Monday, December 29, 2008

Christmas Commissions

With Christmas over, I think it's safe to share with you some of the work that was commissioned for Christmas. I had several hand-painted resin pendant necklaces and oil paint portraits on gallery-wrapped canvas to work on in the months leading up to Christmas. I had so many paintings to work on that I actually had to stop accepting new portrait commissions, and unfortunately had to start turning people away. I really enjoy working on commissions, and it saddened me greatly to be unable to accept all commissions. Hopefully next year people will get their commissions in earlier. With Valentine's Day coming up, and then Mother's Day a few months later, I already have a few commissioned works to create in January.

Anyway, here are some of the commissioned hand-painted resin pendant necklaces that I created for this holiday season.

I also had a plethora of oil paint portrait Christmas commissions to complete, and I enjoyed creating every single one of them. Here are a few of them.


You can click on any of the above images to make them larger. I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season!

Thursday, December 25, 2008

After-Christmas Sale!!

Select members of the ACE Team (Amazing Carolina Etsians) is having an after Christmas sale, beginning today, December 26th, and ending December 31st. Each participating team member will have a different sale in his or her respective shop. Be sure to read each shop's Shop Announcement for details. Here's the list of those participating.

AlloverArt

I will be offering FREE FIRST CLASS SHIPPING through December 31st for all pendant necklaces, prints, and note card sets in my Etsy shop. Simply type "FREE SHIPPING" in the notes to seller upon checkout, pay for your order, and I will refund the shipping within 24 hours. If you prefer, you can also email or convo me and I'll adjust the listing to reflect the free shipping before you purchase it.

Take a look at some of these great items that will be available in participating ACE Team shops!
Please let me know if you have any questions. Happy shopping!

Monday, December 22, 2008

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! Allover Art will be taking a vacation from blogging until this Friday, December 26th. I'll still be running my Etsy shop and responding to emails every day, so do not fret. ;) When I return on the 26th I'll be returning with trumpets heralding the ACE Team after-Christmas sale. For a preview of that sale, read more about it in this post.

In the meantime, take a peek at some of my hand-painted Spring-oriented pendant necklaces that I have begun to create.
And for more reading, check out some of my more popular posts.

Enjoy the holidays! See you Friday.

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Giveaway Winners!


Congratulations to Sandy, Alice D., and Joanna of Joanna's Photography! They are each the winner of a $15 gift certificate to my Etsy shop. The winners were chosesn by a random number generator. In my Etsy shop I have several hand-painted fine art resin pendant necklaces, original oil paintings, reproductions, note card and envelope sets, and more! Happy shopping ladies!

Keep your eyes open for the next giveaway!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Friday, December 19, 2008

ACE Team After Christmas Sale!

From December 26th through December 31st, select members of the ACE Team on Etsy are having an after-Christmas sale! Here are a handful of unique handmade items that will be included in the sales.

Each shop will have a different sale. Be sure to read each shop's Shop Announcement for details. Here's the list of those participating.

AlloverArt

The ACE Team, the Amazing Carolina Etsians Team is a networking group of talented and creative individuals. Each member has a unique shop worth checking out. :)

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Expedited Shipping For Those Last Minute Shoppers

For all you last minute shoppers out there looking for something unique to give this year, swing by my Etsy shop. I'm offering expedited shipping options to ensure that you get your order on time for Christmas. Simply type in your expedited shipping method in the "notes to seller" upon checkout, pay for your order, and I'll send you an additional invoice for the difference in shipping. Priority Shipping for my pendant necklaces is an additional $3; Express is an additional $7. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about expedited shipping for other items in my shop. Here are the shipping deadlines according to the USPS.

PLEASE NOTE: The shipping deadlines below are based on the USPS shipping timetable and are not guaranteed. Express Mail is the only mail that has a guaranteed shipping deadline.

DECEMBER 23rd (before 4pm EST): Express orders shipping within the USA
DECEMBER 20th: Priority orders shipping within the USA
DECEMBER 19th: Global Express orders shipping internationally
DECEMBER 18th: First Class orders shipping within NC
DECEMBER 15th: First Class orders shipping within the USA
DECEMBER 6th: First Class International Orders


And for those of you less concerned with the shipping time, or you live in NCand order before the 18th, I am offering free First Class shipping through December 31st. Simply type "free shipping" in the notes to seller upon checkout, pay for your order, and I will refund the shipping.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I'm happy to help make your holiday shopping experience less stressful. :)

Monday, December 15, 2008

December Giveaway!

