BONUS Interview….with iHanna

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!

To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked some artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout the month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



Today I’d like you to meet artist (creative instigator)…..Hanna Andersson from Sweden.  I found Hanna’s blog (ihanna) thru Tammy at Daisy Yellow a few years ago.  Hanna is the Queen of Productivity.  I don’t think there is a Craft or an Art that she has not tried.  She’s always pushing her technical capabilities as well.  She’s done video tutorials, digital newsletters, on-line classes and she’s a published writer.  She’s a whirlwind of inspiration. 

1. What words best describes your art/style?
Messy and colorful



2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
I love quotes and often use them in the beginning of my blog posts to set the tone. My newest favorite is about feminism and by Caitlin Moran, posted here [http://www.ihanna.nu/blog/2012/10/feminism-and-pussy-girl-power/]. But when it comes to art (doodling, blogging and many other things in life) I'd like to quote Jude Hill of Spirit Cloth blog [http://spiritcloth.typepad.com]:

"When you do something all the time, even if you move too slowly for others to notice, the constant motion produces surprising volume and achievement."



3. How has your work evolved?
My work is being birthed as we speak, and it will look different tomorrow from how it looks today. It evolves with me and for this I feel grateful, though I sometimes wish I had "a set style". It seems life would be easier with just one recognizable style, but right now I go with the flow and create on a whim. All that is the same is the joy from day to day.



4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
I take a horrendous amount of photos, make photo books and dabble in textile art, embroidery, knitting, yoga, writing, quilting and book binding. I am a avid reader of books, love to go thrift shopping and visit inspirational art exhibitions.




5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
I recently published How to Make and Price a handbound Journal [http://www.ihanna.nu/blog/2012/10/making-pricing-handbound-journal/] and would love to get feedback on how others price their handmade things. But I couldn't pick just one favorite, so if people want to click around a bit visit the iHanna Blog Archive [http://www.ihanna.nu/archive/]. I read all comments and appreciate it a lot when older blog posts gets some TLC!

Just looking at Hanna's art and reading her words gives me inspiration!  She has a real gift for color combinations.  I always appreciate her honesty and sharing her personal journals with us.  That can be scary…not that hers are… but mine are!  Haha!!  If you have some time, I urge you to click over to her blog.  If all you do is look at her pictures, you will be motivated in no time! 

Thank you Hanna for sharing your work and your art with us today.  Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of Hanna’s work.

website: http://www.ihanna.nu
etsy: http://ihanna.etsy.com
twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ihanna
flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ihanna/
pinterest: http://pinterest.com/ihanna/
instagram: ihannas [http://www.gramfeed.com/ihannas]

Newport NonSense…..

My flight was un-event-ful!!  Which is the way I like it!!  LOL!!
I did not Art Journal as much as I thought I would!  Darn-it!!



The non-sense all started when “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” was allowed to come out and sightsee.  There is so much to see in Newport, RI….. how could I not let him see it all too?  They have the mansions (The Breakers, Marble House, RoseCliff) directly off of the cliff walk.  We didn’t do the tour this trip, but if you’re ever in the area I would encourage you to take it.


If you’ve got a wet-suit then you can have a lot of fun in the water at this time of year (well…actually you may need that wet suit year-round to enjoy this water).  Little too cold for my tastes.  The surf wasn’t very big, but I was impressed that there were surfers catching waves.  The pic in the upper left corner is showing 5 surfers actually staying on their boards.  Wow!!  Probably about 20 surfers out there that day.  The bays are very beautiful.  Lots of people enjoy this part of the country with their water toys.



As usual….our non-sense turned into a competition!!  Who could carry the biggest rock? 



As much as we wanted to play all day, there was much work to be done by the newly licensed “Newport Maids”.  Even "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” had to pull his weight.



And for your viewing pleasure….Prep Page #1…..finished!  This is the only one completed.  What fun, I should do more of them!

My favorite little quote from above is “If you do not let me express myself, I will go crazy and I will take all of you with me!”  Can anybody guess which movie this is from?  Anyone?  Anyone?……yep….Beetlejuice!  This is so me….it just makes me laugh!

He Who Must Not Be Named…..travels to Florida

I don’t know of a better way to learn my camera, get out and enjoy the beach/water and look at things from a renewed perspective than to take my little Artsy Dummy out and about.  He has come to be referred to as “He Who Must Not Be Named” because well…. we didn’t want to insult him and call him a Dummy his whole life.  However, I haven’t heard an intelligent comment from him yet, he's a quiet little guy!

Glad to be back and thanks for stopping by during my break.   It’s always good to be home!