365 DoC - Day 1 - Father Figure

It's May 1st, and as promised, I'm here to invite you to read along, participate, and enjoy my 365 days of creativity promotion.  For the next 365 days, I'll be posting a variety of articles that I hope will inspire you, help you learn some new techniques, and get to know some amazing artists and artisans within the creative community. I'm also offering an open invitation to guest bloggers who would like to share their own creative features, tutorials, videos, and just about anything else there is that fits the theme of creativity.

To kick off this whirlwind of creative energy, today I'm inviting everyone to take part in the first monthly creative challenge. Get your favorite craft supplies out, your creative caps on, and let's pay tribute to the first man in our lives... dear old Dad.  The challenge is to create a Father's Day gift to honor the special father (whether it's your father, husband, grandfather, stepfather, father-in-law or other "dad") in your life, and preferably something that reflects what makes him special. I'm not limiting the genre of creativity, so no matter what your passion in life is, I hope you will share it - from jewelry design to painting, crocheting golf club covers to woodworking grill tools...all I ask is that your item be handmade (hand assembled in the case of jewelry or beadwork).  Your entries can be sent to me via the contact form on this blog or my blog's new companion site - The Craft Factor where the public voting for this competition will actually take place. Please include a photo of your item, your shop name, a link to your shop page, and a brief comment about where your inspiration came from.

The deadline for getting your entries in is Midnight EST on Tuesday, May 22, 2012.  Public voting will begin on The Craft Factor on May 23, 2012 and run through Midnight EST on Tuesday, May 29,2012.  The winner of the challenge will be announced on May 31, 2012 and will be listed on the winners' page on that site. They will also receive a free ad space on the MysticWynd blog site, and will receive a gift certificate entitling them to $25 in supplies on Etsy, as well as having their name entered in a drawing for a $250+ gift package to be given away at the end of the 365 Days of Creativity promotion.

Let's get creative, spread the word to your crafty friends, and prepare for Father's Day all at the same time!  I'm looking forward to seeing all of your wonderful creations!

xo,