I have a surprise coming in February......can't wait!

My eldest child inherited my too-small jaw and has to have 2 teeth pulled today. They gave her a pill to take 1 hr before the procedure to calm her. It must have worked, because as she was leaving for her appt, she grinned and told me her vest protected her from vampire bites. Then she asked me if I was a vampire. I told her "Not at the moment."

My poor journal is so neglected. Because I post so much on Facebook, I find I don't have time to post or re-post here. Actually, there isn't enough time, period. I really should be drawing instead, as I have all sorts of hopes for new projects this year. (The 1st will be debuting in February.)

I’m looking back on 2011. I neglected my paints quite a bit and focused my attention on learning to work with polymer clay. It was a good experience and I think I needed a break from painting for a while. But now I feel like it’s time to put my clay away (except when I have some free time to play). I have several projects in mind for 2012. It's time to get back to what I do best.
 

Just got word my latest licensing projec tis up and running-a calendar app for Apple devices (IPad, IPhone, etc. )

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/amy-brown-on-the-go-artcal/id489704546?mt=8

Good books I have read in the last few months:

Graveminder-Melissa Marr

Death Watch - Ari Berk

I am making very lovely dragon necklaces now, which are available in my Etsy shop.

Check out our Clearance Gallery for ridiculous deals on print sets (among other things). I really want to focus my attention in the upcoming years on producing more art books and coloring books, but I can't do it until I clear out the boxes and boxes of prints I have accumulated over the last 15 years! Take advantage while you can-these deals will not last for long and I doubt you will find a better price elsewhere.

I'd just like to thank everyone who came to see me at Faeriecon in Baltimore. And ESPECIALLY those of you who came to my art presentation and helped me flail my way through it. "Ask me more questions! " ;)

I am not a talker. So, sitting under the glaring lights (reminiscent of a hospital operating room) with a bunch of people staring at me was fairly intimidating. But I think we all made it through, relatively unscathed. Thank you for not throwing anything at me. (ha ha)

I really appreciate the feedback on which types of images resonate with you. It was very useful. It was also good to hear that many of you are enjoying my newer pieces, where I've gone a bit "odd" (Angry Sweets, Beasties, etc).

Hopefully when the Faeriecon folks make me do this again (and you know they will) I will be a bit more prepared...or not. I suppose we'll see.

New sculpts I am working on-red dragon is "Crimson Wings", blue dragon is "Aurora" (she has aurora borealis fusible film wings and her scales glow in the dark), and the dark copper dragon-well, doesn't have a name as yet.

I am on a mission! I seriously am running out of storage space! So over the next several months, look for clearance sales and regular sales and whatever my rattled brain can come up with. I need to free up space here. I can't bring in new stuff if I don't have anywhere to put it!

Fall is coming. It's my favorite time of year. There's something about the color of turning leaves, pumpkins, cinnamon and nutmeg, hot creamy drinks, snuggly sweaters and boots....fills me with a sense of warmth and happiness. And then there's Halloween, so fun and inspiring. Then egg nog and pumpkin pies hit the stores. My butt gains 5 lbs just thinking about it. But it's all good. I'm looking forward to weeks and weeks of mad creating. There is no better time for it than now.

I've been sculpting Halloween critters for a couple weeks now. They just keep selling out, though! More in the works soon, along w/ a 2nd batch of BOO necklaces (these are so fun-I wore one the other day). Got new miniprints on order too, but you never know when they'll show up. I hope to get messenger bags and totes before the holiday season, but I'm not getting anywhere fast on that mission. Cross your fingers. Throw blankets and hanging tapestries are in--very pretty! They have shimmery threads woven into them and it gives them a little something special.

Fun new distraction for me. I started making these out of polymer clay about 2 weeks ago. I'm hoping to find time to do many more. Available now on the site in the OOAK Jewelry gallery.

Just started reading Melissa Marr's new book-Graveminder. I think its her best yet. The writing seems different-maybe more thoughtful than the Wicked Lovely series. I'm having a hard time putting it down, so am looking forward to finishing it, if I can find a few free moments this weekend.

I lost my mind and sat through "Hot Tub Time Machine" yesterday. All I can ask myself is "why?"-it was painful. Dialog that is crude simply for the sake of being crude is getting really tedious. It was amusing the first few movies it showed up in, now its just dumb. And using the f-word 3 dozen times does not = clever.

So this morning, I decided to watch a scary movie-Insidious. I think most scary movies are a little boring-yet I watch them anyway, because every once in a while you get a good one. The first 1/2 of Insidious actually gave me chills. And then they brought in the pyschic lady and she started talking about "the Further" and the movie took a trip to Cheesey-land from there on. It was much scarier when I didn't know what was going on and the danger was only glimpsed in quick, creepy flashes. Oh well--I suppose it saves me from having nightmares tonight.

Been working on and off for a few weeks to get my studio cleaned up and organized.

Simple design, but I'm surprised by how much I like him.

Here's my 2nd doll-named after my 2nd daughter. Same specs as the first one, except this one is wearing bloomers which were very annoying to sew.

Here is my first attempt at making a Faery doll. I'm naming her Bella, after my first child. I still need a lot more experience before I get this down, but learning is a fun challenge, if frequently frustrating. I'm also learning that I'm way out of practice sewing. UGH.

She is just under 7 inches tall. Hair is a synthetic mohair. She is made on a wire armature. Head, upper torso, hands and shoes are polymer clay. All else is wire wrapped in stuffing. Her neck, arms and legs are poseable. The clothes are handsewn and I will not be letting anyone look closely at them, because like I said, I am out of practice!

So I'm by myself in my studio focused completely on this doll I'm trying to construct and I hear a loud burp behind me. !!??!! What was that?! I turn to look and find my cat, Goblin sitting on the chair to my art table watching me. I didn't even know he was there. But I think he's living up to his name.

I haven't painted anything in 3 months. Partly its because I've been teaching myself to sculpt, make dolls, hair accessories, jewelry, etc. (I offically have too many hobbies now.) But also, because I find I have become so picky about what I paint, I agonize over the drawing for ages until its "perfect" before I paint it. I'm not sure exactly why this change has come about, but I believe it might be a combination of me having less time to paint (so if I do paint, I had better paint something good!)and because there is so much more competition in this field than there used to be (so whatever I paint had better be extra good!) So, I think gone are my days of painting 100 to 200 pieces a year-just zipping out as much art as my fevered little brain can dream up. But although I will produce a far smaller pile of paintings, hopefully they will be different and/or unique enough to make up for it.

I am definitely feeling the painting URGE again. Currently I am working on a pile of 5 or 6 drawings. I hope to have all of them finalized by the start of September so I can start painting them, because I get more work done during the school year. Two drawings in the pile are done and I am starting the 3rd. Will I make more progress today? Only time will tell. I've learned to just go with the flow and do what I can when I can.

As you may have noticed, I added a new Faery Accesories section to the site. This is because I wanted to make floral barrettes for myself and my girls, and of course ended up with a ton of leftover supplies. I also found that I actually enjoy making these items. I am often shocked at just how pretty they turn out. Unfortunately, my camera does not do them justice. It doesn't capture the rich color of the petals or the sparkle of the glitter.

Anyway, I love these barrettes (and earrings). They make it so easy to spiff up an outfit-even jeans and a t-shirt. For costumes or fancy occasions I highly suggest getting a plumed barrette and a matching simple set (2 barrettes w/ no feather plume) and wear all three. Or, mix and match. ;)

I just made some gorgeous GREEN barrettes w/ ostrich plumes the other day (will be on the site soon). Now I'm thiking I need to come with an absinth faery outfit....

Yep, its time for more kitten pictures...

So I asked a question recently on Facebook-Do customers prefer shopping on my personal website or my Etsy shop? At first, it seemed 50/50. When I checked the next morning, it was leaning towards the website. There was some mention of favoring Etsy, because there are one-of-a-kind items there (like the dragon sculpts). For future reference, I did build a gallery for sculpts on my website-but I don’t have the stock to fill it just yet. It takes a lot of time to sculpt, paint and accesorize the polymer pieces. Some people mentioned they shop Etsy because they can use Paypal there. As a shopper, I love Paypal and prefer to use it myself. Why don’t I take Paypal on my website? I’ve been trying to add it for 3 years, but my site code is completely written by my husband and in order to integrate a Paypal option, he has to re-write a ton of the code. Having a very limited amount of time each day to work on it, integrating Paypal is lower on the priority list. We're still working on the Paypal option, but I'm not sure when it will be available. If someone really wants to pay via Paypal through the site, they can email us and we can send them a Paypal invoice. Although, please only do so if you actually intend to make the purchase. In the past I’ve wasted time sending people invoices, only to have them ignore and never pay. If I’m wasting time on things like that, I’m not able to work on any new art.

