Amazon Merch LITs Pooches, Kitties and Other Sweet Faces

I opened an Amazon Merch Shop last year called LITs Pooches, Kitties and Other Sweet Faces. It took a bit of doing because I can’t use my IPad to create the image sizes required for the T-shirts. I really dislike having to use my laptop, but there was no other way to make it work. All the files first need to have the backgrounds deleted, then converted from jpeg to png, and then sized to upload specifications. It’s a multi step process and quite time consuming. I’ve sold a few T-shirts and had 100 various images available. All of them are my custom pet portraits. Unlike the other websites I use - Zazzle, Redbubble, Etsy, Fine Art America/Pixels - the image is removed if it didn’t sell within six months. What that means is a lot of them get deleted and I have to decide whether to use the image again, or try something new. I’ve done a little bit of both and then some. It seemed like black labs were the biggest hit, so I made sure all of my black lab portraits were used. Aside from basic T-shirts, long sleeve T-shirts and hoodies are also available. But each type of shirt requires it’s own listing. You can also upload to the US, UK, or Germany. Again, each requires its own listing. I haven’t tried those yet. I’ve added a couple of “prelim sketch” options to mix it up. At least now all the converted suitable files are saved so I can easily upload the required images the second time around. Lately the Bichon Frise item has had a few takers. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to keep up with the turnover in my shop lately so it’s taking me a while to fully stock my shop! Luckily for me it is just a hobby - but sometimes it feels like a full time job. But when a painting of mine is noticed and sold? It’s really exciting! 

Property Brothers Surprise

I love home television shows. We essentially renovated our entire Midwest home room by room. A lot of my ideas came from these shows. When we moved to DC we had to make due with a 500 square foot apartment and we used every square inch of it. One of the many shows we watch is Property Brothers. I am much more of a fan of it than my husband. He even has a particular dislike of the main characters on the show - Drew and Jonathan Scott. So when I woke up the other morning I trudged from our bedroom toward the living room couch and plopped in to my usual spot. I didn’t even notice what was different about the house until my husband pointed it out. Right next to me he had cut out a picture of the property brothers and scotch taped it to the lamp post for me to behold. I never laughed so hard. My husband rarely does things like this which makes them so much more endearing. I hadn’t even noticed the junk mail we got that contained whatever photo advertisement this was used for. He secretly saved it and made good use out of it. It was a cute way to start the morning. 

Christmas Tree Disposal

For most people the Christmas tree ends up on the sidewalk shortly after the holiday ends. In the Midwest I always started decorating the day after Thanksgiving. Rather than have one large tree, we had several small trees in different rooms. Then I would cut down branches from the back yard and stuff them in to pots both inside and outside of the house. All the outdoor window boxes were equally festooned. But all the holiday decor was removed no later than New Years Day. But there are people who prefer to keep the holiday spirit going long after December 25. There must be something about the end of January that brings them to their senses. So we saw many Christmas trees out on the sidewalks this week. Some of them were almost bare! All the greens have long gone. But there were two trees that were not only on the sidewalk waiting for trash collection, they were IN the sidewalk. Along Massachusetts Avenue near Union Station it looked like the trees were being used as barricades from falling in to a hole in the sidewalk. One of them still had what you could call decorations. It was very peculiar but not totally unexpected. People do odd things around here. We just weren’t expecting this. They will probably still be there next week. 

Zazzle Holiday Card

I just sold two holiday greeting cards on Zazzle to someone in California. The image is of a pooch portrait I painted on my iPad a couple of years ago. I’ve been painting custom pet portraits for the last six years and get commissions from all over the world. I first started with an Etsy shop. Then I opened a shop on Fine Art America/Pixels. It not only has my custom portraits, but many photographs from DC and our travels to Iran, France, Denmark and England. We are lucky to have friends and family living in all those countries so visiting them is a special treat. Then I opened my Zazzle shop. Last year Redbubble and Amazon Merch were added. Then of course I use Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook Business Page, LinkedIn, my blog and my personal website (Lois Tavaf.com) to promote my work. It takes a lot of time, but luckily I’m retired and do what I like when I feel like it. All of my work is virtual so I don’t have to deal with shipping and mailing anything. What’s fun about having my products in all these virtual stores is that someone notices an image I created out of the millions out there, likes it enough to purchase it, and then keeps it for themselves or present it as a gift. My royalty is peanuts but it’s such a wonderful feeling to get an email telling me I’ve made a sale. That feeling has no price tag. 

Zazzle Jellyfish Wrapping Paper

Custom pet portraits are fun to do. I’ve been commissioned many times to create the pooches, kitties, and other sweet faces. I paint them on my iPad. The files can then be used to turn in to a canvas, T-shirt, coffee mug, or just about anything else. You can also print the portrait on your desk top printer, frame it and display. After the portrait is completed, I also upload the files to my other on line sites. Those sites include Pixels/Fine Art America, Redbubble, Amazon Merch, and Zazzle. I also have three children’s books that I wrote and illustrated about a Betta Fish, a trip to DC, and a parent child separation. Many of these images are also available. Every once in a while I will also paint things that I just like. Many of those images are from photos I take here in DC, or while on travel. One of those paintings was of jellyfish that we saw at Discovery World located on Lake Michigan. I was taken by the contrasting white jellyfish floating in the beautiful blue water. Yesterday I got a note from Zazzle that someone bought wrapping paper with my jellyfish design. It’s always exciting to know when an item that I created is not only noticed out of the millions of images out there, but also purchased. It obviously has a meaning for that person or another who will be receiving a gift wrapped in my paper. So thank you for noticing! I really appreciate it! 

