You are Invited.....

My Etsy team, Inspiration Avenue, is having a blog party to celebrate our 500+ followers and you are invited!!!

  Every few days, we'll be announcing a new giveaway for challenge players to win- and mine is first of many- we'll be announcing several giveaways each week!!!

Because our team is all about inspiration and being creative, I thought what better prize than a blank journal!

So I'm offering this Moleskine journal that I altered with collaged prints, ribbons and torn papers.....

 It's SO easy to enter for this and other giveaways!

Just grab our blog party badge and display it on your blog.

with this link;

http://inspiration-avenue-team.blogspot.com/p/on-wings-of-inspiration-blog-party.html

and

Enter the "On Wings of Inspiration" challenge posted on 

October 16th

All you have to do to enter the challenge is create a piece of artwork , blog about it and leave us a comment on our Challenge post with a link to your creation- easy peasy!

We would love to see  how Inspiration Avenue has inspired you these past years and months and how you can inspire us.  You have free reign of your imagination and creativity - let those wings soar!

Celebrating the Artists Who Have Inspired me as a Blogger......Felicia Kramer

Click HERE to Enter My Bloggiversary Giveaway!

Liquid Blue

Good morning, it's me again!  The blog I'm featuring today is "Another Bright Idea" by Felicia Kramer.  When I was first blogging I found Felicia through my Etsy team, VAST and Felicia was so generous in answering questions for me about improving my Etsy shop and about blogging!.  Felicia blogs tirelessly incorporating artist interviews and games of charades into her repertoire.  In fact, she and I did a double giveaway back in December, where we interviewed each other.  You can read my interview of her HERE.
Felicia does some amazing work with photography and digital collage among other things.  She often features flowers in her work, and you know how I feel about that!

Spidertime

Falling Leaves

Comes the Dawn

So, be sure to check Felicia and her fun blog out- and, I just want to thanks Felicia for the regular inspiration she's given me- I've really enjoyed getting to know her over the past year!

Cheers,

Stephanie



What's UP in the Studio- Decisions, decisions......

So I have really cranked up production around here!  My friend and I were waiting on tenterhooks to see if we'd been accepted into a new (to us) artist's market and while I should have been producing as if we had been, procrastination took center stage around here!  So now, we HAVE been accepted and I'm busting it to get some new work ready for next weekend!

I think I mentioned a few posts back, that I was having artist's block......one of the ways I know of curing that is to keep painting no matter what- but WHAT to paint?  I usually turn to my favorite artists for inspiration and work from there.  When I was looking for fan references I stumbled across a Klimt piece that I'd never seen before and was enchanted.  So, here is my new painting in progress called "Klimtish-ness" 

I'm really hoping to be done with this by Friday- it's really big for me at 10" x 20" actually too big for my desk I've been having to paint with it in my lap!  But I am having fun with it and know what my next paintings will be, so hopefully my artsy rut is gone :)

I've also been cranking out some blank journals which I'm loving- have no idea what to charge, I spent $6.00 on each and they've been taking about half an hour.  I was thinking around $22-22.....any suggestions would be great!  I want them to sell but don't want to cheat myself either! 

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Stephanie

Celebrating the Artists Who Have Inspired me as a Blogger......Elizabeth of Altered Book Lover

Instead of doing a Silent Sunday  post today, I'm featuring the artist who inspired me to start it in the first place; Elizabeth and her feline assisant, Bleubeard of Altered Book Lover.  Elizabeth is another astist I met through OWOH and I have been SO glad I did- she enrichens my life daily with her blogging.  She creates through the media of altered books, and on her blog, she very generously shares techniques, trials and errors and tutorials.  Nine times out of ten, the techniques are "new to me" ideas that I file away into my- I must try that someday list!  And I will, someday, in the meantime; I love living vicariously through Elizabeth's creativity and vision.

One siganture from Elizabeth's new visual art journal, "Oh Baby"

For me, one the best things about blogging is the oppurtunity to walk in another's shoes....I get so many ideas from seeing styles and techniques so very different than my own.  It's like a visual feast every time I visit my friends.  For example, I never would have thought to use rust as a vehicle for altering papers, and I LOVE rust!  Elizabeth did though AND shared how....

Elizabeth is also a VERY active member of WOYWW (What's on Your Worktable Wednesday) I don't know how she does it, but she manages to visit more than a hundred participants each week- I'd love to be part of this group, but I struggle to visit all of my own favorites regularly as it is! 
Elizabeth has also become a regular contributor to the weekly challenges at Inspiration Avenue...

