Let's get digital... digital. I wanna get digitaaaal.

Geez, la sha, paint birds much?

Photoshop artwork while Dr. A plays Smash Bros much?

Sell them on your Etsy page much?

Nope. not much... yet.

Blog weirdly in third person perspective much?

nerd.

morbid snowbesity

Obesity. It's an epidemic.

Even the snow men are getting fatter.

This guy is going to take forever to melt- huzzah!

Also, I've updated the etsy shop with these two beauties.

Click here.

Introducing the Wine Flower

QUICK POST:

I made this.

Actually... I made these.

They're mighty purty.

You can get one here.

I'll be adding one a day for the next several weeks.

So if'n you like the concept, but don't fancy the color, then you just tune right back in tomorrow to see the next one I've listed.

Art!

Crafts!

Good times, whoohoo!

La Sha LaSha Lasha lasha la sha Ackerman

I remember when we first got the Internet at my house.

After waiting twenty minutes for the loud modem to crank up the AOL Internet Explorer homepage, my Brad gave me and my sister a lesson in computer safety.

Never go into a chat room.

Never download anything.

Don't click anything unless you absolutely must.

Never tell anyone where you live. Not even the state.

Never upload anything, ESPECIALLY pictures.

and never never NEVER use your real name.

(This is the short list, folks. Don't get me started on outdoor safety, travel safety, or fireproof SAFE safety. I shutter to think of all the danger that fireproof safe could have rained down without the solid set of rules involved.)

I don't think my 1992 self would believe that not only do I use my real name (and maybe a couple of variations) but I've got hundreds of pics stored online, and even some video... including this one I didn't even realize existed.It's pretty weird to google yourself and see a video of yourself you've never seen before. This is from the night that I taught my fabric flower technique at Etsy Labs.

The full tutorial is at this post.

Yep, I'm pretty fast and free with the info these days, even my crafting secrets. I could hoard my experiment-burn-melt-ruin-practice-perfect learned techniques (that's what we call learning the hard way) but I don't think there's anything to be gained to keeping it to myself.

Feel free to try it out. Make 'em, keep 'em, give 'em away, heck... sell 'em.

Maybe you could tell folks where you learned how to do that or just subscribe here or something.

Maybe you could even give me a little link on your blog.

If I make it to Moab I'm gonna get my canteen filled.

There's nothing that the road cannot heal.
Yeah, there's nothing that the road cannot heal.
Washed under the black top, it's gone beneath my wheels.
There's nothing that the road cannot heal.
Vela grazie!
They say the sun won't burn forever but that's a science too exact
I can prove it, watch, we're crossing the state line.
See those headlights coming towards us? That's someone going back
To a town they said they'd never, yeah, they swore it on their life
But you can't break out of a circle
That you never knew you were in.
Washed under the black top, its gone beneath my wheels...
There's nothing that the road cannot heal. You can't see it very well in any of the pics I took, but the tree growing alongside the road is made up of the lyrics from that chorus.

Notice how the road looks like its a different texture than the rest of the painting?

That's because it's band aids.

And what gives the rest of the painting that spidery texture?

Medical gauze of course.

Every element of this piece is in keeping with the theme of healing.

Buy it here.

Fabric Flowers; Here's How!

These aren't your grandma's flimsy fabric flowers. These beautiful blossoms are tough enough to take daily abuse, which means they can be attached to clothes, accessories, even keychains.

Here's what you'll need to make some yourself: synthetic fabric (wide ribbon works well, also), a pencil, scissors, a candle, a lighter, a bowl of water, thread, needle and some random beads or buttons Here's how:

First- Find some synthetic material. (Cheap Dollar Store scarves work great!)

Next cut out some circles to make the petals. They don't have to be perfect- look at any real flower and you find that petals aren't perfect- they're all different shapes and sizes.

When you've cut out as many petals as you'd like your flower to have, get out a bowl of water and light a candle.

Hold each petal just close enough to the flame to singe the edge.

