Meet Our Featured Artist

10/25/20012
This Week's Featured Artist is :

Custard Pudding Dreams

Custard Pudding Designs is this week's featured artist. I absolutely adore this ladies work and the fact that she is eco friendly in that she uses vintage chenille bed spreads, table cloths, and patterns to create these amazing stuffed toys and dolls.


Adorable Plush Dachshund Dog

Catherine has worked hard her whole life in several fields from landscaping to dispatching for the police. After a severe bout of pneumonia, she became disabled and at home with oxygen. But her spirit and her fight remained. She said, " Life has a way of throwing you a curve ball and you have to roll with the punches." So she dusted off her sewing machine and Custard Pudding Dreams was born.


Chenille Teddy Bear


Wonderful Stuffed Dog


Gallery of Catherine's Exquisite Creations

You can find more of Catherine's work at the follwing:

Shop: http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/custardpuddingdreams

Website: http://www.custardpuddingdreams.com/

Blog: http://custardpuddingdreams.blogspot.com/
or here: http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/bio/custardpuddingdreams

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CustardPudding1





8/13/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :

Art By Sunfire


Art by Sunfire is this week's amazing handmade feature. It's wonderful items are created by a proud Texan wife, mother, and nana. She is multi talented and has many artistic interests. You will find gifts galore for every occasion. She has everything from handmade cards and mini notes to crocheted items, jewelry, and jewelry boxes.



Here is one of her Pocket Journals.



It's refillable. She has many designs to choose from.



This is one of her brilliant crocheted bath puffs and face scrubbies. She has several colors to choose from. I ADORE these. As you all know, I love anything green or eco friendly.



This is one of her mini note card designs. I love note cards. I use them constantly. They are so handy.

If you find something you like but would like something a little different, she loves custom orders. Just ask her. You won't be sorry.


Check our her shop on Artfire.
Drop her a line on her Blog.
Leave a message on her website.
Or you can even Tweet her here.






7/30/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :

Kottage Kreations

Kottage Kreations is owned by a wonderful and talented artist. She gets her inspiration from numerous places such as nature, dreams, and just life in general. She makes wonderful handmade jewelry, some with a very personal touch to the clients. Besides making jewelry she loves crocheting, gardening, and pretty much any thing to do with crafts and creating. Below are just a few of her amazing creations.







She also has a lovely and inspirational blog.
You can find her at the following:

Artfire Shop
Etsy Shop
Kottage Kreation Blog
Facebook
Twitter





07/23/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :
Hippie's Creations Hippie's Creations owned by Petra Monaco, an inspiring mother of 3 and located in the beautiful James River Region in Central Virginia. Hippie's Creations is a small artisan studio where all of their products are we handcrafted.



Petra is an extraordinary lady who has had multiple life trials and is an inspiration to me. She has made many achievements in her life. She is a mother of an ill child who has Hepatopulmonary Syndrome, an author of her book called " Betrayal: The Journey: Childhood Memories And The Adult Awakening", a crocheter, a jewelry maker, an accountant, a mental health counselor, an amazing pyrographer (wood burner), a painter, and so much more.





To learn more about her ill child who has Hepatopulmonary Syndrome, go to www.lennonsworld.com.



You can find her at the following:
Artfire
Hippie's Creation Blog
Facebook
Flickr
Lennon's World Blog








07/16/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :
Well actually its a feature on a group of very talented and wonderful handmade artists of various mediums, medias, and all around genres. It's Better Handmade



It's Better Handmade http://www.itsbetterhandmade.com is a Social Network for tailored for Handmade Artisans. We are a thriving community of supporting artists that help, encourage and teach each other how to improve our businesses.

Sweet Summer Baby Booties

By working together, artists can get the word out that handmade is something special. Our goal is to support handmade artisans by promoting and assisting them in getting their product in front of those that love handmade art.

chenille teddy bear using vintage bedspread fabrics, stuffed animal


When you buy handmade, you are helping a little girl take ballet lessons or a little boy start his dream of being a sports star or whatever they want to be. When you buy handmade, you are helping support families not corporations. And once you start buying handmade and you see the quality and heart put into the items, you'll never go back to assembly line products.



Copper Heart and Brass Love Pendant Necklace with inscription


You can buys almost anything handmade. Special pieces of jewelry, party and wedding invitations, beauty products, organic products, pet products, candles, children's items, learning tools, and so so much more.

Oatmeal Milk and Honey Bath Bomb
There is nothing better than handmade. You can find handmade items in venues like ArtFire, Etsy, Shop Handmade, or just type handmade in your browser.

You can find the wonderful members of It's Better Handmade at , on Pinterest, on FaceBook,on Twitter, on Artfire, and on Flickr to name a few.

Now get to shopping. You will love it!!!!






