Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Sanja Radovanovic

Hello, 

the pic above is just a share from a recent trip, just coz. Grrrrrr. 

But it's tuesday, which means it's Tell All Tuesday not a share of recent places I've been phone pics lol so here we go, this week's featured artist is Sanja enjoy

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
My name is Sanja Radovanovic and I am a student. I have been doing all kinds of crafts since I can remember, from making jewelry and figurines out of different materials to paper crafts. When I was starting out I used to use anything that was on hand, so that is how begun to recycle things into something else. I try to use as many things as possible that would otherwise become trash and I became the collector of "junk" in my family. For example I have a box full of bottle caps. I just hate seeing people throw away things with so much potential to become a part of something beautiful. I mostly learned everything I know on my own by experimenting and I discovered the online crafting world just last year so I was overwhelmed with all the information. I had no idea there was so much out there.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
My biggest challenge at the moment is lack of time. Ever since I started grammar school I hadn’t had as much free time. I did some art on occasion during the school year, but being unorganized as I was it had an effect on my grades, so I mostly used my vacation time to craft like crazy. Now I am in the last year of grammar school and I’ve god important exams entire semester as well as preparations for university so that shortens my free time even more. Luckily I am more organized than before so I’ve created a system recently to overcome this problem. I marked out an hour every Saturday just for art, so instead of wasting time watching TV when there’s nothing on, I do what I love.

What is your heart’s greatest desire for your life as an artist?
I would like to learn all different crafts, but what I always dreamed of is to open my own workshop with all kinds of homemade goodies one day.

What advice would you offer to any perspective new artist?
Don’t be afraid of art. I find that sometimes new techniques or what not might keep us from trying something new simply because we’re afraid that it won’t turn out ‘right’. There is no right way, there’s your way. Sure, if you don’t draw or saw well you can always improve your skills, but it is your art, you project yourself into it, so don’t be afraid of making it your own. There is a saying I find very inspirational: ‘It’s not who you are that’s stopping you, it’s who you think you are not'

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?
Well, I’m new to the online crafting community. I have a youtube channel, but no videos uploaded yet, I am working on it though. And a Pinterest

Thank you for sharing Sanja, it's inspiring to hear from someone on the younger scale of our community being so free and yet mindful in their approach to art. I love the santas and the saying you shared, please let us know if you ever do open your workshop =)

ps the Collective of Collectors of Junk welcome you into the loving fold lol

Do you want to join the TAT-ed??

Email me or click the link to find all the details here =)

Inspiration Station: My First Free Class

Hi guys, so as those of you who have come over to Journal Workshops may know I have my first free class live already which is available to all. 

It is a creativity boosting art journaling workshop where the idea is to make inspiration happen and create some fab journals along the way too!

There is no required level of techniques, skills or equipment to take part. Therefore it is suitable for beginners, but hopefully more experienced artists will get something out of it too as the whole emphasis of this workshop is all on the process...and on being forevermore inspired.

Here is a quick video to give you a taster:

So if you would to join (you are more than welcome, and will be joining in with more than 500 members already) please visit 

Journal Workshops.

Much love

Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Angelina Slaymaker

Hi guys (I can't believe it is this already but...) Happy March!!

I'm sorry that having been busy the last month with Journal Workshops I have not been around much but there has still been feature Tuesday posts happening =)

so let's get on with this one...

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are
I guess I will start by introducing myself, my name is Angelina Slaymaker. I live in Washington state usa. And if I tell the truth I am 37 years old. I have had the blessing of having a disability called Osteogenisis Imperfecta (Brittle Bones). Some may not view this as a blessing but it has afforded me the time to grow as an artist. As to what kind of artist am I? That is truly hard to narrow down, I love to work with so many thing's. Right now I guess I would say mixed media plus. I also work with polymer clay, Draw, Paint, etc.….

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
Space…..There is never enough of it. I always have painted paper and scraps and cardboard and well everything stacked everywhere. I don't have a separate craft space so I have always said 'my bed room is a craft studio with a bed'.

On a personal note I always have a hard time taking a complement on my work. It is very hard not to always say: oh it's not that good. I always need to work on that. I also find it hard to know if I'm a crafter or an artist. I never know where I stand.

