Creative Disarray

The House Fox

2011-05-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

This beautiful Etsy treasury collection was created by my Elitesixteen teammate Frenchfelt who creates the most beautiful accessories from felt. Here is my absolute FAVORITE of her scarves:

It looks like it would be heaven to wear. I've made a few felted items myself and know the work that goes into creating even the most basic of scarves let alone such a beautiful piece as this!

Little Ferraby is now almost 9 weeks old! He's starting to get in more of his red fur and it appears that he will be a cross fox which is a color variation somewhere between a silver fox and a red fox. He's getting two sweet little white patches on his face and his eyes are lightening a bit. Foxes have very exotic looking eyes, somewhere between those of a cat and those of a dog. The pupil is very cat-like. He's feeling very pleased with himself because he has discovered how to get up on the bed. He's now big enough to where I feel better about having him loose in the house. His bathroom habits, while not perfect, are predictable and manageable. He's always easy to find, all I have to do is to check my bed and he's lounging on it. He is also learning to sit on command. I reward him with bits of cooked white chicken meat. Now we all know about the tales of the fox and the henhouse, well let me tell you, he gets a little crazed when he knows I am about to give him some chicken. He's so smart, he learned the command almost immediately, quicker than any dog I've ever trained. He's still in a nippy phase, my arms are covered in scratches from rough play. He's learning, but still has a long way to go. I can see him trying but sometimes his excitement gets the better of him.

Ferraby the Modern Fox

2011-05-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

The beautiful Etsy treasury collection above was created by my friend Amber of Redtilestudio who creates the most beautiful home decor art blocks as well as gorgeous treasury collections that feature items from different Etsy shops. It's pretty close to my heart because recently I became the proud keeper of a pet fox named Ferraby. Now there are those who do not approve of exotic pets and I do acknowledge their opinions, but I really think that most people who take the steps to acquire an exotic pet have done the homework. In my case (for my state) I needed to get a special permit and I have followed specific requirements. Ferraby is a captive born red fox. He's from many generations of captive born foxes, who in many cases originally came from fur farms.

When he first came home, he was more cat-like than dog-like and so tiny. He was maybe a little less timid than I expected and he did bark quite a bit which surprised me. Quickly we became quite bonded, more closely than I've ever had an animal bond to me, and that's saying something. He doesn't bark often now, but will sob when I have to put him in his pen, which isn't all that often. His pen is about the size of a large breed dog kennel (6 x 8 ft) and full of all kinds of toys for babies, dogs, and cats.

So now he's almost off of his formula and eating his dry food quite well, we are using Taste of the Wild which he seems to enjoy quite a bit. It actually smells quite delicious too, something I don't often notice about pet food. The cats chewed the bag open so I think they agree. I put some in the food processor with a bit of cooked scrambled egg and pulsed it a bit to make it easier for him to eat.

Most of the time Ferraby seems quite docile, although now he's going through a nippy puppy type stage. I seem to be the only one he feels the need to chew on, which is good and bad. He starts out playfully mouthing but as he gets excited he gets a bit rougher. He's gentle with the kids though which is good. I've learned the best way to get him out of a nippy state is for me to make a hiss if he gets rough. It's actually a sound somewhere between a bark and a hiss that I've heard him make.

Today we tried our first outdoor outing on the leash. He got really excited about the leash and didn't mind it too much but he really did not like it outside. He was only relaxed when we stayed up by the house and he sat in my lap. We had a mourning dove land a few feet away from us and he seemed to enjoy watching it. The dove took one look and quickly waddled to the other side of the deck. Once we went back in Ferraby became his usual playful silly self again.

I'm adding a new coupon code for my shop: FERRABY 25% off.

My Ladybug Invasion

2011-05-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went to the most amazing garden shop : Lukas Nursery . This is a shop that really embraces nature and eco friendly gardening. They even have a Butterfly Encounter exhibit where you can walk through enclosed butterfly gardens full of many different species of butterflies. Of course I did end up finding some incredible plant specimens for my garden, and as I was purchasing I saw packages of live ladybugs being sold.

Last spring my garden was LOADED with ladybugs but this spring they've been very scarce, unlike the whiteflies and aphids which have been plenty. If you didn't know, ladybugs are an amazing natural pest control. They are voracious eaters and a treasure to any wildlife gardener. A few years ago I bought ladybugs through the mail, and it was wonderful to let them go, but we did have many casualties. It was great to find some that were obviously thriving in their package.

When you open the package, be ready. They are ready to get OUT! They come streaming out of the bag and up your arms, up your sleeves, into your bra. They are extremely thirsty and will try to drink the sweat right off your skin (ewww gross, I know). In the absence of sweat, they will even nibble, I joked that they were after blood, but it isn't that bad, unless you have several hundred doing it at once and then it's a little uncomfortable in kind of an itchy way. So if you decide to release ladybugs into your garden, make sure to spray the plants you intend to put them on with some water. It keeps them on the plant longer and they definitely will appreciate it.

A lot of them seemed so excited to be released they actually started mating so I am really hoping they will lay plenty of eggs in my garden so I will see ladybugs all summer.

I was so inspired by these beautiful red lady bugs that I decided to create my own Etsy Treasury Collection including teammates from EliteSixteen and TeamXtreme:

The Butterfly Gardener

2011-04-29T08:22:00.000-07:00

This gorgeous collection above was curated by Amber of RedtileStudio . I love every single thing about this collection and I'm honored to have my fox dish included! :)

My little caterpillar has emerged from his (her?) chrysalis!

The butterfly formed his chrysalis while in a jar, after about a week he emerged. This variety of butterfly uses the passionflower vine as a host plant. I've been working on increasing the number of vines in my yard. I know of a spot where they grow wild and I will go and take vines to put in my own yard. The area where they grow gets mowed from time to time, which kind of sucks for the butterflies because then they have no vines to eat while they wait for them to grow back. I've found the most successful way to transplant is to pull up as much of the root as possible. You will get some, but not enough to sustain the plant in most cases. I dip the "root" in rooting hormone and put it in a terracotta pot that rests in a pan of water. I keep these plants in filtered sunlight. In about a week I have a nice strong root system and the plant does well. I have a flower bed that I'd love to just fill with wild vines of green so the butterflies have plenty to eat. Hopefully I can get back to the patch of vines before the lawn mower man comes!

Going Green

2011-04-20T08:34:00.000-07:00

This beautiful collection including my newest little hedgehog set was created by my EliteSixteen team mate DeDe of SwedeHeartVintage . I am enamored of all things green and woodland!

I have been once again trying to create the garden of my dreams. We've been having a horrible drought for the last few years so it's been tough. Watering is a miserable chore once we hit the middle of summer. Normally we would have rain storms every single afternoon but last summer we got totally cheated and had very few. I'm trying to be very careful to plant things that I know will thrive so I had to longingly walk past the beautiful foxgloves and heliotropes when at the garden center.

A big thing for me is planting things that attract wildlife. Last year my husband and I went out hunting and brought back samples of wild passionflower vine, which we rooted and planted. It's sturdy, not quite as showy as the cultivated varieties but infinitely superior at keeping up with hungry caterpillars.

The caterpillars are such a wonderful educational source for my children as they complete their life cycles. This is a gulf fritillary caterpillar and when it is mature it will look like this: The Gulf Fritillary Butterfly . When they near time to create a chrysalis often we will bring them inside so that we can watch the process. Our garden has host plants for about 10 different species of butterflies at least.

