A Canvas For Jenna

Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 by Alyice

Yesterday I began work on a new canvas and you won’t believe what I did. Well, maybe you will. I forgot I had paint on a brush from another project I was working on and I saw an area that needed a little more color so I grabbed the paint brush, dabbed it into some paint, and commenced to “touch up” the area. Well, let’s just say I made a mess! The color turned into an UGLY-Y-Y (did I say ugly?) mud color, right there on my otherwise beautiful canvas!

I could have slapped myself silly. I literally had to walk away. I had these gorgeous, vibrant, translucent colors of blue, purple, and green—quite dreamy if I might say so myself. And now I had to do something to make it all balance out and of course, that would mean saying good-bye to the entire vision I had in my head. (Luckily it was my vision and not my client’s or I would have had to start over from scratch.)

I pulled out a darker purple and a darker blue and began fixing the damage I had done when I once again discovered that mistakes are fixable.

Copyright 2008, Alyice Edrich
Image © Alyice Edrich, 2008
FYI: Forgive if photo is fuzzy, still dealing with eye issue from Bell’s Palsy.

When I showed my now 13 year old daughter the completed piece she said, “Mom, I actually like this better than the original. It’s much more interesting. And because the colors are darker you have to really stare at it to see the details and find things. I like that.” And by finding things, she meant the hidden butterflies.

Now here’s hoping Jenna, from California, will like it, too! Of course, she won’t find out until Christmas because it’s an early Christmas present—which reminds me….It’s never too early to Christmas shop!

Keep Creating

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The Altered Bottle

Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 by Alyice

Remember when I told you that I made a gorgeous vase for my 13 year old daughter from an old root beer bottle that she saved? Well, I know I promised a nicer shot, as per a colleague’s request, but my right eye (the picture taking eye) is so fuzzy from the Bell’s Palsy that I just can’t seem to do it justice. Plus, I still can’t get the lighting right in the livingroom–where it has currently found a home–and I don’t own studio lights for photography, yet.

So…I’m just going to show you what I did, okay?

I can’t tell you how much I L-O-V-E this vase and I can’t wait to find more bottles like this (or drink more sodas) so that we can make more.

What do you think? I’m thinking it might even look better without the hearts, but I like them. And it was a Valentine’s gift so they were appropriate at the time.

Keep Creating

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Selling Your Art

Monday, February 25th, 2008 by Alyice

I’ve got a ways to go before I’m good enough for gallery showings, but I’m not so bad that I couldn’t sell a few things on my own. I’ve actually been doing a little research and discovered that there are several ways to sell arts and crafts these days and none of them require leaving the house—which for an introvert like me is great news!

I’d always thought I’d have to lug a bunch of supplies and projects from one craft show to another and I just couldn’t see myself doing it. First, it would feel completely uncomfortable and second, I always feel so bad for the ones who don’t seem to sell their products. (Not saying I’d never do it, because I think it could be a great way to make friends in the industry and a few contacts along the way.)

Justin Clayton, Artist

Meet Justin

Justin Clayton Artist

Buy Justin’s Art

Then I met up with Justin Clayton and learned that one could make a nice living selling paintings online by creating a following through daily blog posts, a regularly updated website, media coverage, and an eBay store. Now that sounded like my cup of tea!

For almost eight years I’ve been working the Internet to sell my e-books and gain exposure for my free online magazine, surely I could use the same techniques for developing a following with my art and photography projects! But what made Justin so successful I wondered?

After interviewing Justin I discovered that his success didn’t come over night. First, he had to fine-tune his creative talent through daily study and painting. Second, he had to get a better understanding of how the Internet worked and what was needed to succeed as a business. Third, he had to set up his business website and his blog and open up an eBay shop. Fourth, he had to find a way to get the word out about all three. And finally, he had to commit to painting and blogging every single day. Of course this is an oversimplification of the process, but you get the idea.

As I thought long and hard about his tips for success, I realized that there’s two areas I need to work on before I could even consider promoting my art and photography and that’s fine-tuning my skills and creating something every single day.

Justin paints for three hours every single day. With my full load, I’m lucky if I get an hour in to paint or create photographic images. Yes, if I want to succeed in art and photography, I am going to have to make some changes. In the meantime, I think I’ll check out the eBay listings, Esty, Yessy, and a few online shops to see what’s really selling out there.

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