Artful Living: Blog Expansion Complete

Ladies and gentlemen, please put your seats in an upright position and fasten your seatbelts. Now take a look in the right sidebar at the new column heading titled "Artful Living" conveniently placed at the top. Notice there are five buttons below it: Books, Supplies, Handmade, Projects, Websites? And then a sixth heading named "Sponsors"?

I am excited to announce that I am expanding the blog. I will no longer just be doing art/craft book reviews. I will also be bringing you reviews of art supplies and handmade goods from smaller companies and indie artists. I will also be sharing more handmade projects from myself and guest artists. Under the websites tab you'll find articles about blogs and sites that I feel help foster a love of creativity and an artful life.

Each month will also bring a new set of sponsors. These sponsors are companies or shops whose products I am personally using and endorsing. At the beginning of the month I will run a feature about each of them and then you will find their link under the sponsor button for the rest of the month.

With all of my product reviews (including my sponsors), these are products that I use and love. I do not accept payment for my reviews or sponsor spaces. Companies do send me product to review and/or in exchange for sponsor space but this doesn't affect what I write. I am very particular about the companies that I accept submissions from and that I send queries to so that I offer only the very best to my readers.

For more information on my disclosure policy, see here.

If you are interested in being featured for any of the following:

a guest artist/project article
artist/handmade review
book/art supply review
website/blog review
sponsor space(which includes a review)

please contact me for a spec sheet at primseydolls @ yahoo.com


I hope you'll join me in this new direction.

Handmade Holidays: The Handmade Gift Guide Feature

Long before we started tightening our belts because of the economy handmade started making a huge resurgence. Not only do most people love receiving a gift with time and thought invested in it, it is incredibly rewarding to give a gift that isn’t found at the local discount chain store. But what if you don’t have the time or the particular skill required? Support indie artists.

We all know about Etsy. But did you know that there are several other handmade markets available online? Fortunately, someone has done the work of gathering those links together as well as featuring many of the best artists daily.

Anne Hayman, or Enna, is the brains behind The Handmade Gift Guide. The Handmade Gift Guide bills itself as “THE place to go online to find gifts for every occasion. A mix of featured artist's shops, places to buy and sell handmade gifts.”

The beauty of the internet is that we can meet people virtually that we would not be able to otherwise. Recently I had the pleasure of sitting down with Enna in just this way. I had my coffee and emailed her questions. She had her tea and answered them. We discovered we share a love of handmade and of talking. ;)

Is this the first year for the guide?
Yep. I just started in October. I am putting together a new page for The Guide called On Sale. It will list all of the sales and special events I find for handmade gifts. I also have a Facebook page where I ask people to post their sales and special events.

Are you the only one who runs the guide?
Yep, it's mostly just me, my daughter does help me find cool stuff, she is 13, and has great taste...

How do you determine who is featured?
I window shop a lot online, and just ask artists if I can feature them. I also have people request to be featured. I try to feature everyone who asks. I do get a lot of requests to be featured from jewelry makers, so I have to space them out a little. I try to feature as many of my twitter followers and FB fans as possible. They are amazing! I try to look at everyone's shop who follows/fans me.

Do you feature Etsy and non-Etsy alike?
Yes, I feature shops from all over the internet. I have had a lot of requests from people who have Etsy shops, but I try to include shops from other venues like 1000 Markets, Artfire, DaWanda, etc...

Do you have a shop yourself?
Yes, I have a few... I make Aromatherapy and Herbal Wellness Products, Spiritual Art, Healing Gemstone Jewelry, and I sew clothes and toys as well. I even make a few purses with my mom :)

http://rheedunn.etsy.com
http://lotusflowerherbals.etsy.com
http://lotusflowerherbals.artfire.com

How close to Christmas will it run?
It will be an ongoing thing. I try to post daily.

Right up to the day if they offer overnight shipping maybe?
I will do a last minute shopping post of a few shops that are offering overnight shipping for those procrastinators out there!

Or will you stop at some point just to relax and enjoy the holidays with your own family?
I spend a couple nights a week up late after my family goes to bed writing features for the week. That way I am not always on my computer during the day. I work a lot while my kids are at school and baby is napping.

Are there any other handmade markets that you especially recommend?
I love what Tim Adam is doing for Etsy, his HMC app is super amazing. Artfire is really great too. Supermarket is a very cool spot as well. I really like all the ones in my link list. They all have their finer points. :)

Anything else you'd like to share?
I am very grateful for all the help and support I have received from the handmade community. They have helped me so much in the past month. I hope to grow The Guide into THE place to go to find handmade gifts for loved ones. I really believe in the handmade movement, and want to support it fully.

I enjoy getting to know each artist/crafter that I feature. I think people enjoy buying from people they know something about. I really love the 'Causes of the Month' feature... there are some very loving and caring people out there, and I want them to be recognized for their efforts to make this world a better place to live.

I also have another blog, http://lotusflowerherbals.com for my aromatherapy/herbal wellness business. I am a busy girl. I detest boredom. I want to do it ALL :) {Editors Note: Sounds like a girl after my own heart!}
You can find me here:
Twitter
http://twitter.com/hndmdegiftguide

Facebook
http://facebook.com/thehandmadegiftguide
http://facebook.com/ItsOn Sale
and of course on The Guide
http://thehandmadegiftguide.com

*Artists/crafters can find out how to be featured here: How To Be Featured


Thank you for so graciously answering all my questions, Enna! For everyone visiting The Guide, be sure to check out the plethora of links in the sidebar. Not only has Enna gathered her November Etsy Favorites (soon to be December!), but there are also tons of other handmade market listings. And if you still haven't had your fill, check out the archives. Don't forget to grab a button for your own blog to share the love. :)

Rolling with the punches

Unfortunately the things I'm eager to share with you are going to have stay under wraps just a little bit longer. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we're headed to the in-laws for the Thanksgiving holiday tonight instead of Tuesday night.

