Arts and Crafts Articles

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Philadelphia Tivoli @ Tuesday, 4th December 2007 @ 3:58 AM

Face painting children is probably one of the most challenging yet rewarding tasks out there. Despite being a tiresome task especially for overly enthusiastic kids who can't wait to see the finish product, face painting children can help you gain patience and skill in doing the artwork quickly. In face painting children, major considerations should be identified in order to avoid the possibility of accidents and allergic reactions. If you are face painting children, in a par... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Philadelphia Tivoli @ Tuesday, 27th November 2007 @ 12:46 AM

One of the secrets to a successful and fun birthday party for kids is face painting. This is because the birthday child as well as the guests can enjoy mimicking a different person, character, or personality through different face paint designs. If you are a parent, you can surprise your child's birthday party with a face painting session. But, instead of hiring somebody to do it and spend extra $200 for an hour or more, why don't you learn the craft on your own? Daunti... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Vicki Churchill @ Sunday, 25th November 2007 @ 4:58 PM

Embellishments are a great way to accessorise your scrapbook page layouts however buying them ready made can be extremely costly. Using your scrapbooking tools you can easily and effectively create your own free embellishments at a fraction of the cost. Adding tags to your pages is one of the most popular ways of entering details of the event in question. You can make your own scrapbook tags from scraps of card and accessorize it using paper clips, punches, glitter and scraps of paper th... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Vicki Churchill @ Sunday, 25th November 2007 @ 4:58 PM

I thought it would be a great scrapbook idea to make a page layout of a day I spent with my family on a local farm. I had the wonderful picture of a cow and really wanted some cow print scrapbook paper as the background. Despite searching through my scrapbook supplies and visiting numerous scrapbook stores I simply could not find anything suitable that resembled cow print scrapbook paper. I decided the easiest way was to design my own. I began by searching the internet for some images of ... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By David Urmann @ Sunday, 25th November 2007 @ 4:04 PM

A way of expressing your love or gratitude to a person is to buy a gift for him. It's a matter of great delight when you see the smile of happiness on the receivers face. It's really a wonderful feeling to experience. But sometimes this approach of buying gifts of the persons choice proves difficult as you cannot really make out what the person needs. Many a times the gifts goes in vain and all the efforts put into buying the gift seem useless. Worse than that, it's a hard... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Sunday, 25th November 2007 @ 12:05 PM

In portrait painting there is the matter of representing the human features: notably the eye, ear, nose and mouth. Of these, the easiest to do are usually the ear and the nose. The ear is a complicated thing in appearance to be sure, but excepting for its size and general set and shape there is nothing very individual about it; normally we pay little attention to the ears of even our closest friends unless there is something radically distinctive about them. For that matter, the ear is of... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Saturday, 24th November 2007 @ 11:41 PM

Let us consider color as an artist sees and uses it. Color has three main qualities: hue, value and intensity. Qualities of Color If we look at any given color analytically - the red of an apple, for instance - we discover that it possesses three outstanding characteristics or qualities. First, there is that quality by which we recognize one color from another, and which we suggest by its name. This we call "hue." The apple is red; red is the hue (name) of the color. Rememb... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Saturday, 24th November 2007 @ 10:23 PM

Unlike some teachers of watercolor, I advise students to start painting as soon as a satisfactory drawing is completed. So let's start right in with a simple explanation of value and color. Value, according to Webster, is "the relation of one part or detail in a picture to another with respect to lightness and darkness." The primary colors of the painter's palette are red, yellow, and blue. When these three are mixed in pairs, we get orange, green, and purple. To learn a... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Saturday, 24th November 2007 @ 9:28 PM

Before beginning to fashion the model, materials, tools and supplies must be collected. It is good practice to begin with only essential items, because these things have a habit of accumulating. The most useful items in the modeler's workshop are the Suppliers' Catalogs, lots of them. They reveal a wealth of information that is of untold value to the student. Modeler's Tools and Their Uses The tools listed are sufficient for the student modeler, with the exception o... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Friday, 23rd November 2007 @ 6:01 PM

The building of old-time ship models is one of the most fascinating of hobbies, the work is clean and simple, can be carried out practically anywhere by either sex, without fuss, bother or mess; the result is a picturesque reminder of the spacious days of romance and high endeavor. What stirring tales of derring do, what stupendous feats of human endurance are called forth when we recollect the names of Cabot, Columbus, Diaz, Raleigh, Drake, Frobisher, Sir Richard Grenville and the epic fight of... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jimmy Cox @ Friday, 23rd November 2007 @ 1:57 PM

