Shining and Polishing - New from Old and Spiffing Things Up Again

Can you believe it's almost mid-summer? Solstice is on Sunday, and I haven't even shared my Winter Solstice cards with all of you yet. Life got in the way. So, my intention is to share those wonderful cards from friends and relatives throughout the world with you to celebrate Summer Solstice Eve - Saturday. If I end up with too many images to share, I'll push on into Monday and bookend the Solstice. 

My "Moons of Hecate" pendant is pewter, so it
 won't catch shine as much as my silver pieces, 
but it is scuzzy and needs a good cleaning. 
It's been a favorite of mine for many years 
now. I originally wanted this design for the 
tattoo I have at the back of my neck, but 
the particular artist I chose was unable to 
handle the detail, so I chose a different 
triple-goddess symbol instead. It was quite 
a few years ago. I don't think I'd compromise 
now. 

I'm bringing a couple of items to the shop today to drop them into the tumbler I keep there. I've been wanting to make simple necklaces from stones lately - maybe one more aspect of grounding for myself. On Tuesday I purchased some amethyst I've loved for a while, as well as some glass to go along with it. I'm thinking about pairing them with an old pewter Hecate pendant I've owned for more than a decade - a long-time favorite of mine. 

You're probably familiar with the basic Celtic 
triskellion - the triangular shape, often with 
spirals in each of the three lobes. My triskellion 
pendent is sterling, features a Pentacle in the 
center surrounded by a full circle, and has 
the waxing and waning moons in the bottom 
two lobes with a small cabachon of amber 
at the top. It's the sun and the moon all tied 
up in a neat, small package. Perfect for me. 

I'd like to polish my triskellion pendant too. This is a standard Celtic triskellion with a pentacle in the center that DH purchased for me years ago. I wear it and love it. I'm also taking a close look at a fabulous enamel piece DH bought for me for another anniversary - this is from Magick - enamels I had lusted after for many years. I adore the piece, I'm always seeing something new in it, and their skill with colors and the depth of their enameling work is stunning. 

The enamel pendant I have is in this 
style, but with much better coloring, 
some blues and greens on the right, 
purple on the left, with a swath of 
yellow instead of the purple above. 
It's small, but so beautiful. I've known 
Fusagar on and off for many years, 
and this was the final year we were 
able to meet. I'm so glad I had the 
chance to get one of his pieces. 

So I'm doing some cleanup today, and maybe some creative work, and I'm sure DH left me with a whole bunch of computer work still to do. My general suspicion ... I won't be bored today - LOL. I hope all of you have a wonderful and productive day. I'm going to do my best, and I'll be back tomorrow. Also, of course, please be kind and stay safe. 

So Life (and Storms) Continue - It's A Good Thing

I managed to sort through three boxes yesterday and repack so that one can survive winter temperatures and possible freezing, one must be indoors at my kiln, and the third is all stone which needs to be identified, have the cost recorded, and be filed into my system. I guess I fell behind in this process a few years ago. *sigh* It's going to take me a LONG time to get this nailed, but I'm going to feel much better once I have. 

I have a Paragon SC2 kiln for my varied arts requiring the use
of a kiln. I use it for enameling, glass fusing and all of my
metal clay work. It's a workhorse and I love it. I have small
regrets while enameling because I didn't buy it with a windowed
door, but that's a minor inconvenience. 

Five minutes ago another visit by the Gods of Thunder crackled and boomed at my window. Another one just hit now. There are lightning strikes within three miles of my house (according to my weather app on my phone), so there's a storm pulling through. According to the app, it's going to be a wet day again today, with rain ranging from 100% to 50% and back to 100% throughout the day. My umbrella will be in use today and my shoes will get wet as I walk into the shop from my parking space. 

I have a Tiffany stained glass umbrella similar to this one
that I purchased at the art museum in Omaha, Nebraska
several years ago. I adore it - it's large, it looks fantastic,
and it collapses into a size that easily fits in my car's
glove box. (Mine doesn't have the pointed top or the
hooked bottom.) 

One of the things DH had requested was my moving my small wood stack away from a drawer unit. I successfully put the shorter (less than three feet) pieces onto a cabinet shelf, but the taller pieces just didn't have a home. DH says he might put them at the very top of our new storage unit. That's fine, but I'll have to put a label onto it or I'll forget that it's there. Since I use the wood as dividing panels in my box art (I re-purpose boxes and enhance them for their new uses), I'll probably need those lengths of wood at some point and will go looking for them, not remembering that they are near the ceiling. A label will be necessary. 

I used to have a P-Touch 1010 label
maker. Since that one died, I ordered a
P-Touch PTH110 as a replacement.
I guess there are now phone apps for
this as well, maybe for my next one.
For now, this will do fine and is priced right. 

