Shelter Cove Art Show

When we check in on Hilton Head Island, we stock up on all the local 'things to do' publications.  One advertised an art show going on that weekend (Memorial Day) at Shelter Cove Harbor only a mile from where we were staying.  We decided to bike up there the next morning and browse.

At first, I was a bit disappointed as there were only 5 or 6 booths by the harbor, then I turned around and saw a long line of tents back in the trees.  There are trees everywhere on Hilton Head so you really do have to look for stuff.  We were soon impressed by the range and intricacy of many of the crafts.  It had been awhile since we had been to this type of show and I'm either behind on what's trendy or these were some very high end artisans.  Metal works were common as well as etchings, unusual composition of paintings and even artwork made from humanely grown butterflies.  (I'm not sure what is humane about turning a butterfly into a piece of art, but they were pretty.  I think the butterflies have a normal lifespan and are not killed to make the art.)

We browsed for a long time and I did buy a necklace made of sea beans.  A sea bean is a large brown object that looks like a piece of wood.  It comes from pods off trees in rain forests that wash down through the streams into the ocean.  After a few years drifting about in salt water, these turn up on a beach somewhere.  Mine was found in Liberia.  The husband of the couple selling them travels extensively for business in the shipping industry and found them.  Here's my necklace using a 'hamburger' style bean with a contrasting shade around the middle.










For the page, I created a photo collage in Photoshop Elements.  A few tips on creating a photo collage:

- Select the photos you want to use and have them all open.
- Create a new document in the size you will print.  I used an 8"x10" even though I didn't plan to completely fill the space.  Set the size to 300 dpi.
- Choose your main photo and crop to the desired finished size at 300 dpi.
- Drag the main photo onto your blank new document and position.
- Then choose another photo to line up beside of it or below or above and crop that photo using the measurements from the first photo as a guide.  For example, if my main photo is the one in the upper left corner and it is 4" wide,  I'll choose the photo below it and make it 4" wide and whatever height I want.
- Then drag that photo in place on your larger document.
- Continue selecting and cropping photo building out from one point.
- Save your project as a .jpg file.

This is just one way to go about a photo collage.

I had more journaling than expected so I tucked it behind the collage.  The video goes over creating a pocket from a regular mailing envelope:

I'm most pleased with how these flowers came out using designer paper from a 6x6 pad, ink refills and some glazing medium:

So here's the video at YouTube:


We are thinking of going to Belle Chere in Asheville, NC which is a giant art festival each July.  Has anyone ever been?

Thanks for stopping by today!