What do you get when you put a Santa with Hippie Art?

 Lots of love coming your way! Santa Love is a tiny little fella at 6 inches tall, but he's got love to share. Hand sculpted, painted and bedazzled by me, little Santa Love can be found at
American Holiday Artists Studios & Marketplace

A new Hippie Art venture titled "Hippie Love" is also waiting your consideration at AHA Studios & Marketplace. Love flowers are being buzzed by a fluffy bumble, while the sun sends down hugs and kisses via his rays. This piece comes ready to hang. Send yourself, or someone special a little hand made love this Valentines Day!

Mistletoe Gourd Santa

I Santa with a round belly is classic right? Well this Santa has a round belly and more! I've hand painted mistletoe branches to dress him up a bit. He's a jolly old elf, and can be found at my ETSY shop

Just a little Santa....

Wow! I'm back from my 4000 mile trip and have loads to share, but work before play so I'm back at it, listing some new pieces on ebay. This is short and sweet, just like the Santa I'm offering because I still need to find my way through the mess of one trip after another, and lots of creating in between. I'm so glad hubby is patient. :-) To see the auction for this little fella stop by My Ebay Here!

Americana jewelry and art for Spring at American Holiday Artists Studios & Marketplace

 Before you know it summer will be here and fireworks will be lighting up the sky. At least it's supposed to although you can't tell by the weather. I did hear that the meteorologists are saying warm weather is on it's way so it's time to think summer clothes and how to dress up your favorite outfits.

 I've created a bracelet and earrings suitable for any nautical or patriotic themed ensemble from gorgeous glass beads.

Another mixed media art piece, created on a wooden scoop. I used stamps, vintage buttons and other tools to create the texture on this piece. I then used layers of paint and sealer to create the color for this piece. A one of a kind original, you can find this at American Holiday Artists Studios & Marketplace

Bernice Bunny on American Holiday Artist's Studios & Marketplace

 

Bernice Bunny has gathered her colored eggs and a sweet little chick to get ready for Easter.

 She wants to get ready for the Easter parade, Shhhh, don't tell her it's a bit later this year!

 Doesn't Bernice look lovely though, in her sweet homespun dress and sparkly little hat?

Bernice had me use the best trims and ribbons to dress up her outfit. As I was sculpting her she made sure I gave her big beautiful eyes, and nice bunny ears so that the big boy bunnies would be sure to be smitten. Bernice has made her debut at our American Holiday Artist's Studios & Marketplace for this coming month. Easter is already hopping at our marketplace so pop on over and enjoy!

The Circus is in town....

Have you heard the news? The circus has come to American Holiday Artists Studios & Marketplace! So grab your popcorn, cotton candy and take a trip down memory lane, or see the goodies to be had....

AMERICAN HOLIDAY ARTISTS STUDIOS & MARKETPLACE

"UNDER THE BIGTOP" SHOW

American Holiday Artists Studios & Marketplace is getting a facelift...

 

We area getting a face lift and new digs but our site is still under construction. Here's a sneak preview or our new look. There will be a big launch and grand re-opening coming in February. In the meantime you can still find great art by our members by searching AHA art on ebay and AHA or AHAteam on etsy.

Angels Among Us....A Valentine Keep

 I'm making a mad dash in to share my newest creation listed at our American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace.

 Her head is hand sculpted, with feather wings attached. She has a metal heart pocket, perfect for tucking little Valentines or treats in.

She is dressed up with antique buttons, lace, and a tiny rose necklace. Stop by our studios to learn more about her. I'm off to take care of the in-laws for a couple of days. Hope you have a wonderful Monday, oh and Tuesday as well. ;-)

Thanksgiving Day preview and well wishes for a safe and happy holiday.

So you thought I would show you a fancy turkey dinner, huh? Not so my happy friends! Tomorrow is the update for American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace so here's a quick preview of what I have to offer. Knowing that you will probably be busy tomorrow with family and or friends, I thought I would give you a little tease and hope to see you back on Friday. No, I'm not doing the Black Friday thing, we are already most of the way there in regards to gift purchasing and will just enjoy some time in Salt Lake City, and maybe a movie Friday night.

 From the Parson's home to yours, may you have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!

I've been told that red sells best....

 If it seems that I've been stuck in the "red" mode, I've been told red sells best when it comes to Santa figures. What is your experience? On ebay it can be a crap shoot of sorts, as I've had people go crazy over purple Santa pieces, and blue, not so much the antique white although I happen to like them very much. I've never done  a pink suited Santa or Belsnickle but have seen some very lovely ones.
Anyhew....the 3 Santa ornaments on the right are a commission for a friend. The other one is up for grabs.

This Santa is for my friend's mother so I have to keep her name a secret....:-). I'm so grateful for friends who are willing to give me a chance to create something special for their loved ones. It makes creating more personal. 

