Finally able to paint!

The unfortunate thing about having to work and be an adult is that it gets in the way of the fun stuff you want to do instead! I would much rather travel, play outside, paint, draw, sculpt, play piano and read but unfortuntely work is a necessary evil so I can actually afford to do all those things. I can't complain, really, though, because I am so thankful to actually be working, AND I love my day job, too.

At any rate, this weekend I was finally able to devote some much-needed time to painting and drawing. It is very soothing and I think necessary to the artist. I have so many ideas that I always want to put on paper. I sometimes go months without drawing, then stay up till all hours when I feel a rush of inspiration and creativity.

That's what happened last night! Please enjoy my latest work. I have the privilege of being able to display some of my work at a trendy salon in Fresno, and I'm hoping to get giclée prints done of some of these so I can show them there.

My work with exotic cats has obviously inspired much of my work!

This is one of my most favorite pieces I've ever done. I love the simplicity of it, and feel that black and white really works well for a tiger portrait.





Graceful yet powerful.





Snow leopard.





And finally, the other creature that inspires the majority of my work. Fancy goldfish are themselves spectacular pieces of art.



Enjoy! Signing off for now, but I'll be back soon to share more artwork and photos.

<3 Jenny

Daylight Savings, Exotic Cats and More!

Was everyone else thrilled to get an extra hour of sleep? My cell phone still hasn't updated the new time, but then I realize it's an hour earlier and I have more hours in the day to get things done! Yay!

Sea Star Studios is still in business, and I'm continuing to make new items all the time. I find that I enjoy sculpting and creating infinitely more than photographing and listing items, but unfortunately that's an essential part of online selling, now isn't it?

I have recently begun to feature a new line of animals charms that will help to benefit the zoo where I volunteer! Since August, I have been working as a volunteer zookeeper at a non-profit wild cat breeding facility. EFBC-FCC: http://www.cathouse-fcc.org/

They are world-reknown for their excellent breeding efforts with exotic and critically endangered cats, such as the Amur leopards. Only about 25-40 individuals remain in the wild, and our zoo has one of the largest captive populations of these exquisite creatures.

I began making small wild cat charms and selling at the zoo, all of the proceeds being donated to AAZK: http://aazk.org/. They were a hit! So I decided to also start selling these little charms in my Etsy store. I will be donating 10% of the sales to AAZK and EFBC's Feline Conservation Center.

Here are pictures and links to the first ones I have listed. Eventually I hope to be able to take custom orders; however, for now, stock is limited to only the ones I have already made.

Tigers:





http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33459790

Serval:




Leopard:




And finally the cougar, my favorite of all the cats!




And the inspiration for much of my work, EFBC's cougar, Teddy:


Until next time,

<3 Jenny

Magnets, Marbles and More!

Hi to all my followers. Sorry I've been out of commission here for awhile. I've been on vacation, job hunting, sick, and started a new volunteer position! Needless to say, I haven't been at the computer.

I felt creative yesterday and got a lot of new pieces done! Check out my newest line of marble magnets. I feel that a naked, bare fridge is a sad, lonely fridge. In my world, the fridge should be so covered with stuff that you barely can see its original color!

Like this (and keep in mind this is only some of my magnets; most are packed away till I move!).



All of these magnets are made from acid-free, archival paper, clear glass marbles and heavy magnets.

Friendly Forest:







Turquoise and brown always seem to be a hit!



And black and white is fun, too.



And I'm never afraid to glue magnets to interesting new stuff. This little rubber ducky was left unattended on my floor, so in my book, that makes him fair game!



These and more new art will be for sale soon in my Etsy shop! Thanks again to all of my readers. Stay tuned for more great new stuff!

Yours,

Jenny Swartzbaugh

Vaction of the Year, Cruise to Mexico!

I will be putting my shop on vacation mode starting tomorrow as I am preparing for a long weekend cruise to Mexico!

We will be celebrating my sister's 25th birthday and are taking a Carnival cruise to Ensenada, Mexico. We've all been looking forward to this for quite a while now! Tomorrow I'm taking the day to pack and get everything organized and put together, and then we leave early Friday morning for LA. (Let me add a plug here for Lewis Travel in Fresno, especially Dana Huckestein, who coordinated everything for us!)

