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| 10/23/08 07:53 PM |
Just about the end of 'casting' season again! Now that my Lotus leaves have gotten quite large for it's first year, and the Gunnera is looking good, it starts to get cold! Trying to get the Gunnera to live over the winter- it's still small enough to be in a container, just brought it into the sunroom. Just took more items to Garden Smiles, that location has done well for me this year, the staff is great to deal with also (haven't met Mr.Carruth as yet, though I have heard he as well as his wife are extremely nice-I will have to show up there at one of his signings soon). I have a slow time right now, then I have events on Nov 21-22, Nov 28-30, and Dec 4! Then it will be the end of the season for me for a few months...
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| 08/28/08 08:47 PM |
Busy summer! The juried art show was an incedible success for me! I could use one of those 12 times a year! I was asked to be interviewed during that show on the local public radio (they were broadcasting from there), and a week later I was asked to give a demo and explain my craft to a children's art class. And compensated for it! I just came back tonight from a dinner for the winners (of which I was one!) of an art contest given by a local environmental research and awareness facility. The theme was "Nature on Maumee Bay", and my Burdock leaf was a winner! My first, hopefully not the last, award!
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| 06/19/08 09:27 PM |
Just got into my first "real" juried art show!I'm pretty excited! We had a death in the family last week, which of course was very sad, and because of that I also had to cancel a small art show I had committed to last Saturday, so this notice for the art show really lifted my spirits. One door closes and another one opens, right?
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| 06/09/08 10:39 PM |
So much for that cool spring- temps have been in the 90's for the past week! I'm not complaining- everyone around me is tired of my past complaining about being cold all the time! Plus, I'm hopeful that my new Lotus plant(and (and my Gunnera!) will start throwing some huge leaves!
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| 05/16/08 08:08 PM |
Still a cool spring, getting ready for the downtown Farmers Market big Flower Day event in a week. I have two events lined up next month, and pretty much one a month after that, which is about 3 times more than I've ever done in a year! This has stopped being a pastime and more like my "second job"! I have to do it, though, it's in my blood to create things...
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| 03/24/08 07:52 PM |
I now have a dozen pieces at Garden Smiles, along with a few of the mushrooms!I also now have a few things in a downtown bookstore (I work downtown). They are trying to incorporate art into their shop and will hold small art shows periodically. The weather has been awful- 5 inches of snow the day before Easter, and it's still here! But it's giving me a chance to get the rest of the castings painted that I still have, but it's depressing not to even see crocuses yet!
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| 02/23/08 08:15 PM |
Well, I did decide not to enter the big art show this year - I was afraid (actually, I was CERTAIN) that I wouldn't comfortably have enough stock this time around. That Zapplication problem was a small part of it, too- haven't figured the resizing thing yet, either. Next year!!! Good news in the past couple of days, though. I live close to Waterville, Ohio, home to George Carruth's Garden Smiles store, and I kept toying with the idea of showing them my work. Well, I did just that, and it was a big hit! The lady I dealt with told me they had been thinking about trying sandcasting, or finding someone who does!I told her, "...And here I am!" :o) How cool is that? For one of the very few times in my life, I may have had good timing!
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| 01/18/08 10:20 AM |
My thoughts as a "crafter" just starting to test the waters of the "artist (or artisan)" world... I had stayed away from the larger art shows for years, for the reasons that 1.I don't want to spend that kinda money, considering I don't do this for a living (although I would dearly love to quit my "real" job and do just that!)and 2.There seem to be many people involved with said shows that look down on the newbies who are just trying to get their name out there. Jury fees bother me- the actual jurying doesn't, but I have always said that I know my work is beautiful, I don't need to PAY someone to tell me that! Of course, I am starting to realize that the various fees are just part of doing business, and as the saying goes,"You've got to spend money to make money"! Still trying to wrap my mind around that concept, though...':o}
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| 01/14/08 10:38 AM |
The 'shrooms turned out very nice! They have a copper pipe "stem" that will look nice as is or when it develops the green patina.I usually like the shiny copper better, doesn't matter, it will patina whether I like it or not! I will post them soon, but they are difficult to photograph, I will have to take them outside and use daylight. I am currently trying to figure out how to format my photos to get them on the Zapplication site.I am a "wanna be" computer geek, unfortunately I just know enough to get myself into trouble! The location of the show I want to enter is practically within walking distance of my house, I could just walk in and HAND them my application and slides, but NOOO...they have to be submitted thru Zapp. It makes things difficult for a artist who is just starting out. OK, end of whine session :o}
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| 01/08/08 07:19 AM |
Having a run of "Spring" weather in the dead of winter-mid 60s during the day and mid 50s at night- very welcome in northern Ohio this time of year! Cast several leaves last nite in the Florida room with the doors open and the warm breeze coming through. Cast my first mushroom also- been wanting to try that for awhile, since I have been wanting to incorporate some of my thousands of beads and stones that I have collected over the "beadworking" years into some of my castings. Will "unveil" it tonight...
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| 12/24/07 11:55 AM |
Happy Holidays to everyone!!! I anticipate this time of year very much, as a lot of my pieces I have sold over the past 2-3 months were destined to be Christmas presents, and I'm excited because I know many people as of tonight or tomorrow will be seeing my work for the first time! This is only the second holiday season for my castings, so this still means a lot to me (actually, I hope it always will!)
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| 12/12/07 11:28 AM |
Well, finally cast some pieces indoors in my Florida room! Crank up the gas heater (we usually leave it unheated), turn on the halogen lamp, and I'm all set! Have to do things differently, of course- can't throw water or cement scraps on the floor, for example!- but they turned out real well. The hard part will be finding leaves. I'll have to hit the greenhouses around here, most of the time they're very nice about giving me a few leaves off the tropicals.
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| 12/05/07 09:59 AM |
I decided not to do any more shows this year, as I am going to try to get into the big art festival in my area next June, and I don't have a huge stock built up, have to "save" it. But now I'm feeling antsy, I see these craft and art shows around that I participated in last year, and I feel like I should be there! Guess I'll just fill the time painting the castings that I finished when the weather was still nice - I haven't tried casting anything in winter, I guess I could mix the cement outside and then cast in the sunroom...but it's so cold and dark this time of year, it really kills my ambition!
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| 11/01/07 08:47 PM |
I'm very new at this endeavor. Barely a year, has progressed quickly for me, would be more so if I did not have to work at something else for a living! Guess it would be lacking something, though, if I didn't have an artist's "angst"!
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