Showing posts with label A-Z 2016. Show all posts
Showing posts with label A-Z 2016. Show all posts

Friday, May 6, 2016

#AtoZchallenge Reflections on the A-Z Challenge

Wrap-up time for the A-Z Challenge. 
What did I learn?

1. This is a good place for me to work the challenge --
the posts didn't get mixed in with other posts (as happened last year).

2. I liked having the framework of the challenge to force myself to get this body of work refreshed.

3. It's much easier to create ONE new piece of art a day vs TWELVE (I'm looking at you, "N").

4. I am ignorant about the Canadian provinces.
I will remain deliberately vague about that and will quietly update my error.

5. Already thinking about possible themes for next year,
and will start working on the art to see which direction I want to pursue.

6. If I have my posts prewritten, then I can spend more time reading other A-Zers.
My social A-Z game was abysmal this year.


[
Original Map of North America with US States and Canadian Provinces by FreeVectorMaps.com]


Saturday, April 30, 2016

#AtoZchallenge Z is For...

AriZona 
Read about the Arizona tartan here.

Thus concludes our tour of the US and Canadian tartans from A to Z, A-Z, AZ. 

I am still recovering from "N". 
I also overlooked an "L". Oops. "L" comes before "N", so I have no excuse. 

At some point, I'll be refining all the graphics so that I can offer posters, tees, etc. on Society6. These were all created at postcard scale, and some of the tartans I resized for a better layout with the map outline. I want the scale of the twill weave to be consistent. [OK, nerding out now, I'll stop].


Wednesday, April 27, 2016

#AtoZchallenge W is For...

Washington, West Virginia,
Wisconsin, Wyoming  
Read about the Washington tartan here. 
William Drummond Stewart, a Scot who explored Wyoming in the 1830s, inspired my choice of the Stewart tartan for Wyoming. I recolored it in these colors: Blue, Red, and White for the state flag, Black for the rich deposits of coal and oil, Jade Green for the state gem -- jade.

Friday, April 22, 2016

#AtoZchallenge S is For...

Saskatchewan, South Carolina, South Dakota  
Read about the Saskatchewan tartan here. 
Look familiar? The South Carolina and North Carolina tartans are the same. 
I designed the South Dakota tartan based on the Mitchell clan tartan. For purely personal reasons, I chose this to honor the town of Mitchell, which annually hosts the Mitchell Corn Palace. I chose Sky Blue, Gold, and Yellow from the state flag, Black for the Black Hills, and Pink-purple for the state flower -- the Pasque Flower.

Sunday, April 17, 2016

#AtoZchallenge N is For... [Part 2]

Newfoundland, North Carolina, North Dakota,
Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut 
Specific Scots in the history of North Dakota are few and far between. I based my design on the Miller Clan tartan, for John Miller, the first governor of the state. My color choices were: Deep Blue and Gold for the state flag, Black for the rich underground deposits of oil, Azure for the clear blue prairie skies, Pink for the Prairie Rose -- the state flower.