Etsy Custom Pet Portrait Feedback

I started my Etsy shop six years ago. It’s called LITDigitalPaintings. I have received commissions from all over the world for custom pet portraits. Many of the requests are for memorial portraits. I paint the portraits using my iPad instead of messy pastels and watercolors. And, my studio comes with me wherever I go. Each image becomes a jpeg file that can be uploaded to any website to create products like coffee mugs, T-shirts, or just about anything else. Or, you can print the image on a desktop printer. Christmas is typically a busy season and this past holiday was no different. Yesterday I received feedback from one of my customers. She had two portraits made for her parents of their family dog. She then had the images made in to canvas paintings. She sent me a photo of the finished products and said her parents were thrilled with the portraits. She also shared really nice feedback that was posted on my Etsy shop. I really appreciate the time Sherry took to communicate with me during the process, but especially offering such kind words about me and my work. You never know who will be requesting a portrait. I just think about how much we loved our beautiful Borzoi Tatiana. I’ve got her portrait hanging in our home. Every time I look at it it makes me smile. I’m just happy I can do the same for someone else. 

Ancestry DNA Kit and Family Tree

Quite some time ago I was searching for information about my grandparents. It was when Ellis Island was being restored and we made a small contribution. All four of my grandparents came through there in the early 1900’s and I found some interesting items about three of them from the manifest documents. Unfortunately I can’t find my notes that included the maiden names. We even visited Ellis Island in New York when the project was completed. It was very inspiring. Lately I have been bitten by the DNA bug curious to know more about my ethnicity. People have oftentimes asked me if I was from China but I am supposed to be Polish/Ukrainian. So I searched to find out about the best DNA kits out there. I finally bit the bullet and bought an Ancestry DNA kit that is supposed to arrive in about ten days. Of course everyone on earth probably got one as a Christmas present so everything is really backed up now. Great timing! In the mean time I started to work up a family tree but can only go so far without my grandmothers maiden names. I’ll wait until I get the DNA results to subscribe to a free two week trial and search a little more. It is interesting to look at 1940 and earlier census records, applications for social security, death records, etc. The spelling of my father’s father’s last name was changed when he arrived which makes it more difficult to nail down. But he is listed as a “painter” in 1927 and as a “musician” in 1930. Maybe I will learn something that I don’t already know. My siblings used to kid around that I was adopted. This may put an end to that notion. Or will it?

Cabbage Soup and Pierogi

If you are Polish there are certain food items you grow up with. Pierogi are delicacies that take a lot of time to make - stuffed dumpling dough. We always had two main types - potato & cheese and cabbage & hamburger & onions. And since cabbage is such a well liked item who wouldn’t like cabbage soup? We have a great recipe for it and it’s really good! Rather than make our own pierogi version we always keep well stocked in Mrs T’s from the grocery store. Hers come the closest to what I am most familiar with. The potato and spinach is wonderful, although there are several available variations. So when my husband was thinking of making pierogi the other day for dinner, he usually adds something to it like leftover chicken or bits of ham or tomato something or other. Rather than do the usual additive, he decided the cabbage soup would go well with the potato and cheese pierogi we had on hand. And he was absolutely right. The combination was excellent, although quite filling. So we saved half of the meal for another time. I could eat this sort of thing every day but we do mix it up with our favorite Persian fare - kabobs, yogurt, eggplant - as well as the every day stuff. But being winter, the cabbage soup stands well on its own. 

Tulips Over Time

We have a double glass container wallvase that is in the perfect spot. Since it doesn’t sit on a table it doesn’t take up any surface space, doesn’t accidentally get knocked over, and is one if the first things you notice when you walk in to the house. I use it to freshen up the space using either flowers from our tiny patio garden or bouquets we pick up at the grocery store. It’s also a great place to showcase the changing seasons and holidays. I can get pretty creative - tiny pumpkins and gourds for Halloween and Thanksgiving or greens with lights that replace a Christmas tree. Usually I’ll put some sort of flower with fillers. Unconventional fillers are my favorites - twigs and cut leaves or stems. The last grouping were tulips and carnations. The carnations were a very light yellow with tiny orange lines and the tulips were orange and yellow. In winter it’s tougher to find fillers but I chanced cutting the dusty Miller, and a few assorted leaves. I also used the leftover cut stems from the very long carnations and the extra tulip leaves that were cut from the bottom of the flower. At first it wasn’t very impressive, but as the days passed the tulips grew a few inches and became a much bolder color. So I took a photo of the process just for kicks. What’s left now are the carnations and a few greens and this is almost week three. It’s nice to have flowers in the house. 

A Quiet Time at the US Botanic Garden

Now that the holidays are over, so are the long lines to see the Christmas trains and decorations at the US Botanic Garden. So instead of walking through the outside gardens today as we usually do, we decided to promenade through the inside of the beautiful building. It is one of the few places that is open during the government shutdown. Of course we knew we wouldn’t stay long with several layers of clothing, hats, and mittens we were wearing in the sixteen degree temperature. But the sun was brilliant so all was right with the world. Except for a tour of about ten people, the place was really quiet and several of the sections were closed off. The main entry area was really empty! But soon it will be brimming with something very special in time for spring, Easter, and warmer weather. So we walked about without any obstructions or heavy traffic leaving me plenty of time today take whatever photos I wanted. I think this visit we were drawn the most to the citrus - sour oranges and lemons. This is probably one of my favorite spots in town. Nothing beats sunshine and nature.