Kristie Serra Photography Blog »

You are in for a real treat! A long-time friend of mine is an amazing jewelry designer. Every piece from Good Girls Studio is unique and equally as beautiful. So, please take a moment to meet Johanna and her breathtaking designs… a true artist… 

Hi my name is Johanna Ely & I’m the founder and designer of the one woman show that is Good Girls Studio. After a career in retail management I discovered my true passion of jewelry designing. (Well, actaully I discovered this passion/expensive hooby whilst working very slow/boring days in retail..shhh, don’t tell! ) In the Spring of 2007 the company that owned the boutique I was managing liquidated & it was the perfect launching pad for me to start my own business. I took my severance check, invested in more supplies & opened my online shop. Now I get to spend my mornings playing with jewelry, pick up my son from school & spend quality time with him! I even have enough time now to be the lead Pre-K Sunday school teacher at the church we attend. No more nights, weekends & holidays spent working at the mall! (Truth be told I would LOVE to open my own brick and mortar shop but I think I would be closed Sunday & holidays!)

At first it was really slow going but thanks to lots of networking, the help & support of my friends & huge learning curve I am still able to do this full time. Since then my sales have grown… I have several established wholesale accounts, a second website, my own blog & I’ve shipped to over 4 European Countries! Crazy!!! I’m a continually shocked & excited when people buy my jewelry! I am blown away by how faithful God has been to me through this endeavor & can’t wait to see where else it leads!

As for the name “God Girls Studio”, well, I’m the middle child you see. The “good girl” has been self imposed nickname since I was a little girl : ) Plus, I’m inspired by the all the good girls in my life!

I’d like to thank Kristie for featuring me and as a Thank You to all her readers I’m offering a Gift With Purchase for every sale through my Etsy shop now through Valentines Day. Just mention the code IHeartU in the message/note to seller when you check out & you’ll receive a free jewely gift!

Site: http://goodgirlsstudio.com
Etsy: htttp://goodgirlsstudio.etsy.com
Blog: http://goodgirlsstudio.blogspot.com 

A little sampling of the beautiful jewelry designs from Good Girls Studio… 

…you have the brilliant idea to take your dog and your children to downtown in the middle of a weekday to take pictures, well, I am here to tell you that you just might want to think rethink your plan (unless you are up for a challenge). Here are a few things that you might not consider going into the situation that could potentially give you a run for your money: hot dog vendors (way too tempting for the dog), squirrels (anyone up for a game of chase??), random people who will actually approach you and request to have a picture taken with you dog (yes, it’s true, we were approached twice) and the nutty guy, who stops to ask when you are going to open your shoe store.

It was an interesting and lively afternoon, to say the least, but so worth it! My babies had already been five for a month and I really hadn’t taken any shots of them, so I had to act fast before they grew up anymore! I thought I’d share a few of my favorites. And, on a side note, I will be out of the office for the remainder of the week. I will begin returning emails and phone calls on Saturday, January 31st.

Thursday? already? I guess so! What a busy week it’s been!

Well, it’s time to start a new feature. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be introducing some of my favorite artists that I know you will absolutely love. This week I’m thrilled to share the amazing work of Erika Jessop. I first saw her work on Flickr (an online community for sharing images, art and videos with friends around the world) and instantly connected with her style. There is a softness about her original paintings that makes you melt just a little bit. Her artwork is fresh and leaves you mesmerized. Her designs are equally fabulous! I could go on and on…

So without further ado, meet Erika…

Hi there, and thank you to Kristie for inviting me to share a bit about myself on her blog!

My name is Erika Jessop. I’m 24 and I was born and raised in Nebraska. Making art has always been a very important part of my life. I chose to go to art school in Nebraska and I graduated in 2006 with my Bachelor of Fine Arts. I went straight to work on projects that meant something to me; illustrating a children’s book and holding a couple of group shows at a deli that I used to frequent. I ventured into the online world of art-making and selling in 2007 when I opened my flickr account and started posting some of my paintings.

I was excited when people began emailing me, inquiring about commissioning me. From there, I launched my online art business. I made myself legit…or at least I tried to appear that way. I created a price list and started to keep a few different sizes of gallery canvases on hand to fit the demand. It all happened so fast.

I started designing logos and other marketing materials later that year when several photographers on flickr hired me to come up with custom branding for their businesses. I had so much fun exploring this other use for my art background. Over 100 custom logos later, I am more inspired than ever. I pride myself on offering my custom logo clients unlimited revisions, so they’re sure to end up with the perfect logo!

And now my Etsy shop is officially launched and I’m busy every weekend creating new paintings, jewelry, and logos for my shop updates that occur every Tuesday afternoon.In so many ways, I feel that I’m just at the beginning of a great trip that will reveal new possibilities for my art. I am so blessed to do what I love every day.

Thank you for reading!

places to find Erika:
my art journal: www.erikajessop.wordpress.com
my shop: www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5122442
my gallery: www.erikajessop.com 

Below is a sampling of Erika’s original paintings, design work and jewelry… Prepare to be inspired… 

It’s back to thinking outside of the picture frame… part three. So, moving past lunchboxes and window frames, it’s time for fine art canvases. We had a session over the summer with the amazingly super talented Amy Smith (yes, that’s her official title) and I had to practice what I preach and get some of my favorite images from our session up on our wall.

I have to admit that I get such joy from receiving canvas orders from my clients because they truly are works of art. I can’t help but to drool when the pieces come in, so when I received ours, I was speechless (then eventually I let out the biggest gasp).

To create the canvas collage, I started with paper (from the roll off my twins’ art easel to be exact). I knew I wanted the VW bus picture to be the largest, so I measured and cut out a 24×16 rectangle. I then added the two 11×14 canvases above it and then finished it up (for now) with the 10×20 canvas on the right and the 10×10 canvas below it. It’s like a fun little puzzle for me. I start with the layout on the floor and then once I have everything just so, it gets taped up on the wall. I have to say, the real thing doesn’t even compare to the pieces of paper. Ha-Ha.

I love this little area… I had my eye on this table for a while and with some encouragement from some fabulous friends, I finally bought it. I’m so glad that I did too!! I love the lunchbox on it and if you’re wondering, I have Scrabble letters in the large glass jar.  
 

Nothing beats a gorgeous day… especially when shared with such a wonderfully fun and gorgeous family like this. We became instant friends and I couldn’t be more in love with their adorable kiddos. It was a perfect day filled with tree climbing, delicious gelato (3 flavors in one cup – can you just imagine!?!) and a walk in their local park. It doesn’t get any better than that! 

Do you remember that new family member that I mentioned a couple of posts ago, well, this is him…

one part bloodhound
one part chicken dog
one part hot air balloon attack dog
one part couch potato
BUT all love

I am so in love with this little guy (well, I guess he’s not that little at 85 pounds)!! He’s one years old and he happens to share his birthday with my twins, so birthday parties from here on out should be pretty interesting. Quigley is a rescue dog and he joined our family on Christmas Eve and did I mention that I absolutely love him!!

The other day Quigley had his first little mini session and by the way, if you talk with my hubby, it looks like Quigley is on our bed, but he’s not. Thank you in advance for going along with this…

So, on with the images of Quigley Adams (by the way, he came with the name, but don’t you just love it??)

With a grateful heart, I thank you for letting me be a part of your lives this past year. What an amazing adventure it has been. The children and families that I have met have been such an inspiration to me and I would like to share some of those moments with you. Please click on the link below to view the slideshow. 

Kristie Serra Photography 2008 inspire • create • share 

Featured music by Johnny Bregar

I wish you all a bright new year filled with love and laughter. 
xoxo,
Kristie