Day of the Dead GIVEAWAY

Watch the video to see the rules of the giveaway for your chance to win a Lynda original! :)

Woohoo for awards!

Hello my dear friends :) How are you doing? Hopefully well. My first exhibit in San Francisco went very well. I got a ton of good feedback and sold one of my pieces. I absolutely loved watching peoples reactions to my work. The whole thing was so surreal to me, but in a very beautiful way. It was an out of the body experience. I had to take a step back and tell myself that yes, you really have made it this far. Yes, people really do like your stuff...and most of all, yes, you can be still and enjoy this moment. Words just can't explain how unbelievably lucky and blessed I feel. I will never forget my first exhibit/gallery experience.

Now for the upcoming exhibit. I dropped the paintings off with the Sun Gallery in Hayward weekend before last. It's a HUGE gallery and the people there are very nice. I have really enjoyed working with them so far. I am reading and signing the contract tonight which is huge. It's my first contract and is one of those slap-you-in-the-face, your-dream-is-really-happening moments. Feels really good :) So, if you are in Hayward Ca from Oct 30th- Nov. 21st, stop by the Sun Gallery and see my work, along with other Day of the Dead pieces.

I will be posting videos of both exhibiting experiences as well as a giveaway very soon. You can find my videos here. As for the giveaway, I will be giving away an original day of the dead painting that measures 4 inches x 4 inches. If you are interested, let me know and I will enter your name into the drawing!

Last but not least the lovely Tanya Watts has bestowed upon me the awesome blog award that you see above. However, the award comes with rules which are:

1 Thank the person who gave you the award - Thanks again Tanya :)

2 Copy the logo and place it in your blog. - see the logo above

3 Link the person who nominated you. - linked with her name above

4 Name 7 things about yourself that no one would really know.

* I would wear pajama pants all day if I could
* I love photography and pretend to be a photographer in my spare time
* I have over 5,000 songs in my possession
* I have two bathrooms, and I prefer to use the one by my bedroom
* I absolutely LOVE ghost shows and books
* I am slightly obsessed with books and magazines about art
* I hug animals like I would hug a person

5. Nominate 7 "Kreative Bloggers".

I highly suggest checking out these blogs. These ladies are wonderful and extremely talented :)

* Willowing
* Rhomany
* Sanda
* Valerie
* Wyanne
* April (aka Apple :)
* Suzan

6 Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate - links are their names

7 Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know your nominated them.

THE END :)

Quick Update

I know I have been slacking in the blogosphere lately. My apologies to all of you beautiful bloggers :) The reason I haven't been around is because I have been extremely busy. A local Gallery is considering my work and on top of that, there are two exhibits this month that will be featuring my work. The first one is this weekend in San Francisco at the Live Worms Gallery and the next exhibit will be at The Sun Gallery in Hayward from October 30th - November 21st. The Live Worms Gallery will exhibit 4 of my prints and 1 original. The Sun Gallery will exhibit up to 6 of my original Day of the Dead paintings. The prints and original are ready for this weekend but I have to finish painting the sign. I have completed 4 out of 6 sketches on canvas for the Sun Gallery. I am hoping to finish all of my sketching today so that I will be able to paint by tomorrow. I am waiting for my frames to be shipped (which is making me a nervous wreck). As for the school thing, It is still in the back of my mind, but at this point on the back burner. Since I have really been mostly concentrating on quick sketches, that is all that I have for this post. The sketch above is not for any gallery or exhibit, it is of complete personal nature. I hope you enjoy it...and don't worry....I am still all mentally here, lol :) I may not write for a while depending on the chaos level but I promise to write as soon as I can. Best of luck to you and take care.

What Would You Do?

