My ARTistic Life

More Birdie Goodness + Digi Freebie

Greetings artists! Hope all is wonderful with you. Thank you for all of your awesome etsy replies last week. So many great shops to enjoy!

This week, I'm excited to announce our new bird and egg themed art supplies. They're awesome!!! Just look at the cute Artist Trading Cards I made with our new Pretty Birds Patchwork collage sheet, Little Wood Houses and Eggs and Vintage French Science Pages and Vintage Labels. I even put together a little class for you!

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And after making ATCs and writing a class, I designed this very special limited edition kit too! It has everything you need to make 6 glorious bird ATCs! I even included little envelopes because....let's have a Bird Themed Art Swap!!! When was the last time you received pretty, inspiring mail? Let's uplift eachother with happy art mail. : )

For this swap, we're going to try something different....we'll each mail directly to participating artists...that way we can art up the envelopes too. : )

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You know I couldn't mention all of this cool stuff to buy without enticing you with a special free gift! lol. If your order is over $25, I'll tuck in a set of 3 of my handmade eggs. Only while supplies last. : )

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When you read my class, you'll see that I was inspired by using a random dictionary page in my ATCs. It provided lots of creative expression. So, I decided to add some to this special digital freebie. Just think...it would be perfect to use in our new swap too. : )

Get your free, high resolution digital download by simply emailing blogfreebie@artchixstudio.com.

Enjoy! : ) You're welcome to use this sheet in your personal artwork, jewelry, journals, etc. Or hold onto it for a future project. This item is not for resell though.

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Oops, I almost forgot to announce the winners from last week! I asked you to tell me your favorite etsy shop in order to win a dozen of my handmade eggs. Inca picked #48 but we don't have a #48 so I'm going to divide the prize between #4 and #8. Congrats Rachel Fox and Becky Kilpatrick! You both win 6 of my handmade eggs! Hooray!

See you next week with more fun and creativity! : )

it's etsy time! + win handmade eggs

Happy Wednesday! Guess what time it is! It's etsy time!

Lately, I've been completely focused on etsy. I decided to open an etsy shop so that I could have a special place to sell my special handmade art bits and charms. I purchased this book: How to Make Money using Etsy by Timothy Adam. I found this book to be quite helpful...there are some really good tips in there.
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But before I could do anything, I had to make some room. So, I donated several boxes of supplies to a local school. Did you know that many of our schools don't have any budget for art supplies? If you've got an overflowing stash, please consider donating some to a local school. I must tell you that it felt so good to give some of my neglected supplies a good home. And I've already received reports that the students are gobbling up and enjoying all of the supplies that I donated. Yay! : )

See those empty shelves in the background? Now, they're clear and ready for etsy!
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Once the shelves were empty and I had studied up on etsy, it was time to make some items to sell. Etsyians say to build a shop around doing what you love. So, I started painting and collaging backgrounds onto wood. I LOVE making backgrounds...they're so fun and playful and there's nothing like getting my fingers covered in paint.

These little eggs came first. Want to know how I made them? Check out my fun Faux Speckled Egg Background tutorial on Gingersnap Creations. You can also see how I set up my art space for this tutorial.
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I collaged and painted wood panels for days while watching Downton Abbey AGAIN! lol.
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My dear hubby has been cutting up my wood panels into these adorable art bits and charms for my etsy shop. Aren't they soooo cool?! I'm working on taking photos and posting them over the next few days. Everything takes a lot longer than I expected...but that's okay, I'm learning tons along the way.

Lots more to come along with a few surprises. : )

At the moment, I have some of my lovely, one-of-a-kind eggs for sale. Snap 'em up while you can. 

Do you have an etsy shop? Or is there an etsy shop that you adore? Post a comment with your etsy shop name or a favorite etsy shop. One of my kitties will randomly pick a winner that will win a DOZEN of my hand painted and hand collaged eggs! Woohoo!

See you next week with more fun and creativity! : )