I am no longer updating this blog! I actually haven’t really been for a while. Thank you so much to everyone who has followed me and supported my work. I greatly appreciate you. Unfortunately, Tumblr has turned into an environment that is more toxic for me than it is rewarding. I will keep this page up as an archive, and log on occasionally to check my messages. If you would like to keep up with my work, please follow me on Instagram or Twitter.
Thank you!
- Isabella
Hey i hella like your art!! Is there a link to buy any? Please post it if there is and have a good day c:
Sure is! Thanks for asking! http://www.isabellarotman.com/store
Burn Your Demons and Run With Your Demons from @thismighthurt
My first tattoo!!! What do y'all think??
Art by @thismighthurt and tattooed by Jesse at Otherside Tattoo in Ottawa
Woah awesome!! Looks great. Mind if I post it on twitter/instagram?
With so many survivors sharing their stories under #metoo, we wanted to share a resource for people who want to intervene in situations and stop them from reaching the level of sexual assault. Not on My Watch by @thismighthurt is a way to learn bystander intervention techniques. You can read more and order hard copies at the link, or read a free e-version at Scarleteen.
Hello! We are starting a new advice series here at Everyone Is Gay called “An Honest Mixtape”! Each month (starting right now!) we will feature a new guest writer who will tackle one of your advice questions with words *and* music!
Writer, comedian, and actor Brittany Ashley kicks things off with some back-to-school breakup advice and a mixtape to help mend your broken heart and give you the strength to get through seeing your ex again for the first time. GREAT.
“I’m in high school, and I went through a really messy, miserable breakup last school year. For the rest of the year, I would get anxious every time I saw my ex and tried to avoid her at all costs. Now I haven’t seen her in two months because of summer and I’ve been doing a lot better, but I’m afraid of how I’ll react when I see her again/if she tries to talk to me or if we end up in a class together. Help?”
Brittany Says:
We’ve all gone through it. Trying to avoid seeing an ex-girlfriend is like the world’s worst video game that we’re all stuck playing for the rest of our lives. To take extra precautions, we’ll deny ourselves going to that party (5 points!) or cut off seeing certain friends (Bonus level!), just in hopes of avoiding one particular human being who seems to have the cheat codes to our anxiety.
Let’s start by saying this: throughout the summer, there’s no doubt that you’ve made progress. You started to feel like yourself again and finally like she’s not the only radio station playing in your head. Seeing her again doesn’t get to erase any of the work you’ve done. She doesn’t get to have that—that was work that you did! It’s yours! You own the rights to it!
I get that you think seeing her again might throw a wrench in your betterment. The best (but also worst) thing about being a fleshy mortal in this situation is that you simply can’t control the outcome of every awkward interaction or every student’s class schedule. Well, wait. Actually, if you learned how to hack into your school’s database, you could probably engineer the perfect schedule to where you two wouldn’t be likely to cross paths. Obviously you’d have to come up with an algorithm that also prevents hallway run-ins–maybe setting up roadblocks that block the flow of students. But even so—learning hacking as a trade feels like an enormous amount of effort just for this.
So focus on what you can control, like how much time you spend dwelling on the what if’s or how much space you let those negative feelings take up in your mind in places where good stuff could go instead. Remember good stuff? Good stuff is nice.
Once you relinquish the idea of control, the next thing you can do is build up your foundation. By that I mean: think of your self-esteem like a house. How banal, I know! But you don’t have to take an architecture class to understand how spot on my metaphor is. It’s easy to feel better momentarily when you paint the walls a bright new color or hang up a cool new Buffy poster. Who wouldn’t? Aesthetic improvements feel nice but they’re momentary. Why? Because if your foundation is cracked, the way the house looks doesn’t really matter because you have to rebuild that goddamn thing. The good news is that whether or not your house feels like an abandoned roadside shack or an immaculate mansion a la MTV Cribs (too old a reference?), remember that you can always build up your foundation.
