more than metal

I shared some sneak peeks a little while back of my August DT submission for Scraptivate and now I can share the two totally...the DT pack I recieved was one of the most exciting I have ever had, it had a beautiful brass plate, chain, brass inchies and some other goodies. Of course I just had to use chemical etching on the brass and I got a chance to put my Dremmel through quite a workout. The rubber wheel was brilliant for polishing the pieces.

As well as etching I used paint, patina, rust, varnish and my butane torch to get the look I wanted. The necklace is totally adaptable and can be worn as a necklace, choker or bracelet just by clipping the crab claw clasps to certain points along the chain.

I did a lot of free hand work on the larger hanging plate...even the flower is done by hand.

I love metal and etching and this project was truly a blast for me.

G-L-O-R-I-A Gloria!

what have I used? what haven't I used?

I used liquid masking and stamping to get that great pattern on Gloria's top.

German Scrap is used as trim, crown and faux lace background.

Resin wings...yes one is painted and the other left clear just for something a bit different.

The background is torn black cardstock with PVA and resin...the colour is Lindy's Stamp Gang Magical Micas...their limited edition Halloween colours "HAUNTED HALLOWEEN"...don't walk...RUN and get them because they are so so soooooo lovely, in fact they are my new fave range! I have the Stains to play with too and they will be used on my next project...something that will make you go WOW

Now check out those pieces down the side of the canvas...Scrapmatts!!!

t-t-t-t-touch me! I wanna feel dirty

...and sticky!...here is a sneaky peek of a future class I will be running at Scraploot (2011)...if it has you intrigued then you best be keeping yours eyes open for "Eclectic Remnants"

...and speaking of classes at Scraploot, next week is flooded canvases, so for more details call Sue and the girls.

Art Doll swap "Angela"

I go to an annual gathering of creative ladies...and yes I am the grubbiest, they are all truly top women and I love being a part of the gathering even though I don't belong to their online group any more...methinks they just don't know how to get rid of me! lol

Anyhoo every year we have ATC swaps and a creative challenge, this year we had an art doll swap and so this is my creation, "Angela" (symbolic to me...I won't go in to details, so please don't ask). Today I carefully packaged her and sent her away...out of my life.

bag blooms

Wendy Ward asked me if I could do something with some old shopping bags to give her an idea...I hope this helps.

1. layer two or more bags on top of one another and cut the tops and bottoms off.

2. cut the layered bag pile into squares (or as close as you can).

3. twist centre of one of the mini square piles.

4. using a soldering iron drag through the layers of plastic...please remember that there will be fumes so consider your health and safety and work in a well ventillated area with suitable safety mask.

5. paint the center...you can even use a permanent marker.

6. poke a flower stem (I have used a Green Tara product) through as the center piece.

if your bag bloom isn't fluffy/thick enough just bunch up another square and poke the stem through before wrapping the wire around the opening to secure it.

These would be cool on the magnets on the fridge or stitched onto a funky bag.

stepping up and moving on

my blog has always been used by me to share my art, tonight I have no creations to share with you. Tonight I just want to talk.
I made a decision today to leave a company that I have long adored and committed myself to, it wasn't an easy thing to decide but I did it in the end. For a long time I had tried to walk away but instead I had stayed and kept working on.
This didn't make me happy and it reflected in my art...I struggled to get things done the way I would normally.
Tonight I have seen, read and heard all sorts of things about my leaving...I'm "unprofessional", "vain", "egotistical", a "bad friend", I've "destroyed a business" and so on and so forth.
At first I felt bad but then I kept reading all the crap and I feel justified. It's sad when people get nasty instead of talking and worse when they don't listen.
I left for so many reasons...
#1 I felt as though I was chained down to just one thing and couldn't venture beyond it...this was too hard to take, too hard to be restrained from expression.
#2 I became too absorbed in this one company and forgot about what art was to me.
#3 I forgot to speak up when things felt wrong.
#4 I forgot who I was as an artist.
there are more but I'm not writing this to fuel any fires.

so...am I selfish for wanting to think about what is best for me?
am I vain or egotistical for finally appreciating my own creations?

I'm pretty sure the answer to both questions is no.

and so here I am at 1am, feeling satisfied that I have walked away from what I needed to, no longer sad or feeling regret because I know I am important (if only to myself and family)...I'll take my own advice from now on and wing it.

doing my thing

Whilst working at the Melbourne Paperific show this past weekend I met quite a few owners of other papercraft companies, one of which was Scrapmatts. They have lovely intricate pieces and I thoroughly suggest you check out their website. They have a huge range and I was very fortunate to have been given a few samples to play with. Here I have used one of their frames and a couple of flourishes.

The paper flowers I have used are from Kaisercraft, they have been well and truly drenched with Starburst Stains and Moonglow Mists from Lindy's Stamp Gang...and speaking of Lindy's Stamp Gang...they have new colours coming!!!!!