We get to board the ship at 1 pm, so we're going to try to be there right about then so we can make the most of the cruise (ie, hit the bars while we're waiting for our room to get ready!)

Actually, at this time a year ago, I was on a cruise with my best friends Billy, Ericka, Kristin and Greg in Hawaii. We took a seven-day cruise around the islands on Norwegian Cruise Line. We had an awesome time, the islands and ports were beautiful, and we had a great time. I wouldn't sail NCL again, though. The food was not good (to say the least) and some of the staff wasn't the greatest. We did meet some really excellent crewmembers, though, waiter Jay Woodward being one of the best!

This cruise to Mexico will mark my 4th cruise that I've taken, and the third I've been on with JD (my significant other). My first cruise was through the Caribbean, and the second was March 2007 when my friends Billy and Ericka got married on the ship, and then we sailed to the Mexican Riviera. Last summer we went to Hawaii.

Our group of friends is addicted to cruising! I joked that we're getting spoiled, and used to taking a cruise every year. But the weekend cruises, which sail on Fridays and get back on Mondays, are a great compromise AND they're affordable.

I'm not sure yet what we'll be doing there, but we always have fun together and I'm sure we'll figure out something. One tour takes you through some wineries and gives you a bottle of wine (!) and another we considered involved ATV rides on the beach.

Good times. So I'll be back next week to update you on everything, and get back to work on new art pieces. Be well, my friends.

Yours,

Jenny Swartzbaugh

All Creatures Cute and Tiny!

I live in a miniature fantasy world. In my ideal world, all things would be tiny enough to fit on a quarter! Even though I was never really into playing dolls and things growing up, I was always fascinated by tiny things, especially miniature animals.

When I was really young, my dad used to buy me these tiny rubber animals. I called them "Rubber Guys," and at the time they probably only cost 25 cents. They were my reward after behaving during a shopping trip or doing various other good deeds, and I truly treasured my tiny collection. I still have them all somewhere, but haven't seen them sold in a really long time.

They must have been the basis for all my tiny creations I make today. Like I always say, if only I'd had polymer clay and access to an oven as a child, I could have done great things! I could have started selling tiny toys to all my friends, since I always had an interest in being an entrepreneur and making money.

All of my figurines are completely handmade by myself, and are puresculpt, meaning no molds are ever used. If you've ever seen "OOAK" to describe artwork, that stands for One of a Kind, and is 100% original and will never be duplicated. The beauty of handmade art is that each piece is different and unique.

I love making little turtles, and in fact, they are probably my favorite things to make. I've sold several this year, and all different colors and sizes. My favorite one measures only a quarter of an inch long, and sits in a tiny jar by my computer.

Here is one of my latest ones. I made a similar one for a tiny succulent garden I made my mom as a gift. I know this one isn't real, but I just adore the expression on his face!







And another feat of polymer clay engineering, a tiny detailed dragon sculpture who can fit on a quarter! I love this little guy, too.







And in light of the G-Force movie coming out (those who know me know I'm a sucker for rodents), I made this teeny little guinea pig miniature.





If you're interested in purchasing these, they're available in my Etsy store. I also take custom orders regularly, if you want a specific color or size. I recently sold a pair of guinea pig earrings that were a custom order, and they came out great!

What I've Been Working on Lately

Yes, I've been working, even though I've been bad about updating this! I find that I enjoy actually making the pieces infinitely more than I do uploading, editing and posting photos. Those darn photos are a lot of work!

Speaking of work, this is still my sole job and income! I'm constantly on a job hunt, applying for jobs all the time. I would be depressed and down about how hard it is for a 30 year old graphic designer to find work... but at least I have Sea Star Studios to keep me going. (On a side note, did you know that having a college degree can actually HURT your job hunt? Retail stores won't consider me because they think I'll want too much money!)

Anyway, back to the fun work that I do. I love stuffed animals and have collected them my whole life. My bed is currently overrun with sea turtles, seals, mountain lions and puppies and kitties. I refuse to grow up, and I want to encourage others that it's okay to like stuffed animals in your adulthood!

