Learning Small

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I prefer working small; the above amphora necklace focal is 1.75″ tall, plus the millinery and stick pins. But since I’ve been seriously delving into the polymer clay medium, I’m realizing that even the smallest object holds the promise of so many lessons, from forming to surface texture to paint.

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The photo above is where I left the object last night… it had finished baking and I was disappointed with the dirty gray color and lack of translucency (I had mixed in gold leaf to very little effect). Still some things to master, but I wasn’t going to let all the work I’d done be for naught so I slept on it, and put some intentionality toward waking up to work on it some more, knowing that paint was the answer but feeling too sleepy to carry on.

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I’ve never been a clay or paint person, in art school or in my 30 years as a practicing artist/designer; I am now falling in love with handling clay and with applying paint in built layers. To make these amphora charms, I’ve taught myself how to create a slab vessel out of clay, because I wanted these to be hollow… more lightweight (for jewelry), and more real. I sort of made it up as I went along, doing what seemed to make sense. Softened and rolled out a sheet of clay, and started forming it, then making and attaching the neck separately from the body.

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None of these images capture fully the delicacy of either the textures or painted colors. By using the dirty gray as my middle tone, I was able to add shadows or low lights and high lights, applying pigment slowly. Close up above shows a bit more of the detail.

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The texture of the wing was produced separately from the vessel (stamped into the clay), with the top level sliced super thin like the thinnest swiss cheese and then applied to the surface. After this, the piece can’t be handled much until post-baking. All of these techniques can be learned via tutorials and videos on YouTube. I’ll try to find time to add some links to this post soon, but a quick search on Etsy and YouTube will yield everything you need. I’ve been studying and learning so much, even just making a tiny little object like this.

Adventures in (polymer) Clay

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I have a love/hate relationship with polymer clay. After shunning it for years based on my perception of the overly cutesy-wootsy suburban housewife crafter (gingerbread men) and psychedelic hippie (cane) aesthetics, I’m here to tell you, polymer has come into its own. This is my second foray into this medium, the beads above were made a few weeks ago. And they got me very excited indeed about the possibilities for this medium.

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As I set about to experiment again with polymer clay, I came up initially with the pieces above. I felt they were okay-ish. But they somehow felt a little safe. The leaves were beginning to have a nice, burnt feeling to them and I went on to create the entire suite of components below (Burnt Offerings collection).

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What you can see here is my experiments in both surface texture and coloration. Do I start with dark or light clay? Paint it? Powder it? Gold leaf it? Smash it, scratch it, etch it, impress upon it, embed into it, bake it, carve it? The answer is yes! All of the above and more! Polymer is a really forgiving and soft surface, and therein lies its beauty and frustration. You can get GREAT results. If you handle it after you do, those results will smooth back out quickly. It seemed like starting with a batch of small components was a great way to experiment without wasting supplies.

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Of course, you know me. Attention span of a gnat. Easily bored. Gotta go over the top. The above/below piece is a focal for a bracelet, entitled Octopus’s Garden. It has holes on either side to attach chain or ribbon, and a nice curve for the wrist achieved by baking it over a soda can. Features some of the burnt leaves poking out of a dark and spooky garden. With a squid tentacle and of course bling/sparkle/glitz. Because I can’t help myself! Darkness and light, people, darkness and light.

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I did not invent any of the techniques you see in use in these pieces… they are out there for the grabbing… all over YouTube. I probably watched about 8 hours of how-to videos over the course of a week while I was working on these pieces and collecting up some supplies. Just go over to the site and search for polymer clay, it will all come up. And you can follow links in the videos for additional blog posts.

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Most supplies are available at any craftstore; I went to Michael’s. I also stood in the aisle and read most of a polymer clay how-to book, so as to not have to buy it. Picked up some valuable tips! It was a full immersion into the medium… and I’ve still got a very long way to go with results. I like what I’ve done, but I’m still working it out.

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Having started with black clay, it was challenging to get any contrast going with the textures/colors. Although it’s even more challenging to photograph these, and they actually have a LOT of coloration. Above you see experiments with a sparkly white clay, as well as embedding a vintage image under a glass dome. I think it’s important to mix polymer clay beads in with other kinds of beads as you see in the curation above (which will be a necklace) entitled For Amusement Only (imprinted on the vintage brass carnival token also pictured).

So, this is as far as I’ve gotten with this round of polymer. I’m pleased and excited to make more things. There are some truly amazing polymer artists out there who make the clay look like everything from metal to raku-fired pieces. I’m no expert, but if you decide to play, feel free to get in touch with me; I’d love to chat! Unless you decide to make ginger-bread men… then I don’t really want to hear from you. JUST KIDDING!!!!

PS: I have not yet bought the requisite pasta machine for kneading and rolling clay. I’m not sure I’ll need one for the small batches of work I’ll do.

Grunge Was a Thing

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You know, way back in the ’90’s. Nirvana, Marc Jacobs, flannel, old boots. Well, it became a thing, but I’m old enough to tell you it was there long before Vogue mag declared it a fashion thing. I think by that time, I’d been shopping for clothes primarily in thrift stores for 2-3 decades, favoring girly dresses with combat boots for awhile. And I wasn’t the only one before this was co-opted by the media machine.

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The preference for things worn, used, tattered and torn–objects with a previous life, a history, with distress, destruction, and survival felt natural to me as a form of escape from mall-ified suburban America. So, what does it mean when we MAKE things that are new appear very old (above)? Thrifstores–once filled with glamorous 40’s gowns and beaded cashmere sweaters–are palaces of polyester these days. There are crusty jewelry parts coming out of Russia and Afghanistan these days, rather than Value Village… the cost is a bit prohibitive on most of it.

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This is shiny new brass. Un-grunged. It’s soaking in dish soap to remove oils so that the chemical agents can do their job. This does not always work, but it’s a good place to start. I can’t imagine using it in its glittering raw state for much of anything. But transforming these pieces is a metal adventure.

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Above are bits and pieces in the process of destruction. It’s messy and sometimes stinks like rotten eggs. It’s incredibly unpredictable, which is both a frustration and a huge part of the allure. Without knowing the exact composition of the metal you are trying to distress (copper? brass? nickel? steel?)… it’s impossible to predict which chemical might have an effect, and just what that effect will be. There is a lot of scrubbing and soaking, wiping/sanding and re-soaking to achieve a great patina (the professional term for grunged out metal).

