Free Art Jar – You Pay Shipping

Monday, February 8th, 2010 by Alyice

Today, as I did a little blog hopping I discovered a blog (now defunct) by Stephen Davis in which he offered an occasional free painting to one his readers on a first come, first serve basis. The paintings ranged from ATCS to 8×10s to small canvases. All the reader had to do was pay a modest shipping and handling fee and the painting was his.

He wrote that he believed offering an occasional “free” painting would be a great way to build awareness—and possibly create a following. He also wrote that by moving the paintings out of his art studio, he freed up room for more paintings—which ultimately encouraged him to paint more.

Today, Stephen has a new blog, Davies Galleries Landscape Art, in which he sells his paintings for a modest fee.

I am not sure how well this little ploy worked as a marketing tool, but it did get me thinking about how much I’ve wanted to hold drawings for my art jars but haven’t done so due to a number of reasons:

I don’t want to attract “freebie” hunters; I want to attract potential buyers.
I don’t want my listings to be spammed all over “freebie” announcement boards and groups; I want legitimate link love.
I don’t want my hard work to go out into the world without so much as a mention; positive word-of-mouth sells art so I need someone willing to talk up my art—whether it be a blurb and a link on Twitter, a photo and a post on a personal blog, a mention on Facebook, or even word-of-mouth to a friend or colleague in search of unique, handmade gift ideas.
And finally, I cannot afford to shell out the cost (and time) of producing the art and still pay for packaging and shipping costs. Especially when a flat rate, Priority Mail box plus delivery confirmation costs $11.05—and shipping Internationally is usually double that.

With that in mind, I am going to test the waters, so-to-speak, and host a few “free art” drawings over the course of the next year.

However, there is going to be a catch:

The winner of the drawing must pay the cost of shipping and handling and any custom fees.
The winner must abide by the contest rules.
The winner must email me and tell me what he/she thought of the art once it arrives. Positive feedback will encourage me to keep creating and, with permission, make a great testimony for my sales page. Negative feedback will help improve my craft—though it may sting a little so I will ask that negative feedback be given gently.
The entrant of the drawing must play a little game with me—could be something as simple as tweeting about the drawing or leaving a comment in the post. Or it could require a little more legwork, like browsing the blog or the eMagazine to find an answer to a question. Or it could involve creating an art project, from the how-to section of the blog, and posting the finished project on Flickr, or a personal blog, with a link back to the drawing post.

I hope you’ll spread the word about this “free art” project.

Because to be quite honest, I really do love sharing my art with the world and I know that there are times when money is tight and we have to choose between a luxury item and a household item, a want versus a need, and a collectible versus more business supplies.

So consider this as my way of giving back to the art community…

Keep Creating

Posted in Free Art | Comments Off

I Am So Excited! And A How To…

Sunday, February 7th, 2010 by Alyice

The sweet and incredibly talented, Lisa Fulmer, of Lisa Liza Lou, just purchased an original mixed media canvas from yours truly!

This is what she purchased…

I call it “Longing For Fall” because I seriously cannot take much more of this winter and I desperately long to see the changing of the seasons. I truly hope she likes it.

Oh, and by the way… this mixed media painting was created using scrap materials. I am a firm believer in getting every last morsel I can out of my supplies—and thanks to Lisa’s blog, I am always challenged to think outside the box when it comes to using my scraps.

How To Create A Mixed Media Blooming Tree

For this particular project, I was down to the last of my modeling paste and I didn’t want it to harden so I lathered a nearby canvas with it. While the modeling paste was still wet, I inserted paper strips, a tree stump, and flowers. Once dried, I painted the canvas.

When the paint dried, I glued on some course turf (the stuff railroad modelers use) and clear beads. And just before I sprayed the canvas with a high gloss varnish (three coats), I sprinkled glitter onto the sky.

