Dead Birds Are (still) Sexy

Well, I'm back in town,
and back at Identity Tattoo.
I felt the only way to transition from Grants Pass to Maple Grove
was a little sexy dead bird tattoo,
so this happened.






















Adam M is a tattoo-getting pro.
He sat like a rock through this,
despite a bazillion interruptions.
I guess everyone got taxes back while I was in Oregon?
The deposits and appointments are flooding in.

He'll be wearing ballerina slippers this coming Not Casual Friday,
so if you're around,
it might be worth stopping by.
(to see him wearing slippers with skinny jeans and a tie,
i mean, not to see the tattoo)

So, yeah, I'm back,
but just for two weeks.
Then a week off leading up to our big art show March 11th and 12th.
There might be one or two appointments left before the 5th,
so if you need it, stop by (with a deposit).
The emails are piling up,
and I'm behind on returning phone calls.
And I don't expect to get caught up on life till the end of March.
No kidding.
But no matter how busy I may be,
they'll always be time for dead birds.
(thanks adam)

Spreading the Message

These photos were taken by my brother, Kyle,
while he was down in Australia doing a semester abroad.
(he also took photos of lighthouses for me)
I'm sure you'll see them in print at some point,
but I couldn't wait to share.

















and

Snowed Out.

It didn't snow much where my folks live in Maryland.
However, it snowed like crazy everywhere else on the East Coast,
so Meryl and I got stuck here for a few extra days.
We do like it here,
but when you make travel plans like us,
there's not an hour to spare (let alone 2 extra days).
We got places to go,
but no way to get there.
Megabus canceled our trip,
the airports all shut down,
and Budget rental car in Baltimore was sold out.
So it's some extra lounging around the house time for us.
I didn't know how to relax this hard,
so I went to an art store and bought some paint and brushes.

Xmas.
My family does gift giving so well.
Better than me, usually.
Every time I try to step up my game,
the've already wrapped up some extra hottness.
I got some really unique gifts this year.
How about the hottest pillow ever?
Yeah, my sister had that made for me,
and was told it was the weirdest request ever.
Dead Birds Are Sexy.
Merry Christmas.

Winter Weather

There's rain, there's snow,

and then there is freezing rain,

that icky cold mess than makes you want to stay inside.

Meryl and I ventured out to the Seward Cafe, of course,

and then to Riverview Theatre for a $2 showing of Depicable Me

(the best $4 I ever spent)

and then stayed inside the rest of the day doing art,

cooking, eating, and staying warm.

Here's a cell phone camera shot of what I worked on

while Meryl was carving a linoleum block

for her letterpress class tomorrow.

Pre-convention Preview

The Minneapolis Tattoo Convention starts tomorrow.

Identity Tattoo got some fancy banners printed up,

and is kicking off the show dressed for "Not Casual Friday", of course.

I'm doing two dead bird tattoos,

and a gnome riding a turtle.

It really doesn't get any more fun than that.

It'll be 84˚ out tomorrow,

so I won't blame you for not wanting to be inside a hotel convention hall.

But if you do go, stop by to say hello.

I'll have three prints for sale,

including the one shown above.

A dead swan, a dead peacock, and some dead crows.

Cause you know...

Dead Birds Are Sexy

I love dead birds.

After 5 or more years,
the "I love dead birds" bumper sticker finally got an upgrade.




I also ordered more of the "dead birds are sexy" stickers,
as well as some stuff for Never Quiet, Never Soft.
It's almost the 11th,
which is when everything NQNS is unveiled.

October is going to be a busy month tattoo-wise.
I'll be doing the Minneapolis Tattoo Convention the 8th-10th,
and then the New Orleans Tattoo Convention October 29th-31rst.

I have openings for the New Orleans one,
let me know if you want a spot.
New Orleans during Halloween gets pretty crazy
(they even have a parade).
Meryl and I will be working in costume,
staying with friends,
and hitting up as much of the city as possible.
I visited once before Katrina,
but Meryl's never been,
so we're both really excited.

I'll have stickers at Identity Tattoo and both conventions,
and I'm also willing to mail some out.
Just let me know.

The Deadest Bird of All

If Dead Birds Are Sexy,
(and we know they are)
extinct birds must be the sexiest.
There's not even taxidermied dodos hanging out any more.
Thanks to Jak from Mutiny Tattoo for coming out
to get this dodo bird tattoo from me.
Always a little bit odd tattooing tattoo artists, you know?




Seward Cafe is our every Sunday morning brunch place,
and this Sunday at brunchtime
I found one of my stickers had been vandalized.
A little razor blade rewording isn't going to stop
dead birds from being so darn sexy,
and I'm certainly not going to stop stickering.
But I applaud the effort.

Not to be trusted....

Who's a big, fat liar?
Me, of course.
Big and fat and lying.
I didn't post here for 10 days,
and as soon as I do,
it's only to break my promise.
Here's the latest "dead birds are sexy" shirts
(that I made for my Off the Map Tattoo guest spot)
Thanks to Jessica for showing it off.
I have a couple left,
but not enough to sell online.
If you are at Identity Tattoo,
and I happen to have your size,
then it's meant to be.
Otherwise, you should have visited in MA.



And speaking of shirts,
Sunday was the 11th.
Never Quiet, Never Soft always has something for you,
every month, on the eleventh.
This time, it's an old favorite coming back
for all of you that missed out before.
Go check it out.

Bringing Sexy back to Philadelphia

The shirts for the Philly Tattoo Convention are done,
thanks to some serious help from Ryan and Rebecca today.
They feature an upside-down owl on them,
with a banner reading (right side up):
"dead birds are sexy"

Here's a little sneak peek of Rebecca wearing one in this
VERY candid photo.
(the guys version is a darker brown shirt,
with mustard yellow ink)

I pack them up tonight,
and ship them off to the East Coast tomorrow.
I'm not sure if there will be any left after the show,
so if you want one, I hope you'll be there.

Photo Gallery-Website Update

I've starting putzing around with HTML on my website, shawnhebrank.com

Certain things like the merch section never really went anywhere.
So I'm adding a gallery of the stuff I've made and sold over the years instead,
and could use your help.
If you have photos of you wearing any of the shirts I've made, stickers stuck in fabulous places, or stuff like that, send them over.
Just got this one from Michelle today.
!!!



There's not really a theme.
Sexy, ugly, dead, bored, whatever.
This isn't to say I'll use ALL of them, but I'll take a bunch and throw them up there soon.