<![CDATA[Crystal Marie, Deeper]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.comhttps://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!gIYS!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F424bbd33-e492-41b2-a1e0-34c1e2182016_1025x1025.pngCrystal Marie, Deeperhttps://crystalmarie.substack.comSubstackWed, 04 Nov 2026 22:52:56 GMT<![CDATA[Artist Trading Card Workshop this Thursday!]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/artist-trading-card-workshop-thishttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/artist-trading-card-workshop-thisSun, 01 Nov 2026 13:06:34 GMT

Artist Trading Card Workshop, live online this Thursday!

Join me live at the virtual table next week for a fun and creative exploration of collage on a tiny scale!

Thursday November 5th, 2026
1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)
LIVE ONLINE (with access to the recording afterwards)
Plus optional art swap for all participants!

We’ll look at the history of Artist Trading Cards, have a little closer look at some of the cards I’ve collected from as far back as 2004, and then launch into a fun series of lessons and exercises to help you design and finish your own tiny treasures.

With a bonus look at how I created the cloth bag and the little wire stand shown in the reel above, and I’ll draw one name for every ten participants who join me live online for the workshop to receive one of my most recent trading cards!

Regardless of your experience level, we’re going to have some fun with this one. I hope you can join me.

Register Now!

(Zoom link and supply list emailed to participants upon registration.)

Encaustic Wax on Plexi is on sale for just $25!

Buy Now!

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 (partial) Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Fodder School Starts in Two Days!]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/fodder-school-starts-in-two-dayshttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/fodder-school-starts-in-two-daysFri, 30 Oct 2026 18:57:20 GMTHello friends!

I’ve said it many times over, but I’ll say it again, the workshop I filmed for Fodder School 6 is by far, one of the most comprehensive courses I’ve ever recorded for an online offering.

The Fodder Challenge is officially over and I was over the moon excited to see so many participants post their interpretation of my lesson on creating your own calligraphy style brush. Some of the artists tagged me when they posted so you can see how beautiful they are on my Instagram profile at this link.

November first the full Fodder School 6 course begins, with each of 11 artists presenting their own comprehensive workshop every month. The lessons are divided between Make Fodder lessons and Use Fodder lessons and many of the months include live Zoom opportunities to interact with that months teacher. If you work at a different pace, there is no need to worry about keeping up with it all, you get lifetime access to it all!

My workshop lessons walk you through 5 different completed projects including the one in the video and images above. In the Midst was juried into a competitive group show shortly after I completed it, evidence to the fact that this course closely follows my own studio practice start to finish! You not only learn how to create each of those 5 projects, you are set up with the knowledge of how to keep going beyond what I share with you.

You can find out all the details, see who else is teaching, and register for Fodder School 6 here:

Details and Registration

Read on for more…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Encaustic Wax on Plexi is on sale for just $25!

Buy Now!

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 (partial) Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[The commitment that led to a breakthrough]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/the-commitment-that-led-to-a-breakthroughhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/the-commitment-that-led-to-a-breakthroughWed, 28 Oct 2026 17:04:39 GMTBefore diving into today’s post, my Artist Trading Card workshop is happening live online one week from today, and I’d love for you to join me.

Details and Registration

Check out the little video above of the cards I’ve collected and created over the years. I was delighted to discover some of the cards in my collection date all the way back to 2004 when we had swap groups on eBay and Yahoo. You might recognize some of the names that flash by or even your own artwork if you’ve ever gifted or swapped ATC’s with me.

Hello friends,

On Sunday I posted the image above and wrote this little blurb about how it came to be:
“A new one is taking shape on the work table as a result of my commitment to cleaning this weekend. It pulls me like a magnet, away from my responsibilities. Art making as a woman is an act of rebellion. It’s an absolute Dereliction of Duty.
The cleaning can wait. Stay tuned for progress reports from the studio.”

The words I shared seem to be resonating with people as much as the artwork in the image, eliciting quite a few chuckles as I read the comments in support of ignoring the cleaning.

Yesterday my membership group met for our monthly Show, Share, and Tell, where several members talked about their progress in workshops they’re taking. A conversation broke out about the magic that happens when we give ourselves permission to explore techniques outside of our comfort zone or simply play with various materials.

It’s one thing to create fodder for collage and quite another to let ourselves use it—this is the point where so many artists get stuck. The elements we create to use in other projects can be striking all on their own and become so precious to us that we can’t imagine using them.

Several workshops on my 2027 schedule include experiment and play time as one of the final lessons. This time becomes something of an idea generator to stir the imagination for future works from the materials we’ve created. The unrestricted play is an essential ingredient in the mix, but if we stop there, we may never do more than accumulate boxes full of potential.

A deadline can be the catalyst that helps me commit to getting the work done. With that due date looming on the calendar, I manage to keep my butt in the proverbial chair and stick with it through the work itself and the sometimes tedious process of finishing details. Deadlines are great for giving me an incentive to create a body of work, but deadlines rarely inspire new ideas in my work.

Deadlines equal pressure. Pressure shuts down the idea wheels in my brain. Just as a writer knows to take a break, go for a walk, throw a stick for the dog, navel-gaze, and woolgather when they’re feeling stuck, an artist engaged in just about any other activity can open the portal for unexpected ideas to flow.

Taking the pressure out of the equation is essential to an artist’s growth. For me, the newest work developing in the studio didn’t come about because I was avoiding the cleaning—I’m able to do that even when art isn’t involved. It was the result of physically touching the materials without creative expectations, while attempting to clean, and noticing connections between elements that I might not have if I had come to the table with a deadline in mind.

I know myself well. This newest work is exciting my imagination and I’m eager to see it through. But I’ve also given myself the incentive of a deadline—a call for art at a well reputed local gallery seems to be just the thing to help me finish what I’ve started.

Stay tuned…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity

Thursday November 5th, 2026
1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)
LIVE ONLINE (with access to the recording afterwards)
Art swap is optional for all participants

Join me live at the virtual table next week for a fun and creative exploration of collage on a tiny scale!

I’ll cover a brief history of Artist Trading Cards, have a little closer look at some of the cards in my own collection, and then launch into a fun series of exercises to help you design and finish your own tiny treasures.

I’ll present a few bonus lessons on how I created the cloth bag and the little wire stand shown in the reel above. And bonus of bonuses, I’ll draw one name for every ten participants who join me live online for the workshop to receive one of my ATCs!

Regardless of your experience level, we’re going to have some fun with this one!

Details and Registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 (partial) Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[I had a Dream...]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/i-had-a-dreamhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/i-had-a-dreamMon, 19 Oct 2026 18:26:00 GMT
View from the studio table, work in progress

Hello friends,

Last night I had one of those dreams. The kind that are just weird enough to make you wonder if it was something you ate, but just symbolic enough to make you ruminate over the deeper meaning of it once you’re fully awake.

In the dream, I was my current age, but woke in my childhood bed. Glancing out the window I saw a hustling cityscape, just as a large passenger plane started to nose dive, narrowly missing the tops of the city buildings as it pulled up at the last minute. That scene repeated itself twice with smaller planes and each time, no one around me seemed to give it more than a shrug when I shared what I’d witnessed.

Later, as we were driving away, a large dragon swooped in and landed on the cornice of a tall building, causing large chunks of it to come crashing to the ground, but still, no one else reacted. They seemed desensitized to the trauma of a city under siege.

But when we turned a corner to see a hill covered in yellow flowers glowing in the morning sun, everyone in the car with me took notice—slowing down the car, noses pressed to the glass, exclaiming over the beauty of it all.

Then a whole bunch of other weird things happened the details of which I could not recall, but the planes, the dragon, and the beautiful flower covered hill stuck with me.

Over the weekend I attended an open studio event at a large art center in a nearby neighborhood. Ten floors of art studios, gorgeous climate controlled industrial spaces with astonishing views of the Chicago skyline. I talked to artists, admired their artwork, asked questions, fell in love with an empty corner studio on the newly renovated seventh floor and left with my head in the clouds dreaming.

I didn’t take a single picture. Didn’t post about attending the event on any of my socials. Didn’t do any of the things we artists are supposed to do to market ourselves and look relevant.

