Holly's Heart By Hand

M Ann M Creations and Watermelon Party can now be found at Holly's Heart By Hand in Brooklyn, NY!  If you are in the Greenpoint area of Brooklyn, please stop by this lovely shop to see my creations in person.  Also available in this collaborative is art and handmade items from other Etsy NY Team members.

As I was packing up my things to bring to the store, my daughter said she wants to sell art too.  We chose this beautiful original she made when she was 5 years old.  Made using oil pastel crayons and colored pencil, mounted on signed bright purple paper, entitled "Delilah's Flower".

Etsy Craft Party and FREE Stick Puppet Kit

I met nice people and had great sales at the Etsy HQ Craft Party in DUMBO this past Saturday. The Etsy headquarters staff made the vendors and the local community feel welcome and they encouraged creativity under the beautiful Manhattan Bridge Archway on what turned out to be a pretty sunny day.

If you didn't get a chance to stop by my table and take home a free stick puppet kit, I still have some left over to giveaway.

If you'd like to have one mailed to you, visit my ETSY shop and pay just $0.75 for shipping & handling.  These are the same stick puppets that were created for the Governors Island Craft Workshops Event in 2013.   You can read more about it here.

Nostalgic Toys ~ Colorforms

Founded in 1951, Colorforms is one of the oldest and best-known brands in the toy industry. It was the very first plastic-based creative toy, and one of the first toys ever advertised on television.

www.Colorforms.com

Colorforms are paper-thin, die-cut vinyl sheet images and shapes that are meant to be applied to a shiny plastic laminated board, much like placing paper dolls against a paper backdrop. The images stick to the background by adhesion, which takes place when two highly polished surfaces come in contact. The Colorforms vinyl pieces can be repositioned to create new designs and scenarios.

Colorforms oddly enough grew out of the progressive trend in the 1950's to create toys that were somehow beneficial to a kid's psychological well-being: these were (ostensibly) toys that helped kids learn and grow through play, stimulating their imaginations and creativity. To that end, the first Colorforms set was made up of little plastic shapes, of different colors. Kids could combine the shapes and colors to make their own pictures of whatever they liked. 

The 1970's was probably the hayday of Colorforms, with dozens of sets devoted to such subjects as Evel Knievel, Star Trek, or Holly Hobbie. But the brand survives to this day, and as millions of kids discover to their delight, despite the obvious enticements of modern video amusements, this simple little plastic and cardboard toy can still offer many hours of quiet imaginative fun.  

Handmade Cavalcade tomorrow!

I am honored to have had my artwork chosen for this year's banner at the Etsy NY Handmade Cavalcade.  And with it being at the famous Chelsea Market, it promises to be the best Cavalcade yet!

Stop by my table on Saturday, December 13th 10-8 pm to see some new artwork and to receive a free gift from M Ann M Creations!