So back to the red thingy, do you think red Santas sell best or does it matter?

By the by, if you are looking for some great one of a kind pieces to give as gifts this holiday season, our American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace still has a few highly collectible goodies to snag. If you have a moment please stop by and see what our artists have been up to. We will also be updating on the 25th of November so stop by then as well. Hope you have a wonderful evening.

A Ho Ho Ho and a 25 days til Christmas idea....

 We've finally got all but two things out of our old apartment and are hiring someone to do a light cleaning as my poor ole body is giving out and time is precious these days. So now I can get back to creating with a passion, and get some things done. It's interesting how distracting moving can be, even though I work during the day, just thinking about all that needed to be done was enough to stifle my creativity to a certain extent.

 Of course being too pooped to move hasn't helped. My hubby had games and meetings and more games to attend so most of the packing, cleaning and moving has been left up to me to do after I got off of work. One more evening over there and we are done, yay! So today I was able to sit down and get a couple of pieces finished as far as the sculpting is concerned. The top Santa is a shelf sitter made from a foam ball and tinfoil covered with air dry clay. I didn't plan this one at all, I wanted something whimsical and let him come out on his own. The second Santa is a re-purposed light bulb turned into an ornament. Again, no plan, just let him show me what he was supposed to look like. It's so much fun to create ornaments this way. Sometimes I start with a basic idea, but more often than not I just let the shape and the clay work their magic with me as the guide.

I am thinking that many of you already do this or have done this for children or grandchildren but I had never thought of the idea of taking Halloween candy and making a 25 days til Christmas garland. It's a great way to use some of those treats your little darlings collected on Halloween, and make them last a bit longer, even though my sister and I were known to still be eating our Halloween candy come Springtime. ;-) It's amazing how much a pillow case will hold! LoL All you need is 25 pieces of candy or gum, plastic wrap, and ribbon. Lay out your wrap and space out your candy, roll the wrap over the candy, tie the spaces with ribbon and Whaalaa! Instant garland that would be cute on the tree, or hanging from a mantle, buffet, you name it. Uh oh, it looks like Wesley is losing his britches do I'd better get back to work. Hope you're having a creative day!

Halloween Found!

 In the madness of moving it's sometimes hard to find everything. I had a mission though, to not let this Halloween go by without having my decorations out at least for a couple of days. You can see my fabulous black cat lantern from Lori of Retro Rudolphs sitting next to my hand painted candy bucket.

 My reason? I acquired two new and beautiful pieces to add to my collection. First is the Autumn feather tree I bought from Benita Giacherio of Willow Springs Family Farm. I absolutely love, love this tree! It has various shades of Autumn and I can't wait to make some beeswax turkeys and such to hang on it for Thanksgiving. I decorated it with my favorite ornaments from Suzanne Urban and Linda Quintero, both American Holiday Artists artisans. They are amazing painters and creators of whom I'm so glad to know and work with. You can also see the adorable pumpkin candy cup from David Everett of Chicken Lips.

My second acquisition was this delightfully fun Halloween doll from Jo Dismukes of Lacey Jane Primitives. Isn't she delightful? I love her sparkly dress, her spider web lace cape, and all the little details on her. I won this sweet dolly at the PFATT blog. I must also mention and give kudos to Ginny Diezel for my 3 handsome little Halloween clowns, aren't they adorable, as well as the Holiday Queen, Melissa Valeriote for her whimsical little stacked Jack O' Lantern fella. I'm carefully adding to my collection and am looking for new work so I will be on the look out....... I hope you enjoy my budding collection as much as I do.

Winter Has Blown In? An AHA Studios Marketplace Update...

 There's no doubt about it, winter is trying to blow in early here in the NW desert of Utah. We went to bed with the sound of the trees rustling loudly outside our window, and rain pelting the glass panes. We woke up to cooler temperatures and...... look what blew in!!!!

Snerdly the Gourd Snowman he says is his name, and winter time fun is his game. Okay, that was a bit corny, but I couldn't resist. :-) Snerdly had heard from his friends at the North Pole that winter was well on it's way there with snow on the ground and the forecast for today at 33 degrees for a high and 9 above for the low. Snerdly could see by all the arts and crafts goodies I have scattered around our just moved into apartment that I could help him dress up for the season. So he asked me if I would make him a nice button up coat with fur and also a stocking cap to keep him toasty. I gathered my clay, paper mache and paint and to work I did go! To make him feel more at home I dusted him with a bit of vintage mica "snow". You can see how to make Snerdly a part of your snowman collection by stopping by our American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace. In the meantime, Snerdly and I will be looking through my cookie recipes and planning the goodies I might want to bake up for the holidays. It's amazing how much a snowman knows about baking!

Bacon and Eggs Anyone?

