Friendship, NSS, and Being awkward, Oh my!



I spent this past Monday walking the National Stationary Show and Surtex, and it started off as a super anxious day. You wouldn't think walking an INSPIRING show you might want to do some day would bring you anxiety, but as someone who always feels 'not good enough' and like a burden.. walking a show full of talented, driven people showing their colorfully incredible work is intimidating as heck!!!  



And at the beginning, i stayed scared, walking about, babbling about cats to anyone who would listen.. which HOLY CRAP, almost ALL of these photos are of cats, i just realized I'm INSANE. But alas, i found my friend Jennifer, or actually she found me... because of my cat shoes i instagram'd that morning [oh the irony!] And the day got a little better!

At one point I was walking through a row and someone calls out "I know you! You're an Instagram celebrity!" Low and behold, it's THIS stellar lady, @lovejaccards!! 


She found me last year on Instagram by reading the same magazine I read! Lol amazing right?? We chatted and then I continued down the row to be stopped TWO more times!! All starting the same way.. "Hey! I know you!" It was indeed crazy, and wonderful and I bet Jennifer thought I was quite popular even though I'm pretty much an introverted hibernating (in my studio) artist. 


After a few hours at the show, and a while at a tea house to decompress, i had dinner with 27 other incredibly talented women!!  And even though i'm pretty nuts, and have a cat obsession... I spent the evening being 100% myself. My weird, quirky, bouncy human self, and you know what? They liked me!!!! How AWESOME is that? 

So moral of the story is be yourself, and hopefully some people will like you... YAY!!

Happy Wednesday Friends!!
-Jenipher




Rachel, Jaclyn, and Bee and Jen share about being YOURSELF. :)






Ahhh so many talented friends i have!!
I asked four friends to draw doodles for "beeee yourself' week and look at all the goodness i was sent! :D


My talented friend Jennie writes... "The tortoise and the hare is for 'be yourself' because when I was starting senior school at age 11 I couldn't read.  I was bullied because I was in the divvy group and you know what.......I caught up and overtook all those who bullied me in the end.  So the tortoise and the hare mean don't worry, you'll get there."


^ Bee Brown ^
click to read her full post :)


^ Confetti Monster ^


^ Rachel Olsen ^
Hooray! I can't believe "Being Yourself" slipped away from me so quickly! 

Next week is a tricky week!


Are you ready to be SAD with us?!?
Love, Jenipher 

Being Yourself is HARD WORK.



I'm not gonna lie... this week was a really hard one for me, and instead of being ANGRY at myself for not posting such pretty doodles people sent me, or to bash myself for not even posting my OWN blog post, i'm just going to tell MYSELF {and YOU} that it's okay... and i'm PROUD of you for taking time to feel better before posting.

As a work-a-holic i tend to FORCE myself to work even when i'm nearly in tears from anxiety. And this week, i didn't. I embraced {being myself}... my anxious self, and did 'fun' things that mean boss lady Jenipher never lets me do... like making art!!! Any art i wanted! [which happened to be work for my business but i still let myself choose!]



Your rest might look like a nap, or it might look like a walk, or even an art project. Any of those sound lovely! 

So... if 'being you' is tiring sometimes.. If you work yourself to the bone.. if you STOP yourself from having fun sometimes, i am GIVING YOU permission to JUST REST. 

Happy Thursday my beautiful friends,
-Jenipher :)

Jennifer Orkin Lewis {doodles} about feeling isolated.



Today's doodle is from my talented friend Jennifer Orkin Lewis. I am CONSTANTLY in awe of Jennifer's work. She paints masterpieces every morning in just 30 minutes and it's a delight to see them on my Instagram feed!

"I remember this sense of isolation in high school. Believe in who you are and be true to yourself. It'll {all} be OK."
Until tomorrow...
Don't LOSE Hope!
-Jenipher

Lets be UNpopular this Friday Morning!!!




