Beautiful or Ugly

Art is the psychic expression of beauty as revealed through truth.

                                                                Webster's Dictionary

Greetings All,

Is this beautiful or ugly?

Recently, I put together this scarf from a pile of discarded sweaters.  I borrowed the majority of the idea  from some of my fellow Etsy crafters and then added a couple of crocheted rows to the edges.  After I finished the scarf and showed it to others, I was told told that it was ugly, really ugly, so ugly it was almost beautiful!  Wow!  Exactly what does that mean?  I guess that means I am going to make another one!

We have all heard that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, our moms told us that many times during those terrible middle school years. What we think is beautiful now, quite possibly was thought to be hideous one hundred years ago.  For example, consider what the public thought about modern art at the turn of the century.   Those same pieces that outraged them in the 1900's are now priceless.  Think Matisse, Van Gogh and Picasso.

And then there is the cultural element.  What is beautiful in China, may not be perceived as so in India.    What American's feel is an ideal beauty is not necessarily so in the Arab world.  Finally, your own personal experiences will define what is "beautiful" to you.  Some people just like orange or landscapes or portraits etc.  What you like can be very personal to you.

"I have found that all ugly things are made by those who strive to make something beautiful, and all that all beautiful things are made by those who strive to make something useful."

   Oscar Wilde 1885

And speaking of beauty, here is a beautiful wedding card made from recycled paper including the bride & groom's wedding invitation.  Here, Amelia used the lattice card technique which I have detailed in my September 18, 2012 blog and appliqued it with stars.  It really turned out lovely and what a keepsake for the new couple.

Amelia's Wedding Card

Thanks again for reading my blog and your support!  Please visit my Etsy shop, there will be more journals and Literary Jewelry made from the pages of Wizard of Oz.  Great Fun! I will preview them here first.  

 Let me know if there is anything special you need to see either on my blog or in my Etsy shop.

Talk to you all soon,

anne

Your Brain and Crafts Part 2

A few months ago I devoted my blog to the effects of crafts on your brain.  Research has shown that crafts actually help your brain, crafting can put you in a meditative state, relieving stress and actually relax you.  It does not matter if you finish your project, it is just the process of doing it that is so helpful.  And all of you know it is so much easier to spend hours crafting and working on a project than it is to clean the kitchen or reconcile bank accounts!  Crafting just makes you feel better.

As Dr. Seuss realized, your brain has a right side and a left side, each half has it's own way of thinking, but they work together to get things done.  The right half is the creative, emotional side and the left half is the more analytical side.   So, the right half comes up with new ideas and the left half figures out how to execute them.

Crafting is a "brain sport", it is exercise for the brain like crossword puzzles and reading.  By trying new ideas, new techniques and doing things a different way; your crafting helps release serotonin, dopamine and endorphins.  These are all neurotransmitters that make us feel better, remember things and relax us.  Crafting can actually change and support the structure of the brain.  Brain exercise can help you learn new tasks, reduce your short term memory loss and help with multi-tasking in your everyday life. So craft away...it is so good for you!!

Want to know more?  Try these links: Brain Creativity  and Can Knitting Give You a Runner's High?

Don't forget Valentine's Day is coming soon.  Check out my Etsy site for gifts for those special someones!  I am always posting new things, so take a look.  Use coupon code FREESHIP to get free domestic shipping for Valentine's gifts.  Below are pics of my new journals, each one of a kind.

Red Heart Button Journal

Woman Journal

See you online!
anne

Monday Morning

Happy Birthday Tori!

Greetings to all,

I have to start today with happy birthday wishes to my sweet daughter, Tori.  She has helped me immensely with  annemadethis, so special thanks and love go out to her this weekend!

And here is a new bracelet, Tori designed and I created.  It is three strands of leather closed with a toggle clasp.  Porcelain and paper beads embellish the leather cords.  if you make this bracelet, be sure that all of your beads have holes large enough for the leather cords to pass through.  You can use a combination of  leather, hemp or even a ball chain to add some variety to the bracelet.

Tori's Bracelet

Journals with hand decorated covers is another great use for recycled paper and embellishments.  It makes a great project for groups of all ages and I thought might work well with some of spring workshops.  The journals start with inexpensive hard cover composition books or sketch books.  You can use any size for this project.  Magazine scraps, colored paper, fabric and even fibers are glued to the covers until you get a pleasing design.  Be careful not to get glue on the inside pages.  Stamping, buttons, beads, ribbons, paints and pastels can be used for finishing touches.  Sometimes I even decorate the first page or add a cute bookmark, just for fun!  Then I put a few generous coats of Triple Thick acrylic gloss to protect it all.  I'll be making a few of these journals for my Etsy shop, if you'd like to take a look.  Here are some examples.

So please stop by my shop annemadethis, I'll be adding some new things.  And like my Facebook page!  If you have any questions about this post, or any others please feel free to contact me.

Thanks for checking in,

anne

Pretty Things to Make

Tori wearing my new scarf

Here's a picture of my new scarf.  I knitted it on #50 needles, it took about two hours and one skein of Mo'Puffs yarn by U. Knitted Nation.  Great yarn and great scarf right! Locally the yarn is sold at Flying Fingers Yarn Shop in Tarrytown, NY.  So... this morning I wore my new scarf to the Farmer's Market.  The first comment I got was from a guy who really thought the scarf was an homage to the brussel sprout!  His family loved brussel sprouts, that is what he was buying at the Farmer's Market.  The scarf reminded him of his little cabbages of goodness.  And even though I love brussel sprouts too, really?

