NEW BLOG RING ON 

HandmadeArtists.com

There is a new blog ring on HandmadeArtists.com.  I joined then I withdrew because I kind of don't get what they're doing.  There's a theme (this week it's Spring) to it.  You're supposed to pick an item from the featured artists shop, one from your own shop and one from any other shop on HandmadeArtists, and then blog about it, all within the theme.  I really like blog rings, as it gives me a chance to explore shops with which I am not familiar.  But this whole theme thing is throwing me for a loop.  And mentioning an item from my own shop in a feature that is supposed to be about someone else...  well...  I guess I just don't get it, and that's okay, too.

On the other hand, the featured artists for the first week are the ultimate power couple, Andrew and Kimberly Kitchen, and I'm more than happy to blog about them!

Andrew and Kimberly are the founders of HandmadeArtists.  They started it as a forum for artisans in the handmade world when they couldn't find anything exactly to their liking that already existed.  In the few years since that humble beginning, HandmadeArtists.com has grown to be a a multi-dimensional site including an incredibly active, informative and supportive forum, and a blog and shop platform as well.  The two of them have worked and continue to work tirelessly to promote the site and the artisans who call it home.

Each are also artists in their own right.  They are both accomplished chainmaillers.  Kimberly also works with sea glass, which she meticulously wire-wraps.  Kimberly's shop, MakinTheBestOfIt, on HandmadeArtists is full of gorgeous examples of the sea glass jewelry.  Andrew's shop, ChainmaillebyMBOI  is full of intricate and wonderful chainmaille pieces in a variety of metals and other materials.  And like an infomercial...  But Wait! ...  there's more!  Kimberly also paints on glass, mostly stemware, filling many custom orders for brides year-round.  She will also take your wedding invitation and hand-paint the frame in which she mounts it to make it a permanent momento.  In their spare time, they are the proud parents of two medium sized sons.

Have a great time on your visit to these terrific sites!

Sales Tax Legislation Now in Congress

There is Legislation moving its way through Washington DC right now which could change the way sales tax is charged on internet sales.  The bill has already been approved by the Senate, and is currently in the House Judiciary Committee.

States collect sales tax to support state functions.  It's no secret that states are losing sales tax money on internet sales.  Purchasers of goods on the internet are supposed to pay the sales tax to their state...  like that happens!  This legislation would require that all online businesses charge, collect and pay sales tax on all of their sales online.  Businesses with less than $1,000,000 in sales are excluded.

Because of the exclusion, most of you are now muttering, "then why should I care - I'm excluded."  As a business, correct, you are.  But as a consumer, you would be impacted.  Tax free online sales could become a thing of the past.

I'm wondering if this legislation, if passed, pushes people to shop locally.  After all, if you're going to pay the sales tax anyway, does that dilute the cost savings of an online purchase enough to make the shopper go into a store and buy the item?  Does having it now outweigh the marginal savings and having to wait for it through the shipping time?

All interesting questions, the answers to which can only be predicted and guessed.   

ProjectWonderful

I love ProjectWonderful for advertising my shop online.  Anyone with a virtual business knows that if you don't promote, promote, and promote some more that you'll never have any traffic.  No traffic means no sales.  I'm not the greatest with self-promotion through social networking, so ProjectWonderful works great for me.

Simplistically, you join ProjectWonderful, then bid on ads you'd like to place on various sites.  Recently I was asked if I could write a tutorial on ProjectWonderful, and I agreed to do so.  I found very quickly that writing about it wasn't going to work, so I made a video walkt-thru.  It's on YouTube; here's the link: http://youtu.be/bqLNe-fa7hk

I hope that you find this helpful and can put it to work for you.  In case you are curious, my advertising budget is $15 per month.

  

HELPING THE HELP DESK

I have had the privilege lately to periodically man the help desk on HandmadeArtists.com.  I've had a great time doing this.  But what I've learned in the process is so interesting.  What I've learned from being on the other side is that we can inadvertently be the cause of our own frustration.

All of us, at one time or another, have needed to call, text or email technical support.  Many of us, me included, have become frustrated in this process.  Personally, I get so impatient with the support person when I feel that my intelligence is being insulted.  "Quit asking me these rudimentary questions," I think.  "I'm not a moron with no computer skills," I grumble.  Just tell me how to fix this!

Now on the other side of the screen...  I have no way of knowing what your computer skills are, or what transpired to get you to the place you are now.  I find myself asking a lot of questions to get to the bottom of the issue before I can effectively resolve it.  There's information I need before I can really be helpful.

So I've learned that when I need help in the future, my initial contact will include lots of information instead of just the current question.  I'll be sure to give the details of what led up to the point where I got stuck.  That way, the person on the other end, who is not a mind reader, will be in a much better position to help me and get me on my way.

