Counting Blessing's - Tammy Moody

Tammy Moody is quite a talented person. I first met her as an ACEO artist. She's a member of the Designing Artist Womens Group ( DAWG) Team on Etsy.  She's jumped in an become one of the driving forces on the Team to support Lisa.  Her animal art is awesome. They look so real.

Tammy has also gotten into greeting cards. She self trained herself on graphics software and does some really cool cards.  Here's one on the right.....isn't it adorable...speaking of counting blessings....having Tammy as one of my online friends is definitely a blessing to me!

1) Tell us about yourself.
My name is Tam Fleetwood Moody. I have been creating art since I was a little kid. I am a self taught artist and have been taking college classes on and off for the last five years. I hope to eventually get my degree in the art field, but am uncertain at this point which avenue I will travel. I am just looking forward to being able to take some college training at some point in the very near future. I am a realism and portrait artist for the most part and I dabble in illustration and graphic design as well. I create greeting cards online at Greeting Card Universe and sell my cards independently too. I also sell my paintings and drawings online and independently. Norman Rockwell is one of my favorite illustrators.

2) What are your preferred mediums and art scale (miniature, large art, etc) My preferred mediums are prisma colored pencils, charcoal, ebony pencils, and acrylics. I prefer large scale art, but in the last several years have been trying to move into a smaller scale because I enjoy making ACEO cards. In the last twenty five years, I have painted on anything from old spoons, buckets, and shoes to cowskulls and emu eggs- so there are lots of places people might see my work. In the last five years, I have developed a true passion for digital arts and am learning more each day and developing my skills in that area. This is something I definately will expand on when I begin taking the art side of my college classes. I think it is important to keep an eye on current trends in art and right now, digital artistry has quickly become a mainstream.

3) What are your inspirations.
Gosh, I could find inspiration anyplace, in an old garage with lots of machinery, animals, in a field of clover, nature and people, I like patterns and objects that repeat, so I can find inspiration in my spoon drawer for that matter. lol Doesn't matter where I am at, I can find something to work on or focus my attention on and create it. Guess it comes from having to entertain myself outdoors as a kid. We made cars from cucumbers, mud pies, castles in the snow and forts and dug outs- so I have always been creating. It also helped that my Mom would encourage me to create- no matter where we were at. She'd give me a stick and tell me to draw her pictures in the dirt outside, or crayons and paper indoors.

4) Describe your art style.
Realism

5) Do you do anything other than painting (jewelry, crafts) I love to create crafts, quilts, quilt tops are a real passion- again with the patterns and repitition.

6) If you blog, what is your blog link.

7) Where do you sell online?
I sell online at Greeting Card Universe, Ebay occasionally, Etsy at times, Cafe Press, Zazzle, Overstock.Com, Fine Arts of America.

8) Are you opened to commission work?
When I have time, yes I do take commissions.

9) What was your favorite piece of work? If you have a photo, include it.
I haven't created it yet.

8) Do you sell in a brick & mortar shop? If so where?
Just out of my home in the community. I have been invited to several galleries, including one in California and one in New York, but so far haven't decided to go that route. I do show from time to time though when I receive invitations.

Teresa and Her Prim Treasures

I always admire people who sew. It's kinda like carpentry, you gotta be precise or it doesn't fit. I'm not one of those precise people....sometimes I color outside the lines if you know what I mean.

The pillow pictured is one of my favorite items in her shop and it is part of the Old Farmhouse Gathering Team's Spring Fling Celebration. To see more wonderful items search OFGSFC on Etsy.com


1. What is the name of your Etsy shop and why did you choose that name?
My Etsy shop name is Teresa's Prim Treasures. When I first started attending craft shows and needed to apply for a tax ID number I was told your name had to be in your title to avoid filing for a fictious name. I loved "Primitives" and wanted others to "treasure" my creations for years to come. So, putting all 3 of these together I came up with Teresa's Primitive Treasures for my website. When I opened my Etsy shop I shortened it a bit to TeresasPrimTreasures.

2. How long have you been on Etsy?
I joined Etsy in September of 2007 but didn't list anything to sell until 5 months later. So I began selling in March 2008.

