9.28.2011

Like It's My Last...

Without sharing all of my personal opinions about the Troy Davis case, and how some of you responded to it, I do want to share how the action of strangers during this time really inspired me. It's a very simple concept, actually. I  had been thinking on it for some time, considering my personal situation with my mom. It finally came to me as I was watching the news coverage and I saw the people rejoice when the stay was announced...and later weep once the Supreme Court ruled to not blokk his execution.

As I mentioned before, or at least thought I had mentioned before, my mom is fighting her own battle with cancer. She was diagnosed around this time last year and she's been...fighting. It's been rough. But the funny thing is, at least to me, all these years we've been in Georgia...or at this house and we hardly EVER had company. Nobody came to visit. They all said we lived too far. Busy. Working. Anything but not visiting. Now, my mother may very well be dying and we can't keep people out of the house. It's amazing and she loves it. It makes her feel like somebody gives a fukk. She noticed the change, but she doesn't give a damn if they didn't come 3 or 5 years ago when she was healthy. And she's not worried about if they will or won't come tomorrow or a week from now, because she may not be here.That's what I thought about when I watched the coverage on my local news. It helped me, in some sense, really see what was important.

That's what I thought about when people said..."well why you give a fukk now? You didn't care 22 years ago when he was arrested." And I thought to myself, Troy probably doesn't give a fukk who didn't care 22 years ago. It's his last day on earth, and there are THOUSANDS of people outside praying for him...and supporting him. People that he's never met, but he has nonetheless managed to inspire. True enough, it was not the outcome that the crowd expected, but they were there when it mattered. He didn't die alone. He didn't die thinking nobody gave a fukk if he lived or if he didn't. That meant something to me.

People always say, live like it's your last. Live like you won't see tomorrow. Well on that day, I decided that it would be pretty nice if we always treated people like it was THEIR last. Like we wouldn't see them tomorrow. Not just our loved ones. But EVERYbody. Even the cashiers and customer service people having a bad day...and your evil coworkers...and the family you don't love so much. I know it's not a novel idea, but dammit, it's the right thing to do! :D #SYM1Done

9.27.2011

Touched by Art

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

I've been working on a special piece with a breast cancer theme for the past few weeks. Once completed, it'll be auctioned off here:

If you're in the ATL and would like to see it first...or have a chance to buy it, then meet me here. I haven't finished yet, but so far so good. I won't be posting the finished product until after the show, so the only chance to purchase it will be at the Touched by Art Fundraiser. I will also be painting live. #nervous The proceeds will be going to Sister's By Choice, Inc. They're saving for a (pink) mobile health unit (RV), where women can get screenings and such. I think that's so cute. Anyway, ya'll come out and support. Save a boob or somethin'.

The details for those that won't clikk the flyer:

October 19, 2011 from 7-11p
The 5 Seasons Restaurant
1000 Marietta Street NW
Atlanta, GA 30381

Admission is $10
You can purchase tikkets here >> http://touchedbyart.eventbrite.com/ <<
follow @1touchmovement


There will be various pieces of art up for auction and vendors will be present, so bring a little extra if you might want to buy something. That's all for now!

9.26.2011

Big Numbers: Day 269

 I was doing really well, but then I ran out of stuff to post. I've been busy. Not painting. *shrugs* It is what it is...

I have a little somethin' somethin' for today though. I made 3 clutches. All with similar designs. All for sale. :o) Because as much as I would like, I don't need another bag. Of any sort. I'm not even sure I want any. Which is all beside the point. Chekk out what I did...

256-258/1000
AVAILABLE
I love mixing colors and patterns. Thought I'd try it with these clutches. Fun activity. Test my skills and such. I think the red one is my favorite. I still have to figure out how to paint plaid. I want it to look OFFICIAL.

256/1000 (bakk) 

256/1000 (front) 

257/1000 (bakk) 



257/1000 (front)

258/1000 (front)

258/1000 (bakk) 


Oh, and guess what else? I can now google which day it is. Have no idea why I didn't try that before. No more guessing and adding. #WINNING That's all. Until tomorrow. Maybe.

