new collage project

"Trees in the forest" 8 x 8 inches mixed media fiber arts.

Here are some images of a project I just finished. Had a lot of fun creating it - my attempt at including fibers to my collage art. I finally got a chance to sit in front of my sewing machine and play with the various stitch designs and color threads. I'm getting hooked... plan to see more of this type of work coming from my art studio.

Enjoy,
Sandra

Close up of sewing details.

Playing with the layout on my work table in my art studio.

Details of the collage before sewing details are added.

The process of laying out the composition.

Happy New Year 2012

I spent ringing in the new year with my brother and his family. My niece Amelia and I created ATC cards to welcome in the new year... we had fun exploring the many, many, many papers, pictures and text I carted over in my craft shoulder bag. Here are the results of our discoveries may it bring you some joy.

  MY niece Amelia's ATC series she did a combo... she really had fun.

ATC collage 2.5 x 3.5 inches by 9-year-old niece Amelia.

ATC collage 2.5 x 3.5 inches by 9-year-old niece Amelia.

MY ACEO ATC series which I titled "Three Cups of Tea"

"Three Cups of Tea" series ACEO ATC collage 2.5 x 3.5 inches.

 I came up with this series because for 2012 I want to be mindful of my time spent on ME. I've been told one too many times by people who really know me that I GIVE too much and I need to find BALANCE and JOY for myself. That it is okay to be selfish and focus on my needs and wants. So for this year I want to be more mindful of my fashion (ahhh, I'll have to forfeit buying art supplies and books for new clothes), of my fitness and allow for outdoor playtime like hiking our beautiful trails in PA, and mindful of my tranquil mind by enjoying at least three cups of tea a day. I already start my days with a cup of tea, I now have been adding a cup at lunch and a cup before bedtime. Of course different blends to meet my different needs. Black Tea is great in the morning to get my energy going, Green Tea at lunch with a little honey is warming and keeps my immune system up and Camille Tea at night relaxes me and gets me ready for sleeping.

It seems to make much sense just like the tea custom says:
"The first cup of tea is sour as life. The second cup is sweet as love. The third is soft as death."

Fits so well for me since I am not a morning person and the first cup is a bit sour and the last cup brings me to a soft sleep as sweet as death... don't get me wrong I am not done living my life but there is no peace, like that of a deep sound sleep to restore your spirit and undo the man made stresses of our earthly lives. So we may awake again; restored and ready to rebuild our purpose driven lives.


How did you ring in the new year, have any art ventures in mind for 2012? I welcome your comments and storytelling.

 Enjoy:-)
Sandra

Three Cups of Tea for the New Year

 The first cup of tea is sour as life. The second cup is sweet as love. The third is soft as death.

I first learned about the "Three Cups of Tea" custom in 2005 when I was visiting my local Ten Thousand Villages store/restaurant located in Ephrata, PA. It was the end of the school year and I was treating 3 of my advisory students to a lunch at the restaurant and in turn we were ALL treated to some storytelling by one of the third world artists who shared the story behind the tea ceremony. What a joy, what an art memory... for the tea ceremony went beyond the tea leaves, and purity of water and boiling time lapse... while we waited for each cup to steep we were treated to a story of how to wear/wrap a turban and ahhh, the colors of the cloths were so beautiful.

May 2005 my three students visiting Ten Thousand Villages to meet a jewelry artist.

Movie on preparing the cups of tea click on the play button above to view.

Preparing the tea.

Making a new friend over tea and learning how to wrap a turban.

Showing off the beauty of the different colored cloths.

I had been teaching my students that year about world crafts and fair trade and how to create crafts, and how to sell them to fundraise for local nonprofits like our local women's shelters.... it was nice to connect with my students on a weekly basis on how to learn how to knit and weave. It was a small charter school (only 100 students grades 6-12) and I so loved working there my 3 years until my grant position ran out and then I was contracted to work in the public school system under a different grant. Funny how even then .... years before I was to begin to even think about starting my own social venture (Alchemy: discovering, exploring, enjoying) I had the spirit of creating in my heart and the love for sharing my discoveries.


