2017 Year in Review

Posted on January 1, 2018January 2, 2018 by Charity Woods

Happy New Year!

I want to create a special post that sorta sums up my year for 2017. You know that although I had been blogging since 2016, I only got my own website in 2017. Boy have I been blessed with this outlet to share my creativity and inspire others to do something creative every day. There are several things that I am going to discuss, to include my subscription to Sketchbox, My first Mandala Collection, Christmas Gifts I created and my favorite creations of the year. So grab your cup of coffee or your favorite beverage and lets get started!

SketchBox

For those of you that don’t know, Sketchbox is a monthly subscription box for artists to try out different mediums. I have really been excited by everything that I have been able to create using the products I have received through these boxes. Some of my favorite products include a watercolor sketchbook, a full sepia Copic fineliner set, and last but not least watercolor pencils, this is only to name a few. If you would like to go back and review my unboxing posts you can visit them by clicking on the links below.

May

June

July, July Grab box

August

September

October

November

December

Mandala Collection I

For me, this was a huge accomplishment. I wanted to start a collection of the mandala that was similar and yet different at the same time. For this collection, I chose to draw my mandala on gradient paper with black fineliners and a white gel pen. I was so happy how each one came out so different than the ones before. Prints of these will be available in my shop once I get it all online. Stay tuned for this special collection. Each one of these mandalas are so special to me. I wrote a different post for each one, which you can visit below:

Mandala #1

Mandala #2

Mandala #3

Mandala #4

Mandala #5

Personalized Gifts

One of my favorite things to do is create something beautiful and personal for my friends, family, and co-workers. I truly enjoy the look on their face when they realize it is not only an original, but there are no others like it in the world. I want to share these few gifts with you.

Personalized Parties

Every birthday that happens in my house is a reason to celebrate. With the birthdays spread throughout the year, we are able to party all year long! Starting in February with my two from my previous marriage celebrating, then moving to my youngest two in June, oldest two in July and 3rd oldest in November. Mix that in with all the holidays and we rarely don’t have a reason to bust out some exciting party decorations. But also, because we have so many celebrations, It’s important that we get creative with them all, most of the decorations were homemade. Check out the following posts about my under the sea themed party for my youngest two.

Under the Sea

Octopus Guard

Sea Sponges

Jellyfish Mood Lighting

Furniture Painting

The absolute highlight of my year was creating a beautiful work of art for my mother. She brought this table to me and gave me no restrictions other than she wanted a Charity Original painted on top. Painted?! I’ve never painted anything detailed like the creations I have made. Check out how this table progressed by clicking on the links below:

Scallopped Table #1

Scallopped Table #2

There are several other projects that I completed this year for Christmas Gifts to include a 12×12 personalized mandala painting on canvas, a monogrammed lazy susan and a phoenix staff for my best guy friend. All of these projects were special in their own ways and were hard to keep a secret for as long as I could since I love to share my progress pictures with the special people that received these gifts.

My Favorites of the Year

2017 Sketchbook

2017 Sketchbook

Final Thoughts

I do want to send out a special thank you for all of you that have supported me this year. I couldn’t have done this without you cheering me on. Special thanks to my fiance’ who has stuck by my side while I have spent the long hours trying to make something out of nothing. I love each and every one of you and I can only hope that in 2018, we will see a lot more growth from CraftyArtistKC. Help me make this year a good one by sharing my site with your friends family and social media accounts. I can’t wait to see what comes next!

Let me know in the comments below, what was your favorite project or post from this year!

Beautifully Dangerous

Posted on April 4, 2017July 11, 2017 by Charity Woods

While creating this piece all I could think about was all the movies I have seen where the flowers could be the most dangerous part of a new planet. So, within my science fiction mind, I decided to create something from an unknown planet within my thoughts. What you do you think about it?

Doodle with Bubbles!

Posted on February 20, 2017June 25, 2017 by Charity Woods

On this piece, I used the Art-n-Fly pens that I reviewed earlier. They worked out pretty nice. The smaller tips were perfect for the bubbles. When I first started this piece, I started with just a flower. However, I have just fallen in love with tentacles on flowers, It makes them seem like something out of a sci fi movie. So, Of course being the sci fi fanatic that I am, I just had to add it all in. After I finished the tentacles though, I really felt like something was missing. The bubbles seemed like the most natural answer to the blank spaces between the tentacles to finish out the piece.

I would love to know what you think about this piece. Let me know in the comments below.

Sea Turtle Prompt

Posted on January 4, 2017July 13, 2017 by Charity Woods

Well, I decided for the new year that I was going to be doing random prompts so that it forces me to think outside the box more. So, with the help of my dear friend, Sea Turtle was born. Here is a close up so that you can see some of the details.

One of these days I will be able to take better pictures of my art that is larger than 8.5×11. This one is 11×14. If you have any suggestions on how to take pictures of larger pieces, let me know in the comments below!

Gift – Dolphin Mandala

Posted on December 25, 2016July 13, 2017 by Charity Woods

What do you get for someone who you know loves dolphins and the color blue, but a dolphin mandala. I love being able to share these projects now that Christmas is over. I wanted to add some special details so I added a few metallic pens to just give a little life to the dolphin itself.

What do you think about the finished product? Let me know in the comments below.

Oh Yes I Did!

Posted on August 25, 2016July 15, 2017 by Charity Woods

What is that? Why would you draw something like that? What inspired that?

All these questions when I proudly expose my creature design. I sit down to draw, I never know what is going to come of it. It’s one of the main reasons I do draw. So let’s answer some of these questions.

What is that? Well, my friend, that is a little creature I call Auque. Named from the word aculeus meaning prickle or spine. Its design came to me when I started looking through zentangle patterns. Some patterns I can’t seem to fit in anywhere else, so I decided to take the elements I liked the most to create something new. Something that causes people to stop and inspect. What is wrong with that?

Why would you draw something like that? Why not? Who determines what is art if not the artist? Why wouldn’t an artist desire to bring something new, something unexpected into the world? I drew this, not knowing it would be drawn. I put my pen down on the paper and started drawing, not stopping until I felt the piece was complete.

What inspired that? As I stated above, I look at zentangle patterns daily. Some patterns I love and incorporate into my art, while others seem to not pull me in the right direction. It isn’t the full tangle that I liked, but different elements that helped Auque take shape.

I am proud of this. It is mine. And it’s okay if you don’t “get it,” because I do. So, look at it, really look at it. Appreciate the effort and detail that went into making it. That is all I ever want from my audience.

Stay crafty and stay awesome!