20 YEARS OF DESIGNING APPAREL

You heard right, this year marks the 20th year that I will be designing t-shirts. What I have included is a selection that spans those 20 years, beginning with the first two Sea World designs that I did back in 1989. Puff and the torn paper look was very hot...and I am surprised it has never returned. Durning the '90's I moved from Orlando, to Pensacola where I continued to do Theme Park designs. All photos are of printed samples- not the computer renderings. The U of Tenn mascot and the T Rex design were some of the first all computer Photoshop designs that I did and this was after I moved to Tallahassee.

Next are some of the first big selling Christian designs I did after moving home to NC. "Savior" ('97) was a huge success, and "Jesus Reason"('98) sold forever. "JESUS, Because of Him" ('01) is still in print today, as is "Forgiven Chain" ('03) and "One Nation" ('01) is revised and still in print for a specific buyer- but no longer in our line. The bottom row is of recent design from 2006 and 2007, "Faith Cross" ('06) and "Sin Death" ('07) are best sellers. "Dad can fix" is an update of a design that we have sold forever and "Nothing Compares" is new.

I find it hard to believe that I have been doing this for so long- my guess is that over the years I have easily done several thousand designs, had at least 600 in print and probably 20-25 best sellers. In the beginning it was all hand-drawn and we used a darkroom to created the seperations and went completely to computers around 1995.

I want to thank my dear friend and buddy from my college days at Ringling, Dan Mattei who hired me back in '89 and my current business partner and close friend Brian Johnston whom I have been with since the beginning of Verses Wear back in '94 when he started a line of Christian Tees that eventually became the second largest seller of Christian Apparel today known as Red Letter 9. I wonder how many artists in the Christian market today have been around for 14 years? Blessings.

roan mt. painting

My first landscape since college. Began painting last Thursday night and was 70% complete by Sunday night. I like the colors and the oddity of a rock sitting out in the middle of nowhere.

I was just taken in by all that green lumpy grass and the storm rolling in over the top of Roan Mountain and the layers of mountains in the distance.

I stayed pretty true to the photos in regards to mountains and trees although I departed more on color and took more artistic license than in previous paintings. I redid the clouds on the right side three times to try to give the feeling that they are arching over your head as opposed to be very far off- because although you can see the storm in the distance- it was also passing over top of us.

This was the easiest painting I've done so far- although I could have been more detailed- it accomplished what I was after at this point.

Snow Day

This was Jake's first ever sled ride and he got to do it with his cousin Breigh. He was a little scared coming down but you can see his reaction once his feet hit the ground and he wasted no time getting back up the hill. Later he went solo- which I have on dvd. What was funny is when they started taking turns- when Breigh was climbing up with the sled, Jake would lie on his belly at the top of the hill and reach his hand out to help her up, and he kept saying, "Breigh- take my hand, I'll be your hero." I have no idea where he got that from.

build-a-birdhouse

As a family project I took some scrap decking board pieces and cut them down to make a couple of birdhouses. I ended up having enough for three. I then let Brooke and Jake use the nail gun to assemble them (adult supervised) which Jake went to town on. Then they painted them, which I think Brooke enjoyed more- and today we put them up.

I don't know if the pressure treated wood is a problem...or the latex paint...or the wood shavings we used to line the bottoms...well- we'll see how it turns out. The main thing is it was fun to build and paint and install with wood that I was going to throw away. I'm hoping we put it to good use.

new paint #3

This one was a quickie- my wife's sister had taken a photo of brooke and jake for Christmas that I thought was really good, and it had a bluish tint which I thought was very cool so I wanted to do a quick painting of it. I just loved the lighting, and I wanted to do a face study- the critique on the last one was that brooke looked better than jake- and here I had a perfect shot of them both. I also felt that the last painting the faces were stiff, so I wanted to try to do something a bit looser, yet realistic.

What I'm noticing is that I have a pattern of; great start (really excited) then a period of doubt where it doesn't meet my expectations (so I struggle) then it seems to come together at the end. So the start and finish is great, but the middle part isn't so great because I'm still not quite there yet. I still can't get jake's eyes and mouth right, brooke seems to always turn out better- yet- going in I felt that in both paintings she would be more difficult one to work on.