It seems like the spirit of the "Three Cups of Tea" is becoming a theme for me in 2012. First with the creation of my New Year's ATC cards, second with me finding these old photos of my students, and third with me also finding two very important books that spoke to me years back and yet I had discarded them for a future read not having time to devote to them. Never having enough time to sit and complete my readings once I found them again in my home library I placed them center stage on my coffee table so I would move forward with my 2012 venture to create art and balance in my life and in my enjoyment. I am glad to report that I am almost done with "Art is a way of Knowing" and "Three Cups of Tea" is close behind.

My 2012 Reading List: 

Art Is a Way of Knowing A Guide to Self-Knowledge and Spiritual Fulfillment through Creativity By Pat B. Allen

Three Cups of Tea
One Man’s Mission to Promote

“Three Cups of Tea is one of the most remarkable adventure stories of our time. Greg Mortenson’s dangerous and difficult quest to build schools in the wildest parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan is not only a thrilling read, it’s proof that one ordinary person, with the right combination of character and determination, really can change the world.” -Tom Brokaw

What is on your reading list for 2012?

Enjoy:-)
Sandra

"Purpose" Art Card

So after having fun making the "Winter PLOW" mixed media project last night I also got a second wind and made this sweet little art card. A great gift for a friend or yourself to help to remind us that we ALL serve PURPOSE and all days are A Day To Remember. The card is made using a reproduction digital print (printed on glossy laser paper with a laser color printer). Inside is a special surprise (handmade one of a kind painted and varnished collage strip signed by me). The fibers used have a slight gold shimmer to remind you that in deed this is an Art Memory piece from your artist friend at Alchemy: discovering, exploring, enjoying.

Enjoy,
~ Sandra

Here is the latest listing at my Etsy shop. An art card titled "Purpose".

Making Some Discoveries

Yesterday I had the pleasure to reintroduce myself to Mitch Lyons. I first met Mitch a couple of weeks ago at the annual PA Guild of Craftsmen Fair held in my hometown of Lancaster, PA. If you have never attended this arts and crafts fair... IT IS A MUST... I encourage you to visit the PA Guild of Craftsmen website and mark your calendars. I also highly recommend visiting Mitch's website you will not be disappointed! Mitch is a master at making clay monoprints. YES I said CLAY!! I had never heard of such a thing and Mitch informed me "it's because I invented it". Thanks for sharing Mitch! God Bless.

1.Colored slip is added to the leather hard clay slab.

Until you are able to make your own personal pilgrimage to PA to visit Mitch enjoy these photos I took yesterday (with Mitch's approval of course) which captures the intricate, beautiful, monoprinting demonstration Mitch so graciously presented at his home art studio located in New London, PA.

2. Introducing more color by sifting in chalk and pastels.

Mitch is planning to hold a two day weekend workshop in April 2012 and I am already saving my pennies to make sure I am there!  See his website for details. If you are not able to visit his studio he does sell DVDs on his art making process. Either way his artwork and process are so inspiring and captivating you will not be satisfied with just one peek at his website you will want to meet him in person - he is planning to host some traveling workshops and he is open to doing one day demonstrations.

NOTE: I have added my personal captions to these photos but to read how Mitch explains his clay monoprinting process in details click on this link.

3. Getting ready to make a monoprint.

As I stood next to Mitch yesterday I could not help but to be re energized about the art making process and re discovering the joy it brings me. Mitch is just what I needed to boost up my creative spirits and I left eager to jump into my little attic art studio to explore what my own emerging art journey had to offer.

4. Creating a charge with a brayer (Mitch said "it's a pizza roller").

I am so blessed to live so close to such remarkable artists like Mitch who have been making art for over 40 years; yet Mitch still holds the enthusiasm of a mindful artist discovering his pleasure in art making for the first time.  THANK YOU, Mitch for sharing your love of art making, answering all of my "Curious Girl" questions and I look forward to revisiting your studio in April for your weekend workshop.

As for the fruits of my labor upon my return from visiting with Mitch see the pictures below of the fun I had creating and exploring my own recipes for making an original mixed media collage art project.

Enjoy;-)
~ Sandra

The elements: a recycled iPhone box I painted with white gesso, my hand painted mixed media papers, and a laser copy of an old fashion hand plow (the plow image shows up in other artwork I'm currently creating inspired by my summer volunteering at my local CSA at the Lancaster Farmacy). I miss the farm.