Personally, I’m torn. There are good and bad aspects to both shops. It takes a lot of time for me to run the Etsy Shop. I do it all myself, whereas my sister processes the orders on my website and takes care of emails. I'm doing all the merchandise listings on both the website and Etsy (and my wholesale website). It’s a little easier/quicker to list one of a kind items on Etsy than on my site. I also have the option of posting multiple photos on Etsy, which isn’t something I can do easily on my site. I am limited to the size of photos I can put on my site, as my husband says anything too large will slow it down. However, managing an Etsy shop is a lot more work and I pay a listing fee for every item I list, even if it doesn’t sell, and if it does sell, more Etsy fees + Paypal fees=double whammy. My website has no listing fees, so that’s great-but I pay a lot more every month than anyone would guess to have that site running, so it may be a wash there.

Its been interesting reading the feedback from the question-so thanks!

 

I recently placed an order for hanging wall tapestries and throw blankets featuring the Green Woman and Creation designs (these 2 designs were the ones chosen by visitors at the Faerieworlds festival in June). The manufacturer claims they will get on it right away! If we see a favorable response, we will look into additional designs. I'm also hoping the manufacturer can send me photos soon so I can post a sneak peek.

Got my calendars in last week--FINALLY! The new publisher did a great job. I especially love that they chose a matte finish for the cover, so I can actually sign the cover instead of the inside (previously I couldn't sign the covers, because they were too glossy and the ink wouldn't stick). Aside from the standard size wall calendar (12x12 inches) we should soon be getting a smaller 2012 calendar for people with limited space--includes different images than the standard size. A good option for kid's lockers, small office spaces, or any small space that needs a calendar, but can't fit a standard size.

A few days ago, I Iost my mind and adopted 3 kittens.

I've started dabbling in making some 6 to 8 inch tall poseable dolls and some 3 to 4 inch figures w/ strong clay and wire armatures inside them. Time consuming and sometimes frustrating, but gratifying once they're finished!

just some random pics of what I've been up to....

For those itnerested, I am posting my polymer sculpts at my Etsy Shop.

This post was prompted by a couple of conversations I've had lately w/ other artists about the "challenges" we have to deal with. Its hard being an artist. A lot of people don't have any real appreciation for art, even though its around them all the time. Most people don't understand the physical and emotional stress that an artist goes through while they create. Often, people assume that artists just sort of crank work out and because we love what we do, we shouldn't worry about being paid for it. Well, we have bills to pay too. We have children to feed. We work as hard as anyone, and sometimes we work even harder. So, when people are needlessly rude, it cuts a bit deeper than maybe it should. And you never know if we're a little unbalanced...

Here are a few things you should never say to an artist....

Never say to an artist "Wow, your work looks like(insert another artist's name here). Even if you're meaning it as a compliment, most artists hear "You just copied so and so-you haven't done anything original."

If you're shopping at a street fair or festival and are standing in an artist's booth looking at the creations they worked so hard to make, don't say "Gee, I could do that...." Its the equivalent of smacking the artist in the face. And chances are, you probably can't duplicate what they've done anyway.

If you think a piece of art is too pricey, keep it to yourself. Just walk away. Don't loudly exclaim for everyone to hear "$$$ for this!?" You might as well just walk over and kick the artist in the crotch. Besides, you don't know what went into creating that piece. They may have spent 3 weeks making it and the price listed is what they'd be willing to take to part with it.

Remember, there is a difference between being honest and just being rude. In general, artists tend to be pretty touchy when it comes to their art. They put their heart and soul into it. In some ways, their art is like their children. It doesn't really matter if you like it or not. Someone else will come along and think it's wonderful. If you don't like it, keep it to yourself and move along. You never really know how much damage you can inflict w/ a simple careless comment. And for some reason, we can hear 100 positive comments, but only remember the one negative one. And what's the point, really, in hurting someone for no reason whatsoever?

Oh boy--are these fun to make!

Here is a white sparkly dragon I've been working on. He's about 2 inches tall.

Edmund is my first attempt at sculpting one of the pixies that frequent my yard. He's a work in progress, but nearly done.

Baby gargoyle--before painting and after painting

Here are photos of some works in progress. I'm creating small goblins, each roughly 2 to 3 inches high. I'm hoping to add elements like fur and paint at some point. Its hard work, but I get a tiny bit better each time I make one.

I have long wanted to learn to sculpt. My eldest, Bella, has been interested in it since she was 2. So, I thought a good present for her 8th birthday would be a beginner's sculpting kit. I intend to learn along with her. As I tend to give up on things if I get too frustrated, I am going very slowly w/ this new hobby. I hope if I dabble at it gradually, I will stick w/ it. So, in the coming weeks and months, hopefully I will have regular photo updates of my progress.

I started w/ my angry sweets characters and am sculpting very small-less than the size of a quarter. I don't know if this is smart, because the tiny size makes sculpting hard, but I feel more comfortable w/ the baking process on the tiny pieces. As I get more confident, I will try larger pieces.

I use a lot of tracing paper when I'm working on drawings. I lay it over the characters to sketch out their clothing, or to play with different styles of faery wings. I might draw out various different backgrounds on tracing paper and then lay each one down separately to decide which I like best. So, a few months back I realized I was running out of tracing paper and needed to order more. I thought I'd be smart and go with a more generic brand to save money instead of my favorite brand - Calque/Canson.  Alas, not all tracing papers are created equal! The generic brand turned out to be only half as translucent as the more expensive paper. Tracing paper you can barely see through just doesn't quite do the job. But because I'm one of those "I'll buy a bunch of it, because its cheap!" people-I now have enough tracing paper to last me...I don't know...a year or 2? Let me re-phrase that: enough CRAPPY tracing paper to last me a year or two. I will, of course, use it anyway-but the next time I order, I'm spending the extra money on the good stuff!!!

I thought of a new topic I get asked about a lot-copyright registration. Most often asked: “Do you register all of your pictures?” Answer: YES.
I register all of my paintings, because often when companies want to license an artist’s work, they require that the work is registered with the Library of Congress. Not all companies care, though.
In the early days, I did not register my paintings. Then I started licensing my work, and a company I was negotiating with said they wanted everything registered. A copyright attorney helped me register all of my earlier works as two volumes of art. After that, I started registering my work on my own. The forms are very easy to fill out. Unfortunately, it can get really expensive. While registering images individually gives you the best protection, many artists register multiple works as a series, to cut costs.
According to copyright law, you do not have to register your art to legally own it and be protected. All you have to do is display the title, your name, and the year it was completed w/ the art. However, if you don’t register with the Library of Congress, there are limitations as to how much money you can seek from infringers, should you have to go to court over a violation. Registering also makes it easier to prove ownership and clearly establishes when a piece was created.
Considering the costs involved registering art and the fact that a lot of the verbiage in copyright law doesn’t really help artists like it should; I don’t think copyright law was really written with artists in mind. Sometimes the laws and lack of laws make it harder, rather than easier, to protect your work. Regardless, it’s your job to protect your work, so do what you can manage.
If you have questions, your best bet is to look up the Library of Congress’s website and read up on copyright law.
 

What am I working on right now? Hmmm....let's see.

A couple weeks ago I finished my first 4 paintings of 2011; 1 new Stitchling piece and 3 new Key Critters. It will probably be March before I get those printed and released. This week I started laying down watercolor washes for the backgrounds of 6 new pieces; 1 new Shadow Circus, 1 Stitchling, an angry cupcake, 2 Beasties pieces, and one piece that is different from my usual-so we'll see how that one turns out. So, lots of painting to do and always lots of interruptions, so I'm guessing it will be late March-April before I'll be able to release these guys.

Some of my art will be used to base puppets off of for a new movie currently in pre-production. Sablewood.

Are you a budding artist who’s branching out into the world of licensing? Need some advice on contracts? My best advice, the most important advice, the advice I cannot stress enough is…consult a contract attorney. I know it’s expensive and when you’re starting out there usually just aren’t the funds available. Most of you will not even bother. But if you can swing it, at least try to get some basic legal advice about what to look for and what to stay away from in licensing contracts, so you aren’t blindly stumbling into something you could regret later.

If possible, have a standard contract drawn up for yourself that you can offer whenever a licensing deal comes up. My personal experience is that most companies will be happy to sign your contract, as long as it’s fair to both parties. If you understand your contract and it’s designed so you can easily change names, dates, titles, and products, it can save time, money and headaches.

Here are some of the issues that every contract should address clearly. There are several other clauses contracts should contain as well (like record keeping, export laws, liability insurance clauses, proprietary rights, etc), but I’m not an attorney and frankly it gets very dull and confusing-my brain refuses to go there today. But the number one thing to remember when dealing with a contract: it’s there to dictate how the relationship between you and the company you license your art to will be handled. Try to think of every possible issue or problem that could arise, and state how it will be dealt with if it does.

1.    Names of the parties involved.
2.    Is this an exclusive or non-exclusive contract?
3.    List of art being licensed (usually attached at the end of the contract and called a “Schedule A”)
4.    What product(s) will the art be used on?
5.    Term-how long is the contract? Is there a renewal option?
6.    What is the royalty percentage and how often will it be paid?
7.    Approvals-the artist should always have the option to approve of the product design. Do you get samples?
8.    Termination-what happens when the contract ends? If the contract is breached, what happens? Is there a sell-off period?
9.    Infringement issues and indemnities-if any legal issues arise related to the product or art, what happens? Who is responsible for the attorney fees?
10.    Territory-where will the product be sold (USA only? Worldwide?)
11.    Assignment-if the company is sold or cannot continue to manufacture the product itself, can they assign the license to another company?
12.    If the company fails to sell the product for a period of time (6 months? 1 year?) can you cancel their rights to that product (therefore allowing you to take it to someone else who might have better luck with it?)

There are many things to consider whenever you are looking at a new license deal. Ask yourself things like “What would I do if this company didn’t pay me?” “What if they stop making the product prior to the end of the term and I’m legally unable to license to a new company until the contract runs out (which could be months or even years)?” “What if I give a company an exclusive and they never actually make the product (thereby tying up your rights for years and you make no money)?” Having a plan drawn up in advance for any possible problem will save time, money and headaches in the future. Most likely you will never need to address most of those issues, but its nice to have a safety net just in case. I’ve been licensing my work for about 10 years now, and I still have a lot to learn, but hopefully this helps in some small way.

 

10% off sale at our Etsy Shoppe. Discount code WINTER10 valid only on Etsy purchases. Sale will run for a limited time. Lots of signed items and we accept Paypal at the Etsy shoppe.

I’d like to write about a copyright topic that most people find very confusing. Hopefully this helps clear up some confusion. The topic is "derivative works".  A derivative work is when a person takes a product containing a copyrighted image and turns it into a new product.

Examples:
1. Someone might purchase a calendar and then cut out the images and use them as the background of a clock.
2. Someone might purchase a postcard and attach it to the top of a box, making it a jewelry box.
3. Someone might purchase a book of art and cut out the pages and re-sell them as prints.

If someone did any of these things specifically for themselves, for their own use and enjoyment, it would not be an issue. When it becomes a problem, is when these items are re-sold. Most people think “Hey, I bought it; I can do what I want I with it.” This assumption is false.  

Here’s why:
First of all, according to copyright law regarding derivative works, its illegal.

The artist hasn’t given their permission or approval of the item, therefore it’s an infringement. The artist’s right as the creator of the art is to be able to say how the work is presented and sold.

Most artists create art to pay their bills. If someone is making and selling derivative works, the artist is not getting paid royalties on that new product. You may argue that the artist got a royalty on the card or calendar used to make the derivative work, but the argument is irrelevant, because their work has still been stolen and used without their permission. In some cases, the artist may not have been paid at all. You just never know.

