About New Years Resolutions

First of all, let me just say thanks to my 23 followers for not dropping my poor neglected blog like a hot rock. It's been a little boring around here, to say the least. You see, my life has been so hectic that I figured I could either hang on for the ride, or stop to write about it. As you can probably tell, hanging on for the ride won out.

Which brings me to the topic of resolutions. I have decided not to call them resolutions this year. There is just something about that word that is a little, umm....pressure inducing. You see, I've never been any good at keeping resolutions. Oh, I make them. Every year. The same ones, over and over again. There is nothing imaginative about my resolutions either. Lose weight, exercise more, get organized, blah...blah...blah.

So, I have decided that the problem might be with that word, "resolution". I mean, who really uses that term anyway, except at this time of year? I prefer the term "annual goals". (That might have something to do with my background as a special educator. My paperwork is full of annual goals, and there is no option to blow them off, either.)

Through my etsy shop I have found a camaraderie with a group of ladies, most of whom are within a few years of my age. We share artsy tips and techniques, but also chatter about our similar personal experiences and interests. We confide our joy, our fears, our triumphs, and our disappointments. We laugh, cry, and pray together. I've met these wonderful people through the world wide web, and have frequently struggled to come up with a term that accurately defines my relationship with them. I've called them e-friends, virtual friends, and cyber-buddies. There was just something about these terms, though, that didn't sit quite right with me. It occurred to me recently that I don't have to make a distinction between these ladies and my local friends. They are, quite simply, my friends, and I am truly blessed to have them in my life.
So, my first goal is to make a point of coming here to my blog at least once each week to chat with my friends.

Now, about my second goal. I have it in my head, but I think I'll wait and tell you about it next week. Stay tuned! :-)

Check Out This New Snarkalicious Christmas Card!

This is my newest digital collage greeting card, just in time to start planning for the Christmas season! I used an exquisite background from the very talented artist Debrina Pratt's "Land of Enchantment!" Debrina's work is a feast for the eyes and the imagination! Pop over and visit her Etsy shop here!

Mixed Media/Collage Art from the Etsy Melange Team!

Thought you might want to see this fabulous slideshow created by my friend Glenda. It features a beautiful array of artwork created by Etsy Melange Team Members. My first successful image transfer is included in it! Thanks Glenda!

Just a Little Flighty

I created this digital collage in response to a challenge presented by my fellow mixed media/collage friends to create a piece of art based on the word, "flight". You know, sometimes people refer to a person as flighty and don't necessarily intend that as a complimentary term. However, according to Princeton University (and those guys are pretty smart!) the word "flighty" is defined as "guided by whim or fancy". I kind of like the sound of that. So...from now on, if someone calls me flighty, I'm going to take it as a compliment.

To purchase this or any of my other cards, click here, and go to Serendipity Collections!

Find J. B. Guess at Serendipity Collections!



I am just absolutely delighted to tell you that my dear friend Jana has graciously set aside a section of her fabulous site, SerendipityCollections.com, to showcase my work! I hope you'll all drop by and browse her site. She has the most unique gift items I've ever seen, and her customer service is second to none!

Jana, you are the best!!


Fairy Tale Tattler: Beauty's Sleepless Nights!

The latest edition of Fairy Tale Tattler has the inside scoop on that famous sleeping beauty, Aurora. After her hunky prince of a husband awakened her with true love's kiss, it seems that the princess was not content simply to live happily ever after in the lap of luxury. Never one to shy away from manual labor, Aurora set herself to work clearing the grounds of the underbrush which had overtaken the grounds of the palace during her one hundred year nap. She did not stop to consider the possibility that a cup of strong coffee might be a good way to begin this industrious project, especially after such a sound snooze.

Unfortunately, lacking the valuable "manual dexterity" and "common sense" genes, our fair princess pricked her finger again, this time on the thorny vines surrounding the palace. Her cries of pain could be heard throughout the kingdom as Aurora dropped her pruning shears and dashed off to the palace walk-in clinic, terrified of falling into yet another multi-year slumber.
Interestingly enough, however, the palace doctor found that Aurora's body had acquired an extreme immunity against future finger-pricking episodes. The frustrating result of this immunity is one hundred years of sleepless days and nights!