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I use chemicals made by a company called Jax. They are hazmat so I order up a few bottles have them all shipped at once. It’s hard not to think of the chemicals as precious, so when I start patina-ing, I run around my studio throwing everything in sight into the soup. Jax makes many different solutions for many different metals… I stock about 4-5 of these and use them interchangeably, sloppily, and without any prescription or recipe.

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I’m really loving the verdigris patina lately. After a long while of this not seeming to work, I’ve got it DOWN, getting awesome results. Again, not predictable, with verything from pale blues to deep turquoise, to weird shades of green appearing randomly.

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Brass bits are cheaply procured, but I think most of these pieces use very old dies. Using patina brings out the original workmanship, missing entirely from a glaring gold surface. Just look at those tiny swags… SO CUTE! But they just look crappy in gold.

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Not to be contradictory about the gold, I sometimes throw gold leaf into these designs, furthering the look of a decayed gilded age. These Belle Epoch earrings also have  RAW ruby dangles… raw stones are grunge, tumbled are not! So yes, I’m removing gold, then adding it back in. Seems insane, but is really just so much fun.

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So, back to grunge. Since the 80’s, I’ve never stopped loving tartan; this is a dress I made last summer from the softest flannel and a daisy chain of feedsack fabric yo-yo’s (30’s-40’s).

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And I’ll admit, I loved the Jacobs collection in the 90’s; I didn’t resent the elevation of streetwear to high fashion. It’s what always happens and sometimes the results are truly great. Above is another dress I made this summer… the delicate very sheer plaid voile fabric is by Marc Jacobs, a self-referential nod, don’t you think? Plaid looks great with florals and lace.

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The September earrings would look so good with that dress! Should I keep them? The bead caps on these things are RIDICULOUS. Very medieval or something. And yep, they were super shiny gold, now covered with crusty soot. The beads are palest blue lace agate and Picasso-finished Czech glass beads.

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This bangle stack was made for a client this summer, a gift to someone special. I do these mostly by commission, so email me if you’re interested. They feature tarnished bangles from India, reclaimed sari silk, and lots of other beads and elements. Grungy, bohemian cool.

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Here’s a recent photo I’m very taken with. Bratty children can be extremely grunge. Their hands sticky, their hair chopped. Their ragged mismatched clothing. The colors above are my palette of teal, rose, gold. You can find images like this over on my Pinterest boards.

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I’ll be rocking my grungy jewelry in massive layers this fall. I’ll wear too many necklaces (including this one that features a destroyed Cadillac hood ornament! The other is an old Afghani treasure that was falling apart and I sort of patched it back together), WITH earrings AND bracelets. Yeah, grunge was a thing. I’m glad it still is.

 

 

Don’t Fear the Knits!

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A key quality for making things is a certain fearlessness around one’s tools and supplies. I don’t know where this comes from, for me it has something to do with time (decades of making) and age (being ancient and just not caring). Many women I know confess to owning machines but being scared to use them… I was also that woman, so I understand!

Now that I am over my fear of the machine, I’m left with other anxieties… putting in a zipper! Sleeves! And until yesterday… knits! Not t-shirt knits… sweater knits.

And that’s when I ran into O! Jolly!. Olgayln is a master knitter, with a really fascinating history of working in theater and music. And, she has been making, selling, and CUTTING UP gorgeous machine-knit textiles for quite some time. Her blog, Crafting Fashion, about working with knits was the key to unlocking my fears, and I’m so grateful.

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I created the little grunge dress above by cutting up a very open-knit sweater (terrifying) and, thanks to Olgalyn using bias binding tape to seal off the cut end. Below is a shot to show you how this looks.

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I thought that the whole sweater (thrifted: $4) would unravel before I had time to walk ten feet from my bed cutting table to my machine. This did not happen.

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The body of the dress is Indian cotton, very light and airy, about $6 a yard. Suffice to say, whole worlds of stitchy fun have opened up. As soon as the thrift stores start stocking sweaters again, I’ll be off and running.

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If you are a Blythe-ette (and I know some of you are) you will want to dress like your dolly and she of course is wearing Cangaway. When you hit the link, be sure to visit her SOLD section. These fabulous dresses (about $30 ea) sell immediately upon listing, and I’m talking MINUTES. You can get on her “first to know” list and receive an email a few moments prior to her listing and then you’d better strike fast. Pictured is my Sophronia, decked out in Cangaway, plus Mad Hatter top hat by yours truly.

Last but not least, if you are or will be in New York on 7/22, I’d highly recommend a workshop Olgalyn is giving on making a shrug from knit fabric. I hope to make it to one she might schedule in the fall if any local ladies would like to consider caravanning to Brooklyn.

When an abandoned scarf became a glamorific shrug…

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I was delighted to find this gorgeous scarf at my local thrift, buried behind about 100 of her ugly stepsisters. Although I don’t wear scarves, I couldn’t pass up this fabric which put me in mind of a 70’s super-glam brand called Sweet Baby Jane for the Plain Jane clothing company. I used to scour the High Street boutiques on the OSU campus in Columbus, OH looking for these rock-star boho retro fabulous garments. If you remember this brand, check the link above to learn what well-known company it transformed into during the 80s.

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And with its angelic cherubs, the fabric also puts me in mind of iconic 80’s Italian clothing brand, Fiorucci. I remember squeezing into a pair of the skinniest Fiorucci jeans ever by lying on the dressing room floor in order to zip the zipper. I think they were gold. Metallic.

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If you look closely at this delicate, crinkly, sheer rayon, you can see that some of the little stars in the print are covered with actual gold glitter. Yeah, for $1.99 this was going home with me and I’d figure something out.

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Making this really could not be simpler.The bulk of this “project” is in locating a great scarf to use. It should be an elongated retangle, not a square, and in flowy fabric. Measure to fit, sew two seems and voila!

Feel free to share this idea and the instructions above by linking back to this blog. Larger photos can be seen on my flickr. Thanks! xoxo

Sewing Hands are Happy Hands

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Friends on Facebook know that I’ve been obsessively sewing again; this post gathers together images and ideas, a greatest hits of the allure of this activity for me.

1. Textiles. Probably the number one reason I sew is a deep, enduring love for textiles. My passion for fabric seems to know no bounds and each time I get back to sewing there is a literal world of discovery awaiting.

