I'm not much for blogging. Although I want to start composing more thoughtful blogs. For now I'm just posting Etsy mini to share what I do. I've been making jewelry since 1999. And for the most part it's been a hobby, but hopefully I'll be able to push it into a business. Right now I'm working part time to support myself, and making the jewelry on the side. I've been able to make the move from full time down to part time, maybe someday I can let go of the cooperate job scene all together. My new part time job is giving me the resources and the time to work on the online portion of this much more, and I hope to be able to post some how to blogs. (similar to the "where do paintings come from" blog but with chain mail). :) Keep checking back.

Etsy Buy Handmade jasonsjewelry

Thanks,
Jasons Jewelry
http://www.jasonsjewelry.etsy.com

Introducing Beer Soap!!!

I wish I was the genius that invented the beer soap Idea. Many before me and many after will come and create this sort of Soap.

The recipe Is my own and I feel the release date is perfect! I mean football season Is right around the corner. I wanted to attract all varieties of people so I used a classic classy sort of beer Guinness a nice dark stout!

I also will be releasing a Samuel Adams beer soap in the coming weeks for the people who prefer a good Boston Lager.

I do not only offer beer soap I have plethora of scents and styles in my etsy shop a little bit of everything for everyone. Here is a taste of the shop- Dennis Anderson on Etsy.
Come on by and spoil yourself!

A Guy Making Jewelry

I’m a guy making jewelry and that puts me in the minority. I’m aware of this disadvantage, so I frequently ask my wife’s opinion. While all of the design ideas in my Etsy shop, Wired, are mine, some of them have been influenced by her. I have also made some jewelry specifically for her where we have collaborated on the design (here’s an example).





My latest creation is this Budding Branches bracelet. It fulfilled a desire of mine to work with Irish waxed linen. I already had the design in mind so when I got the cord in the mail yesterday, I started creating it right away. I made some adjustments to the design along the way as I got a feel for the piece.







One design I’ve created again and again are these bird’s nest brooches. I use different types of wire, from copper, to steel, to brass, and I like giving each one a unique design element. The flowers and the butterfly are made of Lucite. Czech glass leaves and Swarovski pearls and crystals spruce it up. These have been popular internationally, with sales to England, Canada, Singapore, Korea, and the United States. You can read more about this one here and if you have a good name for it, leave a comment in this blog entry. I’m stumped.

Three Generations of Etsy!

I have never been a blogger before and I am not much of a writer, but I feel compelled to get involved here. When I write I usually have a difficult time staying on track and tend to ramble quite a bit. I will do my best to make this a posting succinct so that it does not put you to sleep. My name is Thom and I am a member of MoE (Somehow this sounds like something that you would expect to hear in a twelve step program) Please feel free to say whatever it is that the audience says at this point!


I asked Deb what kind of stuff she wanted us to write about for this blog and she suggested we keep it to discussions about art and Etsy, so here we go. There are three generations of my family with Etsy shops right now, and I think that may be kind of unique, so let me introduce some of my family members to you. My father is PapaZozo of PapaZozo.etsy.com and my daughter is CK of ck1sizzle.etsy.com; stick me in the middle there, tnkerr.etsy.com, and you have the three generations that I mentioned earlier in this mad diatribe of a blog posting.


PapaZozo has had his work exhibited publicly so many times and in so many places that I doubt even he could name them all. His work has shown and sold all over the USA and internationally. He has been featured in newspapers and periodicals and shown in galleries as well as private shows. He is a former art professor who has worked throughout the southwest, paints China in vivid colors and metallic gold. His works include individual pieces as well as entire place settings and painted tile furniture. For some reason he does not seem to be too popular on Etsy! Not sure why, he has made a living from art for more than 60 years and you can’t do this without an abundance of talent.


My daughter is a working single mom with an infallible eye for color and composition, she is a talented seamstress and crafter – most of her Etsy shop offerings will reflect and reinforce this. In addition to being a single mom she has a full time day job and fits in her art as circumstances allow. She cannot pass the physical for membership in MoE but she is definitely a friend of MoE and always seeks out and supports MoE treasuries, contributing in her own small, yet significant and ‘anonymous’ way.


My work has been influenced by so many sources that it seems inconsistent, even to me. When I was a child I worked in clay, acrylic and oil paints, wood, paper and other traditional media, finally settling on wood. Until recently, I worked exclusively in wood - making furniture, toys, sculptures, and the occasional assorted other things. Over the last year or so I have been experimenting with tile and china painting. My father is, after all, an authority on these things so I began paying more attention to how he did them and then I took it up myself. I already had the tools and materials so, why not?


I come from a family of artists, even though a lot of us are in denial about it. Both of my parents are artists and art was just part of growing up. My mother was a painter, a potter and a weaver. She is not active in art now due to health issues. My father, mentioned above, is a painter (primarily working in porcelain art these days - he is still an active artist). Both were art educators and for a time my dad had a gallery that featured / promoted artists from Central America and the Southwestern US.


My wife is also a talented potter (with no Etsy shop), and my other daughter seems unable to settle on a single form of artistic expression, continuously experimenting in whatever medium is convenient and accessible at the time. I am leaving out the siblings and siblings in law because it would become way too confusing for you, dear reader, and perhaps they can be the subjects of subsequent posts…or perhaps not!

We are a somewhat dysfunctional extended family filled with a lot of talented, pseudo-talented, and untalented individuals. We are China Painters, Ceramicists, Furniture Makers, Mosaic Artists, Gardeners, Upholsterers, Tailors, and Sculptors (just to scratch the surface). In general terms, it is safe to say that we are not musicians! We are Adventurers and Couch Potatoes. We are widely dispersed sometimes and sometimes in close geographic proximity. We are like many other families. We are unique. Yet we are just like most of your families. “A Little Bit of Everything”


Isn’t life grand? The photos associated with this posting are representative of work attributable to me and my immediate family. Hope you enjoy and please visit our Etsy shops.

