Debbie Overton Designs

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!!

I knew what I would be doing this weekend....so I scheduled this short post to publish on Saturday....so you would know why I am MIA.....I am spending the 3 day weekend at the....

Have a Fun and Safe Weekend!

Creatively,

Monkey See Monkey Do

Mixed Media Collage 10 x 20 Gallery Wrapped Canvas

This piece is on exhibit at Monkey Love.  I have had the images for several years and when I found out I would be exhibiting at Monkey Love I just couldn't resist!

Several years ago I offered Ephemera Paper Packages on my website, but when I did my re-do I didn't add them back.  Instead I redid the packages and added them to my Etsy shop I had had for over a year and was not using.  I decided to go back to what worked before and have added a couple packages to the ole Etsy shop and will add more later.  After I get the new venture up and going I may add the shopping cart back to my website and do away with Etsy.

Mine and KC's afternoon at the beach was cut short when she received a call from Steve...he was heading out of town for a few days and wanted to know if I wanted to go...I told him I just didn't have time...way too many things around here to get done...but KC volunteered to go...she thought it would be a mini vacation for her....sleep in, Jacuzzi, pool....and the executive suite at the hotel!

So here it is almost 2am and Seth and I are still up....he can stay up all night if he wants!  I need to finish up a commission I have been working on for several weeks and then get started on a few others and I need sleep in order to function tomorrow or I should say later this morning considering it is already very early morning!

Creatively,

Playing a Little Catch Up

My friend Sue at Artful Adventures asked to see some close ups of some of my new pieces on exhibit at Monkey Love....Here are two and I will share more later on.  The reception Friday night went well.  Two hours of chatting it up with old and new friends...laughter, music, wine, coffee, great food and lots of talk about my art.  What more could I have asked for?  Even Steve enjoyed this reception....although he would never admit some of the ones in the past have bored him to death....he had fun Friday night.  Thanks Britt for a great evening!

Someone recently emailed me asking for advice and in my reply to Ellen's email I included a few links to some of the resources I have used here on the Internet.  Of course you know I mentioned Alyson at Artbiz and the author of I'd rather be in the studio and I also told her about Luann Udell's blog....a wealth of business information.  I must give credit where it is due...Deb Trotter recommended both Alyson and Luann to me several years ago and I have referred to them many times.  Thanks Deb! 

Saturday and Sunday were spent working on the new business venture website and updating the MMCA website and forum.  Finally around 2:30am last night I called it a night, but couldn't sleep due to thinking of things I wanted to get done today....I watched the clock until Steve's alarm went off at 6.  Just as soon as he was out the door I jumped up, showered, dressed and started my day.   So far today has been very productive...follow up emails and phone calls are all made from my to do list and now I am ready to move on to finishing up a few pieces of art.

Creatively,

Wine & Cheese anyone?

Only a few more hours and then we are off to the Wine & Cheese Reception in my honor at Monkey Love Dessert Bar & Gallery!  The rain gods have descended upon southeast Georgia....the rain, thunder and lightening make you want to curl up with a blanket and take a nap.....but there will be time for that later.  Thanks for the many emails I have received today wishing me a great reception....wish all my friends could be there.  Between 7 & 9 tonight, grab a glass and share in the party wherever you are.  The camera, business cards, guest book are all ready to go....now I need to get ready!

This and That and What and Where

The past few days have just flown by....I have been working on my new business venture website and waiting on the last of the legal paperwork from the State of Georgia to arrive.  Why is it when you wanted it yesterday it seems to take forever to get here....I could have drove to and from by now....but I am patiently waiting....although I make a running dash to the mail box each time I see the mailman go by.  I shared some of the new plans with the MMCA girls and I know some of them are just as anxious as I am and evidently some of the info they were given has been shared among their friends as my visitors searching my blog have tripled since I made the announcement to the group.  It is amazing how fast some news can travel.  I can assure you once I have ALL the legals in place and the time is right I will make an announcement here on my blog.  So by all means keep checking back.

