New Candy Posters and Greeting Cards

Red Licorice Rope Posters by bewarethecheese
Print posters online at zazzle.com

I just posted a whole bunch of new candy themed posters and greeting cards for sale.  They make great gifts for anybody that you might know with a sweet tooth.

Click here to check out all of the posters, and here to check out all of the greeting cards.

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Random Artist Tip Part 5

Stop working on that piece of art, it's finished, but never finish thinking about it.

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Random Artist Tip Part 4

No matter how many aprons you wear, it's generally not a good idea to paint with a tuxedo on, no matter how good it makes you feel.

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Random Artist Tip Part 3

There is no cheating in art, unless you use a ruler, trace, or photocopy.  In those cases you should be ashamed of yourself and you should hand in your art licence.

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Random Artist Tip Part 2

No matter how much the brown paint looks like pudding or cake batter, it won't taste like it.  Unless you use a paint that is high in lead, in which case it might be kind of sweet and tasty.

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Random Artist Tip Part 1

Always make sure the glue is dry.  I know it's tempting to touch it, but it's better off that you just let it dry for a long time.  If not, you will have glue all over your hands, and whatever you were trying to glue will not be glued anymore.

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Just Finished a New Water Colour Piece

I've been pretty good about posting some of the progress of this particular piece.  But this will be the first time I post all my work in progresses at the same time. As you can see, it started with a photograph of a statue.  This statue is located in from of the old city hall in Athens.  I think the guy is one of the old leaders of Greece, but I'll need confirmation on that (anyone know for sure?).

Once I have the photo shot, I print it out to whatever size I feel works best.  In this case I printed it fairly large, because I thought the guy looked large and imposing.  After it's printed I start to sketch like crazy.  I sketch out several drawings until I'm sure I've brought a little life back to the statue.  Sometimes I get it right in one or two sketches, sometimes it's more like 20 or 30.



I then transfer the sketch to a piece of watercolour paper, and I make sure the transfer hasn't lost any life, to it.  I tend to reference my sketches a lot at this point.  After I'm happy with the transfer, I start to paint.  The painting only takes a few hours, but by this point I've sketched it so many times that I'm fairly familiar with subject.

After the paint dries, I do the part that makes me the most nervous, I rip it.  I only get one shot at this, if it goes wrong I have to start from scratch.  I choose what to rip out based on two things, the shape of the rip, and what details work best in watercolour versus statue.

After I finish ripping, I frame the piece up, photograph it, and post it all over the internets.

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What I've Been Doing Lately

It's been a while since I've written anything regular on this blog.  I've phased out signs I like as a regular thing when it became more of a chore than something I enjoyed.  I'm sure if I come across other signs I enjoy in the future I'll post them, but as a regular segment it's pretty much over.

As far as what I am doing, there's a lot going on.  I've just finished reformatting bewarethecheese.com, it's now easier for me to update, and that means I'll do it more often.  In doing this I also reformatted my zazzle stores to make them easier to navigate.  Ad to this the fact that I'm now offering some of my photos for stock, and working on several fine art pieces for From Stone and Senses, I've been pretty busy lately.

Candy Critic has also been keeping me busy lately as well. I've been writing a lot for it lately, and also designing some new shirts and other merchandise.  I've got a new t-shirt series in the works that I hope to release in the New Year. I've recorded a few podcasts in the last year (the Junk Fud podcast), and I hope to record a few more this year.  The plan is to record these as I'm inspired, as well as when I have the opportunity to talk to cool foodies.  Finally I'm working on a Candy Critic video project that I'm hoping to launch in January on YouTube.

Last but not least, I'm working on two consecutive book pitches, both of which are taking a lot out of me.  My hope is that the New Year will offer me some concrete book deal information.

I write this post to catch up anybody who might happen to read this blog on occasion.  I'm thinking of posting here again, but I'm not really sure how it's going to look.  Most likely it will be a mash up of what I'm doing with my art and writing projects.  I can't really know for sure what's going to happen here in the future, but I'm sure it'll be filled with me tooting my own horn, complaining about something, or just being incomprehensible.

