Pieces of Home Mosaics Shop

Friday, May 24, 2013

(Funny) What to expect... when you are expecting! Not for the faint of heart!

 
 
Happy Hello Everyone!
 
 
Some of you may know this about me.. I own and teach preschool. I have 37 students in my school. I have been teaching preschool for over 20 years and Love it!
 
I am also going to be a Nana in October! I am so excited!!
 
 Anyway, lately I have been thinking a lot about the Stages of Life. I thought I would do a ditty on it! I hope you laugh and see items that you love as well! Have fun reading!
 
Knocked Up to Newborn
 
What to expect... when you are expecting
https://www.etsy.com/listing/81288947/pregnancy-card-congratulations-on?ref=sr_gallery_14&ga_search_query=knocked+up&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_page=1&ga_search_type=all&ga_facet=knocked+up
 
 
 
Mom is so excited! I'm pregnant! wooohoooo!!! My skin will glow, I will be sooooo cute with my belly! Mom is all smiles! 
 
 
 
Well, Here is the Real Deal .... yes, it hits mom smack upside the head!
 
Zits!!!
NOOOOOOO!!!!!
 
 
 
Aching Back!!!
 
 
Swollen Feet and Ankles!
 
 
Uncomfy and Cranky -
 
The Blame Game!!
 
Newborn is here! Mom is so happy
 
 
(well, that's what she tells people)
 
 
The Real Deal
 
 
https://www.etsy.com/listing/130113577/reborn-baby-girl-maura?ref=sr_gallery_40&ga_search_query=+crying+baby&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=all&ga_facet=crying+baby
 
Mom is now the Walking Dead
 
 
Need Sleep!!!!!
 You Ring that Door Bell and Die!!!!
 
 
Boobs Hurt and Milk is Every Place!!! I just ruined another Top!!! "Honey, I need......"
 
 
OMG!!! I just sneezed!
 
 
And Just think.... This is the easy part of being a Mom!!!
 
Next comes.... Toddlers!
 
LOL
 
Mine! Mine! Mine!
No! No! No!
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
 
Yes, It is all worth it!!!
(well, that's what we tell ourselves..lol)
 
 
 


Saturday, May 18, 2013

Featured Artist Merissa Geldner



Happy morning everyone!
 
It is a beautiful day in Eastern Oregon! I have my coffee and I am settled in! Time to share a New Shop with you!
 
Today I am featuring Merissa Geldner
 
 
Her shop is
GlassbyGeldner
 
 
When I saw her wine holder... I almost feel over! So, beautiful! Wow!
 
Ok... here we go. Get ready! Get comfy!
 
Tell us what you have in your shop
 
I sell stained glass art that have mostly nature themes. I employ the Tiffany method which involves putting glass together by copper foil tape and solder and by leaded method which involves came. Tiffany is appropriate for art that is hung indoors hung on chains in a window or hinged to windows and doors as shutters. Leaded glass is what is used for art that goes in a door or window that faces the rain and snow. Same can also be used indoors. I am currently working on 2 windows. I try to do a project weekly, but the windows take longer for me to do.
 
 
 
 
How did you get started with Etsy?
 
I was showing my art to a lady that runs an art gallery in Wynona Lake, Indiana. Her daughter was there and mentioned Etsy.
 
 
When did you get interested in making your Art
 
I was probably about 12 years old. My mom took lessons and I joined in. Life got busy and I had put off my craft. Later after college I restarted my interest. I had a front door with a long window in it. I made a Tiffany door window. I would put brackets on my front door and slide the window in. The window could be replaced with a different scene simply by sliding them out of the brackets and replacing it with a new one. I still have it 12 years later. I also had a nonfunctional fireplace. I made a “screen” for that and hung a light in the fireplace from the chimney vents.
 
 
Where does your inspiration come from?
 
I love art. I love color. I am a Christian and have a strong belief that all that we see around us is too orderly and too arranged for it to be a product of mere chance. As an artist myself, I marvel at the beauty I see that I can only mimic in what I make. I have a birding area outside my house which sits on a river. My parents live in the Brownsville-McAllen area in Texas and we visit wildlife preserves with a camera and I take pictures of the birds and flowers I see. This is what I use in my patterns.  
 
 
 
Who taught you or how did you learn your art form?
 
Art runs in the family. My mom is very good with oils and watercolor. She also has some very nice quilts. She has a website called Patsy Thurn Fine Art. I can’t remember who taught me my craft has it was years ago, but Kokomo Opalescent Glass has been very helpful in refining my work and teaching me other forms of glass art. One such form is shadow art. This involves putting my art on Copper foil tape and using solder and patina (coloring for the solder) to make a picture on glass. For examples of these see my glass dalles (Coy Fish and Gone Fishing). I used shadow art to make the mask on the Green Jay suncatcher and to make the veins on the Monarch Butterfly suncatcher. You can hang these according to your preference, defined lives versus shadow.
 
