Hot glass objet d'art!

I will have photos of my finished studio door soon!

In the meantime, check out the slammin hot glass creations made by my gal pal Michele Goldstein!

I'm telling ya, Michele's work is extraordinary! Check out Michele's boutique! She has some glorious lampwork and objet d'art available for purchase!

Michele has also been a featured artist in the recent publication of the periodical, "Bead Unique".

Check out the article! It's a great read about an even greater artist and an all around fantastic person!


Michele Goldstein




Michele Goldstein

Peace to all who enter

portion of studio door panel~j. N-L

Well now, as you can see, I've been busy painting my studio door.

It's been quite a process too!

One of the things I've learned over the past few days, is that acrylic paint in and of itself, does not like to stick to aluminum doors. So here's a word from the newly wise, prime the door first!

Once I realized that the first few coats of paint weren't going to stick without some primer I had to do some peeling. Trust me, that wasn't fun.

This is just one of the six door panels that I'm painting. Check back! I'll post more photos as they become available!

Why not open the door to your own bliss?

When you follow your bliss...doors will open where you would not have thought there would be doors; and where there wouldn't be a door for anyone else.
~Joseph Campbell

When I create art, I am following my bliss.

Campbell seems to imply that following one's bliss is a journey that beckons one through endless doors...perhaps even magical doors. It's a powerful image for me.

Thus, I've taken on the task of "altering" the door to my studio! It's becoming a door to a door so to speak!

Yeah well, so much for my philosophical meandering!

Here's a photo of the door before. It's just a cheap, gray, garden variety aluminum door....



Oh, but just you wait! Beauty is beckoning and transformations are in the air!



Check back tomorrow to see the finished product!

Voila!

waxed fabric collage on wood~j. N-L

At long last, I have finished the "River of Life".

This whole project took me a little longer than I had expected because I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to do with the embellished muslin fabric piece. I toyed with the idea of attaching the fabric to a piece of gallery wrapped canvas. I even considered making a pillow or small art quilt.

In the end however, I decided to create a waxed fabric collage on wood. I am not entirely certain that this piece is completely finished; but wax is a wonderfully versatile medium, and I can easily add more embellishments, or color at a later date.

If you look below, you can see a portion of the collage up close and personal. It has such a beautiful depth and shine to the color...very rich and interesting!

Oddly enough, I'm not particularly taken with this piece. Don't get me wrong! It was a blast to create. After all, what's not to like about painting, embroidering, and playing with hot beeswax?

For some unidentified reason, this collage bugs me. It just doesn't "work".....

Right now, "The River of Life" is resting comfortably on a wrought iron stand in our living room. and for the time being, this is where it shall remain. Its future however, is questionable.

Poor, poor "River of Life"! I had such plans for you.

Oh well, not all art is good art, is it?

Gifts....

Check out this rocking raku torso!

My friend Annie blessed me with this sweetly sculpted vase last Friday.

No, it wasn't my birthday.

I'm just loved more than the average person.

Not that I'm super "special" or anything. I just have super special friends.

I am grateful to be loved so well.

Thank you for this gift Annie and thank you for the gift of your friendship.

Your gentle spirit and generous heart have truly blessed my life!

On vacation!

Hello one and all!

I've been entertaining relatives for the past week and won't be posting again until after the 18th!

Please check back again then!

Hopefully, I'll have all kinds of new things to share!

Humble beginnings

humble beginnings of an altered tin

Today, I've begun an altered tin.

I have decided to use a round altoid tin for this little shrine. This particular tin has a "press and pop" top. I rather like this top because it frees me from messing with the hinges that are found on the rectangular and heart shaped altoid tins.

So far, I've primed and painted the metal areas where I desire there to be color. I chose to use a pewter Lumiere paint and it looks nice contrasted against the silver of the tin.

Hopefully, I'll be able to follow this project through to the finish. I really don't want to chuck this little tin into the same UFO (UnFinished Object) drawer that currently houses "The River of Life"

My creative journey has been fraught with weird artistic meanderings like "The River of Life". Consequently, I have more than one UFO drawer. This isn't a bad thing really. My UFO drawers aren't shameful, discarded WIP's (Work's In Progress), they are the treasure troves of my own half-baked genius.

That's what I tell myself anyway!

Bee Happy

bottle cap art~j.N-L

Today I made this little bottle cap with hand painted muslin, fabric pens and copper acrylic paint.

Don't ask me what I was thinking when I made my bee cap.

I guess I just wanted a quick project that would allow me to swirl shades of copper and magenta together. I still need to fill the cap with some diamond glaze; but other than that, it is pretty much ready to wear. All that remains is to attach a jumpring and slide the pendant/cap over a length of ball chain!

I think that my four year old has decreed this bee is for her.

You know, everyday I strive to bee all that I can bee.

How about you?

PS~I'm putting the "River of Life" away for a few days....it really is a pretty little swatch of fabric, but it's frustrating me right now. Better for me to set it aside, than to rip it to shreds!

The "River of Life" meets Mr. Death?

I'm loving the beaded skull!

I'm loving it so much, that I'm not so sure I want to put it on my crappy assed "River of Life" creation.

Maybe I'll turn this into a beaded bracelet of some kind....a glorious homage to "Day of the Dead".

Decisions, decisions...

Well, for those of you who might be interested, this skull measures 1 1/2 inches by 1 inch. It was hand sculpted with sculpey clay and I applied a light dusting of copper mica powder before I baked the darn thing. (The colors are much more vibrant in real life!)

Once the skull was baked, I took a fine brush and dabbed some Lumiere blue/green paint into the eye sockets, and other depressed areas. Then I grabbed my oh so versatile Golden's Gel medium and applied a glossy finish to the entire piece with a glob or two extra to secure the flatback Austrian crystals in the eye sockets.

I used Czech 11/0 matte brown iris beads and some vintage Czech sapphire blue 16/0's to bead around the skull.

Voila!

Now I have one beaded skull motif!

The only question that remains, is what the heck am I going to do with the darn thing?

Purple swirls blend with copper thread

The River of Life is beginning to take shape!

Check out the closeups below!



And....



I have some funky ideas for further embellishing this piece.

Over the weekend, I made a cool little skull face that I hope to bead embellish and attach later on today. I plan to give Ms. Skull a crown of flowering glory for her hair. Hard to imagine?

Oh, just check back tomorrow!

I should have some more pictures then!

You know, this piece isn't the best in terms of artistic design; but dang it all, it's kind of fun to make!

Later!