A brand new website & sale

Hello hello all! I have so much exciting news and newness to share. It's been in the works for a while but it's finally here--a BRAND NEW WEBSITE with silly gifs and everything! Yeehaw! Have a peek below! To celebrate, have 20% off the entire shop with coupon code SHINYandNEW (valid now til Sunday, Oct. 26, 12 midnight).  All holiday goodies are now available, including the 2015 12-month Calendar pre-order (limited quantity printed), cards, holiday stickers, and gift tags.

This past weekend, I ventured to the middle of nowhere, Mojave Desert for the RiSe Lantern Festival. Wow! What a beautiful experience, and it's left me feeling incredibly inspired. I churned out a few illustrations during my Instagram Original Art sale yesterday and am still going strong! So expect to see a few more listed in the shop this Saturday, 9am PST to add to the shiny and new festivities. As you can tell from the schedule to the right, I'm taking it easy this holiday season.  I'm only participating in three events, but hot diggity, they'll be great! Expect new limited edition Totoro prints at DesignerCon, and weekend specials and giveaways at the Holiday Pop-Up Shop. Everything will be available online for those I can't visit. I also had the pleasure of speaking with Courtney of Savor Good. You can read the interview here. It's a great, detailed, honest read about my business, travels, dilemmas, and personal milestones. Real talk!

Last weekend for the Pop-Up Shop + Surprise Gifts!

Last weekend to visit the Le Petit Elefant Summer Shop, with surprises & silliness in store.

Wow, August flew by quickly! I can't believe the end of the month is already here! I'm so grateful for all the lovely folks who visited, from high school friends, long-time customers, Instagram followers, and people who just stumbled upon it on their way to Mrs. Field's cookies. THANK YOU for all the support & love!! I've had such a wonderful time running my very first pop-up shop, and fingers crossed, this won't be the last one this year (I'll keep you all posted ;). In keeping with my promise, I'll have a couple new items debuting on Friday, and a really REALLY fun, surprise, parting gift for my customers this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (August 29-31).  Remember those origami fortune tellers? Well, if you spend $35 or more, you get to have your fortune told, revealing your FREE surprise gift. It could be a free original illustration, a tote bag, a coupon for the online store, a limited edition print... who knows! Come by for the final weekend, say goodbye and leave feeling like a kid again :). Le Petit Elefant Summer Shop Pop-Ups by SJ Made at Westfield Valley Fair 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd. Santa Clara, CA 95050 M-F 10am-9:30pm Sat 10am-9pm Sun 11am-7pm Immediately after the pop-up closes, I'm heading east for my last two fairs of the summer, Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago and Brooklyn. I hope I'll see you there. I'm bringing the tote bags! :)

Back to School SALE at the LPE Summer Shop in Westfield Valley Fair

Come visit the shop this weekend for more free goodies, new prints and cards, and amazing deals on bookmarks, washi tape, stickers, and stamps. Also, make sure to present your student or teacher ID for 15% off your entire purchase.

Pop-Ups by SJ Made
at Westfield Valley Fair
2855 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Santa Clara, CA 95050

M-F 10am-9:30pm
Sat 10am-9pm
Sun 11am-7pm

To find the shop, following your nose! I'm located in front of Mrs. Field's Cookies, just a skip away from the Women's Macy's.

Le Petit Elefant Summer Shop is now OPEN!

It's finally open! Months in the planning with only days to execute, I'm so excited to invite you all to my very first Pop-Up Shop. Step into the imaginative world of Le Petit Elefant as I take over a small part ofWestfield Valley Fair in conjunction with Pop-Ups by SJ Made. The #LPESummerShop features new art prints, stationery, rubber stamps, stickers, mason jars, and more! Designed by me and produced by San Jose vendor Jiminy Stitch It, I have "Shop Local. Shop Love" Clink tote bags EXCLUSIVE to the #LPESummerShop. I'll be giving away tote bags to the first 10 customers who spend over $25 both this Saturday & Sunday (August 2 & 3). Get 'em while you can! At the end of the month, I'll put the remaining for sale online. Preparing for & opening the pop-up was probably one of the toughest challenges I've had as a small business owner, and this wall is the element I'm most proud of. Come by the shop, take a picture in front of it (or anywhere in the shop), tag me on Instagram (@lepetitelefant , #LPESummerShop) and you'll get 10% off. Weeeee!! OK everyone, thanks for reading and visiting! I hope you'll come to the shop. This moment is huge for me, and I'm so thankful you're all here to share this crazy adventure.