Last weekend I spent time three hours south hanging out with my family for our annual fall gathering at my mom’s. My grandkids look forward to this get together every year for the pumpkin decorating, marshmallow and wienie roasting they get to do all by themselves, and the bumpy ride on great-gramma’s golf cart they get to take around the little town she lives in. They always go home with a bag full of goodies and full bellies. For the most part, I forgot to take pictures.

It strikes me that the running theme in all this is slowing down to appreciate living in the moment. The evidence of which isn’t found in a photograph, it’s in the experience. It’s in the moment-to-moment engagement with the people right there in front of you. Unlike the people in that dream, it doesn’t mean we disconnect from the turmoil and issues happening all around us. Quite the opposite really, when life is lobbing one trauma after another at us, slowing down to appreciate a breathtaking hillside or connecting in a genuine exchange with another human can help give us what we need to stay engaged and keep going.

At the very least, those connections and beautiful moments is a place to rest in the midst of it all. And that is no small thing.

Read on for more.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Taking time to appreciate our connections as humans is one of the main reasons I’ve favored teaching live over creating prerecorded courses. They each have merit when it comes to learning, but that interpersonal connection seems more vital than ever in these times.

I’d love to have you join me for a fun and casual mini workshop online coming up in November or for any number of live online and on location events scheduled for the coming year.

Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity

  • Thursday November 5th, 2026

  • 1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)

  • LIVE ONLINE (with access to the recording afterwards)

  • Art swap is optional for all participants

Full Details and Registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Today is My Birthday and I’m Making a Wish...]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/today-is-my-birthday-and-im-makinghttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/today-is-my-birthday-and-im-makingSat, 17 Oct 2026 11:48:33 GMT
ATC cards with hand dyed, stained, marked, and kneaded papers by Crystal Marie

Hello friends,

Today is my 61st birthday and according to my oldest granddaughter, that’s not so big. She’s seen bigger, she tells me, by which, I think she means she’s met people older than me. I tried not to chuckle at the earnest delivery of her reassurance, but I’m going to cherish that memory forever! After I blew out the candle during my family birthday dinner, she asked if I’d made a wish. I have everything I want sitting around this table, I told her.

But later, I couldn’t help feeling a little sad. The world she’s growing up in will come with challenges I didn’t have to face when I was a child. Her first day of Kindergarden was marked with an unannounced lockdown drill and it’s simply hard to fathom that she will have fewer rights as a woman than I grew up with.

Now, maybe this isn’t the post you were expecting when you opened it to read. I’m not offended if you choose to skip this one, but if you’re new around here you should know that I do occasionally get personal and political in my writing and I think that is absolutely connected to being an artist.

Sitting down to write today’s post had me thinking about that birthday candle wish and what it might be. Not one to be selfish, it includes all of you. My wish today is that you check your voter registration, do a little reading up on what’s on your ballot for the midterms and tops on the list—go vote. Vote early if you’re able. Do it in person if that is possible. But however you do it, don’t sit this one out. (Unless, of course, you voted for the current administration, no longer recognize your party, and are confused about what to do. Then by all means, it is okay to take a pass this time through.)

I have a live online workshop coming up in November and you might have noticed that it’s schedule for just a few days after the election. This is not a coincidence, as I suspect we’re in for a rocky few months of challenges and making art is an incredibly regulating experience, especially when we can connect in a group setting.

This one will be a fun and casual experience that comes with an opportunity for the participants to swap art if they so choose. We’ll be making Artist Trading cards with an overview of what they are and how adaptable they can be to just about any medium. I’d love for you to join us!

Read on for details…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity

The Workshop:

  • Thursday November 5th, 2026

  • 1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)

  • LIVE ONLINE

Guided by artist and author of The Art of Expressive Collage, Crystal Marie, Participants will review what Artists Trading Cards are in a fun and casual conversation before diving into techniques and exercises to help each participant loosen up and begin creating a series of designs in collage to keep, display, and trade!

Supplies are simple:

  • Something to glue: Your own collection of collage fodder (papers, ephemera, etc.)

  • Something to glue on: The substrate or surface for your collage, Sturdy watercolor paper, card stock, mixed media paper, matboard, etc.

  • Something to glue with: Your favorite adhesive and applicator

Only $40 the workshop— will be recorded for participants to view and review after our time together.

Full Details and Registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, with participant swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Fodder Challenge, Anyone?]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/fodder-challenge-anyonehttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/fodder-challenge-anyoneThu, 15 Oct 2026 13:12:15 GMT

Hello friends,

Today my lesson for Fodder School 6’s Fodder Challenge is live and it’s just a bit different than the rest. See, it isn’t the collage fodder that takes center stage with this one, it’s the brush I’m using to make my marks on the fodder!

Always following those rabbit trails of curiosity, I couldn’t help myself, when over a decade ago the art of mark-making had captured my attention, and soon I was looking for ways to make unique marks from my own handcrafted tools.

I’ve taught the art of making many unique styles of handmade brushes over the years, but one of my favorites is crafting a calligraphy brush using a lock of your own hair! Of course there are any number of alternative materials you can use to craft that brush tip, and I demo a few along with a variety of options for creating the handle of the brush. But each time I’ve had the ability to teach this technique live, I wind up with students who thought they were only interested in those alternatives snipping locks from the nape of their necks in the middle of the workshop!

I’m especially excited to see how some of the other teachers in Fodder School interpreted my lesson. Check out these gorgeous examples by the host of Fodder School, Wendy Solganik:

Artist, Connie Fong used a variety of dried grasses—I’m in love with her style of cross-cutting the handles and imagining the incredible marks these will make. Not to mention the simple beauty of displaying them as works of art:

Stunningly beautiful brushes by Con

Not to be outdone, artist Amanda Trought took it to another level, using sharpened pencils for her handles and hemp cord to adorn:

The process itself is surprisingly simple and as you can see, this challenge leaves plenty of room for your imagination. Whether you choose to use your brushes to create marks or simply to gift or display, start to finish a single brush can take as little as 20-minutes to complete!

If you jumped into the Fodder Challenge and don’t want to lose access to these lessons after they close on November 15th, take that next step and jump into the full course. And if you didn’t sign up for Fodder Challenge, you can still get access to these lessons when you register for Fodder School 6.

Details and Registration

My month is July and I can honestly say this was one of the most comprehensive courses I’ve ever filmed. I walk you through my favorite techniques of creating painted & rusted fodder and then show you how I use that fodder in a number of different projects. I even show you how to use your handmade brush as a hanger for your work!

I’m really excited to see how everyone interprets my lessons in Fodder Challenge and in the full Fodder School experience. Each of the ten teaching artists brings a different perspective, different techniques, different materials, and a different creative voice to the mix. There’s a private facebook group that is very active. A place to share, show your work, and connect with other participants. And with lifetime access through Fodder School, you can work on each of their projects at your own pace.

Head on over to the full course page for all the details here:

Fodder School 6 Registration

With gratitude to you all,
Crystal Marie

]]><![CDATA[You Too are a Badass]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/you-too-are-a-badasshttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/you-too-are-a-badassThu, 08 Oct 2026 17:30:37 GMT

Hello friends,

I started the week with a lengthy travel day Monday, heading home from a wonderful teaching experience in Port Orchard, Washington. Driving home from the airport, the check engine light turned on and the following morning my coffee maker decided to check out. It was, to say the least, a bit of a deflating reentry.

Standing in the shower, I suddenly remembered the mechanic told me I needed a new air filter at my oil change last month. They didn’t have one in stock and said it should be fine until next time. After doing a little research online, I headed over to the closest auto parts store and purchased an air filter, watched a YouTube video and changed that baby myself. It was intimidating, but only because I was unfamiliar with working on my own car.

Research told me that the light should turn off after 3 or 4 driving cycles, so I did my grocery shopping and kept an eye on it. But before I even made it out of the first parking lot, the media screen froze, rendering me unable to use the car radio, the bluetooth, or my rear camera when backing up. This was bound to be an indication of disaster! my inner chatter warned. The engine light and the media panel in the same day?? The electrical system in the car must be fried! I could hear the cash register dinging up repair bills in the back of my mind.

