Artist Spotlight, Interview: NoFlutter, Steampunk Goddess; Renaissance Sailor Senshi

Jinx

This week’s Artist Spotlight deviates from Etsy to feature a popular anime-centric artist (who often inspires cosplay):

NoFlutter Art & Design is headed by Jen, who is a concept artist in Clermont, Florida.

Kawaii Ninja

Jen’s art revolves around pop culture favorites, Disney princesses, popular animes and cartoons; she has a strong following for her original art.

NoFlutter is a household name among cosplayers (you can see plenty of them on FB), who often sport her beautifully redesigned characters. If you like cutesy, edgy, and ludicrous amounts of sexy, NoFlutter will charm you to awe, along with her 12k Facebook fans.

Jen’s mini interview:

How do you choose the characters you draw?
Sometimes an idea just pops into my head while I am asleep, (haha)! Sometimes it’s a conversation between me and friends, or a commercial, or a video, or even music. I kinda just get randomly inspired by things.

What inspired you to begin drawing?
My mother had some how to draw books from her childhood. The first think I learned to draw were horses actually,
and not people, (haha)! I was an awkward child, quiet and sorts. Also dyslexic, so I was in special classes. I was bullied
because I was one of those “weird” kids. [I’m] kinda glad I was one of the “weird” kids, we ended up being so much cooler.

How do you conceptualize your steampunk renditions?
I first think of the setting, and the type of character they would be. For example, the Steampunk Sirens, I got a lot of
flack from people because they weren’t steampunk enough or “just because they have goggles and masks doesn’t make it steampunk.”

NO. In my fictional steampunk world that lives inside my head, goggles and masks would be common for anyone living (or going to) the lower sides of town. The world is being mainly run on heavy steam power, so there would be lots of fog, steam, dirt, and what not, that these factory towns would have. Also, anyone riding an air ship would need goggles and masks, and I wouldn’t put it past any villains to take one down. The ladies’ outfits were based on the popular opium places and brothels during the Victorian times, since I highly doubt they would be living it up in high society with Bruce Wayne.

I do put a lot of thought process into each drawing, and in my head, they each have a back story.

Why are you so drawn to the steampunk genre?
I love the idea of an alternate universe and as a kid I LOVED all the stories by Jules Verne. So as the steampunk
genre grew, I knew it was the place for me.

You can check out the full Sailor Senshi (inner, outer, & Tuxedo Mask!) collection here.

All NoFlutter prints can be purchased on NoFlutter.com. Jen also makes incredibly adorable
Lolita flower crowns, and Tricorns, she really is every cosplayer’s dream! To keep up with Jen’s newest pieces
check out her DevianArt.

For more Artist Spotlights, New Age quips, and DIY Crafts follow Fae Gems’ Blog & Like Facebook for updates.
You can also check out Fae Gems on Etsy!

   

Homeless Voices: A Literary Magazine for the Forgotten

The homeless community in my city of Hollywood, FL is thriving in the filth of the complacent and ignoble. Panhandlers litter the street with rattling tears, populate shopping centers with uncomfortable sympathies, resulting in avoided gazes. The government officials of Florida are striving to purge the community of the homeless, restricting where “vendors” may operate, morphing park benches into rigid segregated stools, bawdy policemen rouse the weary from stoops and hallowed corners. Masquerading in the guise of benevolence, these discriminatory policies color the film glazing the eyes of the populace, and not one shields, nor protects, those whose voices who have been pilfered merit- merely based upon a state of residential destitute.

The homeless community is treated as if a blight, demonized, dehumanized, and silenced; their singular offence: existence. The grievance lurks in our community’s state of being, in that they have been allowed to denigrate in crowded streets, surrounded by fellow “humans.”

Who stands for the homeless? The shelters? The unfortunate truth, of Florida shelters, is that shelters serve as government sanctified cesspools; residents are not given the means to achieve beyond their plights; instead they enter an institution that perpetuates their social denigration, with meager resources to succeed.

Combating institutional discrimination effectively may only be successful in changing societal perspectives.

I am a frustrated freelance writer & editor with the intent to catalyze change by culminating first hand accounts of homelessness in a literary magazine; a primary source to shed light on demonized people. In Fort Lauderdale (FL) it is now a criminal offence to feed the homeless; there is a ban of public feeding with the possibility of spending 60 days in jail for refusing to relent. This is inherently wrong. Arnold Abbott, a 90 year old Veteran in Fort Lauderdale, along with two priests, have been charged with feeding the homeless, facing possible jail time and a $500 fine.

Homeless Voices, the tentative name for the homeless literary magazine, is an attempt to serve as a means to drudge the grimed film of the bureaucrats off of the people’s eyes, elucidating the real problem of homelessness: the permitted existence of our fellow man reduced to rags, hunger, and dirt floors. Homeless Voices seeks to humanize those who need us most. The publication will be an aggregate of the homeless perspective, featuring literature, poetry, firsthand accounts, fiction, art, and photography, all submissions will be by the homeless, and each submission shall be compensated for.

Those needing the loudest voices will not be writing poetry, but digging through garbage to lick empty cans; the homeless teens we so desperately, as a community, need to hear from, won’t have digital cameras to document their lives; the men languishing on the streets aren’t creating fine art. But what would it look like if they did? What if they had the tools to have a voice?

