Silly me, forgot to blog some recent work. Just two wee pieces, one little canvas painting, and one little fibre art piece. If you have any feedback, always appreciated.

On the premise of better late then never, I should tell you I am running a Blog Giveway Contest that ends tomorrow!!!!

DETAILS ARE HERE!!!!

If you want to be included, you can comment here to be entered, and for extra entries, just follow the instructions outlined in the Blog..

Later gators!

Lorrie
x

Executed solely in Caran D'Ache on A4 Cartridge paper. Took a long time as I only worked on it once in a while.

I used a photograph of a model in Vogue as a very loose reference for the face, and went for a heavily stylised rendering in the spirit of the Hellenistic art of ancient Greece.

For many years, five in fact, I have had shops on Cafepress. Some have done well, others not so. I like Cafepress, though it's not for everyone. However for some time I have put less effort into Cafepress for a number of reasons. Firstly, time and the lack thereof and secondly, it's payment procedure. Those of you who have ever had a Cafepress shop (and made any money from it), will know that Cafepress pay you by cheque. My first ever cheque took ages to arrive. To bank it I had to fill out a very long form. It took weeks and weeks to clear and by the time the adminstrative costs had taken their cut plus the currency conversion, I was left with half. Not a very satisfactory state of affairs. So, since then I have generally left the money I have made in my CP account and spent it on CP goods.

When Cafepress introduced Imagekind, I was emailed by them and invited to open a shop. Imagekind is a selling venue for artists specifically to sell prints of their work, either on quality paper or canvas, and framed if you so wish. It works like Cafepress in that you can have either a free shop with limimations, or a premium shop for which you pay. There is a base price which goes to Imagekind and you mark up accordingly, and that is your cut. I had a quick look at the site when it was first launched and decided to postpone any further investigation until a later date.

I noticed the other day my artist friend Tina Mammmoser talking about Imagekind and decided to give it a closer scrutiny. So, I am carefully reading through the Imagekind FAQ and one detail I spot straight away...you can be paid via Paypal!!

Hurrah! This naturally made a big difference to me. So, I read through the FAQ carefully and decided to open a shop. I am limited to one Gallery at the moment as a free shop and thus far have only uploaded three pieces of work and kept it to illustrations, this is the link for it: Illusio.Imagekind.com So, we shall see.

I would love it if any readers could go have a looksee and give me some feedback. Thanks...

I am everso, everso excited to announce a recent collaboration with the Uber talented Cat from Polarity, who is featuring three of my abstract illustrations on her fantastic magnetic locket sets. I had bought two or three sets from Cat and was so impressed with them I expressed an interest in a future collaboration. In my last purchase she included two trial lids and they looked so fab I immediately contacted her and said 'go go go'. This is the result:




This adorable, industrial little locket is created from a recycled steel auto part to which sh has silver soldered a little eyehook. The locket has 3 magnetic interchangeable lids - all with stunning featuring my designs.The locket comes on an adjustable length 30" 2mm nickel plated brass ballchain. Locket is 1 1/4". Just add your favorite little picture inside. Your locket is packaged in a cute little tin, perfect for gift giving or storage.


I will be featuring a 'Locket Giveaway' Contest in the next couple of days, keep your eyes peeled!

Presenting three recent creations, this time the medium being textile/fibre art from my 'Inspired by the Sea' collection. I am very excited about this. I find sewing so rewarding and relaxing, and always enjoy the end product so much. I learnt to sew almost at the same time as I learnt to draw. My Grandmother taught me embroidery as a little girl, and of course I did a lot of sewing/patterncutting/tailoring when I was studying Fashion and Textile Design. I have created something similar in the past, though had not appied the textile to canvas. I feel that these small pieces harness very well with small deep edges canvas, and am very pleased with the results. I will be producing a lot more in the future. All of these pieces are currently for sale in my Etsy Shop.