Playing with my new toy Adobe Dreamweaver has proven to be a great investment and a learning curve too.  Some things are so much easier with this design program while others have been a little challenging since I know what I want it to do I just don't know how to get to it.  I am still not sure why I decided to tackle this during a new venture...yes I do know...Steve gave it to me as a surprise because I have been wanting it for so long.  I have another surprise coming within the next few days....For Mother's Day he ordered me a new laptop....the one I have is great, but only allowed me to do certain things and according to him it will have everything I could possibly need or want to run my businesses, update my websites and more no matter where I am.  Now I will be sitting on the front porch waiting on UPS!

KC and I were out shopping a few days ago and she wanted to go by Monkey Love for a piece of Strawberry Cake and I had my camera with me so she took a few photos.  Here is just one of the exhibit walls...will share more later.

Every time we go in there is always a few really cute guys sitting around drinking their coffee and on their laptops....Even though she loves the desserts I think it is the customers she is more interested in as she always can carry on a conversation with someone while there.  I am surprised she has not begged Britt to work there this summer for free!

If you are in the area this coming Friday evening, May 16th...please drop by Monkey Love and visit with us during the Wine & Cheese Reception in my honor from 7-9 pm. 

I need to get back to work on a few pieces to be delivered to another Studio/Gallery....Michelle called me a few weeks ago and I promised just as soon as I got the Monkey Love exhibit art finished I would have some things for The Painted Cat Studio and Gallery and I would really like to get some things to her this week but that can't happen with me on the computer.

So I am off to create, watch for the mailman and the UPS truck....hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy Mother's Day

My friend  Sue at Artful Adventures posted some gorgeous necklaces on her blog again yesterday as well as some pictures her husband had taken.....then she challenged us to go outside and find some beauty in something that you've never paid close attention to before and share with our blog friends....so Sue here you go....a few photos of some of the flowers I have had since we moved in and a few from yesterday's plantings....I have always thought they were pretty...but when you really zoom in on the blooms the details are stunning.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's and mom's to be.  When I think of Mother's Day I always think of flowers....growing up my daddy always bought my mom a gorgeous fresh orchid corsage as well as sweetheart roses for my sister and I to wear to church on Mother's Day....and to this day my mom still receives one.  Now that us girls have grown and gone in different directions we don't get our sweetheart roses from daddy, but we get flowers from our own children.   

Right now I am enjoying my morning....overcast, windy and you can hear thunder in the distance....Steve got called into work due to a little storm that passed through last night...I hope he's not too long as his big breakfast sure would be good about now.....We may have to have it for dinner which is always a favorite here. 

I received a call from one of the shops over on Jekyll Island and she needed more journals, so after delivering her order we headed to the beach for a few hours.  Then Steve and I went flower shopping and came home with a truck bed full of flowers....wish I had thought to snap a picture before we unloaded all of them....but after spending time on the beach and then meandering through rows and rows of flowers in 92 degrees taking a picture was the last thing on my mind.

Seth and KC are still sleeping....I think I wore them out yesterday afternoon....we dug up plants, planted the new ones, replanted some of the old ones and at dusk we were all tired, dirty and thinking....why didn't we just call Lee our wonderful landscaper and let him come by one afternoon and do all this!  The kids were even willing to pitch in their share of the cost after about an hour in the 90+ temps.   In the end it was worth it and I know once all the blooms start opening I know it will be worth it to me.

I have tried to finish this post for the past 30 minutes....remember above I mentioned overcast, windy and distant thunder....well that changed to hard rain and high winds and I have lost power twice for a few minute's each time....I just hope the hail they are calling for misses us......guess I better go check the weather since we have been under a tornado watch most of the morning.

I hope each of you have a wonderful day planned....I am off to enjoy mine.

Another snippet of one of the pieces on display at Monkey Love this month.  "They say we broke ALL the Rules....Maybe a Few!"  I had so many wonderful papers and other elements to work with thanks to two wonderful art friends Elaine and Patsy.   Elaine sent me a wonderful Secret Santa package this past Christmas and Patsy sent me an envelope filled with wonderful papers a few months ago.

Personally I like RULES!

