Musical Monday plus Oddz & Endz

Still listening to Goyte this week.  

New postcard. Giving PrintRunner.com a first go at these. They are also reprinting some older cards - I'll let you know how they come out.

5 x 7 postcard

Tomorrow there is paint stripping, acid spraying & other messy stuff - woo hoo -  should go well with the new Marilyn Manson. I'm playing with some (slightly) dark fairy tale stuff this week which will be aided by his blaring tunes. 

Assorted tinkerings are under wraps just now, but I'll share soon.  In the meantime here I am, as a last minute-Hephaestus with my buddy Zeus. Not exactly flattering - we were jumped by the local paparazzi while preparing for last week's book launch. 

What have you been up to lately? Seems like the family & I spent most of April in the garden - very refreshing! Now we are enjoying the fruits, veg. & herbs of our labors. Pinterest has been a great help for reorganizing my recipe clippings - I'm even making some of the saved dishes, instead of forgetting about them like I did when they were in the magazines. 

Well, have to run. Need to tuck a kid back into bed (again) & off to catch a couple of episodes of  Lilyhammer before the day is out. Take care. Have a fantastic week! Will catch up again soon.

All Hail Zeus (& friends)

The Mighty Zeus

Congratulations to Mrs Hobby's class on their self-publication of Mythology Adventures! The kids wrote & illustrated their own Greek Myths. Cover art by the Dude, I mean, Zeus. It was a fun book release party with a well-dressed Greek Pantheon present.

Somebody That I Used To Know

Goyte - Somebody that I used to know from Making Mirrors

Can't.... stop... playing.... this .... album .....

I've been destashing like crazy lately. Turns out Goyte makes perfectly cathartic decluttering music. If you like listening to this fellow, there are some fantastic mixes to take im  at this link. Should you click through, be sure to play the Dan Aux Remix. 

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

Illustration Friday - Heights

1987 doodle - recycled for IF

Deep into the studio de-stash this week, so no time for a new IllustrationFriday doodle. This week's  prompt is "heights". Here is a scribble from a comics class (I mostly slept through) in 1987. wow -  amazing how much life has happened since then. Be sure to visit the IF site to check out some more interesting interpretations of the challenge. If you are feeling inspired, grab some paper (or mouse)  & remember to share.

1987 

Just for kicks, here's a crop of a self portrait from the same class. 

Why on earth do I still have this junk? Gotta tell you: it is feeling pretty good tossing out all kinds of old baggage this week. But it sure takes a lot of time (I have a lot of stuff- haha). 

De-cluttering, family & work have been keeping me busy. I am looking at probably another week or 2 of digging deep (I am tempted to rent a dumpster). Then maybe I will be able to use my creative space for something besides digital-art!

Pathfinders Flying Pig Automata Kit

The Dude was home sick from school today, so between naps and coughing jags we put together a fun wooden Flying Pig automata from Pathfinders. I'll post a pic later this weekend once the boy gets it painted. A fun project for kids (& grown up kids). 

What are you up to the next few days? What ever it is, I hope you have a grand time! Best wishes for a wonder-filled weekend.

Neither Living Here Nor Dead There

Tomb of Johann Baptista Gislenus

Still having a grand time "aging" my tourist photos with techniques from Susan Tuttle's class.  I had a lot of fun tweaking this tomb of architect Johann Baptista Gislenus (1670), located in Santa Maria Del Popolo (Rome, Italy).

Above the skeleton statue is carved neque hic vivus (neither living here) & below is neque hic mortuus (nor dead there).


I'm thinking about printing this on either metallic or watercolor paper & seeing what happens...

I'd Rather Be The Wolf

WIP 

Haven't had much time to play this week but wanted to post my (unfinished) digital doodle for Illustration Friday's challenge "Vocal" before they roll out the new prompt in a few hours.

I was banging around hitRECord last weekend & stumbled on this brilliant little earworm, I'd Rather Be The Wolf, from ppeppina & pamagotchi. You'll have to click through & hit play (sadly I don't see a way to embed) but it is well worth it, so please do have a listen: hitRECord.org/records/723671

Are you new to hitRECord.org? It is a wonderful concept from Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Basically it is a giant mass of collaborative goo. Share &  riff off of what everyone else is doing. Anyone can contribute anything... so you have writers inspiring artist inspiring musicians inspiring animators inspiring...well you get the idea. Lots of fun stuff to be found, although sometimes you have to dig a little for it.