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A Few New Pieces Added To My Senses Series

 I just finished three pieces in a series I'm calling "Looking In".

Each photograph features a miniature scene in one of the windows. Each scene lights up so it can be seen clearly.

It's pretty voyeuristic, but fun at the same time.

Click here to check out these and all my other pieces from "Senses".

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Girly Stuff I'm Into

It's come to my attention recently that I like stuff that would be considered un-manly.  I should point out right at the beginning that I like these things for non-sexual reasons.  After reading this list you could easily assume that I'm some kind of pervert, but it's just not the case.  I enjoy all of these things for the same reason an 8 to 14 year old girl probably likes them.  I should also point out that many of the things on this list are also out of fashion today.  I blame the fact that I'm not very good at keeping up with trends, the fact that I'm not an 8 to 14 year old girl, once I like something it rarely becomes "uncool" within a year for me.  So here's the stuff I'm into:

Power Puff Girls

Those that have actually watched several episodes of the Power Puff Girls will realise that this show is not really designed for little girls.  Giving the characters the same features as characters in little girls cartoons is used as an ironic twist.  Having said that, I don't think that this show really focuses on being particularly boy friendly either.  Sure there's fighting and mahem, but the main protaganists are girls, and they still have female values.

iCarly

Unlike the Power Puff Girls, iCarly is much more a show geared towards the female market.  The thing I like about this show is the fact that it avoids many boring conventions that one might find in most teen television shows.  It's also very wacky, and slapsticky, but not cheesy.  The jokes can be very clever, and I rarely feel like this show talks down to me.  There are a few occasions where a lesson is learned, but it's never the point of the episode.  The heart warming features of the show are not there to teach, but instead they're designed to improve the characters relations.

Spice Girls

This is the one where most people probably assume that the interest is sexual.  I can't argue that this group doesn't use sex to sell their music, however I can tell you that it's not really my interest.  In fact my favorite song/video doesn't contain any sexual content at all.  More over, I generally enjoy their music more than their videos.

Well there you go, I'm a girly man.  Don't get me wrong, I still love my Transformers and GI Joes, I just like the fact that there's diversity in this world.

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Another Bathroom Added

Just posted a new bathroom in my Bathrooms I've Been To Map.

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Things You Should Already Know (But Are Constantly Reminded)

Please let others exit (the elevator, train, or any other vehicle) before boarding.

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Things You Should Already Know (But Are Constantly Reminded)

Smoking near a pile of explosives or explosive chemicals is not advisable.

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Things You Should Already Know (But Are Constantly Reminded)

Eating any little envelope full of random plastic looking bits is not advisable.

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Things You Should Already Know (But Are Constantly Reminded)

On any public transportation vehicle, you should probably take care of your belongings.

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Things You Should Already Know (But Are Constantly Reminded)

You should not flush anything non toilet related down the toilet.

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Signs I Like

Do not knock on this door, it will be more disappointing than you think.

Modest no?

Best street name ever.

I'm not sure if this is a joke, or if something has happened that requires people to know that this building is not on fire.  More importantly, what do they do if it ever does catch on fire?

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Visited a Few Mediterranean Hot Spots... And a Few Bathrooms Too.

Just got back from a fun little trip on a boat for 7 days.  I managed to collect a few more bathroom shots for my "Bathrooms I've Been To Map".  Did I mention that this map is one of my favorite collections that I've ever had?

Click here to see where the latest bathroom additions are.

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Signs I Like

You can imagine what kind of shape this street was in.

What kind of advice does a "citizen" get at the Advice Bureau?

Nothing says warm family fun than a sign depicting a man drinking while ridding on a barrel of beer.

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Signs I Like

Butt Lane is the only lane worth sitting on.

Right around the corner from Butt Lane, Pruvs Corner obviously.

I'd like to make fun of this street name, but my first house ever was on Avenue road, and that's even stranger.

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Clouds

With the fall coming to Athens, the clouds are starting to put on a pretty good show.  I've decided to use them as a subject while I learn more about shooting time lapse.

Few people know that Greece not only has some of the longest sunny months in Europe, but in the fall the lightning and clouds are absolutely stunning.