I started a new line of tiny plush animals. They are made from felt and I hand stitch around them. I love the way they've turned out!

Here is a picture of some of the tiny ones I've completed:



Small plush owl I just listed on Etsy:



Small plush barn owl:



Tiny plush kitty, measuring about an inch square!



Tiny stuffed owl.



Here's a picture for size reference. He really is tiny!



I've also made some with loops that can be hung as charms from your purse or phone!







And of course, I've been busy with polymer clay again, too. I sold another little turtle recently which prompted me to try some more, with new colors.



And a teeny tiny dragon I made, measuring only an inch. Love this little guy!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=28437709

In the last picture, with him on the quarter, you really get just how tiny he is!

Enjoy, and feel free to check out my shop and my Facebook fan page to stay updated on what I've been up to, and what I'll be making and listing soon!

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6775954
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sea-Star-Studios/93187975468

Long-Lost Friend!

One of my dearest friends found me yesterday! She and I haven't spoken in almost 10 years, and she found me by searching online, thanks to my Google account!

She was an exchange student from Germany at our high school and we became very close friends our senior year. We hung out all the time, and when she moved back to Germany, I actually was able to go and visit her and we had such a good time. We were close and kept in touch, but because of life and crazy schedules, we eventually lost touch.

I was married at the time, but recently changed my name back, and created a Google account so old friends could search for me. No one knew me by my married name, so I made sure people could find me by the name they knew. And lo and behold, my friend found me yesterday after almost 10 years! I was thrilled and about fell over when I realized it was her.

If you are searching for someone, or hoping someone can find you, be sure to create or update a Google account. You can put your name and city you’re currently living in (just so people will know it’s you) but don’t have to put anything personal like address or phone number.

I would definitely recommend doing this to anyone looking for a long lost friend!

Intervention and Alcoholism

This has been one of my favorite shows for awhile now. For those who don't know, it's a reality series on A&E profiling addicts, their families, and the steps they take toward intervening. It's on Monday nights at 9 pm.

Last night's episode followed an alcoholic named Bret. He had two children who were just distraught over his alcoholism, and at the intervention they were sobbing and pleading with him to go to treatment.

He finally ended up going, after much arm-twisting and yelling. It turned out that he had esophageal cancer, which is caused by excessive alcohol use. He discovered this in treatment and obviously it was very advanced by the time they figured it out. He ended up dying at the end of the episode, but was sober, and his family took comfort in that fact.

I've seen many moving episodes of Intervention, and what I love about the show is that it is real and you really do get involved in the person's life, and you want them to get well. I was very attached to Bret's story and his family, and was sobbing at the end. It just reminded me so much of my grandpa, who died 10 years ago.

He was an alcoholic, though I never knew that as a kid. My family is Italian and we Italians do like our wine! He just took it too far, and in recent years my mom has told me more about his struggle with alcoholism. She said he was never so proud as when he got his AA coin, and was so happy that at the end of his life, he was sober.

As someone who has had their share of excessive drinking, I can say with certainty that when you're out drinking with friends on Saturday night (or in my case, every night), you don't think about the long-term effects. I knew that it was bad for you but figured I was young enough that I never had to worry about anything.

I started drinking as a means of escaping reality when I was very unhappy years ago. Then I started hanging out with more and more friends who were drinking, and it was really fun. I can't tell you how many pictures I have of me with drinks in my hand! I always seemed to take it farther than every one else, though, because I drank each and every night, whether I was with people or not.

In recent years, I've gotten really into wine, and would drink every night. It started giving me worse and worse headaches, and in the morning I would wake up with bad kidney and liver pain. I also take a lot of medication for headaches and other health problems and finally came to the conclusion that I could no longer keep mixing all these things.

Last night's show really brought all that into focus for me. I still occasionally have a small glass of wine, but it always brings about an immediate, severe migraine, so it's gotten to the point where I can't even enjoy it anymore. I have full bottles of wine in storage and in the fridge! I was sober driver for 4th of July! These are monumental accomplishments for me.

