jillybird

My name is Debbi - Jillybird just pooped into my head one morning and I liked it. (I know there's a typo in that first sentence and I would normally edit it, but I thought it was kind of funny.) And I swear I didn't type it on purpose. I am 52 years old. Somehow that happened. I live in West Texas.

MY FAMILY I've been married for 29 years. I dearly love my husband, and am very lucky to have found someone who, although not always enthusiastically, is willing to help me with my “artistic visions“ for our home and yard. He is a very talented builder and problem solver. I don’t think there is anything that he can’t do. I also have three daughters that I truly consider to be my best friends in life, three wonderful sons-in-law, five absolutely adorable and extremely smart grandsons and a beautiful, creative step-granddaughter. I have a dachshund that gets on my last nerve every single day, but would be heartbroken over if anything bad ever happened to him.

HOW I PAY FOR ART SUPPLIES I am a teacher. This year, after 25 years of working in elementary schools, I moved up to middle school. Wow. It’s an entirely different world that is taking me some time to get used to. I teach reading and writing to sixth graders. I really enjoy the laughter and creativity of the kids in my classroom and am fortunate in that it makes me happy to go to work every day. (Does that sound convincing?) Actually, I really do love it most days.

I ENJOY/LOVE... I love beauty and enjoy finding it in unexpected places. For example, the best art that I do is what shows up on the newspaper that I use to clean my brushes and stamps - it always turns out to be almost breathtakingly lovely. I love bright, saturated colors and go to thrift shops and flea markets to look for things made of colored glass just so I can possess their glowing jewel tones. Lately I’ve been intrigued by the beauty of rusted scraps of metal that can be found in parking lots. I’m afraid I will injure myself by running into a moving vehicle while scanning the ground for perfectly flattened and rusted bottle caps because I just know I’m going to make something amazing out of them. Someday.

Working in my yard - Well, not actually working. I don’t like working in my yard at all, but I do love the finished product of the work, so I do it. I have quite a bit of unusual “yard art” and a lot of beautiful flowers and shrubbery. (I love that word - shrubbery!) I have a small cement pond inhabited by water lilies and goldfish that are peaceful to watch and fun to feed.

Making art, and more often than actually making art, thinking about making art - I get excited about trying everything. I am by no means a master of anything. I love oil pastels, acrylics, glitter and anything else sparkly, embossing powder, rubber stamps, vintage ephemera, and tape and gel medium transfers. I also enjoy making mosaic stepping stones and what I call “yard balls” out of stained glass. I want to try sewing and encaustics. I do not have a certain style. I wish I did, but each piece I make comes out differently from the piece before. Maybe I am evolving. Maybe I am just artistically ADHD. I mostly participate in ATC, handmade postcard/envelope, and journal/list making swaps.

Looking at others people’s art - I spend entirely too much money buying magazines and entirely too much time on the Internet looking at other peoples' art, but I’m obsessed with the variety of ideas and generosity of spirit and willingness to share that I find. And the beauty - the beauty of it all! - it is so inspiring!

Thrift store/estate sale/ flea market shopping - A perfect day includes a treat of expensive coffee and a decadent muffin and then hitting my established trail of thrift stores. I love the fact that you never know what you will find or what will find you, calling out as you walk by, begging to be rescued from the crowded racks. My husband has lined the wall on one side of the garage with shelves for me to store my treasures on while they wait for me to do something amazing with them. Someday.

Hanging out with friends/family - Either on the patio of my favorite bar or on the patio in my back yard. Usually with drinks and music playing which leads to the occasional spontaneous dancing in my red thrift store coat under the colored lights my husband strung up for me. Life is good.

• old things that have a story, even if you don't actually know the story

• vintage images and ephemera

• music of any genre that is loud and makes you want to dance

• flowers, especially those with big billowy blooms like roses, peonies and dahlias

• images from exotic (to me) places like India, Thailand, Cuba, or Brazil

• bright, sparkly colors

• swirly patterns

• images from all religions, especially saints and buddhas

• winged hearts, moons with faces, whimsical birds, butterflies and stars

• turquoise + rust or orange or barn red or mustard yellow or sage green or lime green...

• mean people

• cartoony, cutesy stuff

• strong perfume

• pornography