Selling Original Art on Handmade at Amazon

I promised I'd update you about Handmade.  Well, here we are the last few days of September, on the cusp of the Christmas selling season and it hasn't launched yet.

English Bulldog Portrait by Robin Zebley

Most of us who were juried in have gotten a one week's notice to get our items listed, so hopefully it's close.  The problem is it is very, very time-consuming and Amazon has just piggybacked Handmade onto it's regular programming, making it confusing for those of us who are not in the business of importing widgets and reselling them.

The shipping is a nightmare.  You can't adjust for items easily.  You have to use a confusing spreadsheet to upload a base price and then adjust it from there in the item, using percentages and MATH.  Which many of us artists are not the best at.  I had three dedicated sessions before I figured it out, sorta.  What I'm doing is using my most common shipping price and just adding into my largest paintings selling price.

There is no copy function.  Regular Amazon has this, I guess the programmers thought that handmade means we are all making all kinds of items, none of which are similar.  You literally need to start with picking a category for every single listing.  Now, there is a hack to save SOME of your info, but listing on Amazon, with all its boxes and no copy function, is quite time consuming.

There is little Amazon presence in the forum, which would seem to me to be better than fielding tons of phone calls.  So the forum is full of rumors and advice given by volunteer "regular" Amazon sellers who have some different functions that we do.  Like, they can copy, we can't.  

And lastly, their Terms of Use are confusing and have frightened off some really good sellers who would be an asset to Handmade at Amazon.  They are aware of it and have chosen to just post reassurances that they will not use your intellectual property even though the language in the TOU says they can if they want to, forever.  They would do well to revisit the TOU and have a IP lawyer help them from the seller's side to clarify and make the site work for the very cautious.

On the plus side:  TONS of space to add search terms.  For me, that's not as important as for others.

Also, no silly matching of search phrases to title for the algorithm to be able to find you.  This Etsy-only exercise in moving one pile of dirt to another is a hard habit to break, but refreshing.  At Etsy, the mistagging is rampant, so that "original oil painting" shows reproductions OF original oil paintings.  I hear Amazon's search will not produce those kinds of results AND that mistagging is punished.

And I'm really excited to sell here, I can't see a downside personally and am looking forward to being able to paint instead of fixing listings constantly to conform and optimize for Etsy's latest change, in order to get eyeballs on my portraits. 

The buzz is also starting, I was interviewed for a story thestreet.com is doing on it (hopefully I won't end up on the cutting room floor!).  There is a lot of attention and focus from financial and business press and blogs, and every one of us who is signed up NOW can benefit from that.

So, our hope is that within a week, we'll get the promised 48 hour warning and that the zillions of Amazon buyers and buyers who never thought about buying original art or handmade will be shopping with us!

House Portrait Watercolor Painting by me, Robin Zebley

Handmade At Amazon vs. Etsy for Artists

Handmade at Amazon or Etsy?  I know how Etsy works for me at this time and both Etsy tomorrow  and Handmade at Amazon are unknowns.  Etsy has inserted a bizarre partial list of categories at the top of every page.  One that hides Art.  With a drill down that doesn't include portraits.  So I am 

Bulldog Portrait by Robin Zebley

expanding into Handmade @Amazon and hoping for the best.  I was honored to be selected in the first round of artists to open there, and am working on my shop.  It's not an easy transition, it's a whole different experience to list there and set up, but Amazon APPEARS to be embracing the hand made and art and Etsy's still intermingling the handmade and art with the factory goods.

Here's my Etsy shop for portraits: CustomPortraitArt and for my woodblock prints and other paintings and drawings, Robin Zebley Art. I will be watching the progress of both venues carefully and let you know what happens!

I'm artist Robin Zebley, specializing in custom portraits of children, homes and pets.  I also like to make other art!  My portrait art can also be seen at here at Robin Zebley Portraits I sell at Etsy, too, and am about to be shown at Handmade at Amazon.

