November 16th-18th at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts

One of my favorite places to holiday shop is the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts Holiday Art Sale! Come check it out, the details are as follows…

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE KIA's WEBSITE

Art Fairs, Artwork For Sale, News, StudioAlexa Karabin KleinerNovember 14, 2023kalamazoo artist, institute of arts, michigan artist, western michigan, wm, wmu, michigan made, holiday sale

Find my Art in Uncommon Goods!

Uncommon Goods

I am so excited to announce my first catalog collaboration! The well-known catalog Uncommon Goods is exclusively selling my Customizable Trees! As some of you know, I live on a former Christmas Tree farm that is overflowing with whimsical and wonky trees! These fused glass sculptures are inspired by the trees that surround my home! My husband, Jason, makes the tree stumps that are customizable with your name! Check them out on Uncommon Goods!

Studio, Process, News, New Work, Business, Artwork For SaleAlexa Karabin KleinerNovember 10, 2023customizable gifts, thoughtful gifts, christmas village, holiday village, christmas decorations, art

Fall Collection of Watercolor now Live!

Featured

Glass Shimmer Paint - Large or Extra Large

$45.00

Transform your art with our Handmade Watercolor Paint, crafted with finely ground glass for a smooth, elegant shimmer. This unique formula adds a refined sparkle to your work, whether applied wet or as a glaze over dry layers. Packaged in a large glass container and elegantly boxed, it’s perfect for enhancing any watercolor project with a touch of sophistication.

Pearl Gem Pot

$32.00

This paint is made of crushed pearls and a high quality pigments Use this paint to create texture with layers!

About These Watercolors

First of all, thank you for purchasing these handmade watercolors! This has been a passion project for me. They are special because they are made of a variety of texture, using a myriad of pigments that I have collected over the last 20 years. From hand-crushed stone from when I was 16 years old, to pigments from the Rembrandt Museum, to garage sale glitters, to my grandmothers crushed jewels, these paints represent my life in so many ways. I was asked countless times to sell them, and I hesitated at first because they are personal to me…until I remembered that collaboration between artists is a time-honored thing, and it should be embraced. We are making something together, now, and I can’t wait to see how you transform this material!

I’m not going to lie, these watercolors aren’t for the faint of heart! If you are looking for a smooth, even texture, turn back now! But have you ever used salt to texturize standard watercolors? And you rub away the salt and some sticks there, and it seems to recreate that aspect of nature that seems chaotic, but actually creates a series of fractals that are repeated over and over again in nature…….. maybe that’s just me, haha. Well, that’s what gave me the idea to make these. Also, I love painting insects and I was trying to represent them in a unique visual way that went beyond photo realism (aka, they sparkle, so I made sparkly paint). I inherited a large collection of my grandmother’s costume jewelry and jewelry making supplies, and I always knew I would use them in my art in some way. They became the source of inspiration for the watercolor. I would find a bead that looked like a beetle, and make a paint that emphasized the insect’s attributes using the pigments in my collection, finishing off with crushing the bead and mixing it in.

How to Use

Load the pan with water (aka fill the pot with a few drops of water), let sit for a few minutes and the surface of the paint will reconstitute. Load the area you are painting with clean water, and then introduce the reconstituted watercolor to the area. Add more or less depending on what you are trying to achieve. You can also use it as a glaze over dried areas of watercolor.

Large pieces of pigment should be secured with tiny bits of acrylic medium. I use a tiny brush and place small dots around the pigment. I always err on the side of caution if a piece is essential to the composition, secure it. You can paint on panel using a watercolor ground or an absorbent ground. In this case, you would want to seal the piece. Works on paper should be framed behind glass with a double mat or frame spacer.

Tips and Tricks

Watercolor can be used in so many ways, and experimentation is always the best way to learn! I suggest making a swatch test before using on final work. Try combining them with other watercolors and ink to create more depth and different color variations.

Things in nature that sparkle: water, wet stones, tree sap, dirt after first rain, snow, rain, insects, wet turtle shells, fish, birds… can you think of more things? Then paint that thing!

Warnings

Do not consume or use on skin due to abrasive pigments. Keep away from pets and children.

sale

Orange Frit Paint COE90 / Texture Paint

$28.00 $32.00

Instead of finely crushed pigment, this paint is made out of glass frit, and it could be used for glass fusing projects although I haven’t tried it yet (but I will, stay tuned!). It adds an interesting and intriguing texture to whatever you are painting, especially when the light sparkles through the glass on these paints. This paint may need extra adhesive to secure the glass texture. It will take extra reconstituting time and a little tooth pick to mix paint before using. I love this texture! This is an artist grade, stable, glass paint and it is plastic free.