The Sweet Spot In Your Life

Can you remember that sweet spot in your life? When you had no worries and no one to answer to? I love my husband and my daughter to death and wouldn't change it for the world. Without them in my life it would be a big heap of boringness and loneliness. Although after yesterday having a power struggle with my 2 year old (all day long) made me think about how I wish I held onto that sweet spot just a little bit longer.

There was a short window of time in my adult life where I wasn't in a relationship with anyone and I wasn't working but still living with my family rent free. I was working but I worked for the school system and I had the summer off. I had just broken up with my boyfriend of 6 years and was feeling free for the first time. Funny part is, he initiated the break up. So after the crying and depression went away I thought to myself "Why the heck didn't I end this sooner"?  I was in college and taking all my fun classes. Painting 101 and Ceramics. I would go to school early in the morning for my core classes and then I would go to the gym and walk on the treadmill. Then I would be off to the painting room or ceramics room to just relax and do what I loved. No one was having classes at that time of day so it would always be just me and one other person. A lot of times my art teacher.  I loved being around like minded people and the smell of the paint in the room. The coldness of the room and the "Enya" music playing in the background. Or "Abba" if my friend Missy was with me.  I think we were the only ones who enjoyed listening to it. Anyway, I also loved the smell of the ceramics room and the quietness of it. I would stay at school and work until my heart's content and go home whenever I wanted. My parents never worried too much about me. I was never the one to go out and get myself into trouble. Anwho, that was a short period in my life where everything was just perfect. No stress and no one to answer to. Just me and my paintbrushes.

When was the sweet spot in your life? I would love to hear it!

Photo provided by: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=2125

New Pieces and New Paper!

Hello everyone! I've been super busy now that I'm back home in Georgia. I've been working on my paper cut art since there is absolutely no room here to paint. I sold my first paper cut art last week! This is the one I sold....

So I just got my new paper made for silhouette art. It's hygloss silhouette paper that wont fade. It's also a lot easier on my hands! Here are some new pieces I have made. The swinging girl is listed on my Etsy site. http://www.thesketchyeasel.etsy.com/.

I also have a zibbet shop at

http://www.zibbet.com/TheSketchyEasel . I was a featured seller. You can read my interview here. Also I will be apart of the Z BOX. It a box you can buy with a bunch of samples from Zibbet sellers.

Do you have nay ideas as to what you would like to see in papercut art? What do you think would sell well? I would love some outside advice! Cheers!

Moving and Sales

It's been a while but I've had a busy week. We just moved back to Georgia and I've been making some sales in my Etsy shop! I've sold one of everything I believe. Of course the day before we move I get an order to do a custom portrait drawing to ship to Australia! No worries though, I finished it that day and mailed it out the day we left. I'm pretty quick with a pencil! I was excited to sell my "Alice In Wonderland" Papercut art last night. I got all the packaging supplies together and now it's ready to ship out tomorrow. I'm getting some special silhouette paper in the mail so it should be easier to cut. Also, I have figured out how to make envelopes for my greeting cards! You get the choice of having the print on the outside or inside of the envelope. You dont get to pick the print, but I do coordinate the print to your card and you get different designs, not just one! Well, I hope everyone has a fab. rest of the week!

Ashley

My Pet Peeve - Bullying and Changing Yourself For Others

Growing up my biggest pet peeve was watching some of my closest friends change. Not in general, but for other people.  I never understood it and it drove me crazy.  I was close friends with this girl, we'll call her Rachel, who would always talk about wanting to be popular. Rachel and I became friends in middle school and we had a group of friends that we would have sleepovers with and always had a blast together. Though we had fun, we would always bump heads. When we got into high school, she made some new friends and "finally" made the cheerleading squad (for JV Basketball). So from then on we no longer spoke. I'm not saying I never changed. I have but within my own person. Not for anyone. For example,  my husband smokes. We have been together for 4 years and I have never even tried to smoke. Most couples you hear like this, they both end up smokers. I have kept the same friends throughout mylifetime.  I have become friends with some "popular" people at a few points in my life but never on a "hang out" basis. I don't see myself as being too different than what I used to be. Here is a perfect example of a situation I experienced in middle school that both represents bullying and changing for others. It happened right before my very eyes and in an instant I lost a best friend. (We will call her Kelly in this story).