So how can you build up this foundation, you ask? Well, emotional health should be tended to at all times, not just when you’re in dire need of it. If you continuously appreciate yourself and the people around you, you’ll build a strong ass foundation that won’t crack easily.
Think about what makes you feel warm and good. Maybe that’s simply being outside. Listen, you don’t have to go base jumping or extreme whitewater rafting, but sometimes it means just taking a book in your backyard or sitting on a swing.
Too much like an indie movie? Fine. Then go do something nice for your friends like writing them a handwritten card or making them a mixtape (Am I out of touch?). Strengthening your friendships and telling people how much you care about them is by far the coolest thing on the planet. Trust me. They won’t forget it.
Walk through the halls confidently with your headphones in while you listen to music. I like to daydream and picture myself as the lead singer, but that’s just me. Maybe you can even jam out to this playlist I crafted for you.
But most importantly: Give yourself a break. It’s okay to not fully be over the messy feelings that ensued, that just means you’re human. If we could think our way out of heartache, we’d all be robots.
Eventually, you’ll be so distracted simply basking in your own incredible atmosphere, that you’ll forget that you ever cared what you’d think if you ran into her. I know it sounds kind of silly: Distract yourself with yourself. t’s the best advice I can give and has gotten me through many versions and variations of “fear of running into my ex at school.”
Listen to Brittany’s Mixtape, “Build That Foundation,” right here! Cover Art designed by the incredible Isabella Rotman.
hi :^) i saw awhile ago u answered an ask saying you were ok with ppl getting tattoos of ur work but i thought id double check just to be safe? specifically i would like to get this cat thing done (post/147026359434/i-drew-this-crazy-cat-thing-cat-eyes-catspirit) also u mentioned u wouldnt want any1 drastically altering the design and i was wondering if getting the tattoo artist to do it in colour would be considered that? the original sketch is just black linework 1/2
Hey go for it! I’m excited you like the design so much! I don’t consider coloring it a drastic change so have fun. Send me a pic when it’s done!
Buy a Queer Sex Ed For All pin and directly support Queer Sex Ed! All proceeds to benefit Scarleteen, making sex education more real and less dreadful since 1988. Scarleteen is a queer-owned and operated sexual education website and community that has been queering up sex and relationship education for millions of young people for almost 20 years. All profits from these pins go directly to sending Scarleteen staff and volunteers to a training and team-building retreat August 2017. More information on camp here. So, if you like this pin and support sex education please go ahead and purchase one through the link and I'll donate the proceeds. Thank you!!
Poster for Siren School, being released in full color from @silversprocket! Get a free poster when you buy the Zine. Art by Isabella Rotman https://store.silversprocket.net/collections/comicsandzines/products/siren-school-by-isabella-rotman-comic-book
20 Cents on the Dollar Donation
In honor of Women’s History Month I will be donating 20% of proceeds from my online store, the equivalent of the average wage gap in the United States, to Chicago Women’s Health Center! The CWHC is an organisation that facilitates the empowerment of women and trans people by providing access to health care and health education in a respectful environment where people pay what they can afford. So please, buy a comic, pin, or print during the month of March and help me support accessable healthcare for the women and nonbinary and/or trans folk of Chicago!
FREE printable file for postcards to write your representatives. Calling is a much more effective method than writing but every bit counts, especially for those who are better spoken in written words or those who suffer from heavy phone anxiety.
INSTRUCTIONS:
2. Print DOUBLE SIDED (short edge binding) on 8.5 x 11 CARDSTOCK. If you wish to mail these as postcards you MUST print them on heavy cardstock so they will hold up in the mail. If you do not have cardstock protect each card in an envelope.
3. Cut out postcards. Each print contains for postcards, so cut printout in half and then cut in half again. There is a template for cutting in the listing images that you can use for reference.