It's that time again; giveaway time! This month's giveaway runs from Monday, December 15th to Friday, December 19th at 11:59pm EST. In the spirit of the holidays, there will be three winners chosen! The prizes this time are $15 gift certificates! The gift certificates can be used in my Etsy shop, www.alloverart.etsy.com, where I have a wide variety of items. I have several hand-painted fine art resin pendant necklaces, fine art prints of some of my original paintings, note card and envelope sets, original oil paintings on canvas, and more!

Here's how you can enter:

1) Go to my Etsy shop and pick out your favorite item.

2) Come back to this post and leave a link or comment telling me what your favorite item is, as well as a way to contact you in case you win. This could be an email address or your Etsy shop.

3) Only one entry per person, unless you blog about my giveaway. If you blog about the giveaway, be sure to leave a link to your blog in your comment and you will be counted twice.

4) I will assign each entry a number. The winner will be chosen by a random number generator. I will announce the winner on December 20th on this blog, as well as contact him or her.

Good luck to you all! Have a wonderful week.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

I Made It To The Front Page Of Etsy!

Hooray! I made it to the Front Page of Etsy.com. I've heard the Front Page being referred to as the "holy grail" of Etsy. A big thank you to thumble for creating this bright and sunny Treasury and including my Hand-Painted Golden Retriever Silhouette Resin Pendant Necklace.
Here's a link to the screenshot of the Treasury in the Flickr Etsy Front Page Group.
On another note, the Handmade For The Holidays show was today and we all had a blast. It was great to finally meet some of the other talented members of the NCTriangle team. Thank you to everyone who came out!

Handmade For The Holidays

The NCTriangle Team is holding it's "Handmade for the Holidays" show today! Meg of VintageScraps is hosting the show in her beautiful home. I had the opportunity to set up last night and her house is GORGEOUS in all it's Christmas glory. Her tree puts mine to shame. Here's a list of the vendors that will be at the show:

1 Meg - Vintage Scraps
2 Sarah - Indigo Arts
3 Karen - KarensSoaps
4 Jen - Jen Gee
5 April Knodel - Moore Magnets
6 Sherri - Opal Light Studios
7 Ruth - Allover Art
8 Casey - Across the Pond
9 Betsy - Faded Blues
10 Jessica - Jess Jean Jewelry
11 Carrie - Rippas Custom Silver
12 Robyn - Sydney Austin Designs
13 Daniella Falvo
14 Tina - Scatterbox
15 Janna - JacsCreations
16 Julie - Embraceable Urns
17 Marcia - Small Beans
18 Megan - MegRNC
19 Marilyn - Maille by Marilyn
20 Dancing Kat


Please join over 15 talented artisans for an afternoon of arts, crafts, and eats, as well as the chance to win a gift basket full of their goodies. Raffle tickets will be available at the show and proceeds will benefit NC Children's Hospital.

Bring a friend and see the benefits of shopping local and handmade! I hope to see you out there!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Four Tips On Growing A Business In Today's Marketplace

A month or two back, my dog-related networking group, The K9 Circle, hosted a guest speaker who talked about "Four Vital Essentials To Growing A Business In Today's Marketplace." The talented man who gave the presentation was Aaron Mangal of Magnetic Messages. I've been re-reading his presentation and thought I'd share the basics with you.

To begin with, what is entrpreneurship? Aaron gave us a quote from Jeff Bezos, "Entrepreneurship is really more about a state of mind than it is about working for yourself. It's about being resourceful, it's about problem solving. If you meet people who seem like really good problem solvers, step back, and you'll see that they are self-reliant." He also described for us a very interesting study. In a study published in Getting Rich Your Own Way, 1500 middle class workers were asked about their career goals and were subsequently tracked for 20 years. At the end of the study 101 out of the 1500 were millionaires. So who of those individuals was more successful in their business? Of those 1500 people, 83% made their career decisions based on money and 17% chose their careers based on passion. And here's the interesting part; 99% of the 101 millionaires came from the 17% based on passion. So to all of you out there who do what you love for a living, especially you fellow Etsians, your chances of becoming a millionaire have dramatically increased. ;)

So let's talk briefly about advertising. This is where vital essential number one comes in; we are in the Information Age, so it’s time to study, meaning, know where consumers get their information. Here are some statistics on the traditional venues of advertising and marketing. Only 18% of TV ads generate a positive return of investment. Fifty percent of newspaper readers are doing another activity at the same time and 46% of magazine readers do the same. So what seems to be the best avenue for marketing and doing business in today's marketplace? The internet! There were 22,368,960 billion views of User Generated Content in 2007. Research what tools you have on the internet to market your business.

