I cry when I see an episode of Secret Millionaire. Maybe you do, too.  Something about selfless generosity for worthy causes is inspiring and beautiful. That is why I’m so excited to write about something that happened this past week!

Jesse Hayes, Business Owner!

Meet Jesse. For the past year, my sister Shannon has seen him on the corner of the street near her office at Vanderbilt, and she’s built a friendship with him.  He’s kind and polite, well-spoken, and always has a smile for her.  Apparently, he used to work for Vanderbilt, and then again as a phlebotomist for the Red Cross. He ultimately wants to be a missionary. We don’t know why he has been out of work for some time, but we are sure it’s not for lack of desire! He currently sells copies of The Contributor for a small profit. The Contributor is a local newspaper written by homeless or formerly homeless people.

Jesse is out EVERY morning, rain, sleet, snow or hail.  During the crazy storms we had this past month, my sister asked if he could take a day off because it was lightening and there were tornado sirens blaring.  He said, “I will as soon as I earn $18 to rent my room tonight.”  (He and a friend rent a room in a small home in East Nashville as often as they can afford it).  Shannon, feeling compassion for him, pulled out a $20 and told him to have a great day. He was floored by her generosity and care for him, and it turns out, he would have had a really rough night if he hadn’t had shelter.

Last Thursday, she had a lengthier conversation with Jesse, and he mentioned that he’s trying to save money to buy a lawn mower so that he can start mowing yards in his neighborhood. Knowing it would take him a long time to save enough, she offered to buy him one if he would line up a few yards first.  Again, he was dumbfounded. Why would she be so kind to him? I teared up as she told me this story, and I, too, felt compelled to do something to help him.

I thought a business card would give him some credibility, so I designed one for him last weekend. They are in print, and he’ll have 100 of them to hand out soon!

Lawn Care for Life Change

By Monday, Jesse had lined up 4 yards and possibly 2 more.  He simply went door to door and asked what the homeowners were currently paying, and he said he’d do it for $10 less.  Brilliant!  Shannon went with him to pick out a mower on Tuesday, along with a gas can and 2 gallons of gas to get started. That day, when she showed him the card design from her phone, he beamed and said, “Wow, I’m a business owner!”

Now, I know that these things can go any number of ways, but Shannon and I both feel like he’s going to use these gifts as a head-start to becoming independent. I am honored to have had a small part in it, and to have a compassionate sister and parents who are considering buying him a weed eater as well.

Perhaps, in reading this, you’ll be inspired to look for someone who might need a little hand. As my sweet granddaddy used to say, “You can’t outgive God.”

Have a similar story? I’d love to hear about it!  Comment below and make my day.

Also, if you need lawn care in East Nashville, you know who to call. Click here to see a map of the area where Jesse stays, and spread the word!

Three products for lovely ladies caught my eye in 2009. I couldn’t keep them to myself! Enjoy, and please share your own!

Hip-T’s – $15.95+

Layering is in (and has been for awhile). But sometimes, you don’t want the bulk and extra straps from a tank top just to have some fun fabric peeking out under your top shirt. Or, you might have some low-rise jeans or the dreaded “muffin top” issue to address. The solution? Hip-T’s! They are stretchy little bottoms of shirts that hug your hips and make any outfit look better. The makers provide a slew of fabric options, including solids, funky patterns, and ones edged with lace.

Tip: Buy a couple of staples, and at least one with a little fun!

BagMate – $29.95

Question: How do you lose a set of keys, your favorite lipstick, or that receipt you simply must have today?  Answer: put it in a typical woman’s purse!  You know it’s true, and to add insult to injury, how ’bout that anger management class you’ll need to sign up for after several attempts to find something in the “abyss?”  Ever just given up and dumped the entire contents of your bag out onto the floor in a moment of frustration while your husband or boyfriend (who has his neatly organized perfect little wallet, no doubt) is laughing hysterically at you?  Well, those days are over.

I highly recommend the Bag Mate, which allows you to neatly store all of your purse staples for easy retrieval.  Your phone, lipstick, pens, sunglasses, keys, business cards, and loose change can all be easily found, because they are always in the same place!  A huge perk for me is that when you want to switch purses, you just move your Bag Mate to your next purse. Easy cheesy.  It also has retractable handles, so you can use it on its own.  It comes in a variety of colors.  Check it out here.

While I was searching for the perfect purse organizers, I found several that were unique in their own way, but not perfect for my needs. They are my runners up, ad you may prefer one of them!

• The Purseket
• The Pouchee
• The Purse Pleaser
• The Purse Bright Organizer

Go Girl – $9.99

Now some of you will begin reading this and will think I’m crazy or that you’d never use a product like this. I am completely understanding and okay with that.  But, for the rest of us who find going to certain public bathrooms an exercise of our hovering abilities, avoidance tactics, or sheer ability to hold it in until we find a tidier option, this product is for you!

