Art Therapy Review

This week's Sunday Art Therapy submissions were awesome! Take a look at our Flickr group slide show. I know you will be as inspired as I am. I have just begun working through Whitney Ferre's book, "The Artist Within". I'm so excited! I have also just met an new blogging friend, Kristin Renee' Wynegar from Live, Laugh, Craft.  She is working her way through Crafter's Devotional and has issued her own challenge to her followers.  Make sure you hop over to her beautiful blog and check it out. 


Thank you all who are taking this journey with me.  I know that it will open up endless possibilities as you begin to see the world through artist's eyes.

Sunday Art Therapy #2

Welcome to the 2nd Art Therapy Sunday.  This is a link party and Flickr group.  You can post to either or both.  This party is for all of your visual art endeavors.  I am doing an art journal for the first time and have found several great artists who create in their art journals nearly everyday.  Today, I'd like to introduce Lynna Goldhar Smith of Morning Star Studio. 





I have really enjoyed getting to know Lynna through her blog and I really connect with her artistic style.  On her 'about me' page entitled "The Dream", Lynna gets to the heart of the matter when she says,

I believe that Art in all it’s many forms is the embodiment of the human spirit dreaming in full color.  We all need creativity and imagination, because we all need to dream and imagine and envision new possibilities.  This is how we will grow and transform, ourselves, and the world around us.

This is what I have wanted the mantra of this blog to be.  We are all made in the image of God, the creator of the universe.  So, I believe that we all have the ability to be creative, drawing inspiration from God's creation.

My art journal entry for today is inspired from the anticipation of the fall season (it is so hot in TN!) and some new pens that I have.  Please forgive the photo quality.  It was taken with my Blackberry as I was laid up in bed when I did this.



Be sure to check out all of our other wonderful contributors in our Flickr group.



For all of my blogging friends out there.  Be sure to link up to the party below.  Here are the rules:

• The art must be created by you.
• It can be any size or shape. It can use any materials and can be about any subject. Explicit adult material will be removed.
• Art journal pages, sketches, digital creations, and scribbles are perfectly ok.
• Please link to your project post and not to your blog home page.
• The Flickr Group will always be open for submissions.
• The linky party will be open from Sunday through Tuesday.
• Link back to this post in your blog or put the part button in your sidebar.
• Be sure to visit and comment on each others submissions for both the link party and Flickr group.

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1. Mail art

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Party Trays: Sophisticated & Cheap

I love to throw parties!  Even while I'm in the throws of planning one, I'm thinking about the next one.  Creative displays for my food are my favorite thing, but party trays, cupcake stands, and hors d'oeuvre tiers can be crazy expensive.  So, what is a girl to do?  Well, make her own of course!

I have been so inspired by my fellow crafting bloggers.  I took my inspiration for these trays by Julie at Joy's Hope.  Her trays are colorful and festive, but I wanted something a little more sophisticated but still fun.  I found a great set of plastic plates and cups at Target.  I got the plates 4 for $4 and the cups were about $2 each.  I used one tall and two short cups because I wanted some variation in height, but if do this again, I will go for all short glasses to make stacking easier.  I didnt' take pictures at each step becuase there are really only two. 

First, use fine grit sandpaper to rough up the bottom of the plate and cup.  Then, glue the plate to the cup.  I used E6000 glue. 

Let dry, and that's it.  They are ready to use.

I'm linking to these parties:

Faboulous Fridays at Frou Frou Decor

Strutt Your Stuff at Somewhat Simple

http://decormamma.blogspot.com/2010/08/frugalicious-friday-giveawayphotojewelr.html

http://www.fingerprintsonthefridge.com/2010/08/feature-yourself-friday_26.html

The Answer to Your Cake Decorating Dilemma

Baby Bottom cake covered in fondant and buttercream by Jenn Seratt

I know that I've mentioned that I have crafty ADD, and one of my favorite things to go back to again and again is cake decorating. It is a delicious art form. My friend Allison and I have been decorating cakes together for the last three years and have taken many different classes, but our favorites by far have been at SweetWise in Nashville.

Kathy Gentry is one of the best teachers I've had. She and her team have developed a fool proof fondant covering system called The Mat. It is so elegant in its simplicity. I have a physical disability that makes it difficult for me to roll out fondant and get the cake covered before its all dried out. However, with The Mat, I can take all the time that I need to roll out my fondant and when it's time to cover the cake, I can reposition the fondant as many times as I need to before I'm ready to smooth it down.

