Father's Day - Honoring Dads Around the World

Father's Day is a day of honoring fatherhood, paternal bonds, as well as the influence of fathers in society. In Catholic countries of Europe, it has been celebrated on March 19 since the Middle Ages.
Source: Wikipedia

This year, it will be observed on Sunday, June 21, 2020. And that's not just in the U.S.  I was pleasantly surprised to learn it is observed in 111 countries!

Looking through my Zazzle stores, I realized that while I had quite a few Mother's Day cards,  I only had one Father's Day card!  

Time to rectify that shortcoming!

This is an original pastel painting that I did of a red roofed barn in a sunny meadow.  I think it's suitably masculine for a Father's Day card and although I put the words "Father's Day Wishes" on the front, all the text inside and out can be customized to suit the purchaser.

Red-Roofed Barn Father's Day Card
by 3DDesignsByJayne

Another barn scene, this time a digital artwork that I created in Vue, graces the front of this Father's Day card.  I seem to have a thing for barns!

Autumn Farm Scene Father's Day Card
by 3DDesignsByJayne

And yet another barn!  This is another scene created in Vue - and you are right if you think you recognize the barn and the old truck -- they are the same ones as were used in the card above!

Old Red Barn & Rusty Truck Father's Day Card
by 3DDesignsByJayne

All of the above artworks are also available as art prints, postcards, jigsaw puzzles and more, any of which would make a nice gift for dad.

While we're on the subject of gifts for Dad, I'm going to share a couple of gift ideas from my stores.

This men's watch features my digital painting "Bison and Old Faithful", based on a photo I took of a bison sauntering past Old Faithful as we were all waiting for the next eruption.

Bison and Old Faithful Watch
by WondersofWildlife

Another gift dad might like is this laptop sleeve, featuring Nature's very own abstract beauty - mosses and lichens in colors of green, gold and umber on a natural rock surface.

Lichens and Moss Laptop Sleeve
by 3DDesignsByJayne

Well that's all I'm going to share from my own stores today, although I do have a lot of items in my Gifts for Him collection.

Now I'm going to share some Father's Day cards and gifts from other talented designers on Zazzle.

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First up is this simple mug proclaiming "You Are the Best Dad in the World" from MissTallulah's Paperie.  Any dad would be proud to received this on Father's Day.

Best Dad In The World Blue Rustic Father's Day Coffee Mug
by misstallulah

Until researching for this post, I didn't realize Zazzle offered customizable baseballs but I fell in love with this one from One Look.

Rustic Best Dad Ever Father`s Day Photo Collage Baseball
by OneLook

If your dad is an avid golfer, like mine, he would certainly appreciate a customizable monogrammed golf ball like this one from Jennifer Stuart Design.

Gold Monogram Initial and Name Personalized Golf Balls
by jenniferstuartdesign

Cat and dog dads need not be left out of the festivities with cards like this one from ColorFlowCreations.

Happy Father's day Photo Dog Cat Pet Fur Baby Card
by ColorFlowCreations

If dad isn't the shy type, he might enjoy wearing this T-shirt telling the world that they are now in the presence of The Man, the Myth, the Legend that is him! Of course, it's customizable with his name.

Personalized Name The Man The Myth The Legend T-Shirt
by custommanmythlegend

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Now it's your turn. Let me see your Father's Day cards and gifts!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

A New Year, a New Start

Here we are in 2020 and I realize it has been years since I posted in this blog!

But, rather than make excuses for my absence, I thought I would just pull myself together and start over.

The purpose of this blog is two-fold.  First I will be highlighting my own latest designs and artwork that I have created, and showing some of the items on which they are available in my Zazzle and FineArtAmerica stores.

And secondly, I would like to provide a showcase of the work of other artists and designers on #Zazzle by featuring some of their items here.

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I started the New Year the way I mean to go on by working on  some new art.  As some of you may know, I use the 3D graphics program DAZ 3D to create my art.  It's a program that allows you to create scenes on your computer, with a 3D environment, including figures, scenery, lighting much like a photographer would stage a photograph.  Then you take a virtual "photograph" of the scene and do the usual post work that any photographer does to create the final image.

