a second set of the tragically hip tickets went on sale yesterday at 10 am, and i tried to buy, with no luck. #sadcanadian
since no one will sell me a ticket, i spent some time unleashing my sadness with a pencil, then took to adobe illustator, to complete my lettering.
wheat kings is one of my fave songs by the hip, so i’m sharing the backdrop with you!
enjoy.
xo.
download phone backdrop: 1080 x 1920
download screen backdrop: 2560 x 1440
if there is one thing i am really proud of, and i mean by a lot, it is that i am canadian. there’s so much of canada that i’ve yet to discover, but i’m already so in love this place. it is home; in all senses of the word.
when i started following along with the news of the fires in fort mac, alberta, so many people were already displaced. they may have had to leave their brick and mortar homes, but canada is still their home; and canada is full of friendly neighbours. in a matter of days, canadians had donated more than $50 million dollars to canadian red cross, with the government matching all individual donations. i’ve seen the screens in the subway stations here in toronto advertising ways to text in your donations. it’s everywhere, and people are taking part.
without a pocket full of cash to send out to alberta, i’ve come up with a miniseries of 3 posters that can be printed and posted to try and rally more donations. might be nothing, but if they get even one person to donate a canadian loonie or toonie, it’s something.
happy sharing.
#albertastrong
download lauraweatherston_fortmac-comeback| download lauraweatherston_giveback-fortmac | download lauraweatherston_supplyasnack-fortmac
for the past couple of weeks, i have been working on some animal illustrations for my dad to turn into toys on wheels. it started out with many doodles and sketches, until we finally got one that my mom & dad approved. once we had the shape nailed down, my dad cut the shapes out of wood, then hand-sanded and stained them with kid-safe stain.
we then named our new whale friend wallace, to give him some personality. next up i have to make the tags, with an accompanying background story, so we can help them find a new home.
the whales will be ready for adoption this winter at craft shows in ottawa.
stay tuned!
fun fact: the blue whale is the largest mammal to ever have lived on earth.
see more of what i’m up to on instagram: laura_weatherston
summer is here and that means vacation is coming and that means games- all of which means a hugely long, run on sentence and improper grammar!
this tuesday evening i spent doodling some old fashion dominoes with a pop of fresh colours!
play away kiddos
xo. 
in 2014 i was hired pro-bono, by the interchurch refugee group to create an identity for them, in celebration of their 20th year as a not-for-profit organization. the brief was simple- an image so easy to understand, it didn’t require words.
the concept of the logo came from the idea that there is always a safe place within the church- somewhere people can call home. the flat illustration style is on trend with current design, inspired by the 2D digital world. the orangey/yellow colour was used to mimic sunshine and show the refugee group as a happy, warm and hopeful place.
once the identity was done, it was rolled out into collateral like stationery and posters. afterwards, i made some special occasion & holiday cards that can be purchased in any amount as a donation, in lieu of a gift.
another tuesday, another 12-pack. still not beer, but just as refreshing.
summer is here and that means all the tasty fruits are ripe for the picking! today i’ve illustrated 12 of my favourite fruits to snack on in the summer. sketched out in ink, photoshopped in the colour with the brush tool, and bam- an assortment of colourful treats.
enjoy!
happy tuesday all!
for tonight’s before bedtime doodle, i somehow ended up drawing a 12-pack of weird little girl heads. i started by the loop for the head shape, then big eyes, some weird long noses, followed with the little mouths. after the doodles were done, i brought them into photoshop to add some bright colours to the hair. that’s it, that’s all.
hope they don’t make you think of some weird creepy doll heads.
sweet dreams.
turns out i missed the memo on spring cleaning for 2015, so a summer tidy it is; and that includes technology. looking back, i found some of my iphone photos from my cousin kaitlin’s wedding last september, so here they are.
this was a really fun project for me, because i loved kaitlin’s vision right off the bat- her colour palette, vibe, and her desire for some illustration and hand-lettering had me sold.
we thought through every detail for the designs. i made three placecard templates so kaitlin could input the names at her end. we had an icon for each of the dinner options: a chicken, if that was your order, a cow for beef, and one with a carrot for the vegetarians.
my design got to touch some really cool pieces:
– custom-designed stamps for the invitations printed through canada post
– my lettering & illustrations were used on the railway city brewing co. iron spike copper ale we drank at the reception
– customizing the wine labels for the quai du vin wine that was served
about some of the other pieces:
– kaitlin ordered all the paper and envelopes online from envelopments (positive experience!)
– the envelope liner is cut up wrapping paper she bought at homesense
check out some of my pics below.
choo choo!
hello spring!
with mother’s day coming up this weekend, it was the perfect time for trove to send out their 2015 spring lookbook. take a peek at some of the spring goodies they have in store and check out any one of their three locations here in toronto.
to mix it up this season, i’ve added some of my handlettering into the design.
happy spring and happy mothers day to all the mamas out there!
xo.
laura.
last friday i wrapped up the design for the 2014 trove gift guide. it’s 5 pages of gift ideas for her: jewellery, canadian-designed, eco-friendly gear, and even stocking stuffers.
this year for the cover i wanted to try an illustration of their flagship store in bloor west village. using flat, cheery colours, along with the trove green, the storefront makes for a fresh and fun cover for this year’s gift guide.
if you’re in toronto, stop by one of trove’s 3 locations for unexpected fashion finds, or visit them online to order some goodies.
this year, say hello to your neighbours and #shoplocal !
only 15 sleeps until christmas!
corkboardcreative.com 