Studio Cats

2011-03-17T10:03:00.000-07:00

Our youngest cat, Simba, is an artist at heart. Named for the Swahili word for lion, because it would be hard to find a kitten more adventurous and courageous. We had a devil of a time keeping him away from our unusually large (95+ lbs) greyhound when we first brought him home. Our greyhound is so fond of cats that he thinks he himself is a cat, but he is not used to dealing with a 6-8 week old kitten, and can be a little rough.
At 6 months of age Simba continues to approach every new situation as an adventure. He sits, barely able to keep from dipping his paws in my watercolor paint water, and watches me paint. He looks at the images and looks back at me as if to say "how did you do that?" When I'm sculpting, he's a bit of a problem. I don't know how many times I have left a piece while I took a short break only to find Simba standing on it and squishing his toes into the clay. It can be frustrating, but at the same time I really love that he is so captivated by my work. And now I must go and smooth yet another pawprint from a bowl I'm working on!

What's New

2011-03-16T13:59:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of trying (once again) to create some ceramic mobiles. Every time I decide to do this I get sidetracked and never manage to complete them. This time I'm using some great old pieces of embroidered and eyelet fabrics to create a pattern. I think I'm going to start with three "dangles" instead of planning some huge piece. I REALLY need to apply the less is more mantra to more of my life's issues. I tend to over think a lot. I'm going to force myself to keep this simple. Stay tuned for further developments! ;)

Welcome Poppy!

2011-03-14T07:30:00.000-07:00

As a very young child I became a lover of Beatrix Potter books. One of my favorite stories was of Mrs. Tiggywinkle, my first introduction to hedgehogs. I always found them fascinating and they continue to be one of my favorite creatures to sculpt in clay. My husband (ever patient in my love of animals) gave me a baby hedgehog for my birthday. We named her Poppy, inspired by the prickly poppies that we discovered growing wild near our home. Our Poppy has a coat every bit as prickly as her namesake...well, maybe not quite THAT prickly. Although she's prickly she's a cuddler too. I'm amazed at how quickly we've become friends. She loves to get up next to my skin and snuggle up, smoothing her quills back so she doesn't prick. She actually reminds me of a tiny little dog. She will look up at me with her dark eyes and then tuck her little head into my hand and yawn, sticking out her long pink tongue. I've learned that when I want to hold her, I wake her up by calling her name and giving her a little time before picking her up, now she's easier to get going than my own daughter is!

Thinking of Spring

2011-03-12T17:53:00.000-08:00

As I can see it's been a full month since I've posted, I've got a new treasury to add. It makes me so happy to see these cheerful items listed by some of my new and old Etsy friends!

Visit my Etsy Shop and save 25% with my coupon code: Butterfly!

'She's a Butterfly' by ALDDesigns

The monarchs are visiting my milkweed.......and laying eggs!

The Monarch Conserv... REALBUTTERFLYG... $39.99	Flutterby Butterfly... peacelovevinta... $23.00	35% OFF SALE - Fly ... Raceytay $19.50	One day I'll fl... gardensofwhims... $12.00
Table Decor, Paper ... LBCpaper $48.95	Lemon Chamomile, H... TallulahsSoaps $6.00	Blooming Tea - 5 as... TableLabs $7.99	Yellow Mod Sunflowe... redtilestudio $28.00
Marigolds linen tea... giardino $22.00	Vintage Leaves Felt... ekofabrik $45.00	He Loves Me, He Lov... BeSomethingNew $12.99	Gemyma -Orange Butt... judithhowellde... $4.95
organic baby quilt ... SewnNatural $120.00	Into the darkness -... Lori411 $25.00	Matte Gold Butterfl... DanaCastle $17.50	elyse SIGNATURES Ci... elyseoriginals $109.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.

Pretty Is....

2011-02-09T19:27:00.000-08:00

'Pretty Is...' by fosterbk

Wood Vase COTTAGE P... OldNewAgain $20.00	Micro Eco Journal S... NaturesCubbyho... $50.00	MINI Alphabet (naut... lovemaestore $18.00
Earrings Coffee Bro... GlassRiverJewe... $14.00	Needlecase, Jumbo, ... midnightcoiler $20.00	Signed and Numbered... bythewayside $25.00
Recycled Newspaper ... hippiekingdom $22.00	Hooty the Owl 6x6 a... redtilestudio $50.00	Orange Poppy - felt... Baymut $20.00
Sea urchin jewelry ... jennyhoople $32.00	Woodland Hedgehog P... ALDDesigns $18.00	ACEO-SUMMERS BEAUTY... nikid2 $6.00
Chubby birdie - Arc... joojoo $15.00	Linen pincushion -... namolio $11.00	Alice's Adventu... JezebelCharms $41.99

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.

I'm so thrilled to have had my hedgehog sculpture included in this remarkable treasury by Fosterbk! I really love the understated elegance, soft neutral colors and brilliant pops of orange. Brenda has a knack for creating artful combinations of soulful items and stunning color. Please check out her Etsy shop to see her beautiful photography! Thanks again Brenda! :)

Loving Lichens

2011-01-26T22:35:00.000-08:00

Today I enjoyed a long hike in the woods, enjoying the flora and fauna and searching for inspiration.
I am so attracted to mosses, lichens, and mushrooms! Lichens hold a big attraction because of the gorgeous shades of green (my favorite color). I had to snap a photo of this stump, clad in several types of lichens. We had a stormy night so the lichens and mosses were extremely green and bright. Lichens are actually a composite organism composed of a fungus and an algae.

I've been experimenting with creating some porcelain lichen pieces, trying to emulate the look and color. My first piece is this tea light burner, but I'm working on creating jewelry for lichen lovers (haha).

I'm working on a tutorial for sculpting mushrooms that I should be adding to the end of the week!

As a "thank you" to any blog readers I have a 15% coupon code for use at my Etsy store www.alddesigns.etsy.com. Code: Mushroom

Blasting Away Creative Block (well trying to)

2011-01-24T11:56:00.000-08:00

So, I've always been inspired by nature. My parents have a copy of my first drawing ever, I drew it at about 18 months. I called it a frog, it slightly resembled a grasshopper, but they were very excited about when I showed them. I remember being about 3 years old begging for my Mom to help me make a sort of butterfly paper doll. At that time my toddler hands had not caught up with the creations in my mind. My mother patiently followed my stern dictation and drew a butterfly with a lady's face for me to color.

As an adult I'm almost frantic at times to tap into the creativity that fueled my childhood. The imagination of my youth, a devoted playmate , now after years of squelching her in the pursuit of practicality , isn't always there to help me when I'm stuck. So I've had to become more resourceful in drawing her out. I've learned that what makes me shine personally, is nature. For some, it might be something else, but I think there is enough in nature to inspire anyone.

1. OBSERVATION- go outside and observe-watch the birds, set up a feeder if necessary, watch the way the sunlight hits the trees, look at the details on the back of a leaf. Lift up a rock and watch the life scurrying around beneath it. If this isn't an option, spend some time watching wildlife films. "Life" is fantastic and beautifully filmed . I think that documentary could inspire a rock.

2. RECONNAISSANCE- and I know that this isn't an option for everyone, but this is a vital part of my process, go for a walk. I take along a recycled plastic grocery bag, for found objects, leaves, bones ( I know this sounds a little gross), moss, feathers, stones, and shells. If it's not to big, or going to damage the ecosystem by my taking it, I take it. When I walk, I guess it's really more like hiking, I leave the trail, I walk through the forest like a deer, smelling the fragrance of warm pine needles, rotten old trees, sweet wildflowers, and rich earth. My mind is open, unburdened, and the ideas begin to flow. I take lots of photos, which usually don't have a lot of high quality, but help recapture the feeling I had while walking.

Once I get home, I look through my bag of finds and photos and the creative juices begin to flow. Music can be really inspiring too. One of my current favorites is The Cave Singers. They have a nice folky sound that makes you want to commune with nature. "Hen of the Woods" is my favorite song of theirs. Iron and Wine is good too, extremely calming!

If you're at all like me, and very inspired by nature. I can guarantee these suggestions will help blast away the scourge of creative block!

