Fairies fairies fairies..

So many fairies this year. Lots of custom orders, which I absolutely love.  This was the last one placed before my Christmas cut off. She turned out soooo cute! A gift for a little girl who was an iris for halloween.  She had added sparkles to her dress and her hair was a mixture of light browns and stripes of purple throughout.
         I'm slowly working on stocking up on sheep for Easter and listings. My sheep bag is filling up with body parts and legs, now it's just a matter of finding the time to stitch the bits together and make actual sheep.  I did a special request sheep a few months ago...a  nice little Frenchy sheep.  Ooo la, la, Tres Magnifique.  I love when people issue me a challenge.

Custom fairies flying out the door!

There's been a lot of fairy making going on around here. These are the most current 3 that have received flying papers and have set off across country to their new homes.

TUTUS! That's right, I said TUTUS ....

I've been going a bit tutu crazy lately. I found a great source for tulle and waistbands and now I just can't stop. Perhaps it's the fact that I want a tutu for myself...or always wanted a tutu for myself...

So this is my little tutu storage rack. Looks pretty stinking cute with all the colors all lumped together.

I'll be listing all these as seen above in my Viridian Muse Etsy Shop I can also do custom tutus, but need 3 to 4 week lead time on special orders. I'd love to create a beautiful little tutu for your birthday Princess or dress up fanatic.

Purple Echinacea Cone Flower Print

I love cone flower. It's one of my favorites. This image is of my own crop of coneflower...they've been slow growing the past few years, but I still love to see the blooms when they pop!

This print is now available in my etsy shop. The prints are done on a glossy, metallic photo stock. It really makes the colors pop off the page. If you were looking for regular prints, not on metallic papers, I can do that as well.

Lily Photographic Print Launch

I've put up one of my lily prints in my etsy shop. I love this one! A little Asiatic lily kissed by the rain. I did a really subtle watercolor effect on this print to pop those colors and the depth of the center. I'm loving the prints I received from my new processor. LOVE THEM! I can't wait to get into the really creative stuff with them. They do gallery blocks, and prints on metal..oo I can't wait to try that!

I'll be posting more of my floral photography in the next few days and weeks.

I LOVE EWE

My new painting. I've learned 2 things with this painting. I need to not be so impatient and let layers dry before I move on to the next... and I really love watercolor, and need to source more colors than just my landscape pallet.

More of my photography

I've been playing a bit with my camera as I've got a wedding shoot coming up in the very near future! (Hi C&C...)  Since I've switched over to digital, I've not had a lot of time to play with my creative settings on the new set up. It's a bit new-fangled and cornfusin'. That being said, my camera can take awesome shots all on it's own, without much programming from me. That does take a bit away from the creativity aspect of it all. 

Anyway, I figured it was time to show yet another shot that I've been playing around with. This has yet to be listed in my shop, but it'll make it there some day. It just seems like such a great shot for boys room decor. A bit of the "face the world and be fearless"

I love the dreamy effect it has. His little clenched fists and all.

Well it's late, I should be in bed. Heck I should have been in bed hours ago. Night world..See you tomorrow.

NEARLY A MONTH?!?!

I've left my blog, nearly a month? That's nearly impossible to believe.. but there it is. I've been busy on little man projects with my boy. Oh so many cute little kid projects, and not much spare time to create on my own. I spent the first year of his life burning the candle at both ends, and refuse to do it unless absolutely necessary these days.

I've got up coming work however, soon to be displayed on my etsy shop and this blog. I've finally made the decision to break out some of my photo pieces for sale and display. I've been playing around a bit with digital manipulations, but think I will also offer the original versions as well..especially ones like my lilac piece:

I love this shot, both ways, digitally altered for a "watercolor" effect, and as the straight shoot. Lilacs are one of my favorites.

Lots of new fairies, silk tie floral pins, and ornaments are being made in prep for my two shows mid October and the first weekend in November!
          

                  previews coming shortly :)

Mini sheepies are so cute!

So, I was asked today if I could create a mini version of  my sheep. YERP! I sure can! They're a little fiddly, but so darn cute! This mini guy measures 3x3x2. I'm not keen on the white around the eyes, but I was requested to do black head and legs. Black eyes on black face, never really works out well. I think the white takes away from the cute innocent look of the face of my sheep. This one looks a bit scared or shocked. Now I just have to figure out what to do with them!