So when using the internet to market and conduct business, we should remember vital essential number two, use transparency as a new guiding principle. Our conversation with the marketplace must be honest, authentic and completely “see through.” Why is this? Your marketing cannot defeat a community, you can't trick people (nor should you want to), there's nowhere to hide, and your secrets aren't safe (of course, if you're an artist, there are some techniques that you must keep to yourself to keep your work unique to you). This is all especially true for the internet, so take a vow to be authentic, empathetic and honest with your market. Your consumers will recognize and appreciate it.

This brings us to vital essential number three, become a friend and an expert to win the market over. Being a friend and an expert of a particular subject makes you a maven, and with the internet today, virtually anyone can become an expert in any field. Friends are trusted and salespeople are despised. There’s only one way to cross over; become a maven. Here are four steps to become a maven:
  • Choose a subject area you’re passionate about
  • Commit to lifelong learning
  • Work hard and smart to create world-class content
  • Build a knowledge base and fill it with relevant cutting edge tools
Finally, this brings us to vital essential number four, share value through expertise, time, ideas and commitment. Sharing with your market in this way shows that you care about your customers. Sharing knowledge leads to very happy customers. Find ways you can share your ideas, time, and commitment with your market.

So, the overreaching goal of the entrepreneur is to utilize these four essentials to create an environment where the value of you being in that enviroment is greater than the value of the environment without you. Basically, make yourself vital to your market. :)

Again, I'd like to extend a special thank you to Aaron Mangal for joining the K9 Circle and sharing his expertise, allowing me to share it with you. I hope these tips help some of you entrepreneurs and fellow Etsians out there. Enjoy building you business and keep on doing what you love!

Monday, December 8, 2008

Fun Craft Show Comments

Well I'm back from Holly Days that was held at Sanderson High School in Raleigh this past weekend, and let me just say that Sanderson did a fantastic job with the show. It was a huge success for me and many other vendors and I had a great time! I've already pre-registered for next year and put down a deposit. A big thank you to those of you who have seen me at previous shows and visited my Etsy shop that came out to visit. It was great to see you all!

I've collected a few comments I heard or said during the show this weekend. The following tickled me so much that I just had to share. :)

Customer: "Are you in high school? Is this your hobby?" (I guess I should take it as a compliment that I could still pass for someone in high school...it HAS only been eight years though, but hobby? Really?)

Customer: "Are you the photographer? Oh those are paintings?!?! I thought they were photos!" (I actually get this a lot. It's such a compliment and I love hearing it every time!)

Customer: "What medium is this? Colored pencil?" (I'm not even sure where to go with this one since the customer was referring to an oil painting of mine. I think it's funny though.)

Customer: "YOU'RE the artist??" (I get this one a lot too, often with an incredulous air to it. It's another one of those comments that I'm not quite sure how to take, haha!)

Me: "What shape do you want; square, rectangle or round circle?" (Thank goodness I clarified that my circle pendants are round.)

Friday, December 5, 2008

Holly Days At Sanderson High School All Weekend


I'll be there with hand-painted resin pendant necklaces, original oil paintings, reproductions, note card and envelope sets, and more! I'll also be hosting a raffle, so who knows what goodies you could win. If you're local I hope to see you out there!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

NEW - Fine Art Resin Pendant Necklaces!

This weekend marks the 10th Annual Holly Days Art and Craft Show at Sanderson High School in Raleigh. The event lasts for two days and I'm really looking forward to it! (For more info, see the flyer at the end of the post.) In order to prepare for it I've created numerous new hand-painted resin pendant necklaces, including some new 1.5-inch circle pendants.

If the new pendant necklaces don't sell I'll be adding them to my Etsy shop. And if you're curious about the process of adding a resin finish to a wooden tile like my pendants, take a peek at this Resin Tutorial.

