Tuesday, January 11, 2011

300 Facebook Fans Giveaway!

Alright! So I've decided that once we hit 300 fans on my Facebook Fan Page I would like to give away a 2011 Fantasy Art of Maigan Lynn Calendar - you can view them here on Zazzle

They are made by the Zazzle company - they're super cute! (and I have them on hand so I can ship them from here!)

So you can tell your friends, or not tell your friends. It's totally up to you. It is not required. I only do these things to say thank you to my fans who are most obviously my supporters and the backbone to any successful business or organization.

The giveaway will be a fans name drawn at random - I usually hit up random.org to help me select a # between 1 and however many fans we have - and whichever fan on the list coincides with that # will win the prize!

Now that's not to say I won't be having giveaways in between. Every now and again I like to do a random giveaway - so you should also keep your eyes peeled for those!

Now, this giveaway, in particular, won't ONLY be done at 300 people. I think every 100 people that are added on, I'll do another. So at 400, 500, 600 etc - I will do another giveaway. Not necessarily always a calendar - there are other things to be won! :)

Also, you should note, that the Facebook company is not associated with my art or any of the giveaways I do. It's strictly for fun because I enjoy them and I think it's important to thank the fans!

Like I said, you can share with your friends, post this on your blog, write an update about it - all of which would be greatly appreciated - but you are not required to do so in order to be entered into the giveaway. Any and all fans are eligible. So whether it takes an hour or a month, anyone who is a fan has the chance to win a calendar! :)

If there are any questions, you can feel free to contact me at maigan_lynn@hotmail.com - I'm usually really quick to respond!

Thank you!!! :)


*this giveaway is being held on my Facebook Fan page - not on this blog. If you wish to be included in the giveaway you would be required to join my fan page!*


Saturday, January 8, 2011

Sagittarius with background!

ta da! Work in Progress! :) Here she is, with her background! :) So, to explain, the tree is an Elder tree, the whispy things behind her are asparagus, the plants behind the tree at the base are soybean plants, and the pile of nuts in front of the base of the tree are chestnuts. These are all plants associated with Sagittarius. Sagittarius is a fire sign and the colours associated with it are denim blue, beige, and bronze. Next the painting - and I do see her with coppery brown/red hair! :)

Friday, January 7, 2011

Saggitarius


So, I've been working on my zodiac series and Saggitarius was next on the agenda! I assure you, this was one of the most difficult pieces to work on. I researched centaur's and horses and Saggitarius - I even looked to my Boxer for muscle structure of his chest! This was NOT an easy task! But I will say, I'm pleased with the outcome. For a while it looked like it was going down the tubes! I will update again when I have the background added! :)

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

MyTagArt.com New Contract!


Hi Friends! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! I hope your holidays were VERY much enjoyed and you're all relaxed and refreshed and ready for the New Year!

Over the Holidays I had a very exciting new adventure happen! I signed on with www.mytagart.com and now have 5 images released through them for taggers and tubers! You can purchase images through them to make tags and tubes for your website, blog, desktop, and all kinds of fun stuff! To see my available images check out my section in their site (click here!)


