Kid's Summer Art Workshops

Yeah!! We were just scheduled for teaching kids summer art workshops at the Gaithersburg Arts Barn ... "camp" time is such cool, fun time! This year we will be teaching the following:

Wearable Art and Fibers: June 22 through 26
Paper Beyond Drawing: July 20 through 24
Inspired by the Masters: July 27 through 31

The mornings sessions are from 9 am to 11:30 am and are for 6-8 year olds.
The afternoon sessions are from 12:30 to 3 pm and are for 9-12 year olds.

We like to get messy and the focus is on having a great time while exploring art. There will be an exhibit for family and friends of the artists on the Friday of the session week.

If you have kids in the DC area and they are interested in attending, please call the Arts Barn at: 301-258-6394 for more information or to register. You can also register over the internet through the City of Gaithersburg website.

The descriptions are also on the city's website or you can find them on Midnight Blue's Facebook Page under "Events".

And of course, we are always happy to talk with you more about our teaching personally.

Fun, fun, fun!! We can't wait for summer now ... hope to see lots of our young artist friends at the Barn ...

Oh Where, Oh Where Has Our Creative Time Gone?

In the last post, I was feeling optimistic we would be getting back to the good stuff ... the creative stuff ... but alas, it continues that we are having all of our creative time sucked away by the administrative stuff of life. I guess it is that time of year as we close a year and begin anew.

So projects remain sitting on our "to do" list while we take care of these necessities. But there will be lovely joy when it is complete and we can get back to creating. I think this time I will refrain from saying when that will be.

Part of the admin tasks has been that we are working on our show schedule for 2009 ... it has been interesting as we are applying for some juried festivals that we have not vended at before. You never know what will happen ... we remain positive that opportunities will unfold nicely for us ... we are always amazed how things work out. It's so cool!

We'll be posting again soon ... its just been a little hard to focus on bringing something really interesting to blog about with all the other tasks. But once the creativity breaks free, the flowing thoughts and ideas will, too.

And with regards to the photo included ... just a happy reminder that spring is around the corner ... and for those of you that reside in the DC area, it won't be long until Cherry Blossoms. We love it!

Been Busy!

Sorry that we have not blogged for a bit ... we have busy with other projects taking us away from the studios. Life as an artist is a balancing act of creative time with the other necessities of business and life. But it is always such a sense of contentment when we sit down to express our creativity again.

The good news is that there is a prototype now underway of a silver shamrock for pendant necklaces or maybe even a bracelet. It is already showing signs of being very lovely (as the Irish would say) and we are excited to share it with you soon.

That's all the news from here! Back to work we go ...

Shamrocks

We are wondering if you all would like to see some silver shamrocks in time for St. Patrick's Day?

It sounds like a kind of fun project for us. We can make them into earrings, bracelets, or necklaces ... they will be simple and kind of earthy, like all our silversmithed work.

Photo By jonmatthew photography @ Flickr

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day ... We hope you have a day full of love!

Silver Heart Necklaces

The silver heart necklaces are finally finished! Hurray!!
See all the details about them on Etsy. We think they are sweet and pretty ...

Each heart was handcut from silver sheet, formed, and delicately refined at the bench. They were then polished and carefully finished into pendant necklaces.

#3 did not make it through the finishing process ... such is life in the jewelry studio with occasional pitfalls of working totally handmade, but with each failure comes the lovely success of final pieces much improved . We hope you enjoy!

Art & Ambiance Fair - Show Announcement

Midnight Blue will be at the Art & Ambiance Fair again in 2009 ... the dates are August 8th from 10 am to 5 pm and August 9th from 11 am to 4 pm. The fair is located at Stone Crest Mall in Osage Beach, Missouri.

It should be even bigger and better this year ... hope to see you there!!

Study in Black

Study in Black, originally uploaded by 12amblue.

Can you guess what this is?

Valentine's Week

It's Valentine's week ... and its not to late to get something for the sweetie(s) in your life ... check out our Etsy shop or drop us a line ... we would love to work with you. We will upgrade shipping to get things to you fast.

Enjoy celebrating love this week!!

National Wear Red Day

Midnight Blue's blog is "wearing red" today in honor of National Wear Red Day ... its a chance to help raise awareness of women and heart health. We hope you will throw something red on today, too!

Also, we are offering the matted print of "Two Hearts" at a special price just for today ... check it out on Etsy. If it sells today, we will be donating the proceeds to the American Heart Association.

Silver Hearts are Almost Ready!!

Just in time for Valentine's Day, we are going to have just three one-of-a-kind silver heart necklaces ready ... they are so pretty!! We can't wait to show you ... they are going through finishing right now ... stay tuned!!

What is the One Piece of Photographic Equipment You Would Not Want to be Without?

The most obvious answer is the camera ... but actually, Jaree carries a little digital point and shoot with her everywhere, just in case. Its not as powerful or sophisticated as the bigger Nikon, but it does a really nice job.

Besides the camera, it would be her old standby lens that she has had for decades ... a Nikkor 35-70 mm zoom. It takes great photos, is pretty fast at f2.8, and can handle most situations.

After that would be her monopod .... its easier to carry around than a tripod and will steady most shots and keep them crisp and clear.