Can you imagine the chaos we would have if there were no rules to follow?  Imagine coming to a major intersection and those with a Red light don't think the Red light rule STOP applies to them...you have one huge pile up of vehicles all because just one person thinks they don't have to abide by the rules. 

Just a little food for thought.....next time you decide not to play by the rules....Someone gets hurt and next time it may be you.

Have a Great day....we are off to the dentist for our 6 month cleanings!!! 

Are you staying in the Loop?

It is no secret I think "I'd rather be in the studio" by Alyson Stanfield is a must have book.  Several weeks ago as I was jumping around from page to page, excuse to excuse, action to action I came across her paragraph on Feedblitz....I got excited because I already had a Feedblitz subscription form on my blog....yeah!

I can already see some of you going what is Feedblitz!  Feedblitz is a free service that will deliver updates from your favorite blogs in one email to your inbox. 

To quote Alyson "If you were creating your ideal newspaper, you'd get to select the content from your favorite writers about the subjects most dear to you, determine the order in which it is laid out (to some extent), and when you read it.  A blog feed is very similar.  You get to choose what you want to read and when you want to read it."

I love it....even though I still have times when I don't leave comments to others...I still am in the loop with their happenings without jumping from one blog to another to find it has not been updated in weeks.

There are lots of ways to receive RSS (Rich Site Summary) feeds, my choice just happens to be Feedblitz.  So if you are like me and would really like to know when your favorite blog has been updated sign up for their updates and you won't forget about some of your favorite blogs.

Signing up for a blogs updates with a feed is not the same as signing up for their newsletter.  I have both on my blog.  If you want to know when I make a new post to my blog then you can sign up with Feedblitz for email updates (left column) and you can also sign up for my occasional newsletter (right column) that I send out every 1-2 months with images and snippets of news and updates to what's going on with Debbie Overton Designs.

Sign up is easy and quick.

Excellent Start

Nancy of Sugar Lump Studios sent me this gorgeous handmade birthday card.  The quote "A sister is one that reaches for your hand and touches your heart" is actually how I have felt over the past several weeks as I have been receiving emails, cards, phone calls and little surprises in the mail all wishing me a wonderful fun filled birthday.....And it was just that. 

Sunrise at the beach...brunch...more beach time...balloons...more beach time...shrimp...cake...sunset at the beach...and a day filled with phone calls from friends and family.

Steve surprised me with another glass fishing float....a gorgeous aqua to go with the white one he gave me for our anniversary a few months ago.....together they remind me of the white sandy beach and blue/green clear water of the ocean......a favorite place for me.  As I opened the package a fragrance as fresh and clean as if I was walking on the beach arose....it was Seashore Eau de Parfum, Body Lotion and Shower Gel.

A couple weeks ago I intercepted a FedEx package addressed to KC.  Steve thought since she was coming home within a few days I would just put the package in her room and when he got home that night he was going to ask about it....well KC called and I told her a pkg had been delivered....of course she said open it.....much to my surprise was something I had been wanting for several years....Adobe Dreamweaver.....now why was she getting Dreamweaver?  She didn't know and I didn't know so I called Steve.....I could hear the surprise and disappointment as I told him what had happened.  He couldn't believe I opened it...it was addressed to KC....I explained she called....didn't know anything about it and asked me to open it.  I told him I had put it back in the box and would tape it shut if that would make him feel better.....no you have already opened it.....go ahead and install it and start playing if you want too.  Well I didn't have time to be playing as I was still working on the last minute details for the gallery exhibit.  He should have clued KC in and I would not have opened it!  However I am glad I did....I installed it and started playing.

It is taking some getting use too especially since I have been using Frontpage all these years....I am building my new business site with it...some things have already been easier to do while others are taking a bit of reading and playing and redoing....but I am getting there.

Do any of you use Dreamweaver?  I would love to hear your experience with it....the good and even the bad.  For years I have heard great things but just couldn't justify buying something else when what I had was working.  I am so thankful Steve supports all my art dreams....because now I have something else to expand and grow with.

Now with a line from one of the cards I received.....

Think of yourself as experienced and smart....and just getting off to an excellent start!