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The love of textiles takes me adventuring to Africa, India, Japan, Europe (without leaving home)… crossing decades and centuries (without a time machine), exploring history, industry, technique (sans a classroom). Textiles invite anthropological inquiry and ultimately make me feel connected to societies I can never really know, particularly societies of women. And, thanks to the Worldwide Web, sewing takes to me to Mood, NYC. True, Tim Gunn isn’t around to soothe my nerves, and Swatch the dog is but an on-screen image. Still! Mood!

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Above are textiles from Mood that I managed to match from online images only, remarkable, really. I’m having a huge 90’s grunge moment and the plaid is by Mr. Grunge himself, Marc Jacobs, a delightful, sheer voile fabric. The floral is fine silk and a complete bitch to sew. The lace is antique from a yardsale, as is the ribbon.

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Front of this dress is shorter than the back.

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Ties make it fit nicely for sizes 2–8.

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The dress pictured center is made from the sheerest bone white cotton voile from India, block printed with a lovely pattern just begging to be a sari babydoll dress. These textiles can be had for about $6-$12 a yard (and up), via a handful of dealers on both ebay and etsy. I have never been disappointed with this yardage, colors are bright, patterns run from traditional to sweetly off-kilter interpretations of Western themes. And how fun to receive packages from around the world!

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2. Analog. To be fair, my sewing machine is a sophisticated computer…

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CLICK IMAGE ABOVE TO PLAY VIDEO.

…but that isn’t at all what I love about it… and for the most part I ignore this aspect in favor of the older school functions that have been performed by machines since sometime in the 1700’s. The 10 second video above shows my machine in action, overcasting (which means I don’t need a serger) a length of delicious cherry silk polka dot fabric, also by Marc Jacobs. I love the visuals, I love the sound! And you can’t have enough ruffles, right?

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3. Mad Skills. Sewing requires many skills that I do not currently have. I learn at least one or more new things with each project I undertake. As with other challenging activities, the knowledge is cumulative and improvement takes practice, over time. A few tips if you are, like me, an impatient novice:

Make something simple that you will honestly love and that falls within the current limits of your ability. Then make it again in another fabric. And again, with a slight variation. Each time, push yourself just a little. You will end up with three cute garments that aren’t perfect but are perfectly wearable.

The right tool for the job… i.e., know your needles, cutting implements (and keep them sharp), measuring tools, markers, etc. Build your tool library slowly on an as-needed basis… learning as you go. Have your machine serviced bi-annually once you really start using it.

Watch YouTube videos! There is NOTHING you can’t learn on YouTube from sewing bias tape to working with bitchy silks. The sewing videos are often funny. You can pause, rewind, watch them dozens of times late into the night….

Make mistakes, then fix them as best you can and MOVE ON. Nothing handmade is perfect. If it is, it’s boring.

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4. Relationship to day job. Sewing is very different from graphic design; my day job. But there is a lot of overlap and I take advantage of this. There are applicable skills; color sense (and nonsense!), measuring, constructing, and the joy of ideas or concepts combined with the tedium of production.

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It feels great to access 30 years of art and design experience in service of wearable creations, all while pushing myself to learn more. The piece above, a swingy tunic (or very short dress) was created from a pattern I made myself, copying a tee shirt from free people. The learning opportunities are endless with sewing.

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5. Upcycling, and the romance of need. Sewing your own clothes is not a choice to make simply to save $$$. In today’s world of H&M &tc, fast fashion can be had for dirt cheap. If you purchase NEW yardage, there are bargains to be found… but there are many delicious fabrics you will lust after that are trés expensive. You’ll also need a lot of auxiliary supplies and will be running to fabric stores constantly for matching thread, picking up MORE yardage that you really don’t need… just ’cause it’s there.

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And then, there are curtains. The two most influential films of my childhood, “The Sound of Music” and “Gone with the Wind” feature heroines rising to the occasion of style-over-means. Remember the VonTrapp children frolicking through those oh-so-alive hills in their shameful, adorable garments made from the Captain’s living room curtains?! And Scarlet, OH SCARLET! Who can forget her fabulously rich green velvet curtain ensemble???

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When not busy searching out bargains on Mood.com, I’m combing my local thriftstore for textiles. Curtains, tablecloths, bedspreads and sheets… the most amazing vintage fabrics, at pennies-per-yard can be found on almost any trip. The bloomers above and below were made from curtain yardage, two panels at a total cost of $4.

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The three fabrics came SEWN TOGETHER. All I had to do was cut. Oh, and I patterned these for a perfect fit by copying a pair of pajamas, also scored at the thrift.

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The ruffle trim on this flirty dress was also once a curtain. Dotted swiss in a spicy mustard shade, probably circa 1970-something.

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6. Collage of disparate elements. In all of my creative pursuits, from jewelry to sewing, I lean toward bringing together things that may not belong in the same project. Below, I trimmed a super soft ombre flannel dress with a length of handcrafted yo-yo trim made of 1930’s feedsack fabric. Feedsack is a collectibles world unto itself, but the yardage has become quite expensive… and is mostly available in smaller pieces (duh, feedsacks). This was a fun way to incorporate the wonderful patterns and textiles without spending a small fortune.

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I’m currently obsessing over Japanese textiles and techniques. Below is a babydoll tunic that features very vintage Kimono silk as a ruffle, with the main fabric a “homespun” from JoAnn’s. If you go to JoAnn’s, ALWAYS print out the week’s 40% off coupon… it’s good on yardage! If you forget, email it to your phone from the Web when you get there.

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Vintage Komono fabric, much like feedsack, is dear ($$$) and generally available only in smaller pieces b/c it is loomed in the right amount for making Kimono–no waste, making it perfect for trim. The colors and textures are gorgeous. I very boldly tea-stained the dress body after completing it as the stark white wasn’t working with the vintage fabric. Scary, but worked great.

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I’m itching for a larger, more involved project after all of these simple dresses, and am about to embark on a piece that will use new and vintage indigo textiles and will incorporate Japanese Sashiko and the boro aesthetic.

Watch the flying fingers in this video as she creates rows of Sashiko hand-stitching. You’ll also see this technique in India, on Kantha quilts. The effect is lovely.

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I may incorporate some of these quilt y0-yo’s made in the 1940’s from men’s necktie silk into this upcoming project.

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And here are my first practice stitches, done on my old jeans in a doctor’s waiting room. The point is to make all the stitches uniform in size and spacing. But I have seen loads of ancient cloths where the stitches–made perhaps in haste to get a farmer back into the field–don’t look so far from my own wobbly and inaccurate attempts.

