What Kind of Thinker Are You?

So I just took this quiz and had such a good time with it that I thought it might be of interest to others. Apparently, am the renaissance ideal: Interpersonal and Existential thinker. Hmmm, makes perfect sense to me! lol. Anyway, click on over to BBC to find out what type of thinker you are. I do find this funny though because I was in the shower this morning thinking about how much I would love to take a humanities course just for the fun of it. For me, I think it would spark creativity.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/leonardo/thinker_quiz/

Painters Block: Is there such a thing?

So some days I wake up and I feel consumed with creativity. My mind is racing with several ideas all at once saying, "ooh I could do this...and then if I do this...what if I try this! I need to do this!" But then, when I put brush to paper, it vanishes. Frustrating, so I take a break. Anyway I sat down tonight to paint and behold I was able to create! I didn't over analyze, I just did! I think that's what it takes sometimes...Just do, don't think. My challenge is that I feel creative during the first half of the day, but I don't get the time to create until the last bit of the night and so often the results can be disappointing, but not tonight! Here are a couple of ACEO's I did tonight.

My Prints Came Today!

Finally! My prints came in the mail today. These were greatly anticipated! They came securely packaged in a heavy cardboard tubing! Now all I have to do is sign and distribute them! I will have some available in my Etsy shop too! I'm so happy I'm overusing the !!!!!!! symbol !!!!!!!.

A case of consumption!

I am totally consumed with the desire to create necklaces of all kinds! I have the intention to paint, but right now I'm driven towards making pendants! lol. So I spent all of my free time today making some items and researching methods to make more pendants! I really need to make some time for painting. There is just so little time in the day :( Anyway, for now I am following my bliss and maybe tomorrow my bliss will be painting. Here's some pics of my latest distraction:

OK so here's the plan!

Alright tonight I am committing to make some time for painting some ACEO's. It's been awhile and the charms have been a diversion. So if I commit to it in writing today and have nothing to show for it tomorrow won't I look silly!

Oh and an update on the giclee prints, the package was opened and items removed during transit! Yikes, so I am getting new prints made up, luckily my provider has given me a complete refund. I can't complain about the customer service, however I am so anxious to see how they turn out!

Final Goodbye to My Cat "Baby Girl"

Well after a short 7 years I had to say my final goodbye to my cat, "Baby Girl." This all happened yesterday, but I suppose it began years ago. So maybe sharing my story might give some insight to another cat's situation.

We adopted Baby Girl from the local shelter when she was anywhere from 6 months to a year old. I believe that she was a feral cat. We brought her home and due to her mean temper, we struggled with the idea of taking her back. The idea that animals are not disposable and the hope that her disposition would change convinced me to hang on to her.

Slowly she came around, but only to me. She growled at visitors, attacked the other cats, in general we thought she was just a mean cat. Children were told that she was the "no, no, kitty." Visitors were warned that she was mean. She only attacked me a couple of times, and both times the attacks were provoked by stress. Once, was due to me smelling like the vet after bringing one of our other cats home from being neutered. She was a very high strung, stressed out, unhappy cat.

Since we adopted her she has always had a breathing problem. She would start a coughing type labored breathing when she was either being brushed or sometimes it would just happen out of the blue. Her breathing was always very deep, but I attributed it to her just being a "huffy" cat. Every time I took her to the vet I would mention her breathing issue. Nothing ever came of it until about two months ago. I took her in due to her urinating outside of her box. I knew there had to be a reason for it. All of the information online said it was either a medical problem or a behavioral problem. During this visit it was determined that she had crystals in her urine due to her food and that she probably had feline asthma.

So two months go by, she had steroids for her breathing and had finished her antibiotics for the crystals a couple weeks prior. Well she began to go outside of the box again! So I took her in on Friday and my usual vet was on vacation. Well the substitute vet listened to her lungs and said that it was most likely her breathing that was making her stressed and until we figured out what was going on in her lungs, she would continue to be stressed and urinate outside of the box as a stressed behavior. He x-rayed her lungs and discovered that her entire left lung was collapsed! I was devastated! She had a growth that had completely taken over her left lung so her breathing capacity was 1/2 of what it should be, messing up her bio system, stressing her out, causing her pain, contributing to her "mean" disposition. Looking back she was just being defensive due to being in pain all of the time and not being her physical best.

So the following morning we had to take her in to be euthanized. The vet said it was the kindest thing we could do for her at this point. I thought the stress of the x-ray visit the day before had almost depleted her. I was worried she wasn't going to make the commute to the vet's office. I won't go into the details of the visit itself, but it was the most painful experience for me, but seemed fairly peaceful for her. Afterwards, I was physically ill, nauseated, crying, trouble breathing, trouble standing.

Apart from helping with the grieving process, I guess this post is to let pet owners know that animals aren't usually "mean" for no reason, they do what they can behaviorally to get their owner's attention. If you sincerely believe there is something wrong with your animal pursue it. Ask for x-rays, blood work, follow your intuition.

Trashion! Yes...Trash and Fashion!

This is not your mama's fashion! So here are my two latest artistic endeavors in the Trashion world. These are miniature collage pieces made with found text that has been recycled or upcycled into Jewelry! I think it is so interesting how when you combine words with common shapes they develop a whole new meaning to the viewer. Love it! So take a look for yourself they are available on my ETSY site for $27 each.

Wanna see more recycled, upcycled, trashion? Just type Trashion into your Etsy search. Here is one of my favorites:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=6595766

Did you know that Heaven now comes in bar form?

Well I do! At least now I can say that I've sampled heaven in bar form and it was just what you'd expect. I recently received a couple bars of Morgan Street's White Tea and Ginger Bar Soap and it was so far above my expectations that I can't even begin to explain! First, as you may have read, I have extremely sensitive skin. It requires a ton of moisture and I can hardly keep up! So I have tried various organic and naturally made soaps in the past with no success. However, after trying this soap, I can proudly say that I will be a lifetime devotee of Morgan Street soaps. She can expect many more orders from me in the future! Love, love, love it!

Here's where you can some Heaven for yourself! http://www.morganstreet.etsy.com/

Photo Tips for your Listings

So here is what I have learned in the past few days on taking quality photos. Photo 1 is my after, Photo 2 is the obvious before..Here we go:

• Take the photo near a north facing window (blinds open, get that natural light)
• Photo your object at an angle (makes it more interesting and adds dimension)
• Tape some rice paper or tissue paper over your flash (yes use the flash and have the window open)
• Use a tripod or again tape your camera to something (like a box) to hold it steady
• Use the timer feature on your camera, this way your little hand shakes don't disturb the focus

The before and after photos speak for themselves! Anyway this beautiful fine silver Japanese Cherry Blossom Charm is available in my etsy shop: http://www.alternatebliss.etsy.com/

Internationally Collected!

I am so excited this morning I woke up, got the kids going, and checked in on my Etsy shop. Well surprise of all surprises I had an international order for my artwork. I have only just recently began to offer my artwork online, so this is an entirely new audience of collectors that has opened up!

Can I also say how happy I am that my first international order was from Ireland, Dublin no less! I took several Irish Literature classes for my Bachelors Degree. I loved every one of them..such a rich history and beautiful culture. It is extremely near and dear to my heart and one of the first places I plan on visiting if I get the chance to travel to Europe.

In celebration of my international order here's my version of an Irish toast:

"Cheers to me! Cheers to you! Cheers to all the art we do!"