Go Girl allows us ladies to pee standing up.  There, I said it. Why should men be the only ones who can?

I discovered Go Girl from a product review from real women on a popular morning show. I had a camping trip coming up, so I immediately bought a couple.  It’s a hot pink, perfectly shaped funnel that allows you to discreetly relieve yourself in the woods (no one will suspect a thing), avoid dirty convenient store bathrooms, or assist you in keeping your sanity on a mission trip to a developing country. Simply use it, rinse it out, and put it back in its nifty storage container.  Find out more here.

Have you found a new product that has made your life easier or better? Leave a comment and let us know!

There are a lot of inventive, genius products and services out there, and I enjoyed my fair share of them in 2009! I want to share them with you.

Mint.com – Free

I’ve always been really good at keeping up with where my money goes. It started with Excel spreadsheets and watching bank statements closely. At the end of each month, I’d meticulously categorize spending in areas like food, gas, business expenses, mortgage, etc. Mint.com has simplified this month-end process. Now? I simply log in and look at pie charts and already categorized spending and take it all in. It’s beautiful! You can create your own categories or use existing ones. Compare your spending to national averages, track bank transfers, payments, and basically stay on budget! Add all of your accounts to monitor them on one site: bank accounts, mortgage loans, car loans, mutual funds, other stocks, and credit cards if you use them. I’m still amazed that this service 100% secure and free!

Practical application: Fantastic for helping you start a realistic budget without a lot of fuss. Just track your spending for a couple of months and see the areas that could be improved.

iPhone – $99+

When these first came out, I thought, “That’s ridiculous. I’m not paying more than $400 for a phone! I was using a Blackberry and it seemed to do everything I needed. Fast forward a couple of years. iPhones are now really affordable (especially refurbished), and my monthly plan is actually less than it was on my Blackberry because GPS capabilities are built in and free. I had been paying $10/month for Blackberry’s GPS service. So, now I have access to the world at my fingertips. Not only do I get style points (which are important for an artist), but the iPhone really increases my productivity. I have apps that allow me to update my clients’ WordPress sites on the fly, check the weather, measure things, track finances, listen to my favorite music, show off my portable portfolio, read the Bible, supply white noise while on vacaction, and even help me learn chords on the piano. There’s simply no substitute (yet)

Favorite apps: WordPress, TweetDeck, Facebook, Pandora, YouTube, Mint.com

1 Password – $39.95

If you’ve been on the net for any period of time, you’re well aware that everything requires a login and password. And, unless you’re way smarter and more organized than the general population, you’ve forgotten said logins and passwords for a website. Chances are, you’ve nearly pulled your hair out trying to guess the right one, sometimes unsuccessfully. That’s where 1Password comes in. This is another of those applications that my husband couldn’t convince me was worth it. He finally just bought it for me and installed it and I love it more every day. It securely stores all of your logins and passwords for all of your sites and accounts. There is virtually no setup. Currently, it is only available for the Mac.

Unexpected perks?

• The option to change your passwords to randomly generated, uber secure ones.
• Create wallet items like debit or credit cards that you can use to automatically fill in billing and shipping info on checkout pages.
• 1Password button is built right into your browser so you can visit and login to your favorite sites automatically.

iMac - $1100+

This was actually a gift from my husband! I will shamefully admit that before I went Mac, I was trying to keep up with my workload on a sad little 17″ *gasp* laptop PC. If you’re on the fence about switching to a Mac, please, let me push you over. Seriously, you won’t look back!

Worried about the differences? My photographer friend Chris Scott breaks them down for us here:

1. You’ll close windows on the opposite side of the screen.
2. Things will work.

Practical application: I have a 24″ iMac, and another 24″ monitor as well. I keep Firefox open on one monitor, and MacMail and my design programs in the other. I honestly don’t know how I got anything done without them.

BumpTop – Free

There are people out there who let their desktops become a dumping ground for any file they don’t want to commit to saving in a more logical place.  I am one of “those people,” and I was tired of feeling the weight of my guilt as the icons multiplied across my 24 inches of real estate, not to mention having a hard time finding anything!  Enter BumpTop.  I love this application.  It’s actually more of a functional backdrop.  It allows you to pile files by type (no need to make folders unless you just want to) and it can be fully customized to look like a room in your home!  See the screen shot of my personal Bump Top.  You can write yourself sticky notes, hang art on the walls, the sky is the limit. There’s so much functionality, but it’s more fun to play with it yourself or watch the video on their website.  Not on a Mac? There’s a BumpTop for Windows, too. Enjoy!

Wacom Tablet – $200+

In addition to the fine art aspect of my work, I’m also a graphic designer who loves using Illustrator. For those Adobe lovers out there, you know the power of the almighty pen tool, but wouldn’t it be nice sometimes to have a more freehand option to vector artwork? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to draw a line with varying pressure, but retain the crispness and edit ability of a line drawn with the pen tool? Enter Wacom. They’ve been the leaders in the tablet world for years now, but I’ve just jumped on the train. An illustrative logo that might have taken four hours now takes half of one. It brings a freshness to my work, and much more flexibility to what I’m able to offer my clients.

