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I was rummaging through my favorite Etsy shops today and I came across this print by Lyse Marion of ImagineStudio.
It's name is "Transformation" and Lyse says it is a "high quality limited edition fine art Giclee print of an digital photo fusion collage".
How amazing is this? Lyse certainly has some talent....and I have GOT to learn how to do this myself..lol Take a look at her shop and see some of the other amazing things she is doing.
Somehow I made it onto two Etsy Treasury collections today. Not sure how that happened but I'm not going to question it...lol (The Etsy Gods can be fickle). For those of you that aren't familiar with what a Treasury is, here is the definition courtesy of The Sweetest Pea:
Satisfy your inner curator — Treasury to the rescue! The Treasury is a member-curated gallery of short-lived lists of 12 hand-picked items each (plus four alternates). It functions as a high-demand (and pretty!) promotional tool that many devoted Etsians fight to get. Members can feature their favorite items, items selected on a theme, or just however they like. The Treasury is not intended for self-promotion, but instead to acknowledge and share the many cool things for sale on Etsy.
Hot and Wet - curated by CrowleyManor
I find it hard to believe that I was included with this Treasury :) There are some real works of art in this one. The painting titled "Fossil" by kellycstudio is just amazing with the deep rich tones she used. Her Etsy shop is filled with many other paintings that you just want to drool over.
For as long as I can remember, I have been a huge fan of hand-thrown pottery. With the almost limitless range of shapes to create and the incredible effects you can achieve with glazes, there is always something in pottery that appeals to everyone. The soda fired stoneware bowl by stonewareporcelain is beautiful as are all of the other pieces in his shop. I'm glad I'm not a rich guy, cause I would just end up giving all of it to his shop....lol
Amazing work from all of the Etsy artists here! A big congrats and thank you to CrowleyManor for curating this fantastic Treasury and for honoring me by including one of my pieces.
Tricksy It Is - curated by DC Designs
I don't know why, but as soon as I saw this Treasury, the words "Goldenly Delicious" sprang to mind...lol Now I'm hungry for a bowl of Golden Grahams :)
What a great collections of pieces. Keep in mind that everyone of these pieces is made with...not wood...not metal....but Polymer Clay! This is why I love working with this particular medium. The effects you can achieve with it are limitless. You can make an art piece that looks like it was hewn from a piece oak or you can take the clay and make it look like any metal. It's just amazing stuff.
I'd like to point something out here. Look at the business card holder on the lower left. That piece was done by Etsy Artist "Naftali" otherwise known as Janice Abarbanel. By her own admission, she is fairly new to the world of polymer clay but her work is unbelievable. She is one of the reasons my creations are "out of the norm" within the polyclay world. I came across some of her stuff when I was first starting out and I was just blown away at the effects and designs she was accomplishing with polymer clay. At that point, I sat down and revamped my entire way of thinking when it came to using polymer clay. I guess you could say she was one of my inspirations :) To be included in a Treasury with one of her pieces is humbling beyond compare.
Thanks much to DC Designs for curating a truly inspirational Treasury. DC Design is also a fellow member of the Polymer Clay Artists Guild of Etsy so thanks for recognizing my artwork within the group :)
Today's feature will shine the Artist Spotlight on Susan Hume of Callooh Callay!
So, Susan, tell us how you came up with your unique shop name?
My shop name is from the Jabberwocky poem by C.S. Lewis. (Oh frabjous day! Callooh! Callay! He chortled in his joy.) My son and one of his friends were quoting the poem one day when I was searching for a name, and it had a great ring to it.
What do you sell?
Jewelry made from vintage buttons, such as celluloid and Bakelite, and from other vintage items or watch parts. Also, a few pieces of vintage jewelry and other vintage items.
How did you get into making jewelry with vintage buttons?
I sort of backed into it. I had been making brooches for a year or so as gifts for friends, so I had a ton of supplies. Then I read about Etsy in the New York Times and just sort of launched into it. Now, of course, I’m hooked.