Kickin' off my 30s with a SALE!!

Visit the shop here.

"INFINITESIMAL TO INFINITE - An intergalactic solo show in Houston, TX!

I'm coming to Houston everyone!! The land of BBQ, NASA and a wonderful museum district. 

I met Leila & her husband, the owners of Space Montrose, a little over a year ago at Renegade Craft Fair Austin. Leila, like many of her shop's patrons, is a geek at heart, and I thought it would be perfect to bring my illustrated explorations of space to her shop for a art exhibition. Won't you join us? It's the first exhibition in their new location, and the opening happens to fall on the summer solstice. So there's lots to celebrate!

I'll be sharing illustrations of intergalactic adventures, nostalgic & nerdy nods, and starry explorations so it'll be a good time. Also come and share your favorite eateries! Kevin and I are dying for good BBQ :)

Infinitesimal to Infinite

Saturday June 21, 2014 (longest day of summer haayyyyy!)

7pm - 10pm

Show run June 21 - July 6

Space Montrose

1706 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX 77098

Scroll down for more info & sneak peeks!

WonderCon this weekend!

See you this Fri, Sat and Sun at my very first WonderCon! I'm nervous but mostly excited because I have so much new stuff to share. Find me at SP-120 in the back left corner of the Anaheim convention center.

Look for the new "Color to Life" coloring book, new magnets, buttons, prints, and a brand new limited edition TOTORO print. I'll also be live drawing on Saturday, 2pm-5pm, and Sunday 1pm-3pm so come on down! :)

WONDERCON

April 18-20, 2014

Anaheim Convention Center

800 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim, CA 92802

Friday: 12pm-7pm

Saturday: 10am-7pm

Sunday: 11am-5pm

Supahcute Science Fair opens this Saturday!

I'm super excited to be a part of the Supahcute Science Fair at Leanna Lin's Wonderland because one, it's an amazing roster of talented artist, and two, SCIENCE!! Little known fact: I was a biology major during my freshman year at USC. Weird, right? I totally wanted to work in the sciences and be a geek in a lab, etc, but the calling for art was stronger. So this combines my two great loves. I hope you can attend! If not, you can view the art online very soon. I'll post a link when ready. UPDATE: Here's the link to view & purchase the art. All my pieces sold (yipeee!!) but there are some really amazing ones still left!!

One of my pieces in the show :)

by Leslie Levings

by Tyler Parker

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! 6 years ago, I hosted an anti-Valentine's day party. Thankfully Kevin decided to attend rather than watch Juno, drink a bottle of wine, and eat a KFC bucket like he originally planned.

Huzzah for Square Market!!

If you're a small business owner or a frequenter of craft fairs and small, local businesses, you've probably noticed a little white credit card reader plugged into ipads and smart phones giving practically anyone the ability to take credit card transactions. What is it? Why... it's SQUARE! It's brilliant and has certainly made my life as a small business owner less stressful. I even keep one on my person just in case (it's come in handy for on the spot illustration transactions). And you can request one for free, or snag one at the info booth at most Renegade Craft Fairs. They're usually there repping.

Perhaps not as well known is the Square Market. Think of it as another version of Etsy but without the facade of being all "handmade" (quotations around handmade because I've been seeing more and more mass-produced items on there and it's watering down the quality of Etsy, but that's another topic). It's marketplace to find small businesses, and it's absolutely wonderful. They've been putting together gift guides as well, and I had the great fortune of being featured on their latest two. If you haven't browsed through Square Market, you're in for a treat. Make sure you set a budget for yourself though! ;). 

You can view my shop here.

THANKS for making the first IG art sale a SUCCESS!!

Ahhh!! Thank you to everyone who followed along the Original Art Sale on Instagram. this past Wednesday. It was so much fun! I painted 8 illustrations on the spot, from 1-3pm. I can't get over how quick everyone was. I hope it wasn't too distracting from work ;). I also took some videos of my process, a very tricky task while you draw. My hands were shaking from the adrenaline and nervousness, my mind spun trying to figure out the next illustration. I've been busy with filling Valentine's Day orders and custom work so although stressful, the thrill and joy of drawing whatever I wanted was so gratifying and a necessary pause from the hustle. I'll be hosting another one soon FOR SURE.