Win a kindle fire from ereader1

Check it out! eReader 1 US is one of the best e-reader facebook pages out there. If you're not currently following them, I suggest you high tail it over there and them out. You'll find a great resource for awesome free books and fun tips and tricks. They're currently running a giveaway to win yourself your very own shiny spanking new Kindle Fire! You can put your entries in on the side bar of this blog!

artistic photo editing.

I've been playing around editing images I took. I'm really having fun punching up the "arty" quality of them. I took these lovely pictures of my sister at the lake and have manipulated them to look a bit painterly. This one is currently available via my ViridianMuse ETSY shop as well as some of my painterly florals. I'm working on getting more listed, but haven't had time to sit down and get them into listing mode.

I love taking floral iamges. I haven't had much of a chance to do any floral photography this year, or last for that matter. Dragging a toddler and camera equipment out for a hike to find good images is not an ideal , nor creative trip. I can just envision broken camera/lenses.

This is one of my favorite florals so far. This bunch of white lilacs are so stunning. I'm thinking of getting this image blown up to at least a 16 x 18 or whatever that large of a size would amount to. I think framing it in a nice simple black frame would look really elegant. I've got far more colorful images to upload, but this one just speaks to me for some reason.

I'll be working on more silk tie pins in the coming week. I think Tuesday I'll be taking a trip around to see if I can find any ties I can't live without. The ones I have currently are in shades of gold, gun metal grey, a black white and purple print, and an orange paisley print. They're time consuming to make, but I enjoy the process greatly! Be on the lookout for more pins to join this one!

I'm back! It's taken me awhile...but I'm finally back. I've been working on getting photographs of my ribbon rosette pins. I've got some great ones coming up. I'll also be listing my first etsy listing for my silk tie florals. I've been trying to perfect my technique and had a few I just wasn't ready to give to the world.  Now that I've figured out a few different ways I want to do them, I'll be listing them on etsy as I get them made.

Here's my first pin listing from the weekend:  This one turned out so cute!  It's a lovely bubblegum pink color with little orange polka dots. In the center is a stardust style dark purple button with gold edging. So cute! Keep your eyes peeled! More things coming soon!

Down after dental extraction

I've been under the weather as of late. I had my wisdom teeth removed last week and was doing well on the mend. Now, NOT so much.  So art has been put on hold as I recover and get myself back to working order. I think perhaps I've over extended myself with too much physical activity, however there's not much I could do with a 2 year old running amok in the house. Thankfully my dear husband has been doing the every day duties such as baths (can't hang my head over the tub to play with the kiddo..) and those typically mundane tasks.

So hopefully I'll be back up to production on things in a few days. I've got a giant batch of fairies in the works. They're sitting half dressed, or sans beautiful coiffure, or fully dressed with hair perfectly in place minus all the extra trimmings. I'm itching to get back to them, but sitting with my head hung over them isn't any good either. So for now, I lean back on the couch with my heating pad tucked under my chin.

This time around there will be more pin fairies launched. I've been lacking pins for a long while now, but I have at least 10, that just need fairy fine trimmings. I have been able to sketch out ideas for other artwork as I lounge about. Little snips and shreds of sketches always fly in my wake. The sketching has become obsessive once again. I'm not sure why, but whenever there is a pen in hand, it's usually sketching like mad.

I'll also be launching some new photographic art on my etsy site. I've got magical altered photos with a painterly quality to them that I'll be slowly making available in my shop. Currently I've got some cute little fairy prints offered as well as one handsome toad. The coming photos are a mix of beautiful florals, landscapes, and what I like to call dream imagery. You know those types of images that just lure your brain into creating this fantastical world of a story behind them.

Crows are making another round through my art as well as squirrels. Needless to say, if I only had the million and one hours of free time needed to create all the things I'd want to, there would be no stopping me.

Good Night All! Have a pleasant tomorrow!

Giveaway LAST DAY!

Today is the last day to get your entries in to win the cutely custom flower fairy dolls and the small watercolor painting! This is the rough draft of the watercolor painting.I had to darken it quite considerably to show off the image. I'll be painting her tonight in lovely spring shades. She'll have a golden crown on her head too! So be sure to run over to The Art and Tree Chatter of Aquariann and follow the instructions to put your entries in!

Cupcake Original Art " Will You Be Mine?"

