T R Gates Art

Watercolor Seahorse

2019-03-29T11:03:00.000-04:00

Working with watercolors and digital painting. This is one of the sea life paintings I've put up on Zazzle. It can be customized for other phone cases just by clicking on the link and going there. As of now, customizing is only for some iPhone and Samsung Galaxy versions.

Watercolor Seahorse iPhone XR Case
by trgatesart

2019-01-09T11:32:00.003-05:00

It's 2019! I hope this year brings plenty of hope and happiness for all.

Snowflakes fall outside my window right now in New York. Only a couple weeks ago I played with the wood storks and ibises in the Florida sun.

Young wood stork and ibises. Very friendly birds.

My husband and I try to visit his father in Florida every year. While there, we usually find something, or some place, we haven't gone to before. This time Brett found a Tandy Leather store in Tampa. Even though I've bought from them online and have been to Syracuse many times, I'd yet to visit any of the physical stores until now.

Tandy Leather Factory in Tampa, Florida

I should have taken more photos. The store has shelves of tools, findings, dyes, and more not shown here. Let me tell you, Home Depot is my husband's candy store. Tandy leather is mine. I'll have to check out the one in Syracuse next time I'm in the area.

On the way to Tampa, I told myself I was just going to buy the vegetable tanned leather I needed for a few projects. And I was good, after taking my time to look at almost everything and making a mental list of items I'll eventually buy, I only bought the 4-5 oz. Veg. Tan. But, it was superior oak. Splurged a little for the better stuff. Hey, I'm a gold member and it was on sale. Even better! As I was leaving, Brett insisted I get more as his Christmas present for me. I ended up with a nice double shoulder veg. Tan that was on manager special. It was nice to be able to pick out the leather myself. More leather projects for me. Yay!

Wishing all of you a great and productive new year!

-Trace

Tormented Mind Sanctuary at the Oakdale Mall

2018-09-28T10:07:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday, my daughter, Kirstin, and I were among the many craft and yard sale vendors set up in front of the shops at the Oakdale Mall in Johnson City, NY. This was our first time selling at the Garage & Craft sale. Most of the craft vendors were spread out from the middle to the end by Payless. Meanwhile, the garage sale vendors filled up the other side of the mall.

Set up near GNC and Verizon, our tables were a mixture of Kirstin and her husband, Josh, handmade items and my own.

Kirstin and Josh from Tormented Mind Sanctuary just finished setting up as people were starting to come in the mall.

Kirstin's main and the best seller at our tables were her handmade miniature notebooks. The covers, made from commonly found trading cards, caught the eye of both children and adults alike. She also had earrings and necklaces she made from comic books. Plus magnets made with all of ours and my other daughter's, Megan, art.

One of Kirstin's notebooks using a trading card. (Don't worry. None of the hard to find, or expensive ones were used.)

For this craft sale, I brought some of my leather pouches, earrings, witch hats, bookmarks, and leather phone cord wraps. It's always a guess of what might sell well depending on the craft show, or Con. While people fingered through the cord wraps, no one bought any this time. Same with the witch hats. But the jewerly, leather pouches, and bookmarks did well. Some of the leather earrings I made the night before sold quickly.

We try to bring extra when we sell. Hands on people are expected. There's always that individual who will pick up a notebook and bend the cover out of shape before deciding not to buy it. Or try to stretch out a pouch and sniff it to make sure it's actual leather. We did get some of the usual, “I can make that,” comments. Face it, all crafters and artists hear that. One person took a bunch of pictures and notes. I don't know for what though. While another woman stopped to go through her purse as she set it on top of my witch hats as if it didn't matter.

Still, most of the people, sellers and buyers, were nice and friendly. Such a mixture of vendors. I didn't see anyone selling the same type items other than jewelry. Even that had a big variety. I would have liked to look around at other tables more, but the mall grew crowded. More so towards the end of the event. We had a lot people come to our table.

I'm sure we'll do this again next year. It's local, which makes it far easier to go. I know what I'd take to sell that would do better. The only artwork I brought were on the magnets and bookmarks. A few people wanted to see my actual paintings and prints. I think my leather purses would have done well here too.

There's always next time.

-Trace

P.S. Bare with me. I know it's been a while since I've posted. There is more to come.

First Time in Gallery Show

2018-01-10T13:06:00.000-05:00

This past Friday I attended Scott Church's 11th Annual Legacy Show. My first time, really. First time going to a photography show away from home. Plus, the first time having my work included in the gallery along with 100+ photographers.

