How to Add Interest to a Visual Art Blog? Art Surveys, Art News and Art Prints

I've been reading articles on how to gain readership on visual art blogs. Some of the advice seems worthwhile and I thought I'd give it a try. After going to the "Add a Gadget" section for customizing a blog I was overwhelmed with the thousands of gadgets available. I don't want gadgets that are not visual art related or related to kids' art. So I searched for art gadgets - and guess what? There were only 25, not 25,000! So I picked a few (rotating famous art prints, the survey - which I added a few days ago, and a feed for art news), added them and we'll see how it goes. I'd love a comment or two from you, to let me know what you think of my additions. There are at least 17 other art gadgets to choose from so I'll change it up now and then.

I'm thinking I'll have an early summer contest - the prize will be a set of 6 pottery 'word' wine charms. Watch for the start of the contest coming soon. If you leave me a comment or become one of my 'followers' I will put your name in the drawing.

Now, about the new LONG list of labels on my blog...I didn't really understand until today what the labeling process was all about. Now that I do, I'll categorize my posts into several more common ones, so that someone who is looking for a particular subject won't have to scroll through so many labels. My understanding is there isn't a way to get rid of them once they've been used. I'm going to do some more checking on that! I guess they don't hurt anything just by existing!

I'm getting started on some new pottery this week and I'm 'itchin' to start a new weaving, too! I only have two times left with my weekly art students - the year has gone by too quickly! We have a nice day for the kids to work outside - hooray, because we are making a mess!

Mini gourd clock photos

I'm posting more photos of my mini gourd clocks today. I'm hoping to start soon on a new idea I have that will combine my love for felting with ceramics and the images I like of mothers with their children or baby. I'm excited about it, and have been mulling over ideas about how to 'put it all together' for a couple weeks. We'll see how it goes.

We may have our two little granddaughters here for a week or so. That would be fun! We love having them at our house, except it is so quiet and picked up after they leave.

Our Valentine Art Show went well, although none of us sold a thing to anyone who intended it as a gift for their sweetheart. It was really cold that afternoon/early evening, like 20 below zero (F). Maybe we would've had even more traffic had the weather cooperated a bit. We're thinking of trying the same sort of 4-7pm show just before Mother's Day. We had wine leftover so we each took home a bottle!

I picked up my clocks -they'd been showing at the same place since Oct. All my ceramic clocks have sold. Two of the polymer clay clock faces had cracked so that was disappointing. I don't know if I did something wrong when I baked the faces or if the wood base I glued them to shrunk and caused the cracking. I thought the wood was really dry as we'd had it for a couple years. Disappointing but there's a lesson to be learned if I can just figure it out!

Gourd clocks, Valentine's Day Sweetheart Show and Sale

I've finished almost all the mini-gourd clocks...just haven't had time to photograph them. I'm generally really pleased with how they turned out. The one I like best, I just finished. I took the thin skin that usually holds the seeds inside the gourd out, stained it with some thin oil paint and let it dry.

Then I attached a gourd piece to the back of a small round gourd and paper mach'ed the outside of the gourd with the skin. I'm in the process of coating it with poly-acrylic, satin. It is cool, if I may say so myself! I need a few more of the mini-clocks, though. Our only outlet doesn't have any in stock (and hasn't for several weeks). I ordered 15 from Klockit, but should've ordered 20.

I'm helping organize an Art Show and Sale especially for people to shop for their Valentines. A local jewelry store is hosting - we'll serve some wine and snacks from 4-7pm and be there to mingle about. Eight artists are involved and a couple of other retails spots are going to be especially for the event, too. Hopefully, it'll be fun and a rousing success!

Australia

We went to Australia, the movie, not the country (been there, done that!) over the weekend. We all really enjoyed the movie, but I wasn't expecting it to be about Aboriginal people...I thought it was a love story, without kids! Anyway, when we were there a few years ago, we learned a little bit about the past treatment of Aboriginal peoples by white society and the government. It makes me cringe to think how often people all around the world have been and still are, treated as less than human, by the rest of us. And how dare we consider our civilization and way of life as the be all and end all of civilization? We allow our babies to be killed before they are born - how civilized is that? I just don't get it.