Have a look at some of the illustrations I painted--

And here's a "making of"video of "Baby Elephant Kisses." To see all the illustrations, have a peek at my instagram!

SAVE THE DATE // Together, we adventure: an original art SALE!

I'm trying something new this year. Presenting.......

TOGETHER, WE ADVENTURE: AN ORIGINAL ART INSTAGRAM SALE - January 29

Between the hours of 1pm-3pm, I'll be creating original art & posting them for sale on Instagram.  All pieces will be 5" x 7", priced at $45 each, & listed as I finish (with work in progress videos in between).  If you're interested in a piece, simply comment with your email address & I'll send you an invoice to arrange payment & shipping.  All unsold pieces will be listed in my shop once the sale concludes.  No prints will be made so your original is just for you.  The theme is "together, we adventure"--perfect for Valentine's Day! I'm all booked with custom paintings for the rest of the year so this is a great way to get something original, affordable and sweet for your valentine (or you!)

Introducing Sanrio's newest character, KIRIMI-CHAN

Ahhhh how cute is this?!?! She's a SALMON FILLET!! WHAAAAAT!!! I don't usually get excited about Sanrio characters but this one... THIS ONE. So hilarious. I love it so much I could eat it, ha!

via Sanrio.

Supahcute Kaiju Show - OPENING NIGHT!

The Supahcute Kaiju Show opening at Leanna Lin's Wonderland was THE BEST EVER! Ahhh so many wonderful artists were in attendance, including Michelle Romo of Crowded Teeth, Patty & Jason of Fat Rabbit Farm, Nellie Le of Quiet Tiger, and the paper cut-out extraordinaire Jared Andrew Schorr. I officially became art collector that night by purchasing my very first original, Jared's "Night Swimming."

A big thank you to everyone who came by and supported the show. If you haven't seen it yet, you absolutely MUST. It's seriously so good. And my two pieces are still there & available if you're looking to bring a couple adorable kaijus to your home :).

Ice Cream Buddies - $190

Kaiju Chase - $175

Show pieces can be viewed & purchased here.

all photos by luis jaime // leanna lin's wonderland

Love at First Clink Show EXTENDED with more art!

Need a jaw-dropping Valentine's Day present for your special one? How about an original from the Love at First Clink show at Leanna Lin's Wonderland. The show has been extended, and I've added originals from the 2014 Calendar to the wall, as well as an array of Valentine's Day cards and other goodies. You're bound to find a special gift for your Valentine there. The 2014 Calendar is also ON SALE now in the shop and in store so get one while you can. Only a few left.

Supahcute Kaiju Show at Leanna Lin's Wonderland

Huzzah for the first show of the year! Leanna Lin's Wonderland is kicking off 2014 with the Supahcute Kaiju Show, a collection of cute monsters and irresistible strange beasts. Featuring new works by:

 100% Soft, Camilo Bejarano, Catmandru!,Christopher Lee, Fat Rabbit Farm, Genevieve Santos, Jared Andrew Schorr, Jerrod Maruyama, Tony Bui, Vanessa Ramirez, and Varinya Nunez. 

The show opens on Saturday, January 18 from 6pm-10pm at Leanna Lin's Wonderland in Eagle Rock. The first 10 people to spend $20 or more on the art show will receive a FREE goodie bag of surprises & exclusives to the Supahcute Kaiju Show.  Can't wait to see you there!

THANK YOU for helping Philippine Typhoon Haiyan victims

Maraming Salamat everyone! Thanks to your support, we raised 10,716 pesos or $240 for Re-Build Philippines, Habitat for Humanity. I really appreciate everyone's generosity. Much love.

Coffee Date with Jenny, Just Sweet Love

Right before Christmas, my sister Bina and I met up with Jenny of Just Sweet Love for a coffee date & interview at the delicious Susina Bakery. I gushed about traveling, my spirit animal, and where I find my inspiration. Gah it was so much fun. And there's a very silly picture of me and Bina. Teeeee.

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Read the full interview here.