~~Come Fly With Me~~

I have never entered my items into Mixed Media Monday's Challenge, but when I discovered that this weeks theme was anything with wings, I knew it was one I had to try. Mixed Media Monday is a group of Mixed Media artists who take turns hosting challenges, and display their work at this site... http://www.mixedmediamonday.wordpress.com/ so please take a trip over there and see what everyone has accomplished.

This weeks theme was flying, and includes anything with wings so I decided my favorite bird would be encorporated into this vintage looking piece. The collage is gathered on a 5 x 5 stretched canvas, which was "rusted" using a real rusting agent. The watchful crow is placed on a vintage map which has been distressed and aged. The words "As the Crow Flies" is laid out in various fonts. A rusted up tag holds the dictionary meaning for the word "flying". I hope this stands up to the talented artists who will also be included in this challenge! Thanks for looking.

New Melange Team Member Spotlight

I have gotten to know so many outstanding artists and friends at our new team, and I would like to feature them one by one here at my blog. Please look for more wonderfully talented artists in months to come. The first I would like to spotlight is Kathy of http://www.vintagesnapsandscrap.etsy.com/ . Kathy has been a wonderful person to get to know, always helpful, always willing to lend a hand or an ear. She has been so easy for me to get to know and I thank her for all of her inspirations and words of advice through the months since I have met her. Here is what Kathy and I talked about for this "interview":

When did you first start making art to sell on Etsy? Sept. 2007

What has been your biggest surprise with selling and working on Etsy, either good or bad? How addicted I would get! How much time is spent on Etsy. How much time I spend in the forums…lol.

What has been the most rewarding thing you have accomplished, with your art work? (compliments, goals achieved, creations, anything goes!) Rewarding, easily my customers. I have received such heart felt notes and convos, it always touches me so much. My hope in creating a piece is that it will touch someone, or make them smile, just speak to them in some way…and when people tell me that is has, it is so rewarding.

What art technique have you learned in your endeavors, and are most proud of? I recently took an art journaling class online, thanks Pam. And I love the fact that I am using those techniques in my collage work. I felt I was getting a bit set in my ways in my style and I am so glad I decided to incorporate new techniques.

What techniques would you like to learn more about in the future? I would love to learn more about fabric collage, I bought the sewing machine and so far I have only played… I want to use more fabric in collage.

What are your strengths / weaknesses? Strengths- treating my customers well, getting packages out quickly, very organized in doing that, the feedback, all of it. Weakness- Promoting my work. I would love to submit my art more often and try to get my art in local shops/galleries. This is very hard for me to do!

What would you like to see accomplished with the new Melange team? This team was born from a forum thread of mixed media artists. We have had this amazing group for so long, and have new people coming in which is great. It is never negative; we all get along so well and truly enjoy each other. I KNOW this team will be just like that thread. I want Melange to be a strong, positive team.

Please visit Kathy's Etsy shop at http://www.vintagesnapsandscrap.etsy.com/ and also be sure to search "Melange Team" at Etsy for many more talented Mixed media and collage artists!

NEW ETSY TEAM

I have had the privilege of meeting some wonderful and talented artists who have enspired me, helped me, and befriended me at Etsy and we have joined up to make a team we call "Melange". It is a group of mixed media and collage artists all promoting each others work and helping each other along the way. I urge you to take a look at their shops at Etsy. The list of shops is to your right, here at my blog, under Artists I admire. or please search under "melange team" at Etsy to find some of their extraordinary work. Go Melange!

Mind Wide Open Challenge

My first ever Mind Wide Open challenge ... I have always admired the work that people put in to participate in the challenges over at Mind Wide Open ( http://www.mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/ ) and this month I decided to join in the fun! it will be great seeing what everyone has created either similar to, or unlike my own project. This mixed media collage was made on an 8x8 stretched canvas, 1 1/2 inches deep. Layers of gesso, paints , a ripped and torn image, stained muslin and a vintage skeleton key, and wire encorporated with quotes about JOURNEY complete this collage.