Go all the way around, until the petal is singed all the way around.

Not only will holding it near the flame keep it from unraveling, but it will also cause the fabric to warp, making the circle look more like a real petal.

If you hold the fabric too close and it catches on fire, don't freak out- just dunk it in the water.

After you have all the petals singed around the edges, arrange the petals in the shape you would like them, and stitch straight through the middle. Make sure that each petal is securely attached to the others. Sew several stitches to make it stronger and more durable.

Next, find some beads or buttons that coordinate with the flower and cover the center stitches by sewing them on one by one.

Make sure to securely knot off the thread when you're finished sewing on the last bead on.

Now you can sew the flower onto anything you'd like.

BIG NEWS! (well, big for me, anyway)

Did you know I love Etsy Labs?

If you don't it's because you haven't talked to me in the past year or haven't read this blog post.

Well, BIG NEWS- I'LL BE TEACHING AT ETSY LABS JUNE 1ST!

I'll be teaching my technique for making silk flowers by hand, using fire as the shaping mechanism.

IT. WILL. BE. AWESOME.

So, let's recap: Etsy Labs, 4-8 pm, June 1st. It's completely free and all materials are supplied.

If you're not in New York City, we'll be broadcasting live on the web here.

(Yes, you have to make a username to log in, but it's free and only takes a second, so don't be lazy.)

If you're not crafty, it's o.k.- my etsy shop is coming up roses!

I Love When People Love My Art!

Look! I've been featured in a treasury.

Out of all the paintings I've ever done, this is my mom's favorite. I'm glad to see someone else loves it too.Click here to see part of the treasury.

Shakin's Friday Feature

I'm inspired by Nienie in so many ways. The least of which is to be a better blogger. So... in as much of a Nie-esque way as possible, I bring you...

Sha-kin's Friday Feature (as promised in the post New In Oh-Nine.)

Did you know that I am a member of a very large and very active team of Etsy artists and crafters called The {newnew} York Team? Well, I am... and so is the lady that is my first Friday Feature:

Simone Tan Simone has an Etsy shop chock full of handmade goodness, including some verrry cute bags.

Shakins: Hi Simone! How long have you been crafting?

Simone: I would say all my life. Everyone in my family is always making stuff. My Dad is a physician, but learned how to repair watches when he was a kid. so he was always working on something in his show. When I was eight, my grandmother from Indonesia came to visit and taught me how to crochet. My mother taught me how to sew, and we both learned how to knit together sometime in the seventies. Interesting because she's left-handed and I'm right-handed. You can't really help one another out when everything is reversed.

Shakins: You're so well traveled! Would you name all the places you've lived:

Simone: Hamburg Germany, Oberlin OH, Nanjing China, Taipei Taiwan, Hong Kong, San Francisco CA, Brooklyn

Shakins: Education?

Simone: Another person who couldn't figure out what she wanted to do with her life and went to law school.

Shakins: You have Kids, right?

Simone: One amazing daughter.

Shakins: How does she inspire you?

Simone: My daughter has a wonderful perspective on life (well, all kids do, but I'm proud) and this incredible ability to get it down on paper without any hesitation. These are some sketches she made when we were at the Natural History Museum

Shakins: Soooo... the world wants to know; what's your favorite ice-cream flavor?

Simone: Haagen Dazs Vanilla Bean

Shakins: What's your greatest accomplishment?

Simone: Having a happy family, (sounds so totally corny, but in the end I think that's what life's about)

Shakins: Absolutely! What's on your mind lately? Simone: Why isn't anybody buying the pac-man bag? Do I really want my phone to tweet me all the time? What's up with Plurk? And why is the CPSIA such a mess? Can you believe that pilot?

Shakins: Wow. That's a lot to think about. Phone tweeting has it's advantages I guess. Anyhoo- I was wondering: What's your favorite item in your shop?

Simone: My pac-man bowling bag .

Shakins: You have so many great bags- why is that particular one your favorite?