I had a best friend named Kelly in middle school. We we're always together and loved eachother's company. We especially loved Hanson...the boy band? You know, MMmmBop? Anyway, this was our common love.  Well, Kelly had a birthday (I think it was a birthday I don't remember) and she invited me and two other friends from her previous school to her house for a sleepover. As soon as these girls came over I was the 4th wheel and I didn't find them amusing at all. As soon as they went into her room they ripped down all of her Hanson posters without even asking and started putting up Leonardo DiCaprio posters (This was back when Titanic first came out) and told her how Hanson was stupid or whatever. I looked at her like "Are you going to let them do this to you"?? Well, she did. These girls were that overbaring, bubbily, snobby type. They were very mean to me. They ignored me a lot. That night they thought it would be funny to pretend to be strippers (This is 6th or 7th grade keep in mind). So they strippped down to their underwear and started dancing on a stuffed bear. I just sat there in disbelief. This is when I should have called my parents. When it was finally time to go to bed us three girls were sleeping in sleeping bags on the floor while Kelly had her bed. Well, the other girls thought it would be funny to leave me alone and hop into bed with Kelly. I was so hurt from the whole day I tried to call my parents on the phone. It was so late I don't think they heard it.  I was so miserable and felt so alone I wanted to go home so badly.  I remember waking up in the morning and Kelly's mom could tell something was wrong with me. I don't remember if I told anyone at her house because I was just so ready for my mom to get me.  I never got an apology from Kelly, I don't think. If I did it was sometime in high school and  not very heartfelt. She became one of them to say the least. 

Although this was a bad situation it allowed me to never put myself in that situation again...on purpose. I went to a couple of birthday parties where the girl was "popular" and there were boys and girls there.  It just didn't feel right to me and it felt  more grown up than I was ready for. I enjoyed my group of girlfriends where we had fun sleepovers and talked about boys and would just laugh all the time. I was blessed to have several groups of friends growing up. These groups of friends made my middle school experience a blast overall.

Working in After School for years I also see bullying on the outside. I am a huge advocate for children being bullied or made fun of. Sometimes I get too passionate which can come accross as mad so I would have to keep myself in check. I am not afraid to stick up for someone who is being bullied. Are you?

Any of you been through a situation of bullying?




Photo By: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=982

Greeting Cards and Tags Whoo hoo!

Ok, so I got my first sale a few days ago.  The buyer who was incredibly helpful and to be quite honest put my butt into gear on making my artwork into cards. I had bought cardstock a while back to attempt to make cards but never got around to it. So here I am now making some swesome cards and tags.  I'm selling them on my Etsy shop at http://www.thesketchyeasel.etsy.com/.  I made some more silhouette cut out art also!  Loving it!  I can't wait to do a craft show, I think they will do well, especially the cards. Check it out!

The following pictures are of my new cut outs! 

The Witch's Cabinet 

 Cinderella

 The Nightmare Before Christmas

Some more of my cutting abilities...or lack there of?

OK, so I've gone nuts with the cutting art.  Ideas are just flowing. I have been doing my daily devotions for over a month now and I truely believe God planted this artform in my head. Before I had never had a second thought about cutting art...probably not even a first thought. I prayed about where he wanted me to go with my art for a while.  I want to use the gift He has given me the way He wants me to use it.  I know I'm not fantastic with it, but I know with some practice (and a better knife) I will get better. So for now while I'm practicing, I'm having fun. Take a peek at what I've accomplished thus far!

Right now I'm working on a Cinderella piece I'm on the fence about. I think I have to finish it before I can judge what I think about it. 

Feel free to leave comments on what you think!  Productive criticism is always welcome!

My First Attempt At The Art Of Cutting

So this was my first attempt at the art of cutting.  I absolutely love this.  I'm usually very critical of my work, but I just can't get over how well this turned out. It took me about 5 hours to complete. I drew it up the night before and cut most of the day yesterday.  Let me tell you it took a toll on my hand.  Cutting cardstock is tough, but it's durable.  I think this my become my new obsession.

Now, what to do next.  Mucha inspired perhaps? I already have something drawn out I was going to paint. It will look cool cut out. So let's give it a go!  Off to cut!