I made the front page!!!

I woke up this morning to a convo with a note and a screen shot!! My "Passion" is in the top right hand corner :) Thank you SandFibers for including me!

QuirkynBerkeley

Etsy Buy Handmade QuirkynBerkeley

QuirkynBerkeley is my featured etsian today:

http://QuirkynBerkeley.etsy.com
http://quirkynberkeley.blogspot.com

What she has to say about herself:
Love paper. Love color. Love Berkeley. Love Etsy.
Beyond that, my style is eclectic and I love to experiment. I get completely absorbed in engineering my varied creations for hours. Each one is a new and unique production, made of treasures from my collection of paper and ephemera, transfigured into a single piece held together by a little glue, a lot of ideas, practice and work, and most of all, a great amount of joy. Some of my custom work can be viewed at http://www.picturetrail.com/photos/quirkynberkeley. Everything is made in a smoke free environment.

Visit my other shop, http://quirkynberkeleytoo.etsy.com for DESTASHING and OUTLET.

My work is designed to be something that one person gives to another. I'm lucky to have a craft that has a personal role in people's lives, and that can so easily become a part of the story of people's lives together. Gifts are imbued with all sorts of symbolic significance in every culture, and I'm always interested in the stories that people tell me about how they've used my cards -- who it was for, why they picked that particular card, why it touches them in some special way. Giving a handmade card is an act of intimacy since it is touched by very few hands-- the hands of the maker, the sender, the recipient. Being its creator allows me a role in a beautiful ritual.

It feels good to be the recipient of hand-written correspondence: no matter what the occasion -- there's a strong emotional connection during the moments of anticipation, and when it is held and read; the mystery of what's inside the envelope, wondering what prompted someone to stop everything else in their life and focus for a few minutes on writing this note. Your full attention for a few minutes is a very special kind of gift to another person, in a hand-written note that moment becomes frozen in time.

A handwritten note and its words can be touched by both sender and receiver and is always intimate; a handcrafted card is one that is created with these things in mind, and it is very likely the only one of its kind. Its maker sculpts the card from paper and other elements into a montage that is simultaneously an act of self-expression awaiting an act of overlaying it with new meaning in the giving from sender to receiver and used for one, specific moment in time.

Anything Goes

Voting has begun on Etsy Bead Weavers June Challenge. The theme is "Anything goes" and we got to do what we felt was our best work.
Please come and vote for your favourite!
http://Etsy-beadweavers.blogspot.com

Smearing

To follow up on my blog for yesterday:

Have you ever found it ironic that what others accuse you of is actually what they are guilty of?
It's pure irony.

Let's get something clear: I have a life. A busy full life. A husband, job, family.
I don't need to "get off" on forum drama as I have been accused of.
And to be threatened over what was false is even worse. You really are that invested in online life that it comes to threatening others to make yourself feel better?

This has reminded me quite well of why I hate gossip so much: facts get skewed, changed and repeated as fact over and over again.
People don't know what they are talking about, but they say they do and others believe them.
And, when this is done to someone else attempting to start a little business, it's not just catty, it's ugly and underhanded.

I thanked admin because they were aware of how I was being followed around and flamed and said that it would not be tolerated. PERIOD.
No one was having special meetings. Nothing underhanded was occurring. That people were smearing admins name over assumptions says a lot about them.

And one more thing-it was being repeated that I was harassing someone through convos...I've never sent or received convos from this person.
OOPS.

When someone lies about you

I have to almost feel sorry for those who have treated me in such an ugly way.
Why?
Well, first of all, to actually have time to spend agonizing over a forum and those who post there for one thing. Forums are nice, but not what life is about.
Then, to think that you have to create lies and spread them to make yourself look better...it's just sad no matter how you look at it.
If you can't handle someone having a different opinion of you, then perhaps you should not participate in forums. We are not robots. The fact that we are different and have different thought patterns and ideas is a beautiful and good thing.

