Merry-go-Round: What is scariest part of your art?

Jump on our merry go round and join a group of artists/crafts-women as they link hands around the world and tell you a little about their lives in art and craft.

Today is the second post of the monthly merry-go-round post and the halloween time. The question is: "What is your scariest part of your art/craft?"

Before I went on selling my art, the scariest thing is ruining an initially beautiful watercolor painting at the end or not able to get things right. These are small ones and I accept my limit and try to move on bit by bit.


But after starting selling my art, there are so many things to worry. Of course, I worry about my paintings not selling well. Sometime, I don't quite like a painting, but somehow, someone just bought it immediately after I put it in my store. I was very puzzled and try to reason why this is good. Sometime it affects my taste as well.

I remember someone says that if you want to be creative, you must ignore others. I feel it is very difficult for me. I am always influenced by how others seeing my art. I want to create something that people like it and would like to pay for it.

After I learned illustration and started providing prints for my art, the most difficult problem is the quality of prints. The first time, I didn't know how to set up the printer properties correctly, the prints always came up with very mixed colors. I was so scared and almost wanted to give it up.

After frantically searching the internet and borrowing many books on color management and wasting many printing papers, I finally got setup correctly. The prints are brilliant and beautiful at last.

Lately, I try to come up with some more products using my art. I found that if you concentrate more on business aspect of your art, you tend to loose creativeness on your art. This is a dilemma of one woman business. It's difficulty to be a business woman and also the creative artist.

Anyway, the good thing is that I try not to have high expectation on everything except the quality of my products. I am happy to make small progress each time.

One year has past since I opened an internet store and also this blog. I learned many things. The most important thing is to learn how to manage the things that you are scared about. Try to low your expectation on others and learn to have more tolerance and understanding. Be thankful for all the helps that I got from the people around the world.

Please also visit the following blogs to see what are the scariest thing for others. Check out again if you don't find the post due to time differences.

• Agathe, Le Bar du Vent
• Charlotte, of Fancypicnic
• Anna, Half an Acre
• Fabs, Easterya Jewellery Creations
• Marian, Florcita's Art
• Ruth, Birdland Creations
• Sara, Sara's Texture Crafts

I've Been Tagged and Another Pink Owl

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I've been tagged many times. I really appreciate all the support.

Now finally I have to write some facts about myself.

1. I have two beautiful girls. One is 19 years old and one is only 1 and half years old. My elder daughter is studying in Princeton University now. I am very proud of her.
2. I used to like mathematics and love to solve math problems. But after picking up painting, I get headache when seeing numbers.
3. I was born in the south part of China and likes Shanghainese dishes such as Xia-long bao and Xiao Wenton.
   
4. I love to do window shopping and just walk around in the busiest shopping street in Singapore Orchid Road. I love to see people, the happenings and the illustrations on the shops and walls.
5. I married to a mathematician who writes things only for themselves to understand.
6. I am the one in my home that do installation of new electrical equipments and minor repairing because my husband only works with pen, paper and his brain.
7. My taste for many things have changed after having a baby. For example, I used to like many types of music, but now listen most to Mozart and baby songs.
   

Now the 7 people I am tagging:

1. http://halfanacreblog.blogspot.com/
   
2. http://cecileadam.blogspot.com/
3. http://florcitasart.blogspot.com/
4. http://karenfaulknerart.blogspot.com/
5. http://fauvestudio.blogspot.com/
6. http://mmjforsale.blogspot.com/
7. http://marcieart.wordpress.com/
   

Spirit Tree and Laptop Skin

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I love this design of tree, Spirit Tree. It is very elegant and beautiful. There are so many different ways of making portrait of a tree. It is just so interesting.

Autumn Owl Resuable Message Board

This is a new product that I have been thinking of and finally developed. It is a reusable message board.

It measures 6" x 8.5"/14 x 21 cm. It has the design from the autumn owl.

The back of the board are supplied with either magnets or velcro hook.

For magnetic back, you can place this to any surfaces that attract magnets such as refrigerator. For velcro hook, the four other side of the adhesive velcro hooks come with the board. You can peel off the velcro hooks and put the place you want the board to be. Stick the board on top of them.

You can write in the front using a felt-tip pen. To erase the writing, just use a tissue or damp cloth to wipe it off. Thus the board is reusable.
If you write shopping list on the board, you can simply drop the board into your bag and carry it to the market. When you come back, you just wipe it away for new list.

Bear Sunshine

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The winter is coming, This bear sunshine will add much warm feeling to your surroundings.

The beautiful laptop skin will keep you warm wherever you go, isn't it?

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Pink Baby Owl Laptop Skin

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One of my customer wants to order the pink owl laptop skin. I didn't expect that it would be so beautiful after I put it up with the laptop.

It would be a really nice gift for a beautiful girl, isn't it?

Home Sweet Home Owl and Laptop Skins

Home Sweet Home Autumn Owl
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Home Sweet Home Sprint Owl
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I really love this little owl. It is so nice with a tree. These are two owl designs. Their laptop skins are wonderful. I hope I can change it with my laptop. Order the Skin Here

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Just a note, if you order anything from my store now till 30th October, you can get owl design magnet set including the night owl and the how sweet home owl for free.

I have a customer who bought my Moonlight Owl laptop skin for her daughter. I guess it is a good gift idea for a teenage.

Moonlight Owl Laptop Skin and Free Gifts

From now till 30th of October, the Moonlight Owl laptop skin is under special offer. You can also get owl design magnets for free when you buy anything from the store.

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I got some laptop skins produced for the moonlight owl and other orders. They are really beautiful. I also got some magnets produced as well. One is Home Sweet Home and another is the Moonlight Owl.