I still struggle with the three parts- the eye, being able to "see" basic shapes and details but not getting carried away with details early on, -the color, being dead-on and the technique, being clean and not messy or sloppy. I've struggled with all three areas every time I paint- and I'm trying to avoid getting into doing super detailed art that takes months to do-

New Painting #2

My second and final painting for the year- which I started during the Thanksgiving break and finished before Christmas. I'm quite happy with the result, although the photo of the painting itself is disappointing. The close-up photo is accurate, but I don't know why oil paintings don't photograph well. I think part of it is that I'm not blending color so much and the photo tends to flatten the color and hardened the brushstrokes. In person the painting has a much softer feel to it.

I used the computer a lot on this one to match color, and I used a noise/dustscratches filter to remove detail as well as a posterizing filter to indicate my color breaks. Everything went great until I got to the hair and faces. Really struggled at that point because of color and trying to match the photo's flesh tones. My goal was to paint loose but for the color to be photo realistic.

In the end I realized that the faces require far more work because so much happens in such a tight area-whereas you can be very basic with the clothing and background. If you're off just a bit on the clothing no one will ever know, but you don't have that luxury with the face- it has to be dead on. The slightest curve in the eyelid or the lips makes a huge difference. Quite stressful. I probably should have used a different photo of Jake- the squinty look probably wasn't the best choice (seemed OK at the time) but I wanted both of them smiling, and the photo being a year old, Jake has changed a lot whereas Brooke hasn't changed much at all- so everyone likes Brooke's portrait better. One oddity is that if you view the painting from the side- Jake looks better than Brooke because it elongates his face and ages him a bit so he looks older and more like he does today. When the faces were basically done I still tinkered with them for a week because everyday I would see a tiny detail (comparing the photos to the painting) that I didn't see before- which was interesting and a helpful thing to do.

Well- there you go- glad it's done, it went very fast til I did the faces but I didn't make the same mistakes that I had on the previous painting. Did a tighter drawing, did a better under painting (could have been better) and used the computer for my color. Also learned a lot about brush size (need to improve my brush stroke) and color mixing, but the bottom line is this takes a tremendous amount of concentration to do, and in hindsight- if I had not picked up the brush now, at age 46- I don't know if I could do this if I waited another ten years. I am much much faster now- far more decisive (thanks to designing Christian tees the last 12 years!) but the level of concentration and patience necessary is what will erode first as I get older. I believe that if I ever take a long break again (15 years) like I did that I wont be able to get it back- this gift will be gone and it would be my fault, and mine alone for wasting it.

Soccr part 2

Here we have the continuation of the game, with LIVE ACTION PHOTOS!!!

pic1- Jake "kinda" goes after the ball. In the back is his coach who does an awesome job - really. She really works with him and is constantly calling to him to come in and play.

pic2- Jake and Seth running downfield to get to the ball. My favorite pic.

pic3- ooohhhh, so close to the goal yet he is still too new at the game to have that killer instinct and go for the goal- BUT- he did actually "mix it up" a few times.

pic4- returning from the field of battle VICTORIOUS!! and the first thing he says to the smiles and applause of his family is, "where is my transformers!"

Jake plays SOCCER

It has been a slow step-by-step progression to watch jake play soccer. But what can you expect from a three year old! Not much really.

First game he only went on the field- if I went with him. Second game he wouldn't play at all. He just laid on the ground everytime the coach called for him. Third game we promised him a Batman toy- skeptical, he wanted to see the evidence- we produced the goods- and he went out and played. Soon as he came out he wanted the toy! Eventually he did go out there on his own, and he did kick the ball into play- it was a great day as a parent. Yep. Savor the moment.

Fourth game- which these photos are from he was actually up for the game.

Pic1 - he practiced for the first time.

Pic2 - the team pic, the boy on his left Seth, and the girl Carmen are really good- well for 5 year olds.

Pic3 - We see what Jake spent most of his time doing, which was playing with his transformer tank. (Big mistake bringing the toy)

Pic4- Individual shot.

