The other e-course: scrapbook*life*journal

Before class started for the Hello Soul, Hello Business e-class, I had a chance to look through all of my classmates blogs and fell in love with Stephanie Ackerman's folk doodles. I wanted to start doing some of my own doodling like her and noticed she was offering a low-pressure doodling e-class.

I'm really pleased with one of my first product. I assembled the journal from paper I have, recycled cereal boxes and twine. I'm using this journal for both e-classes. 

And my favorite is something defining my style. I hope to explore and pin this style down a bit more as I go and maybe even use my own artwork as I rebrand. 

Original marker and watercolor by Jennifer Borek (C) 2012

Bead Soup Blog Party

Yep... I'm a bit mad (I've been thinking in British-isms lately... "mad" in the sense of "crazy"). I've signed up for two e-courses and the 5th Bead Soup Blog Party in the middle of moving to Kansas. I think I like my life complicated or something.

In the middle of packing, I managed to finish off and pack up my Bead Soup to my partner, Cynthia Abner over at Created Treasures. I didn't take pictures of the beads as I have so much to do, but I took a simple picture of the packaging. I had so much fun putting the package together and now it is off in the post.

Just a gratuitous cutie-pie picture of my teenager, little Miss Molly!

I'm In!

I joined the Business Soul Sessions. I had an opportunity for three months to build up my art business. And I froze. Out of Fear of Success. I was afraid of being successful enough that I wouldn't be able to keep up with my commitments, and then would start hating the "hobby job" I enjoyed as a stress reliever from my day job. I figured I either "needed to really figure it out" or just decide to maintain it as a hobby job. In either case, I'm excited. There are some fabulous artists from 18 countries (so far) signed up. I'm quite excited! 

Oh. And in the middle of all this, I'm moving to Kansas. I might as well add another layer of complexity into my life to keep it mixed up and interesting. State # 9, here I come!

And is there something about Kansas that makes anyone else feel the overwhelming urge to paint their dog black, rename it to Toto just so they can say, "Toto, we're home! We're back in Kansas!" ? I don't know. Maybe it's just me. :-D

Sophie Belle - my new "family member" who is an addition to Molly, my teenager (13 years old in December!) Sophie will be 3 next week.

Dreaming of Spring

I think three days of dreary gray, rainy skies has me dreaming of bright, sunny, flowery spring. Greenville is a blooming place for a couple of months. When one tree finishes flowering, another set start blooming. Spring is delightful here in the foothills of the Old Smokies.

I'm experimenting with color palettes and learning Photoshop. My attempts are very elementary for the moment, but, like my lamp work and jewelry, with time I hope to improve. In the meantime, if you find the color palettes inspiring, please snag and post to your blog and show what you made! (And let me know, too, so I can link back to you.)

More creamy floral

If you feel inspired by this color palette, feel free to snag and post the photo to your blog and show us what you made. I'd appreciate a link back, but more than that, please let me know if you made anything inspired by these colors. I'd love to see!

I have an idea for a journal noodling around in my head. Actually, it's been baking there for several years. Like 15. (Aiya! I can't believe I'm that old!) Anyway, ever since I saw the movie, The Saint, with Elizabeth Shue, I fell in love with her journal. It was an eclectic mix of art, sketches, poems, quotes, scientific formulae, business notes. I feel like that odd juxtaposition of mundane and beautiful creates interesting epiphanies between business ideas and creative ideas. I've decided to explore this mix a little more in my new blog, Kanna. That blog will be more business-y. I'm exploring that intersection between my day life and creative life. I'm not sure where it will go, but part of it is going to involve improving my photography. Lot's of playing involved! Yay!

A Bouquet to Brighten Your Day

Campbell's Covered Bridge

A century-old relic of South Carolina's history. The last one in the State.