The alphabet Etsy style

Today let's talk about inspiration. I have days when I think I've had my last 'good' idea. I'm burnt out, washed up and sure that my creativity is gone forever.

Relax.

Take a deep breath.

You can do this. Yes, I talk to myself.

I take a walk, or go chew some gum, call my best pal... anything to take my mind away from thinking about the fact that I'm out of ideas. I think creativity is like a watched pot... if you look at it, it will never boil. So I read a book, bake some cookies or play games with my kids. Which was my inspiration for this blog post, by the way. We were singing the alphabet and I did a quick search and saw so many artists on Etsy are inspired by that very thing. Without further ado and featuring some of the lovely and talented members of the NewNew team I now present to you.. the ABCs of Etsy.

brought to you by CajaJewelry.

brought to you by WarpeDesign.

brought to you by AlexandraFerguson.

brought to you by Muppetloon.

brought to you by Bubbaandboo.

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brought to you by Samaki.

brought to you by Hindsvik.

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brought to you by Reiter8.

brought to you by Natureinspiredcrafts.

brought to you by Stamposaurus.

brought to you by JennyDiddly.

brought to you by IngridsArt.

brought to you by Contrary.

brought to you buy violettdrakt.

brought to you by loyaltyandblood.

brought to you buy Dalesdreams.

brought to you buy Spinadelic

brought to you by Steeltoestudios.

brought to you by Megnafziger.

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brought to you by Littleprettiesbycara.

Now I know my ABCs, next time won't you sing with me?

Stephanie Maslow-Blackman

Metalicious

Field Trip: The Martha Stewart Show

Who here thinks Martha Stewart is just the greatest thing since sliced bread?  Well, I for one, have looked up to this amazing lady for many years now.  Martha has reinvented home economics for the masses and has helped pave the way for individuals like me to do what I love most.  And yesterday, along with a couple other NewNewers, Jessica of Miniature Rhino and Kelly of Aperture Agog, I was able to see this magical lady in action at a live taping of her show -- and what fun we had!

Photo courtesy of Jessica Marquez

We attended a show with the theme of veganism *and* we were given a goodie bag full of books I am so excited to start reading like Kathy Freston's Veganist and Gene Baur's Farm Sanctuary.

I can 't help but post one of the recipes that she featured as it looked simply delicious, Seitan Bourguignon:

INGREDIENTS

Makes enough for 4 to 5 servings.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 (1/2-pound) packages traditional-flavored seitan, broken into bite-size pieces
• 4 shallots, minced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and sliced crosswise into 1-inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 (750 mL) bottle pinot noir
• 1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 15 pearl onions, fresh or frozen, peeled
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons margarine
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

• DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add seitan and cook, stirring, until seitan is browned and caramelized on all sides. Reduce heat and add shallots, carrots, and garlic; cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
  2. Transfer seitan mixture to a large saucepan; add wine and enough stock to just cover seitan mixture. Add parsley, bay leaves, thyme, and pearl onions; cover and bring to a simmer until vegetables are tender. Transfer seitan, carrots, and onions to a large serving bowl; set aside and keep warm.
  3. In a small bowl, mix together flour and margarine. Add flour mixture to saucepan, stirring until well combined. Let sauce simmer, uncovered, until it reaches a gravy-like consistency. Remove bay leaf and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Pour sauce over seitan in serving bowl; garnish with mushroom "bacon" topping and parsley. Serve.

It's quite an operation she has going on there and it was so neat to finally see Martha's tv kitchen and craft room in person.

Photos courtesy of Jessica Marquez

You may not be able to spot us amongst the sea of solid colors but we're in the middle of the second row:

How can you go see the Martha Stewart Show in Manhattan?  Simply follow this link.  You need to get there pretty early in the morning, but it's well worth the trip.  And if you're not in the New York tri-state area, please follow this link for your local tv listings to find when and what channel you can tune into to watch the Martha Stewart Show. 

What to Do with Scraps of Felt, Part III: Make a Cute Bracelet

This one is super-easy and perfect for Spring (which I trust will arrive any day now). Keep it simple and unrestrained or bump it up a notch with a few extra steps for a more sophisticated look.

Materials

• Scraps of felt cut up into squares, rectangles, triangles, circles, or what-have-you
• Elastic stringing material such as Stretch Magic or Elonga; I used 5 mm but 7 mm would also probably work, depending on the size of your felt bits
• Scissors
• Needle
• Beads (optional)
• Fabric glue (optional)
• Thread (optional)

Steps

Decide whether you want a more or less restrained final piece. If you go the less restrained route, simply thread your needle with about one-and-a-half to two-times the amount of stringing material you need to go around your wist, tie a knot in one end, and begin stringing the bits of felt onto it. When you've got enough to go around your wrist, pull the knotted end of the stringing material away from the felt so that you have enough loose material on either end to make a knot (I used a modified square knot; click on the Elonga link above for a great illustration). Wear it as-is, or trim away some of the shagginess with a scissor.

