Tea Cup Inspired Wedding Theme

If you’re looking for a wedding theme (or a bridal shower theme) that blends sweet southern charm, whimsical décor, romance, rustic warmth, inviting atmosphere, a tea themed wedding may be perfect for you!

When I think of a wedding I envision TONS of flowers. Flowers in your hair, on your dress, in the aisle, on your tables, and definitely on your wedding cake. If you’ve dreamt of a garden wedding party all of your life, do it! Let your girly side run free if you’re planning a tea themed wedding and go for bold and feminine colors (as long as your fiance is into it of course. :)) and let nature play a part as much as you can. Birds, butterflies, eggs…these are all fun elements of nature that can definitely inspire your wedding theme.

At Sherman Street Design we have an extensive collection of tea cups, from delicate roses hand painted on bone china, vintage with high handles and pedestals, to bolder blues in dutch designs.  We will be adding them shortly to our Etsy page to be used as wedding cake toppers.  We are also artist and can work with you to design all your wedding signage/cards needs.

Thanks!!

Seed Bead Photo Art - DIY In structions

I taught art for several years at three elementary schools and one middle school - preschool through 8th grade. LOVED every minute of it!!  This is one of the projects I taught to kindergartners and first graders.  You can make this project as simple or as complicated as you or your student wants.   If your youngest student chooses a two color animal, remember to point out the shading, show them the difference between the true white and the grey (or blue) shades that make the shadows!

Supply list:

• card stock
• photo (copy, not original)
• seed beads in multiple colors
• Elmer glue (the kind that dries CLEAR)
• hardboard (cut to size) or the cardboard that comes with a frame
• frame

Step 1:  Chose a photo.  Make sure it has only one subject.  Best is a close up of an animal or an insect.  I had my students pick their favorite animal or pet from home.  The image should be cropped to cut out all or most of the background.

Step 2:  Have this image copied in color onto card stock paper.  Depending on the quality of the photo, you will want to have it enlarged to a standard frame size.  No smaller than 5x7.  The younger your student the larger the image should be.  I taught this class in Kindergarten and First Grade, we used 8x10.  The images were close up (zoomed in) of an animals face.

Step 3:  Start matching color on the image to a seed bead color and glue it down!  We started with the nose, then the eyes next.  After, for the younger children, it was easier to fill in one color at a time.  For the older ones you can teach them to lay down the seeds in patterns to show depth.

Step 4:  LET IT DRY!  THEN,  LET IT DRY SOME MORE!!

Step 5:  Glue down the entire image onto hardboard or you can use the cardboard that came with the frame you purchased.  Put their name and age on the back!!

Thanks!!




seed bead art, seed bead photo art, DIY, mosaics

National Plant a Flower Day

 

NATIONAL PLANT A FLOWER DAY

There are hundreds of flower varieties grown in Washington state. The spring season brings the verdant revival of everything from heirloom daffodils, tulips, lily of the valley to lavender and wisteria. Don't forget our state flower, rhododendrons are a beautiful addition to your landscape. We are lucky to live in this area where can grow more plants than most other areas.  

With spring just around the corner, March 12th is the day to participate in National Plant a Flower Day. Each year this day is dedicated to the planting of  flowers and looking forward to the spring season.  Flower gardening has become a hobby to many, young and old, and National Plant a Flower Day is a start to the new season each year.  If your looking to add native plants, check out Washington Native Plant Society.

HOW TO OBSERVE
Tips for Starting a Flower Garden

• Start with a potted garden.  If you aren’t ready to tear up a patch of lawn this is a good way to go.  They do require more watering, but less care over all.
• Select plants that grow well in your spot.  Some plants grow well in shade and others prefer sun.  Others love both!
• Did you know gardeners who prefer perennial gardens have to thin their flower beds every couple years?  They also love to share the extra bulbs and seeds with those who are new to gardening, so if you know someone with a green thumb, get to know them better.  You might get some free plants, advice and a budding friendship!
• Local greenhouses stock plants that grow well in your area.  Don’t be afraid to ask them questions and shop there frequently.

Not a Washington resident?  Click here to find your zone.

source:  http://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-plant-a-flower-day-march-12/

Winter Feeding - Anna's Hummingbird

One, untypical here in the Pacific Northwest, morning we woke up to about 8 inches of snow, apparently it had been snowing all night.  When I opened the curtains to the back deck I noticed the hummingbird feeder handing there, half full of frozen nectar with snow stacked up on top of it.  Seeing it immediately made me realize we had not taken the feeder down for winter!  I didn’t even get the door open when all of a sudden, right there in my face, was an Anna’s hummingbird.  He let me know he was there and he made sure I knew that he knew his food source was unavailable.