What is your greatest personal achievement either in your art, or because of it?
This question really got me thinking. I have been doing one form of art or another my whole life. I spent much of my time growing up in cast and in wheelchairs so I had the time to learn. And as I have gotten older I continue to try to learn all I can about all different art forms. And while I feel that I have achieved many things I have set out to do I think one of the best Is Not being satisfied with what I already know, and always being willing to try what's next.

What advice would you offer to any perspective new artist?
I have had many people tell me they have no talent. Unfortunately this stops them from even trying. First of all it's not all about the finished product it's about how you feel while your making it. About letting go of everything and just not thinking. And when you do that often people find that they have a talent they never let themselves find.

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?
I can be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/iceteacrafts/ As well as on Pinterest. And I can be reached at iceteacrafts@gmail.com

Thanks for sharing Angelina, amen to the space thing but having recently put up a discussion board on Journal Workshops to share pics of our art spaces I've realised that's it's actually the norm to be limited on the space we can attribute to our art. All the lovely scrapbooking room tours that are the size of a small department store, with as many supplies as to fill a department store, are the exception, not the reality and I think that's nice. For some reason I like creating a lot more in my cramped tiny indoor studio than my slightly more spacious outdoor one, which I just tend to chillax and do bits and pieces in, so way to go 'craft studio with a bed', it works and you're creative there & that is much better than having ten times the space that is never used!

Do you want to be a featured TAT artist??

To be featured email me or find all the details here =)

Much love

Introducing Jennibellie's Journal Workshops...

Hi guys I have very some exciting news...

I am *finally* going to be doing online classes yaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!

I know some people have been waiting for me to do this for a long time, but now I really am doing it yay! So I have been working hard making a fab space so that I can not only host workshops, but also host activities & groups too! Below is a short video which contains the basic info...

I really hope you do sign up and take my first *F*R*E*E* class with me.

To sign up for my class you will need to first sign up to the site and then request to join the class - so make sure you provide a valid email or you won't get access. If you don't know where else to click just look out for the big bold button on the left that says 'Jennibellie's Free Class, Click Here to Join' kinda thing ;)

I'm so super stoked about this, it's taken me a long time and a lot of effort to get here so I hope you will come on the journey with me.

Love to you all

Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Nina Fenner

Time for Tell All Tuesday, time for Tell All Tuesday, time for Tell All Tuesday, yeah!!

As you may or may not have noticed I've not been around much this month, so I'm super psyched to I have Tell All Tuesday for some arty inspiration...and fyi where I have been I will become very apparent soon (esp if you are a newsletter subscriber - you are in for a treeeeeeeeeeeat!! ;) ) But before that loveliness here's some more in the form of this weeks TAT:

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
I have just turned 50 and have spent all my working life living in the countryside, earning most of my living as a self employed gardener. All my life I have I dabbled in a wide variety of crafts. When I was about 30 I started doing life modelling and I was tempted into the idea of going to art college. I planned to simply enjoyed my foundation year and then go back to gardening, but I got drawn into doing a Fine Art degree. It wasn't really my thing because so much of it was conceptual stuff and I'm really a craftsperson, but I did enjoy exploring processes such as printmaking, textile art and photography, and best of all I did a three day book binding course which really got me hooked. After my degree I went back to gardening but also continued making books and experimenting with other arts and crafts. In 2004 I was asked to teach some workshops which I enjoyed enormously. I continued to run occasional workshops for the next few years and also dabbled in craft fairs (which I dislike doing!) In the last year or so I have really been putting more effort into promoting my workshops. I am also trying out teaching other subjects and I am really enjoy inspiring other to make creativity a part of their lives. I think eclectic probably best describes the work I do, as I am constantly trying new things. I spin and knit, I do patchwork and embroidery, I sketch and write and make baskets. I also love cooking, dancing and singing, and growing vegetables.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
My biggest challenge is always balancing doing creative things for pleasure and for money, and being organised enough to do my own promotion and make the moneymaking ventures as efficient as possible. I try to focus on having a core of paid creative work and then allow myself to do some playing for pleasure, and also offer some freebies for good causes now and then as well.

