Parts of Art

     “I made this for you before we met!” It’s one of my favorite comments when I’m at an art show with my Parts of Art jewelry. It happens at least once at every show: that piece that, after I designed and built it in the studio, and afterwards thought “O my God, who would ever want this? What was I thinking? Am I out of my mind?” Then I put it out there and sooner or later she comes along, spots it, and it is clearly, unquestionably made just for her. It’s the one aspect of doing shows that I love and dearly miss.       I have recently become a vendor at the Alexandria farmers and artists market in my little rural town. It’s literally the only gig in town, and all my actual juried art shows have been cancelled. So it happened, albeit with face masks and social distancing intact. Here she came, it was made for her, and it happily went from my neck to hers. Want to see what I made just for you? Visit my shop at Sandyartparts.etsy.com

    I have always believed that people love to see behind the scenes in the artist studio. It’s like looking behind the curtain and seeing what goes on backstage, to see how the art is crafted, what tools and materials are used, and how the artist thinks.        To this end, I am thrilled to unveil a new video that tells my story of the origins of Parts of Art.  A big shout out to the producer and videographer   @Moguefilms .                                           Here are some of the pieces seen on the video.                                              Want to see more?                                     ...

Drumroll please!! Now for the first time ever,  you are invited to our premiere Walker Art Dept Art studio Tour You will see both sides of our studio,  and get a sneak peek at what really  goes on in there! Come on in and see our studio, then enjoy  our shop

According to Bustanoby’s Color Manual, copyright 1939, which in my book is, hands down, no contest, THE authority of color:  "It is a deep blue. Compound of cobalt and alumina.  In admixture with white, cobalt Blue yields Sky Blue tints.   Cobalt itself is a tough, steel- gray metallic element similar to nickel, valued for the blue pigment it forms. A high percentage of the  world’s supply comes from a district near the town of Cobalt, in Ontario, Canada.” “ Dinky Bird” by Maxfield Parrish, 1904. Via   Wikimedia Commons  {{PD-US}}      Cobalt blue is sometimes called  Parrish blue  because artist Maxfield Parrish used it to create his distinct, intensely blue skyscapes.       Cobalt salts were first used to decorate ancient Chinese pottery with brilliant blue designs. Other ancient civilizations discovered the artistic potential of cobalt without knowing what metal they were using. One study don...

       Shenanigans  | SHəˈnanəgənz |  pl. noun  informal  secret or dishonest activity or maneuvering :  “ widespread financial shenanigans had ruined the fortunes of many .” •  silly or high-spirited behavior;  mischief . ORIGIN  mid 19th cent. : of unknown  origin .         There will come a time when said shenanigans are over and our lives  will return to some version of normal. So what, until then, do we do?           This past year and a half, as you may already know, I have been immersed in a body of work called “Of the Woods ”. It has been quite an exercise of patient endurance for me, to come up with a series of new pieces and get them completed, photographed, and professionally framed. It’s been like planting seeds in ground that would produce fruit eventually, but its artwork instead of food. And because I had made the decision to give it a year and...

        This week I got some unfortunate news about a show I was so excited about and honored to have been invited to. The show promoters had to made the difficult decision to postpone the show from May to August 1 & 2. Now they want to know if we, the artists, want to still participate on the new date or get our booth fee refunded.               At first I thought, of course I’ll still participate! After all,  it took me so many unsuccessful attempts to get into that show, and by now I have produced and framed many art pieces. It was clearly an answered prayer for me to get in that show!       Then I looked at the calendar and realized that anot her show is on that same weekend.  Will it be this or will it be that?      It’s a show I did last year; a really good one for me. Dang it. I’d hate to miss out on that show! The other factor I have to consider is t...

Okay folks, I know I recently declared that I am done with jewelry making until further notice.   Famous last words!   I just hit a great after Christmas sale on beads, and they WANT to be made into some amazing new upcycled pieces of wearable art.  Then yesterday I pulled some delicious dried paint off the artist palette. Yeah, I can’t help it. It’s too hard to resist!                                                                       I mean come on!! Aren’t they all just too good to wait?!      So to celebrate the New Year and give all of us some time to play and make art in the studio, I am excited to announce a special event at a special price: Upcycled Treasure Workshop   It promises to  be a super fun time filled with ideas an...

     The weekend before Thanksgiving I participated in the Eau Gallie Art Fair in Melbourne, Florida. What a great experience that was! It was my last show for the season and I finished with a bang! So, it’s wrap for 2019.  Once again I had the privilege of meeting the women that I made the pieces for. Here are some of them:  She was on the hunt for something fun and festive, not too much, not too little, something that would show up against her hair and bring on the razzle dazzle.  She made an immediate connection with this piece, dubbed femme du bois- woman of the woods.  Her husband convinced her to try it on,    and as soon as she did there was this great sparkle.  This woman is clearly a lover of color and this pair of orange dangles spoke to her.  I have to admit sometimes I wonder- who would ever wear this? And then she comes along, and WOW! They were definitely made for her!  ...

       So it turns out as I suspected. I got into a show that was clearly NOT a juried art festival. It was a two-day arts, crafts, and wine festival, complete with the usual   plethora of made-in-China crafts and commercial vendors. Ok, so I should have known better. I mean, I pretty much knew what I was getting into when I signed up and sent in my money. So why did I do it when I knew better? The reason is simple and valid: my son and daughter-in-law live right across the street, and I want to spend time with them.    So, no big surprise that my well heeled ladies did not attend this particular venue.   I had to make a decision what to do with my head. How to make the best of it when a show is not the best fit?   Here's some ideas:  Work on inventory. I use the time to go through my inventory of wearable upcycled art and tweek, re-do, and otherwise artfully alter. It's always needful and profitable.  Plus, people li...

It’s one of my favorite lines at a show, but I’m not just making it up. It’s true.  “I made this for you before we met!” When I set up at a show it’s with my entire repertoire of handmade wearable art. Most of the pieces I have crafted in my country studio in the middle of winter with the wood stove cranking and no one around but the cats. At times when I’m working away in my studio, I look at a finished piece and think to myself,  “Who would wear that? What was I thinking? Am I crazy?” And on and on. Then lo and behold, I go to a show, and something wonderful happens. I meet the one I made it for.  It happened several times at my last show, which was Penrod in Indianapolis.  This is a necklace I made as a show piece, which means it was photographed and used to jury into art shows.  It is a unique piece, entitled “Yoke” because of the style of the necklace.        I put it in my showcase at Penrod and eventually she came. She and Yo...

      It starts with several pieces of textured and variegated purple dried acrylic paint which have been peeled from the artist palette. They are layered, designed, embellished until it becomes a piece of wearable art from the palette.  They are adhered to a red violet painted strip  of soft leather and finished off with a silver toggle.  There are also vintage beads, clay, glass and handmade paper in the equation, all in delicious shades and tints of purple.  Finished length is 8”. What’s not to love?  For more information or to add this to your collection, go to my Etsy Store here . Enjoy!