Here's my first artwork of the new year, inspired by a card I received at Christmas.  I called it, surprise, surprise, "Dashing Through the Snow".  

Once the image was post processed and ready, it was time to get to work adding it to my Zazzle store.

Naturally, the first thing I did was to add it to a wrapped canvas print. Zazzle's wrapped canvas prints are made from an additive-free cotton-poly blend, making them long lasting and fade resistant.

I also added it to posters and prints for framing, postcards and customizable greeting cards.

Dashing through the Snow - Running Horses Canvas Print
by 3DDesignsByJayne

Then came the really fun part - adding the image to some of the quality products on Zazzle and posting them to my store.

I won't show them all here, or this post would be a mile long! But here are a few that I am especially happy with:

I love how the image looks on this throw pillow and can just picture it on a sofa beside a roaring fire in a cozy cabin somewhere.

Dashing Through the Snow - Running Horses Artwork Throw Pillow
by 3DDesignsByJayne

Another item I think my artwork looks especially good on is this custom wall clock. Featured in two sizes, this wall clock is vibrantly printed with AcryliPrint®HD process to ensure the highest quality display.

Dashing Through the Snow - Running Horses Large Clock
by 3DDesignsByJayne

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So that's it for my art today. Now it's time to feature some of the lovely work of other designers and artists on Zazzle. Since my latest artwork features horses in the snow, I've made that the theme of today's links.

I enjoy doing jigsaw puzzles and this one featuring a family of appaloosa horses is especially nice. It's available in a variety of sizes, up to 20" x 30" - 1014 pieces, which I think would be quite challenging!

Black Appaloosa Horses In Snow Jigsaw Puzzle
by ForestWildlifeArt

Postcards are a great and affordable way to collect and share art that you love.  This postcard features two bay horses, with white feathers on their legs and white blazes on their faces, galloping in the snow under a full moon.

Horses Running In The Snow Postcard
by tyraobryant

Cross-body tote bags are very useful for carrying just about anything and this one features a cute photograph of two foals playing in the snow.

Icelandic Horses Foal Play in Snow Funny Crossbody Crossbody Bag
by Kathom_Photo

And finally, I've been a fan of the digital artist CWRW since I first got introduced to DAZ3D.  Laurie specializes in dramatic equine art and this poster is an excellent example of her work.

Winter Thunder Poster
by artCWRW

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Now it's your turn!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Gifts for Gardeners

When I'm not working at my day job, or working on designs and artwork for my Zazzle store, I'm a keen gardener.  I'm proud of the fact that my garden is a certified Wildlife Habitat.

And being the beginning of a new year, I'm all itching to get out in the garden and get working.  But it's cold and windy outside today, which is keeping me indoors.

Okay, so we're not buried in snow as much of the country is.  But it's windy and in the mid 40's here.  Pretty chilly for Texas.

So any gardening I do today will be the armchair variety - looking through catalogs and planning etc.

Then I started thinking that considering I'm such a keen gardener,  I don't have much of a selection of gifts for gardeners in my store, other than some items featuring photographs of the birds, butterflies and flowers that I have taken in the garden.

Here's one of my current items, a Macbook Pro sleeve featuring a photo I took of a Swallowtail butterfly on some Dallas Red Lantana:

Swallowtail on Lantana MacBook Pro Sleeve by 3DDesignsByJayne

This beautiful daylily was practically glowing in the sun when I took this photo:

Daylily in the Sun Print by 3DDesignsByJayne

Here's another butterfly photograph from my garden. This time it's a Question Mark butterfly, available on a wrapped canvas or as a print.

Question Mark Butterfly on Lantana Wrapped Canvas Gallery Wrap Canvas by 3DDesignsByJayne
More Butterfly Canvas Prints

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When I did a simple search for "gifts for gardeners" on Zazzle, I realized how much there is to offer. From three ring binders that can be used for garden journals (how come I never thought of that?) to fridge magnets, T-shirts and aprons. The list is endless.

