99th post: Professional Development & GIVEAWAY!

This week, I met Kelly Kilmer, a mixed-media journal artist who I've known about for years.  She led a class at the Artist's Nook called "Pen Work" and I attended and had a lot of fun.  Here are the three collages I made in just under 2 hours.

If you click on them for a closer view, you'll see the details better.  Starting with the first collage, Kelly challenged us to "be different" with our writing.  Use different kinds of styles, including script, capitals, tiny, big, thin, thick.  She had about one million pens that we could try out.  She provided instructions all throughout, which I liked, about writing, techniques, just new ways of using pens.  I didn't have to think about design, which for me takes a lot of time.  She had designed a layout, and we interpreted her design in our own ways.

The third one was certainly the most different for all of us.  Kelly said, "For this one, you'll need a face.  One that takes up most of the page!"  I've had an Anthropologie catalog in my stash for years that had the two ladies on the cover, so it was fun to use it in this new way.  Kelly instructed us to journal on the faces (!) in small writing, and doodle.  The best part:  that it didn't have to be perfect, or that it was ok to write "I don't know what to write" if we couldn't think of what to write.  At one point, Kelly mentioned that she hates how art journaling has developed a reputation in the magazine world that it has to be perfect, and it's not any good if it isn't.  That isn't what journaling or being expressive is about at all.  It is just about creating.  Making mistakes, or doing things to experiment, help us learn.  Kelly's instructions and encouragement really made me feel free.  It helped me open up and not worry about the details so much.  It was a lot of fun.

The winner of last week's giveaway: Steve-o!  Steve-o won by liking me on Facebook.  :)

This week's giveaway is a famous HLM bike band!  You can buy 'em for sale on my etsy or in a couple of Fort Collins shops, or you can win one right here.  They are great for protecting that pant leg when you're riding around town to your next destination.  Here are some examples of what I've got in stock:

To enter this week's giveaway drawing, you can do one or more of these things:

1.) I re-opened my "Up-cycled Envelopes" poll to the right because I need more input!  Fill it out and leave a comment below saying you participated (you can just type "I voted!"--otherwise I don't know who fills out the poll).

2.) Like Parsley Art Studio on Facebook!  (Anyone new since August 3 will be entered.)

3.) Tell your friends!  For anyone who either leaves a comment (and tells me you sent them) and/or becomes a follower, you get another entry.

4.) Leave a comment saying where you might next take a bike ride to.

Anyone can enter--I'll send a bike band anywhere in the world.  This drawing will close at midnight (mountain time) on Tuesday, August 9, and I'll announce the winner in my next post. 

Next week will be my 100th post, and you will NOT want to miss out on that one!  Come back again to see what I mean!

98th Post: New/Old Projects & GIVEAWAY!

Sorry for the week-long delay this time around!  (I've had company.)  Here are some more cards I made for some favorite peeps, once again out of the collage I made here. (Remember to click on the image for a better view.)

Today, I am making a few more cards, but more than anything I am hoping to get to this project.  I started this painting about 2 years ago, and once I got it to this stage, I put it away, uninspired.  My style has developed since then, and when I was forced to bring it out into the light a couple weeks ago, I hung it up and was able to see it with fresh eyes.  I can't wait to get going on it again.  I think it will look much different later on.  Of course, you will get to see the final product when it happens!

Finally, the winner of the last blog giveaway was Kyran!  Thanks for liking me on Facebook, Kyran!

This week, I am giving away 10 handmade envelopes.  Many of you know that I have made envelopes out of old calendars for years.  I blogged about it awhile ago, here.  I am planning to share a booth at a craft fair in August in Aurora, and am considering selling these.  

To enter this week's giveaway drawing, you can do one or more of these things:

1.) Fill out my "Up-cycled Envelopes" poll to the right and leave a comment below saying you participated (along with anything else you'd like to say).

2.) Like Parsley Art Studio on Facebook!  (Anyone new since July 19 will be entered.)

3.) Tell your friends!  For anyone who either leaves a comment (and tells me you sent them) and/or becomes a follower, you get another entry.

Anyone can enter--I'll send this set of cards anywhere in the world and include envelopes for each card.  This drawing will close at midnight (mountain time) on Tuesday, August 2, and I'll announce the winner in my next post.  Remember to come back next week for another giveaway (one each week through my 100th post), and good luck!

97th Post: Pretty Ice Pack Holder & GIVEAWAY

What is it, you ask?  Well, holding ice to your body is never very fun.  Aside from the dripping bag (have you noticed even brand new ziplocs leak?), I find that it is simply uncomfortable to hold the ice pack--your hand gets cold and you're sometimes having to perform body contortions.  Plus, every time you move, the ice pack falls out of place.  Having a need to ice my lower back fairly regularly in the last few weeks led me to design this beaut.  Here's how it looks tied on (notice my hands are nowhere near the ice pack!):

I've experimented and determined that it can be tied to almost any part of your body.  The ice pack simply slides into the pocket at the back:

Close up of the tie--just a simple knot.

