A little sparkle!

I've been seeing these beautiful gems popping up all over my facebook feed by various friends and CZTs I know. I had to give them a shot myself! I need better tools, I used some old microns and my daughter's colored pencils because I didn't feel well enough to run to the studio yesterday. So... here's what I have so far!

I'll keep practicing. They are definitely fun to do!

Zendala tile

I had some fun doing this one today!

I hope you're remembering to have fun and play with your art!
Sometime this week I'm going to make time to play with the new gem technique that I've been seeing so much about!

Tangle kits

I recently sold a couple of these on my etsy shop! Here are some wip pics of them before they shipped out!

 If you're interested, they're in my shop.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Mostly today I'm making stuffing. LOL (And the stuff that goes with it but that's my favorite)

I also sent out newsletters to those who are subscribed for both my Zentangle classes and my Tangle Troves that include my specials for the weekend. Those will also be posted on the respective fb pages, but I don't like to spam here. :)

And this happened too.

Hard copies of my coloring book. It's a good day for being thankful. 

I hope everyone has a great day!!! Don't eat too much, don't throw food at your relatives and have a wonderful time. 

I am thankful for each and every one of you!

Loved doing these!

These were for a guy I used to work with, back when I was spending time in heels and lipstick instead of paint and jeans.

Well, they're for his daughter actually. He let me have a bit of free reign, just gave me some ideas of things she liked, this is actually my FAVORITE way to do sneakers.

So I picked 3 of the things he shared were her favorites and put together some customs that I think she'll have a lot of fun rocking this year!

You'll be seeing a LOT of sneakers in the upcoming weeks. Christmas is my busy season!

Christmas Watercolors

Once upon a time, I used to send holiday cards. I loved doing it actually but my perfectionism tended to make me procrastinate mailing them and often I had handfuls of beautiful cards... that I never sent out.

I still love Christmas images though. So this year I played with some of my favorite Christmas things and made mini watercolors.  I really only love the pinecones but they were fun! :)

I posted them as a collage on instagram. :) People like them. That always makes me happy. 

Do you send Christmas cards? If so, how many?

Mooka Madness!!!

Sometimes it's fun to just play with one pattern. This was a fun monotangle!
(I'm a huge fan of mooka anyway!)

Do you like to do monotangles? I find it can be so incredibly relaxing. 

Love getting into that zen place with it!

Shading made all the difference with this one too!

Just in time for the Holidays!

Just in time for the holidays my Countdown to Christmas coloring book is available on my etsy shop
Here
and also on my website
Here.

Sneak peek, collage. 

I'll have some hard copies available in my studio as well and if there is a call for it, in my etsy shop next weekend. 

Thanks for all the support everyone! 

Happy Saturday!!!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend! I'm getting ready for tomorrow's release so it's been. Busy day! I'm also having a bit of technical issues so I'm going to just leave this as a placeholder for now!!!

Coloring book final details

Today I am finishing the cover and detail work for my coloring book.... which will be available by the end of the weekend.
I had hoped to get it out on the 18th, but sometimes there are delays.

I'm pretty excited about this. I do a lot of different things but this is something I've always wanted to do. I'm working on a much more extensive one for the future, but this was for me to learn and get feedback. 

I'll post more pics once it's out and available... and my readers will get a special link that will give you my Black Friday/Small Business Saturday/Cyber Monday price  no matter when you buy it.
Because I am grateful and appreciative of all your support. 

Ceramic ornaments!

They need fired, but aren't they cute??!?!

Another collaboration between me and Sara from Goldhawk Studios!

There will be more to come.. I need to fill my tree!

One of my top 2 greatest creations...

So today...
I give the world an adult.

A full fledged young woman of 18, with hopes and dreams and aspirations and a sassy attitude and drive to take on the world.
One of the two greatest things I ever had a hand in creating. <3
Happy Birthday to my oldest child. My first born. Love you kiddo!

Coloring book sneak peek

Time got away from me today, I've been kind of avoiding social media as much as I can the last couple days and it throws off my schedule... and I was focused on working on my coloring book.. it's supposed to launch tomorrow, but there have been a few small delays, so hopefully by the end of the week.

This is the last page.

Make the World Beautiful.

