Donna B Miller

The Secret is Out: DAQ Changes Hands

I've never been very good at keeping secrets, so the past few months have been really hard for me. But the secret's out. My husband and I are excited to announce that Digital Art Quirks is now a Kentucky corporation.

When Maya formed DAQ several years ago, she had a vision of creating a home where digital artists and scrappers could gather to exchange information and ideas in a supportive environment. As the new owners of Digital Art Quirks, Barry and I are looking forward to supporting and expanding on that vision.

Barry will be handling the business end of things; my son Grant is going to helping with all things technical; and I'll still be around, functioning as the site's cheerleader.

Right now, we're in the middle of switching the site from the server in Toronto to one here in Kentucky. If you notice a few glitches in the next few weeks or so, please bear with us. We'll get all the technical issues worked out as soon as possible.

You won't be noticing many changes to the content of the site. The gallery and forums will continue to function as they have in the past. The store will remain closed until the spring, when we'll be unveiling some exciting new products of interest to artists and scrappers alike.

In the meantime, come visit us at DAQ. Join us for a challenge, browse the gallery, or just drop in to chat. I know I'm biased, but I don't think you'll find a more talented, generous or welcoming group of artists anywhere else.

Defining a Personal Artistic Style

If there's an artistic equivalent to multiple personality disorder, I must have it. I simply cannot light upon one style that defines my art. This week is a case in point. I've bounced from whimsical to dark to pretty all in the space of one week.

Just for the fun of it, I used Lorie Davison's wonderful Bouncing Brownies and Bunnies artwork for the Stock Photo Challenge at DAQ. That's a photo of willow leaves that has been manipulated to make the background.

Lorie Davison's Brownies and Bunnies kit and Talking Alpha; Ann Benjamin's Madame Butterfly; and Jofia's Diamond Rain. Stock.xchng photo by Pavel Matoušek.

I turned around a few days later and created this dark piece based on a quote by Delmore Schwartz. It was for the Digital Art Quirk's Quirkle Challenge to use a timepiece, glitter, and brushwork on a piece of digital art.

Fire photo by Joel Kingsbury and woman's portrait by cody 55 (both stock.xchng); HappyRobyn clock brush; Berna Datema Kitsch Garden frame brush; and Flerg's Popsicle glitter. Fonts are Lucida Fax and Century Gothic.

This morning, my mood had apparently stabilized and I created this soft and gentle piece for the Artarazzi Challenge.

Photo by Denise Docherty (stockx.chng); background paper from Jofia Devoe's Innocent Imagination; overlay from Something Blue Studio's; and wings from Vera Lim's A Little Magic Fairy. Fonts are Pristina and Arial Narrow.

After much thought, I've concluded that I jump from style to style because I see art as a form of play.  I get the same thrill from learning a new trick in Photoshop that I had when I opened up a brand new box of crayons when I was a small child. Looking at all those brand new spanking colors, smelling that waxy smell that can only come from a box of Crayolas, I saw nothing but possibilities. Opening up a blank canvas on my computer makes me feel six years old again.

So, how about you? Do you have a style that you call your own? Did you choose it or did it choose you? I'd love to hear about your experiences.

Of Clowns, Beauty and Winter

I haven't posted any of my work in a while, but I have been busy creating. Here are a few of my pieces from the past few weeks.

The first one is for the first ever Artarazzi Digital Art Challenge. Each week, Vron will post a challenge with a different topic. This week, the word was beauty.

Background paper and moon from Lorie Davison's Faerily Moonlit; vintage photo from Art E-Zine; stars from Weeds and Wildflowers' Believing In You; and word stamp from Nancie Rowe Jantiz.

This one is for the Quirkle Challenge at Digital Art Quirks. I'm the host, and I've asked everyone to use 1) a number or numbers, 2) the color purple; and 3) dots in their art piece. I did an ATC.

Irene Alexeeva's Altered Album paper and clothing; Kathryn Balint's Make a Fairy vintage photo; Genevieve Sass's ATC bruhses; and Rage and Blackout fonts.

Another challenge that I never miss is the Stock Photo Challenge at DAQ. This week we were asked to incorporate a picture of a snowflake into our work. I used this opportunity to do a companion piece to my Autumn Girl piece. It looks like I'm halfway through a series.

All photos from stock.xhchng. Girl by greyman; snowflake by ManuM; and ice texture by xanderalex. Background paper and snowflake overlay from Flerg's Ice Storm; and additional overlay from Lie Fhung's Lumoz Whimsy.