Me before my three bird prints. The branch one on the left is my daughter's, Kirstin Renee.

My husband and my daughter talked me into it. The second of which also hung her photography in the show.

Kirstin in front of her print titled, "Endicott".

At first, I thought my photos were out of place. Most framed prints were of models, many nudes, in various poses and surroundings. Scattered here and there were landscape and concept photos. Unless I missed something, mine were the only wildlife images. I felt better when the crowd started coming in and there was some real interest in my photography. Especially, my eagle photo. A spur of the moment addition since I took the photo only a few days before. Hey, I had a great model for that one. He wasn't at all shy about a camera.

I'll admit I could have done better. In my social skills, that is. Kirstin jumped right in whenever she saw someone taking an interest in our work. She had no problems striking up a conversation. I felt like I was out of my element. I'm used to being a behind the scenes artist. The photography scene is new to me. I have lots to learn. It seemed like most photographers and models knew each other and, for the most part, stuck together. Even so, most who stopped to talk were nice. A few other first timers talked with us. So did a few who've been a part of the past shows.

There was one person though (and it seems there's always at least one), who was pretty vocal.

"Amateur, amateur, amateur..." he said as he went down the line pointing at every photo. "You see, they put all the professionals downstairs and the amateurs up here." Is what he said to his companion. As I understood it, they put the first ones there downstairs and had to eventually move upstairs too. Obviously, close friends, and such, were going to be put on the 1st floor. Either way, he seemed awfully rude as he did this in front of the photographers. It was unnecessary and in poor taste.

All in all, it was an interesting night and it was great to be included. If asked, I'd probably do it again. Being more prepared the next time.

--Trace

Wishing All Who Celebrate

2015-12-24T18:25:00.004-05:00

Magical Birthday Gift for a Harry Potter Fan

2015-09-21T09:00:00.000-04:00

A handmade birthday gift for our daughter. Hufflepuff journal and box.

My daughter is a fan girl of... Well, a lot of things. Harry Potter is one of her long time favorites. It started when her grandmother brought home the first book (before any talk of a movie). Then took off from there.

My husband and I wanted to do something handmade for her birthday this year. Some of the hardest things to find for the Harry Potter universe are items with Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw on them. (Although, I hear that's starting to change.) And, since she found out she'd be put into Hufflepuff according to "Pottermore", and she loves to write, we thought we'd make something along those lines.

This is what we came up with, inspired by Harry Potter.

It started with the journal. This was my part of the gift.

Hand sewn pages with crest symbol.

Hand sewn pages and dyed leather. Hand carved and painted crest on the front. Two loops on the sides hold a pen and keeps the journal closed when not in use. It came out better than I imagined.

A lot of detail work here. Hand carved, painted and sealed. The detail part took the longest.

Once my husband saw the journal, he wanted to make something nice to put it in.


My husband's part of the gift. Beautiful box for the journal.

The box is made from wood we salvaged from our favorite piano. We loved that piano, but weren't able to save it after it had been ruined by a flood. My husband thought our daughter might like knowing where the wood came from.

Brass hinges add a nice touch.

He burned in the lettering. Then stained it with ebony stain and sealed it. Adding brass hinges as a final touch. I think it came out great!

So did our daughter. She loved it. Loved it even more to know the wood was from the piano. She never knew we saved any of it. We're glad she approves.

Not sure what my next project should be, but my husband seems to be in the process of making Thor's Hammer for a Halloween prop. Oh boy!

-Trace

2015-08-29T16:02:00.000-04:00

I'm an artist. What does that mean? Well, anything, really. I love to create. Paintings, plaster, leather, metal, fabric... You name it, I've probably tried it. If I haven't, I most likely will want to at some point. I love learning and experimenting with different mediums and techniques. When I get bored with one, I move on to another. Yet, eventually, I'll return to a previous technique, or material to start all over again.

Of course, this means I have a studio full of crafty supplies. Which in turn means I have too much supplies and too little space. It's hard to toss out even the tiniest of scraps. Hey, it happens with crafty, artsy people. I suppose you could call us hoarders, but at least we find a use for everything. Eventually.

Don't laugh, or scoff. It's true. I swear!

With some left over scraps, I made this:

Genuine Leather Handmade Purse

I made my sister one first for her birthday. She loved it. So did family, friends, and her co-workers. The orders started coming in. It's large enough for a small wallet, keys, and a good sized cell phone (my Galaxy S4 fits well in it with ample space).

