Meet the Man Who Created Our Logo, Has Hands, and Keeps a Robot in His Garage

"I think photographers, musicians, performers, artists... they can’t not do it. They have to be taking pictures, they have to be writing music, they have to be capturing whatever it is. They can’t turn it off. Everything they do is creating something."

​​Aaron Thomason is a man of many talents. He is the maker of Three Sheets Books, he welds art pieces in his garage, he has the most underrated Instagram account filled with sketches and doodles, and he single-handedly is keeping the phrase “for what it’s worth” alive. We were thrilled to be able to sit down with him at Helton Brewing for some brewskis and interview time. Also, he gave us our own Three Sheets Books FOR FREE. So, that's how he bribed us into writing somewhat decent things about him. 

​THE INTERVIEW

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​Let's talk about welding! Why did you get into it?
The welding was a result of a situation at my office. We had a contractor who accidentally hit the wrong button and deleted two weeks worth of work for the entire team. No back up. Nothing. So, at that point I said, “Screw it, I need to get into something that's a little bit more physical, a bit more tangible.” My neighbor had taken welding classes out at Mesa Arts Center for a couple of years and she loved it, so I signed up and took a class.

It’s just unreal...everything I do is digital and I don’t ever get to do anything with my hands. So when you’re actually taking pieces of metal and bending them and putting them together, it's a rush. I finally bought a welder and filled the garage up with more crap, but I just love it.

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What kind of things do you like to weld?
I’ve got a couple of dinosaurs out of rebar, I have a robot that’s taking a selfie, I did an abstract elephant. These are all on the wall in the garage because my wife is convinced they are so sharp they are going to kill somebody in the house. It’s just fun, I don’t ever do anything too serious. I guess the most serious thing I did was I made a shelf for the bathroom once.

I think there’s a throwback feeling to physical art, I mean the current generation is in digital all the time. Whereas my generation is kind of in transition between doing things with our hands and digital. I mean, my wife, Tracy, used to make newspapers with her hands, but it's not like that now. So, I think my generation misses that. That’s part of why I drive an old car. I like that when something is wrong, I can fix it. I open the hood and can see what’s wrong. I enjoy working with my hands and it’s hard to do that in jobs that pay anything anymore.


Where do the doodles come from?
​​I got into the sketches, honestly, as a way to push the books. I already love to draw, so it was easy. I mean, how many times can you post a picture of the book? So, I told myself if I start drawing in the books, it is a way to create content for my channel. But as it turns out, that isn't where I’m always putting it. I’m putting it on my personal feed because I like it. The thing is, I used to go to bars and sit and draw anyway, and I had expensive sketchbooks. That instantly makes you the tool in the bar that’s taking up tons of room and drawing attention to yourself (PUN INTENDED). But if you walk in with a something that’s made out of a 6-pack box, not only are people looking at it and saying “That’s cool, what is that?” but it lets you sit and chat with them. There's no pressure.

How did you get into making your beer books?
I just got sick of buying expensive sketchbooks and being “that guy.” So I figured... I can make this. I just went on youtube and learned how to do what’s called coptic binding. Then friends wanted books and eventually I figured out I could sell them. It’s really just that I like working with my hands.

I like this new community where your’e getting something that someone actually made.

Coming from a design background, I know that designers spend a lot of time on beer packaging. This stuff didn’t just happen. For the box purpose, it goes to the grocery store to your car to the fridge and then to the trash. Maybe it will get recycled. But now, I am taking the art on the box and letting it live on a bit. 


How did you come up with the name Three Sheets Books?
It was a nod to the drunken three sheets concept. It was based on the fact that it’s actually paper. Once we had the name, the doodle for the logo came easily.