3. What type of items do you offer?
My husband makes shelves, cabinets, cupboards and anything wooden I ask him to craft..... most of the time.... and I do the sanding and painting. I also love to paint and sew! You will find all 3 types of work in my shop. I love working with wool and hand stitching!

4. How long have you been crafting?
I started sewing Amish dolls and dressed bunnies back in 1989 for a local gift shop..... so that would make it 20 years! Really hard to believe! I've been so fortunate to be a stay at home mom and craft for that long.

5. Who or What inspires you?
My mother is my greatest inspiration! She has a house full of antiques and ideas for projects. I love looking at old books and surfing the web for interesting patterns!

6. What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
I would say my Tattered Prairie Dolls. I created and named them after my nieces and my first Granddaughter. They have done quite well for me over the years!

7. Other places where you can be found (Ebay, webstore, blog)
You can find my website at http://www.teresasprimitivetreasures.com
My Blog at http://teresasprimtreasures.blogspot.com/
My Etsy Shop at http://www.teresasprimtreasures.etsy.com

A Spring Celebration

Are you ready for spring? I am and so are my sisters in the Old Farmhouse Gathering Team (OFG Team) on Etsy! Look at some of the beautiful handmade items in this celebration.

The Celebration is to be held February 15th through March 1st.   You know the old saying, "You Snooze, You Loose" so click on the Old Farmhouse Gathering Spring Fling Celebration banner above and type in the search bar OFGSFC to have first pick!  Many of these items are just one of a kind! :)

St. Valentine & Valentine's Day

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. It has become a special day to recognize and show appreciation for your Sweetheart, whomever that person is. It could be any loved one, your spouse, your child, special friend, parent. A day of love.  Did you wonder how Valentine's Day came about?

The day has its roots in Christianity during the days of the early church (269). It seems there was a Roman Priest, Valentinus, who was executed because he defied the emperor.  The Emperor Claudius the second had this idea that men without family & wives were better soldiers so he decided to outlaw marriage. Now we know that not to be true...men are happier and better off with us women! LOL

Well Father Valentinus didn't think too much of this so he celebrated  the sacrament of marriage in secret.  The Emperor caught wind of it and sentenced him to death. Legend has it that while awaiting his execution, Father Valentinus restored the sight of his jailer's blind daughter. The night before his death, he penned a farewell note to the jailer's daughter, signing it, "From your Valentine."

From then on  Father Valentinus became the symbol of love.

In 496 AD Pope Gelasius marked February 14th as a celebration in honor of his martyrdom. He is the Patron Saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travellers, young people. He is represented in pictures with birds and roses.

Prayer to St Valentine (from The Catholic Primer)

 

O glorious advocate and protector,
St Valentine,
look with pity upon our wants,
hear our requests,
attend to our prayers,
relieve by your intercession the miseries
under which we labour,
and obtain for us the divine blessing,
that we may be found worthy to join you
in praising the Almighty for all
eternity: through the merits of
Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen.

May you have a blessed St. Valentine's Day full of love and happiness.

Holly Ridge Creations

 Today's OFG Feature is Holly Ridge Creations....she's a primitive designer on Etsy. Here is one of her paintings. She also does gourd head dolls which are very cute.

1. What is the name of your Etsy shop and why did you choose that name?
The name of my shop is Holly Ridge Creations and all I can say is that we live on a ridge that has lots and lots of holly...hmmmm, not so creative, huh?

2. How long have you been on Etsy?
I joined the OFG group in the spring of 2008 but I have to confess that I haven't been very diligent in keeping my shop filled. I am trying really hard to correct that.

3. What type of items do you offer
Most of my items are handpainted and one of a kind. I love doing snowmen and santas and will be adding those to my shop along with more trash to treasure items and gourd head dolls.

4. How long have you been crafting?
I have been crafting since the mid 80's...I know, I'm old!! :-)

5. Who or What inspires you?
I am always inspired by and in awe of God's creation. His color palette amazes me.

6. What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
The favorite thing in my shop right now is my Lily and Jingle Bear primitive doll. But, that will change when I start adding my santas and other holiday items.