For years I had a P-Touch label system - loved it and used it. When I pulled it out of its' drawer a few days ago there was no power. Replacing the batteries seemed to not work, even though the batteries were new, and attaching a transformer to allow it to run electrically also failed. I tossed it and ordered a newer model which, since I had a Discover credit I could use, ended up free! Of course, I also needed some label tape, but in the end, a $50+ product cost me less than $20. I can live with that. It'll be delivered in a week (free shipping option). 

I used to sit on the front porch of my old house and watch the
lightning. My father-in-law would call and we would chat as
we watched "together". I respect the destructiveness of lightning,
though. A friend lost her house to a lightning strike less than five
years ago. 

So I'm going to let the Thunder Gods continue their conversation as they roll over the Cities. I'm going to wrap this up, find photos to add, and call it a wet morning as I brave the elements to get to the gym. Have a wonderful and amazing Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow - a little soggy but ready to continue this journey of life. 

Apologies and Catch-up

First off - apologies for late responses to those kind enough to post on yesterday's blog. A variety of factors descended upon me, causing me to be unable to get back to the computer until this morning. I'll be reading and replying later today when I can take a break from work.

There are so many ways to read e-books now. Although I read on both
my phone and my NookColor, now my DH can read on his
tablet and his phone too. E-book readers and apps are fabulous
as my eyes age and vision for small, blurry print becomes more difficult. 

DH is loving his new phone in most respects, and read three chapters on the tablet last night very happily. I think upgrading him into the current electronic times was a good investment and if it keeps smiles like that on his face, all is worthwhile. He has a day off today, so I'll leave him with the tablet and he can continue reading if he has a chance to.

I admit that I tend to combine editing with
revisions, but that's usually because I have
time sensitive issues. 

I did get my Ardor in August story uploaded on Saturday night just before midnight. I went through three very extensive edits on the work, and it probably could have had at least one more, but each one takes 2-3 hours and I ran out of time. I wanted it posted before Sunday because I had a feeling time would be of the essence on Sunday and it was. Between watching the end of Le Tour de France and shopping for electronics, the day swung out of control before I knew it. I was grateful to have had time on Saturday, even though I gave up sleep (which will hit me later this week) to do so.

Here's the preliminary cast for Season 7 of Face-Off. Two of these
people have already been voted off. Episode two airs tonight. 

So, one of my favorite shows is back on for Season 7. Face Off (SyFy channel) is extreme makeup for movie effects and it's always great fun. Last week was the premier episode of Season 7 and it comprised a four-hour challenge as the final audition with two people who would be sent home before the actual multiple day challenges begin. DH and I both pegged the winner and the two who were sent home, so I guess we're used to watching the show and know what to look for after six previous seasons. I mention Face Off because it airs on Tuesday nights, so those who may enjoy it but weren't aware that it had started up again - turn on your televisions tonight.

The color progression and balance that Tanya Garvis
put into this piece are typical of her style and one reason
why I love it so much. I love color, one major reason
why I work in glass. 

I received my latest edition of Glass on Metal magazine two days ago. This is a specialized magazine for enamalists and, since that is my preferred artform, I couldn't let it sit on the table but had to rip open the packaging and start reading. I discovered an interview by Tanya Garvis and was surprised to discover that she's a local resident. I thought her work was fabulous and I'm going to try and take some time within the next week to contact her. She's doing some amazing work with color and I just love her sense of color and design.

Just look at the subtle color progression that she put into
this piece entitled "Soft Cascade". Really lovely work.
She's done smaller work for homes and larger work for
architectural settings. I'll have to try and contact her because
what she's doing is extraordinary. 

So that's about it for the moment. I hope each of you have a wonderful Tuesday. I'll be trying to do some catch-up with my writing, my blogging and my reading (while actually working at the shop) so it has potential to be a very good day :-)

Artistic Thoughts and an Upcoming Road Trip

I've been writing, and writing for several years now, not really producing much artwork. But I do love it when I dream of projects dealing with metal, chemicals, flame and glass - my media of choice. Something popped into my head in the early hours of the morning today and I want to see if I can get it to work in a way that would make it cost-effective. That's the problem with many of my jewelry and art designs - they take too much time to be able to ask a proper price for them.

Isn't this enamel leaf brooch lovely? A leaf motif was part of my dream
last night, although it wouldn't take this form. 

This particular project would use gemstones that I purchased several years ago for a similar design, but expand the design with more depth and some color. I'm not really sure where this will go, but at least I finally have a direction of possibility with my metalwork, and I've been at loose ends with that for too long. Will it work? Maybe. Maybe not. I'll have to try some samples to see. And given the current state of my kiln, I may have to torch fire or use my mini kiln instead - not as effective or fast, but fine for a trial version.

