Here Comes Summer!

There’s something I love about every season, but spring nudges ahead juuust a bit every time. The birds are chirping, everything is blooming and turning green, and it feels like a fresh setup for the rest of the year. I’ve been spending some time in my tiny little garden planting seeds and encouraging them to grow. I’m not always particularly successful, but I’m learning a bit more each year, and I find a lot of joy in connecting with nature, learning how the plants communicate their needs, and doing what I can to help out a bit.

Spring is also often the perfect time for me to look out at the creative year ahead! We’re on the precipice of blasting into summer, just before convention season really kicks into gear, and this year is shaping up to carry all that spring growth vibes into the summer months – including, notably, a step outside for the first time with a couple one-day outdoor markets in June and August.

That’s the ultra short update because there’s so much more to dig into below. (And apologies in advance for the quick snapshot photos versus ones that are better lit AND the very, very long update. I’ll work to make future ones shorter!) Take a look below at what’s new, now, and next at Raden Studios!

My metal bookmarks are some of the most popular items I carry at conventions, and they’re some of my favorites, too! They’re sturdy, shiny, pocket-sized art pieces that work well with the tall, narrow art style I tend to prefer. However, perhaps unsurprisingly given current changes across most markets, some changes are coming to both the bookmarks and rigid magnets. So, what happens now?

• Prices are rising for bookmarks and rigid magnets from $5 each to $7 each starting June 1. The cost of producing the metal bookmarks jumped significantly over the past couple weeks, and magnets aren’t far behind. Both are items I’ve kept at really small margins because I’ve enjoyed being able to make such sturdy, high-quality items at a really accessible price point. Unfortunately, that’s just no longer sustainable. But I did want to make sure you had some heads up so you can add any bookmarks you were looking at to your collection before the change!
• The printing process for metal bookmarks is changing (probably). The printer I typically work with has changed their printing process for metal prints, so new restocks moving forward (unless I find a new printer, which is also an option I’m looking into) are going to look a little different. It’s hard to describe the differences. If you’ve seen the current bookmarks before, they’re very shiny and have a smooth, glossy surface. The new process looks and feels sort of like a print on metal versus a metal print, if that makes sense. You can actually feel the inks on the metal and the effect is a little more matte and less vibrant than the glossy look we’re used to. On the plus side, in my opinion, the new printing process does a more accurate job of translating the art clearly to the metal, which I very much appreciate. On the flip side, I’m not sure if it really capitalizes on the effects of printing on metal in the same way. I have a comparison photo below of the “Quoth the Raven” bookmark with a sample of the new printing to try to show how it looks different. Let me know what you think, or if you prefer one over the other!
  • For reference, the bookmarks most likely to be restocked with the new printing first are Home Sweet Fairy Home, The Road Goes Ever On, and Curiosity: Touch da Fishy.
  • If you’re at Quantum-Con this weekend, I have the sample of the new version on hand to look at, if you’d like!

Comparison of current metal bookmarks with (coming soon) updated version.

What’s New: Restock/New Stock Coming May 23!

New bookmarks (left) and magnets (right). Not pictured: Con Adventurer pins.

If you visited Minicon in Minnesota over Easter weekend in April, you may have caught sight of a few new goodies!

• Floral Folklore gets magnetized: For the first time ever, four of my “Floral Folklore” series drawings are available as square fridge magnets! The “Floral Folklore” series has previously only been available as limited edition giclée prints. I love the quality and compact size of the “Floral Folklore” prints but wanted to try out something a little different for those lacking wall space at a slightly more accessible price point. I hope you love them!
• New bookmarks/magnets: Dinosaurs in Space, The Unicorn Breaks Free, and The View from Up Here have also now been added to the metal bookmark options. The View from Up Here is also now a rigid fridge magnet!
• (Some) Con Adventurer pins/stickers coming soon to a con near you: The first three Con Adventurer pins have been fully graded, backed, and are ready to rumble! The other four are still in production, pins for BackerKit backers have been pre-prepped, and shipping will begin soon on any orders that I am able to fulfill with just the three pins and stickers I have on hand now. I have plenty of extras, so you’ll be able to see them in person at conventions soon!