Nice, huh?

Okay. So, I mentioned I use even the tiniest scrap. Here's what I came up with for small leather pieces.

Genuine Leather and Hematite Earrings


Genuine Leather and Glass Bead Earrings

Genuine Leather and Natural Shell earrings

The possibilities are endless! Good thing I don't seem to have an end to left over scraps. Well, it's sort of good. These things didn't put a dent into my crowded craft room. *sigh* But, I sure had fun creating them.

Like the earrings? They're for sale at my Etsy Shop at: https://www.etsy.com/shop/trgatesart
Or, click on the photos and they should lead you directly to the sales page.

You can look for purse listings to show up soon too. Along with other crafty things.

- Trace

Via ART I can T-Shirt Via ART I can create Anything! PixieLed

2015-08-05T06:49:00.001-04:00

Via ART I can T-Shirt Via ART I can create Anything! PixieLed

HOLIDAY2014

2014-12-11T10:13:00.000-05:00

Save 15% off $10, or more from my Etsy shop at: http://trgatesart.cafepress.com. Use code: HOLIDAY2014 at checkout. Offer ends 12/25/2014.

Wishing everyone a happy holiday season!

-Trace

Halloween Fabric

2014-09-18T13:49:00.001-04:00

Halloween Candy Corny by TRGatesArt

These are some of Halloween my designs available on fabric through Spoonflower.

Excuse the wrinkles in some. Also, the colors from the camera seem muted online for some reason. Each of these designs can be printed on the many different kind of fabrics offered through Spoonflower.

In the photos:

"Halloween Candy Corny" and "Halloween Pumpkin Faces" were printed on Premium Quilting Weight Kona 100% cotton.

"Halloween Spooky Tree" was printed on Eco Canvas, 100% polyester canvas with 45% recycled content.

"Halloween Spooky Moon" was printed on Performance Piqué. This is 100% polyester fabric with moisture-wicking, soil release finish. There is a 50% cross-grain stretch with this fabric. It's silky and somewhat shiny.

Halloween Pumpkin Faces

Halloween Spooky Moon

Halloween Spooky Tree

In order to be sure you'll get these in time for Halloween, you'll need to order at least 2 weeks ahead of time through my Spoonflower shop at:

http://www.spoonflower.com/profiles/trgatesart

--Trace

Getting into the Halloween Spirit

2014-09-17T13:43:00.000-04:00

Ghostly Earrings by TRGatesArt

Yes, I know. It's still September. We haven't reached the first day of Autumn yet, even if we are having 40°F in the morning and 70°F in the afternoon. But, don't tell that to my daughter. She's almost finished making costumes for her family with the sewing machine my husband and I bought her for her birthday.

Still, I thought I should get a jump start on my Halloween crafts before the season sweeps on by like it did last year and the year before.

I love earrings, but don't really have any Halloween ones other than a pair of black widow spiders I bought years ago. So, I got out my polymer clay and made some ghost and pumpkin earrings.

They came out so cute, I made more.


Great Pumpkin Earrings by TRGatesArt

These are made from polymer clay. Then sealed and shined with Renaissance wax. The Ghost earrings have black hooks, while the pumpkins have copper hooks. The hooks can be exchanged for silver toned, or gold toned clip-ons if preferred.

Both pairs are up for sale for $12 (plus S&H) each in my online shop at: trgatesart.etsy.com

Look for more fall items to be listed soon. Hey, it's never too early for Halloween! ☺

-- Trace

Delight Bird Mug Rug

2013-07-31T08:56:00.000-04:00

A rug for your mug and a snack. Genius!

Have you heard of Mug Rugs? I hadn't, until recently. They're bigger than a drink coaster, but smaller than a placemat. Mug rugs are the perfect size to rest a teacup, or mug and a snack on them. Cleanup is easy since most are machine washable. I like the idea of having these for when my granddaughters come over and have snack time.

Best of all, they're a great way to use up my mound of fabric scraps. Okay, I confess. It's now more of a mountain. Everest comes to mind. I can't see throwing away any piece of fabric. It seems so wasteful when I can use it down to an inch in size. That being so, I need more projects in order to get that mountain back to mound status.

So, pictured above is my first mug rug. It measures 6" x 10". I just love the bird fabric. It's background is covered in words of encouragement.

Words of encouragement grace this lovely fabric.