Next a woman came up to me and asked if she could take a picture of the scarf for her blog.  Ellen Margulies is a knitter and writes a fiberarts blog.  She will have a picture of me wearing the scarf at the Farmer's Market on her blog.  Hope I look good.

Memory Wire Bracelet

I have a few jewelry workshops planned locally during the school winter vacations.  This project is a memory wire bracelet especially designed for middle school children.  They will make a few paper beads crafted from recycled cereal  boxes.   They will roll, glue and glaze the beads, just like I do.  While the glazed beads are drying, they can choose from various sizes and colors of seed beads to complement their paper beads and design a unique one of a kind piece.  I will help attach charms and other adornments or if the student is familiar with using jump rings and head pins they can complete their own.  You can contact me directly for more information.

I got my first international sale last week!  Yahoo!  Hope to see you soon on my Etsy site.  New Valentine's Day gifts for your sweetheart!! 

Talk to you soon,
anne

Happy New Year's

New Year's Eve in Times Square

Hi to all,

So glad to be back.  Happy New Year to everyone.  Happy 2013!

On New Year's Day, my family always eats black-eyed peas, it's our traditional dinner.  Its been said, "Eat peas on New year's day to have plenty of everything the rest of the year"

This year when I was shopping for black-eyed peas, a woman in the store told me that her family ate lentils for good luck in the New Year,  I got curious about the history of New Year's celebrations and other New Year's traditions.

New Year's Day is the oldest holiday, it has been celebrated since 4000 BC by the ancient Babylonians.  They celebrated New Year's on the first day of spring, the festivities last eleven days.  The Babylonians started the custom of making New Year's resolutions.

Around 150 BC, the Romans set January 1 as New Year's Day.  They probably originated the tradition of "toasting".  The host would always drink first.  Because the wine was not as refined as it is today, the Romans would float a piece of toast in the wine bowl to absorb the excess acidity and make the wine more palatable.

The early Catholic church condemned New Year's celebration through the Middle Ages.  Though, some denominations celebrated the Feast of Christ's Circumcision on New Year's Day, ugh!  But once a baby was used as the symbol of the New Year, the Church allowed its members to celebrate with a baby that symbolized baby Jesus.  New Year's Day is still a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics.

Today, New Year's is celebrated with football, parades, fireworks, polar bear plunges and resolutions.   Many believe that the traditional New Year's foods will bring us good luck for the coming year.  The Dutch eat donuts, a ring symbolizing the beginning and the end.  In Spain, you eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight for twelve good months.  In Greece they bake a coin in a St. Basil's cake, who ever finds the coin in his piece will have good luck all year.  The hog and its meat symbolize prosperity and is frequently eaten on New Year's Day, often with the black-eyed peas.  And cabbage is the good luck vegetable, it symbolizes paper currency and in some cultures rice is the food to eat.  It just worked out that I had lentil soup and black eyed peas this New Years, hopefully that will give me a double helping of good luck!

Well that's it for today.  Please stop by my shop annemadethis on Etsy, I'd love to have you drop by.  Feel free to contact me with any questions.  And maybe start the new year off crafting-check out the tutorials on my earlier blogs.

Ta ta for now,
anne

Holiday Craft Fair

Tori at Tarrytown Holiday Crafts Show

Hi to all.

Sorry it's been so long.  There hasn't been a lot to write about lately.  I have been winding down the holiday craft fairs and immersing myself in my own holiday plans.  The holiday craft fairs did not lived up to my expectations.  But disappointments are not always what they seem.

Albert Einstein failed his college entrance exam. Walt Disney was fired from his first media job. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. Get it?  So I will continue on! 

Scarf I bought from Nine Muses of Crete

SOME INSPIRATIONS FROM ETSY ARTIST FOR 2012

Decoupage Bowl

Recycled Magazine ornament

Fantasy Children's sweater

These are a few of the items I found on Etsy from some of my favorite artists--there are now 800,000 shops on Etsy, incredible isn't it?  I have been writing this blog for a little over a year now,  The writing is easy compared with the daily battles with HTML!!  Thank you all for reading my blog and sticking with me.  I hope everyone has a happy holiday and a great 2013!!

I will see you next year!

anne

Thanksgiving Craft Party

Kaye Lynn, Amelia and me

Emily and Amelia

Hi to all,

In our family we have a long standing tradition of doing crafts at Thanksgiving.  Here we are working on holiday cards and wire bracelets; all crafted using recycled paper.   We used paper beads for the wire bracelets and tube beads for the cards.  You can check back to my September posts for a tutorial.  Here are some examples of what we made:

These handmade items would make great gifts for the holiday season.  You will see these and many more at the Holiday Craft Show in Tarrytown on December 1st.  It will be at the Reformed Church on N. Broadway from 11am until 5pm.  There will be refreshments and lots of local artisans there with great one of a kind gifts.  The show is put on by the Hudson Valley Crafts Collective.  It would be great to see you there.  Bring this blog and get 20% off your purchase at my table!



I will also have lots of glitzy glamorous jewelry for your holiday fashions.  Be sure to come see it.  All of the jewelry fashions are available on my Etsy site annemadethis, so please take a look.

Have a great week, check out my Etsy site and I will talk to you later!

anne