Hearts for Haiti

I've been following a thread on the Etsy forums, there is a ground swell of shop owners trying to set up a shop raise funds for Haiti. The plan is for the participants to donate items to be sold through one hub site on Etsy. each item will be shipped free and 100% of the monies raised will be donated to Doctors Without Borders. (Except for the etsy fee/listing cost 3.5%+$.20).

I have a personal connection to Haiti. Though it was so long ago I don't remember it, my grandparents helped establish the first art museum in Haiti. For a while when I was a child visiting my grandparents might mean spending time with visiting Haitian artists. One artists, Murat Brierre spent a summer teaching me to speak Creole, the family story says that I was fluent by the end of that summer, but unfortunately I don't remember a word of it now. I am the proud owner of one of Monsieur Brierre's sculptures. The woman in is my mother and the children are my brother and myself.

More later as the Hearts for Haiti project is ready for launch.

Where would your looking glass take you?

Do you ever find yourself mentally wandering away? Wishing you could be somewhere else for even a few moments? If you could set Alice's looking glass so you could go anywhere where would you go?

Today I'm finding myself longing for a magical retreat. Since none of my mirrors will allow me to enter a magical world I'm wandering through Etsy's art categories day dreaming of places to escape to. I thought I'd share the images that held me in their thrall, inviting me to enter their worlds and ponder their mysteries.

Bass Harbor Lighthouse, this is genuinely one of my favorite places in the world. There is something magical about it, once you are down among the rocks there are no bad views. I have spent hours here in the summer.
http://www.cmeredith.etsy.com/

I have never even heard of this place, but it is so beautiful I could spend ages staring at the image and wishing I could wander among the rocks.

Rock Rainbow in Antelope, http://www.csmithinva.etsy.com/







This photo makes me think there might fae hiding in the trees, or sitting on the roof just waiting to play a trick or wondering how humans could create such a beautifully fae building.

Summer house, Brodick Castle, Isle of Arran, Scotland
http://www.walkerdesign.etsy.com/





The Dryad's Retreat http://www.xenya.etsy.com/


Here the name perfectly reflects the magic of the image. In my mind I am wandering through these woods, hoping to catch a glimpse of a dryad.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

We in the mid-Atlantic area do get snow most winters, sometimes more sometimes less sometimes not at all. Well, it's not even winter, according the calendar we still have one more day till Solstice and Winter begins, and yet we have our first Winter Storm. Snow is a mixed blessing, it brings hardships and challenges for a lot of people, and my heart goes out to all those suffering from cold, and shortages of all kinds brought about by this weather. But this storm simplified a very busy weekend for us by cancelling nearly every commitment we had, in an over booked near holiday weekend. We spent most the day yesterday watching the snow fall, baking cookies and making chili and just spending time together. Where ever you are, whatever your weather is, remember to take time to stop and enjoy something, and find a moment or a day or more to spend with those you love.

Curating a treasury

One of my favorite features of Etsy is the "Treasury." Treasuries are member curated collections, each one lasts 2-3 days and it is a serious challenge to get a spot in the treasury lists. The window of opportunity opens for 30-60 seconds when the number of treasuries drops below 333 for the Main Treasury or 222 for Treasury West. The number rise and fall a little unpredictably, and depending on the time of day the numbers start to get close to the "opening" there could be 700+ people waiting for that tiny window of opportunity. The process is a little addicting and always feels like you have won something when you manage to grab a spot on the list. All that said, I got one yesterday! I hope you enjoy looking at it.

Sources of inspiration

You never know where you will find inspiration. I try to take my camera with me where ever I go, so when I find something that grabs my attention I can record it. There are no lack of opportunities to find inspiration: a trip to the zoo, a chance encounter with a butterfly, a mind bending display of fire spinners, my daughter's band warming up at sun down... who knows when those images will find their way into art or in what form?

Fabulous Art Dolls

By now anyone who has been reading my blog is aware of some of my small contributions to the world of art dolls. Etsy has teams in every imaginable category including one for art dolls. Here is a small selection of dolls made by some of my teammates. One of the things that never ceases ot amaze me is the wonderous variety of materials and techniques that are used in the creation of art dolls. Some really do look a lot like dolls, but as often as not they are really just sculptures on a very small scale.

http://www.catea331.etsy.com/ http://www.fabbydolls.etsy.com/

http://www.littlebitwired.etsy.com/ http://www.loopyboopy.etsy.com/

http://www.mealymonster.etsy.com/ http://www.paynesgrey.etsy.com/

http://www.polkadottoadstool.etsy.com/ http://www.trolltracks.etsy.com/

Fun with the Fae, or My Adventures at Faerie Con

As I mentioned in my last post I spent this past weekend as a merchant at Faerie Con. This was the 3rd Faerie Con, I attended the two previous Cons as a day tripper, which was fun, but nothing in comparison to being there all weekend and being part of the show, well as much as a merchant ever is.

My table was in the hall outside the ball room, which allowed us to listen to the balls as well as the bands warming up. The amount of creativity all gathered in one place was quite staggering. Not just from the various merchants, but from the attendees as well. Costumes ran the gamut from Tinker Bell tee shirts and jeans to some of the most elaborate gowns and wings I’ve ever seen.

The highlight of the weekend may have been a short but potentially meaningful conversation with the production manager on Saturday afternoon. We briefly discussed my work and some possibilities for next year. As the year progresses and things become more definite I will undoubtedly share more information, for now let me just say that I have several new areas of inspiration and can't wait to get to work on my new ideas.