This morning I shared a quote on my herbal tea box with my husband from who they had printed as Francis Bacon. He told me that there's a debate as to whether he or Shakespeare actually wrote the plays that Shakespeare gets credit for. Something I didn't know. I asked if it wasn't supposed to be Sir Francis Bacon to which he replied, "Yes, it is, and he had a partner by the name of Eggs. They had the law firm of .......get ready now..... Bacon and Eggs!" 

So what does that have to do with the photo? Oh, nothing, it's the way my mornings go. :-) I will be posting a delicious Apple Craisin Maple Rolls recipe on my Simply Sheryl's blog if you are looking for a tasty and warm way to start a cool Autumn morning. 

These are my WIPS for now. I'm almost done with the snowman, shading, antiquing and adding a bit of vintage is all he needs. What's on your work table today?

Celebrate365 was in my mail box...looky what can be found....

How exciting is this?! I feel like I'm back watching Romper Room where I see Robert and Susan and Scott and Sylvia, oh look there's Sheila and Joe and Jorge and Becca! We mustn't forget Iva, and Phillane and Joanne, and Sue, or Laura and Stephanie, and my goodness I see me! How fun to see my work amongst all these talented artists pieces! Thank you Connie for the wonderful layout. Great issue this one, as all of them are, but this one is super spectacular. For anyone who hasn't ordered one, please be sure and contact Connie at Celebrate365 . For anyone interested in my pieces, you can find the owl and moon painting at my etsy shop, and Gourdelia the witch, to the far left, at American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace. Both links are to the right of this post. Thanks as always, for stopping by and saying hi! I love hearing from you.

And the winners are.....

Mother's Moon's Message and Suzanne Urban are the winners of my give away goodies. Thank you to all who participated! The comments were so kind, and we hope you all enjoyed the blog hop to see all the other artists fun collectibles. We at American Holiday Artists are thrilled to meet new people! Have a great week all!

I'm really not goofing off....WIPS

Here are some pieces that I'm finishing up for Oregon. There's so much to do, so little time, so I'm off to continue working while the tots are asleep. Hope you're having a productive day!

Utah State Fair Here I Come!! WIP Done

It's always a great feeling when you can pull a piece out of trouble and then finish it. I changed the lettering on this painting with my husband's help as a consultant. We discussed several font options using photoshop to do mock ups. What a great way to use Photoshop! Then I had to try my hand at painting the lettering we chose. After some prayer and several deep breaths..lol, I tackled the lettering where I surprised even myself! So I will sign and seal this painting, then it is ready to go.

My dilemma now is to decide which sculpted piece I will enter in the creative arts competition of the fair. My husband's first choice is this Santa

I wonder though if this one might be better?

What do you think? I will probably go with the Santa, but I would love some feedback on this! Thanks in advance! Don't forget to get signed up for our AHA Studios Marketplace giveaway and then visit the other give away blogs for more chances to win! Scroll down to the opening announcement for more details. Hope you have a wonderful Monday!

Getting Excited about the Fair!

This is actually a tease as this is NOT the painting I'm entering in the fair this year. I have a special fruit painting in mind, and hopefully will be able to finish it tomorrow, or at least get most of it done. This is part of my inspiration though as I painted this years ago and it now resides in one of my collectors homes. I searched in my photobucket account for this photo because I like the lettering and want to use a similar style for my new painting but alas, I couldn't find it. Luckily for me, even though I've made many changes to my website over the years, the photos I've shared are archived there, so whaalaa! I found the photo and now I can continue with my newest creation. I love that I can consult with my husband on my art ventures and he will come up with really great ideas, so stay tuned, I will share with you soon the idea he had, and hopefully it will all pull together.
Just a reminder to scroll down to our AHA Studios Marketplace opening announcement and get your name in the hat for the giveaways I have, then follow the trail to our other give away participants. You can win more than one prize if you are lucky!

American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace is now open! Check out our give away!

The unveiling! American Holiday Artists Studios Marketplace is now open so come on by and see what we have to offer! As part of the celebration we are having give aways, so follow the links below, after you've left a comment here...... and get in on the fun! Thank you for your support of our wonderful group of artists, we hope you enjoy what you see, and find something you just can't live without. :-)
American Holiday Artists Studio Marketplace

Blogs
Suzanne Urban Designs
Seasonal Whimsies by Susan Vanderhoek 
Folk N Fiber Blog
Alycia's Art
Back in the Day Originals
The Christmas Corgi
Elysian Fields Originals
Fantasy Whispers
Folk Art By Penny
Folk Art From The Heart
Ginny Diezel Studios
Golder's Creaky Gate
Granny Wolf Original Art Dolls
Howling Moons Blog
Lowell Country Designs
Lynn Bernier Portfolio

Thanks to those who pointed out the above links weren't working. Just as an FYI our new marketplace has a glitch that hopefully gets fixed today. Thanks for stopping by!