Stay tuned! xoxo

PS: Big thanks to Molly for showing me a) how to send a JoAnn’s coupon to my iphone and b) how to get a video off my iPad, into iMovie, and embedded in WordPress… with a thumbnail!

 

WIP: Tassels, Not Hassles

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The completed necklace above is fashioned from an Afghani artifact, a heavily beaded tassel, probably used to decorate a camel. This is unlisted due to my complete inability to part with it.

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Here then, is another gorgeous tassel I’ve been trying to work with, this one is African and made of leather. The colors are amazing, both dirty and brilliant in perfect combination. The beaded ring is my addition but I can’t seem to properly finish this WIP.

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Above is the most recent tassel experiment, made from an upcycled plastic Winchester rifle bullet casing that is insanely rusted and distressed, then gilded (of course). I have a batch of these in the most wonderful desert-faded colors. This is all very unfinished, just playing right now with materials and thought you’d enjoy seeing the influences leading to the design.

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I know I will be using these Indonesian blue glass beads; amazing color against the red.

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And the Indian sari silk fiber is working for me. I love how all of these tassely objects are related to one another, coming from arid deserts and plains, the recycling and repurposing, how in some cultures even the animals are adorned to the hilt… but the humans too. I don’t know what I’m saying, I’m just…. all jazzed up about… tassels.

These pics are over on flickr in case you want to ogle them larger.

Lastly, I am planning to donate a portion of proceeds from any/all jewelry that utilizes bullet casings to a US gun control organization, so if you want to recommend one, please comment or email me.

WIP: Rocking Out

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Suddenly. In. Love. With. ROCKS!!!!!! Pictured above, from the top: fluorite, blue calcite, citrine (but suspiciously looks like calcite and am contacting dealer about this), raw garnets (!), amazonite and quartz points. Gemstones are MUCH cheaper by the strand, and ebay is a good bet for locating best pricing.

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Big batch of Rocking Rings made yesterday, now being varnished to protect the gold leafing and patina work. As soon as they’re dry I’ll start listing. They are really and truly beautiful, if I do say so, and although chunky, very wearable. Earrings are coming next, can’t wait to play with these stones in that context. As always, larger photos up on flickr for your viewing pleasure.

WIP: Gilded Age

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Have discovered gold metal leaf.

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Am in the process of gilding pretty much everything in site, including this amazing piece of Russian military surplus, a small metal tube that will become a necklace focal. I’ve got a batch of these babies to play with.

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And this simple pair of vintage brass findings… I love how the metal leaf clings to and shows the fine detail of the… metal leaf(s).

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A big-ass ancient glass chandelier crystal gets the gilding treatment, creating a weird world-within-a-world effect as you can see the inside of the other side through the front side. Yeah.

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Here’s a finished piece, a ring holding 2 raw crystals, citrine and amethyst. Then goldified, oxidized, and totally effed up. In a good way. I hope. Ring section coming soon over at So Charmed. Lots of these beauties will be for sale at rock bottom prices. harhar.

Bigger pics for better examination of the (charmingly) rustic and pathetically unskilled job of gold leafing of which I am capable: flickr.

A great gold leafing video, watch and learn and then go make your own mess!

Charming Shadowbox

A comment from the mom of the baby whose bracelet is pictured in the below post mentioned that she was considering making a shadowbox to contain the bracelet for display during the years prior to her daughter being able to wear it.

This jogged my memory of creating just such a box when I designed a wedding gift charm bracelet for a friend who I wasn’t sure would be able to wear the chunky bangly thing too often… but might want to display it in her home rather than keeping it in a jewelry box hidden away.

The photos aren’t great, but I hope you get the idea. The raw pine box was purchased inexpensively at Michael’s crafts store and has a glass front door. I stained the box and lined it with pretty craft papers, including a scrap from the actual printed wedding invite, installing two small nails on the back wall for hanging the bracelet.

I then added a few treasures to the bottom floor of the box, a miniature cake and some dried rose petals. I honestly can’t remember if I ever resolved creating a way to hang the box on a wall, or if I just left it as something to display on a shelf or tabletop (probably the latter). I had a moment’s thought to offer these custom boxes for sale along with my charm bracelets, but ultimately decided that the amount of work involved was just beyond what I could probably charge. It isn’t hard, and you CAN do it yourself! If you have any questions or want support with your own shadowbox project, drop me an email any old time! xoxo

Atelier Charm

Anyone who sews understands the frustrations of having to haul your machine onto the dining room table, make a huge mess, run upstairs to where the ironing board lives, clean everything up for dinner, and begin again. Agonizing, especially during an intense time of creating. Here are photos of my newly created nook. Above, among other things, you can see the little Indian dress which I am in the process of altering to fit… and it’s coming out GREAT!

It’s taken nearly a decade of living in my little house to figure out that I had the space and even the furnishings I needed to work this out in a far more satisfying and workable way. Above you can see that I used free weights against the folding table legs to help fortify it. I’d still like to find a sturdier table at the thrift sometime.

Top floor of the house is basically one master bedroom suite, outside of which is a lovely hallway / anteroom that is actually big enough for a small sewing elf such as me to feel cozy working in. Above you can see my grandfather’s desk, a beautiful old thing I’ve had in my life for over 30 years now. I remember him using it… a small round silver dispenser of stamps and a little dish with a wet sponge for applying the postage. There were always other fascinating things to look at in the desk cubbies.

To the left of this image is the doorway to the bedroom, a very large and quite gorgeous room that was expanded by the previous owner. My dressmaker dummy is in that room and the ironing board sets up easily there.

This is the other end of the hallway, if you spin around you’re at the stairway leading down to the main floor. I dearly love all of my old hat boxes, suitcases and my dolly pram full of vintage hats, which was thrifted for about $10. Major score. All images can be seen at full size over on flickr in the aptly titled set “house.”

What $17 + a 25% Off Discount Card Will Get You on Thursday at Value Village Thriftstore

I thrift in two ways. One is that I think VERY specifically about what I’m looking for (usually project related, sometimes just a fashion issue) and it is frightening how often I find exactly that thing. The other is just a random trip for the inspiring thrill of the hunt. 50/50 success rate.