7. Other places where you can be found (Ebay, webstore, blog)
http://hollyridgecreations.artfire.com
http://hollyridgecreations.blogspot.com

Let's Share Information!

People all the time pass along websites through my discussion groups. I thought I'd share a few with you today. It's always good when we share information. I will periodically share some with you. Here are several useful tools for the seller I've heard about.  If you have any that are not listed on here, feel free to add them in the comments.

Oh and if you like the button at the top...you can copy it free for use with your Etsy shop from: http://i.ehow.com/images/a05/30/sl/successfully-market-etsy-shop-200X200.jpg  - I've made it clickable so if you click it, it will take you right to my shop on Etsy......


Http://Craftcult.com :  This site makes it ease check shoppe hearts and hearts you’ve received on your items.

Http://Craftopolis.com : Is pretty cool. It searches for any treasuries you might be in. There's also a treasury clock that tells you how long until the next treasuries open up.

Http://Etsyhacks.com : This site has free downloads to make your etsy life a WHOLE lot easier. I use them all the time.

Http://Statsy.org/vutrac.php : Vutrac is a cool tool which allows you track each of your items' views and hearts across periods of time!  You can find your biggest fan (the person who hearts the most items) and you can put your item number in and it tells you what color Etsy thinks it is. This is useful for tagging. AND, you can sign up for notification if one of your items just happen to appear on the front page of Etsy.

Http://soopsee.com - Turns your etsy shop into a website You can import items in your shop to your page. These items can be bought right from your site soapsee. Your blog can also be imported into the page.
Check out the website I made: http://www.soopsee.com/profile/jywheeler/

What's in that Vintage Trunk?

This sweet little snowman is a design by Vintage Keepsake Trunk on Etsy. She's one of my OFG sisters (not the doll, the proprietor Joan Minervini ! LOL)  I love this little guy, all bundled up for winter. He must have known we were about to get a blizzard. He's ready! So grab a cup of java and enjoy Joan's interview. And wile you are at it drop by one of her shops or blogs...you know you don't have anything to do but watch snow fall.....

1. What is the name of your Etsy shop and why did you choose that name?
Vintage Keepsake Trunk - I chose this name because I like the idea of searching and finding an old trunk in the attic and opening it to find vintage time-worn treasures from the olden days.

2. How long have you been on Etsy?
Since March 2009

3. What type of items do you offer?
Primitive Folk Art handmade soft-sculpture offerings featuring Art Dolls, Home Decor, Holiday and Seasonal Decorations and Collectibles, all created with that time-worn look.

4. How long have you been crafting?
35 years

5. Who or What inspires you?
I was inspired as a youth by my Great Aunt and Grandmother that taught me to sew on an old Singer Sewing machine. My crafting really took off when I was injured back in my 30's in an accident and was left in chronic pain and forced to change to a sedentary life style. Creating is Therapy for me and helps me to forget the pain and I thoroughly enjoy it!

6. What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
Probably my Art Dolls. I love to dress them in vintage baby clothes from the 1920's and each of them comes out different with their own personality.

7. Other places where you can be found (Ebay, webstore, blog)
PLACES TO FIND ME.....Home of Vintage Keepsake Trunk.....
http://www.vintagekeepsaketrunk.com

http://vintagekeepsaketrunk.blogspot.com/
http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/vintagekeepsaketrunk
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&seller_id=32731
http://wsoapp-vintagekeepsaketrunk.blogspot.com/
http://vintagekeepsaketrunk-soatp.blogspot.com/
http://www.123websiteservices.com/~craftsho/craftbooth588/index.php?x=99&y=37

Ringin' the Belle!

Another DAWG  Team feature. Today it's Belle. Belle is one of the newer members of the DAWG Team.  She's a talented artist and photographer as well. I was going through her Artfire Shop and my favorite there is Kissing Tulips. Even the title makes me smile. I hope you will enjoy her

1) Tell us about yourself.
Hi my name is Crystal Barton but my mom has always called me Belle. I have been creative since a child and am grateful for my artistic heritage. I recently started creating ACEO (art cards) and am hooked! I still enjoy sketching and making jewelry mostly, but will occasionally paint or etch. I am a stay at home mother of two, registered nurse, wife, and self taught web designer. I love nature, horses, trees, and reading vampire novels.

