Free Stuff!

To celebrate having my work published in Holiday Crafts magazine (if you missed my blog about that, click here), I've decided I am going to give away a set of the four quirky snowmen Christmas ornaments that are featured in that magazine.

All you have to do to be eligible to win these adorable ornaments is sign up to follow my blog.  It's as easy as filling in your email address in the box at the top right of this page and hitting submit.  You will receive email updates whenever I post something new here.  I WILL NOT use your email for any other purpose, except to contact you if you win a giveaway! 

If you are a Blogger, you can add my blog to your dashboard and follow me that way.

I know there are some of you out there that are reading my blog regularly, but you haven't signed up to follow just yet.  Well, now is a great time to do so!  You could WIN THESE ADORABLE ORNAMENTS! 

Once I hit 30 followers I will randomly draw the name of one of them to receive these snowmen.  So, submit your email, and then share my blog with your friends and tell them to sign up, too.  The more the merrier!

If you need a bit more incentive, here are individual shots of each quirky little face.



Now, be honest....wouldn't you LOVE to win these?

I look forward to seeing lots of new followers very soon!

Lisa

PS--If you love these ornaments so much you can't wait for the giveaway to have them, they are available in my etsy shop.

Holiday Crafts Magazine

I have been BURSTING with anticipation!  I'm so excited about this news I am about to share with you, I can barely contain my glee!

MY WORK HAS BEEN PUBLISHED IN A MAGAZINE!!  I have a project featured in Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Crafts 2012!  WOOHOO!!

Way back in JANUARY I was contacted by a representative of the magazine asking if I would be interested in having my four quirky snowman face ornaments featured in this year's issue.  Well, DUH!  Yes, of course I would!  This is a first for me, and I was beside myself with excitement.  I had to rush a set of the ornaments off to them immediately.  And then I had to wait.  And wait.  And wait some more.

But, Oh! was it worth the wait!  I received my copy of the magazine about ten days ago, and this is the amazing feature I was greeted with:

Don't my little snowmen look AMAZING?  They mounted them on patterned paper and framed them, as an alternative to hanging them on a tree.  Very clever!  I am so pleased with how they look!

Since this is a how-to magazine, the ornaments are also featured on this page with instructions on how to make them:

Here's another view of the two pages:

I know, I know.  They sent me ONE magazine.  I have since bought 3 more issues!  I mailed one to my Mom today.  Not sure why I need 3 copies for myself, but I will think of a reason soon! HA!

If you are heading out to find a copy, here is what you need to look for:

It's actually a really great magazine with over 100 very nice projects for Christmas and Halloween.  And it is a real bargain at only $5.99!  If you are crafty at all, you might want to go out and grab a copy.

Normally I don't give out my 'secrets' on how to make my items, but this was such a HUGE opportunity I absolutely could not pass it up!  These ornaments are actually quite easy to make, and probably some of my most simple work.  But if you are not inclined to make your own set, I have them available in my etsy shop.

Four Quirky Snowmen

Whew!  I am soooo glad I was finally able to share this with you all! 

Have a great day!

Lisa

PS--Jay Wilde is the photographer who did such an amazing job taking the pictures for the magazine.  I apologize for the not-so-great quality of my pictures.  Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of a photograph?!











Friday Favorite #7--Cindy Riccardelli

I love dolls.  I always have.  It started with Baby Lisa (yes, that was her real name!) that Santa brought me when I was 4.  I still have her, packed away now, of course, but not forgotten. 

I've never quite outgrown the appeal that dolls have for me.  Over the years I've had country bunnies, Raggedy Ann and Andy, folk art dolls, and Santas in my home at one time or another.  I used to have them sitting around on benches and shelves around the house.  I have outgrown that (except for at Christmas when the Santas come out), but I do still have a few special ones in my studio.

There are lots of wonderful dolls available on etsy.  I've been searching around for interesting art dolls---one of a kind darlings that you can't find anywhere else.  One artist that I am very impressed with is Cindy Riccardelli. I'm going to share a few of her dolls here.