Bigger Boxes

My gorgeous lady fan suggested a long time ago that my boxes might do better if they were bigger, for all the jewelry people out there. Then I received a few inquiries about making bigger boxes, so I figured I'd better listen up. I'll be putting more up soon.

Click to visit Dingo on Etsy




Yeah, I'm a man-crafter. You got a problem with that?

IndiePublic.com

IndiePublic.com is the new social networking site of independent artists, designers, bloggers, retailers, shoppers.


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Etsy - all things handmade and then some

Fern Leaf Stationery

This set of stationery is listed in my Etsy store. 10 sheets are printed on heavy matte paper with 5 envelopes. The envelopes are plain white, business size envelopes. (A-10 maybe?)

Paper size- 8 1/2 x 11 inches.

Reproduced from a painting on canvas. The word stationery doesn't actually appear on the paper.
Click here to go to the item.

Where Do Paintings Come from?

Prepare to become a painting!

Laying down some pencil outlines and undercoats.

Adding the detail.

Ta-daa! A finished painting.

...

Killtaupe's Etsy Shop- Click here

Men of Etsy's newest Featured Artist

Our newest featured artist is none other than Dr.Andy Mathis.He is an artist as well as a veterinarian. Andy creates stunning works in watercolor and has been known to save the day of a distraught pet owner sending out cries of help in the Etsy fora.





















Andy is also incredibly knowledgeable on many levels and has been an awesome help to this author on creative issues.I feel very honored to get this interview with Dr.Andy,though we see him frequently in the Etsy forums,he remains a bit mysterious,not disclosing many private details...must be the reason he is on the "Etsy's Most Crushed On"list!So, ladies,this ones for you!!
















Tell us a bit about your background,where you live,schools,anything else you'd like us to know.
Born and raised in Georgia. South Georgia actually, a small town called Enigma.
Like most families back then, we farmed. Some crop farming, then mostly growing corn and sorghrum to feed livestock. I was always around cows, horses, dogs, cats. I remember being asked in 5th grade what I wanted to be when I grew up, and the answer was a veterinarian. Human medicine never really appealed to me. I think the appeal of one over the other, was helping those who can't help themselves.

I attended ABAC (Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College) and the University of Georgia.

Now, I live in North Georgia, a little out from Athens. (GO DAWGS!)

How did you get interested in art?
I was always crafty as a child. I loved the number 9 book of the Childcraft edition we had. Then there was making posters in school for 4-H projects and such.
I did win a poster contest in the 5th grade for the Atlanta Ballet. The prize- $10.

I took a watercolor class a year or two after completing Vet school. That's when I really got the bug. From there, I did a few outdoor art shows to show and sell my work. I had a painting that was selected for the poster of the 1999 Atlanta Dogwood Festival Poster. Then I started reproducing my work and exhibiting at wholesale trade shows, such as Decor and ArtExpo. In 2005, I added art licensing into the mix, and began exhibiting at Surtex.

What are your favorite mediums?subject matters?
I love watercolor and how it's transparent, luminous, and the way the colors bleed together. Other mediums can do this too- egg tempera, fluid acrylics. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. I think I also like watercolor as it is the most technically challenging in that you can't correct any mistakes as you can with opaque mediums.

Subjects vary- I really like "sunlight and shadows" and it doesn't matter if it is florals, still lifes, faces, or pets. As I work slowly and through multiple sessions, I have to use reference photos, and it's easier to get those photos of florals and still lifes.

Do you use special processes or tools?
Nothing unusual- paint,a brush, various watercolor paper, yupo, or textured clayboard.
sometimes an airbrush.

What are your inspirations?
Sunlight and how it makes objects glow- faces, objects, florals.

How long have you been selling on Etsy?
I think I started listing things on Etsy in March 2006.

How has Etsy impacted your success as an artist?
I've sold a few things that probably wouldn't have sold otherwise.
Etsy really isn't designed to sell artwork- the categories run together or aren't available, you can't search by medium, subject matter, or price.

what are your favorite things about Etsy?
Cool Etsians, of course.

If you had to choose between being a Vet or an artist which would you choose?(you can't have both)
A Vet, I'm sure. I would find some other creative outlet if not for painting. My grandmother did teach me how to crochet a square in the 2nd grade. and then Macrame in the 6th grade.

What advice would you give to young artists or those just starting out as artists?
Listen to the little voices in your head. No, not those Voices! The ones that have to do with artistic decisions. When you first start painting or creating, your work will emulate others or the teacher. Over time, your look develops based on the decisions you make. Painting is a bit like handwriting, everyone has a individual look and voice about their work.

Each painting must exist to grow as an artists. When you look at artists work that you admire today, if you get a chance, or source, look at their earlier work. You can see improvement and growth.

What are your goals for future artistic endeavors?
To find more time to paint, rather than read the forums every 10 minutes.

What would you like to see Men of Etsy team do in the future?ideas for the team?
I think you are doing just fine keeping the "Man Harem" in order.



Where we can find you~blogs,websites,Etsy address,myspace,facebook,livejournal,flickr and anywhere else we can find you or your work!
I try to condense and link sites so that I don't have so many to try and maintain.
My website- andymathis.com
blog- andymathis.blogspot.com
etsy- andymathis.etsy.com
store- andymathis.ecrater.com
Ruby Lane -rubylane.com/shops/andymathis