Buzzing on news.

VERY excited that an idea I had about a year ago is finally coming to fruition!  And on a level even I didn't think could happen.  With the help of a local art group (which I think I'm a part of now) and their connections, I'm getting the chance to not only showcase my idea, but also to decorate it. 

I won't say yet what it is, but stay tuned.  Things are happening and I'm oh so thrilled to be a part of it!

BFFF

My best friend (for over 20 years now!!) and I celebrate birthdays that are exactly two weeks apart.  I celebrated mine and she did a wonderful job decorating a surprise party with large paintings of forest creatures (raccoons, deer, owls, bears).  Even if I had just gotten those paintings without the multitudes of friends and family, i would have been overjoyed.  Thus, it was an extra special birthday this year.

For her birthday, I was supremely stuck.  I can be crafty and handy, but recently I've been knee deep in school and work.  I had ideas, but where to start?

First, I decided I would draw her a picture and frame it.  This isn't to say I think my work is so great it needs to be framed.  No, it's more of a joke.  Every birthday since I can remember, she has drawn me a card (they get better every year).  Every time we have art jams or creative times, she asks me to draw her a picture of a squirrel.  It's always a line or two of shaky scribbling that ends with the inevitable "I can't draw".  So I drew her a picture of a squirrel.

I bought her some knick knacks from the Korean stationary store, three pairs of earrings, art pens, and some tights.  Here's the final product:

The earrings are each on their own button and then fastened to the tulle.  Everything else is neatly bound up by the tulle.

I also made her a small mobile to hang somewhere.  I was really lost on this project because i just started out with some paper pinwheels.  I made about 8 or 9 and couldn't figure what to do with them.  At first I was going to make a banner that said Happy Birthday and attach the pinwheels for decoration, but Gaby wasn't big on being loud about her birthday this year.  I figured that wasn't the way to go and nixed the idea.

I tossed ideas around for probably a whole day, then decided on a mobile.  The idea was so half-baked when I started.  I first used a hanger (what I was thinking, I don't know!).  Then when I realized it looked overly homemade (in a bad way), I started over.

I happened to find three small wooden dowels and decided to use those to build the mobile.  Here is the finished product.

The paper pinwheels have buttons attached at the center and the string runs through each center.  I've never built a mobile, but it was surprisingly fun to mess with the balance of objects on the wooden sticks.

This will definitely be something I am going to play with more.  I think with more practice and more time, I can get pretty good at mobiles.  I just love the way the pinwheels look when they spin. 

Birthday Gift

A friend of mine celebrated her birthday recently and in an effort to get/create something for her that I could spend minimal monies on, I decided to take an existing shirt and create an applique on another.  As a kid she liked Pokemon, so to keep her youthful memories alive (though admittedly, neither of us is very old) I took an old Pokemon shirt, cut out the main picture and stitched it onto a new one.

Simple process, but it was cheap and easy and something homemade is always nice!

You can't see the shirt, but it's a normal black shirt from Forever 21 (only an easy $3.50!). 

Here's a little detail on the stitching.  Just a basic stitch. 

And since the applique was fairly simple and even impersonal, I decided to stitch on a little heart to the back of the shirt.  It's placed on the bottom left hand side and I meant it to be a sort of secret.  I attempted to attach a little A in the middle (her name starts with an A), but ran out of time.

Overall, I'm happy with the turn out, though I believe next time I'll work on something more hand made and less of an applique.

Sweet Tooth Satisfied.

This past Saturday I baked some goodies for a bake sale/art show called Sweets for the Sweet.  It was put on by Red Hands Media in order to raise money for a future large art installation in Long Beach. 

My friend Genesis invited me to partake, so I spent Saturday afternoon mixing, kneading, and rolling out some lollipop pies.  I didn't get a chance to take any pictures of the process (there was a whole lot more going on that day aside from the baked goods), but here's a picture of the end result:

It's a tad hard to see, but they are shaped like hearts.  The filling is blueberry.  I planned on making cupcakes as well.  Actually, I MADE them, but didn't have time to decorate them.  Just as well, anyway, since some adorable little girls contributed a ton of cute ones!  Yep, that's a "spaghetti and meatball" you're seeing.

A couple of artists from the Red Hands Media group also created work specifically for this show.  This is Cyndee's and one of my faves.  They are fruit bats!  I love the colors and how she displayed them.

Also, Art (the creator of Red Hands Media) and his lady-friend, Genesis, collaborated on a piece:

I have a lot of talented friends and I'm happy they can display and sell their artwork in such a great community environment.  Hopefully I'll be able to continue to help them.

Sweets for the Sweet

A good friend of mine invited me recently to partake in a bake sale/art show this Saturday.  Here's the flier:

Since I was just asked a few days ago, I haven't the time (what with summer school 4 days) to craft or create anything sweets-related.  No moneys either!  I'm spending a few bucks on ingredients to make some (hopefully) sweet cupcakes.  Come see me and support art!  A portion of the proceeds will go to the Red Hands Media group and the rest will go to a starving artist (me, hahaha). 