See what you think:

So, in a recent post a while ago I said that I would not be listing for a while and concentrating on my art and photography, and I have indeed done that. For the last couple of months I have been working on paintings (canvas specifically), illustrations, aceos and textile art. Most of the recent work I have undertaken has been based on the marine life and proteas of the Cape Province. I spent nearly a month there at the beginning of the year and was utterly inspired by the colour and richness of both. I feel I have barely scraped the surface and will be exploring this theme for sometime to come. However, given that I am also working on other themes and subjects, so my work will not just be aquatically and cactus inspired. I have decided that I am not selling all of the canvas work I have recently completed, as I want to build a collection, as well as hang some in my own home. However, I will at some point photograph them all and profile on my website and Flickr.

I have listed some of my recent work on Etsy, and the following is a small example.

Well, I am going to make this entry quite short as it's the first of a batch of posts profiling new art and stuff. I have lots of new art finished, works in progress, things happening, new ideas, lines, themes..you name it!

So, I have had a whole heap of new postcards printed by the lovely peeps at MOO, and are now listed thus far on my Etsy Shop, will be listing on my own shop Art4Sale very soon.

These poscards are lovely and such nice quality. At the moment I am selling them singly as I haven't decided which ones to match as duos.

Here are a selection:




I will be getting more art based ones printed soon.

Photographing Art:

I just spent an hour photographing my new printed postcards, ACEOs, handpainted postcards etc. Not one, and I mean not ONE was satisfactory, which is annoying. This time you see I used a white roll of paper to create an 'infinity' backdrop, and in each shot placed semi precious stones (quartz etc) around each piece. It took ages, as there was about 12 printed postcards alone. Anyway, going to try again, but I don't think I will bother with the paper roll, and stick to using the props I usually use, and place the art/postcards on a wood surface, as I have had better results doing it that way. If anyone has any tips then please do share.

Bluebells:

I decided to go wild Bluebell hunting on Monday, as we have a wonderful crop this year compared to the last couple of years (which bodes well for a good summer), and I wanted to try and get some good shots. Finding wild Bluebells wasn't so hard where I live in West Sussex, getting to them was another matter. You tend to find that many areas where they grow is fenced off. With good reason, as the many ancient tracks are being obliterated by development, people digging them up, trampling them etc. Anyway, I managed to find a lovely dusting within some woods that I could reach, and after carefully picking my way through them without treading on any, I managed to get some fairly decent shots. The smell was divine!








Climping Beach:

Today we went to Climping Beach. I took my camera as it was a lovely day and I wanted to try out using the Grad Filter I had recently bought. I set the aperture to F11 and used a reasonably fast shutter speed. I used a Cokin ND2 Grad Filter, and I must say I was delighted with the results. I should really have used a tripod, but the batch I took came out pretty well for hand held. I just adjusted the levels, curves and sharpness PS and that was it. Definately need more practice...and a tripod.

After my hands were cold enough, I packed it in and went and played with Luke and Orla. We then went and had some tea and cake at the little tea hut in the car park (grass field). Climping beach is a little off the beaten track and is mostly used by the locals. There is no boardwalk, shops, or anything other than beach. It's ideal for photography and we love it there...

I am quite ill at the moment, and wont be around for a while. But, I felt I should profile ACEO Showcase, who cheered me up immensly by featuring one of my ACEOs. Thank you kindly to them..

Really quite sick at the moment, so it's going to take a week or so before I am back on form.

L
x

It was my Birthday last Sunday. Now, though I don't relish the fact that I am approaching 50 (shudders, I am actually 47), I am still childlike enough to really look forward to my Birthday. My husband Luke and daughter Orla didn't let me down. I was woken with tea, a birthday cake, pressies, songs and cuddles.

