Valentine's Day: Free Printable

Happy Valentine's Day

from the 

Hudson Valley Etsy Team

Print out borderless on 8.5x11" card stock, makes two per sheet, use invitation envelopes 4.57x5.75" 

Link to Free Printable

Visit our VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT GUIDE for more great gift ideas!

Jody

www.astudiobythesea.etsy.com

Gift Tags - Free Printable

Seasons Greetings from 
the Hudson Valley Etsy Team!

Our Holiday Craft Fair in Beacon is only weeks away.  Get ready to give with these fennec fox gift tags you can print at home.  Have your special persons been naughty or nice this year?

Click on link below for Naughty and Nice pdf

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4emWuO6AltReEc0eEZfWldyNXM&authuser=0

Instructions:

1. Print out the downloaded file on a sheet of card stock
2. Cut out each tag along the pale blue lines - use scissors, x-acto knife & ruler or paper cutter.
3. Punch out holes with a hole punch or just attach to your gift with tape or glue. I also drew in gold marker along the edges for more decoration.

All images © Jody A Lee 2014

www.astudiobythesea.etsy.com

This gift tag sheet is for your personal use only
All commercial use of them or these images is prohibited

Happy Holidays!

Jody 

Winter Whites

White Winter Dreams

from the Hudson Valley Etsy Team

December Narcissus by DigilioDesigns

Hand Knit Cowl by Elena Rosenberg

Brocade Bag by Huzzah Handmade

Penguin Notecards by Karmabee

Bridal White Earrings by PulpSushi

Linen Drawstring Bag by Frau Lammli

Jody

a Studio by the Sea

Craft Display Changes

A Crafter and her Display

Over the years, my display has changed and changed again.  I made mistakes and discovered the sort of things one has to take into account when selling at craft fairs or on the street or in every kind of weather.  I tried to make a playful, attractive display at first, with these really fun jewelry carousels made from dowels and old candelabra and candle holders.  My fanciest beads were displayed in a mosaic frame. At my first street fair I was selling lampwork glass bead necklaces and my daughter had started a business of selling button hairbands.  We had a flimsy cheap tent that threatened to blow away with the slightest breeze, and it wasn't exactly waterproof as well.  There were some thrilling moments as we hung onto the tent and tried to talk to customers at the same time.

Grandma holding down the fort in the background.  Daughter off looking for food.  This was a family enterprise.

In the next few months, I made more carousels and put the button hairbands into glass fish bowls.  It just so happened that it  rained at every outdoor fair I went to for an entire year.  The cheap tent bought the farm by the second Spring Crafts in Chelsea when I loaned it to Lauren of Paperelle, not long after this picture was taken. I had bought a heavier one, but even this one couldn't withstand the gusts of 21st Street, so  I took it down before it broke as well.  Now people tend to not even bring tents to Crafts in Chelsea.

Nothing like untangling 25 sterling silver necklaces from a fallen carousel.

Then I decided I wanted to apply to slightly higher end craft fairs, which meant one needed a good picture of one's display.  My reaction was to make my display even fancier, with shelves covered in beadboard panels, and this was the picture I used for my applications.  Obviously this was only for an indoor show.

I love the wacky candelabra, but they belong in a store display.

But I was still doing some street fairs, and using my carousels, so I screwed the carousels to a wooden plank, decorated in mosaics, and clamped it to the table.  That took care of the falling over in wind.  But I didn't like having to set up the frames to display my longer, fancier necklaces, and thought I might try a single board with easel style framing behind it, which also clamped to the table.  After one show I decided this was too heavy and just didn't show my work to advantage.  It was better to show jewelry in smaller sections rather than on one huge board.  I was also inspired at this time to make some sea monsters with their own lamp work eyes and pocket mouths.

This board will probably find a future as a mirror.  Really nice mosaic border of sea glass and broken china.

In 2012 I brought my crafts out to Hyannis, out on Cape Cod.  I did very well out there but oh the days were hot and long.  And I really missed having my etsy team around.  I simplified the beadboard panels to attach to a raised six foot table, and bought some cheap book shelves from Target to display my prints.  The shelves are pretty flimsy, and less than two feet wide.  I put weights on the bottom shelf to keep them upright.  I finally got a banner to hang behind me, and found a cute vintage aqua and cream table cloth for my display.

I have these great rocks with furrows cut into them to hold my prints.

The next year I went in for making a lot of monsters!  And bunting, which I hung from fiberglass safety poles from Home Depot.

Anyone remember the bunting post I made last year?  Here's how they look on the street!

