INPUT ARTICLE: Article: A half-pint jar has a lid about 2.8in (7.1cm) wide, the perfect size for your trap. Turn the metal ring on top of the jar counterclockwise by hand to free the lid. The lid is the flat piece of metal inside the ring. Pick up the lid and set it aside. If you don't want to use a breakable jar, get a few plastic soda bottles instead. Try cutting open one bottle and stapling the bottom half to the trap. Fit a second bottle half over it to hold the bees. Use a ruler to measure the lid's diameter. Find where the center is and mark it. Then, calculate the halfway points between the center and the rim of the lid. Mark these spots as well. Make sure you measure across the center of the lid. Hold the ruler very still until you're done so the spots are properly aligned. The center marking will be an opening for the bees to crawl through. The other spots are there to secure the lid to the trap. Set the lid on top of a piece of scrap wood. Then, position a metal punch over one of the marks. Hammer the opposite end of the punch until it breaks through the lid. Repeat this with the other marks you made.. The punch can damage any surface underneath it. Work over something you don't plan on keeping, such as a piece of scrap wood. This time you're going to need to drill through a harder material, so make sure you're using a heavy-duty bit designed to cut through metal. Drill down through the center hole to widen it. Keep widening it until it matches the tunnel hole you made on the bottom of the wood post. Be careful not to damage anything underneath the thin lid. Hold it down firmly against a piece of scrap wood that the drill bit can pass through without issue. Throw away the scrap wood when you're done. If you use the wrong drill bit, it could burn out your drill as well as ruin the lid, so choose carefully. Place the lid back inside the Mason jar's ring. Then, position the ring over the hole on the bottom edge of the wood post. Fit a pair of 12in (1.3cm) wood screws into the smaller holes you punched through the lid. Finish securing the lid by using a screwdriver to turn the screws clockwise. Screw the holes straight into the wood so they don't end up crossing into the bee tunnel. Then, make sure the lid is securely in place before attempting to position a Mason jar on it. You will need a wood drill bit approximately 18in (0.32cm) in size. Flip the trap over so the Mason jar side is facedown. Position your drill bit along the center of the trap, then drill down into it. This hole only needs to be short so it doesn't reach the bee tunnels you made earlier. The length of the hole depends on the length of the eye screw you plan on using. It needs to be the same length as the screw. Normally, it will be 2in (5.1cm) or less. If you made your bee trap differently, be careful not to drill all the way through the wood. For instance, if you made a box using flat boards, don't let the drill pierce through the top of the trap. Use a screw the same length as the hole you made. Set the screw end in the hole, then turn it clockwise until it feels tight and sturdy. You can then hang the trap by threading a rope or a hanging hook through the screw's eye. Find space for the trap near your deck or other spots carpenter bees tend to invade. Hang the trap near where you notice bees or near spots you think they might visit. With a screw hook, you can hang up a trap just about anywhere. If you're not planning on hanging the trap, set it up on a stable surface near where the bees gather. Put it up high, such as on a table or railing. After hanging up the trap, move the Mason jar toward the lid. It should fit into the ring holding the lid in place. Turn the jar counterclockwise until it hangs in place. When the jar fills with bees, you can unscrew it again to clean it out. The jar is where the bees go when they want to leave. The light attracts them there. It works the same way whether you use a jar, plastic bottles, or another clear material.

SUMMARY: Twist the lid off of a Mason jar. Use a marker to mark the spots you need to punch through the lid. Use a metal punch to poke holes through the lid. Widen the center hole using a 12in (1.3cm) metal drill bit. Screw the lid to the underside of the trap. Make a pilot hole through the trap's top if you plan on hanging it. Twist an eye screw into the hole to hang the trap. Fit the Mason Jar onto the lid to complete the trap.

INPUT ARTICLE: Article: If an idea captures your and won't let go you've got to pursue it. Great artists don't worry if it will sell, if it fits current artistic trends, or will take a long time to make. Great artists jump into their passions with open arms, trusting themselves to make it work. If you want a unique, refreshing artistic voice, then you need to trust your voice. It can be hard to embark on a project that feels weird, new, and experimental. But remember -- if you can't get passionate about the project, how can you expect your audience to feel passionately about it? There is a reason burgeoning painters spend time sculpting, and vice versa. All forms of art are intrinsically linked, and they share similar vocabulary and skills (color, shading, composition, etc.). By pushing yourself to approach art differently, you open yourself up to a wealth of new influences, techniques, and styles. Push yourself to get out of your comfort zone -- this is often where you make the biggest breakthroughs and personal discoveries. This includes other forms of art, such as writing and music. Creative expression, whether with a paintbrush or a piccolo, is about getting your ideas out of your head and into the audiences. The medium you use to do that doesn't matter. Great artists are often great readers, using books and literature to push themselves to new ideas and philosophies. They are unashamed of their past, no matter what it is, and are confident using it for motivation and inspiration. Furthermore, great artists rarely say "no." They keep their minds open to everything, becoming a sponge of influences that come together to make something incredibly unique, and incredibly you. For most artists, art is a form of communication. You create art because you want to share it with other people. Otherwise, you could just leave the ideas in your head. Exactly how you want to show your work and to who is your choice. You could try to get your work shown in galleries and put up for sale. You could try getting published. You might be more comfortable putting your work online and possibly selling prints of it. Or maybe you would rather just frame some of your best work and hang it up in your home for your family and friends to enjoy. Ask for honest critiques, and try to accept them with grace. You will never catch everything, and your audience's opinion will help find areas to improve in. Ask people what they think about the art, and what it might mean. Does it match up with your own thoughts and ideas? Did you accomplish your goals with the piece? Could you better communicate them your goals, or are you happy with ambiguity and differing opinions? Constructive criticism is designed to help you improve your artwork, either the piece you're working on now or your future works. A person giving constructive criticism will usually point out both the flaws and the strengths in your piece and make suggestions on how you could fix the flaws. While it isn't always fun to hear, criticism is something you're going to have to deal with as an artist. Learn to identify when a criticism of your work is valid and use that information to focus on correcting your mistakes.

SUMMARY:
Trust your gut when choosing projects. Experiment in a wide variety of styles and disciplines. Draw influence from your entire life, not just your artistic pursuits. Show your work to others for thoughts and feedback. Accept constructive criticism.