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Signs I Like

If you can think of a better reason to slow down that cute little lambs, please share.

The "New Street" had an old name.

This is a disturbing way to walk into a pub.

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I'm Not An Expert In Ancient Art But...

While visiting the Acropolis Museum in Athens, I came across this (reproduction?) of one of the marble friezes.  It depicts and man fighting a centaur.  The general theme of these marble friezes is man fighting some kind of mythical creature.  This one however caught my eye.  I was looking at the parts of the frieze that have been broken off.  I noticed that it looks as though this centaur fought dirty.

With a little Photoshop, here's my approximation to where his front leg would most likely have been.  It appears that Mr Centaur felt it was OK to kick a man in his naked bits.  I'm not aware of the cultural norms of the time, but I assumed that this was just not cool, even in ancient times.

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Do You Have Enough Cameras?

I can only imagine that the large camera is there to make sure no one steals the smaller camera.

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Signs I Like

This sign is from the UK, so why do they call it a truck stop when trucks are called lorries?

I like musical pigs.

You don't normally associate Yorkshire with fossils, but here you go.

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The Moon Going Down and The Sun Going Up

I'm learning more and more about shooting time lapse.  It really is something you have to practice.

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A New Bathroom From Aegina!

It's always fun to ad a new bathroom to the Bathrooms I've Been To map.  It gives me a clear idea of all of the places I've visited around the world in the last few years.

Click here to check out the latest addition to the map.

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Signs I Like

It's my very own center.

Unfortunate name for a street when the mosquitoes come.

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More Time Lapse Fun

Yet another time lapse.  This is getting pretty close to looking slick.  I'm starting to understand the timing of time lapse a little better, now it's just a question of mastering the lighting.

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Another Time Lapse

I'm still playing with the idea of time lapse, and while I'm learning a lot, I'm still not 100% happy with the results.  This one on the other hand is still pretty fun.

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Signs I Like

Are there still people in the world that think you can open a plastic bottle cap with a bottle opener?

This is so nice.

This sounds like it could be an S&M club.

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Unimpressed Wall...

...is unimpressed.

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Little Video Art Project

I'm working on a few time lapse projects and I thought I'd share some of my tests along the way.

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Signs I Like

Just in case you're looking for the perfect name for a dog.

Just in case you're looking for the perfect last name.

Just in case you can't read the dialog bubble, he's saying "This f**cking Umbrella!".  Brilliant, simply brilliant.

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Two New Fine Art Pieces

I just finished two new pieces of fine art, one for Senses and one for From Stone.

This pieces took a while to finish, mostly because I was using an unfamiliar medium, olive oil paints.  But it turned out really great.

This is the second in a series I'm working on in the From Stone photographs and hopefully the third will be coming soon.

Click here to check out some more From Stone work or some more Senses Work.

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I'm So Glad My Website's Called Beware The Cheese

If it wasn't, I wouldn't get awesome e-mails like this:

"Dear Sir or Madam,

Hope this E-mail finds you well.

As per the recommendation, your company is a good supplier for the Cheese. At present we need import a batch of cheese to meet the requirements of our clients. And we have interest in your cheese and we hope we have the chance to cooperate with your company.

If you have the interest in our enquiry, please contact me to discuss the details. And please send us your price list for our reference.

If we can reach the agreement with the price, following is our terms of payment:
40% of the total order value will be paid via T/T after we finalize the formal order and the balance will be paid via L/C.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Best regards
Jack H ( Project Manager)"

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Signs I Like

The only thing cooler than "Anti-Climb Paint" is the fact that everybody wanted to see how it worked.

All of the History of Scotland seems to be really bummed out that this telescope isn't working.

Street sign or prophecy?

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What Kind Of Day Am I Having?..

I think I'm having a Predator in the rain holding an umbrella kind of day.

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Don't Break British Importation Laws

Because if you do, they'll lock you up, and then let you out again.

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Signs I Like

This sounds obscene.

Sometimes the details of a sign are what make it brilliant, this is an insurance company, and if you look at the lineup of little people at the bottom of the sign, one has fallen down onto his head.

I'm not really sure what I should, or should not, be doing right now.

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