Art Blog for The Inspiration Place

Don’t you just love the power of technology?

That’s exactly how I felt when I finished my Skype call with Andrea Gomoll although nearly 4,000 miles separates the comfort of my studio from hers just outside of Berlin, Germany.

Andrea discovered that she can use social media in the same way to connect with her fans in North America.

Discover how to harness the power of Periscope, YouTube and Instagram...

on my blog last week, I asked you what you would do if you won the stencil or stamp. Your stories were so interesting I just had to share a few here! Your answers shined a spotlight on why art is important and matters.. Thank YOU for inspiring me!

1. Art adds to memories...

"I was looking through my boxes of old stuff...boxes we have lugged for decades... and discovered a moving announcement I made...

How do you define an artist?

Someone who shows up to create art is an artist.

I’ve always believed in this very simple definition.
If you write poetry, then you’re a poet.
If you sing songs, then you’re a singer.

If you love to create art—then I encourage you to see yourself as an artist, too.

Just ask Jane LaFazio, one of the co-teachers in my Handcrafted Holidays class, how it feels to take the big...

My dear friend Carolyn Dube, a self-taught art adventurer and mixed media artist, is on a journey filled with fun! She is one of the teachers in the Handcrafted Holidays class and has finally reigned in the critical voice that squelched her joy and held her art back for many years. Today, she avoids rules whenever possible and lets the little kid inside her free to create art without judgment. She...

Do you wait too long each year to start creating handcrafted gifts and then run out of time and lose the joy of it?

Well if you would rather give handmade but never seem to get organized than you are not alone...

and it is not your fault.

You just haven't had a fun community to hold you accountable plus a plethora of projects to keep you inspired with gift ideas that will make the receiver say...

art by Jessica Sporn

Jessica Sporn, the namesake behind Jessica Sporn Designs and part of the teacher team for the Handcrafted Holidays class, lives the life of her dreams as a professional, self-taught mixed media artist, because she learned the power of “yes.” When we spoke in preparation for the Handcrafted Holidaysclass, we discussed how her approach to art has roots in her theater background....

Pinterest, “the visual bookmarking tool,” was made for artists! Creatives are flocking to this social media channel not only to collaborate and get inspired, but also to drive visitors to our websites and engage with fans of our art.


To help you get more exposure to your artwork and achieve amazing things with Pinterest, I asked Marjie Kemper, a New York mixed media artist who has 17K+ Pinterest...

Full-time artist, Blenda Tyvoll, has sold more than 3,000 pieces of art on Etsy and is also one of the featured artists in my upcoming course Handcrafted Holidays. Blenda and I have known each other since 2006, when we were both selling on eBay. She started to dabble with selling on Etsy first, and when I saw the success she was having selling her artwork, I soon followed and now have more than...

Happy Creative Memories

Although I am Jewish and don’t have a Christmas tree in my own home, I have many happy memories creating holiday...

Artist Miriam Schulman painting watercolor in her home studio.

Everyone was born with...

This summer, I stayed with family in Portland, Oregon. My cousin showed me a grand ole time while I tried to not make more work for his wife who was already quite busy with three young children. Over dinner, she asked me about the kind of art I create. I encouraged her to open the hostess gift since my “art was inside.”

Earlier she had tossed it aside while she made my bed. My heart sank as it...