Today's doodles are from the Super Awesome Confetti Monster, and Kerry Batty. Both ladies are posting more on their own blogs, but i wanted to give you a HEAD START to be inspired this morning! :)




Kerry says "In the 7th grade I got some of the best advice I ever had in my young life:

One day, you won't know any of these people. Maybe 1 or 2 of them. Your lives will move on & so will theirs. So don't worry about their bullsh*t. 

That came from my step-mom. If it had come from my parents I might have ignored it, so if you are an aunt/uncle/step-parent/person on the periphery of a young person's life, you are in a unique position to make an impact. Know that kids they are listening to you. Her words seemed a little long for a blog graphic but I felt they could be summed up by something my grandmother used to tell me all. the. time. This too shall pass. We all know that nothing is permanent - even if it feels like it."

There are THREE more posts happening this week, and i can't wait for you [and me!] to read them!! Yay! 


Next week is "Be YOURSELF" week and BOY do i have a lot of amazing contributors! Yay!!!

Have a great weekend!
-Jenipher


Top things i learned AFTER opening an Etsy Shop!

One of my best friends texted me yesterday SUPER excited about opening an Etsy shop asking if i could help her. So i decided to make her [and YOU] a blog post tutorial! :)

 These are the TOP 10 11 things i've learned from having an Etsy Shop...

1)While getting ready to create an Etsy shop, look around a lot to see how you want to format your shop, what way you want to photos to look and your descriptions. 

 2) Make sure you really like your name, b/c it's a PAIN in the A word when you want to change it! Trustttt me!

 3) Try to plan everything out ahead of time so you have an idea of what you would like to sell, how you would like to display your pretty thing, and how much you would like to charge.

4) Keep your photos the same. You want it to look like a nice little cohesive shop so it looks nicer when all your photos are similarly shown.
5) Understand that you'll most likely find a better or more attractive way to do something AFTER you open your Etsy shop and you'll have to kind of start over. BREATHEEE, it's going to be okay!! 


^My photos USED to look like this^
^ Now they look like this ^ 

6) This one i'm TERRIBLE at, but consistently add new items. If you have the time, plan ahead and do a bunch of drafts and add them little by little.
7) Don't spend too much time looking at others pages. Don't compare yourself to other sellers. Everyone's journey is different. Some faster, some slower. Just do your thannng and people will be drawn to you!


8)And a piggy back off number 6, try to figure out YOUR style and work with that. If i spent hours agonizing, trying to make my images look really modern and clean thats not me. That doesn't fit my brand.

9) Don't COPY. EVER. It's ridiculous that i even have you say this, but it happens SOOOO often. Here's a good post from my Kelly Rae Roberts about whats okay and whats NOT okay.

10)It's rare that people will just 'find you'. You have to promote yourself. Get a twitter and Instagram and be consistent there too so people get to know you. People like buying form REAL people. Often they buy things because they connect with you and your story.

 11) Use ALL the tags they allow you to use. Try to research what others are using. Perhaps that key word will lead people to find you in search. [i am NO PRO by any means in this area! SEO seems very complicated to me! lol]

 Phew!! There are MANY more, these are just the first 10 11 that seemed most important! 

 Good luck friends!!!
I have faith you're going to have a STELLAR Etsy shop in NO time!!
-Jenipher

Zoe Ingram talks being GOOD {ENOUGH}.



Today's post is from the AMAZING Zoe Ingram! I met Zoe in an licensing class called MATS last year, and have watched her BLOOM before my eyes! I'm super proud of her, and so happy to have her on my blog today! 


"I made this illustration as a reminder to myself as an adult but it’s definitely something I would have told myself as a teen or even as a younger child and also it's something that I will always tell my girls and anyone else who struggles with this. Don't let anyone tell you or make you feel that you're not good enough. You ARE good enough."

-------
Ahhh soo true!

Until tomorrow...
Don't LOSE Hope!
-Jenipher

Blog PARTY {DAY 1}! - Lets be UNpopular!!

Woahhh boy friends.. I'm going a little Nutty doing WAYYYY too many things at once!! So many fun projects happening right now BUT first up is the Book LAUNCH blog Party for my book!!! Yay! Today is the FIRST day of the 'party'!!