OUR KIDS

I read an article in the news today about Michelle Obama and a keynote address she gave regarding childhood obesity.  She noted that one in three kids in the US today is obese, and that another third are overweight.  "Hmmmmmmmm," I thought.  That means that only a third of our kids are a good weight.

I set out to verify her numbers and was able to do so.  The fact that only a third of our children are a healthy weight is something I find incredibly scary.

When I was a kid, black and white TV was a new thing that wasn't even in every household.  We rode bikes; we built forts in vacant lots or the woods; we played tag and hide-and-go-seek.  We were always outside, because if we were indoors, Mom would find something for us to do, usually some sort of cleaning the house.  Fat kids were virtually non-existent when I was a kid.

When I raised my own kids, we were poor...  not the dirt-poor, live in a cardboard box poor, but the kind of poor where we had to make sure that every penny was not wasted.  We ate a ton of produce, because it was the cheapest department, as a whole, in the grocery store, and lots of chicken because it was way less expensive than beef.  We had a TV, but our house rules were that it didn't come on until after dinner.  Our house rules were pretty much the same as our neighbors.  So our kids were outside, too.

Although I live in a neighborhood where we are the exception (an older couple), I rarely see kids outside playing, even though I know that houses around us all have kids.  And after reading this news article, I think it's sad that today's kids don't go out and play the way the kids of just one generation ago did.

A lot of people are resistant to something if either Obama says it.  But setting our kids up for a lifelong weight struggle is certainly not a good idea.  So what are we going to do about it?    

LIFE GOES ON

I have been so quiet!  It's not that I have nothing to say; it's more that I have no time to say it!  There's a whole new section in my shop full of colorful, fashionable ruffle scarves, including ones sized for girls - why should the ladies have all the fun!  I still work full time.  I'm the Artist Coordinator and Chair of two regional arts festivals, one of which has an application deadline next week.  I finished a new quilt.  And our taxes are done (whew!).

To those of you following my blog, thank you.  I haven't abandoned it or you.  I just need to rearrange my life so that there's something here to follow!

GIVING BACK

There's a wonderful opportunity for everyone to give back to the men and women who served our country and it's going on right now.  Hats for Our Veterans is collecting any hat you would care to donate.  It can be knit, crochet, fleece, felt...  anything your imagination can dream up.  The hats will be distributed by the Patriot Guard Riders, a national group with 189,000+ members.  Their sole mission is to honor our veterans, and protect the families that are left behind by fallen veterans.

The saddest reality is that many of our disabled veterans are homeless.  So, really, the only requirement of the hat is that it is warm.  I know you're sitting there reading this and thinking about the stash of surplus materials you have that you were wondering what you were going to do with.  Here's a terrific opportunity to give back and destash at the same time!

Hats for Our Veterans is on Facebook (that's where this link will take you). The page has all the information and lots of links to free patterns in case you need or want one.  If everyone makes/buys/donates just one hat, we can make a whole lot of disabled veterans warmer.  

You helping and sharing is so appreciated! 

PRECIOUS GIFTS...

About 3 weeks ago, my husband and I went to an open house at the one art gallery in the small, rural town where we live; Artisans Art Gallery.  It was a delightful evening, filled with yummy snacks and stimulating conversation.  But the most remarkable thing about it was that I discovered the beautiful work of watercolorist Debbie Robb.  Her paintings are so incredibly detailed yet airy and whimsical.  I was in love...

Of course, none of you have ever visited my home, or you would know that we already live in an art museum of sorts.  We joke that if either one of us comes home with a new painting, we will need to make the house bigger, as we are out of wall space!  Yet I was so in love with the work of this artist.

To my delight and surprise, yesterday I received not one, but two Debbie Robb watercolors.  I just had to share this remarkable work with all of you!

This is the larger of the two paintings.  As I sit here while a raging blizzard goes on outside, this charming watercolor makes it spring.  I love the colorful vases and the different varieties of the flowers.  The illusion of the whole thing being back lit, with the shadows coming toward the viewer gives this painting such depth and realism.  The artist's choice of frame is just perfect, in my opinion.  The detail in the painting is simply enhanced by the heavy, busy and dark surroundings. 

 

This is the smaller of the two. Don't you just love the intricate details of the blooms?  Again, the shadows in the foreground give this painting such depth.  I find it so interesting that this virtually square painting features such a tall and elongated central focal point.  The simplicity of this frame does not distract at all from the beauty of the painting itself.

But here is the most amazing thing about this artist's unbelievable work.....

Can you believe how tiny these intricate paintings are?  I can't even begin to imagine what Debbie Robb is using to create these miniscule masterpieces!  She must be painting with a brush with a single hair!  To get such meticulous detail onto such a tiny canvas....  it just boggles my mind!!!

