A Jocular July
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
What is "Giclée"?
Giclée (zhee·klay) (noun) - a process by which high-quality prints are produced using an ink-jet printer.
Giclée Printing and Framing (noun) - a cozy archival print shop located in the historic Indian Orchard Mills.
Hello, July!
“Everybody has talent, it's just a matter of moving around until you've discovered what it is.”
-George Lucas
It's a hot sunny day on your family's favorite beach. You visit every summer. You're scooping sand, mixing it with just the right amount of saltwater to get the right consistency to stack shapes and create moats. You've been doing this for as long as you can remember: Who hasn't made a sand castle of some fashion when lounging on the beach with the family? Now imagine that turning into a full time career. Enter Karen Fralich. This Canadian born potter turned sculptor has traveled the US and the world building large and truly unique sand sculptures, you may have even seen her work at Hampton Beach, for our New England native readers. You don't have to build extravagant structures to enjoy fun in the sun- a simple mud tower can be just as enjoyable!
"Centrosaur"
Australia 2008
In This Newsletter:
Fixatives and Varnishes: What's the difference?
Get Involved in the Art Scene
Know Our Perks
Fixative vs Varnish
When it comes to protecting your artwork, you have a few options. Depending on your medium, you'll want to pick one over the other:
For dry mediums such as charcoal, pastels, or color pencil, you'll want to use a fixative. This will fix the pigment in place, prevent smudging, and offer some degree of environmental protection.
For wet mediums such as, oil, acrylic, and watercolor paintings, you'll want a varnish. Varnishing comes in different finishes such as gloss and matte, but most importantly they offer a stronger degree of environmental protection. Just be sure that the paint is fully dry, especially for those oil paintings!
Valley Arts Newsletter
Most of our customer base is in the Western Mass region, so we will start here. A great resource for everyone in and around the Pioneer Valley is the Valley Arts Newsletter (VAN). Learn about upcoming classes, galleries, craft fairs, jobs, events- you name it. If it's art related, you can stay in the know with this fantastic weekly resource.
If you know of any other great community resources, please share them with us so we can all help each other learn about what opportunities may be around the corner!
Discount Round Up
The longer we've been working with all of our wonderful artists and customers, the more we want to be able to make our products and services more affordable- while still making sense for us as a business. Two of our newest promotions that we're currently offering:
Need a print? Need it framed? Any print that is being framed with us, you'll receive 50% off the print price.
Bring in your original art to be digitized, and you will receive 20% off any prints made from that digitized artwork.
*We will always offer bulk discounts. Product categories include Prints, Frames, Wrapped Canvas, and Digitization.
*Excludes greeting cards
Other News:
Store Hour Changes
Saturday July 19th, CLOSED
If you're new to the Giclée Printing and Framing scene, it's important to know that our shop in the Indian Orchard Mills has NO air conditioning! This means temps in our space will often rise well into the 80's during the summer months. If we're too overheated in the shop, we will close early, or close entirely during hotter heatwaves. As the days start to heat up, it's encouraged to call ahead to make sure we're home! Appointments can be scheduled for time sensitive pick-ups and drop-offs.
We'll always share closure updates on social media, so make sure to give us a follow:
July Art Prompt Calendar
An art prompt is a great way to break free from a creative block. Prompts can often be a single word, lighting a spark for other creative ideas. In every monthly newsletter, we'll include a fresh calendar full of daily art prompts for our creative subscribers who could use a nudge of inspiration. We'd love to see what you come up with, so make sure to tag us on the socials if you share your art!
One last thing: Thank you for reading!
If you know someone who you think would enjoy our blog, be a pal and forward it their way. And if this blog brought you any level of joy, we would love to hear from you! Comment below and let us know how we're doing. We would love to hear what topics you'd like to see covered in the future.
That's all for now... catch ya next time!
-Team Giclée
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