jillybird

My name is Debbi - Jillybird just popped into my head one morning, and I liked it. I am 64 years old. I live in West Texas.

MY FAMILY I've been married for 41 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, wonderful sons-in-law, six absolutely adorable and extremely smart grandsons and a beautiful, quirky granddaughter. I have a cat that is not my cat that lives in the backyard. He tolerates me as long as there is food involved.

HOW I PAY FOR ART SUPPLIES I am a retired teacher. After 36 years of working in elementary and middle schools, I finally decided it was enough. It was a hard decision, but I'm glad I did it!!! I do however, still work as a reading and writing interventionist 3 days a week. It's the perfect schedule!. I really enjoy the laughter and creativity of the kids in my classes and am fortunate in that it makes me happy to go to work. (And it makes me even happier on the days I get to stay home and play at my art desk!)

I 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 scrap covered newspaper that I use to clean my brushes and stencils on - it always turns out to be breathtakingly lovely. I love bright, saturated colors and go to thrift shops, estate sales and flea markets to look for things made of colored glass just so I can possess their glowing jewel tones. I am intrigued by the beauty of rusted scraps of metal that can be found on streets and in fields. I'm afraid I will injure myself by running into a moving vehicle while scanning a parking lot for perfectly flattened and rusted bottle caps because I just know I'm going to make something amazing out of them. Some day.

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 although I am by no means a master of anything. I love oil pastels, acrylics, Stabilo woodies, glitter and anything else sparkly, embossing powder, rubber stamps, stencils, vintage ephemera, junk mail ephemera, washi tape and packing tape transfers. I have a really hard time putting any kind of paper in the trash and often find myself digging to the bottom to retrieve that perfect piece that I know is in there. I also enjoy making mosaic stepping stones and what I call "yard balls" out of styrofoam spheres and stained glass. I love searching for magazine photos and just the right snippets of words for my glue books. I mostly participate in ATC, handmade postcard, and journal 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 treating myself to 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. Some day.

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

• bright, sparkly colors

• swirly patterns and abstract splashes of color

• images from all religions, especially saints and buddhas

• winged hearts, moons with faces, whimsical birds, butterflies, vintage dancing ladies, stars, unalomes, water lilies and lotuses

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

• used postage stamps, rub-ons, washi tape, stencils, lace, pieces of rusty metal, pressed flowers, random text. pretty product packaging

• mean people

• strong perfume