Sapphire Update

I wanted to do a new post on Sapphire, and her mom left us an update earlier today:

Well, Sapphire has gone through all of her tests (and was a very good girl!). She had her tummy shaved, had an ultra-sound, and had a chest x-ray- all on top of her bloodwork- and with no anesthesia. The tests came back with good results and the cancer is confined to one area. We now have to decide when/if to schedule her surgery. They feel they can remove the mass with semi-clean margins. But I am worried about the wound. It is a very large area and in the same spot as her last surgery; when she had a hard time healing. If we don't do surgery, the cancer will continue to grow. So we are basically resigned to scheduling her surgery sometime next week. All good thoughts and prayers are welcome as we try to figure out the best plan of action.

We are continuing to fund raise for Sapphire, especially since all her preliminary tests were pretty expensive. We've raised $67.50 so far through our etsy shop and direct donations. Thank you to all who donated so far! Please keep sending your positive thoughts her way!

Here are our updated listings, where 100% of the proceeds go to Sapphire.

Limited Edition ACEO ($3): http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_1&listing_id=19518414

Set of Four Cards ($12) : http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=19281450

5x7 Photograph ($15): http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_id=19160305

8x10 photograph ($25): http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_id=19160201

We're raising money to help Sapphire

Tonight, we found out that Sapphire, our friends' lovely Siberian Husky, has cancer.

Sapphire is a very loving dog, and we want her to get better ASAP.

We are listing all our photos of her to help pay for her MRI and other costs for recovery.

Sapphire has beat cancer before four years ago, so please help me spread the word and help her beat it again!

All proceeds from the sales (after listing/paypal and shipping fees) will go directly to Sapphire.

These listings in my shop are 100% donation to help her:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9654034

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=17580455

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=19160305

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_1&listing_id=19160201


And of course, all your healing thoughts and prayers go a long way too. :)

Featured on EFA Blog

I am featured on the EFA Blog today for my entry in the December Challenge. Every day will be a new entry into the challenge, which is "Peace to All Beings."

20% off items in my shop-- and other members too!

One of the Etsy street teams I belong to, EFA Artists Helping Animals, will be celebrating its birthday from Sept. 15-30.

More than 150 members of EFA will be participating (for an official list, click here). No matter what shop you decide to visit, you can use my coupon code, JMCG, to get 20% off your order (excluding shipping) -- in all participating shops. (Fine print: You can only use it once in each shop.)

To use the coupon: When checking out on Etsy, put in the notes to seller field, "efa birthday bash coupon code JMCG." You will either get a revised invoice or refund.

Why use my coupon code? It's because there will be different codes for every shop participating. So be sure to send it to your best friend, your sweet grandma, your weird Uncle Fred--you get the idea.

Interview with Ms. Ninnerfish

This week's interview features Melyssa from Ninnerfish Art. Melyssa is a gifted artist who does custom pet portraits on Etsy. (I've already gotten two!) She also has a wide selection of ACEOs for sale as well. I love her style, which is a blend of realism complemented by a pop-arty feel (yes, I do believe I just made up that art description!). Without further ado, let's get on to the good stuff!

Jen: After studying to become an artist, how did you decide to concentrate on animal portraits?

Melyssa: Ever since I was a kid, I've always wanted to be a vet. In fact, my original plan was to major in Zoology in undergrad and go immediately on to vet school (and get out of Ohio once and for all). Miami University (of Ohio) was the only in state school I applied to and my high school art teacher persuaded me to send them a portfolio of my artwork. I got a call from them one day offering me a full-tuition scholarship to major in art and my parents pretty much told me, "You're going to Miami and you're going to major in art." I think I'm probably one of the only art students out there whose parents were excited about their major! I guess that's kind of a long-winded prelude to answering your question. I paint animals now because they've always been a major part of my life and painting them is kind of a bridge in between the two worlds (art and zoology) for me.

Jen: How do you balance your "day" job with your portrait business?

Melyssa: My day job right now consists of going to school five days a week (I went back to get that Zoology degree I always wanted) and working at a vet clinic as a tech a few hours a week. It gets pretty stressful, so painting is a great way to unwind and turn off my brain for a few hours. You can always tell when I haven't had time to paint because my class notes become less about recording the lecture and more about doodling. I'm also really bad at finishing things if I don't have a deadline looming over my head. I hardly ever finish a painting that I do for myself, but if I'm painting for somebody else, and they've given me the money, and I've told them "I'll have this to you in 6 weeks," then I'm committed to getting it done and doing it right. I need that kind of pressure.

Jen: What is your favorite medium to work with? Why?

Melyssa: I paint mostly with acrylics now, because they're so easy to clean up and there's no need to keep a jar of dirty turpentine around, but oils are my absolute favorite medium. They have a luminosity that you just can't get with anything else. And that smell... mmmm.

Jen: What is a Ninnerfish? Tell us the story behind your shop name. :)

Melyssa: I honestly have no idea what a ninnerfish is. For some reason, my little sister started calling me that back when we were kids (I call her "Loafy"). She even commandeered the SportsCenter theme song for me, singing "ninnerfish. ninnerfish." when their intro comes on. I told her jokingly a few years ago that if I ever got my own business, I'd name it Ninnerfish. I had to keep the promise. It kind of suits me.

Jen: How did you discover Etsy?

Melyssa: I belong to an internet group of artists that trades ATCs (artist trading cards) and one of the members mentioned Etsy. I'd had my own website before, but was only making sales sporadically, and Ebay scares me, so it seemed like a great fit. I listed a painting I'd had laying around for awhile and it sold the first night. That's how I got hooked. Oh, Etsy, my drug of choice!

To see more of Melyssa's work, visit her Etsy shop:

Etsy Buy Handmade Ninnerfish

Donation updates

I'd like to take some time out to update my wonderful customers the status of current donations.

As you know, 20% of the sales in my shop (after paypal, shipping, and etsy fees) is donated to 3Bunnies Rabbit Rescue, located at 3Bunnies.org.

In January and February, $10.61 was slated to help 3Bunnies. We rounded up that donation to $25.

Our March and April totals have been tallied, and $16.92 was slated for 3Bunnies. In April, we also learned about poor Wrigley who needed help paying for some expensive veterniary bills, so we included our own personal donation when sending the amount, for a total of $50 donation to 3Bunnies.

EFA Donation Update
I also offer select items in my shop where 100% of the sales (after paypal, shipping and etsy fees) is donated to the Etsy for Animals charity of the month. For April, the selected charity was Rolling Dog Ranch Animal Sanctuary, located in Montana.


This is the first time one of my 100% donations sold, and how appropriate that it was the Dog Gone Crazy Photo Greeting Card set! After fees, the total donation came to $10.17, but we decided to round up that donation to $25. (The official total donation by all EFA members is still being calculated.)

Thank you to all my fabulous customers!

I joined Etsy For Animals!

I'm happy to announce that I joined Etsy for Animals: Artists Helping Animals. Each member in this street team/group donates a portion of his/her proceeds to animal causes. There's also an opportunity to donate items where 100% of the proceeds go to the animal charity of choice for the month.

If you've been to my store in the last few days, you've probably seen that I now donate 20% of the sale (before shipping) to 3 Bunnies Rabbit Rescue. This rescue group works hard to place rabbits in good, forever homes. Their site is also a great informative tool for those new to bunnies.