I did get some art done this weekend - had 10 kids here to learn a little bit about Salvador Dali (we were at the SD museum in St. Petersburg two years ago - fantastic!). Each child did an acrylic painting of a dream or dreams that they could remember...it was fun!

Our youngest daughter came home, for maybe a month or so. She's been making art in Fargo and is now busy applying to MFA programs across the country. She makes beautiful pots, check her out at amyuthus.com. We both should have shopping carts on our websites in the next week or so. I'm excited for that.

I was fortunate enough to have an etsy mentor look at my etsy shop. She gave me a lot of good suggestions that I'm in the process of implementing. I hope to get a lot more listed throughout this week!

Happy Advent all - may God bless you this week!

Dragon Table Donation - Rescue Mission Silent Auction

I made the decision to donate my Dragon in Suspension Table to the Grand Forks Northlands Rescue Mission for their Silent Auction benefit coming up on Oct. 23. I put a minimum bid on of $200 to cover my expenses. Hopefully, it will bring in more than that as I really believe the Mission's mission is an important one in our community.

The Mission provides support in the way of food and shelter to people who really have no where else to go. The weather is starting to get cold and nasty here in the north country - the mission is warm and safe, with strict rules and help for people to get back on their feet. I give half of my art sales to the Mission - I figure they can put it to good use and it is a way that my God given gifts can benefit others.

Waiting for my art kids to come this afternoon...we are doing take-offs with oil pastels on "The Scream" by Edvard Munch.

What makes me scream? Spiders and centipedes, worms and snakes, deep water and heights, staying alone. Is that everything? It is enough!!!

Landscapes, madonnas & clocks

After an almost - all nighter, I delivered a bunch of new art to the Dakota Harvest Bakery for a mini - show they are having of my work for the next month or so. I also switched out my pottery in the curio there. I'll be displaying tea cups, mugs (large and small), matching pitcher and salt and pepper set and a small herd of buffalo.

On the wall at the bakery, will be five artsy clocks (including three that glo-in-the-dark), several felted landscapes (including a wonderful summer sunset), a felted mother and child wall hanging that I call "Mother's Love", my Creation weaving, a weaving designed to hang in a window that is complete with crystal beads called "Steely Night" and a landscape called "Moonlight on the River". I used metal warp for that one so it is shimmery like the metal trees that I incorporated to embellish the tapestry.

My art kids have been working on a "horse" unit. Hopefully, most of them will finish their paintings this week. They've been practicing drawing horses, and last week concentrated on drawing the head. Most have chosen acrylic paints to use for their finished work, and they are turning out beautifully. We looked at a lot of horses in art as a precursor to the unit. Lots of famous artists have chosen horses as subjects - they are certainly majestic, elegant animals!

Time to pick apples - lots have fallen off the trees already. We plan to make some pies, crumbles and cobblers to put in the freezer to enjoy later this fall and winter. It is great to be able to go to the freezer and get something nummy, but it will be a long day today!

Kelly in Virginia bought my "Is it Wine Time?" ceramic clock this week so it is winging its way to her this weekend. I'm sort of getting into making clocks - both ceramic and with polymer clay - they are fun!

Red buffalo, teacups, jewelry and pottery frames

The red glaze came on Monday evening, and I had the kiln fired up 2 hours later. This morning I opened it to find most of my beads melted onto the kiln shelf. I learned a lot about glazing beads this time around. I wish I didn't have to learn most lessons the hard way...

But, the good news...6 little buffalo, oh, so happily, standing up nice and tall and proud! I love the new glaze - it is a rich dark red, and the feel of it is wonderful, too. I think I'll try it on some mugs and other things next time around. Everything except my jewelry and my biggest bowl came through the firing intact, with no surprises. The biggest bowl has a crack on the foot ring - darn!

I've started working on felting and weaving landscapes inside the new pottery frames...the first one is flax fields, with a river in the middle and a stormy sky. I love the wonderful blue color of flax fields and decided to incorporate it into my landscape. I'm trying to get it finished so I can hang it in at the Dakota Harvest Bakery on Friday (the show will be up until Nov. 17).

Waiting for a glaze...