Ebay vs. Etsy for Art, First Steps in Transition

Saluki Custom Portrait by me,
artist Robin Zebley

Today I'm beginning my first steps in my experiment in opening an Ebay store to see if it can pick up the slack that the nosedive in views at my Etsy shop.  More on that in this post about my Etsy views declining.

In order to make an Ebay store a better deal than just listing, I need more listings.

The Ebay rep I spoke with said I could convert my listings to my Ebay store when I was ready.  So my first step is to load my listings.

I have to work around my portrait commissions, but I get drying time since I use a pretty standard medium to paint, I dislike the look of the ones that speed things up.

So, don't have days to work on this project, but I do have hours.  So....off to work!  Have a great one, Robin.

More of my blog HERE.

I'm Philadelphia area painter, Robin Zebley.  I paint custom pet portraits in oils and colored pencil, house portraits in watercolor and ink, and anything else that catches my eye!  I'm currently working on florals, still lifes and landscapes in between my commission work!

I would love if you'd help me by tweeting, pinning, or facebooking my work with a link to my site, robinzebley.com.  It really helps!  Thanks!!  Robin

On Painting Big, what am I afraid of?

Why am I not painting big?  I just received an order for a dog portrait painting so large that I had to figure out the shipping before I could even give a quote.  Measured in FEET, not inches!  Which leads to the question of why am I not already painting large?  Is it fear?



Boxer Dog Portrait ACEO, 2.5" x 3.5"

THIS is my comfort level...inches, not feet.  When I started out 12 years ago, I was amazed and thrilled whenever I sold anything, and those anythings were ACEOs on Ebay.  I could NOT believe people actually spent their good money on something I did!

Well, hopefully I've gotten a little more confident.  But maybe not enough.  Other artists in my life have been challenging me on this.  Why do I think an 8" x 10" is big?  Why do I continue to offer small, and not large?  Well, I do offer large but have very few samples of large.  And not very large.

It's not like working small is easier.  In fact, it's harder to get good detail, hard on the eyes, hard on the back, scrunched over a table, etc. 

But I think it is a fear, and one I aim to get over in the next few months.  Fear of being too bold.  Fear of appearing too confident?  Fear of paying a little more for art supplies?  (I still tip my hat to the late artist on WetCanvas whose tag line was "Paint Like a Millionaire").

Fear that charging more means I price right out of EVERYONE'S market?

I am not sure.  But I have lots of paint, lots of big brushes and lots of everything else needed to paint large and I'm going to do it.

Watch me.

How's that for hubris?  YIKES!
Thanks for reading!  Robin

English Bulldog Art

English Bulldog Art

I fall in love with the pets I paint, and this adorable English bulldog is no exception!  I hated to see him go, but he was a Christmas gift, and off he went. 

But guess what?  I forgot to take a photo of him first!  I am so lucky that his parents were willing to do it for me! 

You know, most of my portraits go "elsewhere", but this guy was pretty local to me, just outside of Philadelphia, so I got to meet him in person.  I just love the porky look of them, and his contented face, with huge smile, just melted my heart!

Speaking of gifts, I just got a commission for a custom portrait for a wedding gift.  Isn't that cool?  I know they will remember that gift forever, and who gave it to them!  If you have a wedding coming up, a pet or house portrait would be fabulous, just contact me and we can get started!  More portrait samples in my etsy shop on the right and in my Custom Portrait Art Shop!


Meeting Other Artists

Eclectus Parrot Portrait
 

For artists who are self taught, like me, connecting in real life with other artists can be a challenge.

If you went to art school, especially locally, you have a group you can rely on, socialize with and invite to your openings!

But not us who are largely self-taught.  And our work is pretty solitary, not many of us collaborate.  So that was one of the things I wanted to change for this year.  I want to meet other local artists.