What makes your products special? What sets you apart from the crowd?
Well, it’s very hard in jewelry and even in a small niche like vintage button jewelry to stand apart from the crowd. There are so many people doing such beautiful work. But I think that if you look around, you find that everyone’s work is a little different in terms of the types of buttons they prefer, the colors and combinations, even to some extent the way they put their work together. I don’t worry too much about trying to be different—I think everybody has their own aesthetic. I just try to find interesting, beautiful buttons and do something cool with them. I do think they look a little different from what others are doing, but I often see jewelry that I wish I’d made.
One thing I’ve started doing in the past month or so is combining old watch parts with vintage buttons, and that’s something I haven’t seen elsewhere yet--you see steampunk, you see vintage button jewelry, but not the combination. (Someone else is no doubt doing the same thing--nothing new under the sun--but I haven’t seen it yet.)
What are your current projects?
I just got my first Alchemy bid accepted, so I’m doing a custom steampunk necklace centered on a large celluloid wafer button. I also am working on a few necklaces incorporating vintage jewelry, and I’m trying my hand at making some cuffs (to use some of the buttons that don’t lend themselves to jewelry). I’ve got a few collage projects going as well, so I would say it’s like almost everybody else: more ideas than time.
Have you taken any business classes to help you prepare for being an Etsy shop owner?
No, but I worked in for a number of years in communications and in management, and I’ve also been freelance editing and writing for a number of years, so I have some experience in marketing, dealing with budgets, coping with the IRS, etc. The technical aspects of an online business and blog are more challenging for me—figuring out how Technorati works, for example, and learning how to use Gimp (since I’m too cheap to buy PhotoShop).
How do you decide on the price of your items?
When I first started selling online, I looked around at many shops doing similar work to see how they priced it, and the answers were all over the board, so I’ve sort of quit paying attention. I have a range I stay in, more or less, and price specific items based on the value of the buttons used (both in intrinsic terms, like how rare and beautiful they might be, and also what I had to pay for them), the number of buttons used, and how appealing I find the piece. For vintage items I sell, I do as much research as I can to see what similar items are going for. I also have occasionally asked advice from other Etsy vintage sellers—there’s a wealth of knowledge here.
What role does creativity play in your marketing methods?
I started a blog partially to promote my shop and partially because I haven’t had any time to write since I started at Etsy. So at least this way I’m doing a little writing almost every day, and it’s been a lot of fun. Right now I’m running an Ugly Necklace Contest to try to pull people into my blog. I’m still trying to expand my marketing efforts outside of Etsy, which is just a matter of finding time to figure it all out. Within Etsy, marketing comes into play in terms of developing treasuries, working with the Etsy Vintage Street Team to figure out ways to co-promote our shops, and even simple things like trying to be amusing and upbeat in the forums.
Finally, which Etsy Street Teams or Groups do you belong to?
Etsy Vintage Street Team, Etsy Vintage Buyer and Seller Community
Thanks to Susan for a great interview! Also thanks much for educating me on what "SteamPunk" is! I had no clue..lol Best of luck to you and your shop!!
Thanks to everyone that posted their Etsy shops for my new weekly Artist Spotlight showcase! After going through alot of really great shops and some truly clever comments, the first Etsy shop to be spotlighted this week is Aquariann. Kristin Cornell and her fantasy inspired artwork will have you begging for more. Your going to love her stuff!
So, Kristin, how did you come up with your shop name?
My birthday is February 8th, which makes me an Aquarian completely and utterly. My middle name is Ann, so Aquariann works wondrously as a pseudonym.
How did you start creating your amazing art?
I've wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember, and art just came along for the ride and kind of borrowed the wheel. In elementary school, my friends and I used to make up hordes of characters to
write into a young adult series. However, I spent way more time drawing the characters and their situations than actually writing about them - a realization that occurred to me much later. It wasn't until college that it dawned on me to seriously try drawing - thanks to a new addiction to anime and comic books, the discovery of modern fantasy artists such as Amy Brown and Jessica Galbreth, and many art history classes where I got to drool over the beauty of 10,000 years of work.
