We are pleased to announce the arrival of our latest Muse. Jenn White is an amazing Artist and an Amazingly kind and compassionate human being. It’s going to be an exciting time to see what Jenn creates with the Relics & Artifacts® brand of Creativity.

Now, let’s find out a bit about Jenn.

What fills your time when you are not creating?

I took some time to really think ( probably too deeply) about this question & came to the conclusion that there is rarely a time when I am not creating. If I am not creating with my hands, I am constantly creating in my thoughts & even in my dreams while I'm sleeping. My dreams are so real sometimes I wake up & expect the things I was creating in my dreams to be sitting before me! My husband says one of his favorite things about me is I always wake up so happy & ready to seize the day. So thrilled & thankful to be granted the precious gift of more time. I love to awaken in that starry darkness, just before dawn, so I can listen to the choir of vivid red male cardinals announce the gradual rise of the light on my bit of Earth. Then there is that ever changing glorious sunrise color show that follows & lasts such a short time. I adore watching it.

I usually choose to attempt to paint what I just witnessed immediately while it is still fresh in my mind. My cell phone photos do not ever seem to capture the gorgeousness my eyes witness. I try to take my walks at sunrise & sunset so I can enjoy the beauty of the sky while I walk.

I love to float around in the mirror-like lakes, ponds & rivers with my husband in our boat. I paint, write, draw, watch the sun's water diamonds sparkle, dragonflies dance & observe the birds & wildlife while he catches fish. I enjoy nature walks through my flower gardens & forest. There is a parliament of owls residing in the forest now. They have the most interesting conversations around 11pm. I have always been so curious about everything in the natural world around me & notice & appreciate every tiny detail of everything I see. I have lost count of all the sunrises, sunsets & moonrises & starry night skies we have witnessed together over the past 23 years.

There are always the usual necessary household tasks, chores, paperwork, meal prep, cooking, shopping & errands & parts runs to the city that I get done while the paint, gesso or some type of adhesive or medium receives it's required drying time. I have had many life lessons over the years that have taught me to have patience with drying times.

I seem to lose so much of my precious time getting lost down the endless social media & application rabbit holes when I only meant to research something that I am curious about for a few moments or watch one technique video then before I know it I have lost an entire day or evening of my life.

Staging areas for taking photos of my art, editing those photos, writing posts & editing posts then responding to everyone that responds to them takes up a lot of time too.

I need to schedule a specific amount of time each day or just one or two days a week to devote to this. Perhaps I should set timers & alarms & stick to them like I used to make my daughters do years ago when they were in middle school & highschool.

I find lately I have so much more time to create & make art since I recently lost WiFi & satellite service at my home & my grandson is no longer here with me now that he has started kindergarten. I miss him so much!

What are your favorite materials to use when you create?

The first & most important favorite things I must have for my creativity are plenty of quality ink pens that write & flow smooth & stacks of inexpensive notebooks, graphing books, sketchbooks & journals. I keep them in every room of our home, in our vehicles & in the boats. So many things are constantly inspiring me & I have so many ideas & things I want to do, learn, research, discover & experiment with. I have to write it all down & sketch it out while it is fresh so I do not forget it.

As far as art supplies go I do have my tried & true favorites but I will happily use, try & experiment with any quality material or art supply as long as it does not have an odor that I find extremely unpleasant, It doesn't burn or blister my eyes, nose or skin, or make me feel itchy scratchy. I find I am drawn to metallics & patinas. I have become completely obsessed with Sandra Evertson's Relics & Artifacts VerDay metal paints & patina spray & her dreamy inspiring craft blanks, rubber stamps, stencils & dresden embellishments. It is such a happy magical experience working with her enchanting products. I also love pearls, chromes, glitters, sparkles & spangles. Perhaps it is because they have such shiny light reflective qualities & properties?

I cannot resist dresden, velvets, laces, milnery flowers, fascinating embellishments, antique findings, ornate hardware, costume jewelry & unusual trims. I seem to go through a lot of white & black gesso, white & black paint, matte gel mediums, clays, resins embossing pastes & embossing powders. I buy economy sizes in all of those products. Anything I can use to create texture, depth, dimension. I prefer working with Sturdy heavy surfaces & permanent inks & paints.

Where do you find inspiration for your art?

Everything I see, smell, hear, touch, feel, taste, think, do & experience is inspiring to me. My imagination completly exhausts me at times. This is why I must have all the pens & notebooks.

What is my signature style?

I am having trouble answering this question because I feel I am so multifaceted. I asked my husband what he thought my signature style was & he IMMEDIATELY rattled off "Metallic, Steampunk, moonchild, fairy godmother lost in Neverland, with a shiny, Iridescent flare of Hogwart's glitter, a bit of Jane Austen & a dash of Marie Antoinette dancing & spinning inside of the Beast's library. ALL THE WAY! " Haha!

There are looks & styles of things I am drawn to & things I like that ignite my curiousity. The decor in every room in my house is completely different. Every room has a different theme & color scheme. I like symmetry, linear sinuous flow, monochromatic, metallics, branches, trees, unusual rocks, treasures I have collected from the natural world. Yeah, what my husband said. I guess he does know me better than I know myself.

If you could meet with anyone living or dead who would you choose?

I have heard so many wonderful things about my maternal Great Great Grandmother Ruth E. Shaw from my Momma & all of my aunts. She was an artist & antique collector like my Momma whose taste & style of work I greatly admire. I have seen all of her paintings & drawings. They have greatly influenced me. I have many of her collected antiques on display in my home. I was never able to meet her or get to know her as she had passed on before I was born.

Follow your bliss.

Do what makes you happy.

Create the things you wish existed.

Stay curious.

Keep playing.

Never stop learning experiencing & discovering.

Be true to you.

Do you.

Keep choosing joy.

You are the universe experiencing itself.

The whole universe is inside you.