9.22.2011

Big Numbers: I lost trakk again

This is just a quikk one. Remember that I told ya'll I was trying tie dye for the first time? Well, I dyed 5 scarves the other day. They are all the same color...except the one I kept for myself. There are four available for sale. Wanna see? Sure you do.

251-255/1000 


Ok. So that's it. I am not hiding anything else or making you wait for any more product. That's it. Now, I need to finish something so I will have some posts for later.

9.21.2011

Big Numbers: Day 260

Yesterday I had to do something about all that brain clutter. I woke up and immediately got to work on anything. I had so much fun and mommy was able to help! Oh, and by help, I mean watching. lol. But it was nice. Yesterday was good. I was pleased...and productive.

I made the other set of pink bracelets. Sold them already.

247/1000 This is both sets. They both have homes. 


This fluffy white bracelet. I was told it looks like something for a flower girl, so if you're getting married...and you're having a flower girl....and she needs a bracelet....this one is for sale:

248/1000 

I wanted to keep it, but I'm too old for this amount of fluff.
It didn't feel right. I still think it's cute though.

I made these bangles. I'm uber happy about how they turned out. I'm keeping whichever one that doesn't sell first. :o) I bought these YEARS ago with the intent to paint them. Just got around to it. I loooove them.

249/1000 and 250/1000 bakk

This is what they look like on...

and this is the front. 

I'm going to make some more today. Maybe. The style of bangle is different though. I may have to alter the design. I'm excited to see what those will turn out like.

AND I tie dyed!!! Well, I tried to. I'm not happy with the results yet, so I'm not going to post the pics until I get something beautiful enough to share. It was fun though! I have never done it before. Have you seen my childhood?

Oh, and I also made some paper beads, but I'll post that when I've finally done enough to make a nekklace. I made dinner too, but that doesn't count toward anything, so, *shrugs.* I'm gonna make a pot pie for dinner today. I'm good at that. It doesn't count either. I just wanted to share! *woop*  That's 6 items. One day. My name is BEAST...salute me.

9.20.2011

Big Numbers: Day 259

I may be lying about these numbers. I can never be too sure. I don't feel like going to chekk. It's close enough. Yesterday, when my mind was doing that long run on sentence thing? Yeah, I put my brush down. I couldn't paint through that. I made more bracelets!

245/1000 MINE

246/1000
I can't wait to rokk these. They look...expensive.  Actually, as far as beads go, they were. 


I don't need a long post for this. I had fun. Not because it's particularly fun, but more because it was something different. And I got some fast results. It didn't take DAYS to complete. I'm keeping this brown one and the set of pink ones, but I have enough of the pink beads to make another set....that I sold before I could post this. *Shrugs* Sorry guys.

I wish I had some more. I may go buy some. Make more bracelets. One to sell and one to keep. That's fair right?

9.19.2011

It's Busy In My Mind

OMG!!! It was CRAZY! I finished one of the paintings I was working on. Planned on blogging then tapping out. The blog part worked. The tapping out.....not so much. I ended up making bracelets...to relax. Didn't work. My mind suddenly went beyond and stayed there until a very inappropriate hour. I had so many ideas about stuff and other stuff and even more stuff that I couldn't get sleepy. I LOVE new ideas, but staying up late doesn't stop the day from coming. I just wanted to go to bed. I was opening my craft storage. Trying to see what I had and what I could try to make with that. Just going and going and going....

