Jamie's blog has MOVED

Hey guys and gals!

I'm happy to say, finally, that http://www.jamiepogue.com has officially been upgraded (though of course, is still in progress). I'm so happy to have an easier way to keep things updated!

In addition, http://jpogue.blogspot.com will no longer be the location of my blog. The blog is now at jamiepogue.com/blog/ (easy enough to remember). If you subscribe to my feed, please be sure to update! There is a link on the new blog to subscribe to the blog, if you use NetNewsWire or GoogleReader or some other RSS application.

Keep your eyes and ears open for future updates, new work, and changes to the website as I continue to improve it. Thanks everyone!

Moving my blog and website to Squarespace

Hey everyone. I thought I'd just mention that I'm currently in the process of moving my blog and website to Squarespace. It's an incredibly easy way for me to update my portfolio, as well as have both my blog and my portfolio on the same site.

Please check it out and let me know if you have any suggestions! Thanks!

http://jamiepogue.squarespace.com

Yar!

Hey everyone! I am pleased to finally unveil the cover for Traveler's Trunk: Pirate's Treasure by author Amanda Litz. The book should be available in August, so keep your eyes and ears open as to when you can pick it up!

Here's a great way to stay on top of all things Traveler's Trunk - become a fan on Facebook today!

Custom icons can help your workflow

This is just a small thing that I've experienced regarding icons in my Finder (or if you're in Windows, Windows Explorer). When I'm working on a project, I keep all the files in the same folder, and find myself jumping to it often. It's a little hard sometimes though, because all the folders start blending into each other.

At some point during the project, I might have a piece of finished art that is representative of the whole project. For my work on Traveler's Trunk: Pirate's Treasure, for instance, I have a small icon of the traveler's trunk. For my work on Gingerbread Boy, the boy's head lays in my dock. It's just a nice visual way of letting me know where important things are. I'm sure you could also put labels on items in the Finder, but it's not as much fun!

If you're on a Mac, and are interested in making your own icons, check out the app Img2Icns (click to check it out). It's from software developer and web designer Shiny Frog Img2Icns will turn your transparent images into icons that you can put on files and folders in the Finder. The icons will scale when you have magnification turned on, which is pretty cool. Since the app will keep your images transparent, you can easily add drop shadows or what have you in Photoshop.

Please feel free to share any tips that have helped you keep your files and folders a little more organized! Have a good one everybody.

Illustrator's Day 2009

Big thanks to everyone who made Illustrator's Day 2009 such a success! Myself and the others got some great feedback from art director Joann Hill. Here is the second piece I did for today, though I wouldn't mind adjusting a few things.

In other news, work on Traveler's Trunk: Pirate's Treasure is almost complete. If you haven't yet, be sure to become a fan of it on Facebook to get news and updates!

You can't catch him

Hey everyone. I'm busy wrapping up work on Traveler's Trunk, and finishing illustrations for Illustrator's Day 2009 in Philadelphia. Here's an almost completed version of the first of two illustrations! Any feedback is always welcomed. Hope everyone's doing well!

(my apologies as the color appears to be slightly off)

Traveler's Trunk on Facebook!

Hey everyone. I thought I'd announce that we've created a fan page for the Traveler's Trunk books on Facebook! If you're on, please become a fan. You can receive updates and behind the scenes looks at the art, as well as announcements about the book's release. It'll be a great way of staying updated on the book. If you're not my friend on Facebook, feel free to add me! You can find the fan page here.

(work in progress)