I am taking the plunge and fully intend on making Cormorant Studios a successful business. I have been playing with this for the past two years (I like to say I've been researching), but I should have gotten serious about it sooner. There simply is no excuse! But better late than never, as it's said....

This blog will become the landing spot for my business (my domain will be set to forward directly here). It is currently directing to my Artfire shop but I will be getting this blog rearranged, and then it will direct here.

I have a big challenge ahead of me, but I am feeling extremely motivated and have lots of ideas about making this work. After two years of 'research', I am ready! I better be ready!

Although I don't consider myself a writer, much less a good one, I am setting up a blogging schedule for myself so that I will blog more regularly. Since I will be selling supplies from time to time, I also want to feature customers' creations here in my blog. So definitely stay tuned and check back soon!

~Jocelyn

Cheers, 2010! Hope you are a good one! I am sending very positive & happy thoughts your way. Good vibes put out, good vibes got back, right? Well here is a not-very-detailed list of my goals for this year -- at least I'm putting 'em out there!!!

1. Expand garden and/or revamp front yard (am still working on details for these)

2. Incorporate more edible & medicinal plants and herbs into my landscape

3. Learn about and use edible & medicinal plants in my cooking

4. Learn to make wine

5. Build & use a solar oven

6. Learn to bake bread

7. Make homemade yogurt

8. Learn to can

9. Improve my physical fitness (yoga regularly, walking, gym 3x/week)

10. Take a jewelry soldering class

Other things on my wish list:

1. Learn to spin/weave

2. Take a book-binding class

3. Take a PMC jewelry class

4. take some workshops with DesignBuildLive.org - they offer workshops on alternative building materials

5. learn Wildlife Rehabilitation

6. Take a First Aid/CPR class

Travel: Yellowstone & Grand Tetons in Wyoming, then down to Colorado for a family reunion. I really want to take a session at Penland School of Craft in North Carolina, but not sure if I can get away from work.

I have a full schedule and this is in addition to the Art classes I'm taking and my fledgling jewelry-making business. I work part time though so that's nice... I like to have my hands in several different pots, I have ADD.... anyway a Happy New Year to all!

I can't say I loved 2009, nor did I hate it.... it was okay. It got me where I needed to be. Spring was beautiful, I spent a lot of time in the garden... I spent a lot of time reading... I spent a lot of time at work, wishing I was outside. Quickly the summer heat, and the intolerable drought, was upon us. My garden died... I was miserable. I avoided the outdoors at all costs. The best thing about summer was adopting our puppy Starbuck on July 3rd. She will soon be 8 months old, and I am so completely enamored of her. She is a little terror though, and smart as hell, can't wait till she starts her training class next week. Fall brought many rain showers, and the plants thought it was spring - they bloomed and grew lush and beautiful! I revamped my front yard a little bit, just in time for Thanksgiving.... it's still far from done, but has grand plans for next year. It's been a cold, wet winter. I like the cold, but not the gray skies or the wetness. We visited Taos in December and it was beautiful there.... it snowed our last day there. And now we're back, and only one more day to go in this year.... I feel my organizing and cleaning itch coming on, even while I try to enjoy my laziness at the end of the year. I will soon post some of my 2010 goals. I don't want to call them resolutions... if it even matters what we call them! Will they be met or broken? Too hard to say. Will it help me keep my blog current or not? Way too hard to say. I'm not a writer... I wish I was. Every time I go back to past writings, I cringe. Nor am I a photographer, or I would have a photo blog. But in some vain hopes to revive this blog, I do plan to track my '10 goals. That '10 looks funny to me... but funny-looking or not, I'm certainly looking forward to it!

As promised, only 1 day late, here is some work from my Drawing I class. Forgive the poor photography, or maybe it's just the subject matter! The oleander study was pencil on newsprint; the last gesture drawing was inked in my sketch pad; all the others are charcoal on newsprint. Remember I am an extreme beginner, but I am doing far better than I ever thought I could!

the very first hand I have ever attempted:

a contour study of an oleander branch:


contour study of a tree:



my first gesture drawing:
a few classes later, another gesture drawing:
posing (I really like this one)

I thought it had been, at most, maybe 2 months since I'd posted... I guess time flies faster than I'd realized. It has been 3 months!!! I am so bad at this blogging thing. I'm not really much of a writer, anyway. I would love to be, but it's something I really struggle with.

So, let's see, what have I been up to? Well I am taking a Drawing class now. I'm one of those "you CANNOT teach me to draw" kinds of people... but, guess what? I can draw! I am going to post some of my drawings on Friday. Also, I took a very beginner photography course... I figured out some settings on my camera, so I am feeling much more confident (and excited) about my photo-taking abilities. And, last but certainly not least, I got a new puppy! She is taking up tons of our time but she is absolutely worth it. We named her Starbuck, because we are proud of our geekiness!

And besides, she has the tenacious personality... here, she is gnawing on Neiko's cheek (Neiko is our 4-year old pitbull mix, whom we saved from certain death)...
Yeah his eyes glow satanically, but he did absolutely nothing... He usually looks at me like "aw, mom, what do I do now?!"

Which is exactly what I ask myself, on a daily basis.

Well I recently heard the phrase 'go ugly early' and although I cannot remember where I read that*** (if you do, please leave me a comment so I can properly attribute it), I turned that phrase over and over in my head and finally decided to abide by it. Therefore, even though I am a mere beginner at creating art such as the paintings that follow, I decided to post my work here. Also, I really don't think it's all that horrid, do you? (Just be nice, remember, I'm a beginner.. and karma, ya know!)

**edited to say that I googled 'go ugly early' and the 1st page results all seem to refer to a phenomenon whereby a guy lowers his standards and just goes for the ugly girl, instead of waiting to be rejected by prettier ones. Hmmm. That's not what I meant at all. I think I was reading something about photographing products for your website, and not to be a perfectionist when you are first starting out - to 'go ugly early' and later when you have the money and get better, worry about getting better pics. Just wanted to clarify, though I think the term (as applied to guys getting chicks) is pretty funny!

Industrial: done in gouache watercolor

Artichoke/flower: color schemes project from my class - counterclockwise, starting in the upper right quadrant: monochromatic; complementary; analagous; triadic

Koi fish sketch, done in colored pencil on tracing paper:

Koi fish painting, done in gouache watercolor (I began to color in the eyes and then decided not to - also I think the scanner didn't capture the water on the left-hand side very well)

just some abstract design - acrylic pigment inks

Well leave me your comments and let me know what you think!