Simone: It looks like a very normal purse, but you take a closer look at it and there's the monster looking right at you. The zipper color matches the tiny little bits of purple in the sweater and the inside lining is soooo soft. I covered and handstitched the inner seams with black flannel tape. In short, I just love that thing. I know, I should just keep it. Shakins: Oh that's cute! You're so creative! O.K. I have to ask- What's your favorite item of mine?

Simone:Night Owl-I love the texture, the colors and that tiny unobtrusive owl. There are plenty of ways to do it wrong-It's just fun to look at. I like the message. Ballerina's I like the expression on the faces of the Ballerinas, you can read all kinds of stories into that painting.

Shakins: Aww... I'm blushing. I wasn't expecting you to name 3 favorites! I like the Ballerina painting too. I never thought I'd still enjoy simple art like that as an adult. What surprises you the most about your adult life?

Simone: How it's not so different from high school. Similar insecurities, cliques, etc. I still feel like a kid, but then I look in the mirror and wonder who that middle-aged woman is.

Shakins: I hear that! You're stuff is so colorful and cheery. What's your favorite color?

Simone: I think pink, at least for now.

Shakins: If you could describe yourself in one word what would it be?

Things I Love About New York #4 : Etsy Labs

Imagine a place where shelves are stocked with craft supplies, sewing machines are available by the dozen, where arts and crafts experts are on hand to give advice, where lace and buttons flow freely... and for free.

Sounds mythical right?

Well hang on to your (hand knitted) socks because...

THAT PLACE EXISTS!

... and it's called Etsy Labs.

Every Monday, Etsy Labs opens its doors to crafters of all persuasions, in a weekly crafting free-for-all. Somtetimes there will be a lesson on a particular craft for those who would like to learn it, and other times it's a come-with-what-you-will-and-work-on-it in the fellowship and bounty that is Etsy Labs.

I've missed it for a few weeks because of the holidays and family being here and whatnot, but now that the holidays are over, I fully intend to find myself on a train to 325 Gold Street around 4:00.

If you're into arts and crafts...

COME!

photo credit: yourseceretadmiral

Remember that thing I used to do...

Remember that thing I used to do where I mixed up paint and put it on canvas or wood or something until it kind of looked like something?

Well... I still do that... and the result is still up for grabs at

my shop

Moving vs Storing

Since we're moving in less than two weeks I am really getting quite desperate to sell some paintings- mainly so I don't have to make the decision between whether to leave them behind or sacrifice some of our very limited car space to move them with me. So, with this predicament in mind you would think I would have stopped painting, but no. Stressed out as I am about everything that's going on, I find myself nearly sleep painting at 3 am. Fortunately my classes aren't very time consuming, and there's not much I can do for the move just yet so my penchant for putting on head phones and drowning out the world in pretty swirls of color doesn't do much harm... except that now I have several more paintings that I'm torn about what to do with. I've changed the etsy prices from rediculously low to rediculously high and every where in between, but I think the problem is that my page just doesn't get much traffic. I'm just not very good at marketing... which is frustrating because I constantly see really crappy stuff sell on etsy- things the "artist" couldn't have spent more than five minutes on, but the paintings I spend hours and hours and sometimes days and days on won't even move for $40. I am so frustrated! Make me an offer!

But aside from all that I really have been enjoying painting a little extra lately. It is so consuming. I don't know if any other artists out there have ever noticed, but to me at least, painting feels very similar to praying. Both have a tremendously calming effect.

I have to thank Jane DesRosier for one of my favorite new things to do, which is use gel medium. It adds so much texture, which I really enjoy. It really adds another element to art when there isn't just color and composition to consider, but also the texture. Here are a couple of my favorite paintings that make good use of gel medium- they're not very figurative like most of my paintings are- they're really just color studies of hot and cold, with a bunch of gel medium swirled in.

Night Owl (cool) Summer Sky (hot) Seriously, no offer will be rejected if you want one of my paintings. Go to www.loveaboveall.etsy.com or e-mail me @ a_bedealia@yahoo.com