The fabric is 100% cotton. There is a top layer, batting in between and a bottom layer that matches the denim patterned fabric on the top. For a little more detail, I made an applique similar to the printed bird and placed it on the right.

A little close-up of the applique bird.

This was a lot of fun to make. I have plenty of ideas for more.

Delight Bird Mug Rug by trgatesart. 6"x10"

If you're interested in the Mug Rug in this post, Click Here to visit my Etsy shop. More Mug Rugs are on the way!

Painted Silk Scarf

2013-07-19T11:09:00.001-04:00

8"x50" Silk Scarf painted with Dye-Na-Flow

Recently, I started working with silk and Dye-Na-Flow fabric paint. Don't ask me how I got into working with silk. My original intent was to make my own fabric designs for Christmas presents. That turned into making stuff for my TRGatesArt on Spoonflower shop (of which I had forgotten about for a while). To buying ready made fabric to go through my printer. To ordering Bubble Jet Set and rinse to make my own fabric to go through the printer. Finally, to painting on silk.

Okay, there was a few more steps in between. One of the ready made printer fabrics I bought was silk. While I waited for the Bubble Jet Set to come in the mail for the muslin I had on hand, I was so impressed by the ready made printer silk that I decided to buy a few yards of Habotai silk as well. It's thin and economical, yet fun to try things out on before going to anything more expensive.

Of course, the site I found the reasonably priced silk on happened to have loads of information on dying and painting on all types of fabric. On impulse, I bought the Jaquard Dye-Na-Flow mini starter set. These are tiny 1/2 ounce trial sized bottles. I wasn't sure they'd be enough, but turns out they're concentrated. I've made two scarves and still have plenty left.

Dye-Na-Flow are paints, but they work and feel a lot like dye. I chose them because most of the other dyes and such used on silk required steaming. These watery paints work by letting them dry, then heat setting with an iron, or dryer. Finally, washing and letting dry to make permanent.

Painted hand sewn rolled hem silk scarf

The painting process was short and sweet. In fact, the longest part of making the scarf was in the waiting for 24 hours before heat setting it with an iron. Second longest was in making the hand rolled hem, which took me a few hours since it was my first time and the phone kept ringing. The painting itself took less than ten minutes. With this scarf, all I did was lightly wet the silk, then mixed a few drops of the paint with water and dabbed on with a sponge brush. I wanted some white to show through, so left some areas as is. I also sprinkled on some Epson salt here and there to give more texture to it. I left the scarf on a plastic bag that had been taped to a folding table and let it dry in the warm sun (took less than 30 minutes). Then I carefully rubbed off the salt and let it sit for the 24 hours recommended, iron set and then hand washed it.

True, some of the color came out in the final washing, but not much. It's still bright. I have another one I'm working on using the sun painting technique. It looks lovely so far. Unfortunately, I forgot to hem it first. So, I may have to re-dye the edges and thread once I do. But hey, it's all a learning experience. Right?


Silk scarf by trgatesart

Sunday Photography - Bluejays

2012-06-11T11:20:00.000-04:00

Finally, I was able to go outside and play with my camera this weekend. While I wasn't fast enough to catch photos of a hummingbird in between all the goings on, I was able to get photos of a couple bluejays.

At first, they were shy. Unlike the sparrows and grackles, the bluejays kept to the trees while I filled the bird feeders and tossed peanuts here and there. I don't blame them. The length of the 70-300mm camera lens when it was fully extended probably seemed as if I was trying to shoot something at them, rather than take a photo. But by Sunday, although still cautious, they came down more often while I was in the yard. One showed plenty of curiosity of what I was doing.

I have plenty of photos to use as reference for eventual paintings. I think some would be great as they are for prints and cards. The first on this page is one such photo.

Here's another:

I don't know if I'd count myself a great photographer yet. I'm sure I have a long way to go. I do know that I was bored of taking photos of birds sitting on the ground, or feeders. So, I'm playing with camera settings to get better shots of birds in flight. I thought I might need a longer lens, especially for smaller birds like sparrows and chickadees. Too expensive. For now, I'll just have to get in a little closer.

What ever your thoughts on bluejays, I think they make wonderful photo and paint subjects. Don't you?

Hug Your Dragon

2012-05-02T13:49:00.004-04:00

Hug Your Monster Dragon Plate by trgatesart
More Dragon Plates

Imagined Reality

2012-05-02T12:41:00.000-04:00

I finally got around to putting up the drawing of a dragon and black capped chickadee as fine art prints, canvas and cards. A friend suggested that I give the chickadee a little color to better set it apart from the dragon. I think she was right. Original drawing was graphite on sketch paper. Then I scanned it and digitally enhanced it.