My husband and I spent several minutes admiring his iridescent emerald feathers and sparkling rose-pink throat.  The Anna’s Hummingbirds are among the most common hummingbird, especially here along the Pacific Coast, yet they’re anything but common in appearance!

Here are a few tips we have learned to keep these little guys fed all winter.

• Do NOT adjust the mix ratio.  Always make it 1:4 sugar to water.  Too much sugar will damage their kidneys and liver, some research reported too much sugar can also rot their tongue.   Experts recommend staying consistent with a 1:4 mix, that’s 1 part white sugar ONLY and 4 parts water, mix, bring to a boil, after it cools you can fill feeders with it.  NEVER use honey, brown sugar, maple syrup or the like – ONLY WHITE SUGAR. 

• Don’t add Red Dye.  Instead, buy red feeders.

• Have two feeders and rotate them.  The mix will begin to freeze around 29 degrees.  Rotating feeders throughout the day will keep the fluid moving and available to the birds. Alternatively they do not feed at night so you can bring them indoors.  However, they start feeding at dawn, so put them out as early as possible.

a.       Don’t want to get up at 5 am?  The Audubon Society suggested stringing Christmas light around the feeder, the ambient heat can be just enough to keep things thawed.

b.      Duct Tape a hand warmer to the feeder.  These pouches can emit heat for approximately 7 hours.

c.       Another method to try is plumber’s heat tape.  They have a built-in thermostat in the cord and can be easily wrapped around and taped to many types of feeders.

So in general, don’t stress too much about the welfare of the Hummingbirds.  Our winters here are mild and the occasional cold snaps are usually not that long.  Hummingbirds are wonderfully created with the ability to reduce their body temperature at night and conserve their energy.  Don’t try and put a bird house out or some other structure, they roost in trees and shrubs and do not use nesting boxes or cavities.  Keep their feeders filled with clean, nectar – especially in the colder weather.  Remember they also get their protein, vitamin and mineral requirements from consuming insects.

If you’re looking for unique, handmade hummingbird feeders, click here.

Thanks for reading!  Happy Hummingbird watching!!

How to Screw Up Your Art Show

There are some basics in choosing an art show to participate in, after all, not all shows are created equal.  Know your art, know your customer before you spend hundreds of dollars on a canopy, supplies and displays.  Wasting your time at a Christmas bizarre in the cafeteria of the local elementary might not give you the best return on your investment if your selling original, framed oil paintings.  However, it might work just fine if your craft is re-purposing dresser drawers into pet beds or hand quilting tea towels.  Again, know your art, know your customer then find an art show that fits you.

Believe it or not your personality can play a role in how well your art or craft is sold.   As I've mentioned in the past, people buy from people...they like.  You might be the best artist, or have the most beautiful craft, but if your reputation is hard to get along with or abrasive, you might not want to do art shows that require a softer, customer service, humble attitude.

Screw up your art show by not doing your homework

•  JURIED VS. UNJURIED.  Know the difference!  Farmers Markets are a great starting place since they are established, and affordable.  Usually ranging between $25-$45, with discounts for vendors that sign up for multiple weeks every month.  Juried shows will ask you to provide photos or slides of your work, they also limit the number of vendors in a particular venue – no one wants to be a customer at an art show where every booth is jewelry (unless of course it’s a jewelry only show).  These shows are usually established, well patronized and cost in the $100's (some can be much higher).  But all the vendors are high end crafters and artist.  Unjuried shows usually allow ALL types of art and craft.  You’ll see a variety of lower end & DIY crafts all the way up to mid-range crafts.  These shows are less expensive and usually cost between $20-$60.  
• PRE-VIEW the show.  This can be very important.  Once when I arrived at a juried art show I learned it was in a dirt field, it was awful, dust and dirt was everywhere and got into everything.  Especially when children would play, they really could kick up the dust!  My Glass Etching looks its best when clean! Some shows have a theme, visiting that show you can make sure your art fits in. 
• DON’T DO A SHOW THAT HAS MOVED LOCATION recently.  I made that mistake, I visited the show it was great, shade, park like, and other vendors were high end, tons of customers – walking around with BAGS, which is always good.  It seemed perfect.  I signed up, paid and received my packet in the mail about a month before the show was scheduled to start.  It drew attention to the new location – several miles from the original.  Got there, set up.  It was a dud.  The people that did show up all said they went to the old location not knowing that it had moved!  Fail.  A few years later the Art League I was part of also moved locations.  It had been located outdoors right in the middle of town.  Now they were moving three miles out of town to the inside of our local Tribal Community Center.  Again, the show was a fail.  When I moved three years later the show had still not ever recovered from the bad move.  To this day, I RARELY do a show the first year or two after a move to a new location. 
• FIRST TIME SHOWS are another one to beware of.  They have not established a style or reputation yet.  This is either a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor or it’s another set up for a failed show.  To be sure, ask questions.  Find out the location, go see it.  What types of art and craft vendors are they inviting, will there be food vendors, where are they advertising, what target audience are they hoping to gather, what’s the estimated attendance?  They must have done some research, you don’t just grab a place and date out of a hat, so ask them!!

