Belated Valentine's project

It's been brought to my attention that I forgot to post my Valentine wreath, the one that I used spray glitter. I stand here, holding a bunch of oopsie daisies. :)

I made the wreath using wooden heart shapes, probably the 5 or 6 inch size ones. I painted them with acrylic paints. I wanted them to look like those little candy hearts, so I used (older ) dimensional Polymark fabric paint in Medium Pink Shiny to write different things on each heart. Except for the three at the top. For those, I used Tulip dimensional fabric paint in Multi and wrote a nice quote that's been popping up all over the place "Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much."

Here is the wreath after paint and words:



Not enough... it need's something. I think to myself "What would the Crafty Chica do?" Snapping my fingers as it comes to me... GLITTER! But I didn't want to do it the old fashioned way, so I decided to try glitter spray. The only glitter spray I could find was Tulip's Fabric Spray Paint in Sparkling Star. Not a big deal, it should still spray glitter on my project, right? Right.



I had an extra wooden heart that I used as a test piece for getting a nice even flow of paint for the text. (I always have bad luck with huge globs spurting out at the wrong moments). So I sprayed the test heart. One coat seemed a bit light, so it got a second. I was happy with the results.

When Irish Eyes are Smiling

Recently, I taught a polymer clay button class at work. I not only learned a new technique that I really love, but I had a lot of fun teaching others about polymer clay. Raku is a ceramic firing technique named after a Japanese family, and the pieces can be used for tea ceremonies. There is so much information on the web, so give raku pottery a peek.

I was inspired to create this hand-held polymer clay covered mirror. I call it "Irish Eyes", in honor of my sweet Irish lass - DollieJo


Unfortunately, due to possible copyright infringements, I cannot divulge the exact technique that I taught. If you took the Clay 101: Buttons class at Joann's (#8425423), you have the student sheet for the technique. I will share the particular supplies I used

Supplies:
Sculpey III in black
FolkArt Metallic Pure Gold 660
FolkArt Metallic Emerald Green 663
FolkArt Metallic Pearl White 659
Sculpey Glaze (gloss)
Makin's Clay "sand" texture sheet from Set A 38001
Rubber Stamped brand wooden mounted stamp - 3314R Geometric Swirl Background
Darice brand 3-inch round mirror
Polymer clay basic tools (rolling machine, straight blade, baby wipes)

I created the heart in Raku style, barely covering the cut edges with a bit of gold to give it a worn gilded look. I covered the mirror in plain black clay, cutting the clay in a 3-3/4 inch circle, leaving enough clay to cover the edges and create a lip on the front. I used the texture sheet to make the clay look like a stone. I very lightly applied a bit of the pearl white paint, trying to give a mottled stone look to it. I hadn't counted on that paint getting a bit brighter during the curing process. (that's why it looks "shiny" at the point of the heart - its the pearly white paint, not a shiny spot). I baked it for 20 minutes total, on top of a round cookie cutter. Finally, applied a coat of the glaze just to the heart.

Thanks for looking!

Photo a Day - Week in Review

Sylar (Monster baby)


MOOOOM!!! QUIT!!!


mmmm pistachio muffins


Look deep into my eyes... you will bring me salmon


Crocus pocus!!


Orange you glad I didn't say apple?


I think I'll let you take a picture, but no autographs.

Photo a Day - Week in Review

Jerry Garcia

King Tut thingy I'd like to know more about


Evil Sock Monkey head buckets


Must be nap time


My favorite movie snack


Bouncy!!!


Pillow I made with Paisan

One Little Setback

I've put aside my project for #onelittleword for a moment. I let old behaviors and fears influence my creativity. My painting has been sitting on the side, waiting for my return.

Photo a Day - Week in Review

Week 2!

Dusty cat


Mom's cat Cheyenne


Doctor's doodles


MOON!


aw.. it's twins!


Scary giant doll head

Photo a Day - Week in Review

I can't figure out how to have a little slide show of my photos so I'm going to upload them a week at a time. Alexa made it look so easy!

Sylar (or as I call him, Monster)



Just a bit of fun!



A clean craft table!



Chloe



Slumbering cherry tree



Bench, waiting for Summer's return

One Little Word

I've given up on resolutions. I never keep them. However, I like the idea of #onelittleword. I heard about it via Twitter, but wasn't sure where the concept started. Searching the hash tags eventually brought me to Ali Edwards' blog. Her idea was inspired by a photo blog of two friends that live 3191 Miles Apart.

Since Ali does scrapbooking, that is what she does. She uses her word to inspire her layouts. I don't really scrapbook. And that's ok. I'm using my word of CHANGE in other creative areas.

Change. Such a harmless, often misunderstood word. One that used to terrify this little former control freak. I'm happy with the person I've become, so I'm not looking for huge changes in who I am but changes in HOW I do things. To learn new things, to boldly go where I've never gone before. To push myself, to challenge myself.

I've since learned that change can be good. Sometimes it even happens when you're not looking.