Ignoring that voice, I jumped on my phone to do a little more research and found a video that guided me in resetting the media screen and it worked! The next day when I set off on errands again, the check engine light, turned off.

Total cost of taking care of both issues myself: $20.
Sense of feeling empowered to navigate my own life: Priceless

Sadly there is not an easy fix for the coffee maker, but I still have my trusty pour over, which forces me to be more present while making my morning brew. And somehow that too feels empowering.

To slow down the process and pay attention, to remember that I can trust myself to know what to do, to know that I can learn new things, do hard things, and to believe I can trust myself to work through the anxiety when something doesn’t go according to plan. A good reminder to myself that even now, creeping up on my 62nd birthday, I am quite capable of learning new things. That indeed, I am a badass when I need to be.

And if life is being a little extra for you today, let this be a reminder to you: You too are a badass, and you can trust yourself to learn, and do hard things.

Read on for the latest news…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Only a few more days to grab an ATC fodder pack plus live workshop at the presale pricing!

Artist Trading Card Live Online Workshop, Fodder kits, and Art Swap opportunity

The Workshop:

Thursday November 5th, 2026
1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)
LIVE ONLINE (and recorded for continued review)

The Swap:

  • Participation in the swap is completely optional, please select your preference with the dropdown to complete your purchase.

  • See the listing for full details

What’s in the ATC fodder pack?

  • 10 sturdy watercolor paper substrates precut to the standard ATC size of 2.5” x 3.5”

  • 2 slightly undersized playing cards to be used as fodder or additional substrates

  • An assortment of ephemera culled from my own studio, ranging from full sized small text book pages of 4” x 6” to postage stamp size

  • An assortment of hand painted, stained, dyed, marked, and altered fodders

  • Salvaged, distressed, altered, useful materials for creating collage. and mixed media Artist Trade Cards or small works of art.

  • Each pack may have some similar elements but each one is completely original. No photocopies or scanned elements. See images for examples of the type of materials and the cards created from them.

To Purchase the workshop with fodder kit, and swap opportunity (US shoppers only):

Purchase the ATC kit and workshop here

To Purchase the workshop/swap opportunity without the kit (international and US shoppers):

Details and Registration here

The October Fodder School challenge is underway and soon the full Fodder School 6 will begin.

Fodder School details and registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, Fodder Kits PLUS a swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

Shop all Current Prerecorded Courses here:

Shop Prerecorded Courses

]]><![CDATA[It is a Miracle That We’re Here]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/it-is-a-miracle-that-were-herehttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/it-is-a-miracle-that-were-hereTue, 06 Oct 2026 19:10:57 GMTHello friends,

I landed back home just after Eleven last night from a wonderful experience teaching Material Alchemy at Bellissima Art Escapes studio in Port Orchard, Washington.

The check engine light came on in my car on the drive home from the airport and this morning my coffee maker went kaput, and I honestly don’t know which one I’m more upset about.

The car. Of course, it’s the car. But dealing with that situation might be a little easier with a little caffeine in my system. Can I get an Amen??

Whenever I’m in a group of artists in a casual, conversational setting, it strikes me how very different my life has been. I feel the discomfort of not being able to converse about many of the topics that come up across the dinner table, the limited scope of my experiences in leisure travel, fine dining, and general knowledge of certain topics that seem common to so many.

When I’m feeling particularly vulnerable in my current circumstances, a deep sense of inadequacy and shame can hit. But when I recount the scope of my life and some of the stories of my dysfunctional past—growing up with an alcoholic father, having my first child when I was barely 16, being displaced several times over as an adult, the many, many moves over the years, the losses, and physical health issues and traumas, and the rest of the story of what led me from point A to the here and now, it hits me that it is something of a miracle that I’m here.

Here, as in being in the place of living my nearly 61 year old life as an artist; teaching, writing, and creating art for a living, regardless of what a struggle that can still be. It’s become a mantra I need to remind myself of. I am a miracle: My life. My recovery from that past. My art, my voice, and my place in this world matters.

And as different as our backgrounds may be, we all have those things that get stirred up from time to time. The feeling of being an imposter, not good enough, or inadequate in some way. The idea that if anyone could see who we really are, they might be horrified and walk away. It isn’t always so direct, but that stuff gets in there and it shapes how we let ourselves show up in the world and in our art life.

So before I set off to figure out what to do about my car, I thought I’d stop in to remind you in case you need to hear it too—wherever you are and whatever you are going through today, you are a miracle. Your life, your art, your voice in it all matters. And I’m glad that you’re here.

Read on for art news…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Artist Trading Card Live Online Workshop, Fodder kits, and Art Swap opportunity

While I am unable to offer the ATC fodder kits for international shipping at this time, I’ve added a listing for the live online workshop and art swap opportunity for anyone, regardless of region, who would like participate in the class and/or swap without purchasing a kit.

The Workshop:

Thursday November 5th, 2026
1:00--3:00pm CST (I’m located in Chicago: Central Standard Time)
LIVE ONLINE (and recorded for continued review)

Guided by artist and author of The Art of Expressive Collage, Crystal Marie, Participants will review what Artists Trading Cards are in a fun and casual conversation before diving into techniques and exercises to help each participant loosen up and begin creating a series of designs in collage to keep, display, and trade!

  • Supplies are simple: Something to glue: Your own collection of collage fodder (papers, ephemera, etc.); Something to glue on: The substrate or surface for your collage, Sturdy watercolor paper, cardstock, mixed media paper, matboard, etc.), and Something to glue with: Your favorite adhesive and applicator

  • Live online workshop will be recorded.

  • Participants who are able to join the live online workshop will be included in the *bonus raffle to receive one of my own ATC designs.

The Swap:

  • Participation in the swap is completely optional, please select your preference with the dropdown to complete your purchase.

  • Each participant will create one ATC card to send to the name and address which will be provided to you in the email approximately one week prior to the scheduled workshop date.

  • Minimal postage required, as cards will easily fit in a standard envelope and details for packaging to mail the cards will covered in the workshop. I will do my best to pair those outside the US with a swap partner who is okay with international shipping.

  • The workshop will focus on collage, but your cards can be created in any style or medium you choose. Let them be a reflection of you!

*THE BONUS RAFFLE: I’ll draw one name for every ten participants who join in the live workshop to send one of the Artist Trading Cards created by me.

What’s in the ATC fodder pack?

  • 10 sturdy watercolor paper substrates precut to the standard ATC size of 2.5” x 3.5”

  • 2 slightly undersized playing cards to be used as fodder or additional substrates

  • An assortment of ephemera ranging from full sized small text book pages of 4” x 6” to postage stamp size

  • An assortment of hand painted, stained, dyed, marked, and altered fodders

  • Salvaged, distressed, altered, useful materials for creating collage. and mixed media Artist Trade Cards or small works of art.

  • Each pack may have some similar elements but each one is completely original. No photocopies or scanned elements. See images for examples of the type of materials and the cards created from them.

To Purchase the workshop and kit:

Purchase the ATC kit and workshop here

To Purchase the workshop/swap opportunity without the kit:

Details and Registration here

The October Fodder School challenge is underway and soon the full season will begin. It is exciting to be one of the Season 6 teaching artists and I’m really looking forward to seeing how each of the participants interprets my lessons!

Check out the details and registration for Fodder School 6:

Fodder School details and registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here

  • November 5th, 2026 — Artist Trading Card Workshop, Fodder Kits PLUS a swap opportunity; live online — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

Shop all Current Prerecorded Courses here:

Shop Prerecorded Courses

]]><![CDATA[The Comparison Trap]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/the-comparison-traphttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/the-comparison-trapMon, 28 Sep 2026 17:38:06 GMTHello friends,

Over the weekend I had the pleasure of attending an artist talk by three Chicago artists working in the art of collage. Each one had a unique perspective and approach based on their own style as an artist and the experiences that were infused into their work.

As I stood in front of one of the artists work, discussing what I admired about it, the conversation turned to our differing approaches to the medium. Each of us had an appreciation for the other’s work and yet, somehow found ourselves in the trap of comparison. We didn’t dwell there long, each having a grounded sense of our own style and relevance to the art of collage, but I couldn’t help reflecting on it later.

It is only natural to compare our work to what we see and admire in other’s. But far too often in doing so, that admiration turns into our internal critic messages. Oftentimes it doesn’t even start with our art. Those critic messages that compel us to edit our appearance or govern our behaviors for fear of being criticized by others in life are the same ones that inhibit us in the studio. On the surface it may seem like logic, but that lens of comparison is a trap that can keep us from participating in something we really have a desire to do.

The video above is a segment of a longer conversation I had live on Facebook back in September of 2020, when I did a daily series of talks and 5-minute collage exercises with my Facebook group based on discerning between our own intuitive voice and that of our internalized art critic. It began with a funny anecdote about discovering I’d been measuring something wrong my entire adult life and the strange sense of relief that came with that realization. Find the link below if you’d like to watch the full twenty-three minute conversation.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Artist Trading Card (ATC) Live Online Workshop and Fodder kit with Art Swap opportunity!

Note Presale pricing: Kits will be mailed on Monday October 12th.

Here’s what you get in your kit:

  • 10 precut sturdy watercolor substrates

  • 2 slightly undersized playing cards to use as fodder or additional Artist Trading Card (ATC) substrates

  • An assortment of fodder (collage materials) suitable for creating Artist Trading Cards, ranging from postage stamp size to 4” x 6” sized materials.

  • An illustrated copy of my recipe for creating the yummiest adhesive for collage from two easy to source products.

  • An invitation to a live online ATC workshop to be held on Zoom Thursday November 5th, 1:00--3:00pm CST

  • An opportunity to participate in an ATC card swap (participation in the swap is not required to purchase the kit or attend the workshop)

Shipping is limited to the US at this time, with apologies to my friends and customers in other countries.

More details and Registration here

Last minute opportunity to join me in Port Orchard, Washington for Material Alchemy next week!

If you are the spontaneous type of adventurer, there are a couple of last minute openings for Material Alchemy in Port Orchard, Washington next week and I’d love for you to join me!

Details and Registration Information

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

To view the full twenty-three minute conversation including the segment above, go to this post:

The Deeper Connection
Day 7: Are You Measuring Wrong?
We are artists and we can’t help it, we look at the work of other artists and admire what we see. Or we don’t like it. It is part of the process of learning to identify that part of our own Intuitive Voice that begins with simply recognizing what we like and what we don’t like as we begin developing our own style. It is inspiring to see work that we asp…
Read more
2 years ago · 2 likes · Crystal Marie, Artist
]]><![CDATA[How about a swap?]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/how-about-a-swaphttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/how-about-a-swapSun, 27 Sep 2026 16:15:09 GMT
Artist Trading Card by Crystal Marie

Hello dear friends,

Yesterday was an art-filled day for me here on the home front. It started with a trip to The Art Center in Highland Park to retrieve my art from a recent group show and then, from that North Shore suburb of Chicago, I drove to a neighborhood on the south side to catch an artist talk and collage exhibit by three Chicago artists at the Vanderpoel art center for the Beverly neighborhood art walk.

Later I got to partake of the incredibly beautiful, early fall sunshiny perfect weather, during a walking tour to learn about the history and culture of the art murals in Pilsen, a vibrant, predominantly Mexican neighborhood adjacent to mine. It is one of the things I love most about Chicago, the diversity of cultures and rich history each neighborhood has to offer—not to mention the strength of the arts culture and communities that exist here.

In between the activity of the past few days, I've been working on some small bite sized works known as ATCs, or Artist Trading Cards—tiny works of art in any style or medium, sized like traditional trading cards (think baseball, Pokémon). Each one is 2.5" x 3.5" and fits neatly in the vinyl pocket pages collectors use to keep their cards safe. My own collection lives in an old wooden butter box and spans decades of trading with other artists, plus some I've made myself.

My Artist Trading Card collection and a few of my own past designs

Working on the current series took me right back to my earliest days as an artist, connecting with others in eBay groups formed just for swapping art. You can see in the image above how easy it is to keep dozens of these little works without taking up much space. Every time I pull that box off the shelf and flip through the cards, the names and the work fill me with so many fond memories.

Not unlike the diversity of culture in this city I love, the styles and mediums in my own collection carry the history and story of each artist who made them. And not unlike the communities that form around shared culture, ATC swaps have connected me to artists I’m still close to twenty years later.

Working on this series and sorting through the embarrassing amount of fodder I’ve accumulated, was the catalyst for this year’s ATC-specific fodder packs. From there it was only a matter of hours before I decided to host a workshop to go with them, and then, why not a swap too?

While some of you may be just dipping your toe in the water of all things collage, mixed media, and fodder related. There is not a single thing that qualifies you to participate except the willingness and desire to connect and have fun.

Can’t commit to the swap? You’re still welcome at the table for the workshop that comes with the kit—just use the dropdown in the listing to indicate your choice.

Read on for the details.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Artist Trading Card (ATC) and Fodder kit with Live Online Workshop and Art Swap opportunity!

Each year I create a number of ephemera kits and paper packs to help purge my own fodder stash and allow me to keep creating and collecting, this year it is the small to medium elements that have the storage in my studio overflowing. Thus, this years packs are designed specifically to help me de-stash the excess with a bit of a fun twist!

Artist Trading Card Fodder Kits and Workshop Combo Packs! PLUS a swap opportunity for those who would like a chance to participate!

Note Presale pricing: Kits will be mailed on Monday October 12th.

Here’s what you get in your kit:

  • 10 precut sturdy watercolor substrates

  • 2 slightly undersized playing cards to use as fodder or additional Artist Trading Card (ATC) substrates

  • An assortment of fodder (collage materials) suitable for creating Artist Trading Cards, ranging from postage stamp size to 4” x 6” sized materials.

  • An illustrated copy of my recipe for creating the yummiest adhesive for collage from two easy to source products.

  • An invitation to a live online ATC workshop to be held on Zoom Thursday November 5th, 1:00--3:00pm CST

  • An opportunity to participate in an ATC card swap (participation in the swap is not required to purchase the kit or attend the workshop)

Shipping is limited to the US at this time, with apologies to my friends and customers in other countries.

More details and Registration here

Last minute opportunity to join me in Port Orchard, Washington for Material Alchemy next week!

If you are the spontaneous type of adventurer, there are a couple of last minute openings for Material Alchemy in Port Orchard, Washington next week and I’d love for you to join me!

Details and Registration Information

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[It Was Always Leading To This]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/it-was-always-leading-to-thishttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/it-was-always-leading-to-thisSun, 13 Sep 2026 11:49:51 GMT
It Was Always Leading To This; 48” x 72” Work in Progress by Crystal Marie

Hello dear friends,

The past week has been a whirlwind of traveling to Kansas City from Chicago, for a mini art retreat with a couple of friends. Art-making and brainstorming was on the agenda, and though we left without a solid plan for the collaboration that we’ve been contemplating, the art making and conversations served to spark something of a breakthrough for my own practice.

I came home with a good start on “It Was Always Leading To this”, the contemporary collage tapestry pictured above, which is now laid out on one of my studio tables waiting for me to complete it. I’ve set a goal to have it finished and photographed in time to submit to an exhibit here in Chicago next month. The scale of this one is larger than anything I’ve submitted in the past and it feels more than a little intimidating, but also it is lighting me up inside. I’m feeling hopeful that this is the catalyst for the body of work I’ve been wanting to create but couldn’t manage in the past.

I’d hoped to have the next round of goodies in the Artsy Vintage section of my shop ready to announce today. But driving 8-hours each way in less than a week zapped me and I finally had to throw in the towel yesterday and accept that a day on the couch was what was most needed.

I’ll be working on some fun new listings in the next few days, in the meantime, I’ve got a great deal on two of my prerecorded courses for you.

