I love Christmas shopping online! Online shopping is sooo much easier than all those lines, the horrible traffic, and then your feet hurt! What I like the most is shopping on Etsy. What a wonderful way to give a gift, handmade or vintage antique-from a person and not a big corporation. I bought my brother some collectible BIG Little books from an awesome Etsian shoppe. He loved them!
Here are some great shops to look at:
StockingsOrnamentsKidsVintageCandles20% OFF

I hope you can visit your local art Galleries for last minute gifts.

Student Art Shows

As a faculty art instructor, the most exciting event in our school year, is the preparation for the student art show. Not all schools require participation in an art show, but they should! The art show is the culmination of everything a student has learned, or not:) How exciting for students to see their art hung in a show, have their loved ones see the show, and their friends see the show. If you are invited to see a student art show, you should honor the request and take a few minutes out of your day to see the artwork. Consider it the concert of an art student!

This fall, a past student of mine was killed in a car accident. His artwork sat in my classroom. When his family arrived to pick up his art, many tears flowed. His memory lingers on in that box of pottery mugs that he made, leftover from the art show he participated in. A box of pottery. We never know what the future holds.

So I leave now, in the midst of preparation of another student art show. I will unload kilns tomorrow and reload them on my day off, because I'm indeed committed to the student art show. I want to see their smiling faces, the proud parent hugs, the handshakes of a job well done, the certificates of awards, and the joy of knowing that each student did their very best. What a great job I have! 

Renewing the Spirit

Art. Artiste. Artists. The journey we travel is a path to begin adventurers. Recent events this summer have included some soul searching about life. If you had one day left on earth, what would you do? If you could only make one more creation, what would it be? I would make a ring. Circles complete life cycles. Rings are the essentials of completeness. A stone set in the middle would give the ring balance and a Sapphire would be my choice. The bezel would be complex and ornate with lots of negative space. When I retire, I want to make a ring a day for 99 days. So I'm curious, what would you create if you only could make one more creation?

My newest artworks are an homage to a dear friend of mine who left the earth this summer. Memories keep the spirit new. I'm thankful for the artist training that my jewelry instructor, Martin Drexel spoke of while teaching metalsmithing at the Oregon College of Art and Craft. (The college is set in the hills of Portland and offer great classes!) He often mentioned that memories and metal are kindred spirits. Together, they can weave into a creation, that when worn, enables the wearer to be inspired. The viewer, is the spectator, and can appreciate the beauty. So with the tools in hand, I'm creating doves. My doves will be from clay and then incorporated into metal work. I'll post some photos when I'm done:) For my Chicagoland friends, gifts from the heart to bind the spirit:) I hope you have the opportunity to create an homage artwork for a dear friend:)

Creating Treasures

I've had so much fun this summer creating new items and have discovered a few new metals to work with that I haven't explored before, steel and tin. WOW! These metals are great for metalsmithing techniques and offer more toys to play with. You might be able to relate by comparing the film camera with digital. Digital has relatively no expense when taking a photo but film would cost about a quarter for each photo. Now your not going to play much when your throwing quarters around. You don't play much when using Sterling Silver either, at least not with the current prices but wait until you play with tin! I encourage you to try it!

This month, I'm featured as the Box Factory Artist of the month! The Box Factory is an awesome old building with vintage decor and wonderful old brick throughout. Over 40 artists have studios, most are working studios, some are for writers who offer classes to inspire and encourage fellow artists. We offer three galleries for artists and have the most incredible leader, Ali Hansen. If your thinking of having an art gallery in your area, Ali offers instrumental advise. Her enthusiasm is contagious and she even has time to work on her own artwork! Here's a link to the webpage.

Journals and Book Making

Journals are a great way to protect memories! I'm experimenting with different types of journals created from fimo clay, stoneware, sterling silver, and copper journals. Creating these books is inspiring.

I'm working with handmade papers, vintage papers, and adding watercolor papers to the journals. Going to my favorite antique store has lead me to discover unique and interesting books to alter, from prose to art history books. I bring the cool ones home and cut out poems, save pages, and photos. My collection is growing and includes an awesome poetry dictionary from 1870.


I'm wondering who else is enjoying journaling? I love writing and jotting down art ideas in my journals. Oh yes, and I always carry a journal to jot down ideas! Do you carry a journal? Is it handmade?