2) What are your preferred mediums and art scale (miniature, large art, etc)
I recently started creating ACEO (art cards) and am hooked! I still enjoy sketching and making jewelry mostly, but will occasionally paint or etch. ACEO by definition must be 2.5 by 3.5 inches, although I have done smaller images, I rarely go smaller anymore. I tend to sketch in 5X7 or 8X10 sizes when I'm not working on cards. I love sketching celebrities or animals with either pencils or ink..

3) What are your inspirations.
Nature, my family, and my love for the fantastic.

4) Describe your art style.
Loose, free, simple, yet realistic. Honest.

5) Do you do anything other than painting (jewelry, crafts)
Yes, jewelry in all types, some sewing when I am able and invitations or cards.

6) If you blog, what is your blog link.
The Starving Artist's Forum

7) Where do you sell online?
ArtFire
Etsy
eBay: Search ID: cbelle78
Efleaa

8) Are you opened to commission work?
Yes. Always. You can contact me in any of my stores or direct on my website, artbybelle.com

9) What was your favorite piece of work? If you have a photo, include it.

My first tiny sketch. (above) Edward's Indecision.

8) Do you sell in a brick & mortar shop? If so where?
Yes mainly locally in Fair Grove, Missouri.

Winter Snow Reflection

As I look out my window looking at the snow and watching the snow fall I think about the little flakes.

I think about their similarity to the human race. Each one of these little ice crystals are an individual just like us.  No two are alike. They all have something in common though, they have 6 sides. Not all of them are white because of suspended particulates in the atmosphere. Some are large and some are very tiny. Some are slow and some are fast.  Did you know that the Eskimos have 52 words for snow because it's so special to them?  

The prayer for today:

  But you desire honesty from the womb,
      teaching me wisdom even there.
  Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
      wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Psalms 51-6-7

How DOOOO you do that?

I get asked all the time about the process of china painting. I have posted this before on my blog but I'm thinking it would be good to repost. Hope you enjoy it.
 

Here are  some pictures at each stage. Each piece of china is painted and fired in a kiln to a temperature of 1800 degrees multiple times. The paints are a powdered paint pigment that is mixed with various oils.The color must be built up. The paints are actually fired into the glaze making the paints permanent, dishwasher and microwave safe. The technique is the same as used by your grandmother or great grandmother who may have been a china painter.  

This piece was inspired by a beautiful antique postcard.  If you care to look at more china painting, here's the link to the Porcelain Art/China Painting section of my Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/JYWheeler?section_id=5051128

 

  Here's some pictures of how it progresses:
Inspiration Piece
 

 

 

Blank china









Design Sketched In




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 First Fire

 Second Fire




 

 

 

 

 

 

Third and Final Fire-Finished Product

 

 

Shine on Shine on Harvest Moon.....

This little doll screams
Happy Valentine's Day
doesn't it? Welcome to
today's feature
"Harvest Moon Prims"
One of my OFG Sisters. Enjoy the interview.

1. What is the name of your Etsy shop and why did you choose that name?
My Etsy shop is Harvest Moon Prims....Nothing is prettier or more magical in Fall...than a big ole
Orange Harvest Moon....So when I was thinking on a name for etsy...that came to mind...

2. How long have you been on Etsy?
I have been on Etsy for over a year,but illness made me unable to do much with it until recently.

3. What type of items do you offer?
Hand crafted stitchery,prims,and needfuls

4. How long have you been crafting?
For as long as I can remember..but professionally for over 25 years

5. Who or What inspires you?
My Dad who was a wonderful floral designer was my biggest fan,and always was proud of what I created.
Sadly he passed away four years ago,but I know he is smiling down on my saying..I am so proud of you!

6. What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
hummmm...thats a hard one..Usually my sticheries are my fav

7. Other places where you can be found (Ebay, webstore, blog)
I also have a website: http://www.mtswhimsey.com
my blog: http://www.whimseythoughts.blogspot.com
and on ebay under the user name harvest-moonprimitives