Here’s a tip: Every time you use paper in a project, set the leftovers aside. Then on a day when your creativity is low, take your scraps and cut them into various shapes and objects. The next time you want to work with paper, you’ll have plenty of pieces to choose from!

Keep Creating

Posted in Art How-Tos, Artist's Life, The Canvases | 1 Comment »

Create Valentine’s Day Wall Art

Friday, February 5th, 2010 by Alyice

I remember, as a little girl, waking up on Valentine’s Day to find a heart shaped box of chocolates and a tiny stuffed animal sitting at the foot of my bed. My mom was never good at vocalizing her love, and often had a difficult time showing it. But come a special occasion, and she outshined the best of them.

I, on the other hand, have absolutely no problem telling someone how much I love them, admire them, appreciate them, or want to be around them. What I am horrible at, however, is keeping up with holiday traditions.

I love the idea of a holiday, but I’ve never really been good at keeping up with traditions. I tried the gifts at the foot of the bed on Valentine’s Day idea, but it just wasn’t me. Felt guilty about not keeping my mom’s tradition alive, especially since I truly did love it as a child—but I soon got over it.

Now I embrace the fact that I am different from my mom—not better, not worse, just different. And I’ve also come to terms with the fact that when it comes to Valentine’s Day, I am definitely a “last minute” kind of gal.

If you are like me, and put off your decorating until the last minute, you’re going to love this idea!

Last year, I created a beautiful mixed media painting with the word, “love” across the top. I loved it so much that I framed it. But before I did, I photographed the image, cropped out a part of the top, and resized it to 5×7, so I could use it as last minute Valentine’s Day Cards.

Now, all I have to do is print the image onto photo paper, let dry, then cut and glue (or tape) to the top of a blank, 5×7 greeting card. Talk about instant gratification—and totally unique!

And if I want to get a little creative, I can use the image, along with some scrap papers, to create a mini-collage like the one below.

Notice how the painting has a foggy appeal? I created that by spraying the finished card with acid-free spray adhesive. Then while it was still wet, I sprayed the card with a clear matte sealer.

To create the Valentine’s Day wall art, just follow these instructions:

Supplies:

Strathmore Paper for Acrylics or Watercolor
White tissue paper
Scrap papers
Heart shape punch
Small round sponge brush
Paint brushes
Risers
White Gesso
Acrylic paint
Mod Podge, matte

Instructions:

Cover two sheets of Strathmore paper with Gesso paint.
Let dry.
Use Mod Podge to adhere tissue paper and scraps to one of the papers. Continue adding tissue paper until you build up a nice texture—sort of like little hills.
While your textures are drying, cut out tiny hearts using a heart shaped puncher.
Paint the bottom half of the textured paper with dark acrylic paints.
Let dry.
Dry brush light colors on top of the dark colors. This allows the textures you created with tissue paper and scrap papers to show through.
Paint the top half of the textured paper with light colors—colors that resemble a sky. In my case, I chose yellow with a hint of orange and burnt sienna. I also used the circular sponge to insert some blue.
Use Mod Podge to adhere hearts to the darker area of the painting.
Use red acrylic paint to paint the hearts. You do not want to leave them unpainted—even if you chose red paper—because the hearts would stand out too much and you want them to blend in with the rest of the painting.
Use red paint to paint the word “love” across the top of the painting.
Let dry.
While your painting is drying, grab the other sheet of Strathmore paper and cover it with acrylic paints. Don’t be afraid to create crazy and wild designs.
Let dry.
Turn the paper over and draw two birds, facing each other.
Cut out the birds and adhere to the top of your painting using risers.

Congratulations, you’ve just created a beautiful Valentine’s themed painting ready to be matted and hung on your wall!

Keep Creating

Posted in Art How-Tos Valentine, The Cards | 5 Comments »

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AlyiceEdrich.com
I'm a mixed media artist and freelance writer. Need web content? Want to commission or license art? Let's Talk.

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I Am So Excited! And A How To…

Create Valentine’s Day Wall Art

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