Click on the photo to go to the print purchase page.

-Trace

Beauty in Bloom

2012-04-30T08:57:00.000-04:00

Daisies are one of my favorite types of flowers. They have a way of brightening up a room, adding cheer, and simply bringing a smile. It doesn't hurt that it is also the flower for the month my grandfather, my granddaughter and I were born.

As it turns out, my daughter brought me daisies for my birthday. The tips had colors of pinks, blues, purples and yellow. I had to get photos of them (and, of course, play with my new macro lenses). Beauty in Bloom is an example of one of the fantastic images. Now that Spring is here, I hope to get plenty more flower photos and include a painting, or two.

Prints and greeting cards for "Beauty in Bloom" are available at:

Tracey R Gates - Fine Art

-Trace

Peaceful Morning

2012-04-17T09:23:00.003-04:00

Last week we took a trip to Florida. Saw lots of beautiful places and wonderful wildlife. Of course, I took lots of photos! Here is a digital art I made of a heron soaring over the Anclote River.
Much more photos and art to come.

-Trace

Fine Art America Prints Part 1

2012-03-01T16:13:00.000-05:00

I few posts back I mentioned opening an account at Fine Art America and adding some of my art to be made into prints and canvas. Last Friday, I ordered four prints - two of my "Sharing with a Friend" painting and two of my "Magical Moonlight" painting. All in varying sizes and papers.

Even though on the site it said that all four would be shipped rolled in a tube, they arrived today in a large, flat box (which I prefer). Shipping for all of this was around $13 USD through FedEx. Each print was separated from the other with wax paper. The entire group protected by two pieces of thick cardboard taped together, another piece of cardboard securing them and all of this wrapped in enough bubble wrap to secure it in the box. Yes, my prints were well packaged.

I decided to buy two prints, 9" x 12", on glossy canvas. I chose rolled canvas rather than having it stretched on wooden bars. While they also sell frames and mats for your prints and canvas, I decided against having this done this time around.

Here are photos of the 9" x 12" canvas prints:

"Sharing with a Friend" on glossy canvas.

Close up of "Sharing with a Friend" on glossy canvas.

"Magical Moonlight" on glossy canvas.

As you can see, they both came with a wide white border. I have to say I like the texture of the canvas. Both prints came out very close on color to the original. Magical Moonlight measures exactly 9" x 12" (not including the white border) and because of it being digital art on canvas, seems slightly softer than the original. Sharing with a Friend measures near 9.5" by 12" (excluding white border) due to uploading it at an unusual size. The over all print is vibrant.

Continue on to Part 2...

Fine Art America Prints Part 2

2012-03-01T16:12:00.000-05:00

Since "Sharing with a Friend" was originally created with watercolors on illustration board, I decided to order a print of it on watercolor paper at the same size as the original.

"Sharing with a Friend" 11" x 14" print on watercolor paper

As you can see in the photo, this is a stiffer paper with a little curl, which can be remedied by putting it behind a mat, or glass. Of the two prints I bought for this artwork, I like this one the most. It is near identical to the original, slightly brighter, but with the added watercolor paper texture (as seen in the close up below). The details are clear and crisp. I'm highly pleased with how this one turned out.

Close up of "Sharing with a Friend" print on watercolor paper.

Last, but definitely not least, is the second print of Magical Moonlight. This one came out so beautiful. The photos of it do not do it justice.

"Magical Moonlight" 16" x 12" on Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper.

It was printed on Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper. The colors are rich, vivid. The paper itself is extra glossy. The moon and fairy dust really stand out. I'd say they almost glow. You can't tell by my photo, but the whites are brilliantly white. It's really a beautiful print. This one is my favorite of all four print papers/canvas.

All in all, I'm impressed by the prints by Fine Art America and feel they are a great option for prints. I plan to try out their acrylic prints and gallery wrap canvas soon. I encourage artists - traditional, digital, photography - to try them. As long as you have a high resolution photo of your art you won't be disappointed.

While you're at it, please check out my artwork through them at: Tracey R Gates Fine Art

-Trace

Return to Part 1

Check Out These Talented Artists

2012-02-25T16:57:00.002-05:00

Birds was this month's theme for the Art & Artists group on Facebook. Please take a look at these beautiful artwork and talented artists.

http://apps.theartbus.net/Gallery/album.cfm?a=18472

If that gallery doesn't work, you can also go here:

https://plus.google.com/photos/104598321351957519348/albums/5712877992402186193

Thank you to Tracy Klatke at Make Do for putting these galleries together.