Yesterday I went to score cheap old tshirts to make another dress. Didn’t happen due to an overwhelming number of ridiculously gorgeous textiles lurking about. Top of the post, the whole score. Above, a set of pillowcases (India) with amazing mirrored handwork on both sides of each, total of FOUR panels. Katie, Bethy, Dorie… one each for you local craftistas.

This blanket (India) is the most amazing shade of yellow-maize with faux fur and sequiny embroidery. Anthropologie eat your effing heart out. Wish I had skills to make a coat, but I’m going to do a skirt. Seems weird, hopefully will work. There’s lots of yardage.

Above, The Gettysburg Address, in its entirety, printed on a scratchy burlap tea-towel sorta thing. LOVE this typography and can’t wait to use patches of it on garments.

Have to research if it’s an image of Abe’s handwriting (as I suspect). I thought the Lincoln portrait was a bit tacky, but it’s grown on me and might get incorporated somewhere.

Warning: This one’s gonna make you swoon.

This vintage Indian garment fits me, but is a bit shapeless. I do not have it in me to cut this; yes I have boundaries. So, if I can’t easily alter it into a flattering shape by taking in the side seams, it will just hang on my wall. Isn’t it divine????

The back, though plainer, is also lovely, with rainbow thread embroidery on this incredible gauzy layered base fabric. This piece was $5, less 25% but is priceless.

There are often great curtains, linens, and doilies but I try not to over-collect hoard them. You might hear me muttering: Someone else’s treasure… my anti-hoarding mantra. At $1.49, could not pass these up. BTW, the one at the bottom is a “pineapple” pattern. Sweet!

Surrealism, Africa, Holland, and Me

I’ve been making a lot of dresses based on the Piece of Cake frock pattern by Jody Pearl of Sew Outside the Lines and when the above pictured African wax print textile (lower fabric) arrived at my attelier (purchased here) , I decided to make something in a queenly maxi length. I also became utterly obsessed with this gorgeous fabric, searching high and low for info about it. Is it genuine wax print or fake? Most importantly, what ARE those strange objects and why do I find them so impossibly alluring?

My research deadended and I sort of gave up, and then, while searching for more textiles on Etsy, I came upon the above (purchased here). Uhhhh, wait a minute! That’s MY textile. And I like it even better in this crazy colorway! I immediately contacted the lovely seller, Angela, who came forth with loads of info about the The Gallery of Poems textile collection from Vlisco, renowned Dutch (not African) textile manufacturer.

Here is Vlisco’s description of their 2011 Collection: GALLERY OF POEMS: DRAMATIC ROMANTICISM

Once upon a time, Vlisco created a mysterious new fabric collection called ‘Gallery of Poems’. Dreams wander, floating into your own fairyland. Step into a new world and view the designs as objects of inspiration. Some designs will magically transform into a piece of art, adding a romantic touch to the poetic drama, while others illustrate a surrealistic passing of time. The decorative collection is intensified by a flamboyant colour palette. ‘Gallery of Poems’ makes you feel like a fairytale beauty.

This is where I about fell on the floor. Surrealism? Although this is another story for another time, suffice to say that at age 14 I came under the influence of members of the American Surrealist Movement (one of whom remains one of my oldest friends), and my life at that point was forever changed. Thus, it seemed that my locating this textile, and the subsequent journey into the world of high-fashion African wax prints, was deeply connected to other aspects of my life as an artist.

Of course, me being me, it doesn’t end there. The above video from Vlisco is absolutely fascinating, explaining the wax print process (pattern ends up on BOTH sides of the cloth) and a lot about the history of the company. These fabrics are so incredible, words can not express. Vibrant color, a slightly stiff substantial hand, and beyond gorgeously weird concepts that combine traditional African imagery with modern Western icons in a global village collision that makes my head spin. Pricing aligns with the incredibleness… yardage is sold only x6 yards and at $15 per, + shipping from the UK… OMG. Here’s your source; Vogue Fabrics UK.

I’m obsessing over the four textiles shown here.

Know someone who might want to share yardage? Put them in touch, ASAP!

Because I….

…want to make more dresses!

PS: Added bonus video; How to tie tradtional African Gele (head wrap):

Fabric, Part 2: Spoonflower!

Those of you who follow my ramblings on Facebook and my pins on Pinterest, know that I’ve taken a sewing detour of late and have been making the prettiest little dresses using Jody Pearl’s Piece of Cake frock and tunic pattern. Pictured above is my favorite cake to-date worn by me, and featuring a crushed velvet top and yardsale damask (art deco) skirt. Not to mention vintage French faux-fur trim… it is quite the confection! You can see the rest of the cakes in progress and finished/worn over on flickr.

Meanwhile, I spend an inordinate amount of time scouring the world (real life AND virtual) for textiles; a recent post highlighted an obsession with Japanese prints and I’ve been haunting my local thrifts for curtains and bedspreads! This post will highlight fabrics found on Spoonflower; an incredible web site that allows anyone to design and upload/sell their own textiles. And there is truly GORGEOUS stuff to be had.

One of the coolest things about the cake dresses is pairing the fabrics so I’m going to upload these images in order of possible pairings. I love odd color combos and on Spoonflower I seem to fall in love with some very macabre, outre textiles!

First pairing of flies and skulls. Second is a pair by the same artist and I actually like the similarity of color with the difference in imagery… busses and telephone wires.

Above, an odd rococo pairing with squids ‘n roses (like guns ‘n roses only better)! Apologies for not linking all the swatches, they are easy to find by searching Spoonflower and ARE linked over on my Pinterest Craft Board.

Cities (Tokyo) and wolves… I LOVE this pair.

Bones! Scary Forests! The mind reels with possibility. Spoonflower, btw, is print on demand. They offer eight fabric choices and you can obtain a swatchbook for just a dollar, which I’ve done. The fabrics are pricey (but I think it’s worth it to support the designers), starting at $16.20 per yard for quilting weight Kona cotton and going up to $34.20 per yard for silk crepe de chine, which I will NOT be ordering. For the cake dresses I recommend either the Kona, or (and especially) the linen-cotton blend which will be similar to the Japanese fabrics I’ve used and work really well to hold pleats, giving the frock nice fit/form.

WIP: Piece of Cake Dress

A few weeks ago I posted about a terrific pattern I’d discovered; a dress called the Piece of Cake (by Jody Pearl of Sew Outside the Lines). Pictured above is my dress in progress!