Purchase tip: I purchased the Wacom Intuos 4 Large tablet, which I love. However, if I were to do it over, I would choose the Medium, as there is plenty of space on it and it takes up less room on my desk or in my lap.

Inbox Zero – Free

Inbox Zero is a concept perfected and delivered by Merlin Mann. It’s basically a system for keeping your crazy inbox under control. (Anyone else have this problem?) I send 40-60 business related emails in a typical workday, and I receive that many or more. It can easily get out of hand! Inbox Zero is a system to keep you (and your inbox) sane and organized.

Backpack – Free

Backpack is one of many great applications from 37signals. Simply put, it’s a To-Do List on crack, and it streamlines communication and productivity. I keep a Monday-Saturday list set up and I put important deadlines and reminders into it. I get great satisfaction from marking things off of the lists! Nate and I have separate pages on the same account, so I can put things on his list (YES!) and vice versa. This feature came in very handy for planning our wedding. You can also make notes with important links, contact information, and even Word or Excel documents. These features make it great for office projects and the like.

*Practical Application: I go through my emails quickly in the morning. I put things that need my attention on the list wherever they belong so that tasks don’t get lost or overlooked.

Twitter – Free

If you haven’t heard about Twitter by now, you might be living under a rock. It’s okay if you call it Tweeter – that’s kind of cute, especially if you have kids in their thirties! Laugh at it, don’t embrace it, call it crazy, but don’t call it a waste of time. I did all of these things when I first heard about it (Who in the world cares what I’m doing at any given moment in time?), but my trusty husband convinced me to give it a try. My end-of-the-year figures say that 48% of my graphic design business came from connections that I made on Twitter! I won’t be specific, but this equated to tens of thousands of dollars for this lil’ artist, and gave me the highest income year I’ve had to date (and in a recession). This is not to mention the new friends and increased connection with my existing ones. Coupled with Facebook, Twitter has allowed me to both share my recent fine art and graphic work as well as connect to people who need my specific services. Now you know. Would you like to follow me?

Tip: Use a free service like TweetDeck or Seesmic to approach Twitter in a more organized and fun way.

What are your favorite products or services? I would love to hear about them!

Next post: My favorite products for ladies! Don’t miss it.

My Dad came into town for his birthday this past weekend, and we decided to visit The Carter House, a site of one of the most gruesome battles of the Civil War (The Battle of Franklin). Dad’s a history buff, and I came along to support I actually ended up enjoying it a lot, and I learned a couple of things about art that I never knew…

During the tour, our guide Jim pointed to a portrait of a little child. We all assumed that it was a little girl because of the white dress and bonnet that the child was wearing. However, it was common back then to dress little boys in girls’ clothing until the age of 4, sometimes even up to age 7. One way to tell if it was a girl or boy in a painting is to see if there is an animal depicted with the subject. If it was a dog, the child was a boy. If it was a pony or a sheep, the child was a girl!

Below is a great example of such a painting, though no animal is depicted.

Jim went on to tell us that back then, portrait artists would spend all of the cold months painting headless portraits of children and adults in elegant settings with fine clothing and props. Then, when it warmed, they went out and asked people if they wanted their portrait painted, and if they said yes, they would choose a body they liked and have just their heads painted into it. However, if they wanted their own bodies painted into the portrait rather than the generic ones, it would cost them quite a hefty amount more. This is where the saying, “It will cost you an arm and a leg” originated!

Now you know.

I just returned last weekend from a big art show that I participate in each year, the Holiday Mart in Jackson, TN.  An eight year old named Connor came through with his mom.  He was quite taken with the work that I had displayed, and he asked me lots of questions.  He reminded me of myself when I was little.  I was always enamored with artists that we ran across at fairs, amusement parks, and on vacations.

I asked Connor which piece of artwork he liked best (this is always a fun question to ask young art connoisseurs).  He said that it was “Eternal Song,” my painting of the old master playing the violin.  This is an unusual favorite for a kid, but it turns out that he’s a little mini-master himself!  He’s been playing for four years.  So we chatted about him and eventually he and his mom had to leave.  On a whim, I decided to give him one of my matted prints of “Eternal Song.”  He beamed and was so excited.  His mom was grateful.   Somehow  they tracked down my mailing address, and I received this tear-jerker of a note from my new little friend yesterday:

His mother appended to the letter, pretty much sealing the deal that I would need to re-apply my eye makeup.  Who knew that such a small gesture could mean so much?  I will now look for opportunities to make these “WOW” moments at future shows.  It was my favorite part of the weekend.  See the pastel drawing that Connor drew for the front of the card below: