The ‘Daily Artisan Spotlight’ is a regular feature on Mindless Pursuits intended to provide insight and exposure to the tons of talented artisans working today. Please comment and give them some encouragement and check out their work! If you would like to be in the Spotlight, click on the ‘Free Press’ link above!

What is your shop?
Borealis Art (http://norablansett.etsy.com)

What is your art/craft?
Actually, I work in a wide variety of mediums. First and foremost, I am a fantasy artist and work in colour pencil, watercolour and watercolour pencil. I also work in photography, jewelry design, beading, dolls, miniature quilts, stone carving and pyrography.

Describe your style in 2 words:
Unique, varied

What is your favorite piece and why?
I honestly don’t think I could pick a favourite piece! I work in so many mediums that I tend to have favourites in each medium, and the favourites change as I improve on my skills and create new works. My most current favourites are the following:
“Invitation to the Sun” ACEO 
“Drift” (Photography)
“Jasper Bead Embroidered Pendant” 
“Mermaid Pyrography” (Wood burning)
“Miss Darling Blues” (Doll)

I’m sure you can see why I can’t choose just one!

What is the most memorable piece of advice you’ve ever received?
I think the best advice I ever got was to stop comparing myself to other artists. There’s nothing worse than trying to compare apples to oranges and worrying that you’ve only got prunes. You can never base your talent on that of others.

What is the one piece of advice you’d give?
Probably the usual cliche’ “Never give up!”. It’s a hard road — especially if you are trying to make it your livelihood. I also think it’s important to expand; don’t just work in one medium. It’s nice to have different paths to take according to your mood. Right now, my jewelry is flying off the shelves of local stores, but my dolls are taking a backseat. In another month, my dolls may pick up again as well the photography with the visual change of seasons occurring. I try to keep the artwork moving at a gentle pace, never putting too much out at a time and making every piece special because I keep it so limited.

The ‘Daily Artisan Spotlight’ is a regular feature on Mindless Pursuits intended to provide insight and exposure to the tons of talented artisans working today. Please comment and give them some encouragement and check out their work! If you would like to be in the Spotlight, click on the ‘Free Press’ link above!

What is your shop?
magicouture (http://www.magicouture.etsy.com)

What is your art/craft?
Primarily, I craft unusual jewelry from glass, stone, and wire. I’m known for very outlandish rings.

Describe your style in 2 words:
Eclectic extremes

What is your favorite piece and why?
I have a ring called Honeywine Brass Ensemble that I dearly, truly love. It feels wonderful on the hand and design-wise, it just “flows.” It reminds me of an ultra-fantasy take on a musical instrument and the colors are so deep and rich and sultry.

What is the most memorable piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Don’t give up. As far as advice goes, you can’t beat that, really.

What is the one piece of advice you’d give?
Let your art be what it is. Often, I’m tempted to make the sort of things that might have a broader appeal but I feel like I would lose the integrity of my art.

The ‘Daily Artisan Spotlight’ is a regular feature on Mindless Pursuits intended to provide insight and exposure to the tons of talented artisans working today. Please comment and give them some encouragement and check out their work! If you would like to be considered for the Spotlight, click on the ‘Free Press’ link above!

What is your shop? 
http://dzfantasy.etsy.com
 
What is your Art/Craft? 
3D Fiber sculpted fantasy figures
 
Describe your style in two words: 
Colorful & whimsical

What is your favorite piece and why? 
This is my favorite piece right now (pictured above), as I love the whimsical aspect of her, the color and I wouldn’t mind being a magical mermaid!

What is the most memorable piece of advice you’ve ever received? 
Live one day at a time and don’t take yourself to seriously!
 
What is the one piece of advice you’d give? 
Only create what you feel like creating…and don’t worry about what would sell and what wouldn’t.  If you truly love what you are creating, that will be reflected in your work, and other people will see that.  You will know that when people tell you how lucky you are to be able to create what you do, and what fun you must have. 

 Places, everybody! Places! Welcome to Fantasy… wait….wrong location! Welcome to Mindless Pursuits, the official blog of Keith, your humble host and arts and craft fanatic! I am pleased that you have decided to stop by and check out my new blog. That’s correct: I said ‘new’ as I have a previously existing blog that covers all sorts of facets of my life, and not just crafting. That said, my more personal blog tends to be all over the board as to topics and content and I wanted to have a blog that had a tighter focus on just the art and crafting elements of my life. Thus, this Mindless Pursuits blog was born!

In this blog, I am planning to discuss the projects I’ve completed, the projects I’m working on, how my approach towards project ideation and construction occurs for different craft types, and try to provide insight into different techniques and approaches. I am also hoping to provide the occasional view into the lives of my fellow artists and crafters and to provide insight for fledgling entrepreneurs into how to market and sell their creations through my own experiences as I move forward. Mostly though, I hope to provide some fun, entertaining and interesting commentary of the arts and crafts I so deeply love and enjoy working on!

 So how about some quick facts on the handsome guy pictured above? I am 39 years old and the very proud father of two little girls, ages 6 and 9. I’m single and live with my 4-year-old cat Lexi in an apartment in the ever-changing seasonality of Minnesota in the United States of America. While I wish painting and crafting could be my full-time job, I’m far too new at it and so I spend my days working in information technology as a technology architect for a large national retailer.

What artistic endeavors do I undertake? I love to paint. Mostly flowers as they make me happy but I also love to work on landscapes and am occasionally returning to my roots as an abstract painter though I choose not to share much of those creations publicly. I sew and love to make everything from costumes to formal-wear to accessories. I also cross-stitch, crewel embroidery, paint enamels on glass, pottery (though I have no kiln to fire anything in), wood-burning, scrapbooking and knitting! I love to learn new creative skills and so am continually trying to expand my repertoire!

I hope that provides a good introduction to me and where I am planning to take this blog. I plan to update often, so keep an eye on this space!