I love working with faceted gemstones. They're like little pieces of
color that fall down just to be admired by their owner. They
sparkle, they gleam, and I can look at them for hours on end. 

I had my car into my mechanic yesterday for a full check-out and check over. I wanted to know whether it would be safe to drive it to my conference at the end of May, or whether I needed to push buying a new car into a very tight time frame. Fortunately, I got the report that my car is in pretty good shape and perfectly fine to drive to and from my conference. I had to put some money into it, but it was within the budget I allowed before it would be "too much". So I fixed up Grape and she and I will go on one final road trip before I look into replacing her by the end of the summer. I want to trade her in while there is still some value to her, and she's a great car, but there have been some serious safety advances since she first came on the scene.

Although this is not my car, it is a close cousin - same year, same color.
I really love my PT Cruiser. There's a lot of great design in this car, and
it is totally a retro classic and the first cross-over made - starting
an entire category of follow-up cars. I've never regretted owing
my Cruiser and will be sorry to say good-bye later this summer.
At least we can have one last road trip together. 

I'm quite happy, though. I didn't want to be pushed into purchasing the new car just yet. I wanted to take my time, discuss the financing options with DH who will help me figure out the best way to go about it, and I want his opinion on the new car too. I think it is a very good alternative, and he is resigned to the fact that I'm going to upgrade this year. I know he's relieved that I'm not backed into a corner either, though. The pressure is off :-)

Shruti does wonderful mandala drawings. I searched
for one of hers, but wasn't able to find one to show
you. This one, however, is quite close to the type of
wonderful work she produces. 

For those of you who had asked me - my registered letter that caused my schedule to go so haywire, was a small letter and packet from my dear friend in India, Shruti. She's a phenomenal artist in her own right, and was sending me a sample of her newest offerings to see what I thought and what pricing she should ask for them. It was wonderful to hear from her again, as well as getting the ability to hold some of her art in my hands again. Hopefully my answers to her questions were what she was looking for. Next year, if all goes well, we'll room again at Bead & Button Show - she's a really fun roomie.

Look at this completely amazing mandala by Kathy Ahrens. You can
see some really magnificent mandala art on Deviant Art if you follow the link. 

So, as I get ready to go back out into the cold and rain (I hope the snow stopped north of us, although it is cold enough that we might have received a dusting), I'll be thinking of all of my friends around the world who are experiencing sunny, warm days today. Please send some of that warm weather my way. I want a warm spring filled with flowers and chirping birds, not one that makes me want to crawl back into bed.

Oh, a bit more snuggle under the blankets time would be so
welcome, but no ... I have to get going in fifteen minutes. *sigh*

Happy Tuesday!

I'll Get You, My Pretty...

I love pretty things, and yesterday's trip to the American Craft Council show overwhelmed me with lots and lots of beautiful items. There were wonderful works of wood, stunning pieces of glass, the weavings were above the top and the clothing items looked cozy and unique, I loved the leatherwork and everywhere I looked there was jewelry and more jewelry. As a jeweler, I do tend to focus on those items, but I adore seeing it all.

Thomas Turner was one of the fine jewelers exhibiting at
the show. He had wonderful pieces incorporating interesting
stones with gold and diamonds in really innovative designs. 

One of my high points this year was seeing that "Magick" would be exhibiting again. Falcher Fusager was instrumental, many years ago, in giving me advice and tips as I was just beginning as an enamelist. He has always been kind and I've spent hours talking with him and looking at his truly fabulous art. But he hasn't exhibited at the St Paul show for years and those shows lacked lustre for me without his work. This year he finally had returned and I was literally jumping up and down when I saw his name and work in the show program.

Facher Fusager of Magick is one of the world's best enamelists, known for his
fine color gradations and detail work in amazing gold cloisonne. He has given
me tips over the years, and one of my dreams has been to own one
of his pieces. 

I was determined to be good and walk all of the aisles, looking at everything, but when I finally arrived at his booth, Chickie and Chickie Mama were behind me at a different vendor and DH had moved far ahead. So I was on my own when I got to the booth and had a chance to speak with Nadia Fusager. She said that Falcher would be at the booth in a little while, so I made a mental note to return once more before leaving for the day. I looked over the items in the cases and told her that having them exhibit at the show again just made my day brighter and happier. Then I left and rejoined my friends to walk through the rest of the show.

Greg Roche makes leather bags that are amazing and beautiful. I own
two of his bags - a small handbag and a bag that I use as my laptop
bag. I use that one every day and it's been holding up really well. 

