Pop Art Cafe at Etsy - Wendy Presseisen's Americana Folk Art

Wendy Presseisen is my kind of artist, producing classic Americana folk art. I'd give a lot to be able paint images like these. They perfectly capture Colonial nostalgia, a North America the way it was reflected by roving artists in more innocent times. Check out the price of antique paintings in this style, and you'll be amazed at the prices they command. Perhaps we can't afford museum quality antiques, but Wendy guarantees we can have the next best thing with these lovely paintings.

Oh, and she does amazing cats, too, so I had to have some here.







Although I listed Wendy at my Great Sites to Visit months ago, it seems I never featured her, which is strange. I apologize for that. Check out Wendy's work at Pop Art Cafe at Etsy

Goodbye, Michael...

Luvs2Paint at Etsy - Gentle Paintings from Nature

Brenda Thour Luvs2Paint at Etsy and is an artist who works in both oils and water colors, taking delightful themes from nature, including birds and wild animals. She is a romantic, I think, considering her soft and gentle approach to brush work and subjects. There is such a sense of peace in these paintings.















Brenda sells a variety of art, other than the originals I'm featuring today. Below is an example of her exquisite pendants:


I'm delighted to feature her here today. I'm now totally relaxed and ready to face the world. Thanks, Brenda. You are, incidentally, the 101st artist to appear on this page.

100 Artists Featured to Date - Wonders of Whimsy

According to my calculation, I've profiled exactly 100 artists at this site since I started my blog last November. They are all listed in the left sidebar under Great Sites to Visit, spilling down the page, all of them talented, joyful, and superbly optimistic.

Here's just one of mine from way back, 'Gallery Opening', which is fitting for today, I think.


During my own hiatus from painting while I got back to writing, finding other artists whose work inspires me has been a delightful exercise. I've used Etsy a lot for my research, but other sites, too. The cute thing is that I'll often find an artist on, say, ArtFlock, or ArtWanted, only to find they have an Etsy store as well. I think, once this recession is over, Etsy is going to prove the most successful with an explosion of sales for artists. During this time, people are still looking, as you know. They mark you as a favorite, or scribble your shop ID down, knowing they'll be back eventually.

I suppose some of you dream of being in a high-end gallery. Nice to have someone else promote your work, and bring in the customers. Etsy is a bit like that - it's just that there are so darned many of us taking up wall space! But I love them all, however crowded it is.

There are auction sites, of course, but there it's usually difficult to receive proper compensation for all your talent and hours spent on each work. So, I guess this is a plug for Etsy. If you want to know the truth, the camaraderie there is what I appreciate most, sales or not.

And, to celebrate the 100th artist feature, I'm going to show a current piece from the list, every Monday, starting with the very first - Jenny of Wonders of Whimsy. Jenny uses much of her sales revenue to finance her cat rescue scheme, which you can read about on her site.



I don't talk about my writing at this site, since I began my separate writing blog, but I need to tell you - because it's huge! I have an agent!

On Saturday I received an email from England offering representation for my novel, Hafan Deg. I've been querying agents for it since February. Needless to say, I've been over the moon all weekend, and only just came in to land this morning.

I did the art for the cover of my book as it appears on my website and writing blog. Now I'm wondering if I might actually use this, when/if my agent secures a publisher (nothing's certain in the writing journey). It would be so nice to have both sides of my creative self reflected in one book.

See you Wednesday.

Michelle Rae Schafer's folk art dolls at the Studio at Crowhaven Farm

Michelle Rae Schafer is another oddball artist from Etsy. I find so many of these lovely, weird and wonderful people there. No one should be offended by my description, because it's simply an indication of their child-like glee, the cheeky eccentricity that they bring to the world.

These quirky dolls (which are not toys, of course) are part of Michelle's 'Gossip Girls' series. They are hand-sculpted out of polymer clay, with movable arms and legs. They're hand-decorated, then receive numerous layers of acrylic paint, which, in turn, is crackled and antiqued, finally sealed with double coats of glaze for added protection. The skirts are hand sewn and dyed in coffee for that authentic vintage folk art doll look. Each is approximately 7 inches high.








Whimsy Friday just wouldn't be the same without people like Michelle. Go check her out at The Studio at Crowhaven Farm at Etsy. Don't forget to find the link to her blog there, too. It's brimming with all kinds of interesting bits and bobs. (But be prepared to stay for a while. There's a huge amount to look at.)

Have a great weekend. If you can - if you're so privileged - give your Dad a hug.

Cathy o'Riginals at Etsy

Cathy O. Lewis is an artist who mostly devotes herself to fabric art, although her work sometimes includes regular paintings, paper collage - even digital art. It was difficult for me to choose items from her store to feature today, but, as a fabric collage artist myself for a number of years, I appreciate the huge amount of time that goes into these - certainly far more hours than is indicated by her pricing. Along with these delightful wall hangings, I've included a charming ACEO paper collage, because it's so cute, and two of her angel dolls.






I wish it were possible to show the detail in these wonderful textured hangings. All of you who quilt conventionally will immediately recognize the amount of work in each one.







Cathy is no stranger to the various diseases that plague the world these days, particularly in her own family, and produces these custom-made awareness-colored angel dolls. A percentage of sales for these dolls goes to each cause they represent. Go to Cathy o'Riginals at Etsy to get the full details of these and her other artwork. While you're there, marvel at Cathy's own journey.

Donna David's textured art - The Invitation at Etsy

Donna David is a painter who incorporates a huge amount of texture in her classical work - in fact, she says the textures are essential to her tactile art. In order to appreciate her methods, you must read the individual descriptions of her paintings, and definitely see her profile, which is poetry in itself. I wasn't surprised, reading it, that she finally revealed that she's also a writer. Writing is visual too, of course, and painting is telling a story. One is a complement to the other.







I wish it were possible for my blog to allow magnification. The textures here are so amazing, and my images don't do the work justice, but I think you get a sense of how impressive her art is. See Donna's store, The Invitation at Etsy, and get to know her better.

Jessica Simanowski's wonderful, whimsical art at Etsy

Look at these amazing paintings by Jessica Simanowski at Etsy. Is this whimsy, or what? Not only does she mesmerize us with her incredible subjects, but she then bowls us over with her exquisite colors and technique. As an artist, I recognize how much time goes into each of these pieces - such detail! To fully appreciate her, you must read the little stories that accompany each artwork. She's a true story teller, as well as being an exciting artist.








There are many, many examples of her work at Jessica Simanowski at Etsy. She's also (of course, she is!) a fabric designer, and has another Etsy shop where she sells fabric creations. But, on this Whimsy Friday, I can't think of a more joyful way to end the week than with these amusing, highly-entertaining paintings.

Have an amusing, highly-entertaining weekend! Watch out for pink and blue elephants.

Polly Jones at Etsy

These pretties are the work of mixed media artist Polly Jones at Etsy. From classical to quirky, she certainly embraces a variety of subjects, and her amazing use of color caught my eye this morning. I thought you'd enjoy a tiny gallery tour of her work but I'm not going to explain the collages, because Polly has her own unique voice for revealing where her inspiration comes from.









Polly has a huge array of work, and she describes her philosophy behind each at Polly Paintings at Etsy.