Bornholm, a Baltic Gem

Bornholm is truly one of Denmark's best holiday destinations for both tourists and locals alike. First off, it's the sunniest location in the country. The tiny island is full of bike paths, leading to unique galleries, local eateries and granite cliffs leading to hidden beaches.

A few years ago I made some t-shirts for a family reunion. We were all gathering on the small Baltic island of Bornholm, off the coast of Sweden. I wanted the t-shirts to be something everyone could actually use and not have something boring written on it, like "Family Reunion 2008". I settled for a simple image, but one that is iconic and well-recognized once you know Bornholm, the smokehouse.

Back then I had never used photo emulsion to print an image and had always relied on cutting out the template by hand. I knew I needed thin lines and was determined to get a good result for the reunion. A bit of beginner's luck, reading the instructions and off I went.

I even added sparkly stars to some of the shirts, giving them a very cute effect. The end result was an almost watercolor look from the paint being transferred freely on the sky and then overlapped by the contrasting black lines, like permanent marker.