From now till end of October, for anything you buy, you will get the magnets for free.

The Moonlight Owl and Starry Night are under special offer now till end of October. It is $18 from $20. Don't miss the offer.

17" Laptop Skin

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Finally I got large size of laptop skins made with the baby owl design. They are fantastic. I am very happy with the quality and look and feel. The colors are rich and beautiful.

The skins have a layer on top that protects scratch and water.

Now I can support two sizes. They are:

1. 8.5" x 11.5"/21 x 30 cm for laptop size up to 15.4"/39 cm
2. 10" x 14"/26 x 35cm for laptop size up to 17"/43cm

I put it with my laptop of 17". It looks so beautiful!

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Moon Owl Laptop Skin

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Laptop skin with the new owl. It looks beautiful, isn't it? I have a special offer for it now, you can go to my store to check it out.

Moonlight Owl and Laptop Skin

I am always thinking of finding other outlets for my art. The laptop skins maybe a good way for it. I'd like to try it out and mean while, I am thinking of finding some other things which are interesting.

You buy the skins from me if you would like to

• have a special designed art on your laptop
• carry a delightful piece of art with you everyday to make your life more pleasant
• want to buy a laptop skin that are not mess produced.
  

Every piece of laptop skin is made with care and love personally from design, print and package by me. It is made of a high qualify vinyl sheet that protects against miner scratches and water drops. I already applied my laptop the new skin that I produced.

My laptop is a big one of 17". Currently I support laptop size up to 15.4" with skin size of 8.5" x 11.5"/21 x 30cm. I am looking into extending to other sizes in the next few days.Just a note that my laptop has a trademark tag in the middle under the skin. That's why the skin is a bit not smooth in the middle. It has reflection from the window also.

It is easy to apply and remove. You can easily peel off from the laptop top later if you need to change to some other design. It will not leave residue to or damage your computer.

Every painting and illustration in my shop with a proper landscape format in this shop can be made into a laptop skin. If you like a design or painting not listed under Laptop Skins that you like, you can send me messages so that I can put up here for your purchasing.

Check on my store to see the laptop skin available!

Rose Bird and Printer Poll

My friend saw my Strawberry bird and suggested to me that I may do apple bird, pear bird, etc. Thanks for her suggestion, I came up this rose bird with my rose tree images.

I have some problem with my printer. It's such a headache to fix it. I may try to buy a new one, but am stuck with which one to buy.

I put a poll for the printer that you are happy using it and you would like to recommend it. I'll keep this as a reference information in my blog so that it will benefit all others.

The recommendation would be in low end home use printers that can print good quality images. Not those high end professional graphic one. The printer must be inject printer.

You select the brand that you like to recommend in the poll. Please kindly enter your printer model in the comment.

Please vote for it! I'll assemble one report after the poll ends. I believe it would be a good information for artists who print at home.

Friday again, wish everyone a wonderful weekend.

Pretty in a Row

The rose tree in a row format. It is another interesting arrangement. Landscape is so interesting. There are so many possibilities.

Garden

Patterns are beautiful. This is another study of garden and flowers with patterns in watercolor.

Watercolor on paper, size: 6 x 9

In the Love Land a Couple

This version came out instantly after the one tree was finished. I think the version is beautiful. I love the elegant leaves of the roses.

I was thinking of painting this two versions of Love Land in Acrylic on canvas. They should be very beautiful with some texture of rose and leaves on the tree and the land.

I really enjoying working on the variations of the trees. Autumn is coming, I wonder if there are some beautiful ones can be produced out of them.

In the Love Land

This is evolved from yesterday's rose filed. I just played around with one tree in the painting and came up with the Love Land. It is obviously influenced by the tree painting of Vu Cong Dien. When I was painting this, my mind was filled with image of his tree subconsciously.

I like they way how this was evolved from the Simple Flower post. It is a really nice way to me.

Rose Field

This is an evolution from yesterdays' Simple Flower. It just evolved with a mountain first. Later I replaced flowers with trees which are inspired by a children book I bought for my baby.

I had a bit problem with what to put in the mountains. It must be as elegant as the tree. I tried with some lines and finally with this simple roses. A field of roses that is beautiful.

Simple Flowers

I was attracted to this beautiful color combination white, muted green and yellow. They gives you nice and romantic feeling.

Starry Night and Hari Raya

Today is a Muslim Holiday Hari Raya. It marks the end of one month fasting for Muslims and a public holiday in Singapore. One of the good things of living in Singapore is that there are major four races of people in Singapore. You get public holidays for each of their festivals. When there are so many problems out there in other part of the world such as US financial crises, I just feel so lucky being in Singapore. We don't need to worry about any banks that are in trouble and still celebrate the holiday. The Starry Night is to dedicate to the special Mala Holiday.

We took the chance and went to shopping and visited some other beautiful places in Singapore. We went to the big Raffles City shopping mall. I am so glad that I made the trip, not because I bought great things, but I discovered some beautiful arts.
First is the installation on the outside of the building of the mall. It is a big painting. The interesting about this painting is that if you look through a color filtering screen, you see totally another different image with two men.

I was so surprised to find two very beautiful paintings in a shoe store. The tree one was by Vu Cong Dien. I never heard of him before.

You can see from this painting that exaggeration is very powerful. The painting is so simple and with such limited color variation, yet you feel it is so rich. I especially like the yellow. It is glowing from the green. He seemed didn't use paint brushes on the tree, but some kind of mixed paint spray. It was very unusual. I came back and googled him. You can look at more of his work clearly at
http://www.durlacherfineart.com/artist_main.php?artist_id=28#.