art page showcases a large amount of his Marvel & DC comics artwork, of which I am a huge fan. I'm loving Mary Jane, Witchblade, Poison Ivy, Black Widow and the Baroness! Every comic geek's fantasy come true... there is even Slave Leia from Star Wars! :)


One day I hope to own the awesome sketchbooks available in Campbell's online store, namely "Blue Beauties", "Code Orange" and "Monster Green". If those weren't enough, there is also a "Faces" sketchbook, a "Shades of Gray" (and "More Gray Area") sketchbook and a "Tall" sketchbook. My library would be much more complete, that's for certain! :)


You can find J. Scott Campbell and his fantastic artwork at his website, on Deviant Art, on Twitter and on Facebook. According to his website, he is working on an "upcoming, large scale, highly anticipated, SPIDER-MAN project for MARVEL comics". I know I'll be watching and waiting!

Wool Food Market

One of my favorite shops on Etsy is the Wool Food Market. Katie is the artist behind the beautiful wool creations... I don't think there's anything she can't create out of wool and her own two hands.

Katie has created everything from felted wool fruits and veggies to intricate playscapes, tree stumps, barnyard chickens and cows, llamas and fluffy sheep.

Every Easter, you can find egg crackers in Katie's store... perfect for hiding all sorts of goodies: candy, dragons and sea turtles. For Christmas, she has crafted decorative felted balls with holly, snow and mistletoe. Absolutely stunning!

In addition to crafting wool into gorgeous creations, Katie also creates doll quilts and has commissioned fantastic wooden chicken coops from a very talented Amish fellow in her area.

If you would rather create your own felted fruit, you can find both the directions and the supplies at Katie's Etsy store

You can find Katie on Etsy or on her blog.

Flytrap - Funny Clever Greeting Cards & Paper Goods

A few days ago I was clicking around on Etsy and ran across an awesome paper goods shop. Flytrap sells funny, clever greeting cards, mini notes, and paper goods, "for those not into that rainbows and kittens thing Hallmark has going."

Flytrap is based in Denver, Colorado, and is so named  "because the elusive Venus Flytrap teeters on the edge of appropriate plant behavior just as Flytrap products do."

We laughed for an hour while clicking through Flytrap owner Jen's hilarious and intelligent products. She covers so many major holidays: Valentine's Day, Christmas, Hanukkah and Halloween. The mature adult cards are especially witty, and Jen has an edgy and sarcastic card for a coworker's wedding, your neighbor's new baby and birthday cards for anyone you can think of.

In addition to the great greeting cards, Flytrap has a whole line of little notes and coupons for various events. The "littles" come in sets of 12, with bright graphic designs. There are obnoxious parking notes, clever lunch notes, sassy dad coupons, sweet little love notes and mature adult naughty coupons. I think that these would make great stocking stuffers!

Last but not least, Flytrap has just released a whole line of fun guided journals. According to Jen, "Flytrap brings intelligence, humor, and a little edgy sarcasm to journals that will inspire and amuse anyone within a 10-foot range of them. Each 90-page workbook is loaded with 30-50 unusual topics to help you or your giftee live a more smiley, more satisfying life. We almost completely guarantee it!" Now who can ask for better than that? The guided journals are for love, sex, thanks and laughter.

Flytrap makes smart people laugh.

The Art of Aquariann

If you haven't seen the fantasy artwork of Aquariann, you are missing out! Artist Kristin has a beautiful mix of fairies, dragons, mermaids and even a lone pirate! Her colored pencil artwork is bright, fresh and eye-catching.

Kristin attended Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida, where she majored in graphic design. She considers herself mainly a self-taught artist, and says that "messy mediums such as paint and charcoal have never been very nice to [me], but the smooth glide of colored pencils is magic."

One of her most popular pieces is "Aware", a breast cancer awareness fairy inspired by Kristin's mom, a survivor of more than 15 years. "Aware" is featured in several Etsy treasuries this week, as Breast Cancer Awareness Month approaches in October. $5 from every sale goes to Women Supporting Women on the eastern shore.

She offers her artwork as 5 x 7" and 8 x 10" prints, professionally printed by DeviantArt, or as magnets, bookmarks or pinback buttons. 

Kristin is an active member of Etsy's Fantasy Artists of Etsy Team, known as the FAEteam. You can also find the art of Aquariann on Etsy, Artfire, DeviantArt, Squidoo, flickr, Twitter and Facebook!

In addition, you can also follow Kristin of Aquariann Art at her blog, "the art and tree chatter of aquariann". She regularly posts art updates, treasuries and other featured sellers, as well as interesting observations and cool Etsy finds.

One of my favorite pieces by Kristin is "Damsel" - a lovely red-haired maiden and her best friend, a large emerald dragon. Gorgeous color work!

Don't walk.... stretch your fairy wings and fly over to check out the fantasy artwork of Aquariann!

Rrizzart - Mixed Media Artwork

I've met a lot of interesting people since setting up my Etsy shop this summer, and one of the nicest of the bunch is Robin Rizzi of Rrizzart! She specializes in mixed media art and jewelry, which includes crosses, magnets, trinket boxes and more, all richly embellished with paper, crystals, ink, fiber, and ephemera.

Robin has been crafting her entire life and it shows in her mixed media pieces. Her work is beautiful and functional... rich with color, texture, detail, and sparkle - lots of sparkle! As Robin says, "Do not fear the color... do not fear the glitter... reach way down and feed your inner gaud-ess! Live your life out loud!"

One of my favorite of her many lovely treasures is her coin banks. She offers them for college savings, etsy spending money, and even a cowboy bank, perfect for the little buckaroo in your life!

Rrizzart is currently celebrating Halloween, with a myriad of pins, earrings, necklaces, magnets and wall plaques! I'm eager to see what new pieces of art she designs for Christmas!

You can find Robin and Rrizzart on Etsy and on Twitter! Stop by and say hi... tell her David sent you! :)

Real Butterfly Gifts

I was surfing through Etsy the other night, looking through treasuries at all the lovely offerings, and I found a store that just captivated me. RealButterflyGifts offers museum quality real framed butterflies & insect displays. I've long collected butterfly displays (and even expired moths and butterflies that we find on our nature walks).

During my last visit to Charleston, SC's Downtown Market, I saw a butterfly display that I wanted but was unable to purchase. I remembered what it looked like, but not what it was called. I saw one at RealButterflyGifts' Etsy store - it was a Blue Morpho Menalaus that I was lusting after!

RealButterflyGifts offers the largest selection of butterflies, moths, dragonflies, grasshoppers, wasps, beetles, spiders, ants and so much more. All of their specimens are farm raised by individuals that the owners know personally, and they emphasize their participation in the preservation of the natural habitats of tropical butterflies and insects.

The displays are all handmade, which "includes every stage of the process involved in making our framed insects for you. We prepare the insects, build our own frames and print our own backing boards. We have almost 40 years combined experience in the insect field."

RealButterflyGifts makes all of their frames from solid natural pine wood grown in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Their frames are particle board/formeldehyde free and the paints used are certified low VOC and are a clean air formula with no petroleum based ingredients.

I don't know about you, but I'm sold... and I want a whole bunch of butterflies for my display wall! :)