Homeless Voices will be more than a literary magazine, the publication will arm the homeless with cameras, sketchbooks, notebooks, and supplies in which to create. I want to know their stories. I want to show the world who they are, beyond what the media projects them to be. Homeless Voices seeks to uncover the events barring the homeless’ re-acclimatization into society.

Present homeless publications are aimed at informing the public of homelessness, but they are for the public- they do not serve the homeless. Homeless Voices will serve as a resource of (paid) expression, a job aggregate, and programs for help. Each submission will be accompanied with a contact page, a list of skills, aspirations, and thoughts; in the hopes of soliciting honest work from eager hearts ready to help- lancing the fear surrounding this group of demonized people. Additionally, the publication will serve as a resource for the homeless to find honest work that will pay respectable wages.

Challenges for Publication

Foremost, funding for this initiative is the principal obstacle. I am considering crowd funding for this venture, i.e. IndieGogo and Kickstarter. In the weeks to come I will add a section in my Etsy store entitle “Crafts with a Cause” wherein all proceeds will be used to fund Homeless Voices. 

Secondly, immersion may prove difficult, will the homeless be amenable in sharing their experiences? Would they find value in submitting their work, or creating art?

Lastly, staffing this endeavor will require relentless searching. If you are interested in getting involved with Homeless Voices, please contact me.

Online petitions have swayed laws; first hand testimony to a staggering number of the populace ought to hold tangible weight.

What say you to the Homeless Voices initiative? Have you used any crowd funding platforms, what was your experience? Do you have any crowd funding advice to share?

For updates on the Homeless Voices initiative, Etsy Tips, DIY Crafts, and New Age quips follow Fae Gems’ Blog & Like Facebook for updates.
You can also check out Fae Gems on Etsy!

   

Artist Spotlight, Etsy: The Walking Dead “Rick Grimes” by Amanda Basham

The Walking Dead has taken over my waking life, and now I feel as if I too am one of The Walking Dead. I wake up convinced that I am in some sort of Zombie safe house, awaiting to stake the next walker in the eye. My love, James, introduced me to the show last month, and I have been a Netflix junkie ever since.

In devotion to my Zombie Love, every Sunday I will feature The Walking Dead glory found on Etsy.

In giddy anticipation for tonight’s episode premier of The Walking Dead, I have a feast for the eyes to share with you!

Amanda Basham is the artistic mastermind behind this incredible portrait of Andrew Lincoln as “ Rick Grimes“.  The realism of this piece gives me chills. I can hear him saying “stuff and thangs,” shouting “CORRRAL,” you know, Rick thangs. This portrait features graphite and charcoal on 11×14 Strathmore paper.

Basham is a working mom running her Etsy shop Pencil Portraits by Me on the side.

Check back next Sunday for more of The Walking Dead features, and if you have any recommendations, let me know!Does Basham’s Rick Grimes excite you for tonight’s premier, what do you think?

For more Walking Dead features, blogging tips, New Age quips, and DIY Crafts follow Fae Gems’ Blog & Like Facebook for updates.
You can also check out Fae Gems on Etsy!

   

Etsy Spotlight: Morrigan Dragon Age Art “Change is Coming” by Tomas Overbai

As a Dragon Age fanatic (seriously, I’ve played Dragon Age: Origins a dozen times) I am eagerly awaiting Dragon Age III: Inquisition. In celebration of this momentous renaissance-nerd occasion I am presenting the first in Artist Spotlights, featuring beautifully crafted Etsy products. 

This enchanting rendering of Morrigan is entitled “Change is Coming.” The print comes in 12X18 or 30×20, and can be  purchased on Etsy in FallenSunAslyum. The gifted artist who created this piece, Tomas Overbai, is aspiring to be a full time artist.

Overbai’s shop is a treasury of incredible contemporary artwork with an edgy anime feel. The hooded detail on Morrigan breathes life into her fantasy visage. The organic feeling of  Dragon Age’s dark queen is splendidly captured, and would quicken the blood of any storied Dragon Age fan. I’m hoping for a series of the Dragon Age cast: Alistar, Liliana, Merrill (imagine how awesome her face tattoos would look!), Hawke (and that war paint), and my beloved brooding Fenris (need I mention the lyrium markings?).

Overbai on his artistic process:

Morrigan was a milestone for me as an artist. Most of my work I fight and struggle with every line or color, but this drawing was effortless. It’s creepy how easy it flowed to the page with very little resistance. Those are nice artistic wins every once in a while. Brief respites in between chasms of self doubt, insecurity, and stacks of bad drawings. Most of my work starts as a 11 X 17 pencil drawing that I bring into Photoshop to color or mess about with. I did very little Photoshop stuff for this one, really just adding the colors. I gained a good bit of confidence with this piece and will forever hold a special place in my heart for Morrigan.

To revel in more of Tomas Overbai’s enchanting work you can visit his official website Fallen Sun Asylum, for upcoming projects and social media announcements. And can we please take a moment to drool over Overbai’s interpretation of Bioshocks’ stunning Elizabeth?

Morrigan plays an instrumental role in the weaving of Dragon Age’s universe; alike the Pagan Goddess, The Morrigan, known as the “Great Queen,” sometimes the “Sea Queen,” and always as the “Warrior Queen.”

What do you think about Tomas Overbai’s artwork, are you dying to see more like I am?

For more Artist Spotlights, Etsy Tips, DIY Crafts, and New Age quips follow Fae Gems’ Blog & Like Facebook for updates.
You can also check out Fae Gems on Etsy!