For my birthday I recieved;
Thornton's Chocolates
Bottle of Baileys
'Landscape Photographer of the Year 02'
'Harry Potter' DVD box set
'Porn for Women' (not what you think, shots of hunky men doing the housework, or offering plates of cake with the words 'you are too thin, have some cake' LOL)
Bag of Minstrels (from Orla)

We had a light lunch and left early for one of my favourite places; West Dean Gardens. It has beautiful landscaped gardens, walled gardens, orchards and hot houses. It's a wonderful place to roam, take pictures, paint (they run short courses for artists and photographers). Luke and I have been regular visitors for the past ten years, and in fact one of our first dates was spent there, so it has many treasured memories for us. We have watched the landscaped gardens develop over the years, and have taken Orla there since she was a baby, she loves it totally. We go twice a year if we can, in the Spring and then in the Summer, when the gardens are in their full glory.

I had a lovely day. Luke took care of Orla and gave me the leisure to try and take some decent shots with my new camera. Here is a selection, hope you like...

Lorrie
x

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I have having a little ART SALE in my Etsy Shop as I think it's time to clear out some old stuff, ready for the new in the coming Spring.

I am making a special OFFER on this blog only, the first two customers who buy one of the ACEOs on sale in my shop, get one of the last handpainted Moleskins FREEEEE!

SALE STUFF HERE!!!

xxx

Here are one or two shots on my Flickr account of Kalk Bay, South Africa. Lovely multi-coloured buildings in the traditional Dutch Colonial style. Sadly the day was quite overcast and a heavy mist hanging over the mountains. I also took some of Muizenberg Flats. Have only uploaded one of those though, might add more. At this point, I wish I had purchased an ND Grad filter to have got the best out of the landscape and distance shots. Still, I did the best I could.

Spent some time on the beach in Bognor yesterday with my mate Carol and my Orla. Didn't really get any good shots of the beach itself or the sea (practicing with shutter speed, aperture and exposure etc.) but I tried to get some interesting views of the beach huts. Adjusted the levels and unsharp mask in Photoshop. Reasonably pleased with the results.

Just a quick post to say hi...

Back from an absolutely wonderful holiday in SA. Lots of lovely photographs, alas little artwork done. However, I did make a sock monkey for Orla's birthday; she has named it Unnia but sadly the picture I took of her with it was blurred. She loves it I am proud to say, and here it is. A day and a half hand sewing in secret!

Raring to go. Have re-opened my shops on Etsy and Artfire. Though am not pushing for sales. This Spring I am concentrating on creating, making, painting, drawing, sewing and my photography, especially photographic work.

I bought my motherinlaw 'Landscape Photographer of the Year 02' as a present and have been totally inspired by the beautiful photography in it, particularly as one or two friends are featured. If you haven't seen this book, I strongly recommend it for the wonderful photography and awe inspiring scenery and landscapes. I have decided to put this on my Amazon wish list as a hint to the hubby for Mother's Day or my upcoming birthday.

Another resolution I made on holiday, is to spend less time online.
So, with that in mind...tata for now. Things to do.
See you on the flip side
Lorrie
xx

Finished these ACEO's a few weeks ago, and have finally got around to listing them on Etsy, and putting them up here. One of them is an abstract, very heavy in detail..sort of thing I love doing, and a flowers piece, fairly loose in composition.

The other two are in a comic/cartoon style and feature a character (one of many I have, this one is called 'Tess') I used to draw a lot. I became very adept at drawing stylised faces during my Fashion Design days, as one had to reproduce a face and body shape quite quickly. Some of the faces appeared again and again, and were eventually given names. People used to ask me for them, so I used to sell them, and some were given as presents. This is a style I always enjoyed, so have decided to reintroduce to my portfolio.

Feedback is always appreciated :D






I am currently working on some pretty heavily detailed coloured pencil work. One piece, I wont be selling..as it's taken so much work and time (eyes aint what they used to be), but I may have a Giclee print made of it sometime. I am about to purchase some Faber and Castell Polychromos pencils (inspired by Jessica Doyle), as they are lightfast and colourfast, smudgeproof etc, to use on some new card stock I purchase from Frances at www.fanshefolds.etsy.com and on some gorgeous new paper I have found at Ziggy Art.

Frances prepared some card stock especially for me postcard sized. She has included various textures and shades of white and cream and I cannot wait to get started. I have already used some for a commision piece (based on a recent Valentine ACEO I did) for a friend in Malaysia to give her hubby on his birthday to commeorate their annivery.

