Two Mixed Media Art Cards by Raphaella Vaisseau for 30 Days of Get Your Art On - 9.25.11 (RV Days 6 and 7)

What a week I've just finished! Big wholesale orders, new gallery possibilities, keeping up with inventory from dozens of consignment vendors, plus keeping my word to myself by doing 30 min of new art per day for the "30 Days of Get Your Art On" project.

I'm learning to do the creating new art thing in the morning, so I'm not blogging in my sleep. Leaving it to the end of the day has been challenging. Yesterday I couldn't do it first because Saturdays I am up at 5am to get to the Venice Farmers Market early and have my booth set up before daybreak.

So yesterday I fudged a little. I did my 30 minutes before the end of the day, but I did not stay up an extra hour to scan, post to Etsy, blog, and post links to facebook and twitter. I'm doing that now instead. My day of rest will have to wait a week, or at least until I ship the orders I'm still working on today (and tomorrow, and the next day). Nevertheless, I must say, even though this commitment has added a new pressure to my already pressured life as an artist, I'm loving the creative aspect of making new art every day.

I am gearing up to spending my 30 minutes a day on bigger paintings that have been sitting in various stages of creation in my studio for weeks. Some, I must confess, have been on my studio walls (and floor) for months.

Presenting two new ACEOs from Day 6 "Sticks" and Day 7 "Respect Women" of the 30 Days project. Click here to see all my original artist trading cards in my Etsy store. They are OOAK (one-of-a-kind) and when they're gone, they're gone. Maybe some day I'll start selling ACEO prints but for now, they are all original creations of art. They are the same size as a baseball card, 2.5" x 3.5" and they're affordable and adorable. Of course, they can be framed as wall art, but they're also collectable since artists from all over the world are creating them and selling them on Etsy. Browse the ACEtsy Street Team blog to discover more artists making art cards. Have fun. Buy art. Share it with others.
-Raphaella Vaisseau

Sun and Moon by Raphaella Vaisseau for 30 Days of Get Your Art On - 9.22.11 (RV - Day 4)

"Sun and Moon" is my latest ACEO (artist trading card). It represents my love for our earth, and our benevolent celestial bodies, the sun and moon. A continual source of wonder and amazement, I honor their place in our sky.
-Raphaella Vaisseau

THREE ACEO - 30 Days of Get Your Art On - 9.21.11 (Raphaella Vaisseau - Day 3)

On my third day of "30 Days of Get Your Art On" I am celebrating the number 3. Here's a little original art card that I painted today and named "THREE". It's watercolor on Fabriano watercolor paper and measures 2.5" x 3.5" in the ACEO tradition.

To me, the number three stands for expression. It represents a quest for discovery, an exploration, a constant learning, growing, and a commitment to experiencing the fullness of life. It teaches us to use what works for us, and let go of what doesn't. The quest it encourages is to keep true to one's path with the intention of knowing ("to know that you know that you know"). Knowing from that true place inside what is right and true for you - for each one of us.

I am more certain every day of something I wrote years ago: "It is in being true to myself that I am of most use to others. It is in expressing the joy of my own heart that I am open to hold and behold the hearts of others. It is in seeing my own beauty that I am able to experience the magnificence of others." - Raphaella Vaisseau

We each have our part to play in the dance of life. As we learn to be true to our own self-expression we gain strength to discover, develop, and express our spiritual gifts.
-Raphaella Vaisseau

Raphaella Vaisseau joined the Creative Challenge of Traci Bunkers 30 Days of Get Your Art On - 9.19.11 (RV Day 1)

One thing leads to another. Never has that been more true than now with the internet. From the ACEO Etsy Street Team blog's latest post, I clicked on Ayala Art's link to see her little painting in her Etsy shop and explore her creations, thinking I might add an ACEO to my growing collection of originals.

From there I clicked over to Ayala's blog where I noticed the title of today's post as "my 17th day of 30" - which totally got me curious. I looked around the blog and saw a button for "30 Days of Get Your Art On - tracibunkers.com" - which I clicked on right away.

Voila! Enter the magical world of Traci Bunkers. So intrigued was I that 30 minutes later I was still roaming around in her site, amazed by her artistic expression and technical savvy. I wanted to play along with her and the other artists who are in the game. I signed up, put her button on my blog, and committed to 30 min/day for 30 days of creating art and posting it here. Then I got to work creating.

Here's the result of my Day 1: "Flower Magic" a 4x6 original watercolor painting matted in an 8x10 double mat (porcelain blue core over magenta). I felt the presence of faeries as I painted, and enjoyed the swirls, ease, and flow of the petals and leaves.

It feels so good to just create. To paint. To be a part of an artistic challenge. To give myself the gift of art.

-Raphaella Vaisseau

ETSY - Buying and Selling in an Artists' Marketplace Online

Have you discovered Etsy yet? I enjoy buying handmade creations of art directly from the artist so I often browse the hundred thousand shops on etsy.com for friend and family gifts or to add to my collection of ACEO miniatures (Art Cards, Editions, or Originals). Also referred to as art cards or artist trading cards, ACEOs are 2.5 x 3.5 creations of art that are traded among artists or purchased by collectors. I do both.

My etsy shop is heartfulart.etsy.com and has only a fraction of art found at my website heartfulart.com. I'm building my etsy store day by day and while I do, I'm enjoying the game that being a part of an online marketplace offers. The more I explore Etsy, the more I discover what it has to offer the handmade entrepreneur (like me). Their online labs provide educational videos, the etsy blog highlights sellers, techniques, products and more, and a new feature "shop stats" provide the sellers with marketing data to assist in getting found among the thousands of shops on Etsy. 

And then there's my personal shopping. It's entertaining to browse international shops or discover what artists are creating in towns and cities around the USA. My most recent Etsy purchase is an original ACEO from artist, Micki Wilde of The Secret Hermit based in the UK. The little treasure arrived yesterday, packaged with care. Etsy artists often package their art as creatively as the art itself. It makes it even more fun to know when I send a friend a gift I purchased on Etsy, it will likely be opened with delight. It's not a requirement to make the packaging extraordinary but it is more common than not.

This little ACEO from Micki completes the first page in my ACEO Collection Album (I use acrylic sleeves sold to protect baseball cards in a standard 3-ring binder).

Although some ACEOs are prints, I prefer to collect original art as these nine ACEOs are. The eight artists are from all over the USA and the world.

Start your own collection by entering "ACEO" or "ACEO original art" or "ATC" "ACETSY" or "art cards" in the handmade search field at etsy.com. Or start by taking a look at the ACEOs I have for sale in my Etsy store.

I encourage you to explore Etsy and see where your imagination takes you. It's almost September and the holidays will be here before you know it. Etsy artists await to provide you with the most creative gifts ever! - Raphaella Vaisseau