Blogging

2011-01-24T11:09:00.000-08:00

Alright, I'm going to really try to keep up with blogging. I enjoy other blogs so much. They are a great way to get to know the artists and creative people that I admire. They can be a great resource as well as an outlet for the swirl of stuff running through my mind. So anyway-this is a new beginning, and I guess this is a sort of mission statement, or something.

Hiking Through the Florida Scrub

2010-09-09T12:56:00.000-07:00

Sunlight through oak trees

Although it was sunny, and not my favorite weather for a hike, it was early enough in the morning to still be fairly tolerable. I really hoped that we would see white-tailed deer , because the area is just covered in tracks. The deer are usually most active around dawn and we were arrived around 8:30 am, but I still had some hope. Most of the trails are a kind of habitat known as Florida scrub . The soil has a sandy feel, hard for walking at times, but great for gopher tortoises to burrow in. We didn't see any tortoises today, but did see some other interesting wildlife and wildflowers.

Deer Tracks

Unfortunately today the deer flies were especially bad, but I had hopes that it meant there were deer close by. Braving the nasty biting flies and humid Florida heat, we pushed ahead along the trail that was perfumed with the fragrance of sweet bay magnolias which were covered in swallowtail butterflies.

Sweet Bay Magnolia

Meadow Beauty Wildflowers

The path brought us next to a small lake where we saw an alligator's head sticking up. He didn't seem very large, only about 5 or 6 feet, but as I stepped closer to snap his picture he went under. We had seen a lot of interesting insects and birds. The air was full of the sound of cicadas buzzing as we started heading back to the beginning of the trail. Shawn, my husband, had picked up a long stick to use as a "walking stick to protect him from snakes", which I thought was a little silly. As we stepped along the trail I noticed a small, dark shape curled up right in Shawn's path. If you have ever tried to react quickly to warn someone about something happening so quickly, you'll know how I felt. I couldn't get the words out fast enough as his foot came down right next to a coiled up dusky pygmy rattlesnake, so yes, when words fail : SCREAM. In the same instant Shawn jumped and the snake jumped, thankfully in two different directions. The snake was obviously peeved, although it moved off the path, it turned around to look at us and began to shake it's tail. Although they are small, they can deliver a nasty bite and are usually more aggressive than their more visually intimidating cousins. Although shaken, I did manage to snap this picture of the snake:

Not the greatest picture, he had decided he was done with us and was slipping away. Most snakes really want little to do with human contact, and most will go with the "flight" option over the "fight". Had he actually been stepped on, he probably would have had a very different attitude.

Still shaking a bit from our snake encounter, we walked until we came to this lovely spot where the oaks made a beautiful canopy.

The ground was covered with leaves and these enormous patches of reindeer moss one of my favorite types of lichen. It's a threatened variety and people love to gather it because it doesn't wither up if you pick it. This area of the woods was really covered with many varieties of lichens and mosses, which I love and find very fascinating. As I looked through the trees I noticed something white moving back and forth. We got very quiet and kept watching as we realized the white things moving were the tails of two deer. I was really thrilled to see them, but the moment was fleeting because they realized we were watching and moved deeper into the forest.

Being that we are both fairly adventurous people, the snake incident, after the fact, was really an interesting part of the hike. I probably won't tease Shawn about having his "walking stick" as much now, because it did help him spring out of the way quickly, and I think he'll watch where he's stepping a bit more carefully.

Paper Mache Hot Air Balloon Diary

2010-09-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

As my cats try under coats of polyurethane, I find myself wanting to return to a project I've been wanting to make for a long time, a vintage style hot air balloon mobile. The photo above is along the lines of what I want to do-similar styles and color palettes.

I've started with some large helium quality balloons. They blow up to a nice traditional shape and are a bit sturdier. I covered one with the traditional strips of newspaper, and I'm covering the other with a paper mache clay recipe. Both will get additional coatings of the paper mache clay.

For the gondola, I'm going to try using a recycled toilet paper tube as the base:

I need to wait for the paper mache coats to dry a bit more before I continue with it, so I have them in the garage with a fan drying them.

I'd like to try making one very traditional, so I've been searching the net looking for vintage images for ideas. For the second, I want to go in a more whimsical idea and I'm really considering making a cabbage, but that might be a bit ambitious.

New Endeavors

2010-09-01T13:36:00.000-07:00

So I was invited to include some of my "wares" in one of our local shops in town. It's sort of a crafty, vintage, antiques kind of shop with a decidedly down home kind of flavor. Although my tastes tend more towards the whimsical and weird, I'm hoping I can bridge the gap through my love of folk art. Folk art is really the essence of whimsical marrying the practicality of "down home". Thankfully I'm starting with a rather small space at the shop, only a bookshelf, but in my mind's eye that bookshelf grew to the size of an entertainment center. I'm very happy at Etsy, so I really didn't want to take many items off of the site. That meant I would be very busy creating.

For awhile I've been wanting to incorporate items into my sculptures, but that's not the greatest idea when working with clay that needs to be fired in a kiln. I decided to look into paper mache, which I have dabbled in, but not really explored it very thoroughly. I had made paper mache pinatas and bowls, but never sculptures. I found this very cool recipe : Paper Mache Clay and then sort of went from there. I've ended up modifying the recipe a bit. The flour in the recipe is entirely too attractive to my dog, who showed me he would stop at nothing to eat the folk art sheep I was making. As with all forms of art, cats tend to be my special animal that I just naturally gravitate towards making.

I'm really excited about exploring this recycled medium that will enable me to make larger and more creative sculptures. My ceramic kiln is all of 8 inches squared so it's been very limiting to my creative process. I still plan to create more ceramic pieces, but now I have an additional outlet.

I also created some muslin soft sculpture folk art for the shop. I'm especially pleased with the cabbage. I looked at a lot of folk art carrots, but didn't see any cabbages so I came up with my own way of doing it, and I'm thrilled with the results. All the muslin creations were made with patterns I made or some were made without a pattern, I just sewed the shaped I wanted and then cut it out. After the sewing, I stuffed the pieces (using a bamboo fiber fill) and then painted them with acrylic paints.

The two bottom shelves of my "area" are filled with little vintage treasures I've found or had. When I shop for vintage stuff it's really hard for me to part with it, because I usually buy because I love it. It will be hard to part with the little wooden purse, but I'm totally Ok about the boxer.

The duck bookends are kind of cool, they feel like solid brass and have a nice feel to them.

Here is my new little area in "The Whatnot Shop" :

As worried as I was about filling the shelves, I actually brought home items that would not fit. Now, I get a bit of breathing room and I can return to working on my new cats for Etsy:

A Walk in the Woods

2010-08-24T13:48:00.000-07:00

Today began with gloriously overcast skies. Summers in Florida are not always the most pleasant for hiking, and I really needed my nature fix, so we decided to go for a hike to enjoy the pearly gray skies and slightly cooler temperatures.

Almost immediately after starting along a trail we spotted many deer tracks. It was a bit late in the morning to see deer so there was little hope of a sighting. We could see deer tracks in all sizes, even some smaller than my thumb. Of course, I didn't think of taking a photo of the tracks at the time, but this would have been a nice play to insert one.

I really love velvety green moss, one of my favorite things to line a terrarium with (I even have a little crop of it at home). This piece of moss peeking up through the oak leaves looks almost like a green heart. There's a bit of reindeer moss growing on top. I saw lots of reindeer moss, but did not pick any because it is protected.

We saw quite a large variety of mushrooms, lichens, and moss. These last few days of rain have really brightened the moss and lichens and helped the mushrooms to pop up.

We saw some wildlife, although it was elusive and difficult to capture in photos. We saw a large cottontail rabbit, tufted titmice, cardinals and red-winged blackbirds. Mostly we heard the birds singing, and the cicadas buzzing. Then, I almost walked face first into this:

It's hard to tell in this photo...but this is a large golden orb weaver spider. They really love to create enormous webs across a shady pathway. Most of the ones we saw measured about 2 to 2.5 inches across, not what you want to walk into face-first, that is for sure!