Amelia

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  Some of you might look at her work and think, "Oh, she's not cute".  But that is what I LOVE about Cindy's dolls.  They are full of emotion and character and flaws, and that is what I enjoy about them.  I love that they are not quite pretty--their noses might be too big, or their eyes spaced a bit oddly, but they seem like real girls to me.  As we all know, it's what's inside a girl's heart that counts, and these dolls, to me, have a lot of heart. 

Cindy creates her one-of-a-kind art dolls from fabric and paperclay.  They are hand painted and dressed in handmade clothing.  You can tell by looking at her work that Cindy LOVES her girls. 

Here are a few more of my favorites:

Eugenia

(I love her big bow and her 'fancy' dress.)

Shadow Box Doll and her Chicken

Sinead

AnnaMae

I can't decide who is my favorite, Sinead or AnnaMae.  I love them both so much!  I think it might be the hair....

I hope you will have a look at Cindy Riccardelli's shop.  I think her work is truly delightful!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Lisa



Christmas in July

I love Christmas.  And it's a good thing, because being an artist who sells the majority of her work in the fall season, I have to begin making Christmas things long before a normal person even has Christmas on their radar.  Who among you even wants to think  about holiday shopping yet?  NO ONE!  (There are five months until Christmas, right?)

Well, for me, Christmas season began about two months ago, when I made my first Santa of the year.  And to be honest, I'm feeling the pinch of time already!  How is that possible, with five months to Christmas you ask?  Well, I'm beginning to stock my etsy shop already.  And I have a BIG arts and crafts show approaching very quickly the first week of October.  I sometimes wish I had about a dozen elves in my studio like Santa does, busily working away!

But no.  I am a one woman show.  Each and every piece that appears in my etsy shop or in a show display is made by me.  And only me.  When you buy one of my clay pieces you are truly buying A Piece of Lisa. 

Today I listed my first Christmas items on etsy.  Among them was that first Santa of the season.  Here's a look at him now:

Santa with Wreath

All my pieces begin with an armature made from wire and foil.  Then I begin covering the piece with clay.  I usually have an idea in my head of where I am going with a figure, but sometimes it will veer off on its own.  I listen to what the clay and the armature are telling me as I work. 

Santa needs a red suit, of course, and tall black winter boots with silver buckles.  A black belt and green mittens complete his ensemble.  I have all sort of brads and notions and buttons and trims to use in my work, and for this piece I chose two different styles of studs for his buttons and belt buckle.

Once I have the body constructed, I begin on the head.  Faces take forever!  I'm not after complete realism and perfect proportions.  I want them to have a personality, and I'm not bothered by flaws.  Who doesn't have a few flaws??  His eyes are hand painted and his cheeks and lips are lightly brushed with blush. On this piece I decided to make his beard from clay.

Santa has a little red hat with a jingle bell on the tip.  His fur trim is chenille.  I relish in the little details of a piece! 

I like to accessorize my dolls, and this time I used a bottle brush wreath I bought in the doll house miniatures department at Hobby Lobby.  It was already adorned with a red satin ribbon! 

I finish my dolls with a dusting of glass glitter on the base.  I have all sorts of wonderful glass glitters and mica flakes, most of which I purchased here.  This particular one is a Japanese glass glitter, and it's very fine (read: messy), but it glitters like freshly fallen snow.

I love this jolly old soul.  I love that his eyes are not exactly the same size and that his hat might be a little bit too small.  I think he's got lots of character.

I hope you'll stop by A Piece of Lisa and have a look around. 

HO!HO!HO!

(OK, it IS a bit early for that)

Lisa









Marian's Vessel

This is a piece I made last spring for my BFF Marian's birthday.  I've mentioned Marian before.  She is truly my BFF.  We are so alike it's almost eerie.  She, too, is an artistic sort, so we have lots of common ground there.  She is quite dear to me, and no ordinary gifts will do for her.  I don't stroll into Bath & Body Works and grab a gift basket for her.  Oh, no no no. We like to make each other things.  Even if I purchase something, it has to be something artsy.  Something unique.  Something special.  Like our friendship. 

Her home is quite contemporary, filled with lovely objects and nice artwork, so I try to find things that would fit into her life nicely.  She loves the work of Dilly Pad (which I featured here) and the gorgeous porcelain vessels of  White Earth Studio on etsy, so I used those as inspiration for this piece.