The hardest part of this (I think) is the slight altering to the pattern that I worked through this week. I went between sizes for the top, and opened the front neck and arm holes a little. Super easy, really.

You may remember my excitement over Japanese fabrics I’d located on etsy, and yes, I did end up ordering some. However, for this first dress, I don’t want to start cutting into $18 per yard (GASP) linen, hence the above pictured mid-century table cloth I dug out of my dining room sideboard. It’s really lovely! And I was able to avoid the holes! The top fabric looks mid-century, but I’m not sure; it may be reproduction. It was a pair of pajama bottoms — already cut up a bit — scored at a yard sale.

I’m going out to buy seam binding tape (any ideas for color??) and if you missed by facebook post on how to sew seam binding, here is a terrific and very funny video on the subject:

This is truly just so exciting and fun. I am enjoying it immensely and finding that I mostly do have the patience to do things slowly and with care. Sewing commences this weekend… wish me luck!

CORSET TUTORIAL: Steal this Idea… I Did!

If you love corsets but find them awfully expensive, here’s a great simple corset you can make yourself. With NO sewing! I saw it in a shop window here in Takoma Park and immediately thought: I can do that!

The most challenging part of this project is locating the vintage army surplus spats you’ll need. The ones I used are from WWI and were scored on Etsy for about $20. I’ve seen them on ebay as well, sometimes as much as $40-$45… still not prohibitive and lots less than a corset which will run you hundreds (not that I would know :).

Step 1: Acquire a single pair of spats. Step 2: Lace them up. You have just made a gorgeous steampunky corset. 

A note about fit… the spats tend to be small through the curvy waist part. My teenage daughter can fit into this with the front nearly laced closed, and she’s a skinny minnie, size 0-2. On me (30 waist, size 6), the front is pretty open. I was dubious about the cloth fabric laces in the front… but it turns out that it really works if you’re going to wear it more open, as it forms sort of a “panel” in the front (as shown in middle photo). And I do like the girly color with the manly spats. So, I think 30-31 waist might be the maximum for a single pair of spats/corset. HOWEVER, there’s nothing that says you can’t add another pair, lacing up the sides… right?

Oh, and that furry neck thing in the top photo is a collar I knitted. Another no-brainer of a project for the craft inspired-yet-impatient/challenged!

Supply Lust

My work for designfarm takes precedence during the weekdays and this has been a slammed week, with no time for jewelry other than the site launch.

Finally, with things winding down on Friday afternoon I took a break to run errands and found myself at my local bead shop — S&A Beads — in Old Town Takoma Park. Manager Zoe had restocked the tiny shop with so much amazing ethnic tribal and glamorous gemstone stuff, I was dazed. Pictured at the top, vinyl beads in brilliant neon colors and above, gorgeous leather tassels, all from Africa. SWOON. If you’re in the tri-state area, swing through and visit S&A. Sunday is great, the Farmer’s Market will be set up out front (year round) and soon will be brimming with fruits, veg, flowers, baked goods etc.

Here’s an cool jet black beaded sequined tassel I picked up at Value Village when Molly and I stopped by after her orthodontist appt this week.

On the same VV run, picked up these hideious earrings which I can’t wait to disassemble and reconfigure.

But the main reason for the trip to VV was hunt for Bollywood bangles, and my No.1 thriftstore did NOT disappoint.

It makes me happy having this stuff strewn about my desk while I work on my graphics deadlines. That way the supplies can continue their job of talking to me about context. My favorite time for making jewelry is Saturday morning. I almost always get up early, caffeinate, then gather up the supplies and head for the studio. What’s your most creative time?

Gigliotigre

Having a far-away art friend is today’s version of a pen pal (which I’m old enough to also have had), only better! Manuela lives in Milan and we met on flickr — where she goes by the name Gigliotigre and/or PoppyPoppins. We were drawn to one another’s jewelry images; pictured above is Manu’s hand-knit plastic necklace, Knotting Lies.

Although we barely know one another, we decided to do a destash trade… destash being an invented word crafters use to describe the sharing of their overflow hoard of supplies. I was so excited to get Manu’s package, note the mustache tape! Inside was a little suitcase and inside that…

 A crazy little mini-hoard! Here are some pix…

Manu also sent me a super sweet pair of earrings from her PoppyPoppins line, pictured below. Of course we both LOVE polka-dots.

Lastly, here is one more necklace creation of Manu’s, entitled  Erasmus, “la tete Mundurucù” dedita all’ubriachezza molesta or The head hunter’s first victim.

Despite our language barriers — Manu’s English surpassing my Italian by a gazillion percent — we’ve become great friends. I’ve sent a package off to Italy and knowing their mail system as I do… I hope it arrives before Xmas! I can’t wait to see the extreme craziness that comes of this trade. And I hope to introduce you to a few more of my talented art-buds soon.

 

 

WIP: New focals

I’m so excited to share this with you… a new necklace focal — printed images soldered between thin pieces of glass. Above is one side, below is the other. I added the little fleur de lis charm for fun and patina and sanded everything to a messy aged black.

Since giving up the resin process, I’ve been agonizing over not being able to play with text and images. Having had this entire soldering kit around the studio for several years, and having experimented with it a bit lately, I finally got inspired to go the full distance creating one of these sorts of picture things. The technique is nothing new. But I hope I’ll be bringing that So Charmed touch to the whole thing.

And here are some CRAZY tribal focals made with clay (polymer), wire, and dental teeth, which I believe are porcelain, but not sure. They didn’t melt in the oven… so I’m assuming they aren’t plastic! I have a few cards of these… they are used (I believe) for shade matching.

I have to say, these scare even me. They are so incredibly creepy. But I do love them and can’t wait use them in jewelry. Big hugs to Steph of Vladthebatsattic and Simona of HappyFallout for the clay inspiration. Visit their shops to see really great stuff made with actual fired clay… much better than my efforts!

Here’s the second Marie focal, with a vintage brass ribbon thingee soldered on. This is LOTS OF FUN to do.

The back of this second charm features an ancient guillotine illustration. Had to go there…

Japanese Fabric Eye Candy

Since deciding to make a little dress (see previous post) I’ve been exploring the vast world of imported Japanese fabric on Etsy.

There are several shops that have hundreds of listings of these gorgeous prints in cotton and cotton-linen blends.

The rest of this post will be sans text eye-candy. Oh, be warned: some of the fabrics are ghastly expensive. But I’ve really never seen anything like it.

