THE BACKSTORY:

Hey, my name is Phil Padwe! I’m the author/illustrator (and everything else) at Mommy Has Tattoos... a DIY publishing effort, currently headquartered in my studio in New York City!

Mommy Has Tattoos was the first publishing company of its kind: established strictly for the creation of quality entertainment for today’s tattooed families. I founded Mommy Has Tattoos back in 2006, so I could publish MOMMY HAS A TATTOO and the TATTOO COLORING BOOK #1.

MOMMY HAS A TATTOO was the very first children’s book to feature tattooed characters! It tells the story of a little boy named James who’s afraid of his tattooed neighbor, until he discovers that his mommy has a tattoo as well. It teaches tolerance and acceptance and provides realistic characters which children will relate to. THOUSANDS of children have grown up with the book now, and I've received hundreds of positive and encouraging emails and messages from parents who sincerely love the message and story.

At the same time I published MOMMY HAS A TATTOO, I also released TATTOO COLORING BOOK #1. It was the perfect supplement to MOMMY HAS A TATTOO, and honestly, it did better than I ever thought it would. Today it's nearly sold-out! In today’s era, with large amounts of their time spent on the internet and video-games, kids often aren’t as “hands on” as they used to be. They don’t play like we did when we were younger! But I realized tattoo coloring books might be a cure for this, when I received THIS letter back in 2009:

Dear Phil,

My 5 year old son has severe ADHD and nothing gets him to calm down for even a minute. Not TV, not toys, nothing. The moment I put your Tattoo Coloring Book in front of him I had 15 minutes of peace and quiet. Your book is a miracle! I can’t thank you enough.

Best,
Sarah

I began to receive more letters like Sarah’s and realized there might be a future for the coloring book, and not just MOMMY HAS A TATTOO!

AT A TURNING POINT:

Recently I made some major life changes so I could focus 100% on Mommy Has Tattoos. What finally convinced me to do this was that I put up a Facebook page for the MOMMY HAS A TATTOO book, and it quickly picked up over 20,000 likes! A genuine community of tattooed moms began using the page and that reminded me there’s a market for this... and nobody’s going to do it if I don’t! I've got BIG PLANS in store, including the often-asked-for sequel, DADDY HAS A TATTOO (which I'm finalizing now)... as well as a TOP SECRET project, also in the works! I've been very, very, busy drafting stories and illustrating this coloring book. I'm ready to expand. But I need funding! 

Publishing costs alone, never mind legal fees for copyrights, PR to drive awareness, storage fees, shipping costs, studio overhead... these are things I simply don’t have the money for. With TATTOO COLORING BOOK #2 ready to print, featuring some of the best illustrations I’ve done yet... I really need to raise capital and I’m willing to do whatever it takes! 

If you’re still reading, you must be interested, in which case please make a pledge!!! You’ll be funding the printing, shipping, and storage of TATTOO COLORING BOOK #2. A truly classic coloring book featuring 32 pages of all original, black and white line-art illustrations... many based on the most iconic imagery in all of tattoo culture.

My goal is make your children smile, and to keep your family entertained. With quality books kids love, coloring books (like this one), web and smart-phone apps, and e-publishing in the future, I hope to create a positive and inspiring brand that will be around for years to come. But I can't do it alone! With your help we can transform the way publishing and printing are handled in the 21st century and prove there’s a responsible, family-friendly segment of tattooed adults. Thanks for checking out my project!!!

***THE END***

A Little Extra Info About Me:

I'm able to work on the books as author & illustrator... and handle all the pre-press work, graphic design, and overseeing the printing and production, etc... because I spent 12 years in Marketing as a Senior Designer and copy writer. I worked with layout and design software every day for over a decade, before I ever had the bright idea to venture into self publishing. I wore a tie to work every day, had a 401k and a closet full of suits... it sucked. I hated the insane deadlines and 50-70 hour work-weeks. And... I wanted to be an artist. A real artist!!!

So, yadda yadda yadda... I dropped the white collar career after a decade, and then spent 4 years working as a Night Watchman at the Metropolitan Museum of art... and spent ALL my free time honing my painting and illustration skills. I'm self-taught, so I have to do crazy things like "drop everything and focus 100%" or I'll never reach that mystical next-level. I know what it's like to see my skills plateau, and it's something I constantly try to avoid. "Good enough" is never good enough!

Over the past few years, while focusing on fine-art... I've sold my first paintings and drawings, received some great press for my portraiture in The New York Times, Time Warner cable news, and on NPR... and most recently, I had a pair of portraits purchased by NYU (they currently reside in NYU's Office of International Students & Scholars). At present, I'm proud to say I have work in both private and public collections around North America. You can check out more of my work at my web site: www.philpadwe.com 

A Little Extra Info About Kickstarter:

• Every project on kickstarter has a monetary goal, and a set time-frame. For instance, the goal of this project is to raise $4750 by December 22.  
  
• Funding here on Kickstarter is "all or nothing." Meaning everyone comes by and checks out your project, and if they like it, they can pledge money to help complete it. But those people ONLY get charged (and the project ONLY gets money) if it meets it's monetary goal ($4750 here) by it's deadline (December 22nd here). No matter how close a project comes to it's funding goal... you have to actually reach your goal, or you don't get a penny. 
  
• In this way, you're guaranteed not to participate in a project that doesn't get funded! You'll only be charged if the project moves forward. 
  
• Kickstarter receives 5% of the money raised for each successful project, and Amazon (who handles payments) takes up to another 5%