As we walked, I found this burnt log, that looks almost like it could be the skull of a dragon:

I love to forage through the woods for interesting bits of nature to bring home, and today I found the greatest prize. I found a deer antler! Each year a deer grows new antlers and at the end of a season they shed them. I'd always hoped to find one, and today was my lucky day.
Here's a photo of it back at my home:

I also found what has been my Holy Grail plant of terrarium creating: The British Soldier Lichen. It's not an uncommon species, but not usually common in the places where I've looked. Here's a photo of it with a bit of the green cushion moss I'm growing:

It has the most beautiful little red "flowers". I'm guessing that's how it got it's name--because of the beautiful shade of red, like little "redcoats".

As we were leaving, happy and invigorated from our hike, a friendly black vulture came down and seemed to pose for me:

Today was such a treat, I wish I could do this every single day. It's so inspirational to be out in nature. My soul feels recharged, my mind at peace.

A Little Loopy

2010-08-23T09:42:00.000-07:00

Lately, I find myself drawn to very unusual themes and items. The more off-the-wall, the more drawn I find myself. For instance, take a look at my latest Etsy favorites:

The general quirkiness draws me in like a moth to the flame. One of the things I really love about Etsy is that quirkiness is not only loved, but encouraged. Where else, but Etsy would I go to sell a ceramic catnip mouse, complete with a poem I composed for the occasion? For some reason I felt completely compelled to make it, weird as it may seem. My husband doesn't quite get it, but I'm figuring someone, somewhere will.

I've been enjoying making pendants and buttons, texturing them with BURLAP. I love the look and feel, and from what I've seen so far, a lot of other people love it too. I love pressing a piece of lace into the clay and getting the detail of the pattern. I also enjoy tatting ( a kind of knotted lace making) so I've been tatting motifs to be used for molds and texture. Seems a little crazy, huh? Making a time consuming type of lace, only to smoosh it into clay. Keeping my fingers crossed that others will like it too.

So today, as my youngest child experiences her first day of Kindergarten and I'm alone all day for the first time in 13 years, I will embrace my quirkiness, enjoy the unusual works of art created by my friends at Etsy.

The Menagerie

2010-08-03T14:21:00.000-07:00

I always get asked about what inspires me, what's my muse? Usually, it's some type of animal or plant. I've got a very active butterfly garden that always teeming with butterflies and caterpillars. I try to bring one or two caterpillars inside when I see them so that I can watch out for them and then enjoy their miraculous change. In the garden, the birds and stray garden cats that I have feed seem to have called a truce, the cats barely giving the birds a glance as they stop in for a drink at the bird bath. Lizards of green and brown languidly bask in the sun, quick to dart away if one of the garden cats gets too close. These are my animals that come and go as they please, but I know them and love them as if they were pets.

When I go inside, I've got lots more to inspire me. We have a greyhound we've adopted, Yorkie (Naughty NuYorker). He's never really naughty and to be honest, he's no "yorkie". Weighing in at about 95 lbs he's our biggest baby. We've had him a year now, and he's almost 3. He's pretty mellow overall, very good about telling us he needs to go out, sometimes too interested in the cats, but not so much that it gets him in trouble.

Our cats are an interesting group, we have Shadow the patriarch. A beautiful blue and cream tabby who loves to greet guests. He's 10 years old now, but still plays like a kitten.

Then we have our little girl kitty, Ginger. She's a red tabby British shorthair mix. She's a bit of a diva, but loves to be petted. She's almost 9 years old.

Jake is our Maine Coon mix kitty, he inherited the looks, but not the bravado. He's 16 lbs, but terrified of the 8 lb Ginger.

Recently, we adopted two more kitties from the pound. We have a pretty large house so actually people might find it hard to believe we have one cat, let alone five. They seem to all like to sleep under the same bed so they are fairly easy to find.

Yoshi is one of our new kitties. He's a flame point Siamese (colorpoint shorthair) . He had been waiting 4 months to find a home. He's an young adult, only 18 months old, such a sweet boy.

Fuji is the baby of the group, I'm thinking about 3 months old. He's a chocolate lynx point ragdoll mix, he's such a sweet cuddler with the softest fur I've ever felt. He has really interesting markings--reminds me of a Siberian husky dog.

Alice (held firmly yet lovingly, by my oldest son, Austen) is our big beefy Flemish Giant rabbit. At 4 months she already weighs 12 lbs. She loves to chase cats and shake her plastic toys in her mouth...growling. I imagine that when she's full sized (possibly 20 lbs) this will be quite alarming.

We've got doves, lizards, snakes, frogs, toads, and fish as well--each with their own interesting personality! It's easy to find inspiration everywhere thanks to all my sweet animal friends!

Getting Lost in the Past

2010-07-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

My Grandpa and Snub Pollard

I've been working on scanning a photo album that belonged to my great-grandmother. This album includes some family photos, but not in the traditional sense. You see, my grandpa was a child actor in the era of silent films. A lot of these photos are about 86 years old and some even older. Mixed with these incredible photos are newspaper clippings, tickets, and various other ephemera of the day. It's really easy to get lost in the pictures.


Aunt Fifi

This is one of my favorite pictures, my Great Aunt eyeing actress Constance Binney, sizing her up.


Conrad Nagel, Eleanor Boardman, Grandpa starring in "So This is Marriage"

An interesting thing I found is that my Grandpa's own pet kitten was in the movie too. They paid it $3 a day. That's pretty good money for a cat to earn back then!

Well, I have LOTS more to scan still so I'd better go. I still need to scan the Harold Lloyd pictures!

New Glass Gem Magnets!

2010-07-24T12:48:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some new ideas involving my photos, paintings, collages and glass. I have a large number of glass gems from various projects so I've been experimenting with making them into pendants and magnets. So far the results are quite promising! I realize this isn't a totally new idea, but since the pictures in this case are my own photos, paintings, and collages, it gives it some originality (at least I think so, lol ). I love the magnifying effect of the glass droplets. For those who have never made these fun little things, here is a quick tutorial:

Glass Gem Magnet Tutorial

Supplies Needed

Clear (without iridescence allows the picture to show through) Glass Floral Gems
Desired images, scrapbook paper works great!
Mod Podge or other gel sealer
round magnets, not larger than the size of the gems
scissors or round paper punch equal to the bottom size of the gems
two part epoxy glue

Wash and dry gems well, inspect for defects
cut images from the desired source
apply a small coat of mod podge to the flat side of the gems and then glue the paper circles face down onto the glass gems
trim any excess paper once the mod podge has set.
apply several more coats of mod podge to the underside of the paper and allow to dry
mix the two part epoxy ( I used loctite) according to package instructions
apply epoxy to magnet and stick magnet to the paper side of the glass gem
allow epoxy to harden, polish front side of new magnet

This is a greatly simplified tutorial, but you get the idea. You can have a lot of fun using tissue paper layers, creating tiny collages under the glass. I like to use the "contact sheet" option when printing out photos or artwork because it's just about the right size. I have plans to try this with glass tiles and would use about the same basic directions. Also, using Mod Podge, you can make a gel transfer to the glass, creating a translucent image. It's how I made this:

I have some other artwork/glass projects up and coming. A lot of my creations involve a necessity and right now I'm in the middle of redecorating two rooms and desperately wanted some interesting artwork, so that will be the inspiration for some lamps I am planning to make. Hoping to get the supplies today and see if I can put them together!

Great New Thrifty Finds

2010-07-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

Another good trip to the Goodwill! Adding to my little treasures from last week are two aqua glass insulators. I don't think I'll be crafting with them because from my research so far they are as old as the early 1900s. One even has an original wooden pin inside. I looked at them, and thought, I know those are very old and might be valuable, but for the life of me I can't remember what they are. They were used on telegraph poles like this:

I've learned that what I have are Brookfield glass insulators. The the aqua color seems to have been very popular during the 1880s, but since mine are just marked B, I'm thinking maybe mine are more likely more recent (if you can call the 1920s recent!). Brookfield stopped making glass insulators in 1921. I like the idea of having a row of them in a window shelf so the light shines through so I will be on the look out for these lovely little pieces every time I'm on the hunt now.
For more information about collecting glass insulators there are several books. They go from very cheap (I paid $1.99 each for mine) to crazy expensive (purple ones can go for about $80 or more).