This vessel was very fun to make.  While it might look like it was very tedious, it really was not.  Yes, it took several hours to construct, but since there was no "right" way to make it, it was also very freeing.  It's made of hundreds, if not thousands, of pieces of white Premo polymer clay.  I did not start with a sketch or a set idea of what I wanted it to be.  I just did what the clay told me to do. 

 Sometimes all you have to do is listen to the material you are working with, and it will guide you.  "I want to be a flower."  OK.  "I want to be a coil."  You betcha.  "I want to be a circle."  Anything you want. 

Once the pieces were all in place, I took a stylus and added little details to the work.  Then I put some glasses inside to brace it a bit while it was baking.  And kept my fingers crossed.  And said a little prayer to the Polymer Clay God.  And held my breath.  And in the end, it came out just right.

I loved making this project so much that I'm considering doing another one.  Perhaps this time I will use all black.....

Sometimes it is just fun to step outside of what you normally do and create something completely different.  Take a leap of faith.  You never know what you'll come up with!

Thanks for stopping by!
Lisa

OH--in case you are wondering, this piece is perhaps 8 inches wide and maybe 4 inches high.  Give or take a little bit.  It lives in New Mexico and I live in Nebraska, so I can't just pop over and measure it right now.  I WISH!

Polymer Clay Enthusiasts Team Member--Trina's Clay Creations

On etsy I am a member of the Polymer Clay Enthusiasts Team.  The goal of our team is to share our love of crafting with polymer clay, and to support and promote each other's shops.  There are nearly 500 members on this team, so as you can expect, there is a lot of talent and diversity.  Today I'm going to share with you one of my favorite shops, Trina's Clay Creations.

Trina Prenzi is a wonderful polymer clay artist.  Her attention to detail is very impressive.  I can relate to the time and effort she puts into her miniature works of art because when I was doing only miniature figurines I tried to do as much tiny detail as I could on each piece.  You have to really really really love tedious work to be able to manipulate polymer clay in this way.  And Trina is a master.

She makes lots of wonderful characters.  Seasonal and holiday pieces.  Professions and hobbies.  Animals and children.  There is something for everyone in her shop.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Little Pirate with Parrot

Mermaid

Love My Garden

Don't you agree that Trina has a real knack for detail?  Absolutely!  Her work is quite wonderful. 

If you are impressed by these first three pieces, wait until you see her wedding cake toppers!  I think of all her work, these are really her showcase pieces.  She customizes these adorable cake toppers to your specifications, and she does a really fabulous job!  What better way to commemorate your special day than with a personalized wedding couple---a keepsake to cherish forever! 

Bride and Groom with date plaque

She will even add your dogs!

 

And for something a little less traditional, Two Lions

I hope you will take a minute to go check out Trina's Clay Creations.  I think you will be very impressed!

Off to work now!

Lisa

PS--If you would like to know more about Trina and her work, visit her blog trinastrinkets.blogspot.com

Friday Favorite #6--Su Ami

I was browsing through my activity feed just the other day and saw something that knocked my socks off, so to speak. (Being the middle of summer and nearly 100 degrees, I actually was NOT wearing socks!).  I found these ADORABLE little crocheted sheep, and I could not believe how TINY they are!  I had to investigate this shop more fully.

Two Funny Sheep

Now, unless that is the finger of a giant, those are some teensy tiny sheep!  I've been known to do some very small things in clay before, but OMG!  I'm also impressed because I can't crochet. (My grandmother tried and tried to teach me, but it just never stuck.)

Su Ami is a group of 5 family members from Vietnam.  That's another thing I love about etsy.  You can find wonderful handmade treasures from all over the world. 

I spent several minutes browsing through this cute little shop and have narrowed my favorites down to these, but there are so many cute little tiny things in this shop you really should go check it out for yourself.

Micro Penguin Family

Miniature Pink Bear

Tiny Miniature Monkey with Skirt

Red Ladybug

Tiniest Sock Monkey

I think the work of Su Ami is very impressive.  I especially love the sock monkey!  Have you ever seen one so tiny?  Not me. 

I hope you'll take a minute to go check out this adorable shop!

Have a great weekend!

Lisa