So when I spotted a Meet Up here in the Philadelphia suburbs that was a few miles away from me, I jumped at the chance.  What a great bunch!  The studio it was held in is in the back of a garage, an interesting space, cozy but large enough.  The other artists all had formal art educations except one.  Which was pretty intimidating to me, but the warmth and support of art at any level really put me at ease.  We had to bring a piece for critique, and that was interesting.  As someone whose main focus in art is to recreate and improve on a photo of a beloved pet, painting with other intentions is interesting.

For instance, one artist brought a lovely pastel landscape and someone asked her what story she intended to tell with it before critiquing it. 

Another had a portrait of a chair, and 20 minutes of discussion of the meaning of the chair along with discussions of color, texture, etc. introduced a component to me that I never think about with my own work.

But bottom line, it was really fun to get together with other artists and talk art.  I am stretching my wings so maybe someday I'll graduate to having a story to tell, but in the meantime, I'm enjoying my commissions to make a pet like the eclectus parrot look like THAT pet whose portrait I did in colored pencil a while back.

We're doing a just for fun group project of painting Elvis on black velvet, talking about art field trips and invitations to openings.  One of the participants also leads an en Plein Aire landscape painting meet up that I would like to try.  I haven't ever painted a landscape that didn't have a pet in front of it, but I'd love to give it a try!

How to take photos of your art. Don't ask me!

 

I'm really happy with this painting of a Japanese Chin that I did, but you will never know because my terrible photography skills won't show it as it is!

This has been a thorn in my side that I can't seem to overcome.  Especially in the wintertime when a dash outdoors to try and get a decent shot while the wind does its best to make a painting airborne.

This is the best of the shots I got, and is dark, but glared.  Photoshopping made it a little better, but I am so frustrated that it's not good enough to put on my pet portrait site or my Etsy Shop as a sample.

I did enjoy painting her.  The nose!  The eyes!  And that fluffy, tangled fur.  I painted in lots of color but so flat looking here.  Also, the cushion made of kimono fabric I found online to paint.  It's really a modified cerulean blue, with tones of greens, reds, cool blues and whites in the pattern.

Ah, well.  Lesson learned here is not to mail out commissions til I check and make sure I get a better shot, no matter what it takes!  Anyway, this gorgeous Japanese Chin is oil on canvas, 8 x 10.

Sarge the Boxer Dog on T.V.! Oh, me, too!

Sarge the T.V. Star Dog Getting His Beauty Sleep

Sarge NEEDS his beauty sleep, he's about to be a t.v. star!  For real!  On Tuesday, Sarge and I were interviewed by Philadelphia's Channel 6 producer Gaby, for a segment on their newsmagazine show, FYI, which will air on December 15.

I was naturally nervous, but Gaby was a real pro, as was the camerman, Andy.  They really put me at ease. 

Sarge, however, had no butterflies in his tummy, he knew they came to our home studio to see him, naturally!  Sarge was a total ham.  He really seemed to understand what he was supposed to do.

Actually, along with doing a little demo (hands shaking!) and talking about how I started doing pet portraits and telling some stories about the dogs and cats whose portraits I have done, we did discuss Sarge!  Since most of the pieces I've done in my career are sold and gone, I only had a few pieces to show, one was my painting of Sarge in profile.

The other one was Brutus, my nieces's boxer, who was the very first dog whose portrait I did!  The one and a half hour taping will be edited down to a minute and a half, and I can't wait to see what sticks and what gets snipped.

So now Sarge has what Wally and the Beave would call "a swelled head"!  Not really, later in the week Hoss came for an overnight visit and let him know that in some ways, Hoss is Boss! 

Brothers, Black Boxer Dog Hoss and Brindle Flash Sarge

Black Boxer Dog Hoss & Brother Sarge
 

Sarge is my studio dog, my buddy who keeps me company while I paint and draw my pet portraits.  He's the flashy brindle boy on the right. 

On our left is his half brother, Hoss, who is, as you can see, a Black Boxer dog.  Hoss comes out and visits with us often, and we recently had him for a fun week.  What is interesting to me is that they have the same father, and their moms are sisters, so they are very close geneticallly.  But they could not be farther apart in personality!

