It seems like a lifetime ago, but did you know I used to hand-paint baby onesies, socks, totes and T-shirts? While working a full-time job, I would [in my downtime and on weekends] escape in original hand-painted designs and sell them at [the formerly-owned] Monster Art & Clothing, which used to be on Ballard Ave here in Seattle. The shop has a new location and is under new management but I have so many great memories attached to the former. I probably painted over a hundred baby onesies back then.

Silk screening was something I experimented with after I was commissioned to create one-of-a-kind T-shirts for a dance company. I watched a lot of YouTube videos about photo emulsion, converted my bathroom into a dark room and successfully executed my first silk screen design. It quickly became an obsession and I ended up transforming many of my favorite designs into T-shirts, patches, greeting cards and tote bags. I had so much fun painting personality into each one.

After being invited to display my original paintings on the wall inside [the formerly-owned] Monster Art & Clothing, I was introduced to so many other creatives and artists. That funky little shop was one of the first places I connected to Seattle’s art community. It’s wild to see how my art has evolved since then and many friends still have my hand-painted tote bags to this day!

I had the best time painting the baby onesies and would spent hours on different color combinations. Some of the monsters’ mouths were hand-sewn pockets with a hand-sewed felt monster to fit inside. I even used glow-in-the-dark paint, which added a whole new layer of fun and surprise. I discovered recently that I still have some of my monster tote bags, which I’ll probably try to sell again soon. I’d rather them get used instead of sitting in a box collecting dust. The monsters need to be released to the world! Watch out! Raaaarrrrrr!