I want to make a sculpture for my bedroom. WTH?! Really SYM?! A sculpture? See, this is why I should be asleep. I should make some accessories for my bedroom. One project at a time. No rush. Decoupage. Tine mentioned mixed media...I should do that too. Where? Paper mache. How? What? Girl...you buggin. What should I add to the Christmas tree this year? Orange still sounds nice. I should get started. I should frame some of this artwork...well this fancy paper I bought. Wait, did I buy it? Or is it a different color? I should go look. Where did I put it? What am I getting "everybody" for Christmas? I should get started so I don't have to run around like a mad woman in November. Am I going to buy stuff. I want to buy stuff. I'll make some stuff and buy some other stuff. I STILL want to paint these boots. I have an idea. I'm sure I've been thinking about this since 09. COMMIT! (I have yet to fail in changing my mind about that project. We'll see what happens there.) I am STILL committed to these paint colors/designs for my rooms. So I guess I really DO want that. I suppose I should get started. I won't stop thinking about it til it's done. I need that thinking room. I don't have time to paint. Do I? Google. Ooh this is cute! Where am I going? Eh, I'll find somewhere to go. Hair clips. I'm going to make those. I need the clips. I have the beads. I have like...a billion rolls of ribbon. Gotta find a project for that. And...I have some bangles I want to SYM-ify. Oh, and I also had some ideas for paintings. Except I'm not painting canvas today. I don't wanna. Gonna get around to that when I get done having my moment. I'm almost out of canvas. That excites me. I'm painting my ass off. *Kanye voice* I still have to do those 5x7s. What should I do with all these shirts piled up behind my bed. I want my space bakk! (Did I tell ya'll I'm considering not doing them anymore? I didn't? Well, I just did. We'll see. I'm just thinking about it now. Thought I was bored. But now, today since I don't want to do canvas, I want to do shirts. So...yeah. That was an interesting revelation.) I should do a special. Just for the holidays. I'll continue to consider it. I never did my own artwork. I need to do that. I want new business cards. I gave out three of those today. That's good. I want new ones....

Anywho, I went on like this til about 4am. And by then I was hungry again. I'm like...can I just go to bed? It's too late to cook. I need to cook tomorrow. I want some cake. I need to do laundry. What color am I going to polish my nails? I bet I can do something crafty with this nail polish.....

Yep. All night. I should not have used any periods. It was seriously like a long run on sentence....a few hours worth. *sigh* It's still not over. However, since it's a decent hour, I'm going to rokk with it. I've put all the things I was working on over to the side and I'm dedicating today to trying something new and getting some of this clutter out of my mind. If not, I won't be able to stop thinking about it. I'll never get any peace. I'm going to do some research on some of the projects I can't do today. And I'm going to work on a...or some...shirts. I can't say I've recently had any desire to do it, but I do today! Yeah boi!  Oh well, it should be a fun day. Maybe I'll have something new and exciting to share in the near future. If I can find some hair clips at the crib, I'm making those hair clips TODAY! << did not find hair clips. *sad face* I'm going to try it w/ hair pins. HA!

9.18.2011

I've got mail!!!

Remember that art trade I've been working on since 2010? Well, we finally exchanged gifts and my box came in the mail on Monday. I've been so excited to tell ya'll about it. *cabbage patch*

I sent my soror Artina a painting of a sewing machine and 2 Zeta shirts. She sent me JOY!!! I brought my box in and sat right at the door and sliced it open with a pair of scissors. It was like Christmas in September. I pulled out this lovely doll that had been dyed in the brightest colors ever. It was like candy melting in the bakk seat of a car with leather seats on a hot summer day. Then she was lightly spotted like a wild jungle cat. And all I could think was...awwww she's so pretty.

See, she already matches some of my decor. 





She's currently on display in Mommy's room, because she's decided that she's so pretty she should sit in there with her. I guess that's ok for now. She's going to look great in my room with all the other artwork. (I can't wait to finish this room.) You can read more about Artina's dolls and her inspiration for them on her Mashulu blog.

She also sent a beautiful clutch and a pair of matching crocheted earrings. The bag is way nicer in person than I would have thought just by looking at the pictures. It even has pretty lining. And a little pokket with a Mashulu tag inside. It's all big and juicy and...colorful! The earrings match nicely, but I doubt I'll be wearing them at the same time. I guess that means I need two places to go.

No need to be jealous, you can get your own at the  Mashulu Etsy Shop.




Artina's branding is the shiznit. She's tagged the inside of the bag. Added a lil card tag to the outside. Another pakkaged with the earrings AND a stamp on the inside of my card. Faaaaancy.



Every time I get something with great pakkaging, I always think...what could I do to make my pakkaging nicer? And for the life of me, I can't commit to anything. I'm always making changes...in my head. That stuff is too expensive to keep changing my mind. And of course that defeats the purpose. So for now, ya'll get a surprise in every box. Never know what kind of card...paper...or whatever is going to be inside. Let's pretend it's me being eclectic and not me being indecisive.