A day later, this was the display up in Beacon with the Hudson Valley Etsy Team.  The crowd was light due to the heat wave we were going through but I still made money with the jewelry.  I'd pretty much had enough with trying to stand my frame displays up, so I let them lie flat on the tables and they did fine.  Customers didn't seem to mind.  No more risers, either.  All of these displays were made with the thought in mind that I would have a car and would be driving to the fair site.  Weight was not an issue.

I like the sea shell tablecloths I made, but the shells are very large and bold.

My basement is crowded with displays I've made and had to abandon.  But now I'm looking at doing some fairs where I will not be driving, I'll be taking public transportation.  Time to really lighten up!  I want everything, product and display and selling paraphernalia, to fit into a backpack, rolling cart, or luggage.  It would be fun to fly to other cities and try out the craft fairs there, and having a light and flexible display would be great.

I hope this post will give my fellow crafters some ideas for their own displays, and give fair warning to others about what not to do!  I'll make another post about my new light display in the future.

Jody

a Studio by the Sea

Imaginative Realism

Jeff Jones

Imaginative Realism is the new name for fantasy art.  That covers all the genres of science fiction, fantasy, horror and gaming art that took realistic painting or sculpture in the direction of things only seen in the imagination.  I do crafts, but my main employment has been as an artist working in the publishing industry, making paintings that will grace the covers of fantasy books.  

In September I was lucky to attend Illuxcon7, the premier convention for Imaginative Realism, created by Patrick and Jeannie Wilshire.  The Allentown Museum of Art is inundated every September with artists, collectors, and students of the fantastic from all over the world.  Only non-digital work is allowed, so the galleries are filled with the most amazing work in traditional methods - oils, watercolors, graphite, and the three dimensional work is beyond description, especially because I haven't the faintest idea what they are using to create their strange and lifelike beings.  There are also wonderful classes and discussions going on in the nearby Baum Education Center, and a stream of students getting their portfolios reviewed by professionals.

Allentown Museum of Art

Here are some of the artists I met and the work that I saw at Illuxcon7.

Stephen Hickman

John Jude Palencar

Bob Eggleton

Marianne Plumridge

Bob Eggleton & Marianne Plumridge

Richard Hescox

Annie Stegg

Travis Lewis

Rebecca Guay

My art display

Mermaid: Blue Eyes

I only have photos of a small part of the show, but more and larger views of the artists' work can be seen at:

http://www.illuxcon.com/#

Illuxcon is thoroughly inspiring for me.  I love seeing work this good, and find it gets the creative juices flowing in ways that just working alone does not.  It's a pleasure to meet the artists, the collectors, and the fans in an intimate and low key setting.  We all wander around talking and chatting and having a great time.  We also sell some art, which is always good too.

Jody

a Studio by the Sea

Stickley Museum

Some times you head off the beaten path and you discover little unknown treasures.  In the summer I was looking for inexpensive flooring for a room I was finishing, and found I could get some at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in New Jersey.  On the drive to Morris, New Jersey, I passed a sign that said "STICKLEY MUSEUM."  My head turned, as any one who loves the Arts and Crafts Movement in the United States knows the wonderful furniture made by Gustav Stickley.  Of course I had to find out what this museum could be. 

It turns out that there was a beautiful property in New Jersey that Stickley bought, and then built as a school for boys to learn a trade.  The school never took off, but he lived there with his family for a short time as his country estate when he was at his most successful, furnishing every room with pieces designed especially for himself and to his specifications.  I took a tour of the lovely grounds and the building with an agreeable and knowledgeable old docent. 

Below is the main building, called the Log House, which is filled with many of his original pieces, wall hangings and decor.  Every room has been loving restored, right down to an old Cornell pennant on the wall of his daughters' room, as it was seen in photographs.  Inside, the fireplaces are of brass with typical arts and crafts style mottos beaten into the metal.  Everywhere are small soft golden electrical lamps hanging from posts or the ceilings, lighting the dark rooms.  It's like stepping into an illustration for a proper home from the Arts and Crafts Magazines of the time.  I was so pleased to come upon this hidden gem!

The Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms

The tour entry

A box of the beautiful joinery used by the Stickley craftsmen.  No nails!

The gift shop is in the old kitchens.  There was a giant stove and ice room because he thought he would have a school here.

I wasn't allowed to take photographs inside so you can get a better idea of the treasures within by visiting their website: 

Stickley Museum

What a treat that was!  I love the design and craftsmanship, it was so lovely!

Jody

a Studio by the Sea

Gone to the Beach

It's time to go to the Beach

with the Hudson Valley Etsy Team

It's full on summer and one's thoughts turn toward the shore.  Here are some lovely handmade items from the team inspired by a love of the waters around us!

Charms of Faith

Unnamed Road

RG Clay Designs

Huzzah Handmade

a Studio by the Sea

Stone and Fiber

Jody
a Studio by the Sea