Paaaar-tay

I've been lying low recently and not doing much but riding bikes, swimming, and eating. Ha.

I haven't much moneys right now, so I haven't done anything artsy. But a friend of mine celebrated her birthday by throwing a zombie themed party. In honor of her awesome ways, I made her a zombie unicorn pinata. I didn't make the actual pinata (toooo lazy to go through that), but I bought a horse from a party store and transformed it.

The unicorn part was easy.   Last year, my best bud Gaby and I made a unicorn pinata (for this same friend.  What? She likes unicorns!) and it was so simple.  Just a horn, really.  This year after the horn, I wasn't sure which direction to go.

This is a preliminary photo.  I added blood, scarring, and green skin.  I put black for the eyes, but wasn't sure what to add.  I also added black paper to the left foot to try and create a "missing foot".  It didn't quite work.

This is the finished product.  More blood, and green skin.  I also changed the colors in the tail, but you can't see it here.  There were also pink heart on the front and sides.  I left the front one, but changed the side ones to black and green then added more blood.  I also added blood to the missing foot that you can kind of make out.  I think my favorite part of all is the bloodied horn.

And here is the aftermath.  She really enjoyed the pinata.  She was actually the only gal to hit it since her second swing knocked the body clear off, leaving only the decapitated head dangling for all to see.  Inside, I stuffed the pinata with mini lollipops, fizzy lollipops, whistles, bouncy balls, two normal sized candy bars (for two lucky drunkards), condoms (plain old rubber and festive colored ones!), and smoke bombs!  The smoke bombs were a total hit. 

Overall, the pinata was a hit.  I had a good time making it.  And it was SO cheap.  I had leftover streamers for adding gore and got most of the favors from The Dollar Tree (my fave store since I became so broke).  More than anything, I'm happy happy happy it was a hit with my friend and the party.  I hope she keeps that severed zombie unicorn head forever. 

 

Updatin'

My biggest news of the week: I'm getting a new tattoo! Yippee-kai-yay! I plan on getting this paper heart on a smaller scale:


I will probably make changes, but this is it for the most part. Now, on to other ventures!

I learned how to make my first rivet! It's a cold connection, thus, requires no heat.



I finished my second piece for the bracelet and am starting to look forward to it more. The top piece is the newest addition and came out better than I thought.


That's all for now! Enjoy!

Finally!

Made a few new texture samples and started my actual bracelet.


One of my faves so far. A paper cut out with some hammering.

And here is my first piece. I have yet to file and patina, but it's looking pretty good. It's kind of daunting because you have to figure everything out before you do it and I'm not used to planning so damn much!


I spent about an hour (& 6 saws!!) sawing this out.

Textures

Here are a few textures I worked on for my jewelry class. These are just experiments with hammering/stamping, roller mills, and patinas. I have yet to try out the sandblaster, but you bet your ass I will come Thursday.

I haven't fallen in love with any textures yet, which means I've got a lot to work on.


My first. It was hammered on, then sent through the roller mill with a piece of lace over it. This is my favorite so far.



Hammered with stamps and texture hammers.



I like this picture just cause it shows the effects of the roller mill on the metal and on the texturizer sent through. I placed two pieces of wire mesh in a criss cross fashion over the metal. This is another fave.



The strip at the bottom was hammered and patina'd


I'll be collecting interesting textures to send through the roller mill (I think it's my favorite texurizer thus far!).

Oh and on another note, I'm starting a weekly craft date with my niece. She's 5 years old and I think an art project would be fun for her. Tomorrow we start our "Art Wednesdays!" dates. She gets out of school early and I'll pick her up and we'll make art. Our first project: Papier mache!

Actively sitting....

I don't just sit. I actively sit.

I had just written something here, a stream of conscious writing.....then I deleted it. It didn't save my words, unfortunately. I still felt compelled to post something, so here I am.

I worked on textures on Saturday for Jewelry. Pictures will be posted in a day or two.

My weekend was an artsy, fun-filled, disaster of a good time. It makes me happy to have silly mishaps and laugh, laugh, laugh.

Silhouettes

I'm taking a jewelry making/metalsmithing class this semester. We have just begun working on our first project, a silhouette bracelet. It is made of one image that is repeated and layered three or more times. They can be different sizes, metals, or textures. It was a process finding the right silhouette, as a lot of images lose their complexity/interesting quality once the details are blacked out.

I ended up with a sparrow on a branch, but I'm not all together happy with it. It doesn't seem original enough or dynamic enough. It is a first project though, and maybe with enough textures and contrasting metals it will look more interesting.

Anywho, here's a picture of the template I'm using:




More updates to come when I have actual progress.