What is your favorite thing about making art?
I get to share my imagination - if it weren't for drawing, I would probably go mad not being able to let my visions escape. My drawings are flickers into the fantastical world that dances within my mind.
What do you think makes your art special? What sets your drawings apart from the crowd?
My colors are what captivate most viewers - even in person, some people stare at an original and can't believe it's colored pencils. I'm a mostly self-taught artist, so I can't quite explain my technique. Messy mediums such as paint and charcoal have never been very nice to me, but the smooth glide of colored pencils is magic.
What inspires you?
The fantasy genre as a whole - books, movies, shows, music, art, everything.
Tell me a little bit about your featured item?
My most popular item at the moment is my Dragon, Peridot. He's the first in a series. I one day hope to complete a whole series of birthstone Dragons.
What projects are you currently working on?
I'm currently coloring a breast cancer awareness fairy. My mother has been a survivor for 13 years. We have a table at a Relay For Life fund raiser fair in April where I'd like to release my new fairy.
What has been your most memorable moment selling your art?
Every single sale is memorable to me. I still find it amazing that my art is sprinkled across the country, and even a few around the world. I like the idea that my work adds magic to a stranger's everyday routine.
If you could work or study with anyone, who would it be?
Tree-Free Greetings. The work they choose to use on their cards is absolutely stunning, and include many of my favorite fantasy artists. Plus, they strive to use 100% tree-free paper in all their products and are environment friendly - how lovely is that? One of my goals is to approach them and other licensing companies, once I have more work under my glittery belt.
Which Etsy Street Teams or Groups do you belong to?
I roll with FAE (Fantasy Art of Etsy), DAWG (Designing Artists Women's Group) and Big Damn Crafters (Firefly Fans.)
Finally, what advice would you give someone wanting to get into art?
Just try it. You never know what you can do, until you actually attempt it.
Thanks to Kristin for taking the time to answer my endless questions and for sharing a bit of her artistic life with us. You have a bright future ahead of you! Best of Luck!
Be sure to check back in tomorrow for the next Artist Spotlight. This one will feature Susan Hume of Callooh Callay and her beautiful handcrafted jewelry made with vintage items (SteamPunk).
Hola all! Just a quick blurb to recognize Butterfly Chic Boutique for being so kind as to feature my Torchwood Studio Etsy shop over on her blog! 
Please take some time and visit her blog (after you've read all my insightful writing first....lol). She's brought some really incredible artists into the spotlight over there and they all deserve some of your artsy love!
You can also visit her Etsy shop here.
In my on-going efforts to promote other independent artists, and especially the awesome folks over at Etsy.com, I will be starting a new feature. Twice a week, I will feature an Etsy shop owner who creates items that will make you cry, sing, dance, reach for your wallet or just make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Sort of like my pal here is making you feel right now... :)
The feature article will include all sorts of insightful questions and hopefully it will bring some well deserved attention to those artists who obviously put their passion into their work.
So, is it gonna be you? Is your shop worthy enough to grace the pages of this award-winning, hard-hitting blog of truth, justice and the independent artist way? Of course it is! If you use your hands, heart and mind to create something that people just have to have...you belong here. By the way, I may have been stretching the truth a bit with the whole award-winning thing, but hey!...A guy has to have a dream, right?
So, how does your shop end up being featured on this blog? Easy.... All you have to do is leave a comment here with a little blurb about what you create and sell along with a link to your Etsy Shop. That's it! I'll sort through the comments and present the best and brightest to all of you twice a week. Oh yea, any ego-inflating comments you'd like to leave about my artwork won't hurt your chances either... I gotta get my ego boosted up at least once a day or I turn into a bear...lol
Leave a comment and a link to your shop and check back often to see who is on their way to fame and fortune courtesy of Torchwood Studio!