Close up of the hand painted papers adhered to the substrate using Golden Soft Gel Matte Medium with some additional handmade markings layered on using a Faber-Castell watercolor pencil (black).

Adding on additional hand painted paper (remains from another project - nothing goes to waste). I just let the negative shapes created by the cutouts dictate the orientation of the layout. 

Front view of the piece thus far. I love how you can still see some of the Apple wordage seeping through the gesso.

Close up of the overlaying papers and the texture they create.

The final piece with the hand plow image added on using a gel medium transfer.

Defining the size: 3-1/4 x 5-1/2 inches.

"Winter PLOW" mixed media collage

Mixed Media Success - Just Follow Your Art!

I just made a big leap this week! I gave up my fear and listed  my Art Memories Scrapbook Album on sale at my Etsy shop.

http://alchemy-artmemories.blogspot.com/2011/10/tea-party-time.html

 
If you've been following my blog you are aware of my issues with letting go of my original artwork. I started off by participating in an ATC card swap with the lovely Lenna Andrews at the Creative Swaps blog site (a great place to start - the exchange of ATCs was wonderful).

http://alchemy-artmemories.blogspot.com/2011/08/my-entries-for-atc-creative-swaps.html

 
Then I ventured into giving close friends and family my artwork as gifts. Again a good place to start to experience "letting go" and it also provides you visiting rights because you know who the new art owners are :-)

http://alchemy-artmemories.blogspot.com/2011/09/flowers-for-friend.html

Finally in late November I made a BIG SPLASH and opened my first every online shop - My Alchemydee Etsy Shop. With great encouragement from my online art community I DID IT! Thus, far its been quite nice (I even made two sales during the Thanksgiving weekend. SUPER!!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/alchemydee?ref=em

 Yet, when I looked back at my Etsy listings I saw I was still playing it a bit safe with offering only prints and small original ATC cards for sale on Etsy. So I started to ask myself why the fear to LET GO!

Here is the concern - I get so invested in the creation of each project that once it's complete I don't want to send it into the world. It is more then a cute, pretty, or beautiful piece of artwork to me, it's my ART MEMORIES that I am sending out for sale. For me my art making is an art therapy session wrapped in transformation surprises of a better understanding of who I am, my purpose, my spirit, my life journey. So once I've come to a point of being "done" I take great pride and comfort at viewing the original art and having it near me; almost like a safety blanket. It's like a fear of "out of sight out of mind" if I don't see it I will forget that part of my journey and I will fall back to old habits and views I'm trying to change in my life.

I NEED TO HAVE FAITH - in the journey which has been placed in front of me. For my journey is God driven and its when I allow my flesh and mind to lead my pathways that is when the fear creeps in. Easier said then done. Blogging helps me to work through these concerns.

But indeed if I opened an Etsy shop to help add to my income then why do I hesitate to list my original art for sale and instead keep them stored away taking up space in my tiny attic art studio on my bookshelves or on my work area (do not recommend this because many accidents can occur causing unexpected glue, paint or cutting knife to find your little art gems and alter them unexpectedly)?

I was struggling with these questions this week and after reading an update from Cloth, Paper, Scissors this morning (I receive weekly email updates) I figured I would open up my questions and concerns to my art community. Have you been here (selling your art is not the same as selling baked goods)... just attended a PTO meeting last night for my job where parents spent about a half hour unsure of what baked goods to sell for a future fundraiser and how much care they took in the details of what to sell, how many, for what price value. I sat there thinking 'these are store bought cookies they are struggling over - how attached would they be if it were homemade cookies'?

Handmade is a beautiful way to go but it does require a lot from the artist when preparing the listing details; especially what ARTWORK will be listed. I respect all the beautiful Handmade artwork I see advertised for sale online at Etsy and all the artists who share their Art Memories with the world.

God Bless and if you're looking to go holiday shopping or just want to view some brave artists revealing their artist soul. Please start by shopping Etsy first before going to your local mall.

Enjoy,
Sandra

I'm a Winner and YOU can be one too!

Just found out that I won a beautiful art card created by the lovely Alicia from Alicia Art Shop.
To learn how to become a winner too follow this link: http://aliciaartshop.blogspot.com/2011/11/contest-competition-free-gift-to-lucky.html

Here is the card I won! Beautiful - Thanks Alicia;-)

"What Lies Within" by Alicia Art Shop