Back from Holiday

Hello!!!  I'm back in England after our long, wonderful holiday in the States with our families and friends.  Thanksgiving at home was good.  Christmas was good.  We miss everyone already, but we're glad to be back.

I've had jet lag to the extreme since we got home, which explains why I'm wide awake at midnight when we have to get up at 5am.  Hooray.  On the bright side, all of this time spent not sleeping has opened up some serious craft time, and I have just about finished a piece of wall art (or shelf art, depending on your decorating needs) that I am SUPER proud of.  All I have left to do is secure all of the pages together and put a wall hanger on the back.  Here it is...

Altered Book Sculpture.  "Reader's Digest: A Garden for all Seasons"

So what do you think???  The dishevelled environment in this picture really helps the book shine, doesn't it?  How awesome am I that I have not changed out of my PJ's today?  Very.  I even opened the door to accept a parcel today... in my PJ's... without a bra.  Jet lag is seriously winning here.  Thankfully, it only lasts around a week & a half, so we're on our way back to a normal schedule.  :-)

Etsy has a calculator that is supposed to tell you how much to charge for your handmade items.  I spent 20 hours working on this (so far), and it told me to charge... $700.  I laughed.  Am I not giving myself enough credit?  Or am I being realistic to think that this is an outrageous amount to charge a person for a book I carved pages out of?  Don't get me wrong.  It's beautiful.  I'm incredibly proud of the work I put into the entire piece, especially the detail on all of the flowers.  But $700???  I'm taking a poll among my friends and plan to sell it for whatever the average price is of all of their answers.  I'll keep you updated.

In addition to listing these creations on Etsy, I am very seriously considering joining the Bury St Edmunds Art Society.  They have an art fair every summer and an online gallery where members can display and sell their art.  It would also be a good way to meet more people and become more involved in the community that is my new home, which is important to me.  Community service is my jam.

Any other artists out there?  How do you decide on a price for your work?  Am I the only person who didn't put on real clothes today??  Until next time!