Aiden's Adventures - Custom Children's Book

A few days ago I made one of those "Best of Nine 2015" Instagram collages. After it compiled my most liked photos from last year, I was bummed. Not a single one of the photos were of any of my art. In fact, two of them were "Throwback Thursday" photos from Italy! Albeit, most of the photos in the collage were photos I posted during the peak of the Instagram craziness. But I was still bummed. 

Sure, I love looking at old photos of Italy and sharing my travels and photos around town. But you'd think since I have a business built on making things that odds are one would be top 9...but alas. 

So one of my goals this year (besides my new Weekly Postcard Project, Postcards from Penny and Lane) will be to share more photos of my work. The in-process messy shots, the silly behind the scenes collages of all my supplies, and the finished works of course. 

This is just one of many projects from last year I need to share, but it's already one of my favorites. 

Five years ago when I was still living/working in Italy, I was just starting to make custom children's books. Liam's Adventures was one of the earliest children's book commissions I received. In the 5 years since I made it for that little boy in Australia, Liam has grown up and now has a little brother, Aiden! His family requested I make a book for Aiden this time. 

I used a lot of the places mentioned in Liam's books as places for Aiden to actually visit. Aiden might be my new favorite traveling children's book. It might also be due to the fact that I was able to deliver it in person to Aiden when he and his family were visiting their relatives here in California for the Holidays! During his first reading of the book, he kept asking where Liam was in the book. By the second reading, he was loving seeing himself on all the pages! Such a fun moment for me. 

There's a few more photos over on my website too if you're curious to see more of Aiden.