Welcome 2015!



It has been exactly two years and seven and a half months since my last post.  My girls went back to school today but here I am again, just arriving at my desk for only one hour before school pick-up...  Being a full time Etsy seller and a mom of four...this scenario can happen quite often!  LOL!

So...during this two years and seven months or so break from posting...I have only been working like usual - like crazy.  I suppose you felt something more exciting coming along though huh?  Well actually, during this timeframe I have had the ever-so-lucky opportunity to be involved with and work with the creative team at Walter Foster Publishing!  In 2014, my first book project with them was launched!  101 Mixed Media Art Techniques.  Today (Jan. 5, 2015), my second book with Walter Foster has been released and this is the one book that I put my entire heart into, no doubt, colors first! I am so excited to introduce the world to the step by step art projects that I have done over so many years with so many talented kids in my annual ARTragious art camp that I hold every summer.  Approximately three quarters of the projects have already been done in my camp before and the other quarter are brand spanking new projects!  I am very happy, joyful, proud and excited to share my creativity with everyone in this book!  I feel honored by Walter Foster, (Stephanie - you have been an angel to work with!) to have been approached to create such a book!  Thank you! Thank you....from the bottom of my heart!

 

 

As soon as I get my own copies of this book....which features 27 projects in it...I will be able to take some photos and share some of it with everyone!

 

 

I also had the pleasure of working on a smaller book project with Walter Foster in 2014 as well...this book gets released tomorrow, Jan. 6th and is a wonderful book that features art projects for little kids!  I had so much fun doing the projects in this book as well and can't wait to see the other projects in it!  Thank you again Stephanie @Walter Foster for giving me such an opportunity!

 

 

 



In 2014 my studio expanded to include a 54 inch wide format printer....so now, all printing is done in house!  Many of you may not know that I spend 75% of my creative time now focused on designing, printing and shipping vinyl wall decals world wide.  I have two Etsy shops that are now focused on just this.  I love creating wall decals. (stickitdecaldesigns & friendshipfalls)  So far, the decal designs that I create are mainly for use in children's playrooms and baby nurseries....but really, the possibilities are endless!  It was a challenge in the beginning to learn the ins and outs of the printer...but it was well worth it!  Bringing the printing in house has allowed me to make necessary reprints on the spot as well as design the print files the way I want them!  Not to mention, it is way more cost effective! 

 

Below are some photos of my studio space!  You can see my new printer on the left there!  I love it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can learn more about my studio space on the Walter Foster Blog!

 

In 2014, I also had the opportunity to license some of my art to Hobby Lobby as well as Successories.com.  Hobby Lobby picked a few designs to feature...and they have been quite wonderful to work with!  Successories.com offers a ton of my designs all over promotional products...which is quite cool!

 

My goal for 2015 is to simply create more art!  I miss creating.  I miss mixing colors, splattering and making messes!  I truly, truly do!  There is still so much creating to be done...

 

With that said, keep on making your own colorful messes!  And please share them with me! 

 

 

Live Artfully,

J

Still Keep'in it FRESH!

I have certainly been keep'in it fresh!  And I am rather enjoying it!  I am in love with painting birds lately....and dots....LOTS OF DOTS!  Below are some of my new paintings....And last....registration for my art camp in Winter Park, FL will open on May 21st!  I am currently in the middle of wrapping up the four projects we will be doing this year and I can not wait to show them to the students this year!  Since registration opens on Monday I will post all of the projects we are doing on Monday!  Last....I hope all of you moms out there had a FABULOUS Mother's Day!!!

Till next time...be calm.  Be strong.  Be grateful.

Jennifer



Peaches and Cream

18x18

acrylic on canvas

The Spirited Escape

20x30

acrylic on canvas

Sweet Peony

18x18

acrylic on canvas

The Herbaceous Elephant

16x16

acrylic on canvas

Keep'in it fresh!

Well folks I can't believe it has been since October of last year that I have actually posted!  WOW time flys!  I have to say....it is not like I fell off the earth or anything...I have simply been working!  And now April is almost here....we are going to blink and summer will be here....then school will start all over again. 