We Have a Winner

Thanks to all of you who stopped by my Open House yesterday. I put everyone's name in a hat (actually, it was a Rudofph bag) and my son pulled out a winner. And the winner is.... Janet!

Congrats, Janet. A copy of Patti Digh's "Life is a Verb" will be on its way to you soon.

My Virtual Open House

Over at Digital Art Quirks, we've been chatting about our Christmas traditions and our plans for the holiday. When Laurel and Bev asked to see my decorations, I decided to hold a virtual open house and invite all my cyber friends. After you've looked around, tell me about one of your favorite Christmas decorations for a chance to win Patti Digh's wonderful book "Life is a Verb."

Come on in...

Here's my living room, complete with a roaring fire.

 

Here's a close-up of the garland on the fireplace. It's a knock-off of Frontgate's $429 garland (who buys those things?); my version was $18.

Aren't these poinsettias just gorgeous? I love the color.

The table in the dining room is set, but I couldn't figure out a way to serve virtual food.

The tree in the dining room has all of the ornaments we've collected over 27 years of marriage. My favorites are the ones done by my now-grown kids when they were in preschool.

In the kitchen, my collection of Christmas cookie jars is on display.

And in the hallway is one of the little trees that are scattered throughout the house.

 

Thanks so much for visiting. Don't forget to leave a comment telling me about your favorite Christmas decoration. One lucky winner will recieve a copy of "LIfe is a Verb," a collection of essays by Patti Digh.

All I Want for Christmas (Part 2)

In a fit of silliness, I posted my Christmas wish list on my scrapping blog last year, and was surprised to find just about everything I wanted under the tree. (For some reason, Santa didn't bring me the I-Mac I was coveting.) But it's a new year, and there are so many awesome new products out there that I just had to update my list. So Santa, if you're reading, I have my eye on...

Scan My Photos Scanning Package  I have tons and tons of old photos that I would love to use digitally, but the idea of standing over a scanner for hours on end leaves me cold. For $124.95, you can fill a box that Scan My Photos provides with your old photos, and they'll scan them onto a disk. They say you can fit about 1,600 photos into one of the boxes. And, the price includes shipping.  Wouldn't it be great to have all you old photos backed up?

Lorie Davison's Flitting Fall Faeries Collection  This digital kit is chock-full of richly colored papers, ... elements, and Lorie's own whimsical hand-drawn elements. At $12, this one's a steal.

In This House: A Collection of Altered Art Imagery and Collage Techniques   When I'm not on my computer, I love putting together mini books and journals. In this lovely book, mixed media artist Angela Cartwright (the former child star) and friends build their own neighborhood of art. Using the theme of home, each artist designed five altered art rooms to complete an individual 9"x12" 'house' that closes like a book or can stand accordion style. It's on sale for $16.49 at Amazon.

Digital Scrapbook Premier Newsletter  While we Photoshop users couldn't live without our favorite software package, most of us would admit that Photoshop isn't the most intuitive program to learn. And with changes coming annually, it's almost impossible to master all that the program is capable of. That's why, when I first started using the program, I turned to Linda Sattgast's Scrapper's Guide DVD tutorials for instruction. But there's always more to learn, so I'd love a subscription to Linda's Digital Scrapbook Premier, a subscription, web-based newsletter that focuses on Photoshop techniques. Each issue contains:

• Video tutorials that teach little known techniques and insider secrets used by professional digital scrappers.
• A PDF manual containing the written steps for each video tutorial in a “recipe” format.
• An exclusive Designer Kit with matching papers and embellishments to use in your work.

Adobe Illustrator  As much as I love Photoshop, there are some things it just won't do, so the next item on my wish list this year is a copy of Adobe Illustrator. At $599, it's an expensive toy, and I really can't justify it for my work, but heck, this is a WISH list, isn't it?

The Picture Perfect Caribbean Cruise  Oh, well, as long as I'm dreaming, Santa, why don't you book me passage on the Picture Perfect Caribbean Cruise with Photoshop gurus Dave Cross, Matt Klowskowski, and Corey Baker? A week in the Bahamas, rubbing elbows with some of the nation's best digital artists and photographers -- what could be better than that?

Free Vintage Images Alert

Just dropping in to post that Lisa Vollrath of Ten Two Studios is doing The Original Printables Holiday Countdown calendar with new vintage images given away each day. It's linkware, so all you have to do is post a link to the site and then download to your heart's content. Check it out here.