Another new item that I've added to my Etsy shop is the Custom Hand-Painted Pet Portrait Resin Pendant Necklace. It's the same concept as my usual oil paint pet portraits, except this is much smaller, created with acrylic paint, and wearable! I recently finished a portrait pendant of Melissa's adorable cat Drusilla. Melissa also has an Etsy shop called Crafts By Alice, and she is also a fellow NCTriangle Team member. Here's the pet portrait pendant I created for her.Another new creation I've come up with is a unique way to show off your artwork! It's my Custom Hand-Painted Resin Pendant Necklace Of Your Artwork. April Paige of April Paige Fine Art contacted me with this idea. She wanted her original Buddha painting turned into a hand-painted resin pendant necklace. Here's her original painting and the pendant I created for her.

Do you have a favorite painting or print that you created? Send me an image of your art and I will recreate and hand-paint it with acrylic paint onto a wooden tile, turning your art into a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry. You can choose between a 1.25 inch (3.175 cm) square pendant and a 1.18 inch (2.99 cm) by 1 inch (2.54 cm) rectangle pendant. You can also choose your cord color; black, white, off-white, or beige. Your miniature painting will be created with high quality acrylic paints on a wooden tile. The painting will then be sealed on every surface, and then receive a high-gloss resin finish which gives it a very polished look. The finished effect is similar to that of a heavy glass pendant, but it is actually very lightweight. The pendant features a large silver-plated aanraku bail securely fastened to the back, and comes with an 18 inch (45.72 cm) Chinese silk cord with a lobster claw clasp.

So if you're still looking to get some holiday shopping done, come visit me and numerous other vendors at Holly Days this weekend. Have a great day!

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

How To Create A Resin Finish On A Tile Pendant

In my Etsy shop you can find a wide variety of hand-painted resin pendant necklaces. Once I began creating and selling these unique pieces of wearable art, people began asking me about the process and how to work with resin. Resin is actually quite simple to work with, but it can be troublesome and messy if you don't know what you are doing. I'm sure that different people have different methods of working with resin, but here's my process.

All of my pendant necklaces start out with a wooden tile. After I create the miniature painting on the tile and seal it, I then mix up the resin and add the resin finish to the surface of the tile.

Here are the materials that you will want to have on hand to create the resin finish:
  • two-part resin mix
  • 3 oz. plastic bathroom drinking cups
  • 1 oz. measuring cup/spoon
  • tongue depressors
  • toothpicks
  • paper towels
  • a timer or clock that counts seconds
  • a flat surface to work on that you don't mind getting messy
  • lots of light
To begin with, make sure that you are working in a well-ventilated area. Set up your workspace on a flat surface that you don't mind getting messy. Feel free to lay down any paper or board to catch any drips or mess that you make. Lay out your tiles face up. Check to make sure that they are dust and lint-free. To the left is an image of some of my tiles that have been painted and sealed, and are ready for the resin finish.

Next you will want to mix the resin. Using the 1 0z. measuring device, measure out 1 oz. of water and pour it into a 3 oz. plastic cup. Mark on the side of the cup where the top of the water is. Add another 1 oz. of water and make a second mark. Pour out the water and dry the cup. Pour 1 oz. of the resin into the cup up to the first mark you made. Add 1 oz. of the hardener up to the second mark you made.

Make a note of the time. Using a tongue depressor mix the two parts. After two minutes the resin should be mixed. There will be bubbles in the resin. This means that you have mixed the resin properly. In the image to the left you can see the bubbles that remain in the resin after mixing. Click on the image to make it larger.

Next, use the tongue depressor to drip resin onto the surface of the tile. Some people pour the resin on, but I find that using the tongue depressor gives me more control. I suggest putting less resin on the tile than you think you need. If after a minute or two the resin hasn't reached the edges of the tile(like in the image to the left), add a little more. Resin is self-leveling, which means it will spread until it reaches an edge to "cling" to.

You will notice that there may be bubbles in the resin on the pendant. You can see this in the image below.


After a few minutes, you should be able to use a toothpick to pop and or pull out the bubbles. Some people use a small blow torch to get rid of the bubbles, but I do not have one and have found that a simple toothpick works just fine.
After you have removed any bubbles, closely examine the resin for any lint or dust that may have fallen into it. Make sure you have several different light sources at different angles so that you can see reflections on the surface of the resin. Once you are finished, cover it with one of the 3 oz. plastic cups.
This will keep the tile and resin protected and keep dust from falling into the resin while it dries. Follow the timetable for drying time in the instructions included with the resin. For my tiles I allow three days total drying time before I turn them into pendant necklaces.