I have been creating so much that it is hard for me to "capture" all that I am doing.  Things are spinning way too fast needless to say!  But hey...that can totally be a good thing!

Below are some of the canvases that I have created recently...

Having New Eyes...

36 x 48

Acrylic on Canvas

This was a commissioned piece...I had no idea what

I wanted to create...or was not 100% sure what the client

wanted....but thank God she LOVED it!

Garden of Wishes

24 x 48

Acrylic on Canvas

Soul Searcher

24 x 48

Acrylic on Canvas

Bloom

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

Find your Happy Place

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

Flourish

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

Love Who you Are

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

Release

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

You are beautiful

22 x 30

Acrylic on Canvas

This is my home studio!  Half art studio/office space for me....

the other half we use as our playroom for our four girls.  We truly

love the space that we have now!  May will be a year since we moved

into our new house and honestly....we love it! 

We don't miss our old house at all!

Here is a fun painting of the Eiffel Tower

that I was commissioned to create for a girl named Lizzie!

This is me trying new things in Picasa with my photos....

And here is another one...interesting huh???

Needless to say I have been having a ton of fun lately creating!  Quite honestly, I always do.  Am I being consistent with my creations???  Not really....  Do I have to be?  Quite honestly, I LOVE trying new things, new techniques.  When I am in the zone, I am IN THE ZONE!  And I think that is why some of my art can go in so many different directions.  

Well - I hope I have fed you enough hope, inspiration and freshness for one day!  Maybe a week or so.  I am off to Decatur, GA tomorrow with my girls!  It is Spring Break for them and I am taking them to visit some of their school friends that moved there over the summer! 

Till next time, be calm. be strong. be grateful.

Live Artfully,

Jennifer

  

New Magnets are Available!

Whew!  I was finally able to get my new magnets up in my Etsy shop today!  I am really liking them!  They are larger in size (3.5 x 3.5) so you can get a great look at the actual artwork on them. All of the magnets feature artwork from my newest collection.  They are bright, fun and make GREAT gifts for the holidays this year...perfect stocking stuffers too!

Be sure to check out my new magnets in

my Etsy shop!

  

I was part of an event at Artistree this weekend, the co-op

here in College Park and I decided to make lots of gift items this time around.

In the above photo you can see some 10x10 mirrors that I created, my

new magnets, some jewelry trays along with some new 6x6 prints on wood

that I am making for the holidays!

Here are two of the 10x10 mirrors upclose...

Here are the 4 small jewelry/coin trays that I made...perfect for gift giving...

These are one-of-a-kind.  I sold two of them over the weekend...

This is my favorite of the 10x10 mirrors that I created!

All of the mirrors are currently for sale and are hanging in Artistree!

If anyone wants one of them please let me know!  I can go

grab them and add them to my Etsy shop!



The mirrors were lots of fun to do.  Every time I create some new I am amazed at how much more I can use my art in all of the items I create!  I love the idea of taking art that I have already created and transforming it onto different mediums and "ripping it apart" basically and only using part of it, etc.  The concept opens up so many new doors in the creative process and it keeps the journey exciting!

Till next time...Be calm.  Be strong.  Be grateful!

Live Artfully,
Jennifer

My 2012 Calendar is here!

Yes!  The 2 mini clips and the mini metal wire hanger

come with the calendar....it is so easy to hang!

The calendar images make GREAT prints

after a month is over!  These mini 5x5

prints will make great gifts year round!

2012 Calendar Cover Page

I picked May as the month to showcase a

close up of...after all, it is MY birthday month!



Hello everyone!  I have been quite busy creating....not at my art table though!  I have actually been at my desk for a change...but looking at my art non-stop!  I have finally finished the creative process for my first calendar!  I just love it and I hope you will too!  I just uploaded it to my Etsy shop!  WOOHOO!!!  Click here to purchase the calendar!