In an attempt to pass the time, Aurora has been hard at work developing a new line of designer garden gloves. In order to ensure that the gloves live up to the "pierce-proof" guarantee, she has hired an elite squad of seamstresses to spin the fibers tightly on custom designed high-tech spinning wheels.

In her efforts to catch a nap, poor Aurora has tried every possible sleep-inducing remedy, including warm milk, hot baths, Ambien, melatonin, and C-SPAN reruns. She even purchased a herd of Serta counting sheep, who are reportedly happy and relieved to be working full time on the palace staff. So far, it seems that the only option left for Aurora is simply to wait. She is becoming increasingly irritable, demanding that the prince stay awake and keep her company. One of the sheep, speaking on the condition of anonymity, related that the prince sneaks out of the palace on occasional afternoons, catching a few winks in the sheep quarters while they cover for him by entertaining the princess with their ballroom dancing routines. We can only hope that the royal marriage is strong enough to withstand this tragic turn of events.

We’ll keep you posted!

My Sister, "The Stories", and Kool-aid Gate

I have the best sister in the world. We are neighbors, co-workers, and life-long friends. She has and always has had the patience of Job. I say this because, well, I have a tendency to be a little on the spontaneous side, and have always had quite the flair for the dramatic. I've always told her that I count on her to keep me reined in, and she always comes through for me.

I remember my sister very rarely getting into trouble when we were growing up, and there's a simple reason for this. She just didn't mess up all that often. ME, on the other hand....well, let's just say I was probably one of those kids. You know them. They are the ones whose parents say, "If I'd had you first, you would have been an only child!" My parents never said anything like that to me. I don't know that they ever even thought it. I only know that if I'd been the one raising me, I definitely would have thought it, and probably would have said it!

I could tell stories for days about the shenanigans that went on around our house when we were growing up, but I'll just start with this one for now. People called us the Cleavers, except that my Mother did draw the line at house-cleaning in high heels while wearing a string of pearls. We were a family who always sat down for dinner together every evening. Meals were always home-cooked, and well-balanced.

We generally drank Kool-aid with our meals, and it was my sister's job to make and pour it. Every day, without hesitation, she would get herself into the kitchen to get that Kool-aid mixed up and poured. Every day. She also would pour just a little bit more Kool-aid in her glass than in mine. Me, with my finely-tuned subtle nuances, would screech and howl at the top of my lungs, "You got more Kool-aid than I did!!!!!" , to which she would reply, "Oh, I'll fix it". She then would proceed to drink the excess Kool-aid, savoring every extra drop! This always guaranteed an additional screech.

So...this was our routine. Kool-aid mixed, poured, screech, drink, screech again. We had ourselves a nice little system, UNTIL that infamous day when I was visiting with my grandmother. She loved to watch the soap operas. "The stories" is what she called them, and her favorite was "The Doctors". I noticed that, at least once during each episode, a righteously indignant woman would haul off and slap the dickens out of somebody. Sometimes it was a woman, sometimes it was a man. That part wasn't important. What WAS important was the reaction. The person being slapped, the slap-ee, if you will, always responded with a look of shocked horror, gasping and holding his or her cheek, followed by the screen immediately fading to black.

Hmmmm. I was fascinated by that sequence. Indignant slap, shocked gasp emitted by slap-ee, slap-ee holds cheek, fade to black. I loved it!!! Never being one to shy away from a little bit of creative experimentation, I was anxious for the opportunity to give this scenario a try myself. Of course I didn't have to wait long, because it was almost time for dinner, and, if you've been paying attention, you know what happens right before dinner. Yes.... none other than Kool-aid-Gate. I could not wait to finally see the wheels of justice turn and end this travesty forever. Just as predicted, my sister poured the Kool-aid into the glasses, and , of course, her glass had more. I screeched on cue, she drank the excess Kool-aid, and I followed through with a quick but very noisy backhand right across her cheek. She didn't skip a beat. She didn't bat an eye. What she DID do, was return the favor right across my cheek! If my memory serves me correctly, I believe the exact sequence went something like this, indignant slap, slap-ee (me!) emits shocked gasp, slap-ee (me!) holds cheek, fade to black, screech (again by me).

