Category: movies

20 Original Winter/Holiday Themed Art Journal Ideas

Post author By Jess Ross Creative
Post date December 9, 2014
No Comments on 20 Original Winter/Holiday Themed Art Journal Ideas

I put together a little Holiday Themed Art Journal Idea List, some of the ideas are a bit simple but fun.

I always find myself journaling and sketching a lot over the Christmas and New Years breaks. I think it’s my way of reflecting on everything that happened over the past year as well as gearing up for the new year ahead (also because I usually like to start the new new calendar year off with a fresh journal so I try to fill up the remaining pages in the old one). Also, I am one of those people who religiously comes up with New Years Resolutions every year…The older I get, the more it’s becoming a bucket list and a reminder for me that life is moving fast. I am a big list person too…I just feel better about my lack of organizational skills when I can cross off even the most mundane tasks.

I also rounded up some of my favorite journal pages from this year….they are nothing like some of the pages I see of other artists on pinterest or tumblr…but they make me happy 🙂 Some of them can fit as examples for the Winter themed list so Ill note them if they do…

e e cummings mixed media art journal collage page

One of my favorite things to do is write down inspiring quotes, passages, poems r song lyrics I come across and then create some sort of art around it.

ink and mixed media watercolor shape collage with inspiring quote — ink and mixed media watercolor shape collage with quote

floral watercolor artist sketchbook page

art body art books classics ink inspiration life literature movies perks of being a wallflower pinterest reading tattoos

i swear we were infinite.

Post author By Jess Ross Creative
Post date January 29, 2013
No Comments on i swear we were infinite.

For as long as I can remember, I have been a huge book nerd. I think partly because I’ve always had trouble sleeping, even as a kid, and without a T.V. in my bedroom, I lost myself in books. Also, I have an extremely short attention span and I liked that I could read a few pages, put it down when I got distracted and pick it right back up. The Boxcar Children, The Babysitters’ Club, Little House on the Prairie…I read through all of them eventually.
As I have gotten older books have continued to play an important role in my life. I’ve always had trouble “switching off” and “winding down” at the end of the day. I just can’t turn my brain off, thinking about everything I need to do, should have done, SHOULDN’T have done…ect. and reading before bed has been the most effective way for me to de-stress.
I’ll admit it, in college, I was a huge book snob. I felt that anything I read had to be a classic, a prize winner and challenging. While I read some of my favorite books during this time including: The Brothers Karamazov by Dosteovesky, One Hundred Years of Solitude by Marquez and Anna Karenina by Tolstoy…

I was halfway through Swann’s Way by Proust (and had almost no clue what was happening in the book) that I started to realize that I no longer was enjoying reading!

So, it was at this point that I decided..gosh darnit! I was going to read whatever I wanted and never looked back! Anyways, that was bit of a rant but there is a reason behind it I swear…about 6 months ago I picked up a book entitled Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. I was heading to NYC for a quick getaway and wanted a book that I could carry in my bag….I admit I picked it up because it was a thin book and I liked the bright cover (okay, not the best reasons for picking a book but sadly I pick books based on their covers more often than I should). Needless to say, I started reading it on the plane and couldn’t put it down. I finished it that night in the hotel. I don’t like trying to summarize or explain what it’s about because I always do a lousy job and if I tried then you might not want to read it. So, I will refrain, except to say “YOU SHOULD READ IT NOW!”

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Turtleback Scho Edition) by Chbosky, (Google Affiliate Ad)

For Christmas, I bought 6 copies of Perks of Being a Wallflower and gave it out to close friends and families. Some of these recipients might be classified still as “book snobs” (Sorry guys if you’re reading this but it’s true). I asked one friend if he had started reading it and he said he tried but writing style was too simple and thus, he said, he didn’t think the author was a very good writer. The book is written from the perspective of a freshman in high school named Charlie and he has a unique and fresh perspective on the world around him that is profoundly simple. Please, do yourself (And me) a favor and read this book. And then you can email me and we can talk about how awesome it was.

Anyways, it didn’t take me long to find that I wasn’t the only one who was so moved by the book. I find lots of lovely body art and artwork inspired by the book and I am including them here:

http://literarytattoos.livejournal.com/990589.html

http://tanyaknguyen88.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/perks-of-being-a-wallflower-charlie.jpg

http://thisisrexxie23.tumblr.com/

80's 90's art artist trading cards bill murray design E.T. Fraggle Rock Ghostbusters ink milo and otis movies original paint pop culture T.V. watercolors

you are the…

a new idea I had the other night when I was watching What About Bob…(my favorite movie) and thinking of how I feel like sometimes I am Bob Wiley and my husband is Dr. Leo Marvin.

and it just kept going from there….

you are the milo to my otis.

you are the fraggle to my rock.

you are the elliott to my e.t.
(can you tell I grew up in the late 80’s/early 90s?)

bill murray childhood christian bale disney favorite home alone hook little mermaid milo and otis movies newsies princess bride sleeping beauty what about bob

the 10 most beloved films of my childhood.

Post author By Jess Ross Creative
Post date October 1, 2010
No Comments on the 10 most beloved films of my childhood.

We all have those movies that shaped our childhoods. As a kid, you never care whether or not your favorite film was critically acclaimed or a box office hit, but you loved it no matter how cheesy or ridiculous it was. Here are mine:

10) The Princess Bride. (1987).

Wesley and Princess Buttercup. A rhyming Andre the Giant. Fred Savage. A love story of epically comical proportions.

Anybody want a peanut?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DP5-qJSzDUg&feature=related

9) Hook. (1991)

Robin Williams in green tights and Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook. This movie version of the Peter Pan focuses on the “Grown up” Peter Pan. Peter has a family and a successful job and has forgotten the life he lived in Neverland until he pays a visit to his childhood home where Captain Hook seeks his revenge on Peter by kidnapping his children and forcing Peter to revisit Neverland and to remember the life he once lived. Along the way, Peter realizes how far he has come from the free-spirited Peter Pan he once was and must put his own children first before they forget him forever.