That said this work in progress, while still too-muddy, is a funky fusion of I.F.'s prompt "vocal" + the I'd Rather Be The Wolf tune (must....go...listen), my Red's Winter Walk collage,

Red's Winter Walk

+ Drakavai's Werewolf Morph 

Werewolf morph from Drakavai on HitRECord

I always feel awkward about sharing unfinished pieces. This one needs detail work, mostly highlighting I think. But since there are never enough hours in a day, I'll probably just upload to hitRECord & see if anyone else gets any ideas. (Personally, it inspires me to save my pennies for a Wacom Intous since I am finding my sticky mouse really tedious lately).

Before I go, here is link to a fun bit of animation by Ranouse that was based on P&P's wonderful tune - http://www.hitrecord.org/records/727444

Making faux silver gelatin prints in PE9

WIP - untitled faux silver gelatin print 

I am having too much fun tweaking my old photos! Love finding a use for all of the mediocre images I've shot over the years. Below is the original taken in Rome around 2003 (pretty sure it is inside Santa Maria Del Popolo - I'll dig around & confirm in a day or 2) . It was intended to be a resource for a painting I have yet to make.

photo taken inside Santa Maria Del Popolo 2003

I am really happy with the altered version at the top of this post. Hmm... I think I feel a classical series coming on....

Thanks again to the talented Susan Tuttle for sharing her knowledge. If you want some guidance with Photoshop Elements, she is the first teacher I would recommend.

Making Fake Polaroids in PE9

Having a fun time taking lousy pics & tweaking them into something playful via lessons from Susan Tuttle's Toy Camera effects workshop.

Today's time machine takes us from 2009 to sometime in the late 70s.

Scott made his kickstarter goal so the giveaway is on!

Scott Stanley from SpinYourWorld.Etsy.com

A few days ago I posted about flagmaker Scott Stanley's kickstarter project - Spin Your World: bring flag dancing to high school students. Click Here for that post. Or Here to visit Scott's kickstarter page.

Scott needed to raise at least $1,500 by 5 pm last night in order to make his project a reality. Guess what?! He did it - woohoo! 

Even better - some generous folks pushed him over the top for a grand total of $1,809. The extra funds will go towards supplies & updating his inventory. 

Tuesday I stated that if Scott's goal was reached, anyone who commented on that 4/3 post & helped spread the word about this fundraiser would be entered into a random drawing for a hand dyed drawstring backpack.  A low turn out of only two wonderful visitors made for great odds of winning. 

While tempted to just flip a coin, I turned to my trusty randomizer and the winner of the colorful backpack is:

Whyte from TheWhytePaper.blogspot.com

Congratulations, Whyte!! I'll be in touch today with instructions for claiming your prize.

Phew - 3 winners in 2 days! That was fun but it is time for a break. I'll post a fresh giveaway later this month, but until then it is back to artsy stuff around here for awhile.

On that note:

It is IllustrationFriday once again & today's prompt is "Vocal" - Feeling inspired? Get doodling, painting, collaging or whatever it is that you do so well. Post your creation online and add your link over at IllustrationFriday.com. While there, be sure to clickety click and see what everyone else is making. Lots of fun ways to interpret this week's challenge!

Have you visited Craftsy.com  lately? Through tomorrow (4/7) they are having a $14.99 sale on all online classes. I'm signing up for one of the jewelry classes as soon as I'm done here. I have not taken a Craftsy workshop yet, but have enjoyed other online workshops. (The only thing I did not like about the non-Craftsy workshops was the time limit placed on accessing the videos. Generally the instructor was available for email during the workshop dates & then you have 2 more weeks to access the info online. After the 2 weeks you no longer have access to the class, just to any printable worksheets you saved.)

Craftsy on the other hand states that "The sale expires Saturday at midnight, but your registration never does. Take the class whenever you want, however many times you want. Your satisfaction is guaranteed." Open ended viewing of the classes, at my convenience? Brilliant! I love that I can return for a technique refresher when ever needed. Click here to visit the class page, where you'll find info & short videos on about 50 workshops.

Well, I've got to run. Wishing everyone a creative day!

Who won Chris'Os 3 handmade bracelets ???

Earlier today I announced the PrintRunner 100 postcards winner

Tomorrow is the Spin Your World backpack drawing

And right now (drum roll please) is random pick for the ChrisO's Creations winner!

Set of 2 personalized wrapped crochet bracelets (mix & match) from ChrisO'sCreations

1 lucky visitor gets to take home 3 colorful bracelets made by Chris Only

Autumn-Colored Hand Painted Leather Cuff from Chris O's Creations

SO, with help from the workhorse Random.org the winner is....

**** Oana ! ***

Congrats, Oana! I will be in touch with directions for claiming your fabulous prizes!

Many thanks to Chris O for sponsoring this wonderful giveaway & for visiting with us last month. If you missed the interview, click here to see more work from this talented young designer. You can also visit her etsy shop, blog or FaceBook page for updates on her newest creations.