I think I might try to sell these on Etsy.  They are quick to make, and I think some people might like the idea that they are certainly nicer to look at than some other products out there (including the wet ziploc).  

Thank you to all of you who became followers or left a comment after last week's post!  I made a list of each person's entry based on when you commented or became a follower (or emailed me when there was one day that blogger seemed to be having issues).  I used on online random number generator and it picked Phuong as the winner!  Congratulations, Phuong!

For this week's giveaway, I've made a set of mini cards from the paper I wrote about in post #95.  The photo makes them look larger than they are;  the tallest card (middle) is about 4" tall.  Click on the photo if you want a closer view.

To win this week, you can once again do multiple things (though some are different from last week):

1.) Leave a comment on this post!  Any feedback you can give on the ice pack holder would be particularly appreciated.

2.) Like Parsley Art Studio on Facebook!

3.) Tell your friends!  For anyone who either leaves a comment (and tells me you sent them) and/or becomes a follower, you get another entry.

Anyone can enter--I'll send this set of cards anywhere in the world and include envelopes for each card.  This drawing will close at midnight (mountain time) on Tuesday, July 19, and I'll announce the winner in my next post.  Remember to come back next week for another giveaway (one each week through my 100th post), and good luck!

96th Post: Pop-up Card Story & GIVEAWAY!

As promised, here is the story of the pop-up card I made for the 2011 Six Degrees of HLM International Card Swap!  The idea came to me a few years ago--I wanted a challenge, and to learn about pop-ups.  I borrowed some lackluster books on the subject from the library and scrutinized another couple of pop-up cards I'd received and kept from over the years.  Then this February, I attended a friend's art night one wintery Thursday evening and developed this prototype (remember to click once on each photo for a closer view):

It didn't close properly, and the measurements were far from exact, but it worked, and it helped me to develop my design for the final card.  So I began cutting out or creating the various components.  Roads, buildings, trees, suns, lakes, sailboats, the grassy forefront, the blue sky, and fluffy clouds.  Not to mention the base of the card, made of black cardstock.

Then I began to assemble.

I knew that I wanted it to be not only a pop-up scene but also an actual card, where a message could be written without obstructing the view (haha!).  So I designed this tri-fold cover for the card.  You'd unwind the string from the button, unfold the top flap to reveal the message first, then carry on unfolding to reveal the surprise that is the cityscape.

To hold the card open for display, you can fold the top flap back and re-tie it to the button.

Here is some detail:

And so, in honor of my approaching 100th post, I am offering you a chance to win one of these most excellent cards.  If I were to try to sell this card, I'd have to charge some exuberant amount of money for the time it took to make it. So I'd rather not bother, and instead I'd like to make your day!

To enter your name for the giveaway, there are many things you can do. The more you do, the more times your name will be entered into the drawing:

1.) Simply leave a comment on this post. (For instructions, see right.)

2.) For an additional entry, become a follower of my blog!  (Click on the Follow button to the right, right below my contact email.)

3.) Tell your friends!  For anyone who either leaves a comment (and tells me you sent them) and/or becomes a follower, you get another entry. 

4.) If you live nearby, signing up for one of my classes (click here to learn more) gets your name entered into the drawing two more times.

Anyone can enter--I'll send this card anywhere in the world and include an envelope.  This drawing will close at midnight (mountain time) on Tuesday, July 12, and I'll announce the winner in my next post.  Remember to come back next week for another giveaway (one each week through my 100th post), and good luck!

(Special thanks goes to my photographer sister Ashley for taking these fabulous photos! To see more of her work, click here.)

"Handmade" Paper & 95th Post

Hey there art fans!  In my last post, I mentioned making "my own" paper, and I wanted to show you what I meant.  I got this idea straight from someone else,  and despite being skeptical throughout the process of making it, I think the final product is brilliant  The three little ones on the right are how I took last week's paper to the next step, having taped over the edges to make a frame and then painted.  I don't know exactly how these will turn out, but have no doubt that you'll see it here for sure.  The big one on the left I made today, with a different matte-finish 

glue--which actually didn't work as well as the first one, with straight-up Elmer's.  

I know the idea comes from an artist who was featured in a recent issue of Cloth, Paper, Scissors, but I unfortunately don't know who (I only had a chance to glance at the article).  The technique involves tearing up papers that look good together into strips, then gluing them down to a smooth piece of plastic (like a thin, malleable cutting board) with a brush.  First, brush glue on the plastic, then lay down a strip, then brush glue over the top.  Continue until the whole plastic sheet is covered, then leave to dry completely.  Once dry, peel the whole thing off the plastic and there you have it!

Today marks my 95th post, which means that I'm five away from 100!  Wow.  I'm amazed to have carried on this long.  So, to celebrate, starting next week I plan to give something away every week to a randomly selected reader.  Please come back weekly for the next 5 weeks (I post on Wednesday or Thursday) to find out what's on offer and how to win.