What is your heart’s greatest desire for your life as an artist?
I still love gardening and plan to continue doing it part time, and would love to be earning about half of my income from teaching workshops and selling some of my work. In real terms this would equate to me teaching one or two workshops per week on average over the year.

What is the best thing / worst thing that art has brought into your life?
The best thing is the wonderful creative people that I meet, and the feeling that I have inspired people to bring more creativity into their lives. The worst thing is the feeling that there are SO many things I want to try and sometimes I feel I take on too much and challenge myself to the point that I feel stressed about it, which is the opposite of what being creative is supposed to be!

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?

I have a website, a facebook page and a blog that is a mixture of creative stuff and my life in general. I don't post on my facebook page or blog as often as I feel I ought to, but I try not to feel bad about that!

Thank you  for sharing Nina, I definitely agree about the stressed thing, I want to do so much too and there is just never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever enough time for it all! And it's hard facing the fact that there may never be, especially during those times when you feel like you have used every moment you have available to do so to be as creative as absolutely possible, and still feel like you've managed nothing! I guess this is where the wisdom of 'it is not the destination, but the journey' comes into play, and give ourselves a break over all the creative to do list projects  that will never ever ever even get looked at, and simply enjoy the time we have when we are actually creating.

Want to read your name in the title??

To be featured email me or find all the details here =)

Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Krystal Hampton

Hi guys is my featured artist time again, 

and just for the sheer point of it I thought I'd show a Jennibellie-inspired project that this weeks artist has created first:

It's a 'Wall Art Journal' I did a tutorial on a couple years ago, it's probably egotistical for me to share but even though it happens with increasing frequency I still get goosebumps when I casually happen across something I helped inspire. And that is what we are all here to do, I believe, so straight into this week's inspiring interview we go...

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.

Hi ! My name is Krystal and I am a 28 year old full time college student majoring in psychology. I am also a newbie art journaler and I am also experimenting a little with mix media art as well. I have always loved art since I was a little (4 years old to be exact, lol). I was into a lot of crafty things like creating things out of popsicle sticks, construction paper, clay, and whatever else I could get my hands on. It wasn't until I reached my mid to late twenties that I discovered art journaling. I was cruising the bookstore one day and I came across an issue (more so it felt like the magazine "found" me, lol) of Art Journaling magazine and I picked it up and started flipping through it. As soon as I opened up that magazine I was instantly hooked and I knew at that moment that I found my artistic calling.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?

The biggest challenge that I face as an artist is having the time to create. With me being a full time student, studying, and just every day life stuff I sometimes do not have the time that I want to spend creating art, and when I do finally have the time I am either too tired to or I tell myself I'll make some time tomorrow and when tomorrow gets here, I end up not doing any art at all. The way that I have overcome this problem is I just simply take my art with me on the go. A while back I put together a travel art journaling kit with all my fav supplies in it and my oh so cute small art journal, and when I have a break in between classes (or when I just need to take a break from studying, lol) I just put out my journal and supplies and create and just have art time.

Do you ever lose your mojo, and if so, how do you get it back ?
I do have those moments where I will lose the interest to get creative or it maybe hard for me to get in that creative mood. I find that when I feel this way I either will take a small break from my art to think and clear my mind. I also find it helpful to browse around on pinterest and take a look at other artist and their work and see what they create, and I get so inspired and so many different ideas come flooding into my head that its overwhelming, in a good way of course, lol !

What do you love most/least enjoyable about your art?
The thing that I love most about my art is not knowing how it will turn out, what the end result will be. Most of time when I am creating a journal page or a mix media canvas piece, I don't always plan out what I am going to do. I just sort of go with the flow and just let my creativity take over, or I may have an idea in my head of how I want a certain journal page to be and it sometimes turns our better than I had originally planned or I end up adding to my idea or changing it just a little. What I love the least about my art is sometimes I think that I could have done something better or I could have added this, or changed that, or made it more interesting some how.

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?

