Advent Calendars

I'm sorry that I've been absent from my blog these last 3 weeks! All I've been doing is working on ten new advent calendars.  I just couldn't see that getting on just to tell you that that's all I've been doing would be very inspiring!  I thought I'd finally get back to you today to report that they are here.  When they're finished, they actually feel like they're worth all the effort, but making 10 in a row, assembly-line style doesn't show results till the very end--it was hard to not get bored and stay inspired. (Click on the photo for a closer-up view.)

If you're interested in buying one, please see my Etsy shop!  Believe me, they are even better in person. :)

As an artist, I'm already thinking Christmas!  It is a strange thing to prepare for such a thing in October.

My "Other" Life

You know I love being at my art table.  Love it.  Period.  And yet, my "other life" (like "the other woman") takes over sometimes.  I found myself having to look at my archives for something to post today, because it feels like it has been ages since I've made something significant enough to show you.  These are cards I made recently, but still, nothing this week.  Sigh!

The card above was made for a dear colleague on occasion of her retirement, and I have to say, it's one of my favorites of all the let's-combine-scraps-in the-right-order-to-make-something-aesthetically-pleasing cards I've made in this Denise Schmidt fashion.

 

I particularly like that I elaborated on the theme for this birthday card for my step-mom in the message I wrote inside.  Things like, "You deserve to stop that negative self-talk," "You deserve to eat an entire bowl of strawberries," and "You deserve to have kindness in your life."  

And this was a variation on a theme from the bat card I showed you a couple weeks ago.  It is more vibrant and contrasting when you look at it in person, but at least this photo gives you an idea of it.

My friend Brittany emailed me saying that Advent Calendars are "hot" this year.  That's what I've been working on in my limited art time these days, especially as the one I've got on Etsy has received hundreds of hits (people looking but not buying).  I definitely need to post more on there.

A small celebration: I sold the giraffe bike band to a stranger on Etsy last week!!!  Special thanks my new Sunnyvale, CA customer!