A serious problem with derivative works arises if the artist licensed the art exclusively to another company for the same product as the derivative product being made illegally.  If the company who holds the license finds out about the illegal product, they could be very angry. If the artist finds out about the illegal product and does nothing about it, the artist could be held in breach of contract and could be sued for the breach.

 Most people creating derivative works do not give credit to the artist, which causes others to assume the art is "free domain". New individuals may then use the art as well without permission-causing even more problems for the artist and companies the artist licenses art to.

In some cases, individuals might assume the person creating the derivative works is the actual copyright holder or original artist.

If an artist allows un-licensed derivative works to be made and re-sold with a blanket "I don't care if people do it" policy, a company could come along and say "Hey, let’s buy up a bunch of this artist’s postcards and create a line of boxes to sell ourselves. They say derivative works are OK, so we don't have to pay royalties." If the artist decided to pursue a lawsuit to stop them, the company could argue "Well you let everyone else do it.” It would then be the artist’s burden to prove they actively pursue infringements and police their own copyrights. If they’ve already let various individuals use the art for free, it becomes harder to prove they have not given up their copyright.

I hope this helps. It’s a confusing topic and sometimes it’s hard to explain. Even professional artists who have been in the business for years and years can have a hard time understanding copyright issues. People also vary in their opinions of copyright in general, and frequent fights break out about it. This entry is not meant to cause any frustration. It is simply meant to help artists protect their work (if they want to).

(Disclaimer-I am not an attorney. I advise anyone interested in this subject to do some research and look up copyright laws on their own, or speak with a copyright attorney. Much of what I write is from personal experience and is to an extent, my own opinion.)
 

Now available, digital download of Vern Miller's Dreaming in Water (w/ cover art by me.) Approximately 58 minutes of soothing music to help you relax. Also available through itunes and most other digital download services.

 (Disclaimer-I am not an attorney. I advise anyone interested in this subject to do some research and look up copyright laws on their own, or speak with a copyright attorney. Much of what I write is from personal experience and is to an extent, my own opinion.)
There are a lot of misconceptions about licensing art. Maybe I can clear some up?
What is licensing? In my case, it is when I give a company permission (a signed legal contract) to use my art on various products which are then sold in stores throughout the USA and sometimes the world. I am given a percentage of those sales as compensation. The compensation is called a “royalty” and the amount varies by contract.
Licensing misconception #1-“You make a ton of money when you license your art. “This is not always true. How much money you make on a contract depends on the contract, the company, and the product. High paying licensing contracts can be relatively rare, which is why artists often license their work to multiple companies for use on various products.
More on royalties:
Most licensing contracts offer the artist a percentage of the wholesale price of the product. This percentage could be anywhere from 1% to 15% (as an example-all contracts are different). The wholesale price is the price the manufacturer charges the stores for the products. The store then re-sells the product at a higher price (the artist does NOT get a royalty on the store’s sales). Example: The wholesale price of a coffee mug may be $5.00. The artist’s royalty is 5% of wholesale, so they get .25 for each mug sold. The stores then mark the mug’s price up to $10, but the artist will not get another royalty when the mug is sold in the store.
Licensing misconception #2- “The artist has full say in design, quality, price, and where the product is sold.” The artist will have no say in regards to pricing, where the product is sold, or who the product is sold to, unless there is a specific clause in the licensing agreement. All licensing contracts should give the artist the right to approve the product before it goes into production, but not all contracts do. Even when an approval clause is contained in the contract, sometimes a company may manufacture the product without allowing the artist to approve it first. This is often due to an oversight or mistake. Companies have multiple employees and sometimes things slip through the cracks if there isn’t sufficient communication between different departments in the company. If you are licensing your art, try to be organized and vigilant. Check in with licensees regularly. If you are worried about “bugging” them, tell them you are looking for info on release dates and pictures of the product so you can help promote it to your fans.
Licensing misconception #3-“Licensing is easy money.” Boy, I wish. Licensing can be a fulltime job in itself. You have to manage your licenses, make sure every contract is being paid on time, keep track of when licenses are about to expire and whether or not they need to be renewed, look for new licensing opportunities, and keep track of what is being made and when it hits the market so you can distinguish between rip offs and legally licensed products. When you are juggling a dozen contracts while trying to run your own business and still find time to create new art, keeping track of licensed products can be a real challenge. Some companies are better than others at keeping the artist in the loop with progress reports, design mock ups, samples, and sales reports. I find it helps to keep a stack of files next to my desk for companies that are making a new product, so I can remember to ask them about mock ups and samples. It’s messy, but helps. Every time I think “I need to clean up this mess.” I pick up the files and remember I need to make another sample request. I also try to keep samples of each product on hand. That way, when a customer emails and asks if the lunch box they saw on Ebay is a legal product, I can check the samples and say “Why yes it is, and as a matter of fact, you can get that same lunchbox in 3 other styles.”  (I don’t actually have lunchboxes-this is just an example.)