DH was pulled into the pottery demonstration and then moved over to watch the very talented man demonstrating woodturning on a small lathe. He was a great teacher and DH was spellbound for almost an hour. I finished looking through the rest of the show, then joined him for another half-hour of watching the demonstration. It was really interesting and I was also spellbound, even though wood is not my media. Chickie and Chickie Mama left while we were watching, and after the demo was over and DH had finished asking his questions, we wandered down the last row.

DH loves working with wood, but Martha Collins is a true master.
This bracelet made of twelve different exotic woods is both
lightweight and sturdy. As I become more and more metal
sensitive, I look for alternatives in my jewelry. One of these
days I'll probably buy one of her pieces. 

Before we left I wanted to spend some time with Falcher, so we returned to Magick's booth. He was there, and he remembered me. We fell into easy conversation, catching up on the past few years and talked for quite some time while I was looking at his pieces again. He is such a master in enamel, his work is the bar I am always trying to reach in my own work. DH found a lovely small pendant that he really liked and asked me to try it on, but it wasn't good coloring for me. Falcher brought out a different colorway that was much better, and DH ended up ordering one for me with the brighter color scheme, but the oxidized exterior that the first pendant had. It was my birthday gift for this year. I was astounded and so very happy. I have wanted a piece of Falcher's work for years and now I will finally own one! We parted with my begging Falcher once again to teach a Master Class Session at Alan Revere's Jewelry Academy. I know that Alan asks him every year and I would move heaven and earth to get to San Francisco and take a class - any class - from Falcher.

My great love is glass and Fred Kaemmer makes these wonderful
large works with glass threads throughout. They are
spectacular, visual, and I'm quite sure, expensive. 

So my weekend ended up Magick and I will have a spot of fabulous color coming my way within a few weeks. It was a truly amazing day!

Picture Blog of Jewelry and Horoscopes

It's Friday and poor DH spent more than seven hours snow shoveling and pulling snow from the roofs yesterday (we got dumped on with a 4" snowfall from 6:00 until 11:00 am. It was crazy fast snowfall that whipped through here like lightning but left lots of cleanup behind. Because he worked so hard and it's a Friday (and I'm feeling lazy) I'm doing a photo blog today.

I'm bouncing all over with my pics today, but who can resist true
love? This little Tim Burton contribution will remind you that
Valentine's day is fast approaching. 

Happy New Year! Today begins the Year of the Horse, the fifth time in
my life this year has come around. It is my personal year and I'm
delighted, since I adore horses. I hope the Year of the Horse is a
good one for all of my friends. 

I got word this morning that Valeri Tomofeev has died. A Russian-trained jeweler, he
made some of the most exquisite plique-a-jour enamel work I've ever seen.
Take a look at his website and drool. We've lost a real treasure. 

Plique-a-jour is magical and one of my favorite enamel techniques. When
done well, it looks like small pieces of stained glass put together, but
instead of cutting sheet glass to make the item, you are making small metal
cells and filling them with powdered enamel which you then melt under
very high heat. If I am ever able to actually retire, I look forward to being
able to work on my enamel work again. 

And because we are saying good-bye to the Year of the Snake, a lovely
golden snake embellished with precious stones for all of you to enjoy. 

Have a great New Year, and take a larger look at Chinese Astrology here. Curious about your own sign and forecast? You can plug your numbers in here for your personal Chinese horoscope.

Stretching Time and Reading More

I need 48 hour days. I know I'm not alone, many people need more time than they have to do the long list of things they have pending, but things are getting a bit ridiculous for my measly four-six hours a week of "me" time. I won't count writing in that short window of time, I can write in the mornings at the coffee shop or grab a quick 20-30 minutes during my lunches as long as Chickie is working with me (otherwise I eat at my station on the sales floor - I hate Mondays...). But for artwork as well as customer repairs, etc., my Wednesdays are my only choice and that's not much.

Barbara Lewis taught torch firing enamel beads and
components in my "Floral Cascade" class. This is
hers - mine wasn't as pretty or professional. But I
have things that would work well and want to play some more.

We have to get back to work on the small house and get it onto the market. I'm rather adamant about it. We need to fix up and paint the garage, knock down a poured concrete wall to the garden area and either rebuild it with bricks or blocks of concrete or slope the soil to the sidewalk. The sidewalk slabs should also be replaced, but I think that's a bit over the top and would love whoever buys the house to deal with that on their own. DH will probably try to replace it and give up mid-project *sigh*. The interior still has some ceiling work to be done, the walls still need painting and the kitchen/back pantry floor must be replaced with new flooring. For that I'll hire out. The front porch needs to be cleaned and carefully looked at. We might also have to replace some locks, although I'm not too sure about that. Finally we need to clear everything out of the house, arrange to get the hardwood flooring refinished, and rent a large container dumpster so that all of the trash we've been storing in the garage can be dumped. Then we can get a Realtor over to view the property and get it on the market.