I have to almost laugh at the whole thing.
Man, it takes absolutely no guts to post anonymously on a anonymous blog. You can spew filth and ugliness and no one will ever know that it is you.
Telling one side of a story so filled with lies in an attempt to make another seller look bad.
Really, when you treat others in such a way, who really looks bad?

Do they really think that those who read such things were born yesterday?
They can't see the truth of what's going on, what has happened in the past?
Also, do they realize what libel is? Evidently not.

Thanks to all who stood up for me. To those who encouraged me not to bow to their level. You are the best.
Oh, and thank you Rob White for being such a great Admin who truly cares about the community and for knowing what is really happening. I appreciate all that you do and the time you take to invest in even me.

Dream On

Dream On's incredible paintings (and prints from paintings) are featured in my blog today!
About the artist:
I believe I was most likely born with a paintbrush in my hands. Later on I earned an art degree at Colorado State University. Additionally, I have taken workshops and classes and studied with a number of local and national artists. I belong to several art groups in Florida and one in Colorado. I have won numerous awards in juried and non-juried art shows. I am married and currently live on the West Coast of Florida.

I value the presence of a recognizable subject in my paintings. I love it when the center of interest appears in the midst of background objects that aren’t so well-defined. I want watercolor to look like watercolor, and I want all of my paintings to have a painterly look, not to be a photographic copy. Therefore I am an impressionist, because I don’t want to over-control the media.

I love to paint using a variety of techniques. Having taken an experimental art class for the last 4-5 years, I am likely to paint anything, and I'm always "playing."

OTHER WEB PRESENCES:

I am now doing a painting a day (when my schedule allows) which I am posting on my blog and available for sale here in my shop. Check out the descriptions of techniques used on my blog!

http://DreamsAboutArt.blogspot.com
www.mary-hamilton.com

FUNDRAISING. . .
I will be sharing a percentage of the proceeds from patriotic items with the The Fisher House™ Foundation. It's a small thing I can do to support caring for our nation's military families. Shipping is free on these items.

CONDITIONS IN MY STUDIO. . .
All of my items are produced in a smoke-free, allergy-friendly no-pets atmosphere.

ABOUT PRINTS . .
My prints are all from my original paintings. Each one is signed and dated.

This is how my prints are created: First, I take a photo of the original painting with a Nikon D-50. Second, I load the image into my computer. Third, I open up the image in Photoshop and check it for true color against the original, correcting as necessary. Fourth, I send the corrected image to my "graphics guy" who works for a large reprographics firm. He then prints the large prints on a DesignJet 5500 on Color Presentation Bond, or the smaller ones on a large commercial Laserjet onto Hammermill 100 lb. color cover. Finally, I check the prints for color, and if they are not acceptable he corrects them for me on his computer and re-prints. Everything is on acid-free paper, printed with archival inks.

This is how the buyer can get a long-lasting print/reproduction which looks great for a minimal investment. I am quite willing to have giclee prints and canvas prints, and prints on photographic paper - well, any size and kind that's feasible - made for anyone who is willing to pay the additional cost. Just convo me. I'll do my best to make you happy.

Signature Sterling

today I am featuring Sue of Signature Sterling:

http://signaturesterling.etsy.com
http://signature-sterling.blogspot.com
About Signature Sterling:
Welcome to SignatureSterling where you will find personally designed and handcrafted jewelry ~ especially sterling silver with semiprecious stones, lampwork beads, Swarovski crystals/pearls, Czech glass, charms, and "signature" items ~ CUSTOM ORDERS WELCOME! Specialty collections include Buckeye Nation, Hairspray, Show Your Colors, and Little Black Dress. Beautiful...unique...signature...YOU!

I am active with other terrific, creative “Etsians” – the TBO (Tranquil Beading Oasis), the Bead Hive, EtsyMom, and EtsyBEAD. Need help finding these talented artists? Go to the Etsy home site and search for TBO, BHV, EtsyMom, and EtsyBEAD in tags, titles. You'll get a great list to choose from!