Have a wonderful holiday and I'll meet you back here next week!

The Sewing Bible Book Review by Liesl Gibson of Disdressed

Here is an excellent book review written by Liesl Gibson for The Sewing Bible by Ruth Singer. If Liesl's name sounds familiar, it should. She's the author of the popular blog Disdressed as well as the creator of Oliver + S, a beautiful line of patterns for children's clothing. So when she recommends a sewing book, people tend to sit up and take notice.

She does a good job of explaining what makes this book different from every other how-to-sew book out there. Liesl also shows several photos from the book. That's one of my biggest "make it or break it" things about a book review. If a book review shows just the cover image and a small paragraph/blurb, I'm not interested. I can get better than that at Amazon. I want a reviewer to put some thought into it. And Liesl does this.

I'm recommending this book to my sister and her husband who are both beginning sewists and can always use a good reference book. And I'm doing it based on Liesl's review.

Teaser

I'm working on a blog revamp. Not so much a new look, although there will be some new buttons over in the sidebar. Up to now I have only covered book reviews. I'm very pleased to be expanding into other areas. Oh, we won't leave my beloved books behind. That would be like asking me to stop breathing. I'll just be adding ever so much more. Beginning Monday.

What does the picture above have to do with it? Nothing.

Enchanted Adornments Book Review on Craft Critique

Doesn't the tray of treasures below look absolutely divine? See what master storyteller and jewelry artist Cynthia Thornton of Green Girl Studios and Green Girl blog can do with them in her first book, Enchanted Adornments. I don't want to give anything away here but I will say that I almost guarantee you'll fall in love.

Handmade Holiday Quilting Arts Free E-book

This season I'll be sharing ideas, links, and goods to help you enjoy a Handmade Holiday. Maya Angelou said:

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

It's also likely they will not remember what you bought, but they will remember that you took the time to make something for them whether it's a gift, an ornament for their tree, or a loaf of banana bread.


The first link I want to share just arrived in my inbox this morning. It's a free e-ebook from Quilting Arts with 5 small quilting projects. The really great thing about these designs is that they use fabric scraps. We all have those little bits of favorite fabrics that we save "just because" but they aren't really big enough for anything much.



There are 5 projects that have all manner of adaptability potential for Christmas. There's the colored pencil roll that has been so popular as a children's gift. The journals are an obvious one and can be customized to the individual. Imagine the luggage tags as gift tags (perhaps reusable?) instead. The mini wallet for a traveller or even a teacher might benefit from one. And of course the Little Treasures box... with a gift box so beautiful how do you put anything in it that even compares?

To receive the e-book you'll need to sign up at the Quilting Arts website. This will also get you in the door for their forums, newsletter, and more freebies. I've found that I truly look forward to their emails. It's a little bit of eyecandy in my inbox.

Latest Kids Art Class

Standing Tall

Chillaxin'

These are the papermache birds that the kids painted in the latest kids art class. (Somebody's bluebird in the back was heavily influenced by Karen Michel. ;) )I premade them before class from papermache pulp made from newspaper endrolls. Our class is only an hour and a half and I wanted them to be able to be able to paint in this class. After painting the birds, they received a Gladware tub of wet papermache to mold with and take home. This way they got the best of both in one day! I also sent home a printed sheet about paper mache.

Paper Mache

There are two basic methods of paper mache. The first is dipping strips of paper in glue/liquid paste and laying them across a form. This is how piñatas are made. The second is to make a paper mache pulp. This is the method we’re using.

Newspaper
Water
Salt
White glue

Tear the newspaper into small pieces and put them in a large bowl or bucket. Add enough hot water to completely cover the newspaper. Let soak overnight or for several hours.

After your newspaper has soaked, it's time to really start smushing it up. Tear it up, squash it, squeeze it. Try to get as many lumps out as possible. If necessary, add a bit more water and let it soak a little more. You want to consistency of oatmeal.

Once you have it as smooth as possible, add a few tablespoons of salt to help retard mold. Mix it again with your hands. Once mixed thoroughly, squeeze out any excess water and add a few tablespoons of glue. Now you are ready to use your paper mache pulp.

Store your pulp in an air tight ziploc or tub in the refrigerator for several days to a week.

I also like to finish my projects with a thin layer of tissue paper and white glue on the outside for a smoother appearance.

To dry your project leave in a warm dry area for several days or until it feels light and is not moist at all. You can also bake it at about 300 for an hour or so depending on the thickness. Be sure to watch it carefully. I keep a toaster oven in my art room just for clay and paper mache projects. Works beautifully for this!

You can buy also buy dry paper mache pulp at a craft store. I try to emphasize recycling in crafting as much as possible, however, so I suggest the following sources:

- Recycling your newspapers. The only drawback to this is the ink makes it a bit sludgy.

- End rolls from the newspaper office – The local news office charges $2-3 for these and they also make excellent drawing paper.

- Some shipping companies pack with sheets of thin paper that is just like newsprint paper.

Next week we're doing ATCs. They're already pumped about them! :)