In addition to others posting, each week i'll be posting multiple blog posts from myself, and from SO MANY amazing other illustrators! I'm so so excited! This week already we have 10 incredible people participating!

This week's topic is....
so lets get started!!


^ This doodle was the START of page 16 in my Book! ^

Holy Cow, i still suffer with "Why Don't Like They Me?" syndrome All The Time. ...but the good part of being older, and "wiser" is that i can realize WHO my GREAT friends are, and during hard times, i know i can go to them and they will love me no matter what! It would SO hard to tell my younger self this though.. I'll keep trying to remind young people this though!!! Maybe if it's repetitive enough, they will one day believe me! :D

My friend Margot will be blogging later on today, so make sure to check that out!

Happy Day BEAUTIFUL friends!
See you tomorrow!
-Jenipher

You're INVITED!!! To my BOOK LAUNCH Blog Party!!!



Hello friends!!!
 I'm having a Book Launch Blog Party to CELEBRATE my book i just finished writing AND illustrating!! Yay! And i would LOVE for your to join the party! There will be 6 different topics talked about, one each week that match the chapters in the book. [yay!]

   Week 1 - Unpopularity (Starts May 5th) 
  Week 2 - Be Yourself (Starts May 12th) 
Week 3 - Depression (Starts May 19th)
Week 4 - Body Image (Starts May 26th)
Week 5 - Ambition  (Starts June 2nd) 
Week 6 - Gratitude (Starts June 9th)

I would love for you to contribute! 

You could write [and/or doodle] during any of the weeks you feel compassionate towards! If you don't have a particular week you'd like to contribute to, i'll assign you a random week, but if you have the doodle [and/or writing] done before then, that would be amazing! I'm super open to anything you would like to write or draw about as long as it's encouraging - and if you have a story or something to share about your teenage years, that would be a splendid edition!!!!

Since any wonderful thing you draw or write will be SUPER inspiring, i truly believe that if you want to do something about 'body image' but aren't free to blog before or during "Body Image" week that it would STILL be extremely valuable content even if it's posted during a different week! 

If you could Blog/Twitter/Instagram/ANYTHING about your contribution and this problem that would be AMAZINGGGG!!!!!! AND I'll post all your links on my website so EVERYONE could visit all of your amazing words of wisdom!!!

Who's READY to party!?!? [me!]
-Jenipher 

PS: If you have any questions don't hesitate to email me at Jenipherlyn@gmail.com 

The book is HERE!!!!!

HELLO...!


Just ONE YEAR ago, i was chatting with friends telling them how i wanted to write and illustrate a book... And now, my {Doodle Dream} books have arrived, IN THE FLESH! It's CRAZY!

I'm in the process of mailing out OODLES of them! Little by little... Everyone who 'ordered' a copy from Kickstarter will get theirs in the next few weeks! [yay!]

AND.... ta daaaa!! You can now purchase some of my cards, AND my books at an amazing store in Los Angeles called Leanna Lin's Wonderland. [YAY!!!!] 



Isn't it ADORABLE?!? 

If you know of any shops you think my book would fit well in, please let me know!

And, if you'd like a copy of the book, you can order one right HERE! :)


Thanks & Cheers friends!!!
-Jenipher :)

Who needs a pick me up in the morning? ME!!! and you?



You know those days you just want things DONE ALREDY because you're SO EXCITED and want to share it with the world ALREDY?!

Today is one of those days!!! I want to launch a new product called... DA DA DAAAAAAA!



Are mornings hard for you to get happy? to get going? to get motivated?

Or perhaps you just need a little 'pick me up' in the morning? Me too!!

I actually start my days with anxiety, SO, to remedy this, i'm starting "30 days of Doodles: how to start your day off RIGHT".

Now, wake up with a happy, encouraging doodle waiting for you in your e-box everyday for a whole month!! And since i turn 30 this week [yay!! lets eat cake!] the 1st round is 50% off, AND all profits go to the Lower East Side Girls Club! Only $15 for 30 whole days of special doodles straight to your e-mail box! WHOO HOO!!
-----------------------

 Today i'm working on setting up a button thingy to let you sign up [DONE! and above] if you are interested and working out all the fine details! 