How can I screw up an art show once I am there?

• READ A BOOK – Be completely unavailable by reading a book, newspaper or other media.   Stay especially near the back of your booth where customers will have a harder time finding you when they are ready to purchase.  NOT!!  When visiting art shows it is amazing how many are doing exactly this, upwards of 75% of vendors. It makes me wonder why they bother being there in the first place.  You must be ready and available to your customers, they are the number one reason you are there, without them you make NO sales.  If you worked in a retail shop you would be expected to greet the customers, be available to answer questions, you would be taking inventory, cleaning, etc.  If you need to “do” something while you are at your booth, then work on your art where people can see you.  This attracts many visitors.  Any time I paint or draw I have crowds gathered around me. It also helps your branding, advertising and relationship building for immediate purchases or future orders. 
• BE ON YOUR CELL PHONE – This works similar to reading, if you are talking, texting or posting to social media you look busy and important.  NOT!  I have personally seen customers with an item in their hands wanting to buy and the vendor is talking on their phone behind their booth.   Eventually they give up and walk away, no sale.  If you are so busy making sales on the phone, then bring a partner to handle the booth or open a retail shop. 
• SIT DOWN – Sitting is most comfortable and customers love to look down while talking to you, this works especially well if you have sunglasses on to hide half your face and expressions.  NOT!!  You must stand up for the entire show.   Don’t argue, if you were a cashier you would be standing.  You will not sell your art sitting on your butt.  
• DRESS LIKE A CHAIN SAW CARVER – Customers love that down to earth look of torn jeans with an untucked, pizza stained shirt.  NOT!  Please make sure your dress and grooming is clean and simple.  If you’re selling jewelry, wear a few pieces.  If you sell tee-shirts, wear one.  Dress appropriately for your profession or activity.   Be sure to check yourself after eating and I don’t just mean your teeth, check your hands, breath and clothing.  
• THINK CAR SALESMAN – After smiling and saying hello, follow the customer around offering to show them more and be sure to start right in with explaining everything about yourself, if you see a customer looking at something be sure to ask them if you should go ahead and wrap it up for them.  NOT!  Listen and observe the people looking at your art.  Smile, say hello then watch, listen and mirror what they do.  If they smile back and move away from you, you need to move away from them – they want space to look.  Be available, friendly, and conversational but never act like a used car sales man.
• COMPLAIN – about everything: your booth location, the show promoters and most of all the other customers.  NOT!  No one likes a complainer, even when you have cause to complain.  If you don’t like your booth location mention your concerns ASAP and only to the show coordinator, remember he or she might not invite you back if you’re unreasonable or rude, so be on your best behavior.  If you have a rude customer, engaged them in conversation as you are walking away from your booth, once you’re a comfortable distance, simply say “have a good day” and return to your booth –don’t mention anything to other customers – if they were seen or heard by others that want to console you, thank them for their support then spin the conversation to something positive ASAP.
• DON'T WORRY ABOUT BRANDING - having a color theme, business cards, displays and other media materials professional looking is only for retail shops.  NOT!  Think about your brand, how do you want customers to see you, see your craft or art?  When customers leave your booth and later see your website, your social media sites, your displays, business cards, tags, even your show outfit, they can only recognize if these things all "match. " Make it all fit together, match.  *Get help if you need it! 

All the best to you and your next, or first, art show! 

 *I can help you with branding if you'd like me to give you an estimate please contact me directly at four two five.443.five six 03.  or email me at charlotte AT shermanstreetdesign DOT com