Beaded Sculptures by Betsy Youngquist

Betsy Youngquist is a mixed media artist of Rockford, IL who has been working with beads for twenty years and is known for creating awesome sculptors embelleshed with beaded mosaics. 

Betsy works with sculptor R. Scott Long who helps her in designing and constructing the sculpture forms. Each of her piece is carved with great attention to detail and the surfaces of object are covered with seed beads, parts of vintage dolls and found objects. Her bead work reflects "a fascination with the intersection of humans, animals, and mythology. Stemming from a life-long love of all creatures great and small, Betsy’s work weaves together the human and animal spirit through a surrealistic lens."

Betsy has exhibited at the National Museum of Women in the Arts and the Smithsonian Craft Show in Washington, D.C., the VIDA Museum in Borgholm, Sweden, and completed an installation project for the Racine Art Museum in Racine, WI. If you live in Missouri and would like to see her curious creatures in person then you can stop by at St. Louis Art Fair from Sept. 5th through 7th. For more details on the fair venue go to Cultural Festivals.

I hope you enjoyed the features I shared with you here this week. If you like, you can join me on Facebook where I'll be sharing more owl-some finds over the weekend. Have a lovely weekend!

xoxo

Shivani

DIY: Owl Puppets + Printable Pattern

The internet is flooded with various tutorials on making hand puppets. And why not? Kids love to play with hand puppets, it's interactive and fun! Kids can get creative with their favorite stories and fairy tales, and stay entertained for an entire afternoon. I just recently came across this wonderful tutorial on how to make owl hand puppets which comes with step by step instructions as well as a pattern to download. 

For the entire tutorial and to get the printable go here.

Printable Woodland Papercone Animals

Go ahead and download these adorable woodland paper cone animals from Petite Lemon for free! Just print, cut and assemble to use them as ornaments to decorate the Christmas tree, as decorations to add to a woodland themed birthday party or as fun finger puppets for kid's to play with. To download the printable in full size click here.

Christophe Goussault

Christophe Goussault also known as Krisoft  is a French illustrator and a sculptor. He creates amazing paper mache sculptors using only paper and glue which are then hand painted by the artist making every sculpture one-of-a-kind.

He shares on his page: "My work is shared between the traditional illustration and making papier-mâché sculptures. When I was younger I dreamed of creating a store of toys and games for children, now I make sometimes childish but with a strange taste for all that is curious characters. The metamorphosis and nature are one of my greatest sources of inspiration. The need to make people dream is an essential thing for me." For view his past work and get updates on his new work you can join him on Facebook.

Crate&Barrel: Hoot Collection

Brand new fall collection by Crate and Barrel offers variety of merchandise depicting wide eyed owl trio perched on a branch in black, orange and gray color scheme on a light background. It's a perfect collection to update your tableware for Halloween or to add a whimsical touch to a fall themed party. The range includes - owl placemat, melamine plate, mugs and pillow.

KinderGlo Portable Rechargeable Night Light

Portable rechargeable night lights by KinderGlo is a collection of nine playful characters - owl, t-rex, brontosaurus, dragon, bear, elephant, hippo, moon and angel. 

These portable lights measure 4.75" x 4." x 4" and come with a charging station which makes it easy for the little ones to carry them around without having to be worried about running out of batteries. Once charged the lamp lasts for 8-10 hours of continuous light. The cool LED lights are safe to touch and the use of non-toxic materials makes them a perfect buddy for your kid to cuddle with in the bed or use them as a flashlight during nighttime bathroom trips. 

With a single button you can choose from two light settings, you can either select continuous cycling of changing colors or solid red, blue, or green. The other great feature is the option of keeping the light on all night or having it turn off after 30 minutes. They'll make a fun birthday gift! They can be ordered online from here.

This is a sponsored post by KinderGlo. Join KinderGlo on Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest

Elina Gleize: Geometric Rings

"Owl"

"Lion"

"Wolf"

"Lamb"

Elina Gleizer is a jewelry designer and a goldsmith based out of Israel. She graduates from Shenkar college of Engineering and Design with a Bachelor of Design degree from Jewelry Design department in Ramat-Gan, Israel. 

I am in love with her geometric shaped rings from Fall/Winter 2015 "Anima(L) Collection". Her designs are inspired by wildlife and cubism resulting in minimalist yet elegant pieces. She shares on her blog: "I wanted to create a statement stamp rings by using only abstract lines, shapes and the basic characteristics of the animal." Stop by her online store if you are interested in buying any on her piece and to see more of her beautiful jewelry.

Avitalos: Abby Dolls

Avital is a doll maker from Israel who loves to paint and print on fabrics. Her "Abby Doll" series consists of adorable dolls and is inspired by Kokeshi artisan wooden doll concept of north eastern Japan. The dolls come in animal shapes such as owl, rabbit, tiger, bunny, pig, panda each one with a distinctive personality. Each cuddly doll is hand sewn with attention to detail and are made from 100% soft cotton. Check out online store - Avitalos - where her dolls are available for purchase.

Collection: Owl Bento Box

Bento #1

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Matthew Cusick - Collaged Maps

Patriarch, 2006, Inlaid maps on panel

Patriarch, 2006, Detail

Blue Horse, 2011

Mylan's Wave, 2012, Inlaid maps, acrylic

Geronimo, 2007, Maps and atlas pages on wood panel

Course of Empire (Mixmaster II), 2006, Maps and acrylic on wood panel

Procella Crisium, 2013 , Inlaid maps, bible engravings, sumi ink, dye on panel 

Oceania, 2012, Inlaid maps and acrylic

Matthew Cusick currently living in Oak Cliff, Texas is originally from New York City. He gained a degree in Bachelor of Fine Arts from The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art, and in MFA in 2013 from Southern Methodist University, Meadows School of the Arts. Inspired by topography he creates amazing art pieces that are meticulously pasted together small pieces of vintage recycled roadmaps, nautical and aeronautical charts depicting owl, animals, portraits and landscapes.

It all started when he received a box full of vintage maps. He begun to experiment and found out that maps have all the properties of a brushstroke such as line, density, movement and color. One of the primary subject matters of his work is people and depending on the subject of his work he would have a stash of maps related to that person’s timeline and history. Each piece based on size can take anywhere from 100 to 300 hours to finish.

He has participated in solo and group exhibitions in the States and in abroad. His pieces have been displayed in museums as well as galleries, and featured in The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Harper’s Magazine and Art In America.Over the years his work has become popular amongst the art enthusiasts, and part of public and private collections including the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art and the Progressive Art Collection.