For those wondering, my OFFICIALLY LICENSED PSP Tubes are now available through CDO (Creative Design Oulet).

Well the year is coming to a close and frankly, I'm not sad to see it go. 2010 has been a real pain in the butt for so many of us. Here's to putting it behind us and moving forward with hope in our hearts and dreams as big as the sky. 2011 will be seeing many changes for Amy Brown Fantasy Art. A week ago I said "goodbye" to my long time companion...my trustworthy Xerox printer. I've been printing w/ Xerox since my beginning in this business. But financially, we've all had to make some cut backs, so "Old X" had to go. Goodbye old friend-you will be missed. But on a happier note, I have  a new avenue for printing small, afordable quantities of prints, magnets, bookmarks and postcards. We will be releasing these new items starting in January. I'm very excited. For some odd reason, having postcards printed makes me ridicluously happy. Perhaps its an artist thing. Or maybe its something in the water around here. Another happy new development; we have managed to reduce much of our shipping costs, and will have lower shipping charges on many items this coming year. This thrills me to no end. The cost of shipping has been a thorn in my side for years and years. Also in the upcoming year, I am hoping to include some writing here in my journal, reflecting my personal experience in the art business. Hopefully it will be helpful to some of you.

Happy Holidays everyone! And a wonderful New Year!!!

If you are a store owner interested in carrying the 2012 calendar next year, please email us your contact info. If we don't hear from you before February, its possible you will miss out on the 2012 calendar. OR-you can contact Otange Circle Studios-address in our Licensed Products Gallery for info. Thank you

New stuff in the works.

I've recently signed with Queen Kat Stamps who will be releasing my line art as rubber stamps. They already have the first set available on their site.

Super cool custom fabric handmade totebags and cellphone bags. Exclusively from Haut Totes.

I was truly inspired to write you today about an amazing, award-winning film called…

MYTHIC JOURNEYS

This is the kind of film that changes the way we see the world around us. Along with insightful interviews with Deepak Chopra, Michael Beckwith, and others, this film has some of the most inventive and inspiring use of animation, artwork and story that I’ve ever seen. The film also includes the legendary voices of Tim Curry, Mark Hamill and Lance Henriksen, as well as original stop-motion puppets by the amazing Brian & Wendy Froud.

It takes you on a powerful journey and shows just how transformative your life can be.

The filmmakers Steven & Whitney Boe (who are also my friends) are launching the 2-disc DVD today at a one-time 30% discount with a special package of wonderful free bonus gifts.

Check out the trailer.

A glimpse into my studio space. I keep trying to tidy it up and organize it, but...the goblins just mess it up again.

Pics from the signing a couple weeks back in Buckley. Thank you to all who braved the heat and came to say "hi".

This lovely young lady won a Grand Champion ribbon in the costume class at the Mason County Fair. She was wearing one of my faery costumes, which are sold through the Spirit stores during the Halloween season.

For months I have been blaming my husband for eating the last cookie, piece of chocolate, etc. This morning I caught sight of the real culprit. I believe we have a Sweet Tooth Pixie living in our home. I got a brief glimpse of her running off with one of the chocolates from my secret studio stash. I made a rough sketch of her, and will certainly be studying her more.

Tons more photos on the Facebook Fanpage under the photo gallery "Faerieworlds 2010".

More to come.....

2 versons of the same pose. As happens with me quite frequently, about half way through the first image, I decided I'd wished I had used a different color pallet, so I did a 2nd version a couple months later in different colors.

Babette and Bernard...prints sometime in 2011 when the Ragdoll series evolves more.

