With Help From Jane and Inspiration From Jen

I'm  sure everyone knows Grittyjane--she is such a talented artist.  And she's also very generous in sharing her techniques with us through  her  tutorials.  Her one tutorial is prints on wood, which is basically what I've been doing, but her tutorial  (for only 10 dollars, I might add) has some helpful tips in it--it's well worth the price.

And the inspiration is from Jen, my artist friend that I talked about on this post.  Her website is

 p.s. enjoy your life, and on it she has her wood block prints, and that was my inspiration.  Her's are on  3 x 4 blocks that she cut from a 2 x 4.  So I decided to make my prints on blocks too--thanks again Jen for inspiring (I saw her at Fairport too!)  I wanted to tell her what I was doing, because I would have never thought of doing this.  Instead of getting a 2 x 4 board,  I decided on  a 2 x 6 one, and cut them up so that they would be 4 x 6 blocks. So for about $6.00, I was able to get 24 little blocks.

And THEN..... I was reading Sharon's blog and on this post, she was showing how she cropped her art, and it looked so cool this way.  So when I did my wood blocks, I decided to do this to a few also--

These 2 are actually from just one painting, but now it's 2!

And of course, I have to embellish and finish off the sides--

I want to finish off each one differently, so even though there will be multiple prints, they'll still be a bit different from one another.

So when I look at what I've done with these so far--

as a group--I'm really happy with the direction my art has been going--it makes me smile : )

Back From The Festival

And Holy Moly--look at the people--

I think it's safe to say that half the population of Rochester was there, plus surrounding areas.  These shots were taken on Saturday.  It was cold and later overcast, but okay,  considering how it could have been.  Yesterday was one of the most gorgeous days I've seen in a LONG time--it was perfect.  And people were definitely out enjoying the beautiful weather.   Sales weren't great, but they never are for me on a Sunday, but I didn't care--I was just enjoying the day. 

So, I wanted you to meet a couple more of my artist friends.  First of all, I had to get my booth all ready--

And down the same row that I was in, was Jen.  The name of her businsess is P.S. Enjoy Your Life (how much do you love that title?!)  I met Jen  last year at her very first art show. She may be just starting out, but you would never know it.   When we first met, we just  clicked,  and all I have to do is show you her art, and then you'll know why (you can click on the photos to get a better view)--

The smaller pieces are prints on 3.5'' x 4.5'' resin coated woodblocks, and don't you love that large piece that she had on the outside of her tent. It's always good to display an attention-getter like this to get people inside your booth. And underneath the painting  are these--

These are resin-filled coasters with vintage bottle caps!--Cool!

So at the end of the show, we bartered, and this is what I picked out from her--

And now you know why we're kindred spirits!  And she does have a website---p.s.enjoy your life--just click on the title.

And then, at the end of my row, was Roland.  Roland is a metal artist.  My husband and I met Roland back in the 90's when he was just starting out also.  I remember--he had all of his work and tent in the back of a pick-up truck.  It was a craft show, and to this day  it's in  the top 10 list of one of the worst shows that I've been in, BUT,  it's  also in the top 10  list of one of the most enjoyable shows that I've been in because Roland was our neighbor, and  all we did that whole weekend was laugh--Roland is one of a kind.  His booth  is a double one, so it was hard to get a good shot--here's the front--

So-this is what he specializes in, and I'm taking this description right off of his website--Roland's creations are constructed from metal spikes, rods, rivets and other pieces of steel.   And they're all of different professions, and also custom ordered too.  And I mean EVERY profession--

Are you kind of getting the idea of Roland's wit?  ; )

And every year, he features a couple of larger pieces that he's designed.  This year it's a spider monkey and owl, and notice the spiders next to the owl--

This next photo is Roland's personal favorite--

And I can't talk about Roland without mentioning his wife Maria--I'm pretty sure that she is his rock.  She's great, and I'm thinking a very patient person (I may be wrong, but I think you might need a little bit of patience with Roland.....but in a good way : )  It was so great to see them both.  Roland's website is (and again, just click on the title)

roland metal art

So, as you can see, I had a great weekend, and I could go on, but this post is getting WAY too long.  I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm going to have another giveawy in my next post--just to thank everyone for following and stopping by to leave comments.  I always, always appreciate this!!