To my wonderful husband, who gifted me with the larger painting, and my equally wonderful son, the giver of the smaller one....  THANK YOU SO MUCH!  And to Debbie Robb...  please keep painting!  Your artistic gift to the world is priceless and will long be appreciated!  

  

Miniature Handmade Rag Doll Christmas Ornaments Are On Sale!

Miniature rag doll Christmas Ornaments are on sale at iKnitQuiltSew!  Through December 20, 2013, buy 2 at the regular price of $10 each and get the third one free!  Simply note at checkout which miniature doll you would like at no charge.   

Special orders are okay during this promotion; if you would like them all dressed the same, just let me know...  want them all dressed the same?  Want all blondes?  Not a problem!

My miniature rag dolls are all handmade and designed by me.  Each is unique, and each one is signed.  These tiny dolls stand just 4 inches (10.2 cm) tall.  They do meet CPSIA/US Government standards for toys for children over three years old, too.  They make terrific stocking stuffers! 

Visit my shop soon to get your one-of-a-kind miniature rag dolls!

This blog post is certainly not about “a discussion of art in all of its forms,” as my blog subheading states, but it is one that I have been tempted to write for quite a while.  I find myself inspired by a comment to a news article on CNN entitled, Analysis: Why Romney Lost, to let my fingers fly across the keyboard.

In response to the article, NSL14 writes:

I think you're generally right, and I think the Republicans are in complete denial.  They are accusing the President of cheating, of lying, of all sorts of nonsense.  Some have complained the media is at fault too.  They refuse to look at the fact that the Republican Party no longer represents the view of the world of most of the people living in America.  It represents white, fundamentalist Christian men well, but that's about it.  And they don't represent most of the rest of us, not because we don't like the members of the Republican party, nor because Republican candidates can't relate to us.  The don't represent us, because the Republican platform and the Republican view on the issues of the day are not what we believe. 

We believe that Freedom of Religion is freedom for every American to practice the religion of their choice, or to have no religion at all.  We believe that government needs to stay out of the religion business for every American, not just Christians.  We believe that religious teaching belongs in religious institutions and not in government run schools, and not supported by tax dollars.

We believe that no one should be able to take something, like the right to comprehensive health care, away from anyone under the law due to religion. We believe that a person's body is their temple and they get to decide what happens to their body, and that includes women. We believe that rape is one of the most serious crimes imaginable, that no one deserves to be raped, and no women should have to suffer any additional consequences of being raped after the crime happened.

We believe that scientists aren't evil conspirators and that global warming exists (Just take a look at the glaciers of the world, and you can't missing its reality) and if we're serious about future generations we must do what's necessary to stop our pollution making it worse. We believe that continuing to use up the scarce resources of petroleum energy more and more rapidly makes no sense whatsoever, and that we must develop alternative energy strategies very quickly.

We don't believe that Social Security and Medicare is a handout.

We believe in the individual promise and dignity of every person and believe all people should have the same rights and privileges of citizenship, just because they are people, and because they are Americans. We believe that everyone should be able to love and live as they wish as a couple. We believe in inclusion, not exclusion.

We believe in the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and believe that every American deserves its benefits, and needs to fulfill its responsibilities.

When the Republican Party embraces those ideals, they might relate to the rest of us.

This eloquent comment sums it up pretty well.  Yes, the country split nearly in half - meaning half of the voters still hold to the far right wing, antiquated beliefs.  But a bit larger half voted for more modern, evolving stances.  Looking at the leaders of the Republican party is like looking at our elderly parents/grand parents...  we love them but they have no idea what our day to day lives are like, what dilemmas we face, what our kids are dealing with.  The good old days were - but they're gone now.  This latter group also elected the younger candidate two elections in a row.  There is definitely a message here.

As much as the Republican party needs to realize this, so does the Federal Government, all the way up to the current occupant of the Oval Office.  We're still recovering from an economic free-fall that was 30+ years in the making.  We have failing infrastructure and global warming.  We have a public education system desperately in need of revitalization.  The government at all levels needs to stop protecting me from me!  The government needs to stop passing judgement on changing social values and govern in line with them.  Please stop wasting time pontificating on how wrong we are for holding views different from yours.  This is not governing - this is simply a waste of taxpayer's (my) money.

And while I have your attention, I have seen more obstructionist politics in the Congress in the last four years than I have in all the rest of my lifetime (and I am old).  You are all in your cushy jobs in government to represent (read protect and serve) us.  Being the "party of no" is not satisfying this mission.  Being unbending doesn't work either.  All of you need to retake "Compromise 101" so that we can accomplish some meaningful progress for everyone.

We are the United States of America.  We all need to start acting like we believe it.