 
Where do you see your Shop in 5 years from now?
 
I want my name to be associated with stained glass. I want people to hear or see Merissa Geldner or GlassbyGeldner and think quality glass art. As I do have a full time job and I am active in the Christian ministry, I see my shop growing slowly. I enjoy what I do and want others to enjoy what I make.
 
 
 
How do you manage your time between Etsy and the rest of your life?
 
I typically work evenings. I go out in the ministry offering bible studies Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays in the mornings. So I have to be very organized. I do some promoting in the morning and on my lunch break at work in the evenings. On the days I do not go out in the ministry I work on a stained glass project. That is why windows take so long to do. I can do a suncatcher fairly quickly – they are small. Windows are more time consuming. So if I haven’t posted anything for some weeks, it is like because I am working on something bigger, or taking classes so I can offer something else. I have a wonderful husband that is very supportive. That is a big help.
 
 
Is this a hobby, part-time job, or full-time job?
 
At this point it is a jobby. It is a job in that I am committed to continue and keep posting. I also have an outlet I send work to locally. It is a hobby in that I enjoy what I do and as I am new to this venue, I do not yet make enough to quit my day job. Of course if you are doing what you love to do, it is not really a job is it?
 
 
Where else can we find you online?
 
www.facebook.com/glass.bygeldner
I often preview upcoming projects on my facebook. I encourage people to follow me or friend me. I also have posts that show how my work is done. You can view one titled “How I Do It.” posted just this year.
 
Did you always want to have your own business?
 
I have had my own business before. I was a landlord until I got married. As I was moving out of state, I had to sell them. Out of state landlording doesn’t work really great.
 
 
Any other thoughts you want to share with us?
 
I have been asked if I do custom work. I typically do that for the locals in my area as showing and matching glass is easier in person. I do, however, look for ideas as to what my market wants. So any ideas as to what anyone would like to see is appreciated. I recently had requests for butterfly windows. I have some ideas floating around for that. Also I have a cardinal window that I am getting ready to start. Click onto my facebook link and friend me, all are welcome.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/126406046/stained-glass-suncatcher-oriole-bird-in?ref=shop_home_active 
 
More about Merissa
 
I learned about stained glass as a child. I took classes with my mom. About 16 years ago I picked it up again. I would make "shutters" for my windows. These shutters were stained glass windows that were framed and hinged to the woodwork around the window. They could open so that I could still open my windows and let the spring air come in.

People who saw my work often wondered why I was not selling it. My marriage took me from Cincinnati where I was raised to Indiana. I refined my skills taking classes at Kokomo Opalescent Glass which sells stained glass by sheets and supplies and also takes in clients such as Disney.

I came up with the wine bottle holders. After googling them and not finding anything like the ones I designed, I knew I had something unique to offer. A curator, Merna Eisenbraun, at the Canal Street Gallery in Winona Lake, IN saw my wine holder and her daughter told me about ETSY.

So here I am. I do work full-time at a hospital and also engage in the Christian ministry, so stocking my shop is slow. I try to do something every week. I have plans for fire place screens, suncatchers, windows and wine bottle holders. Also these designs are my own. I draw much inspiration from nature. You will notice a lot of themes with birds or fish or other nature-type subjects.


I do not do custom orders as it is difficult to match the exact glass people want over the internet. However, I do like to hear from admirers as to what they might like to see and what colors they especially favor. This helps me to get in touch with the market. So hit that "Contact" button and leave me your 2 cents. One person emailed me about the coy fish dalle telling me about a memory it evoked in her. Love the stories. Let me hear from you.

 
Thank you Merissa for sharing with us!!!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

Friday, May 10, 2013

Featured Artist Patricia Sweetland

 
 
Happy hello all!
 
 
Today, I am featuring Patricia's Shop!
 
 
Patricia is an old time Etsy Friend! I am so excited to share her shop with you!
 
SweetlandArts
 
 
Patricia sells Digital Art and Digital Photographs.
 
 
 
But, she is branching out into several other categories in the next month.
So, make sure you pop by her shop to see all her new Goodies!!
 
 
Grab your coffee.... Here we go!
 
 
How did you get started with Etsy?
 
I knew about Etsy and set up my account, then I spent a year selling on Zazzle, learning how to make art and how to work the computer and Internet aspects, and everything else I needed to run my own business. When the year ended (and Zazzle is a great place to start!) I opened my Etsy shop.
 