Here are just some of the wonderful gifts for gardeners I found from the many talented artists and designers on Zazzle:

This three ring binder from TheBindery can be customized with your name and is a great way to keep all your garden notes together.

Garden Journal Custom 1.5" Binder by thebindery
View Garden Binders online at zazzle

This apron from designer Spice features a cute little gardener bear with a wheelbarrow and hoe, who says 'Gardeners know all the dirt'.

Garden Tips #1 - Know Dirt Apron by Spice
Create a one-of-a-kind customized apron at zazzle.com

This refrigerator magnet from earthdaygardens includes the phrase 'He who plants a garden plants happiness.'

Plant Happiness. Plant a Garden. Veggie Magnet by earthdaygardens
Look at more Vegetable garden Magnets at zazzle

I love the wording on this T-shirt by baxella - so true! We optimistically plant things, hoping they will grow into something beautiful.

Gardening Is An Exercise in Optimism Tee Shirts by baxella
Check out more For gardners T-Shirts at Zazzle

Gardeners don't really need an excuse to garden, but if they did - this mug from Quotings includes a good one. It's cheaper than therapy, and you get tomatoes!

Gardening is Cheaper than Therapy... Coffee Mugs by quotings
View other Garden Mugs

This postcard from Meg_Stewart features a cute little chipmunk and the phrase 'A garden is a friend you can visit any time'.

Gardening Chipmunk with Quote Postcard by Meg_Stewart
Create one-of-a-kind picture post cards at Zazzle

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Now it's your turn.  If you are a designer on Zazzle, you are invited to add a link to your gifts for gardeners and gardening related designs in the Linky Tool below.

Use Option 1 in the Link Widget on the page of the Zazzle product/design you'd like to add. It will show up below as a small thumbnail and when clicked on, will link directly to your product.

Love is in the Air!

Well okay, technically we're still one month away from Valentine's Day, but now is the time when people start thinking about it.

I was excited to get an email from Zazzle the other day, notifying me that someone had purchased 20 customized copies of my Cartoon Horse Valentine's card.

Cartoon Horses Valentine's Card by 3DDesignsByJayne
Browse Valentine's day Cards online at Zazzle.com

It occurred to me that I don't have very many Valentine's themed items in my Zazzle store at all, but I have some images that I think I can work with, and I'll start that this week.

The card below is one I designed for my store at Greeting Card Universe. Unfortunately it has yet to be approved, so in the meantime I've added it to my Zazzle store. Note to self, allow plenty of lead time when submitting designs to GCU.

Pink Heart Valentine's Card by 3DDesignsByJayne

While I may not have many Valentine's Day themed cards and gifts, other Zazzle designers have been busy creating, so I took a peek around and here are just a few of the things I found.

No matter what style of Valentine's card you are looking for, there's something to fit your needs.

I like this one from TheCandiedThread. Not sure what it is, it just appeals to me :-)

Valentines Day Greeting Card by TheCandiedThread

I love this sweet little vintage Valentine's card for kids, from kidsonly. Perhaps it's because I'm a tea lover :-)

Vintage Valentine's Day Card for Kids by kidsonly

In addition to thousands of cards, there are also other Valentine's themed items on Zazzle, such as this cute "Cardinals in Love" mug.

Cardinals in Love Mug by pasaiidesignstudio

This Love postage stamp from ViolettoDesigns will add a touch of elegance to your correspondence.

Love Postage by ViolettoDesigns
Create your own postage stamps at zazzle.com.

I could go on, there are so many wonderful cards and other items. But now it's your turn.

If you're a designer on Zazzle, you are invited to add a link to your Valentine's Day-themed designs in the Linky Tool below.

Use Option 1 in the Link Widget on the page of the Zazzle product/design you'd like to add. It will show up below as a small thumbnail and when clicked on, will link directly to your product.