I'm struggling with the state of the world today. My heart hurts for those that are reeling from loss, from those who aren't reeling because atrocities are a fact of life and wishing I knew the answers. That's not where you're here... you know I don't know the answers.
So I'm going to do what I do. I'm going to make art and remember that the world can be a beautiful place.

This is not my art... you can find the artist on instagram (mrmgward) and get a better view of this but this is beautiful and spoke to me.

Today let's  make art and continue to make the world beautiful.

Tiny chalkboard canvas

This is a gift for a friend. I had it mostly finished and just needed to do some details on it.
I worked on my photography with it too, trying my light box and it DOES work nicely, but only for some things it seems.

I may do more with lettering and chalkboards in the coming year, I'm pretty proficient at it, it's faster work and there seems to be a market.
I forget how much I love lettering sometimes too!

Sometimes there's a story

A number of years ago I opened an Etsy shop. August of 2008 actually. In 2009 I put up a number of things, most greatly different from what I now sell. Lots of handmade cards, lettering art, etc. Nothing sold, I got discouraged and busy and let Etsy fall to the wayside for a while as I focused on other things. When I came BACK to Etsy I changed what I was doing and never relisted the things that had expired.

A couple weeks ago I was contacted by a VERY close friend. She linked me to post on facebook where a piece of art, a lettered quote had been shared and she said it looked like my work and asked if it was.

I looked and it was. It was one of the cards I'd placed on my Etsy shop during that first go round.
It was a card I'd made for a friend who was very interested in heritage and history and legacy, and I'd used an amazing quote by Linda Hogan.

I never marked it in any way. Someone saw it, liked it, saved it and eventually uploaded it to Pinterest, where the links lead.... nowhere, and yet it was shared all over the internet. Lesson learned.

So I've relisted it. I even made a bigger version for those that wanted larger prints and scanned it at a higher resolution and it's quickly become the most popular item in my shop.
Here it is in my shop.
Weird huh?

Anyway, just a little note about watermarking things or putting your info on them at the very least.

Marbling and Tangling

At Camerida a few weeks ago I took an amazing class that was co-taught by Diane Yaciuk and Sonya Yencer on Marbling and Tangling.
It was amazing but it pushed me really far out of my comfort zone. I started... and you may remember my fall leaf you can see here...

I was really happy with that, but I had this other tile I'd started and I wanted to like it, but I just couldn't, and then yesterday, I just knew what i wanted to do, so I figured... go big, or go home.

And here we go.

I want to play more now... so I'll be doing some thinking and getting started!

I hope you are using today to push your creative limits and that you have something fun to share!

Ew it's raining

I don't like rain. I wish I could say otherwise but it just makes me tired and want to nap and not feel very creative.
Today I'm sharing just a little sneak peek of some upcoming stuff.

What are you working on this week? How are you going to finish off the challenge this year? (We've only got about 6 weeks left!!!!!)
I'm excited and so very proud of all of you that have created along with me this year!

Starbucks red cup challenge. :) #REDCUPCHALLENGE

So people are freaking out about the Starbucks red cups and how they aren't "Christmasey" enough and first, I say who cares.. if that's your biggest problem congrats on your truly beautiful life.

And for those that feel the need for more Christmas, well... I'll get to that.
What I LOVE about the cups is that they are beautiful, gorgeous holiday red.
WOOOHOOO
Blank Canvas.

Aren't they beautiful?

I love them!!!!! BLANK CANVAS people!

So I did this. With my Venti peppermint cocoa. Yum. Peppermint cocoa!

 And then I did this to my friend Sarah's eggnog something. :D

Which is what I wanted to do from the moment I first saw the cups.

BLANK CANVAS.

Which made me think about the holidays... and why do our holidays have to fit into a nice little box?

So I'm issuing you and everyone you know this challenge.

This holiday (whichever one you celebrate) take some time...to do something that you think embodies the spirit of the season for you. Whether it's a RAK, or volunteering or spending time with family or something awesome I haven't thought of...
Then go get a cup of Starbucks something and decorate a cup and share it with me here or on twitter or instagram or something using the tags #redcupchallenge and we can put all the festive in the holidays we need... without it being predefined.