 
When did you get interested in making your Art/Craft?
 
I was a writer, and I was pretty good at it. In fact, everyone who knew me had pretty high expectations. Since I am someone who wants to please everyone in my life, the expectations started to be too much for me to handle. Eventually, I started feeling sick whenever I sat down to write.
Nobody had expectations of me as an artist or photographer, but I simply have to create...so I switched to art.
 
 
 
Where does your inspiration come from?
 
My faith. I am so happy to be alive, to experience every aspect of life, even the sad and difficult parts and the mistakes. Everywhere I look I see the beauty created by God. My love for Jesus, my Savior, is always with me. When I create, I am sure God the Father is watching me and smiling because His daughter wants to follow in His footsteps. I hope my art and my faith will encourage others to feed their souls by adding bits of creativity to their own lives.
 
 
 
Who taught you or how did you learn your art form?
 
There is lots of creativity in my family. My parents and my siblings and I spent lots of time "pretending" and using our imaginations together, and we always felt we could develop any God given ability. So I sat down and started to draw and went out and took pictures. After lots of practice with both, I was making items people admired enough to purchase.
 
 
 
Where do you see your Shop in 5 years from now?
 
With more sales and more of a variety of items and a showcase for wholesalers. Right now I have several items licensed with
DiaNoche. DiaNoche sells lights that have art on the front. It is a lovely, innovative idea and I am thrilled to be one of their artists.
 
 
How do you manage your time between Etsy and the rest of your life?
 
I wish I could manage anything, but I am not good at organization. My time is totally unplanned and I move from one thing to another mostly by whim.
 
 
Is this a hobby, part-time job, or full-time job?
 
At this point, I am not making enough financially to consider it a "means of living", however I certainly put in enough time, effort and love for it to be my life....the rest will come.
 
 
Do you make or stock items you love, or what will sell?
 
I make what I love and I know there will be others who will love it too. It makes me very happy when someone tells me something I made will have a special place in their home.
 
 
Where else can we find you online?
 
I don't have a website yet. I do have a facebook store, Sweetlandarts will get anyone to my shop.
 
 
Did you always want to have your own business?
 
Absolutely! I craved the freedom of choosing my own paths and of taking the responsibility from start to finish of what I do each day.
 
 
Any other thoughts you want to share with us?
 
If you don't already, add some creativity to your life. Doing just simple things: put a flower in a bottle on your table, even if it's a dandelion in a water bottle; dance to answer the door the next time someone knocks; when you have to write a note, try printing it in bubble letters or add a decoration at the end of it. When you do this, you will start to notice the details. Then you will begin to see more clearly, the beauty filling the world. The benefits? A feeling of peace, an inner glow giving you a boost in your energy and in your attitude. I guess you begin presenting an "attitude of gratitude" to each person you meet and it feels good.
 
 
 
I want to thank Patricia for this interview! I love her work! I know you will too!!
 
Here are few more of her pieces! Enjoy
 


 
About Patricia:
 
Happily married to my prince for many years; we have seven children and fifteen grandchildren to love. Creativity is both inspirational and spiritual to me. Find little ways to add creativity to every corner of your life. If you love music, sing LOUD; if you like art, keep pens in different colors close at hand so you can write every day notes in glorious color with squiggles and dots. Let everything inspire wonder in you, and always be grateful for the unique, amazing person that is YOU. Thank you to all the small business entrepreneurs who have inspired me and so many others to follow in a path you forged. I hope you like my shop items and I am thrilled to have you peruse them.
 
 
 
 
 
 


Saturday, May 4, 2013

Featured Artist Ken Koleszar

 
 
Oh, how I love Etsy!!!!
 
Today, I want to introduce you to
Ken Koleszar!
 

 
He is the owner of

Outside In Woodworks!
 
I saw Ken's work as I was looking around Etsy about a month ago. His workmanship caught my eye right away!
 
 
 My father, who is now 85 years old, used to be an amazing woodworker. When I saw Ken's craftsmanship it took me back to the days when workmanship, quality and passion for the art really took center stage! I just had to ask Ken for an interview! I am very excited to be able to share his Shop with you! Plus, as you all know... I love to find out what makes people tick!
 
 So, grab your coffee and get comfy! Here we go!!!
 
What do you sell?
 
I try to have a variety of items for sale. A lot of woodworking shops seem to have one strong point such as turning, scroll work, or boxes etc. I have been doing this a long time and have had the opportunity to refine my skills sets in most areas of woodworking. I sell everything from wine accessories to baking and cooking accessories to platter, bowls and quilt racks. About the only thing that I do not do is carve. I guess we all know what I’ll be learning next!
 