This week, my feature course is Painted Fabric Collage is on sale for just $25 and The Secret Language of Women is $25 off. Meaning you can get both courses for the price of one!

Read on for details…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Painted Fabric Collage: Love the look of natural dyed materials but find the process intimidating? Don’t have access or room to gather equipment, forage for plant materials, or have limited time to create? This course was designed with you in mind!

Painted fabric collage will walk you through creating beautiful dyed textiles and adding interest with surface design using paint you probably already have in your studio!

19 video lessons taking you through the step-by-step process, from sourcing fabric, creating beautiful dyes and surface design using paint, and a detailed look at the collage process using textiles, including a unit on the basic principles of composition.

Get Painted Fabric Collage for just $25 this week only!

Buy Now

The Secret Language of Women: Altered Techniques in textiles

The Secret Language of Women will guide you through creating your own visual secret language in an altered textile book or scroll.

Here’s what you get:

✔️Self-paced prerecorded course
✔️Lessons cover everything you need to create a complete book or scroll (student choice)
✔️Course is divided into 28 tutorial videos totaling over 7 hours of content
✔️Techniques demonstrated include:
✔️Sourcing, deconstruction, and preparing materials-fabric and paper
✔️simple dying, staining, and rusting
✔️intuitive stitching or mark-making with thread
✔️mark-making with ink and drawing media
✔️deconstructing, texturizing, sculpting of textiles
✔️assembling & composing individual signatures (pages)
✔️binding individual signatures into a book or scroll (both are demonstrated)
✔️more!

Get $25 off The Secret Language of Women this week only!

Buy Now

]]><![CDATA[On Spilled Paint, Clean Hands, and the Power in Our Collective Voices]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/on-spilled-paint-clean-hands-andhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/on-spilled-paint-clean-hands-andSun, 06 Sep 2026 13:53:30 GMT

Hello Dear Friends,

I’m heading out to Kansas City today for a week of art making and shenanigans with a few good friends. What started off as a retreat with something of a singular focus has morphed into a long text thread of maybes and possibilities for an untold number of various projects. We can’t possibly manage to work on it all in the four studio days we’ve allotted together, but I think it’s a sign of how desperate we all are for unstructured creative time and each other’s company.

You can see by the image how well packing has gone for me. Thankfully that spill was fairly contained and didn’t happen in the interior of my car during the drive today.

There’s something of a metaphor stirring when I look at these photos. One of those life affirming life sort of things.

How I tend to let small infringements of my boundaries go without saying anything, in favor of maintaining the peace. But then a few years of ignoring those infractions go by and suddenly the lid has flipped leaving me with a huge mess on my hands.

Something about how many relationships—personal and business, I’ve tended to shrink in and not say the thing or do the thing that enables me to hold onto my peace with clean hands.

Affirming a recent decision to take solid action on a firm boundary that should have been set long ago. And the feeling of relief that comes from withi,n when I finally manage to tighten the lid and hold onto myself in the process.

It maybe isn’t so different than what we are celebrating in this country this weekend—laborers who finally took a stand against being exploited and expected to give far more of themselves than they ever agreed to do.

There is power in the ability to say “Enough, Already!” Power in each of our voices when we take that stand. Sometimes it only takes a can of spilled paint to remind us what happens when we aren’t paying attention.

Wherever you are and whatever you are doing this Labor Day weekend, I hope you take a moment to remember the cost others paid to give us better working conditions. Not perfect, we still have a long way to go. But recently it seems the proverbial paint has been spilled and it’s up to each of us to take action.

Election Day is less than two months away. They wouldn’t be working so hard to keep us from voting if it didn’t matter. Your vote, your voice, and even your boundaries make a difference.

Enjoy the weekend and get ready, we have some collective cleaning up to do.

With gratitude to you all,
Crystal Marie

Thanks for reading Crystal Marie, Deeper! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

]]><![CDATA[Reporting from the Overwhelm]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/reporting-from-the-overwhelmhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/reporting-from-the-overwhelmFri, 28 Aug 2026 20:28:36 GMT

Hello friends,

Somewhere in that space pictured above, I’ve lost it. Not a physical thing, like my phone or my glasses—though those tend to disappear often when I’m in the throes of a creative frenzy—but the flow of what typically compels me to create a work of art and then finish it.

Walking into my studio this morning, I found myself flitting from one potential project to another, unable to settle on just one thing. My thoughts were a logjam of possible options and each one had a very good reason attached for why it should get my attention first. Yet each one quickly forgotten, as something else would catch my eye.

It struck me after a time of sitting in frustration, with nothing to show for the effort, that this was exactly what one of my group members had described being their issue this week—the overwhelm feeling that comes when there are too many options and not enough time. How do we settle on just one thing?

Something about the memory clicked. I shared with the group member a few insights and what I suspected was at play in their inability to choose. We may be saying that we are overwhelmed with too many options without acknowledging the real question our mind is puzzling through—How on earth do we decide which thing really is most vital? Which thing will bring me the most satisfaction? Which thing is the best thing of all the things I could do?

The inner-critic is a sneaky booger. It doesn’t always present itself as a critical voice telling us we aren’t good enough to call ourselves artists. I’d say it is rarely so direct. Instead, it throws up all kinds of very valid sounding roadblocks—not enough time to finish? Don’t even bother, it’s not worth starting. Bring some new and exciting medium into the studio? Maybe you better wait to use it until someone more qualified shows you what to do.

In all of those piles of potential projects on top of the work table, is one of the most common critic messages of all—the voice of the perfectionist. The perfectionist will tell you that it is important to choose the one thing, the one exact right thing, or you will have blown it. The perfectionist will convince you that unless your results are show worthy, your efforts were wasted. You were a fool for spending time doing something so utterly frivolous.

The perfectionist will sneak up and whisper loudly in your ear, just as you make a decision “Are you sure??” it hisses.

I find myself listening now, not to the voice of the perfectionist, but to the memory of my own words advising the artist in my group—that having this many possibilities on the table really is overwhelming. But instead of feeling pressured to pick the one exact right project, give yourself permission to just pick one. The one that seems to catch your eye first. Not that it is anymore special than the rest. Not that there is some sort of guarantee attached. None of that matters. What matters is that you begin somewhere, doing something. And the action of doing something will lead you to whatever comes next.

There is no guarantee in the studio or in life.

When we find ourselves swirling around all the possible outcomes, hesitating to take a single step even though our heart is yearning to move forward—it's a sign. The perfectionist has tricked you into believing a lie: that if you just manage to choose right, you can control the outcome. That you can keep yourself safe—from failure, from being laughed at, from being exposed as a phony, or worse, from falling into absolute financial ruin!

The perfectionist knows there is no single right answer, no single right way. That is the schtick of its whole game. It is a dangling carrot, a wheel in a rat’s cage.

The truth is, you may fail at whatever it is you’re trying to achieve. It isn’t about finding some magical guarantee. It's about learning to trust yourself in the process. And learning to trust that you can still trust yourself, regardless of what the outcome might bring.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

For more about my membership group:

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

Prerecorded / Recorded Live:
Self-Paced Courses

Shop Recorded Courses Here

Thanks for reading Crystal Marie, Deeper! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

]]><![CDATA[I'm a Teacher in Fodder School 6!]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/im-a-teacher-in-fodder-school-6https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/im-a-teacher-in-fodder-school-6Wed, 19 Aug 2026 11:05:35 GMT

Hello friends!

I’ve eluded to it a few times, but the cat is finally out of the bag—I’m a teacher in Fodder School 6!

Did Somebody Say Fodder?

Fodder created from my lessons in Fodder School

If you hear that word and immediately get excited, you’ve probably been hanging out with me for awhile. If you’re scratching your head wondering just what the heck I’m talking about, no worries—Fodder is simply a fun, slang term for the elements we use to create Mixed Media and Collage projects.

So many mixed-media and collage artists have told me they could spend all their time in the studio simply creating fodder. And it’s no wonder—fodder can be an art form all on it’s own. Something about creating the elements removes the barriers we often find inhibiting us when we sit down to create a work of art. It’s just fun. It’s play.

