Anticipation - Milwaukee's Art in Bloom event

There is so much going on in April. But one event I am really looking forward to this week is the Art in Bloom event at the Milwaukee Art Museum, April 2-5, 2009.
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Art in Bloom events are annual floral-art events held at multiple museums through out the US. (Boston's Museum of Fine Art, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Oregon and more) The Milwaukee Art Museum's Inaugural Art in Bloom event was first held last year in 2008.
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Multiple florists create bouquets of flowers inspired by works of art from the Museum's collection. The bouquets are displayed close to the inspiring art works, scattered throughout the museum. You get to see unique beautiful and inspired bouquets as you wander the art museum in a meandering tour.
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There are also lectures, demos, tours, a vendor area, and more beautiful flowers. For me, its a perfect combination of two of my loves - flowers and art.

The museum has events like flower ranging lectures and demos and landscaping lectures throughout the four days. The cost for the lectures isn't inexpensive, but the price means the museum can book top national designers and authors to fly in for the lectures. I attended a demo/lecture by Ron Morgan on flower arranging last year. Watching the top designer create 5 or more very different flower arrangements in an hour or so taught me more in 60 minutes then reading for 3 days would have. It was funny, entertaining and a great way to learn.



I had arranged to meet Kyle Zubatsky for breakfast at the museum and we got to walk through the museum together. She owns a gallery and exhibits art nationally and so walking the museum with her was a particular treat.

On Sunday I took my family to the see the Art in Bloom show.


I hope you enjoy some of the photos that I took from last year's show - I'll try to get some photos from this year's show posted after this year's event.

Click on the images to see them larger. 

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Chicago Garden

Chicago Garden

Art in Bloom 2010

I am linking up to Sunday Favorites 96 (Entry 32)

Visit http://www.mam.org/bloom/ for more information.

Waiting for Spring, again...

This weekend I saw a seven robins in a group while I was waiting for my son to finish his track practice. A flock of robins. It was great. I wanted to get my camera and take photos of robins, but I didn't have my camera with me.

Spring is my favorite season. I am so ready for it to be here! Last night it snowed. We even had a winter storm warning.



I thought I would share some photos from previous springs while I wait for spring 2009 to arrive.

Click on the images to see them larger. 

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Elves Chasm

Chicago Garden

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My first featured artist - Miranda

My first featured artist is going to be... My daughter. I am very proud of this card - The artist is my 9 year old daughter Miranda. One day when I was creating valentines, she was given unlimited access to my stash and created this collage. It is fun to see what children can create with beautiful materials. She calls it "Deep Blue Ocean." She said signing the card I made from a photograph of her collage made her feel famous. Pablo Picasso said "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up."

I am hoping that I have remained an artist, and I know my daughter is one. I love the look that children's art frequently has. Enjoy!

The snow is almost gone!

Spring is close by, and my tulips and crocuses are beginning to poke through the dirt.

The snow is melting, and some of my heart mosaics have reemerged from under the snow.

The mosaics are the only spots of color in the garden beds, which is one of the reasons I left them out all winter.

I made seven so different heart mosaics in 2007-2008, trying out different techniques and cements. You may be able to guess which ones were earlier experiments. 

I didn't grout and seal any of these. They shouldn't be left out all winter, but the colors peeking through the snow was always so cheery, so I left them out.

My daughter made the circle stepping stone below using leftovers from some stained glass projects and other objects I found. For the next month or so, this will be about all the color we will have around here. 

 

But if you want to see spring flowers right now, go to my on-line shop and click on the flowers and spring section. I have beautiful cards and photographic prints of many favorite spring flowers.

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Mosaic Collection - All Posts!

 

Adding a mini Etsy on your blog

I finally learned how to add a mini Etsy to blogspot.
You can see it on the right side below my profile,
and click on it to go to my on-line stop.

The rest of this blog is a brief how-to for Etsy people:
Go to Etsy. Sign in. Go to my Etsy.
(This would actually be your Etsy, don't hack into MY Etsy. :)
In the lower left corner click on mini Etsy.
Select your configuration of columns and rows.
I used 2 columns by x 75 pixel thumbnails.
(You might have to click a submit button here...)
The code is generated for you to copy.
Select the code, copy it.
Go to your blog.
Sign in.
Go to Customize.
Select the Page Elements tab.
Click Add a gadget.
Select HTML/Javascript
A dialog box appears:
My on-line shop is the title I used.
Paste the content you copied from Etsy into the content box.
Press Save in the dialog box.
Position your gadget where you want it.
Press Save in the Page Elements page.
View your new blog with a mini Etsy.