 
 
How did you get started with Etsy?
 
 I was first introduced to Etsy by doing research. I was looking for inspirational ideas for a Garlic and Wine festival and noticed that a lot of the pages I was landing on were at this place called Etsy. My wife and I just happened to be placed next to an ex-students parent’s booth, at that precise festival, and were talking about various ways and places to sell our goods. She brought up etsy since she has a shop here. Since then, I’ve been off and running!
 
 
When did you get interested in making your Art/Craft?
 
I can trace it back to elementary school. I remember, after watching Moby Dick, I wanted to make a harpoon., so I cut down a small tree, sharpened a point and started sanding away! Later, I took Industrial Arts classes all through school. My senior year I was in my woodworking room three periods a day, once for my class, once as a shop foreman and once out of study hall. I would present a project plan to my teacher, Mr. Lustig, and he would say, “Ken that looks too difficult”. I would go ahead and do it anyway and his response was always, ”Looks like you did it.”
 
 
 
Where does your inspiration come from?
 
Some of my inspiration comes from research, some from magazines and some from the material itself. Some items I design myself, always remembering that form follows function. If I’m going to a show I will obviously try to make fitting items. The item may be an everyday thing, such as a wine rack, so I try to take it up a notch or two. I took my Industrial Art classes to heart. I try to make “useful art”, something as beautiful as it is functional.
 
 
 
Who taught you or how did you learn your art form?
 
I learned the basics of woodworking in school. I learned a few techniques from magazines and the Internet, but mostly I am self-taught. An old Confucius saying goes, “I hear, I forget. I see, I remember. I do, I understand.” There is no substitute for getting in there and trying something new.
 
 
Where do you see your Shop in 5 years from now?
 
I just started my shop five months ago. I am new to selling, let alone on line. Heck, I just joined Facebook a couple months ago, so I have a lot to learn about social networking and Etsy. I have been concentrating on getting a following and trying to be seen. Next to the quality of my products, I believe that this is my foundation to build upon. I have MANY ideas still rolling around in my head that I wish pursue. I see my shop expanding into new areas that will allow me to be even more creative. No matter where the years may lead me and my shop, quality of materials and craftsmanship will always be at the forefront, dictating what will be done.
 
 
 
 
 How do you manage your time between Etsy and the rest of your life?
 
I teach all of the Mechanical Drawing and woodworking classes at my local High School and have two young daughters, so it’s tough sometimes. It takes a lot of time to get an idea from my head to being an actual product and trying to build a following. I would say the biggest change has been, that now, I watch very little TV! That’s always a good thing. I try to do the computer stuff whenever I get a chance. As always, my wife is right there supporting me and our endeavor.
 
 
Is this a hobby, part-time job, or full-time job?
 
Unfortunately, I would have to say that today, it is a hobby. My aspirations have been to make it a part time job, but I’m not to that point in sales yet. I will keep on working toward that goal and I believe that at some point my answer would change.
 
 
Do you make or stock items you love, or what will sell?
 
I think that everyone makes items that they feel will sell or they wouldn’t be on Etsy. What I try to do is marry the two. I only produce items that I love and feel have the potential for a monetary reward.
 
 
 
Where else can we find you online?
 
 
 
Did you always want to have your own business?
 
I always thought that selling my woodworking would be an option. I’ve been collecting materials and tool my entire life and have come to the point where it has become a reality.
 
 
 
Any other thoughts you want to share with us?
 
Every year I have a cookout for the students I’ve had for their entire four years of High School. We eat, play games and give gag gifts but the main point is to show them that their dreams can become reality. They get to see my dream in real life. I explain that my father came off of the boat, from Hungary, with literally only the shirt on his back in 1956. He helped raise us four kids and is now retired. I wanted to become a teacher and raise a family in the country, which I’m doing with my wonderful wife Dawn. All of these things just didn’t happen. We had to make the right decisions. We had to make sacrifices and we had to stay focused. If you want something, work for it, make your own destiny. The people you surround yourself with matter.
 
I want to thank Ken and Dawn for letting us all peek into their lives!
 
And, did I not tell you that this was a fantastic shop!!!!!
 
Thank you so much Ken for allowing me to share your story, talent and your shop!
 
Run on over to Outside In Woodworks!
 
I only gave you a taste of what you will find there. Now, you all know where to go for that special wedding gift, housewarming gift and for all those birthday gifts! He has items in every price point. You surely can't go wrong with whatever you choose!
 
 
 
Oh, and Ken.....
 
                          give Dawn the night off...
 
                                                                   I know she deserves it!
 
 
 
Take care & thanks for reading!
Kate