Roan Mountain- part 2

Roan Mountain july21 2007

2 weeks in a row we went up to ran Mountain. First week to see the flowers, 2nd time to hike and to have a picnic. This is a very unique place;

1- the tempature is 30 degrees cooler than at our house. Both times it was around 78-80 at the house and it was 58 degrees on the montain top! SWEET!

2-the foilage here is different, the balds (grassy mountain tops) as well as the woods feel like you're in a different world. Much of what grows here is unique to the area.

Pic1 is of the kids in the woods.

Pic2 is of the trail.

Pic3 is of the fields- the ground looks smooth from a distance, but in fact it is very lumpy- you could not run on it, and the soil is jet black. In the distance is Roan Mt.- Both times we visited it was up in the clouds.

Pic4 is of Bobby and Carlie once we got out onto the open fields. Were we are hiking is actually called the Balds. (Fancy name for fields)

vacation part VI

I know what you are thinkng...this vacation will never end!

Well we did eventually run out of time and money...but a few last shots.

Jake is king of the world...a group shot of the kids ... Carlee.....and the minnow bucket during "happy hour"...don't worry there's plenty for everyone.

vacation part V

Fort Sumpter...Jake and Carlee... and the Castle washes away

vacation part IV

Photos by Meagan Hipps;

Working on the Castle.....Brooke and Sarah ,
The old cemetary...this tomb freaked meagan out a bit.....Brooke in Charleston ,

vacation part III

Here is a random assortment of additional photos that were taken by Kim Hipps and her daughter Meagan.

First up is a photo of the hole Bobby dug and Abby was the first one in.

Later we put Harrison in and made him into a merman.

A group shot of the girls

Homeschool Vacation part II

On Tuesday we were back in Charleston on the USS Yorktown and later in the day we took the boat ride to Ft Sumpter- to my surprise my daughter Brooke loved it- the history part that is. Yes! I think part of it was seeing the four dolphins in the ocean on the ride over, but she also was very surprised when I point out that the crater holes in the walls still had the shells imbedded in them. I guess you never know exactly what will click in a childs head. This by the way this was my second time at Ft Sumpter so I gave some of the girls a guided tour and pointed out how a cannon is positioned, loaded, aimed and fired. Some of the cannons were missing different equipment so you had to look at 2-3 cannons to describe every detail. Most of the cannons were buried in sand after the Civil War when the fort was upgraded during the Spanish American War. It wasn't until decades later that many of the cannons were "discovered" once the fort became a tourist attraction.
By Thursday we were again at the state park which the kids loved- and I highly recommend. Earlier in the week Bobby had dug a huge hole and the kids all took turns being covered up to their necks in sand. Later on Thursday we got the kids to help build a huge sand castle and waited for the ocean to tear it down.
I did a little fishing but we had no luck- really didn't matter- we all had a great time together. People wonder with home schooling if the kids get enough interaction with other kids- all I can say is that these 8 kids got plenty of interaction- they all got along great. Plus when I think back on my childhood the best part wasn't being in school with 500 other kids- it was having a friend to hang out with- and most of those great memories I have were on those summer vacations when 3-5 families got together. I just know that this vacation is something Brooke will never forget.

homeschool vacation

Last week the homeschool group went to Myrtle Beach/Charleston for the week and we really had a great time. Saturday morning we kicked off the vacation by going to a free Southern Gospel show at the Civic Center in Myrtle Beach. I must confess that before Saturday I wasn't real big into Southern Gospel- but I must say it was a great show- really a blessing. Some of these people can flat out sing. I especially liked the Greens and Mark Bishop. I'd never even heard of Mark Bishop but went away a new fan (got a CD).

Sunday we spent the day in downtown Charleston at the old slave market, ate at Bubba Gumps then spent the remander of the day walking around town. We took the kids through an old cemetary and their big thrill is that behind the old cemetary was an alley that led to a courtyard where Blackbeard the pirate and his crew stayed while in Charleston. That is where this picture was taken. Aside from that, simply walking the town was awesome as well as seeing a replica of the CSS Hunley. On the way back to Myrtle Beach we hit the beach at the state park.