-Trace

Mystical Sky

2012-02-25T09:49:00.001-05:00

Just after Christmas I decided to buy a new camera. My point-and-shoot camera (an Olympus SP-590UZ) was good, but I wanted better control, the ability to change lenses, and larger megapixels for taking photos of my artwork for prints. After looking at the specs. between a Canon Rebel T3i 600D and a Nikon D5100, I decided on the Canon Rebel.

While it's true that it's not the camera, but the photographer, that determines a photos outcome, it sure doesn't hurt to have a good one from the start. I love it and am thrilled to find many tutorials online that help me discover the photographer in me. Can't wait to use it when we go to Florida again this Spring. It already was worth the price for how clear the photos came out for some of my fantasy paintings.

Look at this photo art of my darling granddaughter, Emma.

I did this with a 18-55mm lens with settings to focus on her and make everything else around her slightly blurred. The room was dark with one lamp on. The only change I made in my software was to shrink the size. Not too bad for one of my first tries with the camera. Of course, it helps to have a good subject to photograph.

A couple days ago I stumbled across a forum discussion about HDR (High Dynamic Range). Another thing I bought around last Christmas was Paintshop Pro X4. I've been a big fan of Paintshop since version 5 while it was still created by Jasc. Yet, I didn't realize there was HDR on some of the other versions I owned until running across the discussion. It piqued my interest.

So, I just had to go outside, in the 30 degree weather, and test out my camera's functions for this. As what seems to be the usual now for this time of year in upstate New York, we had grey skies. My fingers were freezing, but I was able to get a few nice photos of the clouds with a hint of sun using the Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB) setting. [Note: It's not a good idea to aim your camera directly at the sun. For the safety of the camera and your own eyes.] AEB on the T3i takes three photos of the same shot, but with different exposures ranging from underexposed, normal, and overexposed. One will be full of detail, but not enough light. Another will have plenty of light/brightness, but not much in the way of detail. Then there is the normal shot in between that is a mixture of both.

Once I had the photos I wanted, I transferred them to my computer and opened up PSP. Without going into full details since there are tutorials for this all over the internet, I opened the photos under HDR, merged them, and played with the different settings until I found an image I liked. I also added a little bit more color to it to make it more painterly... Artsy.

The result is the "Mystical Sky" clouds digital art you see at the beginning of this post. It's probably a bit simple and not what HDR experts would be excited about, but I like it and am planning to get a print of experimental photography art to put on my wall.

My first love is traditional pencil, watercolor and acrylic art, but I also enjoy photography and see it as an add on to my artistic creativity.

- Trace

Red Haze Painting

2012-02-22T16:03:00.001-05:00

My newest abstract art painting. Acrylic on 16" x 20" gallery wrapped canvas. Textured with colors of yellow, red, orange and brown. The original is also for sale through the Fine Art America link. $150.00

At the Dock - Prints

2012-02-16T12:23:00.000-05:00

Fine art prints are now available for my painting, "At the Dock", at: Tracey R Gates Fine Art (http://tracey-r-gates.artistwebsites.com/featured/at-the-dock-tracey-r-gates.html).

Fine Art Prints

2012-02-16T10:40:00.001-05:00

In an artist group that I'm part of I recently asked about printers. Specifically, home printers that can handle heavier paper than photo, such as inkjet canvas, or fine art paper. My reason for this is that I'd like to have more control over prints of my artwork. To make sure that the colors in the print matches to the colors in my original artwork before selling to a client. Not only that, but sometimes I put my art on fabric and add it to some of my sewing designs, but the printer I have now tends to jam.

Before I knew it, my original post turned into a long discussion from fellow artists about whether, or not it is cost worthy to do the printing yourself, or to have someone else do it for you. Not exactly what I was asking. I seem to run into this more than not when I think I have a simple question. So, I'm still on the hunt for the perfect professional printer that will do what I want without breaking the bank.

In the meantime, I've set up some of my art for prints through professional printers. (Thank you, Abril Andrade Griffith). You'll find art prints, acrylic prints, framed and canvas prints of some of my artwork and nature photos at Tracey R Gates Fine Art ( http://tracey-r-gates.artistwebsites.com/). Including the bird bath photo above.