07/02/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :MaggieMays Fine Jewelry
MaggieMays offers a beautiful blend of traditional, unique, one-of-a-kind, genuine fine jewelry and handmade design's with a touch of elegance.
A little bit about her and her shop:


I have been doing different crafts for many years and decided it was time to expand my talent. Designing jewelry has become my passion and taken over my heart. MaggieMays has jewelry designs to meet all your needs. My husband and I work together in our home; using our creativity we design quality jewelry that has a contemporary to elegant look. My husband and I were taught by a retired jeweler everything their is to know about gemstone's that will make a OOAK quality fine jewelry design; also how to mount, test, clarity/grade and much more. We attended college classes, do continuous research, read books, and tutorials. I do not profess to be a Gemologist but have been taught by the best.


All jewelry is one of a kind, designed with precious, semi-precious gemstones, pearls, diamonds, crystals, handmade bead jewelry, using all type's, size and shapes. Gemstone's and beads are bought individually to give you the best quality possible. Each gemstone is tested for clarity, brilliance, quality, cracks, scratches, blemishes, refraction, cut of gemstone (which at times some adjustments have to be made in order for them to fit the casting) and much more. All gemstone jewelry is hand mounted with the utmost expertise. Castings are in your precious metals, such as, 10K gold, 14K gold .925 sterling silver, Gold/Sterling, Silver or otherwise noted. My whole reason for making jewelry is not only that I love to create; but knowing that my finished design will make you or your sweetheart happy! Remember I'm here for you and you alone!



You can find MaggieMays at the following:
MaggieMays Fine Jewelry on ArtFire
MaggieMays on Twitter
MaggieMays Fine Jewelry Blog
MaggieMays on Facebook




06/25/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :Charming Elegance Gifts
Charming Elegance Gifts is owned by Teri Prouty. She is a very talented artist in sewing and designs. She has everything from home decor to items for children.



A little bit about her and her shop:

My name is Teri Prouty. I live on a ranch in the beautiful foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Northern California. Sewing and crafts have been my passions since my earliest memories. Even though I am still working outside the home, I decided it was finally time to start sharing my love of color and design with friends, my wonderful current friends and the friends I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting.

Although I've dabbled in many different kinds of arts over the years, from enameling, jewelry, embroidery, knitting, crocheting, macrame, drawing, and beading, sewing and tailoring are my first loves. I have a sewing studio in my home where I spend countless hours creating gifts for friends and family and a wide variety of items for my shoppe.

I love to infuse my creations with color and design. Please enjoy exploring the variety and uniqueness of all my products.

I will be adding to my inventory frequently so please come by and check out the new items often. There will be apparel for all ages, interesting, unique handbags and home decor items for discriminating shoppers..



You are sure to find a lovely something for yourself, your friends or your family in this charming shop. You can find her at:
https://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/CharmingElegance
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Charming-Elegance-Gifts/206122842799502
http://www.wanelo.com/index.action?contentaction=mycollectionshome&userId=391376&msg=0








06/11/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is :blissfulgardenbeads


A little bit about her and her shop:
My name is Heather Davis. I live in Vancouver, WA with my husband and our four kids. I have been lampworking since August 2000. My favorite beads to make are florals so most of my designs tend to revolve around them.
I have been working on my new website. It will have a bead gallery similar to my old catalog. Beads ordered through the bead gallery will be made to order. They are sold individually so you can order as many or as few as you need. I will continue to post my new beads that are available and ready to ship in my ArtFire Studio. You can find the new website at http://www.blissfulgardenbeads.com/ .


Heather has a very wonderful talent and makes some of the most beautiful beads. You can find Heather's creations at the above locations. Make your jewelry extra special with her beautiful lampwork beads and charms.



06/04/2012
This Week's Featured Artist is : White Owl Designs



A little bit about her and her shop:

I began painting and selling my work at 14 years old. I paint original art on canvas, board and bead. I paint because I am compelled - not painting is simply not an option for me. My earliest work and shows were in watercolor and acrylics. I then moved to oils in college. I began college at 15 years old and studied fine art and medieval studies at the University of Texas in San Antonio and Austin. I have lived and painted all over Texas and the Desert southwest, Boulder, Colorado, Anchorage, Alaska and finally settled down in the paradise of Santa Cruz, California. I have been working out of my studio in Santa Cruz creating canvas and bead now for over 15 years.





Painting to me is as much of a journey, a dialog with life as it is a thing that I do. It is how I see the world. It teaches me continually, and causes me to reach inside of myself and be better all the time.

My acrylic paintings are very symbolic in nature exploring the way I view the world internally, as metaphor. My Watercolors are external, expressing the way I view the natural world. For myself, watercolor lends itself to natural and spontaneous - acrylic to the symbol and storytelling.


My beads are painted with a porcupine quill on wood in a technique I developed myself then dipped in a proprietary mixture to protect it and give it that thick super shine wet paint look I love. I sell my beads individually and in jewelry creations that I approach like my paintings. Each one is a story, a unique and original design.
You can find her and her amazing works of art at the following:
http://www.whiteowldesigns.com
http://whiteowldesigns.wordpress.com/
http://www.facebook.com/whiteowldesigns
http://twitter.com/WhiteOwlDesigns