ACEO's

First I need to apologize to my blog for neglecting him or her.
Second, I need to verbalize my new love. ACEO's. Whats an ACEO you ask...ACEO stands for "Art Cards, Editions and Originals". These cards have one main rule - they are 3.5 inches by 2.5 inches - the size of a trading card. Well when I first started seeing these small small items, I thought to myself....hmmmm, WHY.
The reason for this is, of course, that Art Cards are made to be traded! But while artists were happily trading cards, the general public was left out in the cold, having no Art Cards to trade. A group of artists realized this, and quickly made their cards available for sale at remarkably low prices so that everyone could join in the fun!
Cards are also sold either as originals or editions. Make sure you know which you are buying! If it is a print it should say so, and it should be numbered and signed, usually on the back.
Art Cards can be a riot! Artists from all over the world are creating, and now selling these little gems in different mediums and of different subjects. Watercolor, Oil, Acrylic, Colored Pencil, Pastels, Pyrography, Pen and Ink, Sketching, Collage - the sky is the limit. Abstract, Surrealism, Outsider Art, Impressionism, Expressionism -every style you can think of - and then some!. Every interest and subject is covered! Extremely collectable Pocket Art, you can't stop at just one! (All information was taken from http://www.art-cards.org/)

Well given all this information I was just dying to join the bandwagon of ACEO's and I have been brought into a new world of art that is just a joy to be apart of. To incorporate my photography into these small works of art is alot of fun and has started all my artistic juices to start flowing and boy are they flowing. Here are a few on my ACEO's.












Another way I've been creating my ACEO's is with my old stamp collection. I've had many of my stamps for over 45 years and have incorporated them into my works of art. To view more of my ACEO's please come visit my Etsy Store.

~~~~~~and the WINNER is~~~~~~~~

There was a few of you that got the correct answer and Rod, my DBF picked the winner...It is JOON......she was "Scout" in the comments. Of course she guessed John Bon Jovi on a really bad day, but as you can see, he was having a really good day. Congrats Joon.


Here is the real photo. I was at his concert and he was singing right beside me. No he wasn't in my living room or me in his, but I did feel very close to him. LOL Doesn't he look like he's looking right into my eyes, oh I mean my camera. heehee This was fun, thanks to all that entered.

~~~~~~~CONTEST~~~~~~~~

Another contest........Below is a photo of a famous persons eyes. Please leave a comment with your guess. I will leave hints if no one can guess and if several people guess, I will pick a name out of a hat to determine the winner. This was not taken from any magazines, this is my actual photograph. After the contest is complete and we have the winner, I will then show the whole photograph. Also, if nobody has a clue, I will give hints. This contest will run through Wednesday, Feb. 27th.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Good Luck~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You prize will be my magnet below.

NOTE!!!!!! Please leave your email address or etsy store name if you think I don't know you. Thanks.

Through the Viewfinder TTV

One thing I enjoy with my photography is learning about new formats of photography. I have been reading about TTV, through the viewfinder. Before I even knew what that was I was seeing alot of these images over the internet and was very much attracted to that type of photography. At first I thought it was "Photoshop" trickery but it is actually a photograph taken by using two camera. OK, now how do I get started. First I had to purchase an old Kodak Duraflex Camera, so onto Ebay I went. From what I read I wouldn't have to spend more than $20. My did I have good luck, I spent .99 cents, no other bidders....great. Then my next challenge I have to build a contraption to block out the light and also be long enough for my lens to get a good focus on the other lens. Sounds confusing...well here is an example
of that it looks like.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/russmorris/sets/72157594183839823/

The above website is where I learned how to make my contraption. I used black thin poster board for mine and taped it to my camera since I am awkward and don't have long arms. Still challenging and uncomfortable. Hopefully in time will be better. I have listed a few of my TTV's. My daugther who was nice enough to model for me and whom I think is a natural beauty anyways. I think the effect is amazing and I'm learning to play around and hopefully my subject matter and my technique will improve. But I'm definately having fun trying.


Below is more TTV

For Emily Michelle

Dearest Emily,

Today is a wonderful moment for me as your mother. You called me late last night to tell me that your engaged. How wonderful that makes me feel. Its almost like it is happening to me thats how close I feel to you. We have a wonderfully close relationship that I cherish everyday. You have become a beautiful and talented young woman and to watch you grow into an adult is something I will cherish for years. My memories of you are etched in my mind so clearly that I can recall conversations and emotions of these memories. I still can picture you clearly in my mind, your birth, you at 2 years old sitting in a chair at the hairdressers getting your first haircut, your first recital, your first loose tooth, your first homerun.....I could go on and on. I am thankful for you, Emily Michelle, my beautiful daughter, a woman now and starting your own life with the love of your life. I wish you so much happiness, joy and love and I know this new path your taking will be everlasting. I love you dearly, Mom

My Piano

My sisters and I grew up in a very musical family. We all loved to sing, but of course some of us shouldn't, including myself. Some of us have wonderful voices, some played the violin, guitar, but what I fell in love with was the Piano. Actually it was my sister and I. Every Weds we would walk together to take our lessons from Mrs. Stein. She was a wonderful older lady who taught us classical to boogie woogie. Of course I wanted to learn Smoke on the Water, but that wasn't happening. I just wish I kept with it....as I grew older my priorities changed. But my love for my piano is still alive. Sometimes I sit and play but I never get bored just looking at it.

My First Feature Artist

My first feature is Olivia, owner of The Filigree Garden. The moment I went into Olivia's Shop I felt romance. Her jewelry peices have a sense of history along with beauty. It all started when Olivia was small, she loved rummaging through her mothers jewelry draw, thinking she was in a treasure chest. She loved to see and feel all the wondeful gems. She would make simple pieces for her dolls. When Olivia was in her 20's she took a silversmithing class, however, at the time she was working with fabric. She makes bags, childrens clothing, pillows, curtains and slip covers. She says "Fabric is very tempting to me, I love all the colors and textures." Olivia just recently has returned to her love of jewelry with needing to repair her own jewelry and having her late mothers collection. Being a big fan of handmade and locally produced items, an internet search brought her to Etsy. She states "Its very satisfying to give new life to forgotten things"

One of the reasons I loved this shop is Olivia's items contain an element that has been "rescued" from a broken piece of vintage jewelry which is a big part of their beauty and also makes them one of a kind. So far her Etsy experience has been wonderful. She loves being apart of her BBest team. She mentions that being with so many vibrant, artistic and interesting men and women over 40, keeps her going when she starts to feel old, it reminds her and all of us, that there is so much to look forward to.

Olivia's other passions are Photography and Writing.

Please take a visit to Olivia's shop, The Filigree Garden http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5373919