A Guide for Insulator Collectors: With Prices

Now I am off to sculpt a new idea that has been bouncing around in my head!

Good Will Hunting 1

2010-07-12T16:02:00.000-07:00

I've had my creative energies leaping in very different direction so I'm having trouble getting any project completed. It's like the case of the shoemaker who has barefoot children. I create and sell art, yet my home hardly has any of my work displayed. So I'm trying to change that and hoping along the way to get inspired in new directions. Today I got to do something I just LOVE. I really enjoy thrift shopping. In my area, it's hard to find diamonds in the rough, but I still find them. Today I really scoured the books (in my area books seem to be incredibly under valued), wanting mainly ones that I can deconstruct for collage but also looking for old editions. Was ecstatic to find a 1938 edition (the year it was first written) of "Rebecca" by Daphne Du Maurier, for $1.99. I'm pretty sure it's one of the first U.S. editions. I searched online and had trouble finding pictures of the same book to compare. I love the story, so I guess the big thrill is getting something possibly that valuable. I also found a very old copy of "Black Beauty" by Anna Sewell, but it's very unlikely to be a first edition although there was no date inside.

I also found :
6 glass jars with glass lids. ( I've been watching for a decent number of them so that I can make a set of Sun Jars . ) $1.99 each

Warren Kimble Chick and Egg Salt and Pepper Shaker for $1.99 in Box Henny & Penny

Book of postcards of Gustav Klimt Paintings $1.99

So all in all it was a fruitful afternoon of scavenging!

Latest Projects, Plant Nabbing, Ladybugs, etc

2010-04-26T10:50:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted anything. I've got spring fever and I've been working on one of my other loves, gardening. My gardening style could best be described as...Jungle meets English Garden. Ever since I was a very young child I've been drawn to anything English. Now back in those days I didn't know it was "English", I just knew I liked it. I adored Agatha Christie, The Secret Garden was another favorite, The Hobbit, C.S. Lewis books, books with large manor houses surrounded by gardens and moors covered in heather. Later I was to discover through genealogy research that the majority of my ancestors came from England, Ireland and Scotland, so it might be some kind of genetic thing. In any case, I'm happiest when surrounded by a jungle of flowering plants, birds, butterflies, ladybugs, and of course garden cats that come to visit and "help".

My style is very informal, I want my garden to look a bit on the wild side. I love the "old fashioned" flowers but many of them just hate it here in Florida. At times Florida can be very dry and other times it's like a rain forest. I've learned I need to be really open minded when selecting plants. Things don't always want to grow where I put them. In my area there are a lot of spots that I've learned are called "ruderal" which basically means "disturbed". I like to go to these "lots" to scout out wildflowers because to be honest at any given moment they could be mowed down. I seem to have an uncanny sense of what is about to be demolished because often days after I "harvest" some plants, next thing I know it's been destroyed. So really, I don't feel bad about taking plants from spots like these. A couple of weeks ago I discovered this amazing wisteria vine that had to be at least 15 years old. It was surrounded by viburnum bushes covered with ladybug larvae and pupas. I made many cuttings off the wisteria and collected hundreds of ladybug larva and pupas to bring home. Ladybugs are one of the most amazing natural pest controls so I really wanted to encourage them to live here. I put the larva on different plants in the yard, and put the pupas (ladybug cocoon form) in a clean jar. As the pupas hatched I placed the ladybugs on the plants outside. It's been so interesting and amazing. I'm still working on getting the wisteria rooted, but it takes several weeks so I won't know if I was successful for a few weeks. ANYWAY! Yesterday I noticed that the wisteria vine had been cut down and REMOVED! The viburnum shrubs covered in ladybugs had been drastically cut back to skinny little "trees". I felt sick to see what had been such a happy hub of buzzing life, destroyed as if it were garbage. So to be honest, when foraging for plants upon "ruderal" sites, I'm going to take what I find because very few people in this area really care about wildflowers and wildlife. They just care about tearing stuff down to build yet another business that will stand empty in 6 months. I found a huge number of sundew (similar to venus flytraps) plants sparkling red in the sun next the lake. I felt a little guilty taking one, but there were so many, I took my husband back to show him, but some doofus had driven a tractor all over them and ripped them to shreds. Some might survive, but most were unrecognizable as anything other than red sludge. Mine, however, is doing fine.

I couldn't have saved them all. I know this, but every time I have someone knowledgeable "clucking" at me for taking a wild plant, I remind myself that to some people if a plant didn't come from Home Depot, it's a weed, and my town is FULL of those kinds of people. So I'm thinking they just assume I'm a little off my rocker for putting weeds in my garden. Weeds like coreopsis, passion flower vine, royal poinciana, wild lupines, lantana, tradescantia, blue-eyed grass, asiatic dayflower, blanket flower to name but a few.

What's New

2010-03-22T16:05:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've written, have been sick...and absorbed with some new stuff I'm working on. Thanks to Jenni of Foreverbeading I was inspired to make my Cheshire Cats into beads. I'm pretty excited about them so far.

I've also been working on some more designs where I incise an image into the moist clay. It gives a stamped appearance but it's an original each time.

I started to make another raven today, but it ended up being a dragon. I try not to fight the process to much because if it didn't want to be a raven, it wasn't going to happen.

I think I'll try to do something where I give it a light coating of glaze and stuff most of it in the pressed design. Can't wait until it's dry and bisque fired!

Spectrum Raku Glazes, Amaco Raku Glazes

2010-03-10T18:41:00.000-08:00

So I've been really getting immersed into my raku firing. I started out with Amaco Raku Glazes and I do like them, but I'm really excited about my new Spectrum Raku Glazes . I do my raku firing on a very small scale, I have a small kiln about 8 inches by 8 inches. My "receptacle" is a repurposed metal pot with lid. My "organic material" of choice has been by far to be newspaper, newsprint-not the colored ads. From my own tests and experiences I have learned this :

don't allow a lot of open space inside the "receptacle"
newspaper is superior because it readily ignites and doesn't mar the surface as much
allowing the item to sit in the flames with the can open has produced more dramatic color effects and thicker smoke which helps blacken unglazed surfaces better
always use the recommended three coats of raku glaze for best results.
Stoneware clay makes an excellent raku clay

Of course, this is my own personal observation, but since I've been following this, I've had better results with my pieces.

Spectrum Gator Skin is my new favorite. If anyone is just starting out and only buying one color, this is the one I recommend. Applied thin, it gives an almost dappled streaky copper look. Applied thick, it looks very much like the sample picture. It is a gorgeous matte color. With a thick application it gets nice and crusty. It's a more expensive color but very well worth it in my opinion.

This picture is good for showing the glaze in thick and thinner applications. Applied thinner it is more earthy and dappled brown.

The pendant above has the "gator skin" put into the grooves of the heart. Then I put 3 coats of Amaco white raku glaze. They seem to react very nice together, developing a warm silvery ivory to shades of copper.

Spectrum Nebula is another shade that I purchased. This one is a bit trickier to work with, but I think I've discovered a trick. Without enough time in the flame, "Nebula" is kind of a flat aqua shade, but if you give it enough time in the flame, it becomes very worthy of it's name. What I ended up with was :

Blues, reds, and copper colors mainly. It can produce a pretty rainbow effect.

Another color I purchased was Spectrum Cobalt . So far I've gotten a few different results. None quite like the picture shown when I ordered it, but still very attractive. I've gotten a deep slightly transparent blue, and with optimal conditions a lot of silvery metallic as well.

