"From the Tribe" with RELICS & ARTIFACTS® Guest Ambassador DeeDee Catron

This month's "From the Tribe" RELICS & ARTIFACTS® Guest Ambassador is a woman of incomparable talent.  She's been in the industry for quite some time and has worked with a multitude of people to include Donna Downy.  It is our pleasure to introduce DeeDee Catron as February's Guest Ambassador.  Grab a coffee, a comfy seat, and let's let DeeDee show us what she's all about!

"I am a Mixed Media Artist | Instructor | Designer sorting through the ever expansive mixed media world in an effort to conquer ALL.THE.THINGS. I can never settle on one medium or one technique and I truly love to throw them all together. I live in Las Vegas and I teach classes both locally and abroad. I also offer occasional paid eCourses and tons of free mixed media demonstration via my YouTube channel."

DeeDee's work of art is absolutely mind blowing in its composition and construction.  We'll let her share the story.

Hello Relics & Artifacts Tribe! I'm super excited to be here today sharing a project I worked up specifically for Sandra and the amazing team. I've been a long time fan of the girls who work the Muse and Toil was a labor of love inspired by each and every one of them.

Toil started out as a political statement and evolved into a much more personal expression. It's about keeping the balance between respect and courage.

Between wants and needs,

Between light and dark,

Between life and death.

It's about the inner struggle and which wolf we'll feed today. 

Toil encompasses a lot of symbolism and there are a lot of struggles on the piece. The contrast in texture between the smooth resin and the harsh grungy masking tape is so appealing. The full figured Renaissance style face versus the feeble old skeleton makes my heart race. It's always fun for me to start a project, watch it morph, finish it and then talk about it.  When Mr. Catron saw the finished piece he blurted out, "It looks like a mausoleum!" and I was so happy about that! It wasn't something I INTENDED but what a cool final effect, right? 

What do YOU see when you look at Toil? What emotions are stirred, if any? I really look forward to conversing with you about the art. ♥

DeeDee's art invokes thought and is every bit as evocative as it is provocative.  She's so graciously put together a Snapguide tutorial for you on how to create a piece like this one.  Beautiful, powerful, thoughtful and so full of soul, we thank you for sharing your creativity with us.  For more about you can connect with her on her website, Facebook, Instagram (@deedeecatron), and YouTube.

Supply List:
Relics & Artifacts® Egg Shrine
Relics & Artifacts® Archangels
Golden Fluid Matte Medium
Golden Carbon Black Fluid Acrylic
Golden Heavy Gel
Liquitex Glaze Medium
Liquitex Gesso (P) (White & Clear)
DecoArt Media Gray Fluid Acrylic
UmWowStudio Star Confetti Chipboard
UmWowStudio Angel Wings Chipboard
Stabilo Marks All
Amazing Crafting Products 2 Part Clear Cast Resin
Mona Lisa Gold Foil
May Arts Ribbon
Tim Holtz Rubons
Tim Holtz Alterations & Configurations Box
Sand paper, scissors, heat tool, clay tools, baby wipes, canvas strings, plastic skeleton, paint brush, measuring cups, stir stick, vintage italian text, paint cup, water, coffee, graphite pencil, vintage dictionary page, masking tape

"From the Tribe" with RELICS & ARTIFACTS® Guest Ambassador Georgie Connelly

We are back with our monthly "From the Tribe" feature.  What exactly is "From the Tribe"?  Well, if you are a newcomer to our realm, we have an awesome Facebook community called the Relics & Artifacts® Tribe where you can share your creations and all things Relics & Artifacts®.  We choose our guest Ambassadors directly from that supportive group as they continue to wow our senses with their innovation and imagination.

This month, we have the super talented mixed media artist, Georgie Connelly.

Let's get to know Georgie a little more, shall we?

"I live in the UK on the South Coast, in the county of Dorset. I am very blessed to be living in a very rural and beautiful part of the world. I live with my encouraging hubs, mostly angelic four year old son, two squishy dogs and four very cute and cuddly ratties.