8) Fried Green Tomatoes. (1991)

A sad and depressingly beautiful movie, that despite my obvious taste for movies with lots of overacting, cartoon characters, and beautiful princesses as a child, I somehow managed to fall in love with.

7) The Never Ending Story. (1984)

A boy who gets picked on, escapes his tormenters by hiding in an attic and reading a magical book alone on a rainy night find himself drawn into the storyline. The hero gets to save the princess, while riding acorss the sky on a friendly luckdragon named Falkor, nonetheless. What kid doesn’t wish that this would happen to them? I think this movie inspired an entire generation of children to read. The story is amazing and the graphics are STILL better than alot of movies being made today.

6) Sleeping Beauty. (1959).

Does anyone else look back at some of the old classic Disney movies and notice how dark, depressing, and haunting some of them are? I mean isn’t the witch Maleficent just about the scariest villain? Her voice and laugh still gives me goosebumps. And what was with her creepy minions and that annoying pet crow; not to mention that long rod she bang on the ground all the time.

Kids these days have it easy…it’s all sparkly vampires and wizards.

But really, I think this might have been the first animated Disney movie I ever saw and definetely cemented that “prince charming” complex I suffered as a result.

I loved the three fairy godmothers: Flora, Fauna, and (especially) the chubby troublemaker, Merryweather.

(seriously how cute is she with those chubby cheeks?)

My favorite scene in the movie is when the three of them are trying to prepare a surprise 16th birthday party for Princess Aurora without the help of magic. Unsupsringly, a kerfuffle insues. Meanwhile, Princess Aurora is in the forest singing and dancing with the forest animals. Classic!

5) The Adventures of Milo and Otis. (1989).

Growing up, I had a VHS tape with Milo and Otis and Sleeping Beauty on it. I literally wore that tape out. I would watch one after the other over and over (great parenting mom and dad) and I was utterly distraught when the tape died. Thinking back on it now, it never occurred to me to ask for a new copy of my two “Cant live without” movies from my parents…but maybe by then I had moved on to greener and more musical pastures (see movie below) or maybe my parents were sick of me hogging the t.v.

That kooky cat and silly pup and there whirlwind adventures were mesmerizing to me. Plus, I remember thinking that a talking cat and dog was the most hilarious thing ever.

FYI: Recently, I was reading an article on Milo and Otis and found out that the movie was orginally japanese and the movie was re-edited with English Speaking dialog.

– also the same article said there were some serious concerns regarding the safety of the animals in the movie and that several animals died during its making. Thankfully, I only just became aware of this recently or I would have been traumatized as a child and the movie would have made a much different list. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Milo_and_Otis)

4) Little Mermaid. (1989)

It seems that alot of my favorite childhood movies involve dancing and singing. Little Mermaid is no exception. A sassy, independent, red- headed mermaid dreams of being human and falls in love with the handsome Prince Eric. With the help of a flustered and anxious fish and a possibly gay lobster with a French (or Caribbean) accent try to keep Ariel out of trouble. Also noteworthy cameo appearances by: a mentally ill seagull with hoarding tendencies, an overweight French cook with an anger problem and fat evil half octopus, half human villain.

3) What About Bob. (1991).

Still one of my favorite movies today, What About Bob is one of those rare movies from my childhood that I love more each time I watch it. Probably the only movie to make the cross over onto my “top ten movies of all time” list, What ABout Bob introduced me to Bill Murray and since then I have never looked back. (Okay, except maybe when he was the voice of Garfield a couple years ago or when he did Osmosis Jones).

What About Bob taught me some important life lessons:

– that having mental illness and phobias was cool.

– that stalking is socially acceptable.

– that keeping your pet fish in a jar around your neck is an excellent way to travel with beloved pets.

– that trying to communicate to your children with scary sock puppets that are creepy versions of yourself is not cool.

p.s. Someone please tell me where I can get that “Don’t Hassle Me, I’m a Local” t-shirt?!! (wait nevermind, just found it…here for $21.95 http://www.founditemclothing.com/t-shirts/dont-hassle-me-shirt.html …a little pricey, but I’m thinking this may make a good halloween costume)

Here is a clip of one of the many hilarious scenes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrbY4hsNh64

2) Home Alone. (1990)

I never quite got over my crush on Macaulay Kulkin thanks to Home Alone. Today, whenever I see a picture of him, my heart beats a little faster and I spontaneously whisper “I love you Kevin.” I think enough time has past now that I can admit to the fact that I wrote him several fan letters and my dad got me a signed picture of Macaulay for Christmas one year.

But seriously, ever child’s dream. Being forgotten on a family vacation and having free roam of spacious house, free to do what ever you want, eat ice cream until you feel sick, watch rated R movies and sleeping in late. That is, until two menacing (but thankfully idiotic) burglars terrorize the neighborhood and Kevin somehow manages to make some of the most ingenious and painful traps that left audiences grimacing.

1) Newsies. (1992).

My love for Newsies bordered (okay still borders) on obsession. Featuring a young Christian Bale as a homeless streetwise but tenderhearted tough kid and his gang of fellow whippersnappers, selling “paps” on the streets of New York. Accompanied by some of the best choregraphed dancing sequences and heart wrenching songs.

Ask any girl born between approximately 1981 and 1992 if they have seen Newsies. The answer will most likely be “yes” and “YES.” And if it happens to be me you ask…be prepared for a ten minute choreographed rendition of the movie complete with ACCURATE lyrics and horrible leg kicks.

(And yes I still know all the words to this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Av77_epf3l4)