Cupcake lovers unite! Features a cute yellow icing cupcake with the saying: Cupcake Will You Be Mine? This adorable piece would be a wonderful proposal to that special someone, or perhaps the perfect wall art for your little cupcake's room!

This piece is watercolor and marker on #110 Bristol. It measures 6x6 inches square with the art sized at 4.5 inches x 4.5 inches square.

I've been inspired recently to make "love" art. It first started with the "My Love For You Is As Big As A Whale" piece.

I've got some owl pieces coming up, and an adorable winter couple in an eskimo kiss.

Don't forget! There's only one more day left to get your entries in for the Custom Fairy Set Giveaway!

Only 4 more days to ENTER!!

You only have 4 more days to enter the giveaway on Aquariann's Blog Be sure you get your chance to win! It's not often you'll find my fairies as part of a giveaway! Here's a few shots of fairies from past orders!!

KAIA Flower Fairy Pin!

Meet Kaia! She's the new fairy pin listed in my etsy shop. She's a star flight fairy or SSF. It's her job to maintain all the stars' sparkle. She loves being in charge of the last check and final polish before they hit the skies each night.

Flower Fairy Pin Listed! More to come!

Finally the pins are hitting my shop! I've had a bit of a stretch of not making any pins at all. I'm thrilled to say, they're making a come back though. I've got about 30 in various stages of complete and will be listing them as I get them done. As always, I do take custom orders for pins the same way I take customs for ornaments. I'm hoping to have a bunch done in time for Mother's day shopping as they're a perfect gift!

Ooo Fairy Skirts!

Look at all the pretty colors! This is just a smattering of the haul I brought in from my last supply trip. I've been extremely low on blue and purple as well as regular pinks/corals. So now the fairy fashion show begins. They'll be strutting their stuff in near future! Tomorrow I'll be listing a pin once again. It's been awhile since I've listed pins for sale. I've got one ready and more awaiting pins before they can make their appearance.

MAIL ART LOVELINESS!

Here's some mail art heading out the door to the Netherlands. I love doing envelopes with fancy things on them. My mail people love me! The two postal mistresses at the local office I go to always worry about putting their tags on the art. It's really cute. Meanwhile, I just fill up the envelope to satisfy my own need for a happy colorful mailing. Anything that's really important, or that I want to be sure is seen, is never put where a label would be placed. Here's the front and back of the piece I'm sending out.

Art and Things Nice Show

I finally started digging through my show photos from this past year. I've been meaning to post what my set up looks like for the Art and Things Nice show and haven't had a chance to. My area is very tiny. This year it was very difficult for me to place everything I had made for the show. I had a basket of things I kept rotating. My little ballerina ornaments went better than the fairies this year. They're extremely cute and a great buy for a recital gift. I think I'll make more to list in my etsy shop too. My sweater pocket pets did pretty good, but did even better at the show the week before this one. I had to rush around making more for this show. Both of my little hand sewn squirrels sold as well as one of my spirit dolls. I was thrilled that she found a home.


I've been enlarging the squirrel pattern to make bigger ones, but haven't yet had the time without little hands involved to stitch them together. They'll just have to wait though until fairies fly out the door for the gallery and my other special order batches. I'll probably start in August to really start pumping out the sweater animals and squirrels.

New Blues

I'm excited! Today is a supply shopping day. I get to go and source new blues for fairies. YAY! There's nothing better than poking around looking for new florals to use. Usually while I'm doing that I'm also looking to see what's new in the charms and beads to find what will work with the little fairy hands! Delicious new goods always make me happy and inspire the Muse to create more amazing fairies and art. I'll be posting pics when I get home of my haul!

Two Custom Fairy Giveaway! Find out how!

Now's your chance to win TWO custom fairies and an atc sized watercolor fairy painting! Just jump over to Aquariann's Blog to find out how to win!!

The last two purple fairy orders

Here are two custom fairy orders I did recently. This little fairy was based on the little girl's dance costume from when she danced in the Nutcracker.
She was really fun to create and was a bit hit. I loved doing something so detailed. My fairies usually have a lot of little details to them, but sticking close to a photo image of a dance costume was a great challenge.

This one was to be a little "goth and edgie" It's kind of hard to turn a little flower fairy into an edgy goth piece..but she was thrilled with the way it turned out.
I'll be doing a large batch of sea/ocean colorway faires. Lots of lovely aquas, ocean blues, seafoam greens, ivory, and the like. I'll also be listing a few more that have been finished. A few really tropical colored fairies and some reds and pinks.

