The ball drops on 2013

Wherever you are tonight you may be watching the ball drop.Here in NY Times Square will be packed. Dennis and I will have a quiet New Years at home and tomorrow we’re going to see Nebraska and have some great chinese food on 9th avenue. I’ll do my traditional New Year’s journaling. In a cartoon fashion I map out the year we are leaving and the new year ahead. What happened, what I hope will happen and spaces for surprises. I always leave those spaces. Them there is room for new things to come into my life.A  Feng Shui principle

We want to thank our wonderful licensing partners for the opportunities they have given us and for the great relationships we enjoy so much. Thanks to our colleagues for support, friendship and sharing. It is truly an exciting business, this art licensing and we are very happy to be a part of it.

One resolution: I am going to learn new things about Marketing and time management and how to maximize our on line presence.  I will try a suggestion from our good friend Sheila Cunningham who is a marketing consultant to spend one day a week just doing marketing. I will spend more time painting!!!

Dennis and I extend our warmest wishes for the New Year 2014. Fill it with happiness and fun and work and family and kindness and helpfulness.

Fill it with fun

Warmest Wishes

from Andrea and Dennis, Maggie, Louisa May and Buster

Ebooks illustrated by Dennis Kendrick

If you’ve read our home page or the “About us” section  you know that Dennis has been a very successful children’s book illustrator. Before discovering the computer in 1989, Dennis Kendrick worked in a cartoon-style of illustration — by hand!

Dennis

Working on Silly Dinosaur Jokes and Riddles

He drew the pictures for over thirty children’s books, illustrated countless articles for national magazines and created numerous TV storyboards and ad agency projects. His work has been featured in the Print Regional Design Annual, Idea Magazine and the Society of Illustrators’ Annual. He has exhibited at the Miami Children’s Museum, the Baseball Hall of Fame Gallery in Cooperstown, New York, the Pentagon (yes, that Pentagon!) and he has illustrated 30 books that have been all-time favorites with kids and their parents. A number of these books  were done in collaboration with kids’ science writer Seymour Simon. A number of these ebooks are now available from Amazon for the Kindle and Barnes & Nobles’ Nook and some are already available for the iPad.

Last week, Dennis received a much sought after recognition at the Digital Book World Conference held here in New York City. Among the many things the Conference does is to publish a list of  books that have received the QED seal. This stands for Quality Excellence, Design, and is considered to be the “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval” for eBooks and apps. One of these eBooks that Dennis illustrated in collaboration with Seymour was given the QED. To ensure that an eBook title submitted for a QED will render well on the device a reader chooses. It is reviewed on three devices: a small, mobile-sized screen, an eInk reader-sized screen, and a tablet-sized screen. The QED is judged on the criteria established on the recommendation of the Publishing Innovation Awards advisory council, who are respected leaders in the digital production and design space.

The book that was awarded the QEC seal of approval is Silly Space Monster Jokes and Riddles. It is available in Kindle and very soon for iPad.

                                                                                                

IPad version of Silly dinosaur Jokes and Riddles

Body Sense Body Nonsense

Ben (5) and Rachel (11)

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In this photo Rachel and Ben, our friends Irene and Wayne’s grandkids are reading Silly Zoo Animal Jokes and Riddles. Check out Dennis’ eBooks, as well as the other Seymour Simon books on the StarwalkKids.com. You will be delighted. Kids can read by themselves, or choose to have the on-screen voice read to them.  All the books are not yet voice activated, but will be in time.

Thanks for following our blog.

Happy Holidays

This is a short Happy Holiday post for our followers and readers.

 Before we leave for the January Atlanta show next Wednesday I hope to have Part II of Everything You Need to Know About Trade shows out to you.

Then when we get back I’ll have lots to show and tell about the show.

Savannah Afternoon mug

The Burton and Burton new Spring Showroom will be displaying my new Savannah Afternoon collection. I hope vendors and you will be as excited about it as I am.

The weather outside is frightful
But in here it’s so delightful

This is a good time to show off a few of our Christmas products.

Ho Ho Ho
Santa

This cute little pillow is a delightful needlepoint that our Friend Sonja made from our original whimsical Santa design.The original was a needlepoint stocking kit by Dimension.

I keep it out all year round! The design has also been a Christmas tote for Jean Marie Creations , a needle point kit and one of a set of Holiday Gift card Holders.

A New Yorkers dream

I grew up in the West Bronx which at that time still had lots of green trees and grass. But it wasn’t the country, and  I was always fantasizing about living in the country. For that reason I loved painting this woodland scene for Current. It was used on a number of their products including stationery and computer papers.

                                                            

Snowman and Friend

Holiday season as a child meant lots of snow, freezing cold fingers and toes, rosy cheeks, sleigh riding on our flexible flyers down the hill and the happy sounds of lots of kids making their snowmen. This memory inspired The Snowman and Friend design which originally was used as a holiday tote design for Jean Marie Designs,  and also as a card design.

Gingerbread Tree

My sister Pat and I always dreamed of having a tree like this. Although we celebrated Christmas and Hanukah my parents drew the line when it came to a tree. Painting this one gave me a lot of joy. Dennis created the design to fit it into so that it made a lovely little tableau. I was reminded of this yesterday when we did the annual tour of holiday store windows on Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Tiffany Holiday window 2012

Saks window

Yesterday along with our good friends Barbara and John we enjoyed the holiday windows on upper Fifth Avenue. My two favorites for nostalgia were the lovely  Tree and Staircase in one of the Tiffany windows.The Tiffany displays were very small, approximately 15″ x 12″. My other favorite was this Saks window of a snowman and little boy with his dog. Of course the dogs tail wagged!

Sisters

The holidays are a time to share with those you love.Pat, my older sister, had me tagging along wherever she went, invited or not. That’s me on the left.

Christmas cookies

Holidays are a great time to enjoy all the goodies of the festive season That’s what insired me to paint these wonderful Christmas cookies for Woman’s Day magazine.

Pat

Brothers at holiday time Dennis and Fred Kendrick

Niece Briana and Aunty Andy

And best and most of all it’s a time to be with those you love. And have lots of fun.

Happy 2013

We hope you all had very happy holidays and wish you a wonderful New Year full of all good things.

Time to fulfill that resolution to become a follower of our blog.

warmly,

Andrea and Dennis