Part of how I started connecting with the local brewers, was this day I was in a meeting at work and it was just so boring so I was looking at Instagram on my phone just so I stayed conscious. This particular artist posted the concept illustration for the Sour Wench, which is a sour beer from Ballast Point and it’s this skeleton wench with this tray of beers tipping over and there’s all these people in the room and she’s trying to walk around them. And I just thought, “Somebody is getting paid to do this and I’m in this meeting talking about whatever this is and praying for death. And somebody is there doing this.” So that's kind of when I started making myself known. At first I wanted to kind of remain anonymous for the most part. I mean, it’s cool to come into a bar and the owner comes out and says “I’ve seen what you’re doing on Instagram and I love it.” That just feels great. It creates a community connection.

What has recently inspired you?
I’m really into the philosophy of stoicism. We all kind of have this Pollyanna attitude that things will always work out. Well, stoicism is the opposite of that. It’s saying “You know what? Crap happens." Just take care of yourself. Do what you need to do to make sure you’re getting what you need out of life, not at the expense of other people of course, but just take care of yourself. You can’t fix everything, so you just have to carry on.

Be present. Be in the moment. Don’t be looking forward all the time thinking about what you’re eating for lunch or what you’re going to do next.
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What do you think about when you’re alone?
I’m an engineer in a creative’s body. I’m always looking to solve problems, so mostly I’m thinking about problems that need to be solved at work or at home or wherever. I like to draw because it helps me just compartmentalize things and not worry about stuff anymore. It takes my mind off of problem-solving mode and I just create.

I do a lot of Instagram challenges with keywords. That’s why most of my doodles never make sense, because I’m in 2-3 challenges at a time and I'm combining them into one picture.


What is something you’ve never done but want to do?
I think it would be fun to do some mural work. I can’t get my head around how that works. I’d love to learn how to do it, like what tools to use and how to even take on the size of that kind of project.  I’d like to try woodworking too, but I imagine thats another expensive hobby.


If you could give your past self advice, would would it be?
If I could talk to like 19 year old me, I’d say "If you want to learn something, make sure you get into it now because it’s very difficult in the middle of a career path to leave and go do something like that." It’s hard to say “I’m going to give up insurance and career benefits for a bit and go do something where I could potentially lose a hand.”

What does #startafire mean to you?
Make a concerted effort to encourage creativity where you see an opportunity for it.

Even if it’s not your own thing. If you see someone struggling or working to become an artist, maybe buy one of their pieces. Put a dollar in the hat.


What is your own creative mantra?
Do it every day.

Whether it’s reading, listening to something creative, drawing, whatever it is. I try to do something creative everyday.
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That's the end of the interview, but scroll down for Aaron's Must-Follow list of Phoenix creatives...

Follow Aaron on Instagram: @aaron_t 
Follow Three Sheets on Instagram: @threesheetsbooks

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Aaron's Creative Influences
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​Claire Money: Left her desk job, sold her life, tricked out her CRV and lived out of it for six months. She ended up getting an awesome outdoorsy job out of it. She also took one of my sketchbooks along for the ride and posts drawings from amazing places. I then view and like those photos from a cubicle.

Joshua Rhodes: Can basically design a logo while sitting at a desk he also designed and made. One of the AZ people who really embody the label “maker.” 

11thMonkey Industries: Been a fan of this place’s work for a while now, and then heard Ruben Gonzales speak at Creative Mornings and realized just how passionate he was about this city. Haven’t made the connection in real life yet, but hoping to change that. Been a maker since long before the label, and he loves what he’s doing.  

Danny Upshaw: Amazing photographer, and inherited the running of the designer’s Drink and Draw event when Claire hit the road. Loves Phoenix, dinosaurs, and the Westward Ho. 

Jesse Perry: Modern pop-art painter. Does amazing murals all over, but heavily influenced by Phoenix and the southwest. Since most of my work is done with a small pencil or fine-tip pen, I have a lot of respect for someone who can look at a 40’X20’ wall and say “yeah, I can see a rabbit and a neon cactus on there.”

All right, start smashing that follow button! 
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AND... if you're not following Ignite, WTF are you even doing on Instagram in the first place? 
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