Sarge is laid back, enjoys romping but likes to take breaks rolling and stretching in the sunshine, amuses himself in the backyard while I get some garden work done.

Hoss?  100% energy.  I think he really resents having to get some sleep, but the way his legs go and his "whooooo, whoooooing" while "sleeping", he's having fun in his dreams!

When you take Hoss out, he wants to play with either Sarge or me the whole time.  His favorite toy at my house is that flattened basketball you see at Sarge's feet.  He never gets tired of having me throw it or kick it and bringing it back.  He's been trained to "back up", so I can safely kick it right over his head and off he goes.

Sarge would rather run with Hoss than retrieve.  Around and around the willow tree, his "fort" is his favorite.

Hoss is skinny, too.  He is healthy as can be but he burns it off.  I want his metabolism and energy!  Since Hoss is a city boy, he actually waits til you put a sheet of newspaper under his behind for him to poop on.  Easy cleanup!

If you haven't seen a black boxer before, they are actually covered with the brindle stripes 100% over the tan.  So in the sunshine, he's a very very dark blackish brown.  His dad is a black boxer, too, and they are AKC registered, one hundred percent boxer...and one hundred percent energy!!!

A Snapshot of My Pet Portraits

Pet Portraits by Me, Philadelphia Area Artist, Robin Zebley

Here's a little sampling of my pet portraits, I made a treasury of them on Etsy in my Vintage Shop to show my visitors the other side of my life!  It shows up in my profile.

It's not clickable, so if you'd like to see it "live", click ---> Pet Portraits!

It's funny how I look at these and remember little details about what I was doing and what time of the year, the client who commissioned it, and the animals themselves but never the names!  Except for my own Sarge who is 3rd, second row, I have no idea what these pets are named.  I do remember the little girl on the bottom because she is a niece of mine, isn't she a doll? 

So, gearing up for the busy Christmas Portrait season ahead, and looking back down memory lane at just a few of the precious faces I've been honored to capture in portrait.  Many of them were gifts, and I also remember the beautiful emails I've received from the recipients.  It's how I know for a fact that it's a most treasured gift and one they will love forever!  I am so honored to be a part of that exchange of love!  Robin

Moving my Art Studio Outside!

Sarge Watching me work on a pet portrait...of someone else!

Since I have begun painting pet portraits in oil on canvas, I have really struggled with where to do it.  Colored pencil is no issue, it's totally portable, makes no mess and doesn't need to dry.

So I have a bin of pencils, masonite boards cut to size that I tape my pieces on, and a battery operated sharpener.

But the oils?  We tried squeezing it into my Etsy vintage shop storeroom, the light was bad and it was hot.  Plus, there was so little room, and since Sarge, the studio dog, likes to be with me, I was tripping over him in the crammed space.  Not good!!

We tried using a corner of the dining room.  I hated that, the light is fabulous but the mess was incredible.  I am not a neat by nature person and am a very messy painter, so having wet paint in the middle room of my downstairs meant my whole house looked and was a mess.

But...I have this fabulous screen gazebo in the back yard!  There's still half a summer and part of fall where that is a great place to paint!  I found an old storage trunk in my vintage-to-sell pile and transformed that into an all-weather oil painting supplies locker and tucked it into a corner.  Easy to clean up!  I just bring my painting into the mudroom at night.

There's already a nice table there, and I have a french easel. 

But some days it really is hot.  I grabbed a long, heavy duty extension cord and ran it out.  I have a multiplug thing for the end to plug a small fan and a radio into.  And I am set!

I've been getting so much done out there!  Sarge loves it, he gets to play in his yard, or sleep on the rug in the gazebo. 

I don't know what I'll do in the winter.  I figure I have until the end of October at the most.  So I have to get busy!!!

Orange Tiger Tabby Cat on a Vintage Chair

My tiger cat portrait demonstration is finally finished, and here's the end result.  Lots of steps in between! 