If you want a slightly more restrained (but no less festive)-looking final product, select bits of felt that are of roughly equal size and alternate their colors. Add some beads at regular intervals for even more variation. I used felted beads in the sample above but most 7-10 mm glass, stone or plastic beads would also work well. Just be sure the hole is large and smooth enough to fit your stringing material without shredding it.

Finally, if you're feeling really ambitious, or if you want an even more polished final product, you can stack your bits of felt in different color combinations and either glue or sew them together to make your own beads. String them alone or with a few accent beads in-between.

Easy-breezy Springtime fun, both to make and to wear!

Until next time -

Enjoy!

Linda

PurtyBird

15 Steps to having your own art exhibit/art show.

What are some of the questions you have about exhibiting your own work? I promised a few readers I would post a list regarding exhibiting so below are some pointers to consider. There are lots of moving parts to exhibiting, but once you have the list of to do's, its something so exciting and rewarding that you will be exhibiting all over your local town and beyond in no time!

Getting Started

1. Start to take note of places that already exhibit artwork and identify any other local locations that don’t, but could!
2. Take a deep breath and ask the manager/owner of the bar, store, bakery, restaurant and various other “open” establishments how one goes about showing work: The requirements, any costs, timings, holding a reception party etc.
3. Carry a small folder of photographed work with you so when you come across a suitable place, you can simply spark conversation with the manager/owner and show examples.
4. Always carry a little card/postcard to exchange when you meet the person who manages artwork exhibits. AND you never know who else you will meet on your travels.
5. Do a search on google for open artist calls. Submitting work in competitions, juried shows and other group opportunities is another great way to get your work out there.

Once you have a show scheduled

1. Give yourself lots of time to create work if you need to and plan marketing & the opening reception party
2. Decide on a theme or a name for your exhibit
3. Schedule in an opening reception and create an invitation via email and social media
4. Arrange when you can hang and take down the show
5. Work with the venue on best way to hang your show – do you need extra help, do they have a special hanging system already in place? How will you get your work to the space?

 Preparing for the open reception

1. Create a flyer, email blast, posters to put up in your local area/area of the show and send out, give plenty of notice and also send out reminders a few days beforehand.
2. Will you provide alcohol/drinks/nibbles or can the establishment give you a special price. If you prefer for guests to pay for their drinks, think about buying a few bottles of something from the establishment as a sweetener for early arrivers.
3. What marketing material do you need for the big night and for the duration of the show? These include a pricelist, card/postcards & contact details, can you create prints of the original work to sell on the night also? Also remember to name and price with labels under your work and have a guest book to capture emails for future marketing opportunities. Also have an artist bio/statement/resume so people can get to know who you are, what influenced this exhibition.
4. Have your opening night, enjoy every moment and greet guests. (you can also ask friends to help you meet and greet and hand out your marketing materials on the night. Take note of what went really well and what you may change/include for next time.
5. Send a thank you after the event.  And leave contact details at the venue for anyone interested in your work throughout the duration of the show. Most importantly celebrate!

What other kinds of questions do you have? or additional tips you could add for our artist community here on the blog. Good Luck, cant wait to hear all about your future exhibitions.

Until next time.....

Louise Gale - Your Creative Career Consultant for The New New Blog
"Dream-Inspire-Create"

Earth Hour 2011

“Last year's Earth Hour made history as the world’s largest ever voluntary action with people, businesses and governments in 128 countries across every continent coming together to celebrate a commitment to the one thing that unites us all – the planet”.
This year’s Earth Hour is expected to be even more successful! The World Wildlife Federation, who sponsors the event, are upping the ante this year by challenging everyone worldwide to not only get involved for Earth Hour, but to go above and beyond this single event by speaking out and taking action against climate change.
When is Earth Hour and what the heck do I do?
It begins at 8.30pm on 26 March (that's tomorrow!), when millions worldwide will turn off their lights for one full hour.
So take that first leap, go on - I promise it will be really easy! One quick flick of a switch and you'll join millions in creating more awareness on climate change.

...what better time is there to sport this cute light bulb t-shirt?

by NewNew member: aminyitray.etsy.com

“From its inception in 2007, Earth Hour has grown into a global symbol of hope and movement for change. "

Can you believe that last year 1,551 landmarks went dark? Included were some of the world’s most iconic and well known such as,

• The Eiffel Tower in Paris
• The Las Vegas Strip
• Buckingham Palace and Big Ben
• The Coliseum in Rome

…..and our city’s own Empire State Building!!

Photo courtesy of earthhour.org

So what are you going to do to go beyond the hour to fight for our planet and our environment? Get in on the action and let us know by leaving your ideas in the comments!

Visit www.earthhour.org to learn more

.....so lights off tomorrow night everyone! (I know I'll be in the dark....)

www.sansmap.etsy.com