If you're part of the Amy Brown Fantasy Art Inc. Facebook fan page, you've probably seen this already. WIP scans of a painting in progress.

Beyond Fantasy Magazine's newest issue (#4) has a feature with several never before seen images from me. Altogether a dark andlovely magazine.

magcloud.com/browse/Issue/81601
 

Some random picks from the fearie fest last Saturday. I am waiting for Kathi to send me the ones she took. First couple are during mid-day and the last 2 were during set up in the morning.

While I was in the shower and my husband was suppose to be watching the kids (but was power napping on the couch), Autumn (the 2 year old maniac) got into the Easter baskets and ate lord only knows how much candy and then she got into the water from the fridge and poured it all over the floor. I made my husband clean it up.

During the creation of most of my paintings, at some point (or various points) I stop and wonder if what I'm planning on doing (be it the color scheme, costume, or some aspect of the character) is going to ruin the piece. Will the colors be wrong? Will the characters be too odd looking? I teeter on the edge and wonder "Should I take the leap? Do I dare?" Usually, I back off and take the safe route. While drawing up this month's Enchanted Visions theme, A Dark Undercurrent, I stepped off the edge. I had a vision and it demanded to be painted. The trepidation I often feel when considering an "odd" idea could not be accepted this time. So I clenched my fists, closed my eyes, and plunged forward. The result was an unhindered flow while I worked. Everything fell into place, almost too easily. It was meant to be.

My process for creating a painting is always changing-evolving. So I'm going to share the latest process with you. A year ago, I was working on 20 or more pieces at a time, most of them small. In the past few months, that process has been discarded (for now) and a new process has taken over. I start with a light sketch of a pose, transferred to watercolor paper. Then I lay tracing paper over it and sketch out different costumes as well as other elements. Sometimes I go through several sheets of tracing paper before I find something that works, at which time I take a trip to my light table, and transfer the costume to the watercolor paper. I prepare 2 to 4 drawings this way before I start painting, because background washes take time to dry, so its nice to have a few pieces to hop back and forth with while one is drying. (I do employ the help of a blow dryer sometimes to hurry things up even more.) I like to complete all of the backgrounds on the paintings first, because I want to focus my real attention on the character(s). Once the backgrounds are done, I try to direct my efforts on only one painting at a time, sometimes 2. I find that when I painted large numbers of pieces all at once, I focus less time on each piece. Forcing myself to only focus on 1 painting at a time, I've found I paint a lot better. Another change to the new process is I have been working on larger pieces. I put a lot more detail into my paintings now, and its hard to do that with small paintings.

Finished "A Dark Enchantment" last week. I am loving it, but it is a bit edgy. I know this, because my sister likes it and she's got...shall we say..."odd" tastes. But then so do I.

I just bought another butt freckle.....

Yes, I am a big Butt Freckle fan. Below, the proof. I can't get enough of them!!

In the past, some of you may remember me threatening to send flying monkeys out to do my evil bidding. "Flying monkeys?" you say? Oh, the small minded non-believers. I now provide proof that I do, in fact, have flying monkeys. BEHOLD! And tremble in fear. Or at least pretend to tremble in fear - flying monkeys are very insecure.

Sadly, nothing much is going on around here. (Unless you count 2 skunks fighting on our patio last night and stinking up the house to the point where I couldn't sleep, because the stench gave me a headache.) So, here I am, sleep deprived (as usual), listening to Woodland, working on laying down background washes on 3 paintings, waiting for paint to dry, and just now remembering I'm suppose to be signing and numbering a stack of prints (crap). Oh, and I've been harassing Jessica Galbreth by sending her multitudes of random emails--but she knows she loves it.

OK, back to work. Unfortunately, pictures don't paint themselves, or sign and number themselves, which is really a shame.

My kids are such picky eaters. I asked Bella if she wanted boiled slugs with cinnamon for breakfast, and she said no.

So anyway, here are some pics of my dolls/studio muses. I posted these before in my old journal, but have added some pics. They are not only inspirational, they give me another creative outlet.

We didn't get many pics from the Winter Faerieworlds Balls, but here are a few. I forgot I brought my camera (never took it out of my bag) and my friend's camera ran out of batteries (as is, apparently, the universal camera law.)