holiday v: happy christmas

Yesterday our family took down the Christmas tree, and I thought perhaps I ought to post this past year's Christmas card before the season disappears completely from people's collective consciousnesses.

A few months ago, my learned colleague and I attended a letterpress workshop, where we relived the vigor of our student days making holiday cards.  My homework I display for you here below.

It was a funnish workshop.  I recommend it to anyone with spare cash, a free weekend, and the vaguest of interest in letterpress.  I see no bright future in the craft for myself but I'm glad that I took it, had my moment of self-discovery, and acquired a new skill.

This season, if you were lucky (or unlucky, however way you see it: half-empty, half-full) you received this collaborative effort pictured below.

This prim, little fellow was engineered by aforementioned learned colleague and for a goodish amount of time my dining table looked like this:

If you want a deer go here and bother learned colleague about it.  I wash my hands of this bell-spanged, Santa-serving retinue.  Jingle and jangle to Hell and back if you so please, my white paper Friends, so long as the Muse that begat you returns in eleven months' time then I don't care one whit what you do in the interim.

The accompanying card was designed and painted by yours truly (watercolor, gouache, and ink for those so curious-minded).  They were printed, folded, packed with deer, and sent out with their respective missives.

watercolor & gouache

watercolor

Hope you all had a nice holiday.  If not: keep in mind life continues on without regard to your feelings so might as well carry on with a smile.

Wish you well in 2013.