Getting to Know a.c.e.o

Pirate Ship by jenbaardsen

The term ACEO can be a mysterious one to those just entering, or investigating, the world of Etsy. My sister was the one to introduce me to the concept, long before joining and opening my own shop, as an interesting exercise. I like a teeny tiny canvas, and these little guys are baseball card size, 2.5" x 3.5".

I have started keeping ACEOs in the shop regularly (or, as regularly as possible) since bringing them back in a big way for Valentine's Day, so I thought I would go through a refresher course on the blog. The images here are from other artists on Etsy and Flickr, through searches under atc ("Art Trading Card", aceo, and stitched aceo. I've created links under the respective pieces and encourage you to visit these wonderful shops!

Mini-Monster 13 by the ever-illustrious benconservato

A lot of people (just doing a search... a *lot* of people) on Etsy sell ACEO as digital prints. Because of this, and probably because "original" is therefore a loose term, prices vary wildly between $2.50 and over $20.00 for both reproductions and original art. ACEO stands for "Art Cards, Editions, and Originals" so a digital print can fall into the "Editions" category. There are some really beautiful digital works out there, but if you're overwhelmed by a search narrow the parameters by knowing which you are looking for, or try out other keywords such as "sewn" "photoshop" "collage" "watercolor" or "handmade". I also tag my original drawings "OOAK" meaning "One of a Kind" so there are numerous ways to narrow down a search.

Seashore 27 by hmsdesign

I think ACEOs are one of the mediums which truly set Etsy apart as a handmade, homemade marketplace and bridge the gap between "craft" and "art". Small, affordable, and often collected by those interested in emerging or established artists alike, these "trading cards" are almost whimsical in nature, like a secret society of original art lovers. I try and keep my own editions simple, precious, scratchy and true to the nature of pen & ink as I see it. I love the thought of these as character vignettes, and can see those same intentions in other artists using this canvas size to investigate ideas.

Take a look around at some of the remarkable variety in the world of ACEO!

some endings, some beginnings

Oh what a crunch, getting everything into the shop before Valentine's day! How is it going with all of you? I hope everybody is having a good week, and looking forward to tomorrow's historic inauguration.

Yesterday was Sunday, and on Sundays I like to take advantage of the slow and quiet nature of the day~ going into work hours early (I'm a weekend worker) to paint and draw. These are leisurely hours with a whole building to myself, and one of the more anticipated parts of my week. I usually camp out in the printmaking studio, or in the back at the Production desk, listening to music and slowly nursing my coffee. After a little reading or doodling, this week it was straight into painting, those final touches on the originals I've been posting about these days. Finally finished!

Tea 2

Today was much more focused on home & Etsy. I finished all the painting I'll be doing for the next couple of weeks and took tons and tons of photos. Although it is windy and blustery here, we are still enjoying days of sunshine. From there is was hours of fun-filled photo editing, breaking up the monotony with some cleaning & organizing of the house. From there it was packaging the rest of my outstanding orders and posting my framed pieces! All of this as a build-up to tomorrow, my last day before vacation.

In order to make sure I'm still able to fulfill orders within the 3-5 business days I've promised in my Shipping section, I have decided to go on Vacation Mode for this time:

Wednesday January 21st to Friday January 23rd

Just a small string of days, and by its end I will still be in MA and can figure out at that time if I should wait out the remainder of my own vacation or open back up.

In this, my first year in Portland, it has been 8 months of moving (three times now!) ,transition, new friends and new family. Leaving for Massachusetts kicks off the end of yet another chapter in those months and the beginning of an all new adventure once we get back. I'm really looking forward to the upcoming months where I intend to~

1. get myself a studio space in our new home
2. learn letterpress and hopefully new skills in silkscreening
3. explore the state of Oregon and take a trip to California, too
4. grow some potted plants (oh how I miss you)
5. get back into reading, knitting, sewing and *cooking*!
6. begin serious work in freelance illustration

...and that makes up for not having posted a New Year * New Leaf post here on the blog. I'll be home with my family in a matter of days, catching up on all of the changes my nephews have gone through in the last month (the words "crawing" and "teething" and "laughing" are still too hard to believe). It has been heartwarming spending the last months in the company of the R Family, being a part of their day to day pattern of living. I'm so completely grateful for all of the help and friendship they have shown and all the new friends I've made in this exciting new city. A break will be good, seeing family will be great, and then taking the next steps into becoming established in Portland will be all the beter with these sweet people in my heart.

Thank you friends, thank you readers, thank you Etsy, and happy new year.

"Two of a Kind" Valentine

Here in the Pacific Northwest we are under a thick fog, the low-lying clouds of winter's constant rain. I moved here for this, an ongoing rainy day that grows moss on all the stone and wood around town, the incredible moody mountain vistas that slowly fade in and out of view on afternoons like today. I love days like this, even though it is a challenge to find the right situation for taking pictures, and have enjoyed spending much of my day off walking about.

After my scenic voyages, I've been finishing some touches on the smallest set of Valentines. These are all original pen and ink drawings using pencil and MicronPigma 005 pens. I am drawing them all (there will be more sizes later) on Arturo stationary, an Italian paper with a nice watercolor-type tooth to it. They come with envelopes, so I'm not quite sure what to classify them under on Etsy, they're in now as ACEO. An ACEO is a small collectible original art card. I'll release the next size up as cards, and the larger will be in art as paintings.

Yes~ this means there are many more to come!
Gosh, I do love this job. :)