Our ATCs revealed!

So here we are fellow team members and faithful blog readers: the end of our ATC challenge/swap. My name is Virginie and I absolutely loved organizing this event. I am sure everyone has been challenged one way or another, whether it was to make a first ever card or whether to challenge yourself and try a new media. Also, optionally,

the participants could make a little 'handmade' something to accompany

the cards...

So, I invite you dear reader to:

a-Grab a cup of tea

b-click on the BLOG LINKS (in some cases, pictures are posted below) to have a wee look at our participants' little wonders...

c-PLEASE leave a comment and/or FOLLOW the blogs, we all work hard at them...

Let's start with:

http://www.purlsofcolour.etsy.com/

Brigitte's 2 ATCs ( She wished to make an extra one to swap with me) She opted for a yarn/mixed media look.
Brigitte's ATC for Jessamyn

For Virginie

http://www.tanyamac.etsy.com/

http://cheekyurchin.blogspot.com/2010/09/little-update-and-some-new-art.html
Tanya has been very brave to participate as she's expecting a baby very very soon (unless it's arrived!!) So thanks for participating Tanya, and Congratulations in advance!!

Fiona from http://www.patchworkdelights.etsy.com/

'I love cupcakes'For more of Fiona's pictures, please visit http://www.patchworkdelights.blogspot.com/



Ruth from http://www.nicedaydesigns.etsy.com/ and http://www.nicedaysupplies.etsy.com/
http://nicedaydesigns-ruth.blogspot.com/2010/09/etsy-ireland-artist-trading-cards.html



Mary from http://www.myramison.etsy.com/

http://thebluecowandgreycrow.blogspot.com/p/work-in-progress.html



Aine from http://www.missaine.etsy.com/

http://miss-aine.blogspot.com/2010/09/etsy-ireland-atc-challenge.html



Beth from http://www.magpieandbutton.etsy.com/

'The magic Button'

http://www.magpieandbutton.blogspot.com/



Suzie from http://www.littlewhitedog.etsy.com/

http://www.littlewhitedog.ie/Little_White_Dog/Blog/Entries/2010/9/3_Etsy_Ireland_Artist_Trading_Cards_Swap.html



Me http://www.vivibijoux.etsy.com/

have a lookie at my 3 ATCs http://vivibijoux.com/2010/09/remember-the-atc-challenge-the-reveal-here/



Jessamyn from http://www.homespunireland.etsy.com/

http://homespunireland.blogspot.com/2010/09/etsy-ireland-atc-swap.html
Jessamyn is swaping twice, check it out!



Linda from http://www.clickdecourcyni.etsy.com/



Carrie from http://www.cherryblossomtattoo.etsy.com/

http://cherryblossomtattoophotography.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-very-first-atc.html



Bee from http://www.beeliciouscrafts.etsy.com/ and new shop http://www.cherieboutique.etsy.com/

http://www.beeliciouscrafts.blogspot.com/




Rachel from http://www.balanced.etsy.com/

http://balancedcrafts.com/blog/2010/09/etsy-ireland-team-atc-swap/

So I hope you enjoyed your browsing :) If you wish you had participated to the swap, don't hesitate to convo any of us, you never know we might be up for a new exciting challenge!Also if you'd like to swap links, mine is up for grab (code here on the left handside).

Meanwhile, thank you so much for blogging with us!!

^_^

Virginie

Etsy Ireland ATC Swap Challenge - hosted by ViviBijoux

Hi, my name is Virginie from ViviBijoux and I thought I would organize a challenge/swap for the team...

An ATC swap where all participants will be paired up to exchange their Artist Trading Card. Tany Bond wrote an interesting article about ACEOs which are very similar to trading cards only ACEOs sell, ATC are swaped.

All levels are welcome but I do hope that this challenge will be a nice introduction to Art Cards for beginners. Old timers at ATCs/ACEOs, you're definitely invited to participate and share your ATC wisdom with us and if you have pics of your cards please let me know so that we can show examples in the next post.

The goal of this swap : Share your love of art + promote our Ireland Etsy Team as well as individual boutiques.

So here's the deal folks :

- A sturdy 2.5''x3.5'' card (64x89mm) using anything from watercolor paper, mountboard, card stock, bristol board, wood, canvas, playing cards, leather, interfacing, fibre...you name it!