I ordered a new Cone 6 glaze last week and was really hoping it wouldn't take the week to arrive that the salesperson said it would...but today it has been a week. It is a red shino and I ordered it especially for my little buffalo. Everything else is glazed and sitting in the kiln, so I should be able to fire the kiln up an hour or two after receiving the glaze.

Tomorrow I'm taking some art to the Dakota Harvest Bakery. It will be in a mini-show for about 6 weeks...including the next and last Art & Wine Walk for this season. I made two new clock faces last night, with Sculpey clay so I need to pick up the clock mechanisms for those today. Hard to think that it has been 6 weeks since the Art & Wine Walks for this season started. Time marches on too quickly!

I'm working on a large felted madonna. So far the basic design is complete - the mother and her child are on the background felt. Next I'm going to either felt some shiny fibers on top, or sew them on, but I'm having trouble deciding which colors to use. I hate taking things apart so I'm trying to make the right decision from the beginning. I didn't weave a basic structure first for this one and it has worked out well, except my felting brush is so small that I'm constantly moving it. I could use a large piece of thick foam but I really like using the brush instead.

I'm hoping to post some photos this week of my new glaze and my new madonna!

New Pottery - bison, cups, teacups, frames, jewelry

The kiln is firing - it is mostly full of my porcelain stuff, although there are a few pieces of my students' in there, too, and a few pieces of my stoneware. It will be fun to decide what colors to use on the cups and teacups, bowls and platter, frames for new weaving/felting projects and jewelry.

I haven't done jewelry for a long time, but was reminded how much I enjoy making it when I was in Bismarck for the street fair in August. I borrowed a necklace that I'd made as a student and given to my mom...and I received a lot of compliments on it that day. Since I have the setup to fire glazed beads I thought I should make some for fall/holiday shows. I'm excited to be working on small things!

Today I finished three felted landscapes that I created inside pottery frames that I made and had in my last firing. I really like how they turned out, as they reflect the rural landscape in which I live - fields of gold and green!

The tea cups have a place, opposite the handle, to drop the tea bag when you are finished brewing your tea. You don't have to carry a separate tea bag plate to your desk or easy chair - whatever is your favorite place for a tuppa tea!

A small herd of bison is in the kiln, too - fun to think about how to glaze those...none will be pink, that much I know! I especially love the metallic glazes that I have, and the satin white for the albino bison.

Two large bowls and a platter are also in the kiln - if they survive firing without cracking, I'll glaze those in creams and browns.

November 15, I've been invited to participate in a local holiday show. It will be fun, is a one day event so it doesn't consume the entire weekend - which is good, because I'm teaching about Egyptian art that weekend in my home studio!

Lample II is finished - recycled art

Lample II is finished!

I love how it turned out...the barn wood, diamond willow and the recycled globe came together nicely. I finally had a use for 10 pieces of turquoise that I bought in New Mexico about 15 years ago. I bought them for a future project and really didn't think the future project would be 15 years down the road. But the turquoise matched the paint I used on the globe and fit nicely into the center of the diamonds in the willow trunks. I used glass amber nuggets in some of the diamonds, and left some of the diamonds unadorned.

I 'printed' leaves on the globe in turquoise and amber by painting on real leaves and them pressing them to the glass globe. The colors look nice individually and where they overlap , too. I bought a cut glass light bulb and that adds interest, too, when the light is turned on.

I debated on how best to finish the reclaimed wood and finally decided on Watco's Danish Oil. It seeps into the pores, so the wood is preserved, but doesn't add color or sheen, like varnish does, so the 'history' of the wood is retained. I love that!

My husband did an awesome job wiring the lample and putting the pieces together. It was fun to show the lamples at the Art and Wine Walk today - and fun to hear people's positive comments on them.

Red Lamp + Table = "Lample" is Finished!

It's finished! Our first "lample" is a bright, cheery apple red with white legs and trimmings. The lamp globle is painted with red stripes, yellow and blue spirals and dots. I think it looks cute and it is definitely unique! I'll be bringing it to show at the Art & Wine Walk downtown this Saturday. My art kids really like it and I hope it inspires them to some art inventions of their own! It is especially pleasing to me because this white globe was destined for the landfill and now has a bright, new life!

