Angee our Highlighted Brat

Every month, the Brat Team chooses one of it's members to “highlight;” as its Featured Artist/Seller. This month, we are pleased to introduce you to “Angee” of “Angee’s Art Collectibles, Wonder Works and Visualicious.”

Angee Chase - Raised military brat, ex-AF wife, and mother to an AF son.

*Tell us a bit about yourself?

I was raised a military brat, am an ex-Air Force wife and the mother to an Air Force son. I live in Mary Esther, Florida, two blocks from the Gulf, that used to have pristine sugar white sandy beaches until the oil came! :(

I'm so right brained, I lean! My creativity is always flowing, so if I don't do something creative every day I fear I might explode. I have drawn and painted as far back as I can remember. I just practiced, practiced, practiced and after about 20 years, I think one day God looked down on my room full of wadded paper, (mess up, crumple, start again), and realized I might be serious, and decided He would let me have it! The creative gift. Don't know the exact day, but suddenly, I could pretty much draw anything I wanted.

I stumbled on my love for sculpture when polymer clay was invented and I began making mini creations. I won some awards and garnered a little TV exposure which eventually led to selling at local miniature shops.

I have a huge array of artistic creations, in a wide variety of mediums, going on all the time.

Bright and Cheerful Original Art Placemats

*What inspires you and where do your ideas come from?

I'm inspired by everything around me, but mostly nature. I subconsciously notice colors, shapes, movement, patterns, light, and changes everywhere. I love going to hardware stores; the pieces, parts, shapes, fixtures, and etc. make me want to go home and make something.

The oddest things inspire me. A fleamarket sparked my series of bottle paintings; all sold! Prints are now available. I just HAD to see if I could paint clear colored bottles that overlapped and mixed colors when you looked through them. (I used for this idea with my www.AngeeArt.etsy.com banner.)

I pay attention to TV set backgrounds, walls, room decor, patterns, fabric, everything...everywhere. No telling what will spark that next flow of creativity. And of course, vintage toys always motivate my desire to see if I can make tiny versions.

The Mini Ella the Elephant Pull Toy

*What are your favorite materials?

I adore all kinds of clay: homemade bread clay, salt dough, cold porcelain, modeling clay, polymer clay, oriental clay, paper clay, play dough, and even fondant that works like clay. But oddly enough, my favorite materials are jewelry findings and a prized set of expensive Berol fine art colored pencils that in my opinion are the best on earth.

Whimsy Love Treat Shop

*What have been the most valuable lessons learned from other artists on Etsy?

Non-creative people think I'm as nutty as a fruitcake. On Etsy, I find everyone's as nutty as I am ... in a most wonderful way! We are all similar in our creative processes, and feelings about handmade. And... No matter how much it is not my creative forte, I've learned how important good pics are to successfully sell handmade online.

Garden Glamour SceneScape

*Why should people buy handmade?

How special to purchase real handmade straight from the hands that make them. They're made with love so a part of the artist's personality comes along with them. Every item is uniquely personal to the artist, and many become cherished buyer possessions. As an artist, it's satisfying that someone is admiring a part of you that adorns their home. As a buyer it's such a thrill to know you own something no one else has.

CHOCOLATE LOVES - Nut, Fruit and Fudge Filled Chocolate Fondants

*What features/services would you most like to see on Etsy?

More attention to real fine art and distinct categories in this field would be great. I would love to be able to have true separated sections without all my items having to go together. Let me choose what I want to show on my front page and be able to reorganize them when I get the urge. And finally...a little chatbox like FB has to be able to converse with customers and each other.

*Apart from creating things, what do you do?

I create more things! Last year I decided to mix two of my loves: painting and miniatures so, went to school, and became a nail specialist. Now I can paint tiny pictures and sculpt 3D acrylics on nails. Also working on my new artist/artisan blog "Creative Class" with lots of tutorials, craft lessons, interviews, and tips to encourage creative people. Contact me if you have anything you'd like to contribute.

*Read any good books lately?

The last book I read was how to paint rocks. I'm also in the process of reading the whole dang internet. (ha!) Will let you know when I'm done with that!

Coiled Snake Stone Paperweight

*In ten years I'd like to be?

Still alive, designing crafts for Martha Stewart, and able to take a vacation.

*How did you come up with your Etsy Shop Name/s?

Have a website called WebWrx and love the name. People often say "I wonder how you can make those tiny, little, things." Thus the name. "WonderWorks" where I sell my tiny handsculpted 1:12 scale miniatures.

Angees Art spoke for itself when I opened with only my fine art. I inherited a great amount of antiques and vintage things that belonged to my mother so now it's filled with antique, vintage, and modern (my originals).

I make sculpted bonbons, and invented a tasty, fruity candy that I make edible jewelry from. They are visually beautiful as well as delicious, so I called it " Visualicious" http://www.Visualicious.etsy.com

I may be making some how-to tutorial CDs and downloads for making them, including my secret recipes and all!

Frutie Cutie Strawberry Necklace

*What is the connection between being a Crafter and being a Brat?

I artistically need the challenge of change; always searching to create something new. I guess that comes from being a military brat; always moving and looking forward to that next home with new things to see and experience. I have been the entire perimeter of the US, across the width several times, and lived in 8 states. We lived in France for 3 years, Spain for a total of 7 years, and visited Portugal, and England. I went to the Prado and the Lourve museums, where I became enthralled with budding artists that sat
practicing for hours reproducing the paintings of the great masters. I was exposed to the art of other cultures, walked in real castles, and saw wondrous old architecture. I'm sure these experiences became a part of my creative expression; engrained in my artistic soul. Never would've happened without my Dad's AirForce military service.

LINKS:

Fan me on Facebook:
My main blog:

Thanks for spending some time with Angee and the Brat Team.