I was recently in a comicky sort of mood and picked up the graphic novel Skim. Quicky, I found myself with a real page turner on my hands. The Canadian coming of age story written by Mariko Tamaki with art by cousin and illustrator, Jillian Tamaki proved to be a very well put together book, and worthy of the numerous awards it has garnered.

The content and feel of the writing is reminiscent of a female version of Craig Thompson's Blankets, as we follow the lives and heartbreaks of several teenage girls in high school.  Taking place in the mid 90's, full of drama and even a little witchcraft, the story offers an intimate and accurate look into being an outcast and adolecence. Mariko writes with a poetic flare, working in unison with Jillian's delicate artwork.

Having seen Jillian's colour illustration work, I was not surprised to find how well it translated into a black and white graphic novel. Her linework pushes the boundaries of loose sketchiness, while at the same time being entirely purposeful. Some of the female characters are full of unique life-like qualities but even more stunning are the double page landscapes that come up every so often. I think both the art and the writing do a quality job of recreating the feel of growing up in the 90's and would highly recommend Skim as a solid read.

Packaging can make or break a product, crowded along the shelves with millions of other alternatives, crying out for attention. More often than not, this importance is reflected in the quality of design that goes into the packaging, as well as the budget behind it. Some of my favourite places to check out fresh packaging ideas, are Winners and Homesense. These places have lot of products that people don't really need, but they might buy if they get snared by appearance. I often find myself really excited about a set of flatware, because of its luxurious packaging, even though I have no interest in the actual product.

A nice example of unique, fancy packaging is this box for dorset cereals. Grainy type cereal is a dull sell, but the packaging makes it seem a bit more luxurious. Decent colour combos and simple typography compliment the die-cut window and foil stamped logo. The paper type used for the box even has a textured feel to it. Not that I dislike the zany packaging in the kid's cereal aisle but when every cereal looks the same, sometimes doing something different is worth the risk.

The latest issue of WO magazine has hit the shelves and has a few of my illustrations in it. This one is for an article on how tennis always looks more fun and easier than it actually is. I very much agree on that point, as I've found tennis to get more enjoyable as my skills have increased.
This art was done in watercolour and ink. The other illustration I contributed was digitally done and accompanied a story on long distance treks.