A little bit about ATC's!

I have recently been captured by the world of ATC's! I have just received my first 2 ever, and am looking forward to growing my collection!! The ATC at left is the first one I ever made, and I have used mostly Darkroom Door Products, as well as collections chipboard, German Scrap wings, and bling brads.

Some of you out there may not have heard of ATC's, or would like to know more, so I thought it would be good to share some info about them. I will be featuring ATC's all month on the blog, so stay tuned for more ATC goodness!

So what is an ATC?

ATC stands for Artist Trading Card, and they are mini works of art that you trade and swap with other artists, much like children trade baseball/basketball/football cards.

ATC's are 2.5 inches x 3.5 inches (6cms x 9cms) and can be made from any type of materials you wish! They can be made in either vertical (portrait) or horizontal (landscape) orientation. The sky is the limit for every other aspect of the art!

There is one main rule for ATC's and that is that they should never be sold - either your own, or ones that you have acquired in a swap.

Artists will often use a stamp, such as this one from Crafty Individuals, to sign the back of their artwork before trading. Pre-made card backs can also be purchased such as these ones from Collections.

You could be lucky enough to win this stamp as well as other great ATC goodies from Crafty Individuals by entering this month's Flourishes challenge, and being selected as my favourite entry! :)

ATC's are an exciting way of sharing your art, connecting with other artists, and collecting art!

ATC trading originated in 1997 as in-person trading in an art gallery in Zurich, and quickly spread across Canad and the USA, and eventually the world! These days online swaps are very popular, and there are an infinite number of online swaps you can take part in! If you know of any Australian ATC swap sites, please feel free to leave a comment here to point everyone in teh right direction! :)

Darkroom Door lovers take note! Rachel is hosting a trade of both ATCs and cards using Darkroom Door stamps! Check out the DD blog for more info.

For more information on ATC's I highly recommend this book, "Artist Trading Card Workshop" by Bernie Berlin. It is an amazing book with lots of pictures and inspiration. It is an awesome book even if you are not into ATC's as it is filled with lots of different mixed media techniques with step by step instructions.

Need some inspiration?

There is a great challenge site called "Think Monday, Think ATC" which runs weekly ATC challenges for you to take part in. Check out the blog for the awesome creations and to join in the fun!

Next week, I will be back to talk more about ATCs and how best to store and display them! I will also be sharing some new ATC's I have made thanks to Crafty Individuals, so stay tuned!

I'll be back tomorrow to share another great flourish entry! :)

~Sarah~