9.17.2011

Big Numbers: Day 256

Well, I've done it again. Another peacokk. I couldn't help myself. Ya'll know I love em. I got such a great response for the "Pride" piece a couple of weeks ago, I'm like sure...why not? When I was looking at photos to work on "Pride," I found this:

Isn't he goooorgeous?! 
My first thought was "This peacokk is GANGSTER! Doesn't he look like he hits people?" Never really considered peacokks fighters, so this one really had my attention. Not to mention it's more green than blue. That's pretty different than anything I've done before. I'm a big fan of the blue, but I thought this might be an interesting change of pace. I used the pic as inspiration...and tried to SYM-ify it. Here's how it turned out:

244/1000 "Bish, I'm fancy" 


Soror/friend, Tine says that peacokks are the "kings of fanciness." I kept that in mind while painting this particular piece and extended the lil mohawk to make it more prominent and crown like. I love it. I think mine looks more suspicious than the one in the inspiration pic. Like, "I'm cute. I'm sweet. Pet me." THEN it bites you. SMH. Gonna hang it where "Pride" was until somebody buys it. :o)

9.16.2011

More Accessories...

I've actually been doing very well with my NO shopping rule. VERY good. I got lots of nice stuff this year too. I have no idea how that works. I've scaled down to a single closet and I can't say I've felt more comfortable in my clothes. I haven't felt this consistently cute in a long time either. As far as looks go, 2011 has been great to me!

The homie Zelle had a BIG sale over Labor Day weekend and made a point to let me know the ring I had been eyeing was on sale for (almost) FREE. I sold a 5x7 that day...chose to buy the ring with it. *shrugs* Gotta do something for myself every now and then. Here's what I bought:

Ain't it PRETTY?! It's huge-ish and heavy, but I don't care! I just need somewhere to rokk it. 
I limited myself to one item. I'm proud of me. Glad I was able to get it, I had been watching it for a long time. Salivating and plotting. Now it's mine...all mine!!! Mwhahahahahaha! You can chekk out Zelle's site, Black Betsy Earring Co. for more hotness. She very well may still have some sale items. I didn't chekk. #PlayingItSafe

9.15.2011

Big Numbers: Day 254

It looks like a zoo in here. SYM1's Zoo for All Things FLY. Today I finished a giraffe. I have no idea why I wanted to do a giraffe, but I did one. I feel so much better now that it's out of the way too. No big convo on how this went down. I made a decision and went for it.

OH! You know what I DID do? I painted the blakk first. That was STRANGE! I mentioned in the #BOSS post, that I make the lines last to make them fit the art I've already done, but since the bakkground was blakk, I started there, because that's usually the first thing I do. It was odd. That's all I have to report on that matter. Here's the final product:

242 and 243/1000 "So Long Africa"
Acrylic on 2 11x14 Stretched Canvases 

It would have been cool had I done the whole thing and was able to mix the entire body up.  

That's all. More animals soon come. Watch.

9.14.2011

Big Numbers: BRACELETS!!!!

When this year began, I made a list of things I'd like to try. I wanted to make some jewelry, specifically bracelets. I loooove bracelets and earrings. FUN! K, bakk to the story....I can't say I've been interested in making jewelry seriously, BUT I do like crafts in general, so I wanted to learn a little bit and I love bracelets. (Yes, I know. I already said that. SO?!) I usually wear 8+ bracelets at a time and I was starting to get a little bored with my choices, so I decided this weekend would be a good time to put a lil somethin' together. Expand my horizons.

I already had some beads here. I was supposed to go to the craft store to buy cord. Needless to say that didn't work out. I ended up buying three sets of beads...on clearance...and those were the only ones I used in my first 2011 beading mini extravaganza. SMH. I must do better. Anywho, I made two bracelets and YES I'm counting them toward my 1,000. (SB: There are a few things I didn't count that maybe I should have counted...oh well.)

241/1000 YAY! They were cute! 

