anna harding – Artist Anna Harding

Christmas Ceramic and Wooden Sled Paint Parties

Published on December 8, 2022December 8, 2022 by annachristinahardingLeave a comment

After a five year hiatus, The Moon and the Monocle is back! This fun and quirky shop is back just in time for the holidays – and I’m doing not one, but TWO PAINT PARTIES in the next few days!

The first is a 3-D Wooden Sled Door Hanger. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10th, 1pm-3pm.
It’s actually five pieces of wood, but the sled itself will be assembled before the class so it’s ready to paint! It’s about 16″ long x 8″ wide.
You’ll paint your Santa Gnome and background from the template I’ll provide OR go rogue and create your own!
Class is $45 and includes all materials. You’ll go home with a finished sled to give to a loved one or display on your own home. Tickets on Eventbrite.

The next class is DECEMBER 15th, 6pm-8pm, with your choice of ceramic item to paint with acylics and take home that night. Prices range from $30 – $50, depending on the item. The small truck and tree, the tree gnome and the santa gnome are $30 each. The light up using your choice of battery operated candle OR fairy light (included with class).
The snowman, large truck are $45 each and Christmas trees are $50 each. These three styles have plug-in cord and nightlight bulb (included with class). Tickets are available on Eventbrite.

Clean Contemporary Wedding Gift

Published on March 11, 2018 by annachristinahardingLeave a comment

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Sometimes plain and simple is the best.

I’ve made quite a few of these smaller boxes in the past couple of months. Mostly they’re in a clear textured glass with little or no embellishment. They are made with the invitation on the top and either a party invite /photo or textured acid-free paper on the inside of the lid. There’s no additional border; the edges of the box are in line with the edge of the invitation. If this is what you’re looking for, you can find them here.

Multiple Colors in an Invitation Box

Published on August 16, 2016 by annachristinaharding1 Comment

Lately I’ve been making glass boxes with multiple colors for the tops and sides. I was always afraid to do them this way, but they’ve come out great! I think my hesitation stemmed from my thought that they wouldn’t be “serious” enough of the occasion, but now I feel they enhance the invitation and make it known that this was a special occasion. A box that shouts, “Look at me!” in a good way.

stained glass bat mitzvah gift stained glass wedding invitation box

Art Nites and Renaissance Faires

Published on March 23, 2016October 6, 2020 by annachristinaharding3 Comments

Art Nites is going to be at the Robin Hood Springtime Festival! We’re going to lead off a different painting every day. The Faire runs every Saturday, Sunday, and Memorial Day from May 21 to June 5, 2016 (11 am to 7pm). Combo Tickets to the festival/Art Nites painting will be available soon…more details to follow!

Art Nites Painting Event

Published on March 18, 2016April 27, 2016 by annachristinaharding2 Comments

I’m now finally teaching Art Nites Painting events! I had wanted to get into this for the past two years, bought $1,100 worth of easels, paint, canvas, brushes and aprons. Now, it’s actually happening! I’ve done my first two classes, which turned out great, and I’m on to more.

The Moon and the Monocle (in Willington, CT) is the location for the upcoming event, on March 31st starting at 6pm. The three hour class is $25.00 and includes all materials. Participants will leave with a finished painting! If you know of someone who’s interested, they can register here

Stained Glass Set for a Bat Mitzvah Gift

Published on February 14, 2016 by annachristinaharding2 Comments

Here’s a stained glass Bat Mitzvah invitation box with a matching photo frame. I was originally asked by one person to make the box, then a few weeks later another customer asked for a box – for the same girl! So I suggested the photo frame. I don’t make them too often because they’re just as much work as the box (maybe more!) and so little of the actual invitation remains. But in cases like this, I think it works great. I did ask my first customer if she was okay with it before I proceeded as I didn’t want her to feel like her gift was lessened in any way. The second customer okayed it with the girl’s mom so we were good to go.

stained glass keepsake box by anna harding

stained glass invitation box

A Glass Wall Hanging for a Wedding Invitation

Published on March 4, 2015 by annachristinaharding1 Comment

Here’s a simple but pretty wall hanging for an invitation. This one was for a wedding. It’s made with textured glass called Everglade. The swirls in the glass make it special. I used decorative brass corners plated in antiqued silver, which I added just a hint of gold powder onto. The frame uses a traditional picture framing “sawtooth” hanger. This way you don’t have an unsightly line showing through the clear glass!

Wedding Invitation Memory Box with Contemporary Flair

Published on March 18, 2014 by annachristinahardingLeave a comment

A lot of people think of stained glass as being old fashioned or cute. I think that stained glass CAN have a contemporary look to it. Made with clean lines, minimal colors and less “fluff” (which I happen to like at times!), stained glass can have a modern feel. I’ve done these three boxes with clear or ivory glass, crystals and pearls. Elegant but not stuffy!

Swarovski Crystal Borders

Published on January 25, 2014 by annachristinahardingLeave a comment

Recently I’ve started to use real Swarovski crystal strands around the borders of the invitation, with a few charms. I think it looks really elegant. I solder the entire strand so it is solidly attached. This one is made with amethyst crystals. The box sides are a very pale purple color. It has a mirror bottom but I also made a purple pad for the bottom, which helps to bring out the purple of the glass.

When I send out a glass box I put them in an inner box and then an outer box. My customers sometimes give me a card to put in as well. So I offer gift wrapping for the inner box if I ship directly to the recipient.

Letting UConn Go

Published on July 24, 2013July 24, 2013 by annachristinahardingLeave a comment

Where I currently work we have licensed rights to various universities and colleges. Recently we had to make a tough decision: do we keep UCONN or let it go? Since the company I work for is located in Connecticut, it would seem logical to keep the school’s licensing rights but they are restricting the new logo’s usage to a select few. So far, I’ve only seen that Nike and Duncan Donuts are allowed to use the new logo. If you look in the specs above, it says UConn will “announce it’s future marks and their availability to licensees” in early winter/spring. Of course, early winter/spring meant May 1st, a full two weeks after they revealed the logos to the general public. Just my opinion here, but doesn’t UConn value their licensees more than this – that they get this info after the public gets it? Then to see that unless you’re willing to cough up big bucks, you can’t have it until 2014! So that means for the small businesses, they don’t get a mascot logo from UConn for one year and a half! Since the company I work for makes items for women, the logo that was most popular was the mascot, not the lettering. So without the rights to use it, the best option was to cancel the license for now, and maybe pick it up again in the future. Too Bad.