Carnival of the Creators

Welcome to the very first edition of the Carnival of the Creators, a weekly round-up of blog posts with a creative theme. Each week the carnival is hosted at a different blog and will feature blog posts by or about people who create things - artists, writers, craftspeople......

Lets start by visiting another blog carnival, Storyblogging Carnival XXXVIII, hosted this week at Tales by Sheya. Storyblogging consists of storytelling in blog format. It may be as simple as posting short stories on a blog, serialising a book, or as intricate as blogging as a fictional persona.

Next, the carnival stops at two jewelry maker's blogs. Cyndi Lavin of Mazel Tov! Jewelry gives instructions for making a freeform neckpiece on a sterling silver armature. Meanwhile, over on Indigoskye Bead Fashions, Wendy Van Camp explains the beauty and benefits of Argentium Sterling Silver.

Luann Udell gets down to business and talks about the artist's fear of having their designs copied. Her answer is to Get Ahead and Stay There.

On an equally business-like theme, Edward Winkleman blogs about the current state of collecting art. He discusses one collector who thinks that collecting is an art in it's own right. Edward believes that collectors need to spend more time getting to know artists, and that they should find new ways to open a dialog with artists. He suggests that starting a blog is one option.

For those who like to dress well, this article about the crafting of bespoke shirts is an interesting read. It is by Thomas Mahon, bespoke Savile Row tailor who writes in his blog, English Cut.

It is always interesting to read about how people find their paths in life. Xanthe has posted an article about her experiences with art as a child. Laughed at by her peers, her teacher had some words of encouragement and now Xanthe declares "I Am an Artist". She now makes books and says she has her own special way of looking at things. Elsewhere, Leslie Shelor tells us how her grandmother's spinning wheel and three rabbits helped her start her business, Greenberry House.

It's always nice to see someone using their art in aid of a good cause, especially an environmental one, so over on Acres Wild I talk about Sarah Harmer's song, Escarpment Blues.

And that is a fitting place to end, because next weeks Carnival of the Creators will be hosted at Acres Wild. If you have written or read a blog post you would like to see included, you can do so with this nomination form. I also desperately need volunteers to host forthcoming editions of the carnival on their blog. It's a great way to get links, new readers and make new friends.

Technorati tags: art, craft, blogs, carnival, Carnival of the Creators, environment, jewelry, Sarah Harmer, bespoke, artist.

All about Derek

Many of the visitors to my studio or craft-show booth want to know what I did before I started woodturning. Now my blog readers can learn a little about me by taking a look at the lens I made about myself at Squidoo.com:

Squidoo : Derek Andrews, woodturner