An angel for the arts

Affordable Original Paintings & Mixed Media Art by Artangel,
A successfully artist exhibiting in Manchester at the moment, and whose work you can see in the current issue of "Making Gifts" magazine.
Prices of work on canvas range from approx $30 to $120

The work is quite whimsical.
the artist Angie says "'m inspired a lot by nature, color and texture, and I also love working with re-cycled bits and pieces; I'm fascinated by things that already have a "history", and I love making something new with them!"

Here is a little selection

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade artangel.etsy.com

"I seem to be repeatedly drawn to certain subjects - particularly feathers, hearts, Buddha, birds and trees.

I also love that you can find beauty in the most mundane things - shattered glass, the cracks in paving stones - and to my son's embarrassment I’m forever picking up bits of rusty metal in the street, or rescuing crumpled bits of paper from going into the bin!"

Not far from Dali's Museum, an artist...

...called Mary Hamilton. She is a figurative artist working in watercolors. Her she is, talking about her and her artworks.

How did I get started - Ever since I remember I have been artistic, loved to draw and paint. Majored in Art in college, but needed to find work that paid a dependable salary, so I did not do art for a long time. It's funny, but something was definitely missing in my life that I didn't realize until I was able to take up painting again. In 1996, I started painting again in oils and eventually migrated to watercolors. I have consistently taken classes and workshops since that time, and I have been lucky enough to sell my paintings since then.

Where am I from - I live in the St. Petersburg/Tampa, Florida area, but I am from Colorado and spend 3 months there every year.

Am I a professional artist or is this a hobby? I enter shows in the professional category, and I try to paint every day.

What inspires me - The natural beauty of God's creation, especially water (lakes, rivers, oceans, waterfalls) and the effect of light on the water. Sunrise and sunset. Babies of all kinds. Shore birds. Being around other artists. Books and magazines about art.

What is my favorite piece - Don't know that I have just one favorite. I like to see the kids adopted out into happy homes, and I like something about most all of them, or I will go back in and change them eventually.

How do I promote my work - Etsy is my favorite new tool. I also have my new blog and a website that needs revising as well as belonging to various guilds, one of which has a website. Entering shows also is promotion in a way.

Where am I showing my work - Locations in Florida: Grecko Grill in Madeira Beach, TST Title Company in Palm Harbor, Artists Guild Gallery in Holmes Beach are three long-term locations.
I show every year at the Glenwood Springs Fall Art Show in Glenwood Springs, CO and at the Alpine Artists Holiday in Ouray, CO. I will be at Also at Pioneer Park in Dunedin, FL on Nov. 24, Dec. 17, 2007 Jan. 26 and Feb. 23 2008, as well as other locations throughout the year (2008).

What is my favorite material - paint

Do I have any advice for fellow artists - Don't give up. Keep on painting. Paint what you love. Practice, practice practice. (Nothing new)

If I were an object I would be the sky

Thank you Mary for your time.

Coconuts, Palm trees... everything I dream of

A few words with Joanne Abrahams the creativity of CoconutPalmDesigns
She makes amazing signs with Belizean hard or soft woods.


- How did you get started ?
I have been crafting for as long as I can remember. I began making signs out of wood only last year when I decided to make my niece a sign of her name for Christmas. Following that I designed and made a welcome sign for my brother and his wife. That went over so well my brother begged me to make a variety of other welcome signs for him to sell in Jamaica. I found that I really enjoyed working with wood more than any of the other mediums I've tried and so when I found out about Etsy I just had to join.

- Where are you from?
I was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and have lived in Kingston, Jamaica, Toronto, Ontario, Canada and now I live in Belize, Central America.

- Are your creations limited editions or unique?
My creations are limited editions.

- Are you a professional artist or is this a hobby?
Right now this is a hobby but I have plans for it to turn into a fulltime business.

- What inspires you?
This is always such a hard question to answer. Everything and nothing inspires me. I design mostly based on what I am designing, who it's for or where it's for.

- What is your favorite piece (that you still have for sale) and why?
My favorite sign is the Zig Zag Welcome Sign. I love the way the colors ended up working so well together. It's the simplest of my current signs but to me it's the most aesthetically pleasing.

- How do you promote your work?
I promote my work on the Etsy forums, through my blog, through word of mouth, family and friends and also my brother, in Jamaica, is a wholesaler so he markets them for me there.

- Joanne is showing and selling her work on etsy. Check her shop out. You may find just what you need.
a little selection great for Halloween :)


- anything else you'd like to add?
I love working with people to do custom orders. It's always so exciting for me to see someone's idea come alive.