So if you have time, check out Bret's episode on http://www.aetv.com/intervention/index.jsp You can also see what his family has to say about him. If you think you might have a drinking problem or know someone who does, you can check out http://www.aa.org/?Media=PlayFlash or call 1-800-662-HELP. I was told recently about the book Recovery Without Religion which offers a non-religious take on recovery.

Welcome My Newest Rescue, Sabir!

All of my pets, for the most part, have been rescues, whether outright or cast-offs from other people. Through the years I've managed to acquire a dog, two cats, multitudes of hermit crabs and goldfish, and most recently, rats! I love all of them and enjoy sharing them, especially the dog, with other people. I never miss an opportunity to let strangers know that she was a shelter dog, with little hope of being adopted.

A couple weekends ago, we attended the EFBC's Twilight Tour. It's an exotic cat breeding center who works in conservation and awareness. They keep rare and endangered cats and breed for zoos and other centers, NEVER for the exotic pet trade. Here is their site: http://www.cathouse-fcc.org/ Absolutely an amazing place to visit if you get the chance!

Anyway, we were all hyped up after the visit and I was on a high, determined to set out and do whatever I could to help save these exotic cats. (I'm hoping to donate some artwork for fundraising). I got a call when we were in Bakersfield, about an hour and a half away, from my mom, frantic, saying there was a tiny kitten crying up in her tree!

We rushed home and I was panicking. There was a little kitty who needed saving! We arrived home after midnight and I ran to get the ladder, ready to climb up and be a hero. It turned out the kitten wasn't stuck, just freaked out, and a chase ensued as I ran through bushes and through yards, trying to find him.

My first glance of him was a tiny, fuzzy white kitten, covered in dirt and spiderwebs. He was definitely feral, as he wouldn't let us near him. He was also thin, freaked out, and very confused.

My mom has several outdoor cats that she leaves food out for, so it seems all the cat in the tri-county area somehow make their way to her yard. No one else was as worried as I was about the kitty, and I will admit, the fact that he was a Siamese AND a white cat really tugged at my heart. I have a special love for white Siameses, as that's what my first cat Snowflakes was. I still wonder if the other semi-feral Siameses in this area may be descendants of his.

So I ran around, back and forth, at at this time everyone else had given up and gone to bed. Armed with a flashlight, I ran through bushes, getting stuck in several rosebushes. The little guy was quick! I finally saw a white fluffy thing under a bush and thought, Aha! Got you! and reached for it only to see that it was a dead bird.

Finally the little kitty ended up back in our yard and climbed inside JD's truck, underneath! I have never seen the underside of a GMC Sonoma, but I got to that night. By this time it was past 2 am, and the poor little kitty was just beyond frightened and tired out. I very carefully reached up under the truck, grabbed him, and ran inside.

He is a lilac-point Siamese, and was about five weeks old at the time I found him.

The smallest room in the house is the office, so it became the kitten room. The little guy quickly made a bed inside our bottom drawer.



He was most definitely feral, barely letting us touch him. For the first few days we had to very slowly and carefully grab him, slowly letting him get more and more used to us.

He went to the vet and aside from fleas and dirty ears, was in pretty good health. I have assumed he's from the trailer park across the street from our neighborhood, where many stray cats come from. Sadly, there is a busy road between us and there are often dead cats out there. Recently, I saw two kittens that I'm pretty sure are probably relatives.

Our first family portrait.





I had no intentions of keeping the kitten, but after the long struggle outside to catch him, I became ridiculously attached and of course he's going to stay with me. I finally settled on the name Sabir, the people whom the region of Siberia was named after. The kitty looks nice and icy and Arctic to me.



We have really been working to socialize him and he's coming around!



He doesn't always run and hide when we come in the room, a huge improvement!



I discovered he shares my love of strawberry ice cream!



Like the lynx he reminds me of, he's a good little hunter.



And he loves his toys!!





Let me close with my plug to always spay and neuter your animals, whether they are indoors or not. In seven years, one cat and her offspring can make hundreds of thousands of cats. For every lucky little kitten like this one, there are thousands who are not as fortunate. If you're considering getting a new cat, please consider shelters and rescue groups. Though pet stores say they don't get their animals from puppy and kitten mills, that often is the case.