I'll never forget my mother's response. She never looked up, just said, "I'll bet you never slap your sister again".

And I didn't.

Buddies

We look a family vacation to Gulf Shores over the past New Year's holiday. My two year old great nephew was a little put off by the sand on his bare feet, so we went to the nearby Walmart and bought him a pair of bright yellow Sponge Bob sandals. He loved them but was still afraid of walking on the sand. My Dad managed to coax him down the stairs of our beach rental; when he realized he could walk on the beach with his Paw-Paw without getting sand on his feet, he was one happy camper! My son took a photo of the two of them headed off to the beach. I think this photo is priceless.


Quality Time!



Thanks for the walk, Paw-Paw!

This Says It All! Please read.

Hope everyone had a wonderful July 4th weekend. For those of you who read my blog regularly, you know I generally just chat about my art explorations. However, today I just felt led to share this post with you. I am not going to even attempt to add my own editorial comments, because this young man has said it all so well. Hope you'll take a few minutes to read his post.
http://www.yearnforgod.org/2009/06/why-i-am-not-preaching-god-and-country.html

Illustration Friday Topic June 26- Worn!

When I saw this week's topic, I knew exactly what I wanted to contribute! These shoes obviously have quite a few miles on them. In my imagination they are a favorite pair, and have carried this young child on many a lively adventure! This is an original acrylic painting. I have prints of this painting available for sale in my Etsy shop.

New Digital Collages. These are Snarkalicious!

Well, I have stayed up way too late tonight. But, I had a couple of collages rattling around inside my brain, and they wouldn't let me rest until I released them! These are a little on the snarky side. Hope they make somebody smile!

Premio Meme Award!

I am so thrilled that my friend and fellow artist, Marlene of Marlene's Musings
honored me with the Premio Meme Award! This is my first award, so it is especially meaningful! The rules associated with this award are that I am to write seven little-known facts about myself, and then pass this award to seven of my fellow bloggers.

So....seven facts about myself. Here goes:

1-My grandmother, (my Dad's mom) was named Doris, but she was always Meme to me and my sister. So, this award really reminds me of her.

2-I have three dogs. Yes, three. AND...all of them live inside my house. The only one I bought was a white American Eskie mix, and I bought her from an animal shelter. The other two are purebreeds (pekingese and Japanese Chin); both were given to us by their previous owners, who could no longer care for them.

3-I am a huge fan of Dancing with the Stars. I harbor a secret desire to learn how to ballroom dance. (If Marie Osmond can do it, so can I!) I want to take lessons, but can find no one who is willing to take them with me.

4-I hate reality television, even American Idol. I have never watched American Idol. (No, Dancing with the Stars is NOT reality television, no matter what people may tell you.)

5-I have chronic insomnia....which is a problem, because there is nothing on television in the middle of the night except reruns of reality television, women giving birth on the discovery channel, and infomercials. (...Although I was persuaded to buy one of those Shark steam cleaners after seeing some lady demonstrating one in the middle of the night).

6-I love my Shark steam cleaner! It works great; but, if you get one, don't use the concentrator nozzle too close to the base of your toilet. I discovered this the hard way after I melted the wax ring under mine, which, in turn, caused a little leakage problem until the wax cooled off.

7-I once installed a toilet. It was just as gross and disgusting as you can imagine, especially that part where you have to scrape off the old wax ring residue. Ick. I plan to never do it again. But, now I know I can. I am woman. Hear me roar.

Okay, so that is a little bit of info about me that you probably didn't know and maybe even could have done without! Now I'm going to bestow the Premio Meme Award on the following bloggers. Hope you'll stop by and visit with them, too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,
Jessie

What Rose Made Today

Linda Donnelly Photography & Art Cards

Heather's Sun Dappled Nest

Pam's Always Artistic Blog

Carole's Art Plus

Kathy at Tapestry 316

Renee at Fauve Studio

Tribute To My Dad, King Of The World

I'm grateful to have the opportunity today to tell my Dad just how much he means to me.