Cherry Love Sock Floral Pin Now on Etsy

I hand pieced this little pink and red sock floral pin. It was fun to figure out exactly how I needed to loop everything together to get a nice finished pin. I've got a few more ideas for some more, but I think I'm going to concentrate more on my silk tie floral pins than these sock ones. The silk tie pieces are so amazing when completed. I'll be listing the first I'm going to sell in the next few days. I need some down time to take a lot of new photos of new product, but little fingers (Val) don't allow for it.

Audrey is available for sale on etsy!

My little Audry is up for sale on my chelmorning etsy shop. I've also found Oskar. I think he decided he was going to do a bit of traveling. I couldn't find him for awhile. I looked EVERYWHERE for him in all my sales boxes and storage. I don't know where he had gone off to but he was gone for two years! So here he is again, back up for sale.

Today's Featured Blog: Create To Feel Great

Welcome to Create To Feel Great's blog. This blog makes me happy just from the introduction paragraph. I mean, who doesn't want to finish something creative week for a year! I am amazing at the amount of creativity and range of project she has here! Check this kindle case! Not only are the projects she's doing amazing, the amount of openness on the blog is wonderful. She's sharing thought processes not just pictures of what she's doing now. Don't get me wrong, I like the next person love those swoony blogs with ethereal pictures of lovely things..but where's the meat people! This has it! Thanks for sharing DeeDee! Feeling inspired by DeeDee's blog? need a good creativity coach? See DeeDee here!

Today's featured blog: Deidre's Amazing Blog

Today I'm over at Deidre's Amazing Blog and the title couldn't be more fitting. Deidre has a knack with pottery. I love the newer post with the pottery with the lace patterned edges! Click through the photos! I love the pattern work. She's also got a cute tutorial for a squeaky dog toy. These would never survive with the beasty dogs in my life. They'd have it shredded in seconds..but if you have a dog who loves their toys rather than destroys, you might try this tutorial. These sgrafitto pieces are stunning and make me swoon! I can't imagine the time she put into getting these carved so lovely. Stop by to see Deidre's blog, and you can also find her etsy shop here if you're into pottery.

Today's featured blog: Vintage Terrace "2"

Today's featured crafting blog is from the lovely Vintage Terrace 2 This beautiful blog is full of inspiration. She does beautiful atcs with an eye to layering, but she also fills her blog with inspiring tutorials, or inspirational links and videos. It's one of those blogs you can get lost in! I love the little hits of her home life in the Ukraine and views from her location. This little butterfly makes me long for summer and working in the garden. I cannot believe her eye for color. It shows well in this lovely art journal. Scroll down to see the art journal page. It's amazing! So stop by and take the time to check out her blog, you just might get lost for awhile.

Today's featured blog: Bone-Needle Arts and Crafts

Today's blog is Bone-Needle Arts and Crafts. Do not let the art behind the blog fool you or make you move on! This blog is full of amazing arts and crafts based on antiquity! Her embroidery is swoon worthy, and so wonderful. I love the patch in this post! Her atcs mostly sit within the historical or ancient arts. I love the renaissance fashion atcs in this post! You really need to stop by and check her out.

Today's featured blog CRAFTING WITH BLUE

Rhonda @ Crafting with Blue This lovely little blog is full of wonderous paper crafts and scrapbook layouts. She's got an eye for layouts that aren't overly fussy or busy, with just the right amount of color and design. I love the current Valentine card she's got posted along with the link to where she found the pattern for the cute little card. Check out the ASL I love you sign card she did! I LOVE IT! She's also got a yardsellr account where you can find some really fun things! Check it out! Take a minute and check out her lovely blog!

Barely hanging on....

I've been away from creating for far too long. The last few fairies I did have been packaged and sent without so much as a photo taken of them. That's not like me at all, but finding time to do such things with a near 2 year old running around the house making messes, and fitting in my actual job, and then fitting in even more of my actual job once he goes to bed is a bit of an impossibility.

I've been finding time to do small things, quick on the dawn things. I wanted to have a lot of Valentine things to offer in my shops this year. All I have so far is this:
My little lovey whale. I've got four more square pieces like this penciled in, but haven't had a chance to sit and add color of any kind.