Tuesday, December 7, 2010

It's not JUST about the art

Alright friends...usually I just post art, and completely art related things. But I've been thinking lately - and this could be a scary concept if it's not put down on paper in the form of an illustration! :) But I thought I would share my thoughts here.... after all, what is a blog for, if not to share?
So, it's not a surprise. I occasionally suffer with anxiety.....I say 'suffer' and it makes it sound like a disease.....let's rephrase....I occasionally have to DEAL with anxiety...much better! And much more suited to how I actually feel about it. It's a rather large annoyance. And I know I'm not the only one. Something about the creative mind and anxious tendencies seem to go hand in hand. Not ALL of my artist friends deal with this but I would say a fair share of them do.
Now, most of the time I feel fantastic, extraordinary, and exceptionally great. But take me out of my comfort zone and it's like feeding Gremlins after midnight! - It's an all around bad idea! And I so badly wish this wasn't the case. I can see myself doing great things and I have this vision of myself and who I want to be and how I want to feel...but some days it's nothing but a fight. I've become quite excellent at sabotaging myself - I've just about mastered it. And I can do this so easily because I know it's easier to believe negative things about yourself when you struggle than it is to believe the good. It just doesn't make sense. You would think that you shouldn't have to fight so hard to make yourself believe the good things about yourself.
So here is what I know.....Anxiety is a BIG DUMB UGLY PUSS INFESTED LIAR....thats right...I said it! It's a really gross visual but for the amount of times it's made me literally riddled with fear and adrenaline and sick to my stomache, the description fits perfectly! Once anxiety has crept up in there, deposited the negative seed, telling you things you can't do, it is the biggest fight of your life trying to eliminate it, or in the very least quarantine it and every feeling that becomes associated with it. You can see how one might become exhausted if this were to go on for a lengthy period of time. I have dealt with these garbage lies on and off for about 8 years now. Just when you think you've got the hang of it and evicted the whole thing from your life, it rears it's ugly head and changes the game once more.
Recently we moved to a new city. The months leading up to this move weren't, in any way, easy! And that's not just coming from someone who deals with anxiety....it would have been a gong show for anyone of sound mind! But we did it. I learned new things every day and to say I was 'tested' a lot of the time would be a rather large understatement. I did things on my own I never thought I would have to deal with in a million years but I did. I made sure I did what I had to do for my family. I took on the responsibilities so no one else would have to. I was a grown up! ...so now...months later...why does the whole thing freak me out? I feel like as far as I'm able to go on the 'positive' end of the scale, I have to make up for it by taking myself equally down the other (negative) end of the scale. I 'get' balance in life....but that kind of stuff shouldn't be the things requiring a seesaw and a graph.
These days I get nervous to go places alone. It's like I need my husband there just in case....why? I never had to worry about that before! I would drive wherever my little heart needed to go and it was never a big deal. I had the confidence and security to know I was fine. What happened to that? And when I start to worry about where those things went, It snowballs into other things. I worry about 'what if I regress to the point of being a recluse? What if I get so scared I just can't even get in the car anymore? What if something happens to me while I'm out? What if my anxiety becomes to be so much that it interferes with my husbands work/school? What if I'm not reliable to my friends or family?' ....notice a pattern here? Those two little words are enough to bring everything crashing in on you. Everything you ever believed in can be completely obliterated with those two eensy teensy little words.....what....if....
UNLESS..... :)
You can manage to build a defense against them. There are 2 other words that are trying to take over in the competitive rankings for 'Worlds Most Powerful Words" .......so.......what.....!!!! By saying those two tiny words in the immediate aftermath of a 'what if' statement, you can blow it right out of the water! 'So What' makes your 'what if' statements look like and otter wearing underpants - completely ridiculous and almost comical, if you have that kind of sense of humour!
The things I seem to be most afraid of are all things I know better than to worry about. Anxiety causes you to spend too much time on the problem rather than bothering about an actual solution. And I'm tired of being my own problem....I need to get out of my own way!
Now, here comes the cliche.......Art has been my therapy. How many people say that? It is one of the statements in this world that I know to be the most true. For as dark as my thoughts have been some days and for as hopeless as I've sometimes felt, my brightly coloured fantasy illustrations have done nothing short of a full out rescue mission. When you see my creations you might think about how fun they are, or pretty, or colourful, or happy. This is the world I create for myself. The one I ACTUALLY believe in. It makes me happy to be surrounded by the colours. They're physical reminders of how beautiful my true self sees things - myself...this world....and everything in it. And I thank my other artist friends for doing much the same for me. They've created pieces of art that are more than 'cartoons' or 'something funny', or 'colours on paper'. They've created an entire universe for people like me to wander around in and find themselves. It truly is a Wonderful and Beautiful World (Louis always said it best!)
So I want to say, I'm thankful for my husband for being one of my many rocks - he is the biggest one I know. He's supported me and told me things I knew were true even when I couldn't get my own mind to listen. I thank all of my family for supporting me through everything and never giving up on me. They see me for who I am. I thank my friends for being that blanket of support, even if they didn't know they were sewn into it at the time. And I thank my artist friends, for helping me create a beautiful and wondrous world of things some may think are mythical - when in fact the rest of us know how truly real it all is. It's more than JUST art...it's everything we are!

I wake up every morning, and no matter how tough some days seem, I know there are better ones coming, and I am ALWAYS grateful for the gifts I have in this life and all the things I haven't yet discovered in this pretty painting! ....just thought I would share :)

Monday, November 29, 2010

CYBER MONDAY SALE!


Hello friends! I'm posting this because I have a sale going on in my Etsy shop that I don't think you'll want to miss! Its for one day only and you can score HUGE bargains that you wouldn't normally find otherwise! Heres the Sales list

4x6" prints - 20% off all day
Originals - 30% off all day + bonus sale (see below)
Everything else excluding Gift Certificates - 15% off all day

BONUS SALE! If you're in my Etsy shop between 6pm and 8pm EST you will be able to save 40% off original pieces of art! This has never happened before and I assure you it won't be a regular thing so make sure that if you've had your eye on an original, you snag it now!

Happy Shopping!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Bookmarks!



Hi Friends! I have something new to share with you today! I now have BOOKMARKS for sale in my Etsy shop! I have 6 different kinds: Mad Hatted Mermaid, Lani, Hali and the Magical Lilly Lagoon, Trinity, Tropical Snowmaid, and Mermaid Masquerade: Aquamarine. They're approximately 2x6" in size and come with a nice glossy coating. They're very sturdy and perfect for holding your spot in your book instead of folding the corners! Your books will thank you! :)