I have lots of other creative items in the works for you too!  I typically think outside the box more so than ever when the holidays roll around since I like to offer simple, inexpensive, creative gift giving items.  And yes...my calendar is one of them!  You see, once a month is over, the image on a sheet can be trimmed and put into a 5x5 frame!  Perfect for gift giving year round!  And, the selection of art that I chose to feature in my 2012 calendar is my from my newest collection!  Another WOOHOO! 

Last, I am sorry that I do not blog more than I create!  Once I get a creative project going...which is usually more than one at a time, that is all I think about!

I promise to post as soon as I get more creative time in for the other gift items I am making!

Till next time...Be calm.  Be strong.  Be grateful.

Live Artfully,
Jennifer

A Fresh Approach to Art



"City Life" (my new favorite!)

22x30, acrylic on canvas

I have thoroughly been enjoying art lately!  I thought I truly lived by the rule of being fearless...but after the last two weeks...I really was not being as fearless as I thought I was!  I have approached art so differently these last two weeks and have truly had a blast creating!  I have been using lots of Gesso, tracing paper, handmade papers, glitter paint, old credit cards and lots and lots of splatters of course!  I have been creating subjects that I would have never thought I would create.  I have slowed down.  I am no longer in a rush to finish a piece like I have been in the past.  The last three years have been a whirlwind for me since I practically sold everything right off the art table which left me scrambling to create, create, create!  I am learning now that it is okay to slow down.  That it is okay to start a painting and come back to it later due to either drying time in-between coats of paint or glue or just plain old..."I am not sure what I want to add there".  I am letting my canvases evolve as I create them instead of just mapping everything out first.  One never knows where a painting is going to end up.  No one knows the painting's journey before it takes its first step.  We all have intentions of course, but it is the excitement of seeing color dripping over another and seeing where the drips actually take you.  Rather, where the drips take the painting.  It is a whole new look at creating art!  I was fearless in the past when it came to outlining my subjects in a rough manner, using bold colors, the way I used a palette knife, drips, drips and more drips...but this time, it feels different.  It feels good.  Really good.  I feel like my style is evolving more and more and I am able to pinpoint what I really like in art in general.  A mix.  A mix of abstractness or chaos, a portion of it involving something specific (a subject) and art that provides a child-like feeling.  Vibrant colors are a must!  I am enjoying every minute of the creative process!  Can you tell?!?!?  

"City of Color" and "City Life"

Both 22x30, acrylic on canvas

"The Pink Panda" and "Hold on to Love"

Both 18x18, acrylic on canvas

"Balloons over the Serengeti"

18x18, acrylic on canvas

"Let's Ride"

16x16, acrylic on canvas

"Let's Play"

16x16, acrylic on canvas

In addition to me approaching art differently, today is the last day of the first week of school! So far, school has been a success. The only difference is that since we moved, our girls have to practically leave the house at the same time as when they had to wake up last year when living in our old house. For starters, our oldest is a patrol this year and that alone means they need to arrive earlier. The second reason is that we live a little bit farther from the school now and traffic has been quite inconsistent! Below is a snapshot of them on the first day of school this year...of course, baby Curran cannot go to school just yet! She was sad to see her sisters off for six and a half hours a day now as she has no one to play with anymore! Just look at the attitude on her face!

Well I am off for now!  I created some new bookmark designs last night along with some new magnet designs and I need to get them into our local Co-op today! 

Till next time...Be calm.  Be strong.  Be grateful.

Live Artfully,

Jennifer



Fresh off the Art Table!

"Hold onto Love" (my new favorite!)

18x18 acrylic on canvas

"City of Color"

22x30 acrylic on canvas

"Afternoon Stroll"

18x18 acrylic on canvas



I have definitely been in full swing paint mode lately!  Feels GREAT!!!!  Yes, the girls go back to school in a little over a week now but I had to get back in paint mode due to low inventory levels...either way, they are letting me get some work done and I am really enjoying the new art that is coming out of the studio!  I have at least another 20 paintings to complete over the next month or so...I guess I better get back to work then huh?!?!?

I promise to elaborate more in my posts when I have more time...for now I am keeping them simple and sharing my new creations.  I hope you are enjoying them!

Till next time - Be calm.  Be strong.  Be grateful.

Live Artfully,
JM