Friday Frenzy

Well it's Friday and the frenzy is on! I have one week, ONE WEEK! to have everything ready for our show next Saturday and I am no where ready. I haven't been in a show since last spring, before we found out Mom had cancer so I am pretty nervous. Will I even remember how to assemble my elaborate display my husband made for me???? My partner just spews her poems like they are nothing and I struggle to keep up with her... I don't think I can and I'm just trying to do the best I can. She is so hilarious, yesterday she left me a voicemail while driving (Oprah would kill us) and as she was driving inspiration hit her so she called me to record the writing in case she forgot it before she could write it down. I just have to worry about keeping my end of the bargain up. There are not enough hours in the day! I've also been getting show applications sent to me for this years coming shows and have excitement and anxiety just thinking about how I will be received all over again. Oy.

So here is another creation of ours. My dad, who is an artist too, thinks the typeface is too hard to read. Any one else think that? I am using the pretty typeface as part of the design as well, but I do want it to be readable.

Butterflies and snow

Hi everyone, it's been a week since I posted. I've been busy getting ready for an arts and craft show that I'll be in next Saturday. My friend and creative partner, Gale have been cranking out our work. (The butterflies are one example of what we've got going on). One thing we're having trouble with is pricing. We don't want to price ourselves out of the show, but we need to make it worth while, too. I'm sure everyone that sells their stuff asks the same questions. This will be our first show together as a team and it is exciting and also scary to think our stuff may be rejected. You really put your heart out in the open for people to tramp all over with art or anything that you create. Oh and by the way, I've created these digital designs with her poetry (please respect our copyright) and I'm trying to come up with some different ways to actually mount them to sell. So far, I've come up with framing them (not so different) and decoupage them to wooden plaques. Anyone have any great ideas that they would be willing to share with me? I'd love hear your thoughts.

We've had I don't know how many days with snow and I am sick of it. I'm ready to get outside and I am more of a fair weather kinda gal. I don't like to get out when it's cold. Now we are looking for another possible winter storm this Sunday. Yuck. I long for the days of late spring and summer. It's days like this that I wish I lived in Hawaii or Fuji or some fantastic place like that.

My fellow blogger friend, Kathryn of SassmowthDesigns mentioned today the One World One Heart being over and all the giveaways that was going on. (I didn't win any either, Kat) I know that I enjoyed the One World One Heart as a spectator and ended up following a whole new bunch of great blogs. I now have so many that I keep up with that I find I am not getting as much done as I want to! Oh well, they are usually such great inspiration that it will pay off. And who can have too many friends, right?

Also, if I have any Florida friends that are in the area of Wolfy's Waterfront Bar n Grill in Sanford, please email me and I'll mail you a gift certificate for there that will expire before I get back down to Florida. I only have one, so if there happens to more than one, I'll put your name in a hat. You've got til this Saturday the 20th to contact me.

Angel problems grrrrr!

So you guys saw my sketch of the angel wrapping her wings around a woman yesterday. Today I worked a little more on it, ok quite a bit more on it and now I think I've over worked it! Grrrr! I hate it when I do that. I questioned before whether I should have the woman in there and decided to try to make a go of it. (I'm drawing this for one of the projects Gale and I am working on. She wrote an angel poem and wanted to see something like this for it.)

I was pretty happy with it at first and now, it's kinda slid down hill. Through the magic of Photoshop, happily I can possibly fix this for the use it was intended if I had drawn her a tad smaller. My new scanner won't get all of her in it! Darn it! Plus, I not only overworked it, I might has well drawn a giant bulls eye on the one thing I wanted to downplay and that was the woman. I put her in a bright blue sweater of all things!!!!! What was I thinking? I was going for a subtle black and white version at first and then wammo! I get out my colored pencils and go temporarily insane, all the while trying to fix her into looking not so shoddy. Abort mission.

The funny thing is, all the while I'm doing this and making mistakes I'm thinking in my head *command z*... dang! not in real life it won't. I'm kinda crazy like that. Have you ever been doing something like... I don't know... say driving... and you make a wrong turn and think *command z* ? You know you've been working on the computer too long when.... haha

I'm starting to scare myself. Maybe I need some downtime. I think I'll go pour a glass of decaf diet coke, cozy up with my cat and watch my last 2 recorded episodes of The Vampire Diaries and look at some man candy. I like the bad brother, he's just so darn cute.

G'nite friends.

Marginally Mediocrity

Sorry, too negative so I deleted this post.

