I love ATC's (click to enlarge photos) & a Chance to Help

Last week, my wonderful sister-in-law asked me to explain what an ATC  is.  An ATC is an artists trading card.  It is a 2.5x3.5 inch work of art that is meant to be traded (never sold).  It has become a very popular format during the last several years.  Other than the size, there really are no rules for ATC's.  You can make them with stamps, paper, photos, paint, fabric, etc.

I have, literally, hundreds of ATC's!  I use them as a way to experiment with new ideas and backgrounds.  I also use them as ways to swap with other artists, and I make them when I feel a need to do something a little creative. The best book I found about ATC's is Artist Trading Card Workshop by Bernie Berlin.  It has lots of great ideas, well-illustrated and very well explained.  You can also check out Emily Falconbridge's Mini Art Journal, which is basically a deck of 52 ATC's.  ATC's are easy to store - I put them in baseball card holders and then put the holders into a three ring binder.

Here's several examples of ATC's that I have created:

• The "N" from a swap where each participant took a letter from the word "Valentine" and used it to illustrate a valentine-themed word. This was done with stamping and masking.
• A "get to know you" ATC where you needed to include a picture of yourself and some information about yourself.  That's me on the Eiffel Tower.
• A card for a "fabric" swap. I stamped on fabric, cut it out and added a button.
• ATC with "friendship theme." You should click on it and read the saying!
• An ATC for an "alcohol ink" swap.  The background is alcohol ink. 
• Alice ATC was done in a collaborative "threesome."  The first person made the background (patterned paper with acetate), the second person added the focal picture (Alice), and the third person added the embellishments (beads and A).
• The "Summer" ATC was for a swap where you needed to use some sort of textured background.  I used gel medium, painted, then added some stamps and collage images.
• Finally, the last ATC is made simply with paper and a collage image.

There are so many ways to make ATC's, and I love them all.  Do you have a favorite ATC technique or story? I'd love to hear it. Tomorrrow, and I'll have the first of my Tim Holtz tags to show you, as well as the beginning of my Christmas Journal. The Weekend Give-Away will be for a selection of the ATC's shown here.

Now, for the chance to help.  Bernie Berlin, who authored the seminal ATC book also runs an amazing no-kill shelter called A Place to Bark. Read her story.  It's amazing.  If you love animals and want to help, she has an opportunity to greatly expand her work with donations made during the holiday season.  Check it out here, and consider making a donation.