- Content using anything from fabric, paper, mixed media, paint, collage, pen, ink, watercolors...you name it (again)!

- A Back Artist Info (example of info found here- you can also google it, there's zillions of them out there)

- A standard Trading Card Enveloppe sleeve (example of template here - same here, google it for other shapes)

- A swap partner who will be attributed in 2 weeks time when all the participants will have signed up

- Optional: a little goodie (from you/your shop or a small voucher...totally optional)

These are the basic requirements. Now, the rules are simple but plain common sense:

- Cards must be sturdy

- Art traded should not be of controversial, religious, sexual nature (obviously, so as not to offend anyone)

- You must have made the card yourself (helllllloo, makes sense but has to be said)

- Follow the 'Golden Rule' and only send to someone the quality of craftsmanship you'd want to receive (in other words, simply do your best)

- Shipping is the sole responsability of the swapping partners so please package your items securely.

- Final date to enter the swap is 2 weeks from now. So the list of participants and other updates will be posted here after that.

- Showcase will be on sat 4 september

FAQ:

*How to showcase?

on our personal blog or the team blog if you don't have one. Please send me the link to your reveal post or pictures for the team blog by friday night the 3rd September .

The reveal article will be posted on sat 4 Sept

* Are any costs involved?

shipping fee+ card making costs

*Can I participate even if I don't have an Etsy shop or are not part of the Etsy Ireland Team but follow the blog?

Of course, please do! and don't hesitate to give a shout to people you'd think would be interested. Simply showcase your pics on your blog or the team blog

*When do I get my goodies?

The cards can be sent off after the saturday reveal. Please be sure to communicate your shipping address with your partner

If you agree with ALL the conditions above and are ready to have and share some craic, please comment below the same article on my blog http://www.vivibijoux.com/ with your name, blog/facebook/twitter and Etsy shop or alternatively convo me through my etsy boutique http://www.vivibijoux.etsy.com/

I also have a voucher giveaway in the previous article on my blog, hope you can have a go too :)

You'll be hearing from me with the complete list of participants and partners on the sat 24th July.

Thank you for reading and let the fun begin!

ACEO – what is it, and what do you do with it.

Some of you might be very familiar with ACEOs and either painting or collecting them already. Some of you may have seen an ACEO subcategory on Etsy under art or might have noticed it somewhere else in the creative part of the internet. But my guess is for the majority it’s a new term and I thought it would be nice to share with you what ACEOs are, why would anybody create them and most importantly why would anybody buy them.

ACEO is an acronym for Art Cards, Editions and Originals. In other words it could be a miniature painting, drawing, collage, embroidery, sculpture, glasswork, sewing, metalwork, print – any media at all as long as its size is 2.5 x 3.5 inches (6.3 cm x 8.8 cm).

Miniature artworks have always been popular throughout history, but it’s only nowadays with the help of the internet that this one particular type of miniature has become popular. Thousands of artists and artisans all over the world are creating miniatures which are standard in size and are all labelled ACEO. This makes it easier for collectors to find miniatures in various online venues and can have the standard sized art from various artists displayed nicely in a coffee table book, art album or on the walls.

I learned about ACEOs when I first started selling my art online. I did a little research on Ebay to find out what subjects, media etc. are most popular and are selling best. And that’s when I noticed that some paintings had a strange acronym in title and nearly every single one of these had bids (please note that it’s no longer the case as there are lots more ACEOs available for sale right now than back in 2005, but nevertheless they are still very popular!). I have lost a track of how many ACEOs I have painted in the past and I guess it’s getting near a thousand at this stage, but I wanted to tell you why you would never stop creating ACEOs once you’ve started – it’s an addiction!

First of all, they are small and it’s easier to finish a piece in one day. I must say I have very little patience and a lot of my bigger works that take weeks to complete are still waiting for me to finish painting them. Secondly there is a selling advantage, you are likely to get more views on your artwork and potentially sales if it’s tagged ACEO. Another advantage is for artists and artisans who do not have a studio and are limited in storage space and maybe even in workspace. I paint a lot in the kitchen doing little chores in between and my working area for painting would not even fit an A4 page! And above all, ACEOs are so tiny and yet so beautiful – you would feel they are like little gems when you hold them in the palm of your hand!

ACEOs are also popular with art collectors. First of all because they are “collectable” given the standard size. And secondly because more people can afford smaller works of art rather than large gallery type works.

by Tanya Bond