 I'm super stoked to share this with you and hope i finish it all today! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

 Happy Monday friends!!
-Jenipher

10 artists YOU'RE missing OUT on!!!


I've had the PRIVILEGE to get to know some incredible talented women! Whether it was in a class, workshop, art show, or on Instagram, i can SAFELY say, these 10 women are INCREDIBLE. And on top of talent, they are SUCH NICE people!!! [which is an A in my book!]



 ^ Sara Franklin ^ 




I seriously recommend checking EACH of these ladies out, and watching them continue to GROW!! It's actually really fascinating how fast they are chuggin' along!! PLUS, i happen to know almost every women on this list has some REALLY cool things happening right now! 

Enjoy being trapped on the internets a while! 
[emogi heart that blogger won't let me type],
Jenipher

AHHHHHHHH!!!!!! My book is printing!!

I just got the noticed last night that NOT ONLY has my book finished being reviewed but my first test copy has been SHIPPED!!!!! I'm over the moon. And i can't wait to share it with you. I really hope it's perfect and then i should have copies for all of you by the end of March/early April! HOORAY!!!! 
Let's all cross our fingers shall we? ;)
Thank you so much to you ALL!!
Happy Dancing in my PJs,
-Jenipher :)

Doodles + Self Care = HAPPY CLASS!

HELLO...!


Happy Saturday friends!!
I hope it's been restful so far!!
I wanted to tell you about a class i'll be teaching a workshop in!
The class is called BE.



{ What The Class Includes } 
(Taken from Brandy's website)
A seven week class, starting the Monday before Ash Wednesday and continuing until Easter Sunday with a specific theme every week.

A live weekly call co-led by myself and the teacher of the week. My husband is also going to serenade us with a few songs at the beginning of each call!

A recipe every week that I have stumbled upon that will help us explore healing and experiencing God through food. I’ll add modifications to make room for allergies and special diets.

A weekly reflection from the Bible or another book and a spiritual practice that will complement that week’s theme and workshop.

A day each week to practice the art of letting go. A day to fast from shame or judgment or the lies we tell ourselves.

A day each week of radical Sabbath. We’ll have an official Sabbath day as a class, where the page will grow silent, but we can each decide what day or hours we choose rest in our own lives.

An invitation to join our private Facebook group where can explore this extreme restfulness together.

A love letter straight to your inbox at the beginning of every week that will contain all of the activities and resources that week for easy reference.


Below is what my week looks like! hooray! 
Week Five {03/31—04/06} :: Play
Questions :: When was the last time you played? When was the last time you created art just for you? Can you let yourself get swept up in the flow of fun? Where can you go this week to laugh so hard your cheeks hurt?
Recipe :: Chocolate Chip Cookies
Spiritual Practice :: Doodling
What we’ll let go :: Anxiety
Workshop :: Nightly Doodles with Jenipher Lyn

We'd love if you wanted to join us! You can click HERE to read more about it, or you can respond to this e-mail if you have any questions! I hope the rest of your weekend goes SPLENDIDLY!!
-Jenipher :) :)  

How i LOVE Valentine's Day...

But NOT in the way you might think!! 


For the past two years, Boy and i have spent Valentine's Day going to an event that honors an INCREDIBLE women! This year Boy and I had tickets to see Jonatha Brooke's play, "My Mother Has Four Noses". 

You know when you see someone and immediately wish you knew them in real life? I felt that connection with Jonatha when i saw her on Jen Lee's trailer for her film, "Indie Kindred".



The show was unexpected, emotional, and heart felt. All Jonatha had to do was open her mouth to sing her very first song, and i was already crying. Her voice is THAT lovely. 

After the show i just stood there, tears running down my face as i waited patiently to see if Jonatha was going to come out. Not even realizing i was surrounded by friends of hers, the tears streamed faster when she appeared at the end of the hallway. And continued to fall as i watched her hug and greet everyone.

And then it was my turn. I got to briefly chat, and hug her myself. And she was JUST as wonderful in person as she seemed on stage.