This is the cobalt. I used the gator skin for the beak, a very thin coat (produces a pretty rusty color). I also rubbed some of the gator skin into the letters. When the two react, I've gotten a bit of a golden hue surrounding.

This is what happens if there is not enough reduction going on in the "receptacle"

Still a pretty color, but not very dramatic.

I still like my Amaco raku glazes quite a bit. My favorite colors are white:

Copper Patina:

and Bluebell:

Hoping this helps anyone looking for some visual examples of some of the glazes out there. Please feel free to message me if you have any questions about any of my experiences with these colors.

More Favorite Glazes to Recommend- Stroke & Coat

2010-03-04T15:02:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy week! Have been trying out some new raku glazes, with promising results, but no pictures quite yet.

I wanted to mention a line of glazes that I have discovered. Mayco Stroke & Coat glazes are pretty great. For one thing, they are almost true to shade. It makes it easy to plan a design because the colors will be fairly close to the finished color, though usually a bit lighter. This glaze works wonderfully with a "watercolor" effect, if you top with a matte or glossy clear glaze. It works like an underglaze, but with 3 coats it doesn't need a clear glaze.

This pendant has several "watercolor" layers of "stroke & coat" followed by a layer of clear. I used a mixture of blues, greens, pinks, and yellows.

Here I have used the Tuscan Red, Tuxedo, and It's Sage.

Here is the Hot Tamale, thinned with water, 1 coat then sealed with clear. Dandelion yellow center.

One technique I love is to coat a piece in black, then remove most of it with a wet sponge.

It settles into the incised designs and creates an almost pen and ink look.

Lastly, I've used the "stroke & coat" with raku firing as well. I do like to give it a coating of clear, just to avoid having a color change. I like the way the clear crackles a bit during the process. I've also had some luck mixing the colors, the toucan's beak was created by mixing Tuscan Red and Dandelion Yellow. His eye rims were done in The Blues.

This line of glazes is great when you want a nice basic way to add dependable color. It can be layered to help with depth. There are some pieces where I really just want certain colors in certain places and this brand is perfect for achieving that purpose.

Glaze Results --Mayco Elements

2010-02-25T07:29:00.000-08:00

As I search the internet looking for different glazes I've discovered that it's really hard to find pictures of different glaze color results. I'm learning a lot of times they don't quite look exactly like the colors on the sample tiles. My experience with lampworking has helped me, I'm sure. Certain colors of glasses need certain temperatures and conditions to achieve their best look. Glaze is basically crushed glass in a paint type medium. It's hard to find reference colors online (I know, I've looked). So I'm writing this in hopes I can help someone else when they are trying to decide what colors they want to buy.

Today I am writing about Mayco Elements . I've only gotten four shades of this line, but I am planning to buy more. One thing that is really nice about them is that they are non-toxic. Another nice thing is that they have an incredible depth to them that creates a look beyond the Jr. High School Art Class look.

My first example is Blue Grotto . If you followed that link you saw sort of a darkish blue. Now look at this:

and this:

Both are Blue Grotto on Indian Red Clay. The second piece was actually glaze fired 3 times. The stilts were chipping some of the glaze off the bottom and I didn't like it. Notice how it developed into more of a green shade. Also, notice how the glaze likes to settle into recesses.

The next color is Stormy Blue . Basically on the tile it looks kind of like a steel blue, sort of chalky.

In my case the piece became a gorgeous caramel shade. The stormy blue shade actually worked into the recesses on the birds. The base was the Indian Red Clay again.

On this piece there is a bit more of the blue showing through. This bird was created in white versa clay.

Here is a color called Iron Moss . In the online tile pictures it looks very metallic but from my experience it's much more mossy than irony.

Notice how nicely it sinks into the design and highlights. This is also on a base of red clay.

Iron Moss on white clay. This is a bit thinner of an application. Three coats seems to yield best results (as stated on the bottle as well).

Last of all Patina . Now this one seems to be right on, easy to duplicate the results.

This is on a brown stoneware clay.

On white clay....

Annnnnd...raku fired. I plan to work much more with this as a raku glaze.

I hope this helps others out. Please feel free to ask if you have any questions.

Nesting

2010-02-24T10:46:00.000-08:00

Well it looks like Hera is starting to sit on the nest. The nest is mostly constructed of strips of 3 X 5 index cards, a few pine needles. I love how Zeus added his bit of flair with some fancy yarn draped over the side. I wasn't sure if they would go for it, but they seemed to like it. As far as I can tell there is one egg. I don't want to disturb her so I guess if she laid a second one, I'll get a surprise. I'd like for it to hatch but the finches I used to have never managed to hatch a single egg. So I'm not going to get my hopes up too high.

I've been working on trying to take better pictures for Etsy. The light in my room seems to be about the best in the house. I really like photos that are like a still life and use natural light. From what I have seen you can have the best stuff, but if the photos look blah, no one even notices it.

These are my latest little birds "Sweet Tweets" . They were absolutely amazing to sculpt. The birds honestly feel really good in my hands when I'm making them. I used my red clay, which when wet looks almost like soft milk chocolate. I love the color when it is wet. After firing it is decidedly orange. I've found it works beautifully with the Mayco Elements line of glazes. This is surprisingly the stormy blue shade. The glazes sort of break up and the actual color goes into the crevices. I was hoping it would do something like this, so I'm pretty pleased. I left the beaks of the birds the natural terracotta color, but I gave them a coat of clear glaze for a bit of shine. I've got one more in the kiln cooling that I used the blue grotto on. Blue Grotto is a gorgeous shade :

It also settles in the recessed areas. I love this line of glazes, they are super easy to work with. The colors seem a bit weird in the jars but as long as you remember what you are doing it's not a problem.

My Own Private Garden

2010-02-22T12:32:00.000-08:00

Every time I see a thick green piece of moss, the first idea that pops into my head is TERRARIUM. I once saw a show when I was a kid, I don't remember what it was called...Hodge Podge or something of that sort. I remember they used to do all sorts of outdoorsy crafts....it was my kind of show. They made this beautiful terrarium with a moss that I just looked up, British Soldier Lichen . So I hauled out my huge jar, but apparently the lid did not survive our move. I've found that Target has the most wonderful jars for terrariums, like this one here. I like to start my terrariums with a layer of sand and gravel. Aquarium gravel works great or landscaping gravel works too. Then I put a level of activated carbon which you can find in the aquarium section of the pet store. Next I put a layer several coffee filters, but sphagnum moss is even nicer. I didn't have the moss but did have the coffee filters so that's what I did. Then you put a nice layer of potting soil, I'd put at least 2-3 inches. After that you are ready to add plants. I like to start with a layer of various mosses. You can find them in shady, slightly damp areas. Try not to totally clear an area but take small patches from several areas. Ideally what you want is low growing, moisture loving plants (at least for this type of terrarium). I found some plants growing near the moss...they had these little darling four petaled flowers so I've added them, although I've had yet to figure out what they are. Also I found sticks with lichen growing on them and one with a shelf mushroom. I also added some seeds to this terrarium, I've chosen Royal Carpet Alyssum . We will see how well it does! I'm also making little terracotta creatures for them. I've taken one and coated it with a mixture of honey and vinegar. Then I rubbed it with a dry piece of moss. I'm hoping I can get it to grow on the hedgehog's back.

Finished Jewelry, Dove update

2010-02-20T12:18:00.000-08:00

I finally got some of my jewelry projects finished, photographed, and listed on Etsy. I've been working on this since about 8 am, but I'm finally done. My favorite new pieces are :

I'm excited about the raven because it's all free hand. I just used a bamboo skewer to press the image into the soft clay. It's a technique that I'm going to work on some more. If anyone remembers, ravens and crows were some of my favorite subjects with lampworking. I absolutely love them.