On New Years eve I'm going to give away a gift card to Starbucks. Winner will be chosen at random. :) Tell your friends. Pass it on. Have them play too. #redcupchallenge

Why am I pushing Starbucks at you for this? Because today is Veterans day... and while everyone was freaking out over the red cups... Starbucks also did this.  And if that doesn't speak of doing something awesome, I don't know what does, so I'm happy to spend a few dollars with a company that I want to stand behind.

And if you don't want to Starbucks it up..that's ok. Pick a blank canvas to use and you can still play along. 

So, there you go. :)

This is how I"m kicking off the Happy Holidays, and if I know what you celebrate personally, I'll make sure to wish you that when it happens!

Doctor Who Converse

I've done a number of these, but they're always still fun!

I'm sending 2 of these out this week and one went out last week!

Custom order

This was requested as a custom order.
I know there is what appears to be an error on it but it's an "in" joke so that's ok.
I've had several requests to replicate it, so I may do so.

I have some other letterings to do in the next few days and a few other projects to just finish up quickly. I'm excited because Tangle Troves should be arriving in people's hands and I can't wait to hear their reactions.

Hope everyone is having a great day!
We had frost this morning.... but the sun is out! 

Playing with cards

A long time ago I used to stamp... a lot.
Today I was playing with a technique I used to love, copying an idea I found on pinterest. I wish I could credit the individual but I can't find the post. :( Lame. But just know it's a fun and great idea and I'm thankful to the creator. 

I working at incorporating the idea into something else I'm doing.. plus it's fun!

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Work in progress shots

This is just various shots of various things that have been going on  this week.
I now have art in the Burchfield Penney Art Center gift shop. :) Part of my collaboration with Sara from @Goldhawk Pottery and more of my individual work will be there soon as well.

Did you know if you sell on etsy you can now do "shop updates" to show wip pics and stuff?
This is a chalkboard being seasoned. For longevity it's best to make sure they are seasoned!

Tangle Troves got packed and shipped

And today I am having a netflix marathon day and working on my coloring book.

Hope things are great in your studios, tables and corners of the world!

Feeling festive!

Last night I taught a great group how to do some basic Zentangle inspired art and make holiday cards!
Here are the results!

(I know it's a little early but they needed to learn how!)

The fun part is it's usually snowing by now... but it was 80 yesterday so it was a little surreal.
Today, it's kind of gray and dreary, but it was nice while it lasted!

Attack on Titan converse- finished

I had 2 pair of Attack on Titan sneakers to finish, only 1 is going to be completed with the chibi characters, the other lend themselves to the wings and lettering.
These are done though.
If you aren't familiar with Attack on Titan, it's a little... unusual and not my normal style.

Some close ups...

I believe this is a Titan. They're 50 meters high. (Not the ones on the shoes though)

Anime always pushes my boundaries

So there we go.
3 pair of sneakers are being delivered today.

Coloring book is coming along nicely, The final Troves are shipping today and I have a few lettering orders.

Busy busy!

(And it's not even Christmas yet!)

Attack on Titan

Some times I get a request that just stumps me.
I've had 2 requests for Attack on Titan and it's taken me a while. I should have them available to show you tomorrow, but it derailed me completely today!

So I did get these done enough to show you this part...

I promise after this week things should return more to normal in terms of posting!!!
For now.. hope you are creating and making awesome things!

Quick little watercolor

I'm working on a few watercolors here and there, but lots of tangling and lots of work on the Troves lately so it's been a quiet few days.

Hope you have tons going on..and that it's all good things!

Tangling in progress- WIP

Some days get away from you and today is one!
Here's a tile that is in progress.... I want to do some stuff with shading it that I haven't gotten to yet it's a bit out of my norm but I really like it!

November already!

So 10 months down on the creative challenge! How on EARTH did that happen?
Remember, cool halloween costumes count for creativity so feel free to link those up!

Wow. Happy November everyone! Only 2 months left!

It's a busy weekend here as Tangle Troves are/will be shipping over the next few days.
Cratejoy contacted me and suggested that for maximum efficiency I change my cut off to the 5th of each month so I'll be doing that going forward and it makes perfect sense.
I've been working on some newsletters for things with class dates, I have some cool events coming up and then I made this, which I love.

I wish I had a little more playtime right now.. but I'm back to boxes!

Hope you are keeping busy!