New workshops... new ideas

New workshops coming up in October. Click the image for more information and be sure to call and register before all the spaces go. I know the Faux Art has been on people's to do list.

I am squeezing in my weekly blog entry. I'm exhausted after our first ever Art Lock-in. I think it went fabulously but thats my biased opinion. 7 - 12 p.m. people "arting" and eating and laughing. I'm trying to figure out when to schedule the next one. Hopefully before Christmas so people can make all their gifts before the season.

My projects in the works are preparing art and other creative creations to sell at several vendor opportunities that have come up. The first of which is Silver Bella. I went as a customer last year and loved it. I am so excited to see what people think of The Art Mill and the creative things we have to offer.

Tuesday? Well Tuesday is "Say it in Clay" hand building workshop. 3-D letters. I'm thinking something holiday.... HoHoHo or maybe something general like CREATE. I was thinking I'd start with ART and add the CEE later. There just aren't enough hours in the day or energy in my body for all the ideas I have pictured in my head.

Until next week...

Who gets excited about a wall?

I do! I had Neighbor Don build a wall for me to display more artwork. I have such an expanse of windows (great lighting) that I had no more wall space for hanging so... a free standing movable wall was built. It shows off art out the window to traffic going to other business's in the area. Plus it creates a new display area on the inside. My step-dad is building a faux fireplace to be attached to one side of it so we can go crazy with displays. I already have stockings to hang from it for Christmas. Oh the fun of being in retail.. Christmas shopping begins in June if not earlier.

Here is my beautiful wall. I just have a few more things to hang. I couldn't get a good outside picture. Too much sun and happy fluffy clouds reflecting off the windows.

Batik Bash

A peek into Abstract Art Therapy night. We did batiks on unprimed canvas. It was so fun to see how each one turned out so different. Even with the same colors people were able to get such a wide range of shades from how they dipped their pieces. Everyone seemed to have a blast and asked for more.

We will be doing more of the batiks in the future. I'm thinking once a month or maybe once every two months. I need to come up with some ideas for how we can push our designs even further. Here are several examples of what people did on their squares of fabric. They look amazing framed.

Such a simple process... hot wax, paint brushes, fabric dye and raw canvas. We even used some of the batik blocks I have from India to make some cool resists. I'm hooked on this and also encaustics. Don't forget... another encaustics workshop coming up on October 24th.

Fall Wreaths

The Art Mill has been buzzing with new people joining our weekly classes and pop ins. I've fallen behind on my posts but have a new resolution to keep trying for once a week. I've got a few pictures and events stored up so I will always have something to share.

A few weeks ago we had an intro to hand building pottery class. The ladies that joined me had their own take on what they wanted their wreaths to look like. We had a very festive fall maple leaf wreath adorned with acorns. Lovely. The pictures here don't do justice to the colors. I need to work on my post photos. Get a little more of my photography training to show.


It truly is amazing what people can do with their hands and some mud. The only special tool we used was high fire wire to make our stamens on our funky flowers. Our inspiration came from a great ceramics company that hand-makes so many wonderful fun things... Art Department. LOVE their things. I wish I could have them build a little version of my house. I found them on a trip to "market" where you go to find all the new and wonderful companies and items for retail.

For those of you thinking of starting a retail business, market is the most exhausting but invigorating event you could ever imagine. When we went we had two and a half days to see everything and we got through maybe half of it. Crazy. There are so many great companies out there, big and small.

Up next... mini batiks. I can't wait to see what everyone does with theirs.

Beginnings in the middle

Hello all. I've been meaning to start a blog devoted to art, The Art Mill and all the creative ideas that have ever crossed my brain and need to be written and shared. My hope is that others will be inspired to create and take ideas and art lessons and turn them into something that helps them find joy in life.

Today is my birthday and I figured it would be perfect day to start a blog that is all about me, my business and my art. I of course want to share other people's ideas and art but well... today is about me!

I am so excited to create today but I am forcing myself to do some of the things I keep promising to do for the benefit of the store, The Art Mill. We teach art classes, host workshops and just love to provide inspiration and supplies to anyone who has even the smallest desire to create. I am a strong believer that EVERYONE is creative. Talent is something that you can be born with but can also be developed with patience and persistence.

The store opened March 21st and has been picking up momentum every month. I am also a big believer in putting positive thoughts out into the world (like... "an art store can succeed in a recession") and that positive things will come back to me. Plus art is a cure all for so many things so why can't it be a cure for a downer of an economy?

I don't want to overwhelm you with all the rambling I am totally capable of... so I will leave you with some pictures of the studio/boutique and some of the projects I am working on today.

This is what I'm going to be working on today. The thing at the bottom is a cuff bracelet and the board behind it is an image transfer on acrylic paint that I will be adding to and turning into a fab piece of art - well I hope.

The pottery shelf filled with creations created in the last few days. The gourds were from the Tuesday night intro to hand building class. Wait til they are glazed and I show the details...
The studio. This is behind a lovely little boutique section in the front of the store. Its hard to show how cute it is in one big picture so I have a few featured details.