This isn't my house, it's a block away from mine. I know that I could make
my little house look just as cute, though, if I put some actual
work into it. But I'd rather just sell it. I'm tired of the extra expense and the
physical labor of routine maintenance.

But on my creative side, I have the beadwork challenge which is starting to come together in my head, and my enamel work. I also want to continue working on my graphic art, I have enamels and a torch head coming so that I can continue playing with torch-fired enamels and I have formulas for etching solutions to continue working on copper and silver in electrostatic etching techniques. I need to clean up my craft area, reorganize it both for functionality and clearing space so that I can move my silver bench to my home within the next year or so, and my retirement goals seem to be in stasis - not really getting anywhere fast. I'm a bit frustrated - actually a lot frustrated by that turn.

I am an expert in tips and advice, but nobody really deals with a crafter
who has interest in eight distinctly different crafts in a limited amount
of space and the need to have each craft accessible and organized. Oy!
Just hang me now...

I have already mortgaged my soul for next year's Bead & Button Show, sending off my registration for a Master Class with Andy Cooperman. I haven't done a Master Class in several years - they are VERY expensive. But my roomie Shruti said that she wanted to do another one next year and I have wanted to take a class from Andy for quite some time. I can pay it over time to my credit card. But ouch! It's a serious chunk of change!

Beau Anderson and his mother, Sage Holland taught a Master Class this year
on glass beadmaking. My roomie, Shruti, attended their class and was in love
with both teachers and what they taught her. She wants to take Celie Fago next
year while I take Andy Cooperman. We'll see if we get chosen in the lottery for
tickets/places in the classes.

I'm running late again, so time to add pictures to this blog and get on my merry way. I hope you have a truly fabulous and colorful day because color is everything!

Reality Intrudes Again - I'm Home

Well, I'm home again after a week of creativity, hugs, color, shine and the sound of hammers and torches. I had a blast. I was more than ready to return home - I actually missed my Hubby and my routine, but it will take me the better part of a week to catch up with my emails and LJ and I want to play with some of the new techniques and tools I learned/bought and I can't do anything until I get caught up with work stuff. BUT, I'm going to make this happen.

Richard Salley is a jeweler from Santa Fe, NM. I took a
"Double-Hinged Bracelet" project from him and loved it.
I set a LOT of rivets in the project. I think I'm finally
comfortable with rivets. Yeah!

I'm determined that this next year be a creative one. I purchased some of the missing components for a project I've wanted to get started on for more than a year, and I also accepted a challenge project from one of the bead manufacturing companies to bead a project for them using the supplies they provided. I enjoy challenges of this nature, so I'm in the planning stages on this. I also have two repairs on my desk waiting for me to get going, a mail order to fill, and ... well, it seems like life just went on while I was on vacation.

Steven James taught a class in plique de jour enameling using the torch. The
actual items we worked on were quite small, but I can see how this will work
in my own, larger pieces, and the class was great fun. My table-mate was
Ruby, an 84-year-old who was dynamite. Rock on, Ruby!

While I was gone, the store computer crashed at least twice and our burglar alarm was tripped once. As I told my roommate, "This is why I don't get allowed out very often." But I'm already planning for next year. I'll be paying this year off for a couple of months but it was absolutely worth it and Shruti said that she wants to come over once more for the B&B Show next year, hopefully taking one of the Master Classes again. I'm seriously thinking about one of the Master Classes myself, despite their high expense, just because Andy Cooperman will be one of the teachers and I think what he's teaching could be excellent for my own work.

Andy Cooperman specializes in the unusual and that's what I want to
learn from him. When I took my seven-days with Linda Darty at the
Revere Academy of Jewelry, he was teaching the class next door. I really
regretted that I couldn't take both teachers classes. But I don't regret the choice
I made - Linda Darty was phenomenal and helped my enameling skills so much!

I'll try and take some pictures of what I did over the past seven days so that I can share with all of you, but I'm really happy with what I did, the classes I took, and the people I met. Now if the hotel could just get the bill corrected and email a copy to me, I'll be happy. Are you listening, Hilton Milwaukee?

What I Learned - Sparks and Steel

One of the two classes I took last week at the Bead & Button Show was how to make tools from tool steel. Now, for those who only know me through my writing, my characters play with fire (a lot) and do glass and enamel art (as well as more traditional forms), but metal is rarely mentioned. It's there, but implied rather than brought front and center. But I love metal as much as my glasswork and I had wanted to know how to work with tool steel to make what I needed on the fly for a long time.