I really added age to the chair with lots of alligatoring and paint scrapes. 

Added highlights, too.  And that's all for the chair, because I didn't want it to be a drawing of a chair that had a cat on it, but a cat on a chair!

The way the sunlight hits his eyes created an interesting reflection of the beautiful strong yellow green.

I also cropped it just a bit from my original composition.  I feel I had too much dead wall space on the right.  My apologies for the glare, I'm no photographer, and I admit it! 

Now, is he for sale?  Of course!  I was going to sell it through the BlueStone Fine Art Gallery in Philadelphia, but time conflicts changed our plans.  He's up for auction at DailyPaintWorks, where I am brand new and starting low to build a following.

I will also be using him as a sample for pet portraits.

By the way, if you are in Philadelphia, do stop by the BlueStone Gallery which is at 301 N. 3rd.  It's a stunning space full of a great mix of art and the staff is top notch.  They will help you find the art of your dreams! 

Boxer Brothers

Yes, I know I owe you all the finale of my cat portrait wip, but meanwhile, just had to share this adorable photo of boxer brothers, Sarge and Hoss, conked out after a romp and hike at French Creek State Park.  They are half brothers, have the same dad and different moms. 

I might just have to paint this!




Studio Dog. Job Description. Maturity, attention to detail, energetic...

Sarge turned 1 yesterday on my beloved late mother's birthday.  I was so broken hearted about losing Otto last summer and I just don't think it was a coincidence that we found our new pup who is so perfect without some heavenly influence!  Thanks, Mom.  My mom really encouraged me to try harder at everything I did.  She wasn't the type to worry about my precious self-worth.  She pushed and I'm glad she did.  She never told me I did well when it was so-so.  Anyway how can you write about your mom when she's been gone almost as long as you had her...anyway, now we have Sarge!

So how does he measure up as a studio dog?  See for yourself!!!!!!   Sarge loves his backyard, and we have been spending a lot of time out there planting, and painting and drawing.  He is so willing to help, if only he could!  He  enjoys greeting people through the fence, has his special friends, and still seems to think that squirrels are just little buddies to perhaps give a half hearted chase with.

So he sleeps well!!  I've been working on some ACEOs that star my Sarge, and will be listing them on Ebay when I have enough.  First...we have more garden to tend to!

Cat Portrait Demo, details, details, details!

More progress since last time!    I've been busy finishing commissions, which always come first for me,  so my apologies for the gap in time.  You must have wondered if I forgot all about our orange tiger tabby and his vintage chair!  Anyway ....First on the chair,  I put a new layer all over of muted turquoise, then of chocolate in the farther away spots to pull it back and start the process of drawing more attention to the star, our kitty cat!    And ... speaking of our star,  lots of work on him.   But back to the chair, I also began adding in the chipped away paint, exposing the dark wood underneath the turquoise paint job.  A few areas are hit by sunlight and I've left that, and fuzzed the edges on the chair as well.    Again, I don't want this portrait to be of a chair that happens to have a cat on it, but a cat that happens to be on a chair.  So, he's getting the lion's share of the detailing.

I started with drawing in his paw pads, adding the dark cast shadows under his head and bent back ear, and along his body and leg.  I am purposely making the back legs less detailed.

The whites are either reinforced, or darkened with a gray blue.

Next up, his face.  I am an early bird and need to take advantage of my early energy so that will have to wait til next time! 

Meanwhile, I also wanted to mention that I am in an unusual situation for me, I'm fresh out of commissions!  So I'm having a summer sale to get busy again!  If you've ever thought about purchasing a portrait from me, now is the time, and a perfect time to get a jump on Christmas shopping.  Use the coupon code "SummerPortraits" at checkout of any size custom portrait from my Etsy Portrait Shop for 25% off!  This offer only good til I get busy again, hopefully for just a week or so! 

Anyway, any questions or comments on my work in progress of the colored pencil cat?  Just ask! Robin

Bidding War on my Puppy Dog Handpulled Woodblock Print!

