"I would never buy a puzzle ..."

After nearly two years of selling in-person at craft markets, pop-ups, and various shows around the Seattle metro area, I can confidently say that there are two types of people: People with a sense of humor and people without a sense of humor. It's generally a fifty-fifty split.

My overriding goal as an artist and seller of my art is to have fun. I don't create art or images simply for the sake of creating an image I think will look good as a puzzle. Everything I create has a deeper meaning or story behind the image, especially my puzzles. The title is just that, a title. A title I chose because it makes sense, is clever, or makes me laugh. What I've found selling my Heart Farts and Dookie puzzles is that at least fifty percent of potential customers don't have so much as a spark of curiosity to read past the title. Instead, they judge the puzzle based solely on the title, normally muttering something about it being "inappropriate" or "disgusting" without ever being curious enough to look at the artwork. Never mind the disapproving looks I get from some walk-by traffic nearly every day I sell.

Life is heavy enough without getting your undies in a bunch over a synonym.

Puzzles should be fun, art should be fun, and if a word causes you offense, there are plenty of boring puzzles out there that are created for people who demand nothing from their art other than DayGlo pretty colors.

Fortunately, the universe always provides balance and I get a kick hearing passerby exclaim "farts!" or "dookie!" from twenty feet away followed by laughter. The people who truly make sharing my art worthwhile are the few who actually stop at my booth long enough to pick up a box, look at the art, read the story, and giggle. I absolutely love these moments because I put my heart and soul into my work and I appreciate when people get it.