I rokked em w/ a bunch of others. The big juicy gumball lookin' ones are from Stars+Rocks.
That's it for today. I still have tons of beads. I'll make more later.

9.13.2011

Big Numbers: Day 252

Well, I finished another painting! I've been working on this one for far too long. It was giving me problems. But as always, I beat it into submission.

I found this really cool print that I wanted to work with. Prints are kinda hard to work with by the way. I do it anyway. My mind is determined!


And I wanted to do a butterfly...so I made them friends. Here are a few of the in progress pictures, because we know I sukk at remembering to take them all.


I reversed the orange and white...for no reason.
I wonder what it would have looked like if I had kept them the same.
Oh well. It's done now. lol.

I added blue dots. I didn't like those. Too many colors. I changed that. 
And, of course, I fancied up the butterfly. Now, it's all done. Here's the finished product:

240/1000 "Flutter By"

And here's a close up. 

240 on day 252. I fell behind a lil bit. I'm working on 7 pieces now. AND I'm going to paint the alphabet because I said I would. I'm also going to do the numbers 0-9. That's.......36 pieces. lol. Not sure how long that's gonna take. Y'all know I get bored easily, hence the 7 pieces at once.

9.12.2011

Big Numbers: It was bound to happen...

I finally lost count on the paintings....

Well, I've actually done it before, but one of the paintings was mine, so I just changed the numbers. This time, I had already shipped both the items. Oops! So, now I have two 229s and I'm on number.......240 instead of 239. YAY!!! No that's too much of a difference, but whatever.

Here are the two 229s.



Funnier still...I finished them both on the same day. *shrugs* I can't be perfect everyday. Ha!

9.11.2011

My New Assistant

I rented Despicable Me from the redbox maybe early this year or last year...one time. Some time. *shrugs* That was when I decided I couldn't work fast enough because I had not a single minion to help. Sadness. Well, I asked for one for my birfdae and my dear friend Tanaya came through. He's a little late, for my whole birfdae, but he's pretty much on schedule for my half birfdae. I'm not complaining. I celebrate those!

I now have one little minion to help with my progress. Want to meet him?

Bob DaMinion
He's going to live in the paint room where the work is. Hopefully, he'll be the help I need to get er dun! Sidebar: I absolutely LOVE that show, "My Big Rednekk Wedding." I do. Ok. That's it. Wait, no. I also have the little unicorn from the movie too. I won it at the fair. Now all I need is my aliens from Toy Story, and I'm in animated business! Nooooow....Bakk to work.

9.10.2011

Holes in My Walls...

Last week, I was tweeting about how nervous I was about putting holes in my wall. I did it anyway. It was...scary. I've been living in this house for five years and have only hung 2 things on my wall. I have moved a few things around, but I have not touched the holes. I was scared. It's like making a commitment...scarring the walls. I want to be sure about what I put up....and where I put the holes. It's HARD for me to make decisions like that. I change my mind a lot. However, I felt bad. I had all the paintings just laying on the floor, leaning against furniture, pakked behind one another.

Kinda before. I made a post office run...THEN I hung up what was left.
Oh and peep the sneaky peak of the next painting on the floor. Still not done. 

That's no way to treat my art. And it was looking a mess over in that corner. I started to feel a little impulsive.  Then I just grabbed my hammer and some nails and hung them all up. I was nervous, but I did it...and I'm mostly happy with how it turned out.

They look so much nicer all framed and hung up. 

I better paint a little faster...so I can replace the pieces I'm about to sell.
All of these don't belong to me. 
That's most of it. I have a few more spread out. I also pulled out some of the artwork I bought in the Bahamas and framed those too. Maybe if I can fill up all the walls, I won't have to paint. #SneakySYM

9.09.2011

Big Numbers: A Few Days Bakk

Yay! I am finally able to post THIS blog for my art trade with my soror @ARTina. Many moons ago, we decided to do a trade. She wanted shirts. I wanted a bag. Since then, I've started doing canvases and she makes dolls (more on that later), so we had to renegotiate the terms a little. Somehow I ended up painting a sewing machine. Lol.