Other than that..packing for my holiday in SA, and practicing with my new camera. Will upload some new photography very soon...

See you on the flip side...
xxx

So, the poll results are in the sidebar, and it's now closed. Looks like Etsy came out on top with Folksy second etc. Pink Doodle no where be found, what a surprise. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote. (this Poll I ran in my Art Blog)

However, I have made a decision. I am opening no new shops for the forseeable (just keep Etsy going and my own shop, Art4Sale). However, I have had some prints made (by request actually) of some recent photographic work, and I will make those available in my own shop and Etsy.

But, I intend to put all my efforts into the development of my art, rather than pimping and promoting my it, and if I sell..that's a bonus. So, big thanks to Tina for waking me up, and saying what needed to be said.

I think I got a bit obsessed about trying to sell because 1)Huge mortgage (and I mean terrifying) and 2)Once Orla goes to school in September, then I need to work, and the fact is..I wanted to avoid having to go back to work in an office=yuck!

Anyway, the important thing is that I feel I have found my way again after having lost it. Also, having made the decision to just throttle back, enjoy making art for it's own sake, read when I want to instead of rushing to my desk etc., has improved my mood and state of mind enormously.

So, watch this space...see you on the flip side..
Lorrie
x

Originally posted in my Blog on Sunday:

Times are hard and getting harder, people are struggling and don't have money to spend on luxuries, like artwork. However, I do feel a tad despondent at my lack of progress.

I have made some sales, but not alas anything to set the world alight. Sadly, I am not productive enough, and this I realise. Orla takes up all my time, Luke works long hours and is away a lot, and I am lucky many days to be able to work for an hour (if at all), and like many I struggle sometimes with health issues. Also, my little girl has been quite ill in the past, and this more than anything utterly demotivates me (naturally).

Also, my art is very varied in style, I have lots of influences. I don't want to have to restrict myself to just one genre or style, as that for me is totally contrary to any sense of artistic exploration or expression, and I don't do 'living room' art. Perhaps that is the problem then.

I blog about my Art, I Twitter (though one has to be carefull not to spam and annoy people), I Facebook, I occasionaly post in the forums, (though again, I don't have lots of time for that). It's a difficult issue. One needs to promote, but when promoting one isn't creating, and if like me you have very little time...

Anyway, I would love to hear from other Artists in particular who are selling, not selling to share their experiences. How did you start, when was your breakthrough, tips, not to do's etc.

Lorrie
x

EDITED TO ADD A REPLY BY ARTIST TINA MAMMOSER:

"Interesting post. :) What pops into my head is the unfortunate question: should you be selling? Or rather, go ahead and sell that's fine, but should it be a main concern? Not because the work isn't good enough, but because you might be trying to sell more than you're trying to create. If you only have an hour a day is your artwork getting the time and energy for improvement, evolvement and just plain focus if you're also having to use that hour for Etsy, Folksy, blog, Twitter, deviantart, Facebook, Flickr?

My opinion, and this is just my opinion, is that you should be working at least as much on the artwork as on the business side. (that fluctuates sometimes but as an average) You just need to make sure you're *making* work first, selling is the next step not the driving step. Are you building a creative voice, a routine, a body of work and inventory? Are you learning, developing and moving forward creatively?

Not making living room art is fine! Don't worry about that - art made with individual passion generally comes across with that passion. But I would also wonder if you have so many styles and genres if you've found your own mature voice yet? Again, not necessary for selling (I was selling work of all sorts very early on - I used to do impressionism, realism, landscapes, still lives, figures...) but it definitely helps. That is something that simply comes with time and work, work done with the work itself as the focus and driving factor. Do you NEED to sell? Are you truly relying on it to live? If you are then of course a balance needs to be found between creating and selling. But if not... Remember that while selling gives feedback and is gratifying that time might be better spent developing your work, which is far more gratifying and useful if you don't rely on the sales."