Happy Tuesday :)

Angel w/wrapping wings

I sketched out this angel with her wings wrapping around someone but it sure isn't showing up very well. It is too big for me to scan the whole thing so I just shot a picture of it. I'm thinking I don't like the person she is holding so I may erase her out of it.

I know you can't see her very well, but any thoughts on keeping her or erasing her?

I have no idea how to turn off this underlining!

ugh the assessor just left

So I'm outside filling all my empty bird feeders before this new snow storm hits us and someone drives up. I heard them from far away because we live out in the middle of nowhere. I thought it was the meter reader showing up later than normal but noooooo... he got out and said he was with the county assessor checking up on their records to see if everything still matched. I instinctively said "oh no" and he kinda laughed. I guess that is a usual response.

He was a nice enough guy and pretty good looking too, so it was hard to be mean. So I answered all his questions as innocently as possible and we exchanged pleasantries then he started measuring our fairly new pole barn and he was gone. (cha ching I'm thinking) Oy. How much more is this going to cost us?

I guess it was good I was home to answer because he told me what was on his paper of having 9 rooms and I was like "what?!" We don't have nine rooms. He said they just guess if no one is there to answer questions and from older assessments. He said he corrected a few things that may help us, but I get that sinking feeling that is not going to be the case. Especially when he told me what Indiana is assessing land at now. Like $17,000 an acre!!!! Let me tell you, it's nowhere near what you'll actually get out here in Posey County which is probably closer to $3400 an acre, if you're lucky!

Well that's my woe is me story for today, cry with me! woooooaaahhhhhhh :(

Pizza, anyone?

Well I haven't done any more to the GeeJay Creations logo yet, but I wanted to tell you all about this pizza I ate the other night. As some of you know, I'm on a stinkin diet and hating every minute of it. So far here's the way it's going: First week, I have lost 4 pounds, lost 1 more the second week, gained 2 more back after then and then lost 1 pound last Monday and now as of tomorrow (Monday) I think I may be the same as last week. I try to only weigh on Mondays but I cheated and got on the scale yesterday. This is all going excruciatingly slow. Granted I have not done much of anything in the way of exercising. But I feel like I'm doing the Diet Tango.

Back to the pizza. It was DIGIORNO 200 Calorie Portions that I actually got for FREE because I joined the Kraft First Taste. The program is great because they send me coupons for free food items quite often and I in turn give them my thoughts in the form of a short survey. They also send along extra coupons for a considerable amount off the product to supposedly give away... but I usually am stingy and keep most of them if I like the product. But I have shared a few. Use the link and join, you won't be sorry. But this pizza tasted great and when you are counting calories, this is well worth the 200 calories that is in it. I got the pepperoni one. I opened the box and chuckled because there were 2 individually wrapped pizzas in it and they were the size of a graham cracker, but I popped one in the oven anyway. I nearly burned it, but it was real tasty, at least to a starved 1000 calorie a day eating dieting maniac (1000 calories every other day). I sure wish this was easier.

The other night I dreamed I was eating that yummy Stuffed French Toast from IHOP... Yummo! That's bad when you dream about eating haha. Oh well, that's it for now. I just wanted to share my pizza experience with you guys. Enjoy your Sunday!

logos logos logos

Today or really this whole week has been more exciting that normal. Aside from losing my voice almost completely, (try yelling at your 3 year old with nothing coming out) I had a meeting with Gale my writer friend, and we have got the ball rolling. In fact, we have committed to be in an Arts and Crafts show the 27th of this month! Wow! Now we have a deadline, which is probably a good thing since I can be quite the procrastinator.

So naturally, we want to have a logo for our new little venture and that's what I've been working on today. Nothing is set in stone and these are my first better looking ones but I wanted to get my blogging friends thoughts on what I've got so far. We are calling ourselves GeeJay Creations because her name is Gale and I'm of course Jaime and we create things together. Our creations will be prints of my original art and designs along with her poems and writings mounted on a variety of things that have yet to be determined.

I was going for a fun and not so serious look with a slight feminine touch. I may add some color, but an effective logo design will always look good in black and white, so that's how I always start my designs. I have a favorite but I want to see what everyone else picks. So my dear friends, please cast your vote a, b, c or d? or gasp! if you don't care for any of them keep it to yourself... no I'm kidding. If you really don't care for any then put F :(

(I can take it. I worked in an advertising agency for years and had many dreams dashed... haha)

I knew I'd forget somebody

Well about yesterday's Sunshine Award... mixed emotions I absolutely love that someone thought enough of me to give me one, but....