Entry for "Simplicity" Challenge

And one last thing about Elizabeth, she has a daily featured blog link relevant to her daily posting, I can only imagine where she gets the energy to do this each day, but I'm really glad she does 'cause she finds a LOT of wonderful blogs I might not have stumbled across otherwise!  Go check Elizabeth out at Altered Book Lover- there is so much to see there!
Cheers,
Stephanie

Celebrating the Artists Who Have Inspired me as a Blogger......Cheryl Dolby of The Healing Woman

Click HERE to Enter My Bloggiversary Giveaway!

Today I'm featuring Cheryl Dolby and her blog, Healing Woman. I met Cheryl during One World, One Heart last January and I am SO glad that I did. The most wonderful thing about OWOH isn't the oppurtunity to win some beautiful prizes (tho' that's pretty nice too :)) but the incredible people that you meet along the way! Cheryl describes her blog as; "An evolving collection of eclectic musings on food, people, purpose, and a life in art" and it really is! You never know quite what you'll find when you visit her, only that it will be wonderful regardless of what it is! For example, this morning when I was on my travels in Bloglandia, I saw that Cheryl had a new post on her Goddess Magic Creams.....really?

But that's exactly what they are- Magical Creams.....and that's exactly how Cheryl is, magical and always thinking and creating outside the box.  She is the kind of artist I aspire to be one day, always stiving to be more creative and in tune with her inner self.  Her art is present in every element of her life; from gardening, to cooking, upcycling found objects into her mixed media pieces and so much more.

                                                                    "Moon Woman Collage"
In Moon Woman, she has incorporated flowers from her garden into her painting using Encaustic Wax, a technique I've been dying to try ever since I saw this amazing piece!  I just love the way she takes what is already a wonderful piece and raises it to another level by adding in a textural element.

"Gypsy Moon"

Gypsy Moon is another example of how Cheryl took what was already a beautiful painting to another level.  She created a mosaic using real pieces of cloth each handcut and separately attached and individually outlined to complete the effect.  She goes more into detail in her blog post.  That's another thing I love about Cheryl, is how generously she shares the process of her work with all the ups and downs.

Last but not least, I must share my new favorites of Cheryl's work; her angels.  Click HERE to read the story behind their creation, it makes then all the more wonderful!

"Angel of Antiquity"

I think I've written enough although I could happily go on and on and on........DO go take a look at Cheryl's blog, you'll leave feeling uplifted and inspired- I promise!
Stephanie

Celebrating the Artists Who Have Inspired me as a Blogger......Inspiration Avenue

Click HERE to enter my Bloggiversary Giveaway!

Not only was I growing a baby blog this time last year, I was also a newbie to Etsy.  I'd opened my shop that February but felt too overwhelmed to put anything into it until that July.  Some of you might not know this, but I'd put my art on hold for 15 years to be a stay at home mom and then an art teacher- so I really had to relearn the creative process and rebuild my self confidence as an artist.  Enter Etsy teams.....I started by joining VAST (Visual Artists Street Team) and saw that a lot of the artists had blogs of their own- so I started exploring- remember I was also trying to find my way in blogging at this time too.  Through VAST, I found Angie of Artangel 

Artangel

who has a WONDERFUL blog....and her links led me to Maggie's "The Magpie Nest"

Magpie

and Tammy's "Art and Inspiration" 

Tammy

all of whom have lovely blogs of their own and also had links to their team, Inspiration Avenue.

I started doing IA's weekly challenges and checking out other folks who did them as well....and along the way I discovered Lisa of "The Wright Stuff"  

and Lulu of "Coastal Sisters" 

Coastal Sisters

And Lisa of "Priti Studios"

to make what is becoming a rather long story, short-er, everything about IA seemed bursting with creative energy and inspiration- it was a team that I wanted to be part of- and I HAVE been for almost a year now!  The team has also been growing steadily for the past year, enough so that as much as I'd like to show examples from each of our talented ladies, there really isn't enough room here.  Hop over to Inspiration Avenue to check everyone out- while you're there, check out this week's challenge; "Decide".

Cheers, and don't forget to enter my giveaway (the link's at the top of this page) if you haven't already done so- there are 3 opportunities to enter- go check it out!

Stephanie

Celebrating the Artists Who Have Inspired me as a Blogger......Tara Dillard

Enter my Bloggiversary Giveaway HERE!