I continue to work on the second lample - the one with the diamond willow branch legs and barnwood top and shelf. It was disgusting work cleaning the barnwood of bird poop, spider webs, bugs and other accumulated dirt gathering for 100 years. I used a good brush and wore gloves, otherwise I couldn't quite get myself to touch it! Yuk! But it did clean up beautifully and Eric, my husband, has pieces cut and glued for the table top and shelf. I'll coat those with satin finish polyurethane so they'll withstand use.

I need to get outside to get 3 more willow branches stripped. I'll be using tung oil to finish those - I tried it on a small branch and like how rich it looks. Hopefully, this lample will be done for Saturday, too!

Table + Lamp = 'Lample' and Art + 'Lample' = Cool!

"Lample" - a new word I invented for my lamp and table combination! The first one, with primary colors and apple red, glossy shelves, is nearly finished. It only needs some tape removed and the cord moved and I'll be posting a photo. I'm happy with how it turned out - the light looks wonderful and it is cheery and bright - a fun addition to lots of different spaces.

I've started working on the second lample, too. I painted the globe yesterday with turquoise and amber leaves and it's very pretty, especially when lit up. I'm debating whether to make this lample coffee table height or end table height, like the first one. I know I'll have to make two, so I can do one of each! That will leave me 4 donated globes to think and dream about.

This morning I got out the wood rasps and scraped on the diamond willow until I got most of the dirt off and a small start on removing the bark. I don't think I will scrape it down to the hard wood every where because I like the roughness and the color of the under bark layer. It is a nice contrast to the hard wood, which is very light in color. I'm planning to leave the inside of the diamonds darker, too, so they show up better. Or maybe I should clean it all the way to the hard wood and apply an amber colored stain. Hmm, too many options! I'm posting a photo here of the branch/trunk I'm working on so you can see what diamond willow looks like. It is all very fun and interesting to think about - and very different from pottery so it's a wonderful change of pace.

Speaking of pottery, I really want to get another herd of buffalo in the kiln, along with some mugs, tubers (vases with tubes in the middle to hold up flower stems - the tubes have holes in the bottoms so the flowers can drink from the bowl, or whatever shape I make the pot), and soap dishes...so much to do!

Light globe and glass paint yields visual art!

The donated glass globe painted up beautifully and came out of the oven with narry a crack! Hooray! Now I'm busy getting the wood table top and middle shelf primed - they will be painted a bright red. The legs and additional fittings will be white PVC pipe and caps - I think they will look sort of industrial, bright and cheery against the red wood shelves. My husband, Eric, is helping me with some of this project, so I am grateful for that. I can't wait for it to be done, and all lit up, hopefully in time for the Art & Wine Walk on Sept. 20. I'd really like to get another one done, too - one with copper legs and barnwood shelves (I'm going to my sister's farm this weekend and hopefully will be able to scavenge some from her!) and celadon and copper frosted on the glass globe...visual art made from recycled stuff. I'd like to do another one with driftwood - too bad there are no oceans nearby! I've been trying to list items on sell-arts.com and have had so much trouble. I'm really lousy with computer stuff and lose my patience with it quickly. There are so many other things I'd like to do with my time than sit at the computer! I started on a new herd of pottery buffalo this morning, got two mom and two babies finished so they can dry over the weekend.

Recycling glass globes - trash to art

A new work week - with one less day! I'm so excited because my pottery students start the fall session today. It seems like a long time since I've had the little ones in my studio. We are making plaques and learning about decorative patterns today. One new student is starting, along with the kids I had last year. One of my friends, Lyle, came over before the Labor Day holiday with 7 white glass globes for light fixtures. His business was going to throw them out, but he thought I might like to have them - thinking maybe I could do a trash-to-treasure thing with them. I'm excited to give it a try! I plan to paint them, then make a ceramic base or maybe a wood/ceramic base to hold the globe upright, with a light inside. We'll see how the experiment turns out. If it works as the dream in my head is pictured, I'll post a photo here. Of course, it'll be for sale! I've never used glass paints but when we were in Ojai, California last winter I saw some beautiful painted glass art objects in several of the art galleries there. I am hoping to get my summer students' pottery clear glazed and in the kiln this morning. Every thing came out of the bisque kiln without cracks and still standing - even all the little dinosaurs from a recent boy's birthday party, so I was happy with the firing. Time to get the day started!