Life of a sketchbook

Hello!

I wanted to take a second and explain to everyone the typical life of a Megabolt Sketchbook so everyone can have a better understanding of what is all entailed! So at this point we have sold just over 500 sketchbooks. 500 sketchbooks sold means 500 sketchbooks to kids! Pretty great right? Now we know that everyone is very excited about their sketchbook being given out and we are working everyday to get more sketchbooks into the hands of kids. The process can take a bit longer than one might think though.

Basically this is how it works:
Once the sketchbook is purchased we have to wait until the hospitals that we are working with request more books. When they do we send out a new batch. Inside the package is anywhere from 20-100 sketchbooks (usually on the lower end) The sketchbooks are then given out to the kids and their parents get information about returning their artwork to us (via photo, scan, or sending the sketchbook back). At this point we have to play the waiting game. After this is done we will then be posting the books to our website. It’s important to understand that there are a very large amount of variables in which a child may not ever finish their book or they simply just don’t want to share their artwork.

However! This post isn’t meant to get you down. Kids are offered to give us a simple sketch or their entire book. All it really comes down to is that it takes time. Just as you probably haven’t filled your book they will take a while to fill theirs. The good news is the Megabolt Sketchbook is a double whammy donation. At the least you are making a child’s day and giving them a gift. Then if all goes well you get a return on your donation in the form of art.

If anyone has any questions or wants to know more please never hesitate to contact us at info@megabolt.org

Thanks everyone!

- Steven Kasprzyk

Artist Find: Flat Vernacular

Ok, I will admit this isn’t really a find per se…however! Flat Vernacular is my brother/soon-to-be-sister in law. We can call her my stbsil for short. Anywho. Brian and Payton or Byron and Paytone as I like to call them have been making custom silk screened wallpaper for errr…about 2 years now? My timeline could be off. Using traditional printmaking practices they make gorgeous wallpaper that one can choose from either their signature line (which rotates) or custom made wallpaper as well.

They say it better than I do: (stolen from their tumblr with no remorse)-
Flat Vernacular is made up of two parts:

Payton, the owner/founder/hands behind the drawings/captain of sandwich concepts

Brian, the manager/founder/printer/engineer/captain of photoshop

Flat Vernacular creates original hand-drawn, hand-printed and bespoke wallpapers in our Brooklyn studio. We endeavor to remain faithful to the character and tradition of wallpaper while utilizing a more contemporary twist on the designs themselves.

Check out some of their work below and give them some love on the tumblr, twitter, and facebook.

First Megabolt Art Workshop Recap!

Hey Everyone!

Steven here, hope you’re doing well. Just wanted to give everyone a quick recap on the first Megabolt art workshop! Yesterday myself and Megabolt family member Brett F. went to a local Portland children’s hospital and did a screen printing workshop with the kids. It was amazing. I can honestly say that the months of preparation was so worth it. We got to work with about 15-20 kids screen printing with them and creating their own Megabolt printed posters. I can honestly say that I’ve never done anything with art that was half as fun as what we did yesterday. With that said this is just the start to many. We handed out about 20 sketchbooks. If I can ask one favor it is this; please have patience when it comes to getting your sketchbook out. We are booking more and more workshops and sending out books soon! Think of your purchase of the sketchbook as a continual investment to change the life of a child. As soon as your sketchbook is given out you will be receiving an email from us letting you know. With that said 20 or so of you should be getting emails soon! (20 books in the range from 1-50 were given out yesterday.)

Beyond that keep spreading the word! Tell your friends, mail carriers, vets, dentists, co-workers! Word of mouth is the best way to get more sketchbooks out there and more workshops done! Thanks for the continued love and support!

- Steven Kasprzyk

Help us win $25,000

Hi Everyone,
This is Steven from Megabolt. I’m writing you with a request. I want to help kids. I want to help kids through the power of art. With your help I can win $25,000 from Pepsi.

Here’s the scoop. We have entered the Pepsi Refresh Grant program to win $25K from Pepsi. The idea for our project is really simple. We want to tour around the country and do art workshops with kids in hospitals. We want to help kids fight through their crummy situations through the power of art. I have a staff of 10 people just waiting to do this with me. With your help I can pull it off.

All we have to do is have people vote and win this contest. It’s really quite simple.

TEXT 105938 TO 73774 and you vote for us.

You can text everyday. It takes 15 seconds. I know how fast you can text. 15 seconds everyday and we can win $25K.

If you’re into this idea please email your friends, text them, call them, facebook them. With everyone’s help we can win this. I have the best network of friends and with everyone’s help we can win this grant. Thousands upon thousands of kids live’s will be changed because you sent a text message everyday for the next 30 days. I won’t apply for this grant again and I promise this won’t happen very often. Think about it

Let’s do this!

If you have any questions or want to help please email me personally at steven@megabolt.org