I met Tara Dillard a couple of years ago at our friend Nancy's birthday party and then later at another gathering......we got to talking about our art- my paintings and her design work; she is the most amazing landscape designer you could ever hope to meet!  And she started telling me about her blog, Landscape Design and how much she enjoyed blogging.....well I got curious, as an artist, I'm a pretty solitary sort and the idea of "meeting" other artists was intriguing to say the least!  Like many new "what-if" ideas, my mind kept returning to the idea of making my own blog.  and next thing I knew, I'd started "Dragonfly Design Studios"!  Actually, I did a feature on Tara for my Curiouser and Curiouser series, if you want to read more about her amazing stylings.....and you should definitely visit her beautiful blog- it is RICH with ideas!  So, here I am, a year later still blogging and still LOVING it- thanks Tara for the inspiration!
Don't forget to enter my giveaway- the link is at the top of this post and please come back tomorrow to see my next featured artists- my good friends at Inspiration Avenue!
Cheers,
Stephanie

Bloggiversary Giveaway!!!

My Bloggiversary is next week, September 30th!  I can't believe it's only been a year- doing this has become such a major part of my life!  Blogging has inspired me as an artist, helped me travel the world to visit my bloggy friends cheered me when I was down and enriched me in many more ways!  SO, each day for the next week, I will also feature one of the many bloggers who have inspired me so greatly in the course of this past year!


Also, I'm having TWO giveaways to celebrate ! Your choice of 5 cards from my Etsy Shop and my other giveaway is this Altered Book celebrating Henri Matisse!

exterior of Matisse book

Please use this posting to enter your name in my giveaway-

you can enter your name 3 times.

1: just leave a comment.
2: follow me or  if you are already a follower make sure to tell me in a separate comment
3:- mention my giveaway on your blog, and again-tell me in a third comment if you do.
I'll be drawing TWO names next Thursday, Sept. 30--good luck everyone!

pop up interior with original painting in homage to Matisse

Check out this giveaway- or DON'T to give me a better chance of winning....;)

As I was doing my daily wanderings through bloglandia, I found a link from Elizabeth at Altered Book Lover blog for this beautiful giveaway on My Art Journal.  It's a lovely mixed media piece on an extra deep gallery wrapped canvas- and she uses EVERY inch available for her collage work.  GORGEOUS!

Hippie Girl

Anyway click on the link to enter for a chance to win!
Cheers,
Stephanie

Make New Friends, But Keep the Old.......Lovely Blogs I've Encountered on The Magic Carpet- Part 1

So far, it's been a pretty wild ride at One World, One Heart!  My goal is to try to hit around a hundred blogs a day and today, the second morning, I'm hovering the ole' carpet around #171.  I'm pretty confident that I'll manage 29 more at some point today......I'm finding it almost impossible to drag myself away from the ticket list, lol!

For those of you who regularly follow me, you already know that I try to feature other artists on a regular basis.  Until the end of OWOH, I'm planning to highlight a handfull new (and old) favorite blogs/artists/creators that I've found along the journey.

So for Day Two of OWOH, here are some of the artists I encountered at the first part of the list between the numbers 1 and 171- I wish there were room to feature each one I've fallen under the spell of, but I'm trying to limit it to just a few each posting.....

Shona Cole has this beautiful journal and stamp for her OWOH giveaway- click HERE to enter

Lisa of The Wright Stuff has created this beautiful piece for her OWOH Offering

Kelly Burton at Arty Visions is featuring this wonderful collection for her OWOH offering

One of several OWOH prizes available at Astrid's Artistic Effort

Soft in the Head has this wonderful mousie as her OWOH prize

Creativ Spirit has this gorgeous mixed media piece up for her OWOH Giveaway

Check these wonderful giveaways out, maybe like me, you'll find a few new blogs to add to your list of favorites!

New Giveaway- Riding the Magic Carpet: One World, One Heart 2010

NOTE: Comments are now closed, and the winners have been posted.  Thanks for entering!

Come ride the magic carpet with me at One World, One Heart 2010  It's a wonderful oppurtunity to meet hundreds of other bloggers from around the world and discover unfamiliar blogs in the process!  For more information, you can click on either the picture on my sidebar or the link above.

In honor of this event, I'm hosting two new giveaways.  This time I'll be drawing two names with the Random Number Generator..
The giveaways are:
1. One of my Altered Board Books from my Joie de Vivre series; the theme of this one is "Journeys through Friendship" which I thought appropriate for the Magic Carpet theme:)

For a listing of the quotes on each of the tags click HERE.

2. A collection of 5 of my most popular greeting cards:

You my enter the drawing up to two times and here's how:

1. Leave a comment with your contact information.

2. Become a follower and leave an additional comment telling me you have done so.

I'll be drawing both names on February 15th and announcing the winner that same day.

So GOOD LUCK and happy blogging!

Good luck

And we have a winner!

Thanks again to all who entered, check back soon, I'll be posting another drawing sometime during this next week! 

Based on the drawing compiled by http://www.random.org/, the winner is..............

Sheila!

Congrats, Sheila!!!

I've emailed Susan with instructions on how to redeem her $15.00 credit.

Thanks again!