When Wendy invited me to be part of this year’s teaching team, it was an easy and fast Yes!

It starts with a challenge

Handmade brushes from my Fodder School Challenge

Every October, thousands of artists from around the world gather for the Fodder Challenge. Over the course of the month, ten teachers each share a creative project that helps you build your own collection of handmade papers, collage elements, painted fabrics, marks, and techniques.

These challenge lessons are a small taste of each teachers style and approach to the world of mixed-media. My challenge lessons cover creating multiple mark-making brushes using a lock of your own hair or other materials for the brush tip.

Fodder School Details and Registration

Make Fodder/Use Fodder

Once the challenge month is over, Fodder School continues for eleven more months. Each month features a different artist with full length lessons covering how they make fodder and how to use the fodder you’ve created with their techniques. There is also an active online community, along with live Zoom Q&A and meet the artist opportunities each month!

My own lessons are a comprehensive look at my current approach of creating fodder using paper and textiles. My Use Fodder lessons will give you a variety of options for finishing your work and I am really proud of the results!

The work on the left recently sold and the work featured in the center and right side was juried into a competitive group show and is currently on exhibit here in Chicago. In other words, I put my heart & soul into the work I produced in my lessons and I think it shows.

I’d love to have you join me for the Fodder Challenge and Fodder School!

Registration is open with special early registration offers and even a payment plan to support you in saying yes!

Full Details and Registration Here

With gratitude to you all,
Crystal Marie

PS. there’s still time to get $25 off all live online/chicago workshops and prerecorded courses in my shop when you use code EGGFACE25 at checkout through August 25th!
]]><![CDATA[Are you busy later this week? ]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/are-you-busy-later-this-weekhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/are-you-busy-later-this-weekSun, 16 Aug 2026 11:56:25 GMTHello friends,

Are you busy later this week? If you’re here in the Chicago area, I’ll be hanging out at the Birch Road Cellar in Lincoln Park from 5:30-7:30 for a feature CAVA artist meet and greet Thursday night and I’d love to connect! Hit reply and send me a note if you’d like the event door code.

I joined CAVA—Chicago Alliance for Visual Artists, when I first moved to the city. There are nearly four hundred members, a very well organized all volunteer board, and outstanding shows and exhibit opportunities for their members. Last night was the opening for the annual Later Impressions group show. Nearly 300 pieces submitted, 95 selected by the jurors and I’m honored to have been one of them.

“In The Midst” was created as one of my projects for an upcoming group workshop that I’ll tell you about soon.

Also, a big shout out to my friend Dana for always being on top of documenting things. I never seem to remember to take pics anymore, let alone get them posted. I walked up just as Dana was getting ready to take a selfie in front of the gallery:

Aside from the outstanding art in this exhibit, it was an exciting and crowded opening. I ran into old friends from my Wisconsin days, friends newly made since moving to the city, and a few artists who I’ve been Facebook friends with but haven’t had the opportunity to meet yet. I hadn’t intended to stay long because I am still recovering from my teaching trip, but it was impossible to tear myself away.

If you live in the area get over to The Art Center at Highland Park to see this one through September 26th!

If you aren’t in the Chicagoland area, and even if you are, hop over to the CAVA website here to see yours truly featured on the home page.

That’s it for today. Oh, that and today is the last day to take advantage of the sale on three of my prerecorded courses. Read on for details…

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

Last Day to save half off on these three courses!

Shop Now

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ —

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here — ONLY TWO SEATS LEFT!

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Another Day, Another Derecho in Chicago]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/another-day-another-derecho-in-chicagohttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/another-day-another-derecho-in-chicagoWed, 12 Aug 2026 18:16:41 GMTHello friends,

It’s getting dark in my studio again. The clouds have thickened and the skies are threatening to spill, evidenced by the heavy scent of rain permeating the air outside my door.

My weather app predicts it will all be over in a few hours and the sun will return for the rest of the day. And I sincerely hope whatever we do get today is of the gentle summer rain variety.

Yesterday that was not the case, as it has not been for much of the season. And for the first time since moving to the city, indeed the first time in many years, I found myself scurrying down to the basement for shelter—not when the tornado warning first went off on my cell phone, mind you. As a midwestern girl born and raised in tornado alley, a warning siren is simply an invitation to run out to the porch and have a look at the sky.

I no longer have a porch, so I spent some time hanging out my front door, assessing the color of the sky before returning to the studio table. But when said door began to vibrate and shake with an eerie high-pitched sound I could only interpret as “Get out of the way, I’m getting ready to blow right off my hinges!” I scurried downstairs so fast, I forgot my coffee.

Turns out, it was another derecho—the equivalent of a land hurricane. Wind gusts were clocked at 100 mph and the trees in my neighborhood bore the brunt of that force, once again. This little guy is directly across the street, and though it was still on the younger side, it’s kind of telling for the force of those winds hitting my door.

There are storms in life that hit with such impact we’re left scratching our heads in the aftermath, wondering what the hell just happened and thanking our lucky stars we survived. There are seasons when we are hit with more than our fair share of them. Some storms are slow rolling, nothing much left in their wake but shaky legs from bracing through it all. Other times, we watch the sky as the storms pass, leaving us completely unscathed.

And I don’t really know what I’m trying to say here, other than it is clearly a metaphor for life. Those seasons that seem to blow the front door in and sweep us right off our feet and those seasons where it all feels so unrelenting. I’d love to wrap it all up in a big sunny bow—something about how the sun is always shining behind those clouds. And it is, of course it is. But it doesn’t always break through on each of us equally and it doesn’t always break through in time to save us. To use a sunny, bright-side quip can be incredibly minimizing to someone who is in the thick of it.

And yet…

After reading a post singing the praises of author Rene Denfeld, I downloaded The Child Finder on my Hoopla library app and devoured it, followed quickly by The Butterfly Girl. Each centers on an investigator named Naomi, a survivor of childhood kidnapping and years-long captivity, who now specializes in finding other lost children. In each of the novels, Naomi observes that children who were able to escape their circumstances through their imagination were far more likely to be okay after they were found. Not unscathed. Not as if nothing had happened to them. She lives by the motto of owning our stories and releasing the shame that can haunt us in the aftermath.

This, I’ve found to be true in my own life. To imagine something beyond the current storm, to escape into a creative flurry in the midst of it, has allowed me to find those threads of hope and connection. To emerge on the other side and own the scars that mark my physical and emotional body, refusing to hide what I’ve been through, isn’t the same as being a victim to it. It doesn’t deny the necessary cleanup and patching together and repair that is needed. It doesn’t pretend nothing ever happened. It doesn’t force a smile and a happy ending.

It isn’t that I am who I am in spite of the storms. It isn’t that I am who I am because of it. I am who I am. Complete and whole, including it. All of it. All of it makes up my life.

Your stories matter. In refusing to be silent about what we've been through, we stop waiting for the sun to return. We stop looking for the light. We become it.

Your stories matter and so do you.

“It will be people like us that save the world, she said: those who have walked the side of sorrow and seen the dawn.”
― Rene Denfeld, The Child Finder

With love and gratitude to you all,
Crystal Marie

Four more days to grab one of these three prerecorded classes for half off!

Shop Now

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ —

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here — ONLY TWO SEATS LEFT!

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Homeward Bound]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/homeward-boundhttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/homeward-boundSun, 09 Aug 2026 18:20:16 GMT
Me, Pam, April, Lynda, Cindy, Angela, and Deb—Beautiful artful souls from my Paper and Layers workshop (not pictured Holly and Dawna)

Hello dear friends,

Today I’ll be flying home from Phoenix, where I’ve just wrapped up three workshop at the inaugural Studio Eleven Mixed Media and Jewelry Arts retreat. Each day was an absolute art making frenzy and I am woefully challenged in remembering to take pictures in the midst of it all, but I did capture some really great moments along with plenty of pics of the art.

There have been highs and lows involved in this trip—among the highest of highs is always the people who attend the classes and this one was no exception. Fellow teachers, hosts, and participants all coming to the table eager to partake, participate and impart their own brand of art making, inspiration, and creativity.