There are two main types of clay used in ceramics: pottery clay and sculpture clay. Pottery clay. There are two kinds - gray stoneware and terra cotta clay - which will produce a good plastic, workable pottery clay. If both can be procured, they will increase the variety of possibilities available in decoration and colors. The stoneware clay fires a light buff and permits the use of lighter and brighter colors in glazing. The terra cotta clay fires a reddish-brown and consequently... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Christine Gierer @ Wednesday, 21st November 2007 @ 9:12 PM

Hemp jewelry making as a topic seems to have more than its fair share of expired and non-existent pages, and garbage websites that are just a bunch of computer generated links. I waded through the quagmire that is hemp jewelry making on the net and found some gems. Whether you are new to hemp jewelry making or are addicted to making hemp jewelry, you'll find these websites useful. Here's my shortlist of favorite hemp jewelry making sites, along with a caveat or two.more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Philadelphia Tivoli @ Wednesday, 21st November 2007 @ 6:34 PM

If you want to learn how to face paint, the best place to learn is inside the four corners of your home. This is because your home will provide all the comfort and accessibility of the materials that you will need. Aside from providing comfort and safety within the walls of your own abode, you don't have to worry about what the face paint looks like because nobody can see you. If you are learning how to face paint at home, there are two options available for you. The first option wo... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Philadelphia Tivoli @ Wednesday, 21st November 2007 @ 6:34 PM

Funky face paint designs is what makes face painting really a fun and enjoyable activity. Whether you are doing it as a hobby for your kids, for your friends, or making a profit out of it by doing it in different parties and gatherings, face painting is truly an inspiring, interesting, and rewarding pursuit. Aside from the skill of the face painter, face painting designs that are used during the face painting session are very important. This is because it will define the painter: his/her... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Jonathon Hardcastle @ Tuesday, 20th November 2007 @ 8:42 PM

Diamonds are one of the stones that god inspired Aaron from the Jewish history to implant on the breastplate of the high priest. It represents the month of April and planet Venus and it is very commonly known as the King of gemstones. In plain words diamond is the girl's best friend! Diamonds are believed to have divine powers that they can bestow upon the wearer. Even while you are watching diamond commercials on television you can feel the shine, the sparkle penetrate in your eyes,... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Christine Gierer @ Tuesday, 20th November 2007 @ 12:44 PM

Selling handcrafted jewelry is a competitive business in a relatively saturated market, so how do you make yourself stand out from the sea of other jewelry makers? One great marketing strategy is to have a mailing list and to actively send out mailings. Here are 9 great reasons any jewelry artist should build and nurture a mailing list. 1. To remind people that you exist. People are very busy these days, have a lot on their plate. They are very easily distracted and sidetrac... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Ralph Serpe @ Monday, 19th November 2007 @ 10:48 PM

Pastels are a wonderful medium to work with. If you are used to painting in wet mediums like oils and acrylics then you should give pastels a try. They are a very refreshing and enjoyable approach to creating art. This article will introduce you to the various pastel mediums that are available as well as touch on a few pastel panting and drawing techniques that you can incorporate into your next work of art. SOFT PASTELS Soft pastels are probably the most popular of the various pas... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Ralph Serpe @ Monday, 19th November 2007 @ 10:44 PM

Much research and experimentation has been done on color and how it can effect a persons mood and behavior. Certain colors can calm a person, while others can stimulate excitement or cheerfulness. That being said, you may want to think carefully on the type of color scheme you choose for your next painting. This article will talk about five different color schemes you can use to plan out your next painting. The tips in this article can be applied to any painting medium. Painting is all ab... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Ralph Serpe @ Monday, 19th November 2007 @ 10:44 PM

Oil paint is one of the most versatile and adaptable painting mediums in existence today. There are many techniques and effects possible with oil paint. Oil paint can be applied in thin transparent glazes or washes, or the paint can be mixed to a thick buttery consistency and applied using a painting knife. There really appears to be no end to the wonderful ways you can create art with this amazing painting medium. This article will talk about some of the many ways you can use oil paint.... more...

Hobbies » Arts and Crafts | By Ralph Serpe @ Monday, 19th November 2007 @ 10:43 PM

To accurately convey your feelings about the subject you are painting, you should learn and understand the fundamentals of oil painting like drawing, color theory, value and composition. I hope to give you a better understanding of these fundamentals in this article. This article is meant to be an introduction. You should study these topics further on your own when you have time. DRAWING Learning to draw, as a foundation for oil painting, is one of the most valuable skills a... more...