The dove didn't exactly go as planned, but I still love him. I sculpted him using my male dove, Zeus as a model. I wanted to raku fire him, so all bets were off when it came to color. The only disappointment with the color was the coral rings around his eyes became a silver too...and I really like the color contrast on the real doves.

The poppy earrings have been laying around for awhile, waiting for me to put them together. I must say what I like best about this listing is the picture I took. I love the colors in the picture. It's given me further inspiration for some more beads to make using my aqua raku glaze and my red.

So far I don't think Zeus and Hera have laid any eggs but I'm keeping their cage in a more secluded part of the house. They have been working diligently on their nest..it seems their favorite material is strips of index cards.

Pleased to be Picked

2010-02-19T10:01:00.000-08:00

I was just thrilled to find out I was included in this Etsy Treasury today My Big Fat Etsy Nest . The funny thing is my husband got me two doves for Valentines day, and they have been nesting too. So nests are definitely on my brain. I'm supposed to be working on some jewelry . I've even got the beads grouped into sets, but instead I've been messing around with a bracelet I'm making myself for my B-day. It's got a very Celtic look and I got the directions from this book. I've had the materials for about a month. I got impatient and started my weave without a good clamp. It's come out ok but I'm sure the weave would have been nicer if I had used a stronger clamp. Of course I had to go right into making it with sterling instead of going with the smart option--making it in cheap wire first. I love making beads, but I do think that when I branch out it's going to be with wire wrapping. I thought about silversmithing, but some of the tools and supplies are so pricey. If I took a class I might feel better about it. Well, I guess I'll be trying to get this bracelet finished and then maybe start working on the jewelry I'm supposed to be making...lol.

New Glazes!

2010-02-17T11:37:00.000-08:00

I just got my package of new glazes, I love Clay King they always ship so quickly. I got smokey blue, clear, and white raku glazes...and a small bottle of ivory. The white and the clear are supposed to be more of a crackle effect I think. I'm looking forward to playing with them. I've been working on some lentil shapes that I've made into thistles and then some I've added a decorative edge to. I think the latter will be crackled white with the area near the bead holes left unglazed so it turns a matte black. It's a bit of a challenge doing the raku firing because I have to wait until my husband gets home, it's pretty much a two person job, but he seems to like doing it. I've had to make my own little racks for raku, but it's tricky getting the beads ready because the wire slumps a bit and the beads end up touching stuff. This new style might help prevent that.

First YouTube Tutorial

2010-02-15T13:50:00.000-08:00

I know it's not the best, but it's not the worst either...lol. At least no one has to listen to me talking.

My Zinnia Tutorial

I made some of these zinnias and was getting ready to list them, then I saw someone on Etsy's front page who had made something similar and I felt weird adding mine right after-- especially since hers were not only stunning but beautifully photographed. I try not to look at stuff that is very much like mine when I'm on Etsy. For one thing, even if it didn't influence me whatsoever, I feel concerned someone will think it did. Also, if I have an idea I love, I'll feel disheartened if I find someone doing something similar. Ignorance is bliss..lol...so I try not to look too much. In my personal way of thinking, even if someone set out to do something EXACTLY like something of mine, it would always look a bit different because of the individual artistry of the other person. YET, here I am sweating it...lol. Once I made a glass bead depicting a father penguin and a baby, yes I was inspired by some pictures of penguins, but not by someone's artwork...and this person actually made a big ole thing about it on a message board. It was actually enough to sort of kill my creative spirit for a time. I know it is part of what took my heart out of lampworking. So this time around, I don't know if I will go much to ceramic message boards, I'd like to meet other artists, but at the same time there is always going to be someone pointing fingers and accusing people they don't even know.

Anyway, I don't put out tutorials for my own gratification, I put it on to help other people starting out. So if you use the tutorial to make something and then turn around and sell it, I'm honored.

New Raku Discoveries

2010-02-15T11:49:00.000-08:00

I've discovered that Coyote Clay and Color's Gunmetal Green has some promising results with raku firing. It's a cone 6 glaze but seems to work decently at around cone 05 . It reduces nicely and reminds me of Moretti copper green glass. Now one thing I've noticed that even the blandest glaze ( i.e. black, clear, etc) can take on some iridescence when fired with quite a few items heavy glazed with "raku" glazes. I'm sure this is similar to the idea of fuming glass beads with silver. The saturated iron glaze worked out pretty well too...at least it did what I wanted it to do, gives a nice rusty look. I discovered this is not the case with the Really Red, obviously it needs a lot more heat. I like the effect I got with shino light blue, gives sort of a rough silvery effect with pale blue.

So far I've tried Amaco raku glazes in Copper Patina, Matte Copper, Bluebell, and Tarnished Silver. I think my favorites have been the Copper Patina and the Bluebell. Bluebell makes me think of verdigris and with some of the coppery reduction turns a bit pinkish.

<----copper patina

I approach raku with hopes of certain things, but very open minded to what comes out. I had one batch where I think I should have let the temp get a bit higher but still I liked the effects of the beads. I like variation between shiny and matte. I always gravitated to organic looks with my glass beads, I probably etched 80% of those I made.

Useful Things to Know When Working with Clay -- Part 1

2010-02-10T15:03:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about the merit of a bamboo skewer. You can get a big package of them for about $1 and they are about the best tool you will find for working with clay. I've used them to carve details, create molds, poke holes, hold beads for drying, wrap wire for loops and I'm sure I've used them for other things.

Another thing I love is polymer clay. I use it to make molds quite a bit. You can press buttons into it, as I've mentioned, but try rolling out a sheet and them poking it with the blunt end of the bamboo skewer, or try using a straw. You quickly create a texture similar to that of a sea urchin test or a tribal design of dots. You can coil metal wire and press it into a sheet of polymer clay and you can create another pattern. I do this with earthenware clay too, but polymer has the advantage of being able to be baked right away, and test the design. I've recently been working on molds using polymer clay and bamboo skewers to make floral molds for pendants.

I've learned that stoneware clay makes beautiful raku pieces and that lower temp clay doesn't work as well because it becomes too close to vitrification and won't pull in the smoke as well. This was a HUGE tip to find because it has a made a tremendous difference.

As you can see these are a big improvement over my first birds. They hold up to the thermal shock wonderfully as well.

Raku Success!

2010-02-08T12:34:00.000-08:00

The stoneware clay worked wonderfully. I'm quite pleased with the results but I do think I'll try a run with only 2 coats of glaze. Some of the colors were supposed to be matte but came off with very glossy surface, still very pretty. Going to try to fire more birds tonight and hope they will survive. This hedgehog has been glazed with Mayco matte copper. I glazed the face with a clear so you can see the pretty stoneware clay beneath. I also went with newspaper and was happier with the results because there is less matter burned onto the surface of the beads.
I'm still working things out but I'm much closer to where I'd like to be!

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

2010-02-05T06:23:00.000-08:00

THE GOOD -So I've been experimenting in the wild world of firing and glazing ceramics. I've mostly had experience in the sculpting phase so this is uncharted territory. I've had a few pieces so far that I'm quite pleased with, and I've come up with some techniques that I like. Most of the pieces in the above pic are pretty much exactly what I was going for...color wise and also the finish is pretty.

THE BAD-This is what happened when I tried my hand at raku firing. I'm still in the trouble shooting phase obviously. I was kind of heartbroken over this because a few of them looked very nice....until their heads cracked off. I'm beginning to wish I had bought the raku clay after all but at the time I wasn't planning larger sculptures. I was reading on a raku site where it recommended underfired stoneware clay...which I have about 80 lbs of..so I might see how it holds up to the thermal shock. I also learned that mostly I'm not painting on my glaze nearly thick enough. The thicker ones came out better. Also so far spanish moss produces a nicer effect than pine hamster bedding. I think I'll try newspaper next time though.