4. Address and stamp. Write your local representatives about issues that you care about. Make sure to only write to your representatives, and include your zip code so that they know you are in their constituency.
I made a t-shirt design to wear to protests and town hall meetings, to remind your local representatives why your voice matters to them specifically. Shirt is 30% off for 3 days.
I'm also going to make this design available as postcards to write your representatives, both printed and as a free printable download.
My heart is warmed to see people in my community attending protests and contacting their representatives. These are great things to do. These are powerful things to do. I also think we can do more. Every one of you has something special about you to lend to the damage reduction under the new regime. You have unique skills. You have access to materials, tools or organisations. You have influence. I urge each and every one of you to think creatively about how you specifically can make a difference for a cause you believe in.
Here are some ideas inspired by others:
Do you work at a business that supports an issue you support? Suggest an event to raise funds. Recently a local bar (Hopleaf) offered 10% of it's Friday night sales to @plannedparenthood . The line was out the door.
Do you have a skill that could be helpful in trying times ahead? Offer to teach a class or workshop. See if you can partner with a local space to host the event. My friend Kyle is offering free self defense classes. Lots of skills could be useful, coding, essay-writing, second language, basic first-aid, etc..
Do you own a small business? I know that most of you price your work for stores, where 40-50% of the price goes to the store itself. Can you afford to run a sale in your online store where a percentage of proceeds for a set period of time are donated? I've seen lots of small single woman owned businesses do this including @vichcraft-design-studio , @catcovenshop, @Nyxturna, and myself.
Are you an artist? Do you want to donate, but funds are tight? That's ok. Use your work as an incentive to encourage others to donate. I am seeing multiple cartoonists ( @racheldukes , Luke Howard, Sacha lusk, @livertaker , @kevin-budnik , Pranas) offering free original drawings or sketches if you forward them your ACLU donation receipt. I know ya'll have lots of drawings laying around. They aren't doing much good in forgotten sketchbooks.
Are you a writer? WRITE. Many @hellyeahscarleteenScarleteen contributors donated their valuable time writing Rebel Well, survival guide for teens and emerging adults in a Trumped America. Write somewhere other than social media feeds.
Do you get free printing through work? Find a resource that you think is valuable and print the hell out of it (check the copyright, don't steal anyone's work). Distribute it at free libraries, protests, your local communities. @perfectlyacceptablepress just risograph printed 250 copies of Rebel Well out of the kindness of Matt Davis' heart.
Do you have a car? People always need rides, especially in cities. There's a million things you can do with your car. Drive people to protests (don't park too close by), lend your vehicle to help distribute materials, offer rides to the airport. Look into car pool programs with local volunteer opportunities.
Do you have access to a space and a network of friends? Host a letter writing party like my friend Kate to pool your knowledge and postcards. More info in 1st step call to action at www.womensmarch.com
Do you speak a second language? If an article or publication has meant a lot to you in this time contact the author and offer to translate it.
Do you have medical experience and/or training? PLEASE attend protests with a few supplies. I hope we won't need to but in a bad situation your presence could be incredibly useful.
Still can't think of ideas? That's ok. It will come to you. In the meantime, you have a body and a mind and hands to be put to good use. Keep going to protests and writing your representatives. Research volunteer opportunities in your community. Look around at your friends to see what they are doing. Ask how you can help. I'm sure your friends are overwhelmed. I bet they would welcome the assistance.
I can't tell you what to do. The first step is believing that you have something powerful to offer. The next step is taking the agency to do so.
If you have time, can you do me a favor? I just submitted this design to an enamel pins challenge on Threadless. The more people who vote 5 for this design the more likely it is that the pin will get made and distributed through Threadless. Reblogs are also very helpful. Thank you!
Fair Warning: Making an account with Threadless, if you don’t already have one, will result in you getting e-mails. You can edit these out easily with a spam filter.
New pin for all muh bitches who cite source material. Pins by Isabella Rotman words by Lauren Gillette. $10