I love to donate to rescues when I can, and the more portrait commissions I get, the more I can donate!  Oftentimes, though, I never hear back from the rescues once they receive the handpulled print or portrait donation.  Today I heard that THIS handpulled print of two puppies that were themselves rescues made BIG money for a fundraiser of the Delaware County SPCA recently.

There was a bidding war...and this print made $150 for the rescue!  Is that wonderful or what?  It makes me itchy to do another print soon. 

I've been busy with portrait commissions and with my new online vintage store.  I'll tell you even more about that in another post, but for you dog lovers like me, today I listed this adorable vintage poodle planter.

I just love that poodle-ish attitude with the smirky smile!  Here's where you can find him and our other finds of quirky vintage!

By the way, Christmas is just around the corner, if you are interested in a commission!!  My commission waiting list is already building, so contact me soon if you want to make sure you will be on my "guaranteed for Christmas" list.  Thanks for stopping by! Robin

Black Lab Portrait with Hunting Scene Landscape Background

This is one of the pet portraits I finished recently.  This guy's name is "DumbDog".  Now, that's not his real name, it's a nickname, and it's not descriptive of this really smart, wonderful fellow.  It's like calling a giant dog "Tiny" or a heavy one "Slim".  One of those silly, affectionate nicks that just stuck.

Of course, Labs love the water, and so I posed him in an environment he loves:  Ready, willing and able to dive right into that marshy wetlands water behind him.

We live near the Heinz Wildlife Preserve that borders Philadelphia on one side and my small borough on the other and often walk with Otto there. Besides the birds of every description, if you're observant, you get to see turtles and frogs, small mammals and lots of deer.  We get a lot of spillover from the birds who live there and stop there on their migrations at our bird feeders less than a mile away.  (We also are gifted by the mosquito visits!).

At one time, of course, much of the surrounding area was wetland...this is one of the only protected urban wetlands left. 

But back to DumbDog.  The specs are that this is a colored pencil portrait, 16" x 20" with prismacolor and color soft colored pencil on Mi Tientes pastel paper.

Another thing this portrait did for me was make me really want to paint outdoors, maybe plein air for all of it or maybe part of it with studio time to finish up.  But that's not going to be colored pencil, which takes too long.  So, I'm currently enrolled in an oil painting class to fill in the gaps of my self-taught painting technique.  There's just a lot of science involved with the mediums used with oils that I need to understand, plus I just love hanging out with other artists and art lovers.  And of course, I'll be showing you my work here and on my Facebook Art Page, HERE which is my short and sweet show and tell!  See you there!!

Brittany Spaniels Pet Portrait - the dog whisperers?

I have been really busy with pet portrait commissions, but haven't kept up with posting them.  Here's one of my favorites recently, two older brittany spaniels who often seem to converse!  Very sweet dogs, very sweet client, who found me via twitter!  It's 16 x 20, prismacolor colored pencils on Mi Tientes pastel paper. 

Of course, I have to apologise again for my crummy photography skills!

In other news, my FB Fan Page is growing by leaps and bounds.  I really hope to make that a fun spot, with giveaways and penny auctions, etc.  I just don't think art has to be dead serious, you know? 

The Rhythm of the Art Life

When I typed for lawyers, my day was mapped out for me.  Half an hour to and from, an hour for lunch and caged in a cube in between just doing as I was told.  The little time I had at home was pretty much taken up with chores and flopping exhausted on the couch.    While my art is now my fulltime "job", utilizing the time efficiently has been a struggle for me.  As any self promoting artist knows, the marketing end is very time consuming.  And I am learning how to make my art a small business, so I must devote time to that, as well.  Here's some things I've learned: 