THE UGLY--Structurally they are sound, yet the colors are pretty ghastly. Some are from my first raku firing attempt where I did not use a thick enough application of glaze. I don't like the color of green on this bird and the other bird is not THAT bad, just rather dark so it's hard to see the detail. These are the "what not to do beads".

I've actually managed to have some jewelry quality beads though so that's not bad for just starting out. My first lampworked beads were very grim so I need to remember that when I'm feeling disheartened.

The Kiln Has Landed

2010-02-03T09:56:00.000-08:00

....on my front porch! Finally it has arrived and I've fired my first run of greenware with no casualties. Today I've been working on glazing. Deciding what to fire normally and what to fire with the raku technique. I think I also might see what happens when I use some of the regular glazes with raku. I always enjoy this experimentation part of creating. I'm figuring even if it comes out mud brown instead of blue, there still can be a purpose for the piece.

Silky Birds

2010-02-02T13:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I made some super cute bird sculptures, they are so silky soft with plump bodies like little wrens or sparrows. I think I'm beginning to realize why I am enjoying clay so much. Don't get me wrong, I love the glow and sparkle of glass, but the frustration of being constantly interrupted at home and fact that my hands would go numb at the most inopportune times, it was too stressful to get very much enjoyment out of it. The kneading of the clay feels so nice on my hands. When I'm sculpting, it's almost like I'm caressing the clay into being. The design I like best is so simple yet I think it is elegant. I've made some more ornate birds but the silky smooth ones will be the kind that people just want to hold. I wanted a very simple design because I think it will show off the raku glaze to the best advantage. Now if only my kiln would arrive so I can fire this enormous pile of greenware that is amassing in my garage.

Birds on the Brain

2010-01-29T10:42:00.000-08:00

Today I am inspired to make small fat little birds. It seems everything I shape turns into a plump little sparrow. I'm thinking that this simple design will be wonderful for raku firing so I'm breaking into my white clay. It's pretty heavenly to work with, nice plasticity--part of why I keep making birds. I've made a few with the stoneware clay (which fires to a pretty speckled brown) and plan to try out some of my higher fire glazes such as Coyote Glaze's saturated iron and light blue shino. I love the rusty look of the saturated iron. For ones I'm planning to raku fire I'm thinking Amaco's tarnished silver, copper matte, and copper patina. I accidentally bought bluebell instead of Caribbean blue so I'll probably try that too. I've made so many now...the other day it was cats and the day before hedgehogs.

New Clay, New Kiln, New Passion

2010-01-28T06:05:00.000-08:00

     So I checked FedEx and it shows that my kiln and glazes are on the truck for delivery. I'll have them today! I'll be able to fire some of my stoneware pieces today if it arrives pretty soon. I've got enough pieces for several runs now. I will be very happy to finally have some finished pieces. At the moment the garage is full of tiny, FRAGILE bits of greenware. I'm pretty impressed with Clay King right now. Not only were their prices very competitive but they shipped the same day I ordered. The glaze prices were low enough that even with shipping it was less expensive than buying them locally.

    I got several boxes of clay yesterday when I made the trek up to the supplier. One of the types I got is this wonderful red earthenware clay. I love the way it shows detail, it's a joy to work with. I'm really trying to choose clays that are as beautiful unglazed as they are glazed. I did get some plain white which I think will be nice for my sea urchins and sea shells but I haven't broken into that one yet.

   In addition to beads and pendants I'm planning to make small sculpted pieces and I'm planning some mixed media stuff. I'm planning an excursion to the coast so that I can collect driftwood, sea glass, and maybe some shells. I guess I could buy it, but what fun is there in that?

edited to add :
Well....I guess I wasn't really thinking clearly, OF COURSE the kiln would be shipped from the manufacturer. On the upside, I got wonderful fast shipping on my glazes. I can't wait to try them out!

Bounty of Buttons, Molds in the Making

2010-01-25T06:52:00.000-08:00

I love looking at buttons anyway but it sure is nice when I have a planned use for them. They really make fantastic molds for clay bead making. I use buttons pressed into polymer clay to make molds of different sizes. Now, what's really great is that Joann's (my local craft store), had buttons AND polymer clay 50% off when I went in yesterday. When I'm choosing buttons for molds I usually have a certain theme in mind, always Celtic at the forefront but also nature, sea life, and I like patterns that have a Moroccan look to them. I was able to find heart shaped Celtic knots, spirals, Claddaugh , sea shells and an adorable pine cone. Most of the designs can be used as a mold....OR I can fashion a polymer clay handle and I have a very nice stamp. I actually prefer the spirals stamped as opposed to molded. I try to make two of each mold so I can press a ball of clay between the two to make a double sized button. I also rolled some larger sheets of polymer clay to make a texture pattern.
So far, my clay beads and pendants made from the molds look very promising. I'm waiting for them to finish drying and also waiting to get my new kiln. At least I know they'll be very dry by the time I fire them, haha.

My Book Wish List and some of my Favorites

2010-01-23T16:47:00.000-08:00

These are two books at the very top of my list. I haven't really done much with metal aside from wire wrapping and I'm always intrigued with beautifully hammered silver jewelry. I adore the earrings on the cover. Now that I'm getting into ceramic bead making the second book seems like a no-brainer. I've looked at some of the projects in the book and they involve many techniques I'm anxious to try, especially RAKU!

Now for my faves....I taught myself lampworking from Cindy Jenkins' books. They are very informative and enough to get ANYONE started with this beautiful art form.

Another favorite book of mine is this informative book by Sherri Haab. It is full of beautiful (and classy) metal clay projects. I really love the bracelet made from a tree branch and her artichoke beads.

This Chain Mail Jewelry book is full of beautiful projects and many of the projects are so versatile because they would work well for a man or a woman. I find the Japanese 4-1 Chain mail bracelet to be absolutely stunning.

Woven Wire Jewelry has projects that look really hard but many are deceptively easy. Actually my most favorite project in the book "the woven bracelet" is one of the easier ones. It looks very Celtic and has a lot of ways to customize it.

I'm always on the look out for well written craft books with clear explanations and lots of colorful pictures. These are all books that I'm very happy to have in my home library.

Mold Making and Hedgehogs

2010-01-23T10:56:00.001-08:00

I've been working on making some more molds to use for my raised relief type beads. I've been using polymer clay to take impressions from all kinds of things such as leaves, twigs, and sea urchins. Now I'm working on ideas for frogs and hedgehogs. I love both, especially hedgehogs. I've also made some ceramic clay hedgehogs. Really excited with how they've come out. Should be getting a new kiln in a few weeks so this gives them lots of time to dry out before firing. I just love the color this clay is supposed to fire to...a nice speckled brown. I used to make glass frog beads--so fun to make and each had a different character. I'm really hoping my idea works for making these molds. I could always get a little plastic frog and press it into the polymer clay, but I'm hoping by sculpting the original it will give them more character.

Links

2010-01-22T16:07:00.000-08:00

I'm adding some helpful tutorial links that have been inspirational and informative. I'll be adding more as I find them. Every time I pick up a new art form I seem to get the most pleasure learning it through my own research, trial and of course error. I found these most excellent videos on www.Youtube.com by an artist under the name BHClaysmith. They are so well done that you can really see what's going on.

Pics

2010-01-22T13:13:00.001-08:00

So I haven't really played with regular clay since about middle school age, which is quite awhile ago! I'm really excited with how these are turning out. I'm using high temp wire for the whiskers but I'll probably either loop the ends or epoxy tiny beads over the ends to make them a little less likely to catch on stuff.

Clay Experiments

2010-01-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

I got really lucky Shawn found a box of clay that I bought a few YEARS ago but didn't get a chance to use...and it's still fairly soft. I cut off a chunk and wrapped it with wet paper towels and put in a ziploc bag and it softened to a really nice consistency.
When I made lampwork beads my big things were my Folk Art Cats, Ocean themed stuff, and Organic looking stuff mainly. So I thought I would start by sculpting some cats and a few earthy looking beads.