Distractions I don't need

Hubbie and I went to Goodwill yesterday.  I was looking for a light colored scarf to display my pins on at the upcoming NWPCG Artisan show.  I always browse the aisles while there, you never know what you will find.


I really got lucky..... I found an Atlas Pasta Machine!  Unfortunately it did not have a crank. That did not stop me .... I took it to the counter and was able to get a 50% reduction from $24.99 to $12.50.  The great thing is that  when I got home I found that I have a crank that fits it .... Now I just have to determine if it is in good working order. That will have to wait until after the show though.


The other big score was a box of dominoes - the good kind, not the cheap plastic they make now days.  I have seen (and own) some wonderful transfers onto dominoes, so I been looking out for them every time I visit a thrift store.  There were 72 of them in the box for only $3.99 .... I am waddling the two step with my happy feet on cloud 9.


 So what am I doing today?  I should be getting ready for the show.  Instead, I am trolling You Tube and finding so many ways to decorate dominoes besides picture transfer ... maybe  if I finish my tagging I can try one of the techniques out.

Best Place to Be (if you are a cat)

  Right now I have my studio torn apart getting ready for the Artisan's show this coming weekend.  If you live in or near the Seattle area and are interested in seeing my work in person, as well as the works of  other talented artists (with a chance to purchase, of course) drop by and see us.


When: Saturday, November 12th – 10:00 am to 5:00 pm 
           Sunday, November 13th – 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Where: ArtWorks, 201 -2nd Ave. S in Edmonds, WA 98020
Fee: Free Admission


I normally keep the door shut to my studio when not in use -the Underfoots (gotta love them) don't respect my clay or resin or beads (don't get me wrong, they LOVE the beads, just don't respect them -  always pushing them around), so it is prudent to make it a no cat zone.  I keep it unheated unless I am working.  I have been busy all morning with inventory and tagging items for the show.  In and out, in and out and one time (only ONE time) I forgot to close the door.


Luckily the space heater was more attractive than my clay this time.  I found the Rue sprawled. legs splayed, just soaking up the heat.

Let's see, 5 minutes to the stomach then I'll turn and bake my back,  

Scarf Weather

It has been a long time since I have written.  I have been in a creative slump lately.  I am attempting to pull myself out of the rut by experimenting with designs for scarf pins.  The only show I participate in is next week and I want to present something new.

 These were the first two I made.  They are skinner blends stamped and baked. After baking, I antiqued with LPC.  I think the pin sticks are too long and flexible.  Both the pins and skewers bend very easily.

 My next experiment was with textured white clay, which I then colored with inks.  After the ink dried, I antiqued with black tinted LPC.  This pin tack is shorter, but still too flexible.

 Trying a different shape this time. Also, since the earlier skewers were too flexible and bendy, I thought I would try a more solid material.  I hammered some 16G copper.  They look good but are too slick.  I found they slid out of the scarf.  These two both colored with green ink, the one on the left had some blue added while the one below had a Carmel colored ink added to the green.

Next was an attempt to mimic ceramic.  After texture and shaping a white base, I baked the pieces. When cool, they were colored with LPC tinted with different inks.  The skewers are a bit stronger this time. I covered toothpicks with clay, textured and colored with tinted LPC.

 I really like the colors. But after trying to find a sweater to photograph them against, I realized that unless they are a perfect match for someone's scarf, they may be hard to sell.  So, my next adventure will be trying to come up with a neutral color and design.  Perhaps faux bone or ivory.

This is the only one of the three Faux Ceramic pieces that did not burn when I zapped them with the heat gun. I am usually very good at preventing burning, but this time when I was heating the back of the piece, the front burnt.  I got the trick of it by the time I got to this one.

Strung Out: Beadaholique Beading Contest: Falling Leaves

My Bead Soup Partner Julie Bean let me know that her store, Beadaholique,  is holding their first contest.  I tried to copy over the informational page but was not able to transfer more than the first line.  Then a notice appeared that blogger no longer was supported by my internet browser, and to try Chrome.  What the heck! I am not comfortable with Chrome, it took me 10 minutes just  to figure out how to find my blog with Chrome and still haven't been able to favorite it so I can return easily. I just doesn't seem to be very "user friendly" to me... But here I am, using Chrome for my post for the first time.


But I digress, the purpose of this entry is to talk about Beadaholique's contest.  Here are the pertinent details.  I hope that the links copied over OK.

We are very excited to announce the first ever Beadaholique beading contest! Enter a photo of your original jewelry design for a chance to win a $50 Beadaholique Gift Certificate and lots of exposure on our blog and Facebook page. The theme is "Falling Leaves" and you can interpret that however you like, let your creativity and inspiration flow! Just make sure to use at least 1 item from Beadaholique and follow the contest rules. 

From all the entries we will narrow it down to 10 finalists, all of whom will have their entry pieces published on the Beadaholique blog and Facebook page. There will then be public voting to decide the winner. 

We can't wait to see all what everyone comes up with! 

Here are some important dates to keep in mind: 

• Wednesday, October 26 4 PM PDT: Last day to submit
• Friday, October 28 @ 1 PM PDT: Top 10 will be posted on our Facebook and notified via email
• Tuesday, November 1 @ 4 PM PDT: Public voting closes
• Thursday, November 3: Winner is announced in the next issue of The Beading Wire and notified via email.

Click here for a complete list of rules, deadlines, and more specifics. 

Happy Beading!

Check out this virtual book tour

My muse has deserted me lately.  Stress from both work and personal issues (Prince Pippen took a turn for the worse and has kept us very busy) has taken it's toll on my creativity.  Last night I found myself making the same bead over and over again. Boring....

So tonight I have been browsing the internet, looking for inspiration. I didn't find any polymer clay inspiration since one of the first things I  come across was an absolutely fascinating virtual book tour being hosted by Barbara Lewis. She is the author of  a new book on Torch Fired enameling.  I just got this book several weeks ago from Amazon, but have not had the time to more than casually look through it.  After visiting the blogs featured in this virtual tour and all the different ways Barbara's techniques are being used, I am serious thinking about taking up this art too.   But where to find the space and proper ventilation in my tiny house....? 

Please do yourself a favor and check it out at

http://paintingwithfireartwear.blogspot.com/

Warmest place in the House?

Looks like Rue found a warm place to take a nap.  Just had to share.

Daddy needs his laptop, honey

Lookie at what I won!

I am constantly amazed by the technology available today.  When I was in college ( I am really dating myself here) there was ONE computer on the whole campus.  Now they are everywhere and ingrained into our lives. I can not image a day when I am not on line doing something.  One of the things that I like the most  about computer technology is that I get to meet many people online that I would never have meet in real life. 

One of these people is Lynda of SCDiva.  I first meet her when I started posting to Flickr several years ago. She is a very talented artist who's work really resonates with me.  She was the first person to become a follower of my blog. 

Every month this year she has been having a give away and, of course, I have entered every one and crossing my fingers, hoping to win.  And this month I DID.  Wow... I am jumping for joy. 

These lovely flowers will be winging their way to my home this week.  Aren't they the most delicate beauties?