Hey there. Well, I just realized how dorky and lazy it makes me look to have my last Journal Entry be from, um, a year and a half ago. So yeah. Here's a new one!

The breakdown:

*Check out DevArt user Shinga ( [link] ). She's a very good artist, especially when it comes to doing expressive poses and facial expressions and hair, and she's got a very funny (albeit often twisted) bunch of comics, much of which have their own website now. She's also got commissions open - I commissioned a piece from her myself with what spare cash I had, and I was extremely happy with the result. She works fast (less than a week, even with the time I took to dig up references and respond to her!), but she still does quality work, and was a pleasure to work with... and considering her talent, I don't think she's at all overpriced either! She's also unemployed right now, so commissions are her only income - so not only can you get a really good piece of art out of it, you can help her like, not starve to death. Seriously though, do check her out, it's worth it.

*I've been doing a lot of digital photography this year, some candid and some conceptual; I've also been doing more painting than you'd realize from my gallery 'cause... digital photos are easier to get onto the computer. Heh. Though it still took like 9 months before I got around to uploading them...

*I've also been doing more painting this year. I also have been collecting stuff for some collage stuff, but never got around to it because... well, I was going to school 2 days a week and working basically full time... and then Christmas. You do the math! Anyway, I'm hoping to get back into the collage thing soon, and some of my paintings, old and new, will be up soon probably.

*I'm trying out the DevArt print system. Not the fancy upgradey version, but the regular one that you don't pay for in exchange for not getting to set your own price. Now, in case you need incentive OTHER than "I'm a college student who has to feed herself every week" (though thankfully not every day... heh), I'll note here that my parents run a frame shop (see website: [link] ). Which means that I can get you a decent deal on custom-framing if the plain frames they offer through the print shop don't work for you.

*Hell, I'm willing to this even if you don't buy one of my prints, but still want to frame something. My parents could always use the business. Also, we've shipped things before, and we've got a digital camera and I've got email, so you don't even have to be local or anything to do it, either. My family's shop specializes in "archival" and "conservation" framing, including glass that has UV protection (so the thing doesn't fade as easily) and glare-resistance, and acid-free mats and backing (acidic mats or backing, including cardboard, eventually and often quickly cause "foxing", a yellow-brown discoloration of the piece that can be expensive and often difficult or impossible to remove later. If you do water colors, for instance, DO NOT back them with cardboard, water colors can't be cleaned because print-cleaning involves going into a solution!). Stuff like that. I can also give you some pretty good advice if you wanna go the DIY framing route (like where to get acid-free stuff, good mounting methods, etc), just drop me a line .

*I'm also totally addicted to this: [link] , on account being a total nerd.

-Jamie