Each day I had a mix of students at the table that were brand new to the medium and to my teaching, alongside those who were seasoned artists and returning students from my past workshops. It always feels like something of a reunion to teach at an art retreat, in the best possible way—even among those I’ve only just met, as the air seems to radiate the energy of connection and creative vibes. And of course the lowest of the lows is having to say goodbye to everyone on the final day.

I do plan to come back next year and I’m already contemplating what I’d like to teach. Stay tuned, I’ll be announcing the dates in the coming weeks, along with some other exciting announcements.

It is always a gift to hear students proclaim that they love what they made. This week I was treated to hearing it spoken many times over during class. What a testiment to the power of creative community.

Somehow I didn’t take enough pics and yet I still have dozens on my phone that I could show you. But alas, I have a cab to catch and a long day of travel ahead. The two hour time difference means I’ll be pulling in at home just before midnight. And as sweet as these highlights of my time here have been, I’m greatly looking forward to sleeping in my own bed.

With gratitude and love to you all!
Crystal Marie

One more week to grab one of these three prerecorded classes for half off!

Shop Now

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ —

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here — ONLY TWO SEATS LEFT!

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Art News and Upcoming Events]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/art-news-and-upcoming-eventshttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/art-news-and-upcoming-eventsWed, 05 Aug 2026 15:16:53 GMT
Night Swim; 18” x 36” x 1.75” Painted Textile Construction by Crystal Marie. A work in progress, awaiting the moment I find the perfect solution for finishing the sides of the canvas. Perhaps a frame of salvaged wood? Maybe scraps of other textiles, or some other intriguing nonsense completely unrelated to the front.

Hello friends,

I’m writing from Phoenix, where the day long journey of flying and Ubering, has brought me a two hour time zone difference, in which my brain has refused to acknowledge that 3:30am wasn’t actually 5:30am and time to wakey-wakey, in spite of not actually sleepy-sleeping very well.

I am most certainly under-caffeinated and full of the most exciting early morning brainstorm of creative ideas that have me antsy to be back in my own studio, even while I’m eagerly anticipating the coming three days of teaching.

Of course, none of these early morning ideas have anything to do with the art already in progress on the studio table and yet, I know I will not be able to resist the pull of one in particular when I get home.

Before I run off to get groceries for the week or begin packing kits for tomorrows class or crash out from too little sleep and too many random ideas for yet another series of work, I have a few upcoming events I wanted to share with you all—a meet the artist night, a group show, and more.

Read on for details.

With groggy gratitude,
Crystal Marie

In the Midst, 10” x 10” x 1.5” painted textile construction, by Crystal Marie

CAVA: Later Impressions

August 7th-September 26th
The Art Center at Highland Park
Opening Reception August 14th; 5:30-8:00 pm

Later Impressions is CAVA’s signature juried exhibition of the year and I am quite thrilled to be one of the exhibiting artists, showing my recent painted textile collage “In the Midst”. And indeed, it will be in the midst of some tremendously outstanding works of art.

Fuck It, I’m a Flower; 20” x 20” x 2.5” painted textile construction, by Crystal Marie

CAVA Feature Artist: Meet the Artist Night

Thursday August 20th;
5:30—7:30pm
Birch Road Cellar
1113 W Armitage Ave., Chicago, IL 60614

I am CAVA’s (Chicago Association of Visual Artists) feature artist this month and have ten works on exhibit at Birch Road Cellar. Come on out Thursday, August 20th to meet me, have a cocktail, and check out the art. Yay!

PLEASE NOTE: Birch Road Cellar is not open to the public, so hit reply to this post or leave me a comment at the bottom if you’d like to attend so I can give you the winky-winky secret password to gain entrance. JK—it’s just a door code for the event. Let me know if you’ll be there and I’ll give you the deets.

Shop the vendor market or stop by my classroom!

Studio Eleven Retreat
Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix
August 5th—8th
Phoenix, AZ

I’ll have a table set up today from 4:00—7:00pm on the second floor of the Grand Ballroom and Convention center at the Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort.

If you can’t make it today, you are welcome to stop by my classroom on the first floor during the lunch break (noon-1pm) tomorrow (Thursday), Friday, or Saturday. PLUS after class hours from about 4:00pm—6:30 tomorrow (Thursday) either in the classroom or upstairs in the vendor area.

Two Seats Open!

Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media
October 2-4, 2026
Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA

I’m eagerly anticipating hanging out in the incredible studio of host Kathie Vezzani during my birthday month for this workshop. There are only two seats remaining, so be sure to jump in now if you’ve had your eye on this one!

(and let me know if you need a little guidance through the registration process)

Details and Registration

One Seat Remaining!

Paper and Layers with Encaustic
Friday April 9th, 2027
PLUS OPTIONAL: Open Studio Day Saturday, April 10th, 2027
10am-4pm CDT

*Chicago, Illinois

Paper and Layers with Encaustic will cover a variety of methods for combining collage and encaustic, adding surface design, textures, embedding objects and working with layers of medium and pigments.

Opt for the workshop only on April 9th or go for the additional April 10th open studio day combo and have even more time to work on your projects with my supplies and guidance.

Only one seat remains in this one. Be sure to jump in now if you’d like to join us!

Details and Registration

It is officially the anniversary of my Construct series of prerecorded courses and they are all on sale for 50% off registration!

Construct = A series based on working with materials and mediums you can find at the local home improvement store. Plaster, paint, concrete, and more!

Shop Now

]]><![CDATA[Textile Construction or Painted Textile Construction? What's the dif?]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/textile-construction-or-painted-textilehttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/textile-construction-or-painted-textileThu, 30 Jul 2026 13:48:52 GMTHello friends,

I spent the day yesterday pulling previous works out and evaluating them for an upcoming show that needs to be delivered today. Though all were collage, each of the works I selected represented a bit different period of time in my creative journey.

It’s Not All Black & White; 12” x 30” x 2.5” each panel—Triptych 2011; Crystal Marie

From the triptych created around 2011 to one that remains in my collection from my 2018 representation at SOFA Chicago, to several smaller works created after the big purge of my entire collection of ephemera and found papers in 2022, to three of the newest works from my ReWilding series, I can see a shift in my way of working and thinking about the elements I brought to the table. Yet, each of these works are distinctly my own voice.

(Nothin’s Gonna Stop Me) Golden Years; 30” x 30” x 2.5” Collage Mixed Media; Crystal Marie

This morning I’ll be hanging the thirteen works I selected for an upcoming spotlight artist feature, which I’ll tell you more about in another post. But before I hit the road, I need to redo three of the tags for the most recent works.

I’ve been calling the medium used in the newest series “textile constructions” and realized after I created those tags, that it doesn’t fully encompass the process of creating them. I didn’t just gather textiles and create a collage with them. I hand dyed, stained, marked, manipulated, and painted each of those elements first. I treated each piece of cloth as a work of art on it’s own, without regard for where I would use it later.

Clearly there are elements in each of these works that I did nothing to other than envision how it might fit with the work on my studio table. Two include bits of Japanese Obos and one includes the cloth salvaged from an old book cover. But each one is so much more than a textile construction. I’ll be updating their tags with the word “Painted” not because it encompasses everything either, but merely for the fact that it is shorter than saying “hand dyed, stained, marked, manipulated, and painted textile construction”.

I’d like to think that the work speaks on it’s own. But that isn’t always the case when someone who isn’t familiar with art practices is standing in front of your work. That one word allows the viewer a window of understanding that may not have been conveyed with my original label. Painted implies an action by the artist, combined with the word “Construction”, my hope is the process will be more clear.

Similarly, tomorrow, the early registration offers end for my Winter and Spring lineup, and you may have been wondering about the difference between the first two on the schedule—Collage on Canvas and The Book of Alchemy: Working with textiles in Mixed Media. Each one includes the use of textiles, but there is minimal overlap between the two.

Collage on canvas is exactly what the title says, we’ll be focusing on creating collage works using unstretched canvas as our substrate. You can use paper or textiles as your fodder, but each of those elements will be attached to the substrate—the canvas. We will do some simple marking and manipulating of fodder to begin with and what you decide to do with your finished work is up to you—you can attached it to a panel or hang it as a banner, frame it or tack it to the wall on it’s own merit.