First Art Fair Experience

I had a wonderful time at the Alliance Bible Church's women's retreat this past weekend in Brown Deer Wisconsin. It was spiritually uplifting and relaxing, and the company and the food was great. The guest speaker Elizabeth Murphy was inspirational. There is nothing like uninterrupted bible study with knowledgeable historical facts and clear interpretations to make you enjoy familiar bible passages. (Uninterrupted for me is more then 5 minutes!)

My booth and two of my children checking it out
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The retreat had a mini mart where I was selling products, and the whole set-up, art fair experience and take down went more smoothly then I could have hoped for. I can plan, coordinate, setup, sell and take down a really nice looking booth, if I say so myself! A good friend Gretchen happened to be able to help me set-up, and Jean, a friend I've known for a decade plus, attended the retreat and helped me pack up. (Thank You if you ever read this!)
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I think I was the only vendor who attended the retreat. (well, why not?) I am not sure I have figured out how you manage a all day long sale where you can't leave the booth and might have to worry about breaks and food details - but that adventure is for another day. At this retreat, sales were in small blocks of time, and I could take breaks, eat lunch, attend sessions and small group discussions and never worry about leaving my booth unattended.
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Many people want to know how sales were. My husband asked about sales when I got home. Sales happened : True! I made more then I expected : Not. I won't quit my day job - wait, I really don't exactly have one... I am self employed... This is my job?

My 4 children and Carl, and me in the middle.
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The weather was continuous cold rain outside with gray skies all over. The economy is what it is. I was happy with the feedback and sales I made. It is so encouraging to see people who don't know you enjoying the art you have created. Not to forget the wonderful retreat experience. I would happily do many such events on the weekend. (Eventually my husband might catch on that the children's college fund isn't growing, and he is stuck running the children to birthday parties and whatnot :)
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So, I look forward to future opportunities to sell my art, but in the meanwhile, I have a wonderful first art fair/mini mart experience.

Getting ready for my first art show....

On display at the Cedarburg Cultural Center

There are so many things happening so fast this month. I have lots of projects in the works and going, and on many days I feel like I am juggling. Today I dropped off 4 artworks to the Cedarburg Artist's Guild's Main Street Gallery for an Exhibit called "Bye Bye Blues". This was after a last minute run to the framers, of course.

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Most of the rest of the day I was preparing for my first art/craft mini mart. I am selling cards and photography at a church's women's retreat this Friday and Saturday. I will also be attending the retreat myself. I should be spiritually renewed if I'm not too stressed out!
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I've never before needed a cash box, receipt pads, cash for the cash box, and packaging (bags?) for sales. I've never really needed significant display stands for my products. And of course I have been creating those products - running to the photo lab for prints, making cards and packaging them. It is only a small retreat, of 50-60 women, but the craft fair experience - planning, transporting, setting up, selling product, and taking down the booth at a art fair type of setting will be a good experience. And if not, the religious retreat experience should be renewing.
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I purchased 3-4 card racks from a local business that is (unfortunately) going out of business. I spent enough on the card displays that I might not make enough sales to cover even the cost of the stands. See how small businesses are investing in the economy? I am hoping my sales will pay for the card displays. Cross your fingers for me!
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I have the potential for doing 2-3 more art or in-home shows in the next two months. I am going to decide whether or not to put money down for booth fees after this weekend - I'll keep updating my blog as the month progresses. Now I'm going to frame a couple of more prints.
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P.S. So far this month, I have posted at least one item a day in my on-line store .

Higher postage, again

Today I went to the post office to mail out not one but two Etsy orders from http://www.jselep.etsy.com/. And I found out that postage is going up, AGAIN, to $.44 on May 11, 2009, or there abouts. I asked what the postage would be for the 2 oz letter, (Usually $.59 for my mailings at this point) but they didn't know yet. OK, for every order (which I love! :) I have to go to the post office and get it weighed currently. I've been keeping track so that I could mail from home, but when I almost think I know it, they go and change it again. Do most other people mailing out packages go to the post office all the time to get the rates right, or am I the only one? Well, this is a boring blog, but I wanted to pass along the rate hike info.