Last year the boy and i had the PLEASURE of going to an event Grand Central was throwing. A valentines day event featuring Sophie Blackall!! I'm sure you've seen her work before, but if not, you'll surely swoon. She's seriously one of the most talented watercolorists and illustrators i know. The event was lovely, and i had a few moments to chat with her when she signed her book, Missed Connections. I really hope to take a watercolor class she teaches one day!! That would be AMAZING.

I feel so grateful we have such wonderful events and people in New York! It's such a blessing! I'm excited to see what NEXT YEAR brings! yay! :)

The time has come the Walrus said...!



The time has come, and the book will FINALLY be arriving soon! I'm finishing up the details with the printer right now, and can't WAIT to see the finish product! AND, I've added a preorder link in my Etsy shop incase you wanted to purchase a copy! Hooray! :)



^ click me to see the book on Etsy! ^

I am SO excited to share this book with you all! And it's soooo close!! I think it's time for a cupcake... and a happy dance! :D

Holy Progress BATMAN!



This week has been pretty crazy! 

Aside from finally FINISHING my book this past week [ahh!!], I had my FIRST book press!! YAY!! Daily Quirk posted about me and my book, and they asked a LOT of great questions! My friend even said reading the interview was like chatting with me, so i'm really glad that i answered them well! :)

I've been working a TON of my portfolio and NEW website for the SCBWI conference that's coming up next week! [how in the WORLD is it February already?!]


And.. I wouldn't by any terms say my card went viral, because it's FAR from that... but for my work, this card had a LOT of interest this past week! 

Buzz Feed and Etsy both posted it. And even before that, i was selling a TON of them! It also did super well at Story! I don't know what happened, but I'm SUPER thankful!

All in all... it's been a pretty hectic, crazy, awesome week. [as long as you don't count being sick for four days of it!] ;) 

Foodie Friday: Pie Face

Anything with a smiley faces is wonderful to me!  So, when i saw this restaurant called Pie Face in the city with a smile on it, i always wanted to go!
I finally tried this little apple pie by accident, and it was DELICIOUS! In all honesty, i was super cranky and needed a snack before a band play.

The only thing i would change, or recommend  was that there really wasn't very many vegetarian options for the pies. The only one they had was spicy, and so i was stuck with a quiche. And, NONE of the pies i ate had smiles on them. :(

I had the egg and cheese quiche, a mini apple and mini pumpkin pie. As per usual, i wasn't fond of pumpkin pie, but the quiche and the apple were really good! Especially the apple!

Welcome to the life of book planning!


This week was INSANE. I've never worked SOOO HARD, and SO diligently on ONE project CONTINUOUSLY, like, ever! And even though there were QUITE a few tears, wanting to give up and unseen problems while editing... i can FINALLY say that this book is going to be even MORE AWESOME then i originally thought!! 
There's THREE new pages, and 6 NEW lovely girls added to the book now!!! 
I just have to finish editing two more pages and the book will be 100% completely done [at least unless Caitie finds one or two more spelling mistakes lol] And once i get those edits back from her the book will REALLY be ready to print and sent off to the printer! [i think i finally picked which one i want to go with!] 
Thank you ALL for your patience!! I appreciate it! Now that the book is done, i'm going to start sending off the rewards for $25 and less next week and the week after next! 
HOORAY!!!!

Foodie Friday: Tisserie

Boy and I found Tisserie during a rainstorm one afternoon after going to the MOMA. He ordered us a mocha and i sat down to draw ballerinas. I think they accidentally forgot the espresso... but it the most DELICIOUS hot chocolate i've had in New York.


I went back for another hot chocolate by myself one morning a few weeks later, & was SO intrigued by the barista's recommendation of this coconut croissant, i splurged/went out of my comfort zone and got this treat instead! 

It was FREAKING amazing!!! Like a rich, flakey macaroon. Mmm... i want another one! I seriously recommend Tisserie: it's cozy, with a decent amount of seats, and usually the service is pretty good. Plus they have a lot of yummy looking treat, drink and food choices!


^^ Seriously, how yummy does this look!^^