We have always joked that our family has the unique tendency to break into song and dance at every available opportunity. Most every conversation reminds at least one of us of a song, which leads to a loud and raucous rendition of whatever song happens to pop into our minds. This generally results in an eye-rolling observation by my oldest son that we have got to be the "singing-est" family he's ever seen.

We have a family tradition of watching the Capitol Fourth concert every year at the 4th of July. Never does a year go by without taking a spin with Daddy to that magnificent music. When I was a little girl I always danced on his feet; in recent years, however, I have tried to avoid stepping on Dad's feet since that could possibly put him out of dancing commission for some time.

Genetics has done its work well, as the newest members of our family also have the music in them. The closing credits of the movie "Madagascar" are currently most likely to create a desire to "move it, move it!" in Amelia and Thomas J.

Daddy has stepped up to the plate and gone far above and beyond the call of duty as a father and as a grandfather. Try as I might, I can't come up with words appropriate to tell him how much he means to all of us.

It happened that my niece (Amelia's mother) showed me the sweetest little book, called "Dance Me, Daddy", that she had bought as a Father's Day gift for her hubby. It's based on the Point of Grace song called "King of the World". The song just smacked me right in the face with a rush of wonderful memories. It defines my childhood and my father's relationship with my sister and me.

We love you, Dad. Happy Father's Day!

Proverbs 24: 3-5

"Theres nothing better than being your girl and if I am your princess
then Daddy you are the king of the world."

Digital Collage Snow White Let Herself Go!

I've never been one to leave the poor fairy tale characters alone. I'm once again on poor Snow White's case, this time for getting a tad too comfy in the dwarf's woodland home. Looks like she might be still hitting the juice a little too frequently.

Yet Another New Passion! Digital Collage

I have found a new love! This one I plan to keep around for a while, though. It's digital collage, and I have been having a blast with it! I am fortunate to be a member of a fabulous flickr group, which gives me access to these exquisite images. I imported the images into my trusty little Photoshop elements program, and just let my imagination take care of the rest! These are among the first two digital collages I've created. I printed these out onto clear transparency film and slapped them into a black frame with no back. I must tell you I am very happy with the final result.

One of the great things about digital collage is that it doesn't take a plethora of "stuff" to create. Artsy "stuff" has a tendency to take over my house, so this is a huge advantage for me.

A Memorial Day Tribute

"America, America, God shed his grace on thee. And crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea".

Our country isn't perfect. We are going through some scary times. We all have the right to voice our concerns. But, let us never forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that we continue to have the freedom of speech. So many peoople around the world don't. May we never take our country for granted. God bless America, God bless our troops, and God bless the families who live with personal loss.

Altered Altoid Tins

I am quickly discovering that most everything can be repurposed in some way. I had a great time creating these little shadow boxes using old altoid tins. Now I have only one problem. I don't eat Altoids! So now I am resorting to begging my friends and family to save their tins for me. This is what I've created so far. Now I just need to wait for someone to finish off a tin.

Everything Nice: 3D assemblage Confection

This is yet another learning stretch for me, and one of my new favorites! I experimented with a variety of mediums and techniques before hitting on one that I liked. This cupcake is actually made from a fabulous product called "Great Stuff" crack filler. Hmmmm. Strange name, but the stuff really makes a realistic-looking cupcake! I frosted it with modeling paste that I squeezed through a ziplock bag. After painting the cupcake and embellishing it with all kinds of sparkly doo-dads, I topped it off with this adorable vintage image. I've had such a good time experimenting with altered art techniques. Check out more assemblage and collage creations at http://www.flickr.com/photos/25371157@N08/

What We've Been Up to!

Wow! These past few months have been so busy and the time has just flown! I thought I would post a quick note to show a few things that my family and I have been working on.
Initial pendants have been going like hot cakes locally. These are just a few of my designs:


I also have had some great opportunities to design and create pendants for school and sports groups. Some of these have been for fundraisers, but I also get lots of requests for custom designs with athlete's numbers or band instruments.

One of my best selling items has been personalized photo pendants! Grandmothers love wearing photos of their grandchildren for all the world to see!

I'll update shortly with more images of new products, so check back soon!