Etcetera: A biweekly webzine for artists and craftspersons.

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May 1997

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I am an Artist by David L. Alvey

I am an artist,

It is not WHAT I do,

It is WHO I am,

24/7.

Visual or verbal,

Written or performed,

The form it takes matters not,

Alpha-to-Omega.

Asleep or awake,

Working or playing,

It influences how I act/react,

A.M. - p.m.

Like it... I smile,

Criticize... I might cry,

But, DO it I must, or die,

100%.

I am an artist,

Not because I WANT to be,

But, God MADE me this way,

Birth-to-death.

P.O. Box 542913

Dallas, TX 75354

Used with permission

David L. Alvey read his poem on the mall in Washington, D.C. on April 19th, 1997 in support of ARTNOW's celebration and demonstration for the Arts. ARTNOW was a National Celebration of the ARTS (performing, visual, etc.) combined with a Demonstration in Support of the ARTS and ARTS FUNDING. This political and artistic event was held SATURDAY, APRIL 19th, 1997 on the Mall in Washington, DC.

David L. Alvey Artist, Writer, Poet

A former U.S. Navy journalist, David L. Alvey has been writing professionally for more than 20 years. He won numerous awards as an advertising copywriter, broadcast producer and creative director before striking out on his own in 1992 to form Aardvark Studios, a full-service advertising and public relations firm.

In 1994, Alvey opened Aardvark Studios & Gallery, a fine art gallery and working studio in a Dallas suburb. Last year, the gallery began hosting "Art's Alive," a monthly program of live performance art featuring poets, musicians and storytellers.

Alvey has written poetry since his teens, but only began reading in public within the past year. Alvey's poetry has been published in several magazines and anthologies.

Alvey is co-founder of the Garland Artists Group (GAG), serves on the Garland Visual Arts Committee and is a member of the Texas Visual Artists Association (TVAA) and Dallas Artists Researching & Exhibiting (DARE). He is also co-chairman of the Marketing Committee for the North Texas Leukemia Society of America.

As u know, I attended the ARTNOW celebration/ demonstration for the Arts in Washington, DC on April 19, 1997. The event was an INCREDIBLE experience... displaying my mixed media assemblages and reading my poetry in the shadow of the capitol on the Mall! Wow! I can NOT tell you what an AWESOMEE feeling that was

But, this was not a 1-day event... it IS a grass roots effort to organize artists/art lovers all over to make our voices heard And to put ART on the National Agenda.

Visit ARTNOW's website

When ordering strands of beads, use this chart to help you figure out how many beads you will be getting. Remember, Eclectic Etc., Inc. sells smaller quantities of beads so YOU don't have to become a 'warehouse'!	BEAD SIZE	# OF BEADS PER INCH
	2mm 4mm 6mm 8mm 10mm 12mm 14mm	12.50 6.25 4.25 3.25 2.50 2.00 1.75

Mom's Memory Box

If you are like most people who love flowers, you probably have a lot of those flower and seed catalogs laying around ready to be recycled or thrown in the trash. Here is a fun way to reuse them and also give Mom a great handmade gift on Mother's Day!

Materials you will need:

• flower or seed catalogs

• scissors or utility knife

• white glue

• paint brush

• water dish

• matte or gloss medium

• box with a lid (size is up to you)

Step 1: Cut out photographs of flowers and leaves from your catalogs. Separate the flowers and leaf images into two separate piles.

Step 2: Use your paintbrush to spread a thin layer of glue on your box and apply the leaves in random areas. *Apply glue and photographs to one small areas at a time, don't try to cover the entire box in 5 minutes.

Step 3: Starting with your largest flowers first, glue them on your box in areas not covered by the leaf photographs. Make sure to wrap the flowers around the edges of the box as shown in the photograph on the left.

Step 4: When your box is completely covered with leaves and flowers, let it dry for at least 2 hours before continuing with step 5.

Step 5: Using a large paintbrush, apply your matte/gloss medium to your box to seal in all the flowers and leaves. If necessary, apply a second coat.

Step 6: When your box is completely dry, you may do (or not do) any of the following to add interest:

- Add ribbon to your box as shown in the example below.

- Use fabric paint (in the squeeze tube) to outline some of the flowers on your box.

- Add small rhinestones, sequins or other 'goodies' you have floating around the house.

What should you do with your box? If you already have a gift for Mom, use your memory box to 'wrap' the gift! If you intend to give this box as the gift, start it out by putting in some photographs Mom hasn't seen in years or put some of her favorite soap, candy, etc. in the box!

Happy Mother's Day!

A Quick Tip for Parents and Teachers! Follow the directions above to create a 'crayon keeper' for children! Kids can help by cutting out pictures from comic books, the newspaper or scraps of wrapping paper! If the materials used are certified AP Non-Toxic, children can make their own 'Crayon Keeper'! The upside to this project is no more crayons laying all over the house or a childs room since s/he will love to put the crayons and other art supplies away!

Did you enjoy the ideas in the Special Feature section of Etcetera?

Drop us a note and let us know...we would love to hear from you!

Always make sure you get permission before working!

Flowers for Mother's Day!

Mother's Day is just around the corner...don't know what to get Mom? We have the answer...flowers! Not just ordinary flowers that die after a week, but special flowers you can make yourself! It's easy to make everlasting flowers, just follow the directions below!

Materials:

• scissors

• different colors of tissue paper or facial tissues

• pipe cleaners or twist ties for bags (green is best)

Step 1: Cut out three shapes of tissue paper. Try to use different sizes and shapes (square pieces and ripped tissue make very interesting flowers)!

Step 2: Lay the tissue paper on top of each other and hold it in the center.

Step 3: Fold your pipe cleaner or bag tie in half.

Step 4: Poke the two ends of your pipe cleaner in the center of your flower - look at the picture on the left.

Step 5: Pull the pipe cleaner through the bottom of the flower and twist the center piece and the bottom pieces to create a stem!

Step 6: Crumple up the flower - yes you must crush the little thing!

Step 7: After it's been crumpled, fluff and puff your flower out, and you're all done (sort of)!

Step 8: Now comes the fun part...make about 10 of these little flowers! When you are done, twist all the stems together to create a great big bouquet!

Special Tip: To make your flowers really stand out, try using warm and cool colors in every flower! In our example, we used pink, purple and yellow or warm, cool, warm to create a more eye-popping design! Using warm and cool colors together is called contrast and it really is much more beautiful than using only warm or only cool colors at once! Give it a try and see what we mean!

We guarantee your Mom, Grandmother, Aunt, Teacher - just about anyone - will love your flower bouquet! And the best part is, your flowers aren't ever going to die!

Did you try this idea? Did a special lady love her flowers?

Drop me an email and let me know!

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Would you like to submit to Etcetera? Do you have a craft or tip you would like to share?

Please look at the Submission Information Page and then drop me an email!

Etcetera is sponsored by:

Eclectic Etc., Inc.

P.O. Box 10

Willow Grove, PA 19090-0010

(215) 658-1711

webzine@eebeads.com

Please Note... The ideas presented here are intended for personal use only. Creating items to sell from our instructions would be in poor taste. Please send an email to Eclectic Etc., Inc. if you have any questions or concerns.

No part of this page may be reproduced in any manner for commercial or

noncommercial purposes without written permission from Eclectic Etc., Inc.