I love altered art, journalling, mixed media scrapbooking but one of my biggest loves right now is creating 'old world' style journals. I find the binding aspect quite therapeutic too. For me, one of the most important factors is colour in any aspect of work, how it ebbs and flows into another, or how it moves in or on a certain medium. This is where I believe the possibilities are truly limitless. Just make sure you have fun along the way!"

Georgie's project is a stunner and a true homage to her love of old world books and binding.  Go grab yourself a cuppa, sit back, and prepare to have your senses and mind blown.

"Filiis Maris" (Child of the Sea)

If you will dear reader, cast your mind to the past. Very far back indeed… maybe back as far as 1,500 years. There was an island. An island so noble and prosperous, so ahead of it’s time that it is considered a utopia for all people that lived there. There were fertile crops with bountiful harvests.  Riches and treasures were never scarce. Knowledge and access to all medicines for any illness, skilled physicians, magnificent artistes, enlightened engineers, the list truly goes on. I guess by now you know the island to which I am referring. Yes. Atlantis is this wondrous place, a utopia on Earth. However, their successes were not their own.

Their island was raised and created by the 'Children of the Sea’. The children bestowed upon the mortals everything they could need for health and happiness. However, the greed of men is vast and it was never enough. With an intelligence beyond their time, they wanted more. 

That was when a beautiful, magical child of the sea was deceived, manipulated and captured, all for gain and corruption. Caged and traumatized, magic and wealth were all the men could see, not a creature so innocent and dear with feelings and a voice, and a longing for their family.  

For the Atlanteans, this was their fatal mistake. For the Children of the Sea were the children of Poseidon. The wrath of a god, the wrath of a parent, Atlantis was never to be seen again.

I wanted to give my book a ‘depths of the sea’ worn rusted look. A cover that represented its dark past, but showed hints of the prize and beauty it would have once been. 

I hope you enjoyed my little snippet of the magical story behind the creation of this journal. I love stories and usually, the darker and murkier the better! And isn’t it the perfect time year for them too! 

You can learn how Georgie constructed this treasure by visiting the Snapguide tutorial she constructed for all of you!

Relics & Artifacts Coquille
Relics & Artifacts Milagros
VerDay Paint Kit
Ranger Ink book corners by Tim Holtz
Dusty Attic chipboard (Scroll #6/small, ornate pendants #4)
Faber Castell PITT Big Brush Artist Pen (Brown)
Black Gesso
Gloss Gel
Metallic Acrylic Paint
Lines Long John Silver
Round Beads, non-drilled
 

"Explore the Possibilities" with RELICS & ARTIFACTS® and ICE Resin®

Hello!  Hello!  We have a BRAND NEW challenge for all of you Relics & Artifacts® fanatics out there!  Your next mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to stretch your creative muscles, broaden those artistic horizons, and get down and dirty with resin!  

Since we now carry Susan Lenart-Kazmer's renowned Ice Resin®, what better way to welcome this brand new product into our creative folds than showing us what magic you can work.  Pair together this jeweler's grade resin with any Relics & Artifacts® resin piece and upload it to The Tribe on Facebook.  Please be sure to label your photo with #RAExplorethePossibilites in order for it to be considered for the prize.  

Prize?  Wait what?!  Yes!  There are prizes for first and second place and these prizes are way more than just bragging rights, though those are equally awesome too.  This round of prizes will include product from both RELICS & ARTIFACTS® and Ranger!  Totally awesome, I know.  

One more little thing to keep in mind.  Please be mindful of copyright etiquette.  Replications of any part of Relics & Artifacts® line or packaging are not only unallowable, it's also extremely uncool.  Please be careful to observe and adhere to copyright standards and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask any of the Ambassadors or Relics & Artifacts® Powers That Be.

Good luck and don't forget that hashtag, #RAExplorethePossibilities, when uploading your project!