Remember a couple of weeks bakk when I was cursing about a particular painting that was giving me problems? Well it's Artina's fault. She asked for a sewing machine...and a "maze" design similar to the one I did on the Sankofa hoodie. I tried that. I did. I haaaated it! It wasn't even bad. It just looked...sad...flat...and unSYM-ish. I was upset. No, I am not showing you that one. Chances are you'll love it like the people I did show. Blah. I have since painted over it.

Refusing to be defeated, I got a bigger canvas and started over from scratch. I was set on the green. So I stayed with that. I used the old antique sewing machines as inspiration. I stukk with that too. Everything else was completely different. And it was a good move. Here's the final piece:

"Sewn Together"


I used the logo that Artina used for one of her prints as the same logo on the machine. I nixed the maze. I changed the colors. I added the SYM Squiggle. Oh, and the brown pattern in the bakk is what inspired me to do the wood grain for "Leilani." I did multicolored green patches with white stitching to "build" the sewing machine. The colors made me think of a superhero. I started to think of the ribbon as a cape.  I mean, Artina IS pretty super with the sewing skills, so it all works out. When all was said and done, I ended up with something I was happy to share. Something I really liked. What do ya'll think?

Artina says: @SYM1DidIt I JUST OPENED MY BOX!!!! #myfacehurtsfromsmiling. Real talk? This painting is inkable #flyenough4atattoo!.....& had the NERVE to put my lil' artist logo on it??? SO thorough! P.S. I'm fighting the urge to put on 1 of the shirts ryt NOW!

9.08.2011

3 Things I LOVE

I'm not a negative person, but I wrote about 3 things that grind my gears, it was one of my most popular posts. I'm not sure if it's because I posted it a few times, because I wanted people to know so they'd stop doing it, or if it was because y'all really like negative stuff. Whatever the reason, I decided to do one better and just post 3 things I love...for balance. Chekk em out:

1) I LOVE when I love my paintings. It's HARD trying to make stuff from in your head into something your eyes can see.  My hands aren't nearly as skilled as my imagination, so it's a feat in itself to even get remotely close to what my brain has come up with. I'm always trying. Sometimes, it doesn't work, but when it does, I'm so proud of myself!

2) When a painting looks like a part of the family. I wrote about this yesterday. And probably at least once prior to that. And I'll probably do it again. That's just how important it is. When I started out this year, I was really hoping to create things that looked like SYM. The more I paint, the more that happens. I get it wrong every now and then...but I'm getting it right more often than not. I'm still signing all my paintings/pieces, but it's nice to know you can know who did it without seeing my stamp on it. SWEET!

3) When you love what EYE love...THEN >>> you buy it. <<< Man, never underestimate the power of the cosign. I love my work...but I got bills. And I like organic chikken...breasts. Y'all, it's so much better when YOU love it. I get all excited when I get my orders. Not the custom ones, but the ones that say..."OMG, SYM you did THAT!!! I love it. Where do I send my money?" That let's me know I'm getting it right. That my imagination is customer approved. WINNING.

That's all for today. In a happy mood. Come. Join me.

9.06.2011

I Touched Myself

Not really. But I thought it. Then I paused myself. I laughed. I decided not to change it. I hope you clikked the link to read about it. lol. Sorry if I disappointed you. My bad shawty.

Well before I pakked up my boxes for shipping, I had all my paintings lined up on the wall around the room. I was like...awww they look so nice. Ya'll know how much I love seeing my paintings together. I was thinking about how nice they looked side by side and how they all looked related to one another...and how they all looked like me. #motherhood So, I laid them all out in the middle of the floor and took a picture of them together. A family portrait so to speak. Soon as I get these walls painted, I'll actually hang up the ones that belong to me. I'll be rotating out some of the others as I complete/sell them. Peep my family portrait:

All my babies. Well...the ones that were here. 
This isn't my complete body of work, but I like everything here. I'm happy with it. I feel like I've put something into each of them. Don't they look happy together? This made me happy. It made me feel like I was doing it right. I was all touched and stuff. It was nice. I see so much ahead of me...but that's too much to think about. 1 painting at a time SYM. That's what I keep telling myself. My ideas never move that slow though. That's fine. I have a list. :o)