Sew Outside the Lines

I stumbled upon the work of Jody Pearl (I know,  soul sister in name right?), over on flickr, where she posts lots of great images including a recent self portrait with flaming pink hair (I know, hair sister too!)…

 

Turns out Jody — who goes by Reinventing Fashion (soul sister of craft!) — has a full-on web site where she sells her wonderful patterns, fabrics, and trims. I fell in love with the Piece of Cake dress, pictured in this post, and emailed her to ask  just how piece-of-cakey it might be for a fledgling sewist such as yours truly.

My guess is that regardless of the answer to my question, I’ll be giving this a try… it’s just TOO tempting. Visions of thrifted and vintage fabrics dance in my head, along with an entire wardrobe of funky, handmade tunic tops to wear with leggings and skinny jeans. Anybody want to mentor me on this (you know who you are…)? Here’s a link to the pattern, but don’t miss these pattern packages which also include some of her lovely fabrics.

 

Neon Forever

Wanted to share this Voodoo Candy necklace in its finished state. Detail above shows focal, clasp and some of the crazy beads.

In its entirety… very allsorts candy and licorice. This may not be everyone’s favorite colorway, but I’ve always loved the high contrast and the dark playful aspects of using lots of black with neon.

This view shows these strange natural black coral beads that are so scary and freaky.

Here’s a piece made/sold several years ago, a handknit cuff thing using neon potholder loops that were made into yarn. This is one of those pieces I miss and keep thinking I need to make another for myself.

Detail. Looks like a strange futuristic mutated sea creature.

And, one last picture of the first batch of Unstrung Hero beads, all grouped together before they come apart for use in jewelry. More beads to come soon… as Steph warned (and now you’ve been warned too): HIGHLY ADDICTIVE.

WIP: Unstrung Heroes

For a week when I felt sluggish and unproductive, I’m surveying my labor and thinking… wha???? Well, nothing was finished, so maybe that’s why I felt sort of lacking. Incomplete. A bit on the edge (of my seat?). Anyway, it is a good thing I shlepped out to Hobby Lobby yesterday for supplies. Ice storm this morning and we are housebound. What else is there to do but experiment with MAKING BEADS! As the BF asked when he woke up and stumbled into the kitchen: Because there aren’t enough [beads] to buy?? Yep, I fired up the old oven at 7:30 a.m. and created the above set, which also includes a few non-handmade spacers. Personal message to the BF: Did you say PIE? I thought you said BEADS. Sorry.

The necklace above inspired the beads above. Dirty Neon Tooth. (great band name, eh?). Black beads with neon frit. Reason for yesterday’s supplies trip was actually to get black beading thread b/c I didn’t like what was happenin’ with the white in this necklace I’d started.

So, this is my new favorite thing, a necklace focal after Man Ray’s infamous Cadeau. From the Tate Modern (oh how I LOVE that freaking museum) web site:

By adding a row of nails, Man Ray transformed a household flat-iron into a new and potentially threatening object. The nails and burning metal suggest a violent eroticism at odds with the work’s title, the French word for ‘gift’. The original version, given to the composer Eric Satie, was lost but became well-known through Man Ray’s photograph of it. Although made at the height of Paris Dada Cadeau, like Man Ray’s other objects, anticipated the exposure of hidden desires found in subsequent Surrealist objects.

Sigh. This object had a massive effect on me when I was an art student. It just seemed SO right. Not to mention sums up my relationship to housework.

But you guys know I can bring the pretty. The glass beaded centerpiece above is probably from the 1930’s. I’m not sure, so if you know, share. I love the combination of the refined Frenchy beadwork with some rustic primitive tribals.

PS: Unstrung Heroes, a name for my new bead shop? As if I need something else to try to sell. Copyrighted, yo.

Playing an Ancient Game

The game of jacks was a very big deal when I was in junior high school, back in the late 60’s.

10 metal jacks and a rubber ball, played on the smoothest floor available. A series of maneuvers appropriately titled: onesies, twosies, threesies, foursies, and so on. I was pretty good. A girl named Susie ruled.

I’m not really nostalgic for playing the game, but for the memory of the excitement and competitiveness it engendered. Very childish… yet also serious business. I think that’s what I wanted to capture and convey in this necklace.

Lots of Indonesian glass beads here in the most amazing subtle and not-so-subtle colors, with larger handcrafted clay beads, including the jack focal by a wonderful Belgian artist named Steph. The jacks were a creative collaboration between us and I happily have several more–along with lots of other Vlad the Bat’s Attic pieces to play with in the studio.

A Few of My Favorite Things #23

Confession: It’s not all about the angst and edge around here; I absolutely love vintage hankies and many other very delicate collectibles. I can’t explain this, really. I’m old enough to remember when these objects were functionally in use and there is still something about them that I find incredibly evocative. Hankies, and vintage buttons too. They just seem to hold a lot of history… women’s history, in particular.

All of the dainties pictured in this post came from one delightful shop, aptly named The Hanky Lady.

I wonder if the hanky lady herself is liquidating a lifetime collection; as of this writing the number of items in her shop is staggering 262, with only a smattering of non-hanky goods.

The fabrics and handwork on these, the amazing embroidery and lace techniques… such lost arts, for the most part. I have a personal collection of hankies gathered over the years, some are family items, but I also remember scoring many dozens of them at a clip in thriftstores back in the day. Recently I was exploring embroidery myself and used hankies as my canvases at times, here are two such objects from my finished pieces. You can see more of this adventure up on flickr, second “set” on the right called embroidery (mine).


Sugar & Spice
vintage 50’s handkerchief with added embroidery.



Snips & Snails
vintage 50’s handkerchief with added embroidery.

WIP, 12.22

Coolest thing about moving my design practice to my home is that I’ve taken over the entire basement + garage here, and when designfarm hits a lull, I can dash into the jewelry studio and play. So today is a play day! Above are bits and pieces that are being patina’d and observed and considered for upcoming use.

I don’t use a lot of religious iconography in my work, but every now and then, something grabs me and insists. The sacred heart necklace is a 99-cent thriftscore and the hindu pieces came from the The Bead Warehouse. Don’t paper towels make terrific backgrounds? Maybe I will introduce that as the next Etsy craze. Wheeeeeeee!

The other two scary weeping clouds from metalsmithing class. These have set stones, which is a beeyatch, people. These are almost done. I have to go out and get some Permalac to use for setting the patina b/c wax made a big mess on this kind of surface. Pray for me.

