About Jenny ... The Girl Behind the Art

Hi, I am Jenny James, an artist, illustrator, graphic designer, publisher, web developer and art 'n' craft addict. That's me to the left, grey blonde with nail polish embellished glasses (because they didn't have green, lol). I can be found in my shop, studio and in a few virtual playgrounds including Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Redbubble... any time you see my Georgiegirl the Cow or purple logo, you have found me. Don't forget to say hello :)

I'm a Mum of a beautiful amazing person who is kind, generous and patient. I'm so proud of my lil Vegemite who is happily living a life filled with happiness, love and laughter.

In my spare time I like to paint with watercolours, inks and acrylics, draw and doodle, colour in, stamp and fussycut with scissors, dabble in die cutting, make a papercrafty arty mess, create mixed media, make and swap ATCs (artist trading cards), model with clay, embroider (tapestry, freestyle and crossstitch) and crochet. I love anything that is arty, crafty, colourful and full of textures! My whole world is immersed in Arts, Crafts, Creativity - creating, sharing, selling and seeing it all around, everywhere I go. Love it!

Art is incredible - it heals the mind, soothes the soul, whispers sweet nothings to the heart, helps to heal us within, and makes smiles. 

Holly Hobbie would have a simpler way of saying it - "Happiness is art!".

To keep up to date with my groovy arty life, share news and see shop updates, visit the Art by Jenny Facebook Page or my blogs - A Life Less Ordinary and the Shop Blog. Want to buy unique gifts like phone cases, cushions, pet accessories, stickers or mugs? Have a wander through my Redbubble shop and gallery at www.redbubble.com/people/georgiegirl.

Life Before 'Art by Jenny'...

The cow on the right is named Georgiegirl. You may have seen her around! I originally designed her for my avatar in Redbubble, drawn digitally in Adobe Illustrator. Many years later, she's everywhere I go online including my shop's social icons and avatar. So wherever you find my Georgiegirl the Cow, you've found 'Art by Jenny' as well as me :)

I've been drawing, colouring and painting since I was really little (Mum says I was 2 years old when I started colouring inside the lines) ... so for a very long time! My parents taught me embroidery, knitting and crochet as a child as well. Knitting I'm not a big fan of because I keep creating holes where there shouldn't be holes, but I absolutely love embroidery and crochet. So nutty about art and my other loves that I used to take my colouring, a book to read and cross stitch with me whenever I went camping with the Rovers (scouts).

While these next "few" paragraphs sound more like a resume, I think its important to know who is behind the virtual shop front selling you treasures and peddling her wares!

I started my working life at The Advertiser Newspaper in Adelaide as an Editorial Messenger then became an apprentice ENS (electronic newspapers) Compositor. After a year backpacking in UK and Europe, I worked for graphic design agencies, a well loved scrapbook shop, an embroidery and craft book publisher (who also had a craft shop), plus I've been lucky enough to work with a variety of wonderful clients needing my design and IT skills, including local primary schools (creating and updating their websites, logos, illustrations, signage and stationery).

I have a Diploma of Multimedia (in 2008) which was fun to learn, a Graphic Design and Printing Trade Certificate (from my apprenticeship many moons ago) and over 30 years experience in the graphic design and printing industry. Now my IT and graphic design skills are only used for my own business, which I find quite satisfying (especially when things work and look good), so if you see anything amiss, I have probably been pressing buttons again! lol :)

Once upon a time I wanted to be an author, illustrator, designer, have an art shop, artist with paintings in a major gallery ... and looking back, I now see that I am everything I dreamed I wanted to be, including the gallery - Redbubble is visited from all over the world!

I've been very lucky, my working and studying life has included a wide variety of things I love to do -  painting and drawing (traditional and digital), photography (I love macro, getting in close to see all the incredible details of Mother Nature's creations or even an embroidered wing of a stumpwork beetle), writing, storyboarding, animating and clay modelling. I love arts and crafts :)

Now you've reached the bottom of this webpage, thanks so much for your time and reading my essay! 

If you're got Facebook, Instagram, Redbubble, Pinterest, Blogs and even see me in the real world, don't be shy! Smile and wave, say hello, show off your latest creation :) I love to see everyone's artwork!

Have a Happy Creative Day!