Thank you to all who entered this drawing & left your generous comments! For all of you, Chris is offering a 25% off coupon to her etsy store: 1st shop http://www.ChrisOsCreations.etsy.com & when you are checking out (before you pay) enter ARTSNARK2012 into the coupon code space. You will receive 25% off your entire order before shipping. What a deal!

Pop back here soon - there is always something new happening in these parts. Tomorrow there will be 1 more drawing & then the next prize will be announced later in April (after 3 back to back random drawings, I need to take a wee break from the giveaways & post about art and assorted events for a spell). 

Best wishes to everyone for a wonderful weekend & a creative day! 

The Winner of 100 custom printed postcards from PrintRunner ...

Lots of great stuff going on here today! 

Two giveaways to announce today & one tomorrow - woohoo!

Did you enter the random drawing sponsored by PrintRunner.com? One lucky person is about to win 100 color printed postcards of their own design.....

postcard printing from PrintRunner

So with a little help from random.org, the #1 winner is.......

Elena Mary Siff from http://elenamarysiff.com/

Congratulations, Elena Mary!! I bet you have some creative ideas for your cards. I will contact you today with directions for claiming your prize.

A hearty thank you to PrintRunner.com for sponsoring this great giveaway! 

Also, many thanks to all who took the time to leave their thoughts. Your comments keep these fun prizes coming. Be sure to pop back later today to see if you are the winner of ChrisO's handmade bracelets.

Let's push Scott over the edge!

Scott Stanley  

Scott Stanley is a flagmaker, fellow Etsy seller ( SpinYourWorld.etsy.com ) and an old friend. We met  in high school during a state run summer arts program for "gifted" kids. Scott is in the final stretch of his fundraising campaign on kickstarter, and he needs our help.

SpinYourWorld.etsy.com

Scott has until Thursday to collect $1500 for his project. As of this typing he is only $185 away from being fully funded. (To receive the donations, he has to reach that $1500 goal by the deadline).

With this funding, Scott will be able to set up as a vendor at high school color guard competitions. This will enable him to present his colorful creations "to High School Color Guard and Winter Guard students, who already have the skills to spin and enjoy them. "

Click here to find out more about Scott's kickstarter project. Even if you do not wish to donate, please spread the word. 

photo courtesy of Scott Stanley

Today I contributed to Scott's Spin Your World: Bring Flag Dancing to High School students project. If Scott reaches his goal, in return for my donation I will receive "a hand-dyed drawstring backpack" .... which I am going to give to one random Artsnark-blog reader....

Would you like an entry in my backpack random drawing?  Will you help spread the word about Scott's Kickstarter campaign? To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post before time runs out on the project clock Thursday (4/5). You can see how many hours are left (& how much funding is still needed) on Scott's kickstarter page.

If the Spin Your World project is fully funded, I will receive my colorful bag.... and on Friday 4/6, I will choose 1 random winner from everyone who comments here before the deadline.

So, before you leave today please share your thoughts. If your contact info is not in your profile, please leave an email address (so that I can get in touch with you if you win).... And be sure to spread the word! 

Remember, if Scott's goal is not met in time (1) he doesn't receive the donations, (2) I don't receive the bag, so (3) there is no random drawing for it (& no winner) on Friday.

Musical Monday - Hello world

Hello world - are you still spinning?

How have you been?  Due to a,ehem, gardening error our Fios was cut so my world has been off the grid for a few days. Sadly there were messages & commitments that I couldn't follow up on. (So sorry guys - you know who you are). But believe it or not, we survived! 

Spent the weekend very 80s style (minus the big hair & shoulder pads) - lots of gardening, chilling & face-time with the neighbors. Nice change actually.

Many thanks to those who left comments on Chris O's 3 bracelets giveaway! The random drawing is Thursday, so there is still time to enter if you haven't yet.

Set of 2 personalized friendship bracelets from Chris O's Creations

Plus there is the 100 custom printed postcards giveaway I'm hosting for PrintRunner - also to be drawn on Thursday. Open to USA only tho - but if you are in the region it is worth entering.

I am soooo glad to have made it back in time for Musical Monday. While too tired to check out the tunes myself tonight, I will catch them over coffee tomorrow. If you are awake & looking for some ear candy, be sure to pop over to Xmas Dolly's and hear what folks are sharing. Today is a "freebie" so the music will be all over the map - a good thing, I think.

Well, my garden-tired chief cook & bottle washer self is calling it a day (dang, the real world is tiring!) Wishing you all a wonderful week & "may the odds be ever in your favor!"