So this has been in progress for WEEKS, a triple strand affair that is requiring a lot of planning and stopping and thinking, etc, but which I think is going to rock. I’m super ADHD in the studio (not to make light of it) and have to have like 40 things going on at once to flit back and forth… cut some tin, string some beads, brush more patina… photograph, blaaaaaag.

There’s a third little metal journal here, the red one. Making huge progress in easing the making of these. Much less struggle getting the parts and materials to comply with my wishes. Oh, the background here is this funky pink faux marbled kitchenette table I dragged out of my parent’s basement when they moved to their condo. I think it belonged to one of my grandmothers in the 50’s. It’s really gorgeous and I love being surrounded by old family “heirlooms.”

PS: Full size images over on flickr

Resin, How I Love AND Hate Thee

One of the things I have wanted to take a break from in the jewelry world is resin. But before I sign off on this troublesome yet intriguing bane-of-my-existence process, I wanted to share a recent piece, pictured above, that was commissioned by a favorite client in Italy.

He had seen my series of Blues pins, pictured above, and requested one of Ella Fitzgerald for a friend of his who is a singer. I just couldn’t say no. And, truth is, when I see the results that are possible with this sticky messy stuff, I so wish it were a little less snarly to wrangle with. I use the Colores Doming Resin System, purchased from Rio Grande, which is a two-part deal and hardens when mixed. Properly. And I do mean properly. Should you measure out one tiny drop wrong, stir the mixture too hard or not hard enough, or should a piece of dust fly into your still-curing solution… and oh, did I mention humidity? Or your inkjet print not being dry enough? Or bubbles rising to the surface? All told, this stuff is a pain in the tuchas, even when it is working (smells kinda toxic, ugh). Anyway, I was happy to make the Ella pin, and am now retiring my resin for awhile. I hear it works better in the southwest btw, where the humidity is not DC-swampy. Good luck!

A Few of My Favorite Things #19

I “met” Moxie over on flickr, while looking through the favorite images of some friend of a friend of a friend… and I thought she and her bright pink hair and her darling felted goodies really rocked! Of course she’s also got an Etsy site where, lo and behold, you can buy KITS to learn how to needle-felt tiny cute things like the adorable bumble bee, Little Bugger pictured above!

Or you can pony up just $20 for Moxie’s book, I Felt Awesome, and also load up on supplies like roving, as well as tools, all at hifiberknits, her corner of the Etsyland.

I really have wanted to try needle-felting for a long time, but I need another craft passion addiction like I need one more little hole in my head. Still, Moxie’s got me mighty tempted. You too?

A Few of My Favorite Things #17

Beads? Me? Nahhhhh. Ok, yahhhhhhhh. And here’s a favorite place to score gorgeous beads of every flavor, from Czech glass to tribal goodness, and even some incredibly rare (and expensive) ancient beads. HappyMango will not disappoint.

PS: If you’re joining us late, I’m doing a once-per-day post through the month of December (yes, that’s 30 freaking posts), designed to help you support handmade and all things crafty for the holidays. Enjoy!

WIP: Practicing Basic Threading Technique

Took a break from the tin moth factory today to work on my bead stringing. Decided it was time to make these miniscule crimps and tips look all professional-like, so I watched a YouTube tutorial and got to work. The video really helped, altho these findings are so tiny you’ll see the camera-person struggling to keep them in focus! I had to watch it twice. FYI, pretty much anything jewelry-related that you want to learn via demonstration lives on YouTube somewhere. Soldering, beading, wire-wrapping… just search and see what you come up with. I’ll try to post some more links to some of my favorites. Wait, I need to learn how to embed video in the blog… let’s see…

Ok, how cool is that?! Great, because one of my Favorite Thing posts is going to be a short video that I’m shooting. Sorry… I’m talking to myself!

Not really sure where this necklace is going, but so far, having fun with the materials, colors, and a certain powerful feeling that’s emanating from the main focal. Not to get all woo-woo on you people.

BEAD FREAKING WAREHOUSE

Unbelievably, I never knew that there was a bead crack den warehouse located in an unassuming light industrial area just a few miles from my house. A metal door at the end of an empty parking lot is simply marked “Marvin Schwab.”

Marvin, it turns out, is a real guy, with a whole lotta beads. Hence the name of his business: The Bead Warehouse. When he is not carting TRUCK LOADS of beads to the warehouse, or from the warehouse to a trade show, he will open his stock to the public, about twice monthly or by special appointment should you need a large quantity.

The place isn’t huge, but it is sizable and crammed floor to ceiling with grids of hanging strands, boxes, bins, and showcases of beads and findings from all corners of the world. At the top of the post, some old brass with gorgeous patina, dug out of a dusty box. Above, collectible beads from Africa at really really great prices.

I almost never buy full strands of beads b/c they are expensive and I don’t need that many of one thing. My friend and I split the graduated strand of crystals above, and I’m going to give her some of the gorgeous opalite chunks too.

These are lovely hand-painted wooden beads from India along with some weird silver foil and candy pink beads that I can not really figure out. They all look like little toys.

I can’t wait to patina these lovely charms. On their backs is a stamped OM symbol. Gorgeous. Also pictured are resin beads that mimic bone and some tiny genuine bone beads.

The strand of wavy beads above is old, and incredibly cool, in a shade of blue-green that is wonderful. I was told these are wood, but they seem like some other material to me. Also pictured are luscious limey yellow glass and tiny bright red beads.

The large glass beads pictured above have really unusual confetti inclusions as well as some copper dust floating about. They were the first beads I spotted, at which point my heart started pounding in my chest. Surrounding them in the photo are very old glass teardrop charms with a crusty aurora borealis finish. These were dug out of a box of dusty glassine-bagged beads.

I have a small stash of these old reflector cabs, but could not resist adding to it. The emerald-cut glass stones are just gorgeous. There was a box of this kind of stuff gathering dust on a shelf. I think these are 1930’s glass but I’d love to know more about the reflectors if anyone out there has info. I’ve honestly never seen them in vintage jewelry, but they are magnificent.

Check the website for dates/hours that the Bead Warehouse will be open on any given month, as well as for directions. An off-the-beaten-path treasure trove that was a really fun experience since most of my supplies are purchased online these days. A special thanks to the anthropologist and his lovely wife for turning me onto this place and escorting me on such a fun field trip.