I love seeing the sparks fly when I put tool steel against a grinding wheel!  Fun!  

So I had this wonderful class that gave us a length of tool steel stock, taught us how to cut it into smaller pieces and then use grinding wheels, vertical sanding belt sanders, and polishing discs along with fire (because what in my life can be fun without flame) to make tools. And I loved it. But what was really fun was using them the next day.





I made tools that were similar to these in the pic, although these aren't a photo of my actual tools. They are used in an artform called "repousse" - in other words pushing a sheet of metal into a dimensional shape. We made repousse hearts the next day in Melissa Manley's class. The metal was pushed into a plexiglass form using heat (yes, flame again - LOL) and pressure from tools and a hammer. Voila! I had my own tools from the day before. And they worked beautifully. And then...best of all...we used fire again to fire enamel onto the surface. I ended up with two REALLY UGLY hearts (because I used enamels that I would NEVER normally have chosen) but I loved using my tools, so I was VERY happy. And....I got to play with fire. (Sigh of total contentment - LOL.)

Attempting to Refocus

I am winding down the projects for 2011 and starting to think about what I want to do in 2012. I know I want to do more enamel work, I know I want to play with my glass saw and fused glass pieces, and I'm really enjoying my writing and the photoshop pieces that I have worked with over the past nine months. But I don't have a specific deadline staring me in the face. Oh, I've already registered for some writing challenges. And I have a wooden base for an enamel piece that is barely hatched in my mind, but no specific deadlines. I have a year ahead of "no" though.

Rainbows of bead colors are just one of the fun things that B&B Show has tempted me with over the years. I will miss seeing friends I've met there, but the economy finally caught up with me.

I will NOT be attending Bead & Button Show for the first time since the 1990's. This will be a shocker and will take me some time to get used to the idea. But I'm doing less beading, and really developing my own personal style. I also just can't afford it any more. It's not the classes as much as the hotel room which is more than twice what it used to be. So I won't be in Milwaukee in June.

One of the fun things that the PMC Conference does are displays of work by various chapters and their members. This hallway at Purdue was filled with windows of exceptional metalwork - such inspiration!

I also won't be at any metal clay convention this coming year. It is the final year for the PMC Conference, and it will be held in a slightly more accessible location than Purdue University, but even though I will continue working in the metal clay media, I don't have the time/money to spend on going to the conference. So, it's looking like I won't get any vacation time in 2012, and that is really bumming me out. But if I can refocus on my art and spend the money that I would have spent on conferences on materials and equipment, I think I'll actually end up much happier in the long run.

My Brain is Mush...

I'm getting more sleep than usual because of this illness of mine, but the drawback is that my brain feels like mush. I can't process storylines, I can't review with any depth, I can't develop new plots, I'm hopeless at writing right now and that disturbs me.

I can get some work done artistically, I do have a large enamel piece perched on my brain, but I don't have the strength to do that right now. I only hope that by the time I am finished with the antibiotics that I will have energy again *sigh*.

Waving out to Seth who is in town today. Love you, miss you, wish I was able to see you. Travel safely, come back to St Paul again.

Studio Day Flip

So my father-by-marriage has eye surgery tomorrow and my DH and I have flipped days off this week.  Today is my studio day instead of tomorrow.  These flips cause pure havoc with my schedule and throw me off completely (of course they do the same for my DH, to be fair).  Plus we have dental appointments for our semi-annual checkup and cleaning today and it is the end of the month and quarter - heavy payroll and lots of taxes.  If we can make it through this week, next week will be easier. 

I searched for something calm to look at for today's picture and this is

what I found.  Isn't this just wonderful?  I wish I was there right now!

Today I want to complete my enamel collage for Big Bang.  I mounted the enamel to the backing yesterday morning.  When I look at it, I'm pleased, so that's what is important.  I want to darken the screws by painting them today, as well as finish the collage portion and cut out the fancy lettering using my Silhouette machine.  Then I just need to photograph it and send it in to the mods.  If I can get this completed, I can work on my beadwork for the rest of the week (starting to run tight on time on that project) and make charms for the conference next week on the 6th, my last studio day before leaving for MCWC.  Oy!    I hope you day is a bit less hectic than mine is right now :-) 

Accomplished

I'm not 100% finished with my Big Bang illustration, but darned close.  DH gave me my Sunday to do what I needed to, so as soon as I arose at 9:00 or so Sunday morning, I got dressed and turned on the kiln.  I got my enamels set up, organized my stencils (I still had to run back to the craft room for a few minor things, but mostly my stuff was in order - LOL) and as soon as the kiln was up to temp, I started work.  It took until mid-afternoon, but the enameling is complete, the painting is complete, and I'll be mounting the enamel onto the base today.  I need to clean the edges, drill the holes in the mounting board, and patina the screws to dull them down a bit (they are just a bit bright).  It's a crazy collage, I just hope my author doesn't feel as if it was done by an eight-year-old because it is in a primative style.  I used an old medieval mosaic as a basis for my figures and their styling.  I promise I'll post pics here eventually, since it is just pics that I need to submit for this project.  I wish my camera was working a bit better, but I'll work with what I have, I certainly can't afford to replace it. 

