Whimsy and The Word is now on ArtFire

Hi All,

Well, I'm at it again. Never one to let things sit for long (unless it's painting projects, sewing or math to grade) I've gone and found a new online venue for my art.

ArtFire is a wonderful site for new artists and very very easy to use as well. Please stop over and see my items. Or, if you want, just look to the side for a quick peek. This system even allows you to buy from one site never leaving another... of course I won't always have just two items for sale, so you may still want to check out the new shop, but for now... have at it. These bottles have never been listed before and are the foundation of my "Core of Faith" series. You've seen them here on the blog before as "The King of Kings" and "All That Leads a Heart to Knowing."

Blessings,

Kim

"All that leads a heart to knowing" ~ Word Wednesday

This past year has been a year of exploration for me. Part of what I explored was the concern if it was "good" for me to create... crafts, projects and art. It took quite a bit of time for some of my pieces, it created messes around the house and sometimes it made me lose track of what I SHOULD be doing. Or so I thought.

One thing I shared with another artsy mama friend was that it struck me that God created everything. And, every time he created something he looked at it and then declared it good. So, in my own way I looked at each thing I created and tried to decide if it was good. Not good as in "Will it sell and make me lots of money?", rather good as in "Does this honor God either in the making or the product..."

At the same time the girls and I began reading through Isaiah. I wanted them to understand that God's plans have been set from even before the beginning of time. He sent many prophets over hundreds of years to share His message with the world. My hope was to reach Isaiah 52 by the Christmas week... I wanted them to understand the meaning of Christmas. Not just joy and love and a baby in a manger, but God incarnate, come to earth, born in order to die. For us. For the ones He has chosen. He didn't come to "live a good life" or be a "good teacher" he came to call us to repentance and to provide a means of grace by which our poor wretched sinful souls might enter Heaven.

So, while I was creating and thinking these thoughts one of my pieces "created itself." The words on it are : "All that leads a heart to knowing..." referring to our one True God. The tag, "Inspire" was to remind us that God is the one who "inspires" us... who causes us to believe, trust, understand and obey.

I saw the heart already adhered to the bottle and realized it would have to show through all the layers of whatever I used. Our hearts are not golden by any means, so it would have to represent Christ. But, what I had to show was that God's chosen people were confused because they expected Messiah to come and save them... from the Romans. They wanted a glorious and powerful king... at least they wanted someone who LOOKED and ACTED like a glorious and powerful king. An earthly king. And they received Jesus... humble beginnings, never very comely, certainly not adorned as anyone of wealth and power, and yet underneath the humble everyday trappings was the heart that makes all hearts beat, the heart that calls to ours, that very heart which bled and died for our sins.

Isaiah 53
The Suffering Servant

1Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
3He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
4Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
he chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
and by His scourging we are healed.
6All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.
7He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not open His mouth;
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
8By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the living
For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
9His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a rich man in His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
10But the LORD was pleased
To crush Him, putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
11As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities.
12Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death,
And was numbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors.

Shalom, Kim

for more Word Wednesday please visit "All You Have to Give"

Whimsy and The Word etsy shop

Welcome to my world of glitter, vintage postcards, antique buttons, unique jars and encaustic wax! If you want to learn about my creations feel free to read earlier posts and then stop by my NEW Etsy shop. That's right... I opened a new shop. The old "All that glitters" is now bare and empty and will soon be gone altogether.

With the beginning of this new venture my magpie friend suggested I find a new name that really spoke about me and my work. After pages of failed attempts... just ask her, I sent them ALL to her for her comments... I finally happened upon my new business name.

WHIMSY and THE WORD

I love whimsical things... fairies, and glitter and such. I LOVE words. But, most of all I love THE word.. hence the capital "T" in the word "the"... okay, just go with it, alright? Okay...

So, my first big venture was the Art and Soul show on November 28. My next venture was FINALLY filling a special order of knit scarves for my aunt, and then beginning work on another special order of copper charm necklaces. But, the next step entailed me bringing my memory boxes to a local art shop... Lola Rue... where the owner took them on consignment. I have yet to be brave enough to see if any have sold. Seriously... I hope SOMEONE liked them.

Now I'm putting items up in my Etsy shop, and hopefully after Christmas (maybe before?) I'll make a trek to our local arts and crafts town to see if any of the art stores there are interested in my encaustic work. Although I had good words of praise from JoAnnA Pierroti... a published encaustic artist (among many other things she does), and also some nice words from the owner of Lola Rue, I was told that people in our town "wouldn't get it".... meaning that in her store they have bottles that are not as detailed and don't use the same method (encaustic) and so the cost is less and people won't understand it. She did mention my bottles and "Silver Bella" in the same sentence so I felt good about that.

Well, guess that's it.

Oh, you want to see some things? Well, for a quick glimpse look up in the upper right corner to my Etsy button and you'll see the first four pieces I put in my shop. For more on my bottles look at previous posts under the tag "art" and you'll see what they're like. They're all for sale and if you see one you have to have (YIPPEE... I'll dance a jig) then I'll be happy to work with you.

One more thing... if you have a bottle or a picture or a piece of jewelry and want to have it made into something very special... well, just email or comment and I'll be SOOOO happy to work with you. My hands are itching to be working with the wax again!

Blessings, Kim