The Book of Alchemy will unfold slowly over the month of February as we meet each week on Tuesdays for lessons and the optional Thursdays for coworking studio time and review of our work. This course will cover the process that I go through to hand dye, stain, mark, manipulate, and paint textiles and cloth elements. We’ll then deconstruct these creations and rearrange them into a textile book, collage or banner, with instruction on how to achieve all three.

Register today and save on each of these workshops and more. Early registration offers end tomorrow. Read on for details.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

TL:DR Schedule of New Early Registration Offers:
(or Read on below for details of each)

Thursday January 14th, 2027
Noon-4pm CST (Chicago Standard Time)

LIVE ONLINE

Guided by artist and author of The Art of Expressive Collage, Crystal Marie, you’ll explore how paper and fabric speak to one another on cloth — an alternative substrate for collage that opens up new possibilities beyond traditional paper or stretched canvas.

Drawing from the materials you bring to the table, and those we’ll create together with simple mark-making exercises, you’ll learn techniques for adhering elements to cloth while trusting the intuitive pull of what’s in front of you, letting the materials guide you toward unexpected connections and compositions.

Rather than striving for perfection or control, we’ll learn what it means to trust our intuitive eye — allowing fragments to find their place and compositions to take shape through both chance and intention.

Details and Registration

Tuesdays: February 2nd, 9th, 16th, and 23rd
1:00--4:00pm CST (Chicago: Central Standard Time)
OPTIONAL Open Studio and Review: Thursdays February 4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th
1:00--2:30 CST (Chicago: Central Standard Time)

LIVE ONLINE

NOW WITH TWO PAYMENT OPTION!

al·che·my \ˈal-kə-mē\ noun

a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination.

1. any magical power or process of transmuting a common substance, usually of little value, into a substance of great value.

2. any seemingly magical process of transforming or combining elements into something new.

The Book of Alchemy is an exploration of transformation through fiber—where the familiar, the worn, and the overlooked are gathered and reimagined. Cloth holds memory in quiet ways: through repetition, mending, softness, and wear. In this workshop, textile becomes both material and metaphor, a place where intuition, touch, and time come together to transform the ordinary into something rooted and alive.

We’ll work with new and salvaged fabric as surface and structure, creating hand-altered textile elements through cutting, tearing painting, rust staining, stitching, layering, and mark-making. Building a personal collection of cloth fragments, participants will have the opportunity to explore how texture, transparency, weight, and edge create visual language and emotional pull. Rather than forcing meaning, we’ll allow it to emerge—listening to the materials speak to relationship, rhythm, and repair through both happenstance and intention.

This monthlong intensive allows participants to choose their own adventure, so to speak, by focusing their efforts on creating a textile book, banner, or collage. Or perhaps a combination of them all? While making a book of alchemy as a sampler and easy place to contain the elements we work on, each option will be explored so that students feel equipped to create what resonates with them the most.

Details and Registration

Thursday April 1st, 2027
Noon-4pm CDT

Live Online

Discover how the use of encaustic wax can take your collage art to the next level through an examination of layers. From those that lie under the wax, to those that create the surface design of the piece, and everything in between. Encaustic wax will give your paper collage design a depth and luminosity impossible to achieve with any other medium.

Techniques in painting with encaustic wax medium will be covered for those who are new or need a refresher to using the medium.

Details and Registration

Friday April 9th, 2027
OPTIONAL Additional Studio Day: Saturday April 10th, 2027
10am-4pm CDT

*Chicago, Illinois

Join me in my Chicago studio for a small group exploration in Paper and Layers with Encaustic Wax Medium.

Opt for the additional studio day to continue working on your designs with access to the supplies and studio, with artist Crystal Marie present for guidance.

Discover how the use of encaustic wax can take your collage art to the next level through an examination of layers. From those that lie under the wax, to those that create the surface design of the piece, and everything in between. Encaustic wax will give your paper collage design a depth and luminosity impossible to achieve with any other medium.

Techniques in painting with both, encaustic wax medium will be covered for those who are new or need a refresher to using the medium.

Details and Registration

April 22nd & 29th, 2027
11am-4pm CST

*Live Online

NOW WITH TWO PAYMENT OPTION!

Join me live online for this immersive experience, crafting sculptural three-dimensional shadow box style nichos or reliquaries that serve as a personal shrine or cabinet of curiosities for your artwork and favorite collections.

We’ll create a box, Nicho, or Reliquary designed specifically around your art or objects, allowing the shape and the details of the structure to invite deeper meaning. A place to meditate, to breath, to reflect and express. A shrine to what feels right and true to you, elevated by your artwork, found objects, and hand crafted sculptural details.

Working live online, this workshop will offer hands on guidance crafting sculptural works, with feedback and questions answered in real time.

Details and Registration

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]><![CDATA[Paper and Layers with Encaustic]]>https://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/paper-and-layers-with-encaustichttps://crystalmarie.substack.com/p/paper-and-layers-with-encausticMon, 27 Jul 2026 11:49:07 GMT
Collage and Encaustic with accretion on panel by Crystal Marie

Hello friends,

With just a few days left on the Early Registration offers for my Winter/Spring classes, I wanted to highlight one that I’m growing excited about—Paper and Layers with Encaustic.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to spend a few hours at a demo by another artist who works with encaustic as her main medium, and it made me want to run home and pull out all my equipment and spend the rest of the afternoon playing. I am resisting that urge, but eagerly anticipating getting to teach Paper and Layers with Encaustic at the Studio Eleven retreat in Phoenix coming up next week.

If you’re in the Phoenix area, it is not to late to jump into one of my classes there:

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

There are two more opportunities to take Paper and Layers with Encaustic if you can’t make it to Phoenix; one online live and one here in my Chicago studio. And both are included in the Early Registration sale through the 31st!

First up, Paper and Layers with Encaustic Live Online on April 1st:

What It Seems; 10” x 10” x 1.25” Collage and Encaustic on Panel by Crystal Marie

We’ll cover a variety of methods for combining collage and encaustic, adding surface design, textures, embedding objects and more!

This one is quite the bargain at only $75, as you’ll get access to my Encaustic Basics for Mixed Media Lesson when you register. It’s a great place to start if you’ve never used Encaustic wax before and a great refresh even if you have.

Details and Registration

The following week, on April 9th I’m hosting an in person workshop in my studio.

The Birds Still Remember; 8” x 8” Paper and Encaustic on panel by Crystal Marie

This one is a little different, as I’ll be breaking out the pigmented wax alongside the clear medium, making it even more adaptable to the participants.

Opt for the workshop only on April 9th or go for the additional April 10th open studio day combo and have even more time to work on your projects with my supplies and guidance.

Space is limited and there are only 3 seats left, so jump in now if you’re interested in this one!

Details and Registration

I’d love to see you in Paper and Layers or any of my upcoming classes. Be sure to check out the current 2026 and 2027 schedules below.

With gratitude,
Crystal Marie

2026 Workshop Schedule

  • January 4, 11, 18, 25 and February 1, 2026 — A month of Sundays: 5-week Collage series; Noon-2pm CST, online

  • April 22-27, 2026 — Visual Alchemy: making your mark in mixed media collage; Red Thread Retreat, hosted by Lesley Riley — SOLD OUT

  • May 9th, 2026 — World Collage Day: A Collage Workshop — SOLD OUT

  • June 5-7, 2026 — Alchemy Cloth; Studio Joy, Kansas, City MO hosted by Amanda Jolley

  • August 6, 2026 — Discovering Your Voice in Collage; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 7, 2026 — Collage on Cloth; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • August 8, 2026 — Paper and Layers in Encaustic; Studio 11 by Vivi Magoo; Phoenix, AZ — details here

  • October 2-4, 2026 — Material Alchemy: Developing Layers of Meaning and Magic in Mixed Media; Bellissima Art Studio, Port Orchard, WA hosted by Kathie Vezzani — details here

2027 Partial Workshop Schedule:

]]>