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A Jar A Day

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 by Alyice

Here’s a sneak peak at my latest creations.

I’m very pleased with the outcome of these altered jars and bottles. I’m improving on technique and gaining more confidence in my abilities with each new jar I create. I’ve learned to work in sets and stages, too. If I don’t, I find my impatience takes control and I screw things up. I’ve also discovered that painting in spurts really helps me relax and de-stress.

If you’re interested in one of these jars or having me custom paint one for your home or gift recipient, don’t hesitate to drop me an email! The jars start at $24.99—a steal for something quite unique and one-of-a-kind.

Keep Creating.

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Southwestern Canvas

Saturday, May 10th, 2008 by Alyice

After a week of trying to take a good photo of this canvas I’ve decided to give up and just post it. One day I will master the art of photographing paintings but for now I’ve decided posting something is better than not posting anything at all. So here you have it…

This canvas was made for my brother-in-law, Frank. He’s the gypsy of the family and absolutely loves the great outdoors. In fact, his wedding was held in a ghost town in Arizona, complete with western attire from the 1900’s and a gun fight—right in the middle of the ceremony. You see, an outlaw decided to tell the minister that the couple didn’t have the right to get married so the sheriff shot him dead. Of course it was all for show—the guy got up after the ceremony ended, unharmed.

Originally I wanted the photo in the middle to have burnt edges and appear much older than it currently looks but I couldn’t get what I had in my head to come out in my art so I settled on something else. The triangles that border the frame are pieces of paper that I painted, cut up, and placed inside the wet plaster. After the plaster dried for two days I went back and painted the plaster, being careful not to paint over the painted triangles. I then painted the middle, added the images, and sealed the canvas with five coats of semi-gloss varnish.

You’ll probably see more of this photo in the future as it’s the family’s favorite photo of their mom—and mine, too. We like to refer to this photo as “The Real Snow White”.

Keep Creating

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Recycled Altered Glass

Saturday, April 26th, 2008 by Alyice

As Earth Day approached this year I was pleased to announce that I had finally found a creative use for all the glass jars that usually make their way to the city dump and I couldn’t be more pleased. Now, not only do I get to have creative play days, but I can do something better for the environment, too.

As you know, Americans are pretty good about recycling glass drinking bottles—especially since many states pay you cash for doing so. But how many of us actually recycle those glass jars used for pickles, mayo, salsa, olive oil, and other food products?

If you live in a city that has a curbside recycling program in place, it’s easy to stay earth conscious. Just sort your trash, place it in the proper trash cans, and wait for trash day. But what if you live somewhere that doesn’t have a curbside recycling program in place? Can you honestly say that you haul your trash off to the nearest recycling facility? And what if that recycling facility is an hour away? Do you make the trip or do you, like most of us, simply throw your trash away without a second thought?

While not all glass can be recycled through recycling centers nearly all glass can be repurposed or reused as art. All it takes is a little imagination.

Just check out what some of these companies are doing with recycled glass:

EnviroLGLAS turns old glass into floors anyone can walk on.
Bedrock Industries creates wonderful mosaic pieces for the home and garden.
EcoFriendly Flooring creates tiles that can be used in bathrooms and floors.
Fire & Light creates beautiful, colored glass tableware.
Simon Harrison Design creates beautiful jewelry.

For ideas you, personally, can use for repurposing the glass in your home, check out DIY Network’s glass section at DIYNetwork.com.

And finally, to discover why Master Glass Artist, Erwin Timmers, says, “We’re at a point in our lifetime in our society where we really have to start making a change in the way we interact with our environment ” check out The Washington Post’s article titled, “A Glass Master Displays the Art of Conservation“.

Keep Creating

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