After the enameling was complete, we went to the mall to exchange the father's day gift that DH had purchased.  The shirts were the wrong size.  So we upgraded them to the next size - fortunately both styles had an XL still available.  Then we walked through the mall to Chipotle for dinner.  I love the food there, but their ordering is confusing.  I think we both managed to get what we wanted though.  I had to keep interrupting to repeat things to DH who couldn't hear the questions that the server was asking him. 

Maybe I would paint more often if my pallete was made from cupcakes?

Then back home and I continued work on the BB illustration by doing the painting and some of the application of the collage items.  That went on until 7pm or so, when I finally cleaned up a bit and went on to LOTRO to start working towards getting my summer horses.  I'll have to continue work on that tonight - I'm WAY behind DH who already has gotten horses for most of his characters.  Have a wonderful beginning to your week! 

Movies and Art

So Chickie, Chickie Mama and I went to see Kung Fu Panda 2 last night.  Although it was not as good as the original KFP, it still was a lot of fun to see.  It seems that I still have $16 loaded on my movie card and there are several more movies coming up this year that I am looking forward to, so I'll be using that up and reloading my card again before you know it. 

I bought a new blade holder yesterday and started cutting out the stencils and shields for the next coats on my Big Bang enamelwork, and I started drawing what I may offer as one of the chapter heading drawings.  I'm not as good with pen as I wish I was, so the chapter heads may, or may not, actually happen.  My author did send me the third chapter and outlines for the remaining chapters last night so that I could work on them if I want.  I'm still not sure if he'll like my direction, but it's the way that I'm going and there is no time to look backwards, only forwards. 

Here is the final banner that I made.  This one is for my short drabble (a 100-word story) called "Survival of the Fittest".  I was very pleased with the story when it came together and it is wonderful that others also liked it enough to nominate it.  So far the stories that I've wanted to nominate have already been nominated, so I'm happy and I'll just have to remember to find time to review them when that aspect of the awards opens up.  Have a wonderfully creative day! 

Art and Plans

Yesterday was TOO much fun.  I worked hard all day, but I had such a good time doing it.  I printed out a lot of pictures for possible use on my BB illustration, enameled the counter and first coat on the centerpiece figures, and played with the air brush.  I have a bit of blue on my fingers that will have to wear off, and I spilled a cup of pink paint on my floor coverings when the cup didn't seat fully in the brush, but I feel happy with my end results for this project and I want to play some more.  Unfortunately, at this point I'm into brush work to finish up the piece so I had to return the airbrush and compressor to my DH.  I am running deadlines here, so I'll try to get a bit more enamel work done on Friday or Saturday night or during the day on Sunday - but I suspect that's actually more like wishful thinking.  I probably will be able to continue my cut work though, so I will get some work done on this before next week's Studio Day.  I just know that the next group of enamel work will be intense and will require lots of shields to get the wardrobe done well before I begin with the brushwork for these.  I was contemplating embedding fine-gague wire for some of the features, but I think I'd better save that for the next one since the combination of the acrylic enamels and the air brush will already give me two new things for this one project and I have no make-up time available for this if I mess it up. 

This is the banner that I made for my story "Making Colored Light". 

Tonight Chickie and I are going to see "Kung Fu Panda 2" - yippee!  We loved Po in KFP1, in fact we laughed so hard that Claire was afraid we would be kicked out of the theatre.  So we're really looking forward to seeing Po and the gang again.  There's just something about Jack Black that I love.  He's such a funny guy and was the perfect voice for Po.  Enjoy the second day of Summer, it is moving quickly now. 

Studio Day

So today is a studio day and I have a lot to accomplish.  I need to get the initial coats of enamel on my Big Bang Illustration piece, and also get the background painted.  My DH came through and put one of the airbrushes and compressors on the floor for me to use.  I'll read the instructions during breakfast today and if it doesn't work for me, I can go ahead and brush paint it.  I always try to learn something new with every project I do, this time it is using the airbrush.  I'm really looking forward to playing with it.  But I also can't lose sight of the fact that I need to do the enamel work - VERY important.  I have a total of three studio days to get this item completed and, although I don't think I'll have an issue with the timeframe, I still need to keep focused. 