• I do my best art with a fresh eye.  Two hours at a stretch is the max for me.  I've been hard on myself for not spending more time at a stretch, til I realized that quantity at one sitting does not make quality.
• I like media that can be stopped and restarted.  Colored pencils are so easy for this.  Also oil based printing inks.  I don't like the media dictating when I can work and when I can't and that's my main complaint about oils. 
• I need to get away.  A lot.  Now that sounds crazy, I love making art!  But shorter intervals broken up by doing something else really makes me more efficient.  In the beginning, I did all my housechores, walked Otto, got cleaned up and did my emailing and blogging BEFORE I did my art.  I cleared the decks.  I have learned that doesn't work for me.  Better for me to draw for an hour, then take a shower and walk Otto, then draw for an hour and go to the bank and library, draw for an hour and go dig up the dahlias.
• Online is good.  I actually like to be online when I work.  So I take little mini breaks while I work to respond to a post, check facebook, tweet, etc.  So much of what I do online is art related and it keeps me pumped and inspired.
• Online is bad.  Talking politics, critiquing, responding to trolls accomplishes nothing for me and hours can go by.  Eliminating.
• Online is fun.  I love my online art and animal friends and enjoy keeping up with what they are doing, guilt-free.  I'm outgoing and friendly by nature, and the social aspect of "work" is the only thing I miss.  I get that coffebreak type camaraderie with colleagues whenever I feel like it.  Fun to talk shop.
• Online combines fun with marketing.  Twitter has been very good to me!
• Housework can be done half asleep.  Yes, it is true.  Don't have to think too hard, so saving those chores for when I'm beat works well!
• Rome wasn't built in a day.  I do a little marketing every day.  I'm seeing good results.  And I'm looking with a hard eye what works and what doesn't.
• Business before pleasure.  I'm taking the time to learn how to run this as a real business.  Sounds so not artsy, right?  But it is and I'm taking advantage of opportunities to learn how to do it.  Recordkeeping is not my strong point but I am learning how to do it properly.
• Today and tomorrow influence each other.  What I do with each day is influenced by what's on my calendar down the road.  Silly to spend time marketing when I have deadlines to hit.  I don't have time now, for instance, to take any life drawing workshops, but I will after the holidays.  The rhythm of the art day is influenced by the calendar.  Go with the flow of what the priorities are.
• Being organized helps me be more creative.  I have a paper notebook where I write everything down.  I also have a calendar where I note opportunities I might want to do in the future.  Don't have to keep things in my head and can relax.
• The art is the thing.  I can truly get lost in the marketing, blogging, etc.  Deadlines loom and as I said I do my best work in 2 hour max shots.  I am strict about them.  But recognizing how I work best helps me do my best work.  Gotta go now!  Robin

I'm Robin Zebley, specializing in portraits of pets, animal art and now portraits of children.  My pet portraits site is full of info and samples.  I love comments on my blog and would love to hear from you!  If you would like to contact me by email, it's HERE.

In Florida - the Space Shuttle launch, alligators and art

I'm a little out of the loop, I've been visiting my dad in Okeechobee Florida.  I came down with my son who's at Cocoa Beach, and he dropped me off at my Dad's after some really fun times with our family in Ft. Laurderdale.  We watched the launch on t.v. then ran out to the backyard to see it in real life.  Unfortunately, those big puffy Florida clouds blocked the view.  Still exciting that my son had a part in preparing things for the International Space Station!  (That's about all THIS artist understands about it!)

My stepsister and her daughter are also visiting so we took a day trip today and drove around.  Okeechobee is so cool, so "old Florida" still, with natural looking vistas against that blue sky.  We did our best to spot some gators but like the space shuttle launch, they kept hidden from our view.

I did get some awesome shots of big ole birds at the "intersection" of Lake Okeechobee and the Kissimmee River.

But being here reawakens a wish I've had for a while to be able to spend even more time here in Florida, which is where I grew up.  Maybe I can do some art shows?  That would sure be fun!  But for now, I am working on Christmas, with lots of commissions and room for a few more orders, if I am diligent about working once I get home.  If I'm a good girl, I might even be able to get more than a few in.  It's exciting to me how responsive people have been to my work!