Gifts and gift giving do not end after the holidays; we find we need to be shopping even after the New Year celebration done and gone. But gifts, even if little, if they are filled with tenderness and affection can mean the world. That’s why it’s particularly important to choose a gift carefully and with sense.

Because it’s very pleasant as for you so for the person, you present a gift to, if this gift suits and is usable or even brings back a pleasant memory. With custom pencil sketches of loved one’s, family pets, or a pencil sketch from a photo during your vacation, you can create a wonderful memory all of your own. 

If you want to satisfy the person’s wishes and needs, think globally. Health is something, that no one can buy, but everyone can take care of. So why not help a person to stay fit and profit from your gift? If you are looking outside the box why not a beach cruiser? This might be one of the best choices for a gift.

A beach bike is just the perfect way to stay fit and enjoy keeping it. You can exercise (which means simply ride a bike) almost everywhere and at any time, comfortable for you. With a beach cruiser as a gift, you express your care to the person; you show your concern about his health. Be sure, that your sensible choice will satisfy everyone solicitous to his well-being.

You will be the envy of all the beach combers while sporting one of my custom beach bags.

Do you realize there are now only, three hundred and fifty some days until the Christmas Holiday of 2008. The most effective holiday employee gifts contain an emotional message to your business partners. This emotional value is usually behind the low price, but generates powerful positive emotions and has a lot of impact.

With all different types of corporate gifts, you can take advantage of high emotional value in yearly gift giving, to enhance employee relationships and goodwill. Corporate gifts are incentive gifts with high emotional value. And this value attracts more consumers to your business, creates a positive working atmosphere within your company, and gives back to you much more, than you’ve given away.

Sensible gifts must be smart from all sides. Disposable paper gift wrap, or reusable bags can also create a very good impression. Reusable gift bags save natural resources and money too. You can also opt for a personal one of a kind travel or book bag that is like no other.

My custom paintings and sketches can be transferred to a variety of objects and materials. I have re-used many paper products and shopping bags in my custom pieces, just think of the amount of paper products that end up in our landfills. This is really a smart stuff, taking into a count an enormous waste, generated by gift wrap, gift bags and cardboard boxes, from production to consumption and disposal (each year a staggering $5 billion worth of gift wrap is tossed in the trash).

So be smart and impress a person, you present a gift to, with your strong-minded choice, made for him. Because the sense of any gift is to say, that you care about the person, think of him, his likes and wishes and of his attitude and feelings to you.

This is a stratocaster style hand cut solid mahogany body guitar clock.  My husband created this on a band saw and hand sanded and rounded the edges. 

I used acrylic paint on this, and the deep blues were alot of fun to work with.  I used about seven different shades of blue - with a larger paint brush to give the waves a  bit more clarity.  Finished in with a high gloss laquer.

Embedded in the beach is real sand from the shores of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.   I used Fender guitar picks for the 3,6,9 and 12, thought that added a bit more guitar”ism” to the piece.

The clock actually has a small glow in the dark effect, as I used silica sand that is used on streets for the reflective effect for the surf hitting the beach.  I stupidly took this project fresh after the paint to an outdoor craft fair, and I will tell you - that’s a no - no.  Some of the laquer bubbled in the midday sun and I needed to re-do it.  Word to the wise, keep these things covered!!

This particular pencil sketch is done on a hand spun wooden plate.  This was captured off Stevie Ray Vaughan’s In Step Album.

I used woodless graphite #97-HB and just a small amount of the auburn charcoal.   Whenever I think of Stevie.. I think the phrase, “no doubt”  I will be listing this piece on ebay pretty soon.  The plate 10 inches round, and was made by my parents old neighbor. George Blum & Sons -

Soul to Soul

~ Susie

Happy Saturday! Johnny Depp is filling out and coming to life more each day. 

Working on his dreadlocks is always alot of fun, you can let your charcoal pencils just go wild here..I start with a medium brown woodless charcoal brown and I just begin the swirling motion, try doing figure eights.

I will then go in right next to the dark brown with an ebony charcoal, figure eights tightly knitted next to the dark brown will give you a better three dimension effect.  After I get them all in, I will tortillion the lot of them, not with a hard hand, but lightly so that you can get the blend.. then I repeat the above steps with a bit harder touch, so that you can get the dimension going on. 

With the ornamental pieces and jewelry that hangs from his do-rag and the right side, I use a variety of colors from Derwent Graphitint - they have more of a waxy feel to them, so it does make it tough to adjust any mistakes, so be careful and only use these on the jewelry.  You can not go over the waxy element with any other pencil. 

Soul to Soul - Susie

Adding a little more to the depths of his cheekbones, I used a ebony woodless charcoal. I cleaned up the length of his nose as stated in the previous post, I did not like how narrow it originally looked.   Try using a lighter stroke, it is easier to clean up your lines.  I have noticed when you are using pine, as you get unfinished from Hobby Lobby and other craft stores, you are more apt to run into troubles going back and erasing any thing that you do not care for. 

Woodless charcoal does smudge easy when you use a tortillion - I love those things.  It also can blend into smaller area’s.  If you are not able to get them, you can also go with a Q-tip, remove alot of the cotton, or all of it for that matter, and you get a nice little blending tool  You can also make your own tortillion. I added a bit of color to his lips.  as well as the auburn woodless graphite pencil to add color to snap his do-rag into place.  Again, I do not recommend blending solely with your finger on this type of unfinished wood product. 

I was not happy with the lightness of his eyes that I originally put in place, so I enhanced it with a darker brown woodless charcoal. 

The work continues..blessings to all.. and stay tuned as we soon will be able to serve up some shots of rum on the serving tray in progress.