I wish there were an easier way to do that! PLUS I knew I would forget someone that has shown such kindness and offered friendship and I did. I'm sure I forgot a lot. I want to extend my Sunshine Award to all my inspirational friends!!!! (like Luthien @ Pimp and Paint and Karen @ Sassmowth Designs

The limit was 12 and I did go over that but I still didn't get everyone. I feel bad at leaving anyone out! The awards are a bittersweet thing. I feel great that I received one, but man! that took me literally a couple hours to link it all and then go and spread the good news. I almost hate to ask others to do it when I know how busy most everyone is! So I intentionally left some out because I was thinking there is no way this person has this kind of extra time!

So I want to give a shout out to ALL my friends and I consider you all friends and you ALL deserve a Sunshine Award because as I read all of your posts they really do bring a little bit of sunshine to my day at least for that moment and I really appreciate that! I'm not just talking about when someone comments on my post (which makes me feel really great!), but just people posting about their lives in general. I truly do love to read about people and their lives.

Most of you know I'm a stay at home mom and this little computer screen is the window to the outside world for me. I not only don't get out much... I live in the boondocks. I have no neighbors that I can see and I know that may sound like paradise to some (cause I thought that too once) but sometimes I feel very isolated. My best friend is an hour away and works a lot. I just recently lost my mom, ok ok ok... this is turning badly and I didn't mean for it to take this turn. But what I mean to say is that I truly love these online friendships that have formed and continue to form. You all mean a lot to me :) Big hugs to you all!

A Sunshine Award! Yay!

I received a Sunshine Award Award! I'm so happy! Thank You T at Poppy Place PDX (a creative artist and great blog to keep up with)

The rules for accepting this award are:
Put the logo on your blog or within your post,
Pass the award onto 12 bloggers,
Link the nominees within your post,
Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog,
Link to the person from whom you received this award.

I am happy to pass this Sunshine Award onto these great bloggers! (in no particular order)

1. The Graphics Fairy - a true fairy godmother of all free and beautiful things for your blog

2. An Artist's Journey - a great painter and teacher

3. Art After Dark - Fantastic and original ideas and drawings

4. Art Journal - A Creative Journey - a wonderful fabric artist and dear friend

5. Darkling Woods Studio - wonderfully creative drawings and fun blog

6. Designs by CK (sunshiny in a spooky kind of way)

7. Folk Art by Cambell Jane - wonderful painter

8. I'm a Hodge Podge - very crafty and beautiful tassles

9. Knee Deep Studio - a talented lady and her post matches sunshine today

10. L. Gruger Art and Travels - her beautiful artwork screams sunshine

11. Pink Glitterfae Art - beautiful and unique paintings

12. Plumrose Lane - beautiful freeblog templates some free! also see her alter ego ManaMoon Studios

13. Under the Sun with Me - Beautiful blog, I would love to see her home but she is a million miles away.

14. Faerie Moon Creations - beautiful jewelry and inspirational blog

15. Frilly Frolic - a sweet, romantic and creative blog

Ok, so I went a little overboard but I couldn't stop. I hope you visit all these wonderful blogs and check out my inpriation list to the right for all the great blogs I visit on a regular basis.

As I was telling T on her blog, this is one of the things I love about blogging... discovering new blogs and reading about everyone! I'm a total life peeper. I love to peep into people's lives and blogs are the greatest way to do it without getting arrested. haha I'm the type that loves to look inside the homes as it is turning dusk and see how people have their home decorated... ok I better stop before I get into trouble. :P

I'm not a peeping tom, just a Life Peeper :)

What to do, what to do...

Some of you know that I have been working on some designs for a collaborative effort with a friend of mine, Gale Woolems. She is busy and we don't get to meet often but have sometime set up for this Wednesday. I'm going to show her my designs that I've got ready and I hope it's along the lines of what she was thinking. More so, I hope that it will be something that will be profitable for us both.

She writes poems and songs and stuff and I'm taking her words and designing them and making a montage around them or sometimes drawings and paintings. Our plan is to print them out, frame them up in some cases make greeting cards out of them and there is talk of maybe a small book. We have big ideas and no money. hah! We obviously have no business plan either.

I am leery to publish them to any sites yet for one: she hasn't seen them and we will edit them together and two: I worry that people could very easily take her words and use them as they please. We all know how easy that is. I'm at quandary as to how to market them online without fear of them being snatched and sent in mass emails along with all the spam we all get. They are similar to emails that we get, you know like angel poems or friendship poems. Only these are her words, not something by some unknown author. But I guess those started out as someone's words also. So you see what I mean. oy. what to do.

Does anyone have any advice about this sort of thing. We have no money to do any lawyer sessions.