Arthouse 525

Featured Shop
Arthouse 525

Enjoy a visit to Arthouse 525 http://www.etsy.com/shop/Arthouse525 where you will discover fabulous one of a kind hand crafted items, art prints and original paintings.

I have been creating for most of my life. Drawing, painting, making things: I love it all. Right now, I am focused on unique, one of a kind jewelry and fiber art. Next week, it may be back to painting.

 I have areas set up all over the house where I can just start on whatever craft suits my mood. Luckily, my husband is an artist too, so he fully understands the need for multiple work stations. He likes the idea that our whole house is one big art studio. In fact, I overheard a conversation with his brother where he stated that we live in an "art house". So, that is where I got the name for my ETSY shop.: Arthouse525. "525" being our house number. The only room in the house that does not have art supplies in it is the master bedroom. I like to keep that room spotless and serene at all times.

The wall of art supplies in the photo of me was made by using scrap wood and ammo boxes. Here is a better photo of that. I have a how-to at this link on my blog- sandramccall.blog.com/2012/07/25/up-cycled-ammo-boxes/


My best studio tip for organization is to keep like items with like items and use labels on your storage bins. It saves time looking for supplies. Another good studio tip is to clean paintbrushes and knives that have dried acrylic paint on them with alcohol. Just submerge the bristles in a dish of rubbing alcohol, Leave for minutes, hours or days depending on how dirty the brush is. Even old, cruddy brushes come clean after a day or two.


My favorite quote- well, one of them anyway- is "In order to make your dreams come true, you first have to wake up!" That quote has been attributed to so many people that I honestly don't know who first said it. But it is so true!




my blog - www.sandramccall.blog.com
my store - www.etsy.com/shop/Arthouse525
my fun stuff - www.pinterest.com/sandramccall
Facebook - www.facebook.com/SandraMcCall525
my photos - www.flickr.com/photos/sandramccall/

A Hidden Passion

All items in Eye Desire's etsy shop are made of genuine Swarovski Crystals™, precious and semi-precious stones with sterling silver, fine silver, 24k gold vermeil and goldfill findings. Have fun looking through her Etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/EyeDesire where you are sure to find jewelries made with high quality materials in affordable prices.

by Eye Desire
I always enjoyed making something with my hands: making a piece of pottery, drawing something with a pencil, or making a small doily or a large shoal for my mother, etc., but I didn’t realize how much I enjoy making jewelry until I stumbled into it.

Many years ago, one of best friend of mine gave me few pieces of beautiful jewelry she made and I was fascinated by them. I didn’t know anything about jewelries or jewelry making, but I too wanted to create a beautiful piece of art. So one day, I finally went to a local hobby store and picked up a jewelry making kit and few books (yes, I am a self-taught jewelry artist). I had no idea I actually had a hidden passion about jewelry making until then.

Although I enjoy making something with my hands since I was a child, somehow my life took a different routes of profession all those years. My education background is accounting, corporate finance and management in undergraduate and graduate schools and I have been in the accounting/finance field over 20 years. I currently have a full time job as an accounting manager, but here I am exploring and using the other side of my brain to be more creative.

All creations in my shop are made of precious and semi-precious stones, sterling and fine silver, 24k gold vermeil, and 14k gold fill. I sometimes use Swarovski Crystals and mix with other beautiful semi-precious and natural stones. I use my living room/office as my studio. I have my laptop on a desk and all tools and materials are kept in individual boxes so that I can access to them easily.

I live in Texas with a loving family. I’m married to a wonderful man named Mark who supports my dream of creating beautiful jewelry, and have a wonderful son, Bryce, 20 who is in college. My mother who is inspiration of my life also lives with us, and I have a 7 year old female Cocker Spaniel named Boree.

Obsessed With Lumps & Bumps

Enjoy a visit to Fiberpuppy Designs http://www.etsy.com/shop/fiberpuppy/ ,

 a wonderful etsy shop where they specialize in unique handmade natural fiber items. Fiberpuppy Designs carry a number of different felted and non-felted wool accessories that would be sure to keep you warm on those cold winter days, or even spice up that special outfit.

Fiberpuppy is currently donating 100% of the proceeds from the sale of the black cat hat to Doctors without Borders to help the earthquake victims in Haiti.

by fiberpuppy

I seem to be obsessed with texture lately, lumps and bumps or smooth clean surfaces. Most of my pieces are created by first knitting then fulling (or creating felt) using hot water and agitation in the washing machine. One of the ways that I can create texture is by tying a small object into the knitted piece before it’s fulled. This method among others is known as shibori felting.

Because of my love of shibori, I seem to have turned into a pack rat collecting all kinds of small objects of various shapes and sizes. I use nuts, bottle caps even hair curlers. This combined with the fact that I usually have between 30-50 balls of yarn and finished products floating around has created a bit of a storage nightmare for my one room office/guest room/studio.

One of the solutions I’ve found is to use one of those back of a door clear shoe holders. I can see all the little bits and pieces I might use without digging. Then I can close the door et voila it’s gone.

My actual work space is made up of two tables. One for the sewing and one for needlefelting or drawing or whatever else I might need. I guess I should also count the garage as part of my workspace. We actually have 2 washing machines there; one for regular washing and one for felting. I do spend a bit of time in there as well.

Stymiepie Studies

Have you always wanted to create art?! I can remember loving to create as a kid and it being my favourite subject in elementary school. I'm happiest when I am creating and was excited to be inspired to create again as an adult. Stymiepie Studios shares her creative start and inspirations. I love her little Fairies. Leave me a comment and share what inspires you!














Enjoy a visit to her shop http://www.stymiepiestudios.etsy.com/
and her wonderful blog http://stymiepiestudios.blogspot.com/

i've been an artist since i was about 3 years old. as my mom used to tell it, she would put some brown paper shopping bags on the kitchen floor with crayons to keep me quiet while she worked around the house. the rest is history. i've never been quiet, and i've never stopped drawing. i went to art & design high school in new york city, taking the train from brooklyn every morning, thinking i was the coolest kid alive: with a giant black beret, long black coat, black platform shoes , false eyelashes and my portfolio. looking back now , i guess it freaked out the businessmen on their way to work..but i was an ARTIST!!! i handpaint gifts for kids and create custom art based on whatever inspires me. i'm into a fairy/mermaid/baby animal thing right now..it amazes me that an idea or picture will come into my head and my hand puts down what i see on paper..most of the time, it's exactly the way i want it, but when you hit that "block" it's like being underwater..the harder you try , the worse it is. i've always worked in the art field and i'm grateful that i've been able to spend my work life doing what i love. although i have a mural business (www.pixiedustmurals.com) that's taken me all over the country, my etsy shop is one of my proudest achievements..i've never had a shop before, and learning how to run this business and meet the incredible artisans on this site has been so much fun.