Good luck and happy resin-ing! :)

Monday, December 1, 2008

Cyber Monday Sale - Free Shipping and Two Pendants for $25

After being on the road for 14 hours yesterday with constant rain, traffic, and a ticked-off Kasey Jones, we are home! Tell me, how is it a good idea to do road construction on a major highway on Thanksgiving weekend? Who in the NC Department of Transportation decided that one of the busiest travel weekends of the year was the perfect time to have a major highway go down to one lane? Anyway, I digress; it's good to be home and get back into a normal schedule. :)

Today I am having a Cyber Monday sale in my Etsy shop! What is Cyber Monday you ask? According to Wikipedia, Cyber Monday "refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday, the ceremonial kick-off of the holiday online shopping season in the United States between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Whereas Black Friday is associated with traditional brick-and-mortar stores, "Cyber Monday" symbolizes a busy day for online retailers. The premise was that consumers would return to their offices after the Black Friday weekend, making purchases online that they were not able to make in stores."

So today I am offering my own Cyber Monday sale. I am offering free shipping on all items in my store except for original oil paintings larger than 8x10. You can also purchase two hand-painted resin pendant necklaces for $25, when they are originally $15 each. Please see my shop for more details, and to see all my work!

Happy shopping!

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!!


I hope everyone is having an absolutely wonderful Thanksgiving! I am out of town and will return on Monday, December 1st. Have a great day!

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Amazing Carolina Etsians Team - ACE Team

I'd like to introduce to you the diverse group of very talented and creative individuals that make up the ACE Team, Amazing Carolina Etsians. The ACE Team is a relatively small Etsy Team of 28 unique Etsy shops located in the great state of North Carolina. ;) Last week I was given the honor of being offered team membership which I gratefully accepted! I'm very excited to be involved with such an energetic and passionate group, and am looking forward to working with such accomplished artists.

Here are the next ten amazing members and his or her shops:

Lauren of Austin Branson Company is located in Sophia, NC. She creates children's clothing and accessories. In her shop she has everything from door hangers, to bibs, to holiday dresses. Here is her cute Black and White Jumper.

Gayle of What's Her Name is located just outside of Charlotte, NC. She creates a wide variety of handmade items. In her shop she has items for children, holiday items, teas, and more. Here is her Spice Scented Hot Pad/Trivet.

Meredith of Merriwood Designs (who actually won the most recent giveaway) is located in Burlington, NC. She creates baby slings and carriers, t-shirts, blankets, and quilts. She is currently having a clearance sale in her shop. Here is beautiful her Pink Sparrow Pouch Sling.

Patricia of Tricia's Creations is located in Asheboro, NC. She creates a variety of hand-painted items including glassware, pocketbooks, ceramics, and more. Here is her Hand-Painted Ceramic Santa Head Container.

Dana of 31 Summers is located in Spindale, NC. She creates jewelry, bags, and baby things. In her shop she currently has several beautiful necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. Here is her Autumn Flower Necklace.

Debbie of Debbie48 is located in Charlotte, NC. She creates floral designs, decorative plates, hand-painted gourds, and more. Here is her unique hand-painted "Gone Huntin" Wood-Burned Gourd Birdhouse.

Elise of In The Light Glassworks is located in Asheville, NC. She creates hand-blown glass, jewelry, ornaments, candle holders, and oil lamps. Here is her gorgeous Natural Glow - Hand-Blown Glass Circle Pendant.

Jenn of Newfangled is located in West End, NC. She creates jewelry made out of paper, decoupaged objects, and collages. In her shop she currently has bangles, bracelets, earrings, necklaces, and rings. Here is her one-of-a-kind Elegant Flower Bangle.

Esther of Jazzturtle Creations is located in Mebane, NC. She creates one-of-a-kind hand-spun yarns, unique fiber batts, and wearable textile art. She also dabbles in decoupage here and there. Here is her Pumpkin Patch - Hand-spun Art Yarn.

Crystal of Pampered Ponytails is located in Thomasville, NC. She creates notepads, matchbook notepads, mini envelopes, mini note cards, promotional items, and more. Here is her Woodland Collection - Mini Notepad/Journal.


Stay tuned for more great and talented members of the ACE Team. Remember, if you are looking to shop with the ACE Team on Etsy, be sure to search with our tag 'aceteam.' Happy shopping!