CONTACT INFO:
oscarastoria.art(at)gmail.com
Or Snail Mail
HEATHER DOUGLAS C/O OSCAR ASTORIA
P.O. BOX 1092
ASTORIA, OREGON 97103
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Who is Oscar Astoria Anyway?
Hi, I’m Heather and I’m a Pacific Northwest writer, illustrator and teacher based in Astoria, Oregon. I gravitate towards folk art, satire, comics, zines and dopamine art. I crave bold color and seek out writing and art that makes me laugh or cringe. I love nature, cute fuzzy animals and dogs of course! Naturally, this is what I like to create most myself.
I create hand illustrated stickers, greeting cards, art prints and other items that you can find in my STORE (coming May 2025). Most common themes are dogs, cats, animals, nature as well as Oregon Coast and lots of Astoria-centric designs.
I teach community writing workshops. My favorite workshop to teach is zine making. The world needs your zine! Zines are needed now more than ever and I love sharing the simplicity and power of the humble zine. For examples of my past workshops, click HERE.
I create zines and you can find out more about that by clicking HERE. I will also be offering my zines for sale in May 2025.
CHECK OUT MY ETSY SITE launching in May 2025
I’ve had lots of stops and starts, but like a thread, creativity is always there. Like a lot of kids from rural areas, I started drawing and painting in 4-H art class. I like to say that I’m a “4-H trained artist.” Growing up, I was obsessed with animals—particularly horses and dogs, but I also had guinea pigs, rabbits, cats, mice, hamsters and a turtle. I drew a lot of unicorns, pegasus, dogs and cats in the margins of my folders and on scraps of paper.
After returning to the states from 3 years working in South Korea, I created two illustrated coloring books to help me through a time of intense grief. That was in 2015, and I ended up selling those books wholesale to local stores with great support and enthusiasm from friends, relatives and members of the community. Still, I was super busy with work and didn’t have any time to build up my business other than selling the coloring books sporadically via wholesale here and there. I have always wanted to expand into art prints, greeting cards, stickers and other products featuring my illustrations.
Now, in 2025, I’m trying to actually do just that! I am opening an Etsy store in May, expanding my wholesale accounts and offerings and see if I’m able to “run with all the horses” as my mom always says. I truly send all my heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported my coloring books from the very beginning! I’m excited to move to the next phase with Oscar Astoria. Send me an email if you’d like to:
1. Order WHOLESALE for your shop
2. Talk about a potential COLLABORATION
3. Ask about a COMMISSION
Otherwise, I’d love to share with you, humble reader, my newsletters, which will include my thoughts on creativity, my process, my journey and any new products on the horizon.
And, finally, my business name comes from a combination of my dog Oscar’s name (he passed away after 20 long years of living life to the fullest) + “Astoria” where my products are created.
Thank you again for visiting my site. Please visit again to see what’s new!
Process
I start with a sketch. . .
Materials
- Pencil, Pen, Paper Scraps & Gum Erasers: I still love the grip and texture of regular pen or pencil on notebook or typing paper. This is probably from years of doodling through classes at school, in college and at work trainings. Drawing aimlessly helps keep my brain engaged, quite the opposite of the traditional negative stereotypes out there. That’s why I always let my students (and actually encouraged them) to doodle. I am a hopeless drawer on scraps of paper, in margins of books and sometimes where I’m not supposed to. Word to the wise, don’t loan me a book because I will probably end up writing and drawing in it if I really like it. I have tried so many times to confine myself to a single bound sketchbook, but I love ripping out the pages, drawing on random things–so now I just embrace that most of my ideas will be captured on a napkin at a restaurant, an errant receipt, or on the back of my hand. I am known to rip apart thrift store books for erasure poetry, collage and fun writing activities. I occasionally draw with ballpoint pen on notebook paper for the nostalgia of it.
- I am a die hard fan of Palamino Blackwing Pencils.
- Micron Pens: I created my coloring books with Micron pens and Sharpies and I love combining Sharpie with other mediums.
- Procreate: Procreate is quite simply the best thing ever for someone like me. I don’t have to buy expensive art supplies or pay for a studio. A few years back, I was lucky enough to secure a sweet little studio space downtown at a place called “The Maker’s Space/Art Collective.” It was then that I realized that I didn’t necessarily need a studio space and that I work the best crammed into a small spot at home. When I’m in the mood to be creative, which is almost anytime I have free time, I’m not that picky where I post up. After reading Stephen King’s Memoir and found out that he produced his copious works all in a tiny corner of his attic, I somehow felt a bit more affirmed in how I work. Procreate fits this compact, no-fuss vibe I like when I’m creating.
- Watercolor, Oil and Block Printing: My mom is an artist, so I created oil paintings and watercolor paintings alongside her when I was young. Still, I’ve had no formal art training as an adult and I find oil painting intimidating. I most enjoy just drawing with pencil or ballpoint pen and working on Procreate because it’s SO easy to fix mistakes as you go. I can also digitalize all of my drawings and turn them into stickers, cards and art prints. I used to screen print canvas totes and t-shirts that I sold at the Sunday Market back in 2015, but I stopped that because keeping inventory in my home was near to impossible for me. However, I do love stamping fabric and I’d like to get back into that one day!
- Gouach: I am learning to paint in this medium currently.
An example of a quick sketch of my professor at OSU that I did in 1997 in college in my notebook that I can now digitalize using Procreate. I believe he was lecturing about Chaucer.
Thank you for visiting my site. Please come back again!
Website Designed by Oscar Astoria 2025
Made in Astoria, Oregon
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