Check out Kathy demonstrating The Mat.



If you don't live in Nashville, don't fret. You can call the SweetWise shop and order your very own. SweetWise will also open their online store on September 20. Go check them out at SweetWise.com.

Happy decorating!

I'm linking to these parties:
Anything Goes Wednesday at Someday Crafts
Trendy Treehouse
Hoo Are You Tuesdays at Night Owl Crafting

Being Inspired is not Being Perfect

 
This week was our first Art Therapy link party and Flickr group feature. I have committed to journaling at least once per week, but the link party and Flickr group is for any visual art piece that you have created.

For those of you who want to try an art journal, I thought that I'd explain a little about what it is.  An art journal is

• a place to record personal activities, feelings, etc.  Bottom line is that a journal of any type is PERSONAL.  If you choose to share it with others, you might find comeradery.  Rest assured that you will not be ridiculed here.
• a place to try new things--new techniques, new color combos, new products.  Practice makes perfect!
• a place to have FUN and be CREATIVE.

An art journal is not

• a masterpiece.  Have fun and try new things.  You'll be amazed at your growth as you look back.
• always a place for writing.  Others may not be able to know what your page means by just looking at it without writing, but who cares.  This is your journey and you will know exactly what you meant to convey.
• only for professionals.  You don't even have to have artist quality materials.  If you have an old book of any kind, some magazines, scissors, glue, crayons, pens/pencils, or even just photo editing software, you can create an art journal.

If you need more information or inspiration, I highly recommend that you check out Rachel Whetzel's blog, A Year in the Life of an Art Journal.

I hope you will go on this journey with me.  The Flickr group is always open, and for those of you that blog, the link party will be open from Sunday through Tuesday.

I'm linking to these parties:
Anti-Procrastination Tuesdays at New Nostalgia
Anything Related at All Thingz Related
Get Your Craft On
Anything Goes Wednesday at Someday Crafts

Sunday Art Therapy #1

It's the first day of what I'm calling our Sunday Art Therapy linky party and Flickr group.  I have been thinking a lot about the circle of life this week.  I know this may sound a little cheesey, but stay with me here.  I have neighbor and friends who lost their daughter this week.  She drowned in a local lake and the divers still haven't recovered her body.  She was artistic, fun loving, and engaged to be married.  She and her mother had just picked out her wedding dress a week before.  Tonight, the community had a prayer vigil for her and her family.

Life truly is a circle, and as the bible teaches us, there is a season for everything.  So, using this as inspiration, I decided to do my first mandala as this week's art therapy piece.  Mandalas have had great artistic significance in many religions and cultures.  Basically, mandalas are colorful images based around a circle.  Here is mine.  I hope this alleviates any of your insecurities about your own drawings.

Here is a slideshow of some of the images that have been uploaded to the Flickr group.  Be sure to visit the group and comment on the submissions.

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1. Vintage Eye Chart

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New Flickr Group & Linky Party

I have always wanted to be an artist.  I have always been "crafty", but how does that segue into real art?  I have asked that question to myself so much since my health has forced my exit from the [left-brained] corporate accounting career I enjoyed.  In doing so, I have been evaluating exactly what my definition of real art is.I have determined that everyone is an artist and that all manner of creativity is art.  Whether each of us decide to recognize and appreciate our own art is what makes the difference. 

A friend of mine introduced me to Whitney Ferre's Creatively Fit program several months ago. She was fortunate enough to actually participate in one of the workshops before Whitney relocated from Nashville to Oregon. I have followed Whitney's website as well as the Cloth, Paper, Scissors site and am an avid Etsy stalker.  These sites have inspired me to jump in feet first and just go for it. 

So, I am making a commitment to create a piece of non-jewelry visual art each week.  I will be posting my creations on Sunday of each week.  To keep me accountable and to get some inspiration, I'm creating a Flickr group for all of my readers who want to take this journey with me.  There will also be a linky party for those of you who also blog.

Here are the "rules":

• The art must be created by you. 
• It can be any size or shape.  It can use any materials and can be about any subject.  Explicit adult material will be removed.
• Art journal pages, sketches, digital creations, and scribbles are perfectly ok.
• The Flickr Group will always be open for submissions.
• The linky party will be open from Sunday through Tuesday.

If you need a jump start, I suggest that you join the Creatively Fit Meet Your Artist Within program.  It's online and very affordable!