These are not available online (yet!) but should still be online this month. I’m aiming for a May 23 launch online for the new magnets and bookmarks. Stay tuned!

Happening Now: Art-a-Whirl and Quantum-Con

Left: Quantum-con volunteer bookmarks from 2023-2025. Right: A close-up of a portion of “Vicious Bardery,” on display at ALTR Gallery.

If you are in Minneapolis this weekend, there are two opportunities to see me and/or my work!

I’m vending LIVE at Quantum-Con in Plymouth all weekend long! You can find me in the Dealers Room (NOT Makers Market as I’d previously shared), probably doodling away on the next art piece, with lots of prints, bookmarks, magnets, and more on hand. I also have had the great privilege of designing a metal bookmark for volunteers for the last three years running! I don’t actually know what volunteers need to do to get this year’s bookmark (ope 😅) but you can see all three at my booth this weekend.

Additionally, my newest art piece, Vicious Bardery, is debuting at ALTR Gallery in Minneapolis as part of the Otherworldly Arts Collective “Visions from the Tabletop” art show. The show is open all weekend during Art-a-Whirl, which is also a lot of fun! Art-a-whirl is the largest open artist studio tour in the country and there are so many great artists sharing their work. Vicious Bardery isn’t available in print form (yet,) but I did stop by the art show last weekend and it’s a delightful assortment of dungeon-y, dragon-y, dice-filled art fun. Definitely worth checking out!

Up Next: A Busy Summer (Including Outdoors?!)

My art visited two art shows last month (JordanCon in Georgia and RavenCon in Virginia) and one in-person convention (Minicon) and I’m so grateful to all of you who brought a piece of my work home! Now we’re moving from a somewhat relaxed, but gratitude-filled, April into a VERY busy May (and summer ahead). No wonder this post is out late this month haha 😅

I’m separating the list below of summer events between shows I’ll be at live and shows where my art will be (but not necessarily me) to make it a little easier to navigate. I don’t have notes next to all of them, but wanted to call out some of the ones where I know already that I’ll be doing something a little different in addition to my art being available.

Live, in person, with a larger selection of art:

• June 7 | MNCBA SpringCon, Saint Paul, MN | Creator
• June 20 | Minnehaha Falls Park Market, Minneapolis, MN | OUTDOORS
  This is new! I’ve never done an outdoor event before. I have… a lot of anxiety around some of the unique challenges presented with setting up in an outdoor space. However, summers in Minnesota involve as much outdoor time as possible, and I’ve got my eyes on some large events I’d really love to try that require being outside. So we’re giving this a try with some short, one-day shows to learn in a limited space. Plus the park is beautiful and, I believe, the event is aligned with other events happening in the park at that time. Lots of outdoor fun for all!
• July 3-6 | CONvergence, Minneapolis, MN | Dealer’s Room
  I’ll so thrilled to be returning to CONvergence’s Dealer’s Room this year, but will also be in the Art Show AND on no less than *seven* panels. I already have badge ribbons on hand and can’t wait to dive into a very full four days of geeky fun with all of you!
• July 12-13 | Range FanCon, Virginia, MN | Vendor
• August 3 | Lake Harriet Park Market, Minneapolis, MN | OUTDOORS

Gallery-style art shows, where you’ll usually find some of my originals and limited edition work:

• May 23-25 | Balticon | Baltimore, MD
• May 23-26 | WisCon | ONLINE
• June 14-28 | The LAST Unicorn Art Show | Minneapolis, MN
• June 20-23 | MisCon | Missoula, MT
• July 3-6 | CONvergence | Minneapolis, MN
• July 4-7 | BayCon/Westercon | Santa Clara, CA
• August 13-17 | Seattle Worldcon | Seattle, WA

The best place to see the most up-to-date list of upcoming events is on my Events page, which I keep updated regularly when I receive acceptances into a new show. But hopefully this little snapshot is still informative while you look ahead at the summer, too!

As always, please let me know if there’s anything else you’d really love to see or hear about in my newsletter, and thank you all so much for coming on this journey with me.