Happy Saturday everyone! Today I would like to talk about how I have been feeling and what I have been going through. For the past week I have applied to as many Craigslist ads on art as I could and have not received even one single email back. I have also spent the past week looking and applying for Medical Assisting jobs. Why Medical Assisting? Because that is what I went to college for, and because it pays better than Caregiving. However, there are not many Medical Assisting jobs available where I live and again, hardly got a response. I got one email and was soooo excited until I opened it and read, "We just wanted to let you know that you have NOT been chosen for an interview". Aw, how sweet. Thanks for such a beautiful rejection, lol. Still, at least they wrote me back! Needless to say, I have been more than a little frustrated and disappointed. It seems as if I just can't win. I can't get a job for what I went to College for and I can't get a job in the Medical field. You know the economy has to be bad when there are hardly any Medical jobs.

So, in my frustrated state, I decided to do a little research about the job market. I wanted to compare art related jobs to Medical Assisting. This is what I found out:

1) In my area, there are only a tiny amount of MA jobs available.

2) The number of art related jobs far outweigh the number of MA jobs.

3) Graphic Designers are the #1 demand right now in the art market

4) Graphic Designers get paid twice as much as MA's, and Graphic Illustrators get paid even more (up to $100 k a year!)

Now, I have gone to school for everything. In fact, I am almost positive that my family thinks of me as a professional student. Do I want to be a professional student? Nope. Do I want to disappoint my family? Hell no. Do I want a career doing something that I love? Absolutely. I have done bartending (Can't work at night as I am a parent), Real Estate (I got into the market just as it crashed) and Medical Assisting. I have the absolute worst luck when it comes to work. I have worked at 9 places that have all gone out of business, lol. There should be a World Record for this. These facts don't help me succeed but I continue to push forward anyway.

Okay, those are the facts. Now, my feelings. I do not want to spend my life in a job that I can't stand. I am just not one of those people. I have tried but I always seem to jinx the company anyway, lol. I have wanted to learn to do digital art for a long time now but can't seem to figure it out on my own. My mom and I have talked about taking a Photoshop class. But then, the other day I found a school that is online where you can get your Bachelor Degree in Graphic Design or Graphic Illustration. People that have hired graduates of this school are huge companies such as Pixar, Dreamworks, Disney, Apple, Microsoft, etc. I understand that the reality of getting one of those dream jobs is rare, but still....it is a dream. Even if I couldn't get one of those jobs, the demand for Graphic Design is so great that I am almost certain I could get a job somewhere.

I really want to do it, but I am scared. Scared that I won't be good at it, that I will jinx the job market again, scared that my family will make fun of me, scared of the debt that I will attain, that it won't be a reliable source of income, etc. Fear aside, I am mostly angry. Angry at the job market, people's inability to write you back, and angry at myself for not figuring this out sooner.

If I had figured this out sooner, I would do it. This is what I know for sure:

1) I have to do something creative in my work

2) I have to support my family

3) I do NOT want to do caregiving forever (don't get me wrong, there are aspects of this job that are very rewarding)

4) I know that while my art is not the best, it is definitely not the worst

So, my dear bloggers.....what are your thoughts? I reach out to you because you are supportive, understanding, and most importanly, unbiased. Thank you for reading this novel, lol.

Things I have learned

I haven't done a list in a while so I thought I would make one. This list is called, "Things that I have learned about art as a business"

1) There are A TON of other artists that do not write people back (Speaking from personal experience)

What I have learned: ALWAYS write people back.

2) You never know where your art is going to wind up

What I have learned: Yoko ono is following me on Twitter, My Youtube video was put on a Rush Limbaugh website and tons of people have written to tell me that they mentioned me on their sites. (Side note: I LOVE YOU.)

3) People focus on negativity because it is easier

What I have learned: IGNORE NEGATIVITY. You CAN and SHOULD make your dreams come true.

4) Not getting the answers that you need is frustrating.

What I have learned: GOOGLE exists for a reason! lol...

5) I stress about everything WAY too much.

What I have learned: In order to remain sane, I must let go of things that I cannot control, and control what I can handle.

6) Working constantly makes it possible to be seen more often.

What I have learned: Sometimes it is nice NOT to be seen.

7) People try to convince you to work on something other than your dream because "You need to be realistic".