I made one of my MEFA banners yesterday for my story Horse and Boy.  I had an enjoyable time making the banner and hope that I can get the other two (for Making Colored Light and Survival of the Fittest) made within the next day or so.  I did get two stories pounded out yesterday, a drabble for the prompt "part" and a longer story for ALEC's "Celebration of Life" theme.  I'm happy with the revisions that my friends on Lizard Council suggested for the drabble, and I have the longer story being looked over by a friend.  I'm not happy with that story and may let it sit in my discarded file.  I feel it ambles.  But I feel that about longer works in general, I think I am happiest writing in short bursts so the drabble format has worked very well for me.  Have a creative day while I play with head, molten glass and paint. 

Enameling and LOTRO

So I drilled the attachment portions of my new enameling project yesterday.  I knew they would look fairly large, but no choice - I needed a fair amount of attachment, enamel is heavier than expected.  I decided to make the attachments part of the clothing of the figures, but they are still a bit large.  I'll try to color the screw heads after I get the enameling completed within the next week or two, and see if I can darken them.  I can always paint small golden accents on them after the fact.  I can hardly wait to get to the enamel portion.  I'm nervous about it, because I'm running a strict deadline and there really is a lot of work that needs to be done on the piece.  But I'm excited about this also because it is coming clear in my head. 

I would love to claim that my own enamels are neater than

these, but I know better.  However, those that I have on my

shelves are more organized...does that count? 

Another author friend has joined LOTRO and will be playing with us.  I am finding it highly amusing that I have this wonderful group of friends who I've met over the past year or two, and a little group that I can play with on Sundays and sometimes during the week.  It makes me quite happy. 

We've been playing LOTRO since the original Beta, so

it's been several years.  Now we have characters on two

different servers.  When the cap level increases, we'll probably

go back to our original server and get our main characters up

to level 75. 

I'm absolutely exhausted today so I'll hope that everyone reading has a creative weekend with friends and family and "Happy Father's Day" to those of you lucky enough to still have their fathers with them. 

Back to the Grind

So, usually when people return from a week away from their spouse, they are met with a hug, perhaps a kiss, and a "welcome home".  I'm still waiting for that.  I arrived back home during the afternoon on Saturday, unpacked and started my laundry (yes, I was frighteningly efficient).  I had asked if I needed to come into the shop and had been told "no", so I didn't bother.  Sunday I started catching up on some computer work and played LOTRO for several hours, even finally sitting down and writing a new story - I'm woefully behind on my writing since I have discovered I can't write effectively on my laptop in a hotel *sigh*.  Today I am still catching up, and I will be for quite a while still. 

The good things about my trip come down to creativity and friends.  I had a chance to meet many of my friends, as well as some new ones.  I finally have a face to put to my friend Dot - we've been writing on boards together for many years.  But I failed to find Charlene or Grace.  I ran into many customers, including Colleen, Randy, Mary and Dawn, and met new friends.  And I had the chance to play with fire and glass - can you say 7th Heaven? 

These were the enamels that I made during
class.  The Yellow and Salmon pendants in the center
row are two-sided and are enameled the same.  I kept
one, and gave the other to my friend Zhie who wined and dined
and toured me through Milwaukee.  The bottom four
fit into a changeable pendant. 

I spent quite a bit of time thinking about the illustration that I am doing for Darth's story in Big Bang Tolkien.  The method and passage crystallized on my drive home, I now have the dimensions nailed, the methodology nailed, and I will begin working on that quickly.  As always, in my life, it will be a bit edgy and incorporating multi-media techniques, but I was given permission to do that, so that's my direction.  I think it will be fun, a bit cheezy, and hopefully not TOO work intensive since my time, as always, has limitations. 

Mary had never enameled before and just did a great job.  I really
love the color combinations and patterns that she ended up with.  

Denise is from the Minneapolis/St Paul area and a surface designer.  You

can see her love of pattern and color coming through in her work. 

These lovely items were Claudia's work.  She did a lot of

very fun freehand work.  

These items were from Tom.  He was very focused and precise.  As a
former engineer, his precision really came through in his work.  He did

some great work with the lustre decals - some eyepopping results.  

The pictures are from my enameling intensive class.  There were five students and we worked like crazy for three days.  At the end of that time, we took photos of everything we had created.  I'm sharing those with you today.  The class was held in the Anatomy lab, so we had skeletons, 3-D body muscle representations, and such all around us, rather bizarre, but fun.  Tomorrow...the Chocolate Bar!