You can find more about me and my art on my blog and I am also on Pinterest, just type in Krystal "artsychica" Hampton to find me :)

Thank you for being this weeks featured artist Krystal...something tells me you like your hearts, no? Lol I love what you said about 'The thing that I love most about my art is not knowing how it will turn out, what the end result will be. ' We can often cut ourselves off before we start with the 'blank page paralysis syndrome' but by flipping it on it's head; by seeing the unknown as something exciting rather than frightening is a great way of tackling that, thank you for sharing.

Do you want to join the exclusive TAT ranks??

To be featured email me or find all the details here =)

Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Zoey Shears

Hi guys, every tuesday I marvel at how quickly time is going (TAT is kinda like my weekly 'jeez, another one gone already?' check-in) & usually watch with fascination as the seasons progress on almost a snapshot kind of basis every week...well not for the last few! I hope everyone is doing ok through this crazy weather?! 

This week I've a Newbie Artist is in the hotseat, sit back (be grateful to be indoors tee hee) & enjoy xx

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are.
Well my name is Zoe and I am 29, to be honest I am not sure what type of artist I am yet as I have only been doing it for six months. Mixed media is my passion at the moment as I love mixing and adding in all sorts of items and media into one piece. I have a love of painting faces in my work, not a full face just half a face I think it helps to add the emotion to the face if you can not see it all.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it?
Confidence is my biggest problem in my art, I worry over every piece and am never satisfied with what I have created. I find it hard to get my work out there as I am always unsure of sharing it and constantly worry some one may steal my work images. To over come it I joined some great mixed media groups on facebook and I try to post a piece of my work in there. The ladies that are apart of that group are of all different experiences and their feed back and support is great for getting that push in the right direction.

What do you love most / least enjoyable about your art?
What I love the most is time stands still and in that moment I am in my own world where I am at peace with myself. Anything could happen in that time and no one gets anything out of me when I am creating. I take a lot of time over my work and find it very relaxing. If there was anything that I do not like I would have to say waiting for everything to dry so I can add more onto the piece.

What advice would you offer to any perspective new artist?
Do not give up hope, my first pieces looked dreadful like the cat has vomited them up. Take time over your work use everything you have when you first start so that you get a feel of what you like to use first. Youtube videos are great for tutorials Jennibellie does some fantastic ones :). Just keep going with your art and practice all the time. Art is something that you need to develop over time and have fun with it.

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?
At the moment I am not really out there yet, I am considering a blog and a facebook page but as yet these are just thoughts in my head. I do have an Etsy store called ImagineNades. At the moment there is only 2 pieces in there but I am looking into getting prints of my work and other products too.

Thank you so much for sharing Zoey, it's really nice to have the perspective of someone so fresh to art as it were and so glad you already understand 'art is something that you need to develop over time and have fun with it' - I think it usually takes more than 6 months for most of us to figure that out so really, good job! 

In terms of worrying about being plagiarized please take it from someone who has had it happen to them in a few different forms do not let the worry of such things stop you from doing something you want to do. I feel it needs to be said a little more often sometimes because yes it happens, but so does credit card theft and being hit by a bus...but do we stop buying our groceries or never cross the street? In every scenario there is something bad that could happen so why ever even focus on that (when it may never even happen anyhow)? Live, and share your work, if your version of living means to do so =)

Do you want to be a featured TAT artist??

To be featured email me or find all the details here =)

Wishing Tree Tutorial and Vlog

Hey, so I made a video tutorial and vlog about a week ago and sent them out as The Scoop part of my newsletter but am only now just getting around to posting them properly (crazy week = late posting). Such a big plus for signing up for my newsletter I think, as it's one of the only deadlines I set for myself it can actually prompt some creative-posting action from moi lol anyway I'm getting round to it now.

I'm calling this an unconventional tutorial, because well frankly I think it is, even for me! Other non-conventional tutorials I've done still seem to follow a thread ie recycled art, or homemade craft supply making, while I guess this is more a tutorial driven by my own heart and set of circumstances. This is why there is also a vlog to follow on from the tutorial. Expect plenty more of unconventional things from me this year, as I found some times in 2013 were difficult to get the creative juices flowing, I will be following my heart this year in all creative endeavors I can imagine, can pursue, can create =D 

So here are both videos, 

I hope you enjoy my unconventional tutorial =)

Much love