What I have learned: Some people weren't made to be 'realistic'. I am one of those people.

8) Great artists have great studios, and even greater supplies.

What I have learned: Most artists start small, dream big and make it happen

9) Getting your ass kicked in an Etsy forum is a very humbling experience.

What I have learned: It is nicer to avoid it if you can (lmao....)

10) MOST IMPORTANT: LOVE YOUR FANS.

What I have learned: I really really do! :) Thanks to all of my art supporters and fellow dreamers


Note 4 other artists and dreamers: I have found a great resource site for all the dreaming artists out there. It has TONS of information about doing art for a living. Click here

9 Year Old Sells 1st Painting Ever!

This is a new art journal page that I made using stickers, acrylic paint, stamps, a red sharpie and a magazine cut out. There is too much negativity in my life. I am trying to cut the fat out (negativity) as much as possible. I have been told all my life that I am a very overly sensitive soul and because of that, I always thought that it was a bad thing. It is not. Being sensitive has its advantages. For instance, I will help every old person I ever see with anything from opening a door for them to helping them go to the bathroom (I am a caregiver, not a pervert...for the record, lol). Things that require a little sensitivity I am really good at. The downside to being so sensitive is taking in so much negativity. I don't mean to draw it in but because I am so sensitive, I pick up on other peoples emotions as if they are my own. I wanted to make this journal page to accept the fact that I am senstive but to also make myself understand that I am not the kind of person that can healthfully be around negativity on a day by day, moment by moment basis. I hope you like it :)


And in other news:


Guess what? My 9 year old son sold 2 prints of his newest drawing! The other day he came to me and said, "Mom, I want to try to sell my art like you". He spent time drawing a new piece and asked for my help. He drew the cats head, pyramids, water and little stick figures. I helped him draw the body of the cat and painted the background. We had a great time doing this together. After it was done I sat him down and asked him if he wanted to donate half of his earnings to something or someone. He decided to donate his money to the local animal shelter (He is a huge animal planet fan). Then it was time to put it on my Etsy store. I was really nervous for him that nobody would buy it (so I would have to make plans to make my family do it, lol)....but low and behold, he sold 2 within 3 hours of posting it! He sold one to an author and another to a fellow Etsian :) You should've seen how happy and excited he was! I swear he smiled for at least 24 hours. I am so proud of him! I got teary eyed with happiness and excited because my little baby artist is not only growing up, but growing up to be a creative soul with a very giving heart. Here is the link to his painting so that you can see his work. P.s. the description is pretty giggle worthy too :) http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=30319916 Have a good day everyone!

It Is Time

Time to stop making excuses, time to breathe. Time to turn my dreams into reality. I can feel something amazing taking place. Like a wise old medicine woman that can tell by the wind that something drastic is about to happen. "The winds are changing", she would say to me. She would be right. Where am I going? What am I going to do? Which direction will I be taking? I haven't got a single clue. But I know that something huge and positive is coming my way. After all, I am overdue. Painting started as a hobby, something to distract myself, a method of healing. Over the past year, however, it has stopped being just "something to do" and started scratching its way deeper and deeper into my soul. I know this sounds cheesy and weird coming from me but the truth is that right now, in this moment, I could not be more....me. I am going to start posting more seriously about my journey to becoming a full time artist, and a successful one at that. Why? Because I know that I am not the only one with this dream. I also want to be able to share with people what has worked for me and what hasn't. I have realized that maybe I will fail, or be broke. Yes, it's very scary, but I am willing to take the risk. Working at a place you hate just for a lousy paycheck is a risk, having a child is a risk, being in a serious relationship is a risk. We risk things everyday so really....what is one more risk? Don't get me wrong, I will be working a 'normal' job in the mornings and get some extra hours here and there for a 'normal' check, but my main focus is going to be what it should've been years ago. A-R-T. If you have any advice on becoming successful as an artist or any questions, I would absolutely love to hear from you. Until next time, best wishes and lots of love from me to you.