Spring Sale at Crazy4Art's Etsy Shop

Just a quick post to alert everyone to my spring sale at my Etsy jewelry shop starting today March 17 -
April 2. Everything is 50% off or better! I shift gears every season, or so it seems and jewelry making is done for the winter season. Now I need to make space for other items. I am also destashing my quilting fabric, lots of quilting kits and a large portion of my beading supplies. Watch for the destashing items to start appearing on my Etsy site soon, and you can be sure there will be some great buys there too!
Happy Almost Spring!
Ciao for now,
Beth

Why Do We Make Art?

I know, I know...this is such an open ended question it almost begs not to be answered. However, this is a question I have been plaqued by for a long time. I know I have an undefinable inner need and drive to work with my hands and create things that are pretty, well, at least they are to me but as an anthropologist as well as an academic reference librarian (note: not employed in either field-just thought I should say that for the record) I feel like I should have a more sophisticated answer. I read other artists biographies or resumes and am awe struck by how well they define what their art stands for and therefore how well they know themselves.  Is that part of the equation? Knowing yourself - that is also a problem I have been plaqued by - defining who I am. Mostly I am like a little kid excited with the prospect of what I will find around the next corner, or the discovery of how something works, that probably explains why I am interested in so many different things. My art though, is just something that comes from inside of me and I am not sure why, just that it does and I have to make art...hmmmm that was a complete circle LOL!  Anyone care to chime in with their thoughts? (Oh and if you are wondering why I have a picture of an alpaca up with this post it is because I think he is absolutely adorable - he belongs to a freind, Pam at Dream Come True Yarn and I just couldn't resist sharing Monte Cristo with the world!)

Would love to hear other thinking besides my own...
Ciao for now,
Beth

Happy New Year To All

Oh my gosh, has it really been 3+ months since my last post? Well, lest it is thought that I have fallen off a cliff and disappeared into the dust I guess I should say something. Last I posted I was building my website http://www.crazy4art4u.com/

and somehow it evolved into two additional websites http://www.burntoakbooks.com/ and http://www.onceuponajewel2.com/ as well as designing my Etsy site http://www.crazy4art.etsy.com/ Whew, now all I need to do is get cracking in my studio to create inventory to list on the latter two sites, and get out there scouting for books and such to add to my inventory for the first two sites. Hmmm, now where did I put that wallet?

Just so you don't think I have been a complete slug I have made some progress in my studio and Mulu (above right) a Princess of the Zebra tribe from the land of Centauria is one of my completed projects. I will be offering her for sale on my Etsy site soon.

You should definitely take a look at Crazy4Art4u in the "Favorite Links" section as I have been very busy seeking out tutorials and inspirational sites to upload or link to. You will also find a few sites where you can take online classes (some are even "free"). Really worth looking at, especially if your creative muse seems to be sleeping after the onslaught of the holiday season.

I hope to be adding a lot of inventory to Crazy4Art4U in the coming months and am looking into making up kits for those of you who may have a little less time right now, or just like the idea of a kit with everything in it so you don't have to shop and make decisions on color, how much, patterns, etc.

So, please visit my sites and let me know what you think...
(And I promise to try and post much more often!)
Cheers,
Beth

Fall and A New Beginning

Fall is my absolute favorite time of year - the days are cooling off and the nights are lusciously cool for sleeping. It is also a time to nestle in and begin or continue a quilting project (or truth be told - one of the many other fiber arts projects in limbo) that was left off in the spring (or if I am honest, even longer than that). However, I suspect this fall and winter shall be different as I have finally decided to teach myself to knit -properly - meaning more than rectangles and squares - a proper sweater with shaping and everything! I have wanted to learn to knit for ages but have never found anyone willing to teach me so I have taken the bull by the horns and am teaching myself with a couple of very good videos I stumbled upon - one by Nancy Wiseman and the other by Leslie Solomon (the later is on how to handknit socks)! Yes, I am going cowabunga over knitting. I love the rythmic clacking of my wooden needles and watching a new piece of knitted fabric growing with each stitch.

One thing I discovered very quickly is knitting and television - for a beginner - are not compatible - too distracting. I am making a teddy bear sweater and have had to rip all the way back to the beginning several times on each piece I have so far accomplished - but all in the name of learning so I gently unravel the neatly knitted rows of course with increasing dismay each succeding time but I remain undaunted - I am going to learn this craft. Knitting is just too beautiful and meditative to pass up... oooh, and all those fabulous yarns...saga to be continued.

At Crazy4Art4U land I am diligently working on my new website - it's down to the nitty gritty stuff now, adding pictures of books and descriptions and coordinating everything into PayPal's shopping cart language so someday you can actually purchase something! Very tedious and time consuming so as you can imagine the going is slow but slow will get the job done - eventually.

As this is my first post, and I am very new to blogging I would love to hear from other fiber artists along the way. I hope to be adding links to different fiber arts websites, or videos and such for various fiber arts to keep us all happy and creating, inspired and chatting...

Thanks for visiting -do keep in touch...

Happy Crafting,

Beth