Two more UFO's completed

For me UFO's mean unfinished projects! I finally finished these two necklaces! I am really stoked about that fact too! They are both "beaded" using a needle and thread!

The one one the left is a spiral rope and I will be giving it to my grand-daughter! The "leftover" necklace or bead soup one is for me!



I forgot to post this when we visited our family in Toronto last week.  My hubby and I stopped in at the Fox and the Fiddle so he could have a "beverage".  I forgot my sketchbook so I did this sketch on the back of a table top beer advertisement.

Not the best but I am happy that at least I got to practice drawing in an urban setting especially with the bike covered up with snow.  There were lots of these bikes on the street like this.  Way too much snow for anyone to ride so I would expect they are using city transit until the streets clear up.

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Thank you card!

I couldn't believe it when a few days ago I received a letter in the mail and was the very happy recipient of a thank you piece of art.  The sender was the recipient of my 4 X 6 postcard exchange that I did through the Sketchbook Project.  How nice was that!!!  Her is Rachel's watercolour and graphite postcard drawing!  Isn't it lovely!!

I am very happy with my progress on my postcards for the swap.  I have finally completed the blue prototype and have to just find some creative lettering that I like to add my message to the front.

I would like to find more washi tape around but decided to use what I have although I don't really think it "goes" that well.  But really it will have to do as it is all that I have on hand in this colour and I might as well use it up.

The one thing that I learned from finishing this one is that I have to move the beads up more.  I ended up having to cover the ones at the end with the washi tape.  Bummer!  That is the reason that I do a prototype.  I am just not a very good designer/planner in my head; I have to use my hands and make one to find the flaws or make any changes that I think would look better.

I also decided that I didn't like putting the beads in the flower centres because there really wasn't enough symmetry for me.  I decided to move them to in-between the hand stitched crochet cotton which makes a clear and clean line.

With the photo above, I just wanted to show that I painted a piece of cheap paper with the peach colour in the ribbon and then stitched the beads on.  The soft gel was used as an adhesive and the ribbon attached to the postcard.  Then the washi tape was added for the final touch before the writing.

Postcard Swap-Prototypes

I thought I should show what I mean by junk mail postcards.  Here is one that I received in the mail last week.  I can recycle them in the bin or I can use them in my art.  And I am using an iTunes card to apply the first layer; gesso!

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Here is the finished prototype in pink!  Now I just need to check the internet and come up with some creative lettering for my message!  I don't have enough of the deep pink ribbon so I will have to make do with blue.

In the photo below, I am stitching the ribbon to a piece of paper that has been painted a peach colour.  As the photo above shows, I stamped this postcard using the same stamp but some different ink.  This time I used Staz On ink pad.  The Staz On ink will go on "anything" and it actually does STAY ON!!

The thread I am using is actually crochet cotton that I got at a charity shop.  I think it works well. 

Green postcard - What was I thinking?!

I an beginning to get very nice messages from my fellow participants in the postcard swap; I had asked that my recipients let me know when they received my cards. I always wonder if they make their way and I am glad to get nice e-mails from my fellow swappers.

I should have posted this earlier but I simply forgot, so I thought I would rectify that today!  Hmmmm, I'm just finding out it isn't so easy as I thought on mu iPad.  I need to work on this a bit and figure stuff out. I guess I'll have to drag out my laptop to finish this post.

I thought I had taken lots of photographs of the postcards that I made and it would appear I was very much mistaken.

Bummer!

In this snap, I am just needle felting the roving to the organza.  The addition of glass bead embellishments will be the next step.

Music and more about Postcard Swap V.3

I love to listen to music when I am creating my art and I came across this woman sometime ago from another artists blog.  So here I am.....I am sharing the beautiful voice of this woman too.  I don't use this video, I just went to iTunes and purchased several of her songs to appealed to me.  Again, perfect music for making art; well, for me that is.







My next favourite song is Nadir (Synchronicity) and then Forrest Veil.

 I must admit up front that visually posting these photo's of my art here, I find these postcards a bit too "hot",  too visually over-the-top.  However, in real life my eyes didn't see it that way at all.  So, I will of course all be in the eye of the beholder.  I hope everyone who receives them thinks so too.

The organza is a bit difficult to photograph because of the the nature of the fibre; the glare effects that it creates with the lens of the camera.

 I don't know how the flower motif was created really, it just sort of "happened"! I really liked it.



I photographed this one sitting on it's envelope.


Here are the envelopes all in a nice neat pile!  All ready for mailing!  I hope to be able to get to the post office today to do just that.  I hope all of my participants will forgive me but between work (today is my one day off for this week) and the stormy weather, I haven't been able to get there.

This is my constant lament though so bear with me for the next challenge!  At least I hope that Shannon is willing to host another challenge.  I love to participate but I am somewhat of a procrastinator and then of course I never chose something that is easy peasy either.

These are time consuming because I have to make everything from scratch, right down to the hand made "artist tape"that is the finishing touch.  I don't have a cookie cutter process and probably never will because I would get bored doing that.

I am really glad to be able to re-cycle my drop sheets from other projects.  I had figured that I would have to put them in the burn pile since I had hung on to them way too long.  So, I hope everyone does appreciate the colour if not the oddity of the craft!!

Two of Hearts and Postcards

A few months ago, I joined the 3rd International Postcard challenged hosted by a Canadian woman from British Columbia.  She does a fabulous job of hosting the challenge!  In fact, I am beginning to receive my postcards in the mail!  So thrilling!  I have had to send mine out late once again but with working and snow storms...I wasn't able to get them mailed out on time.  However, I am a firm believer that late is better than never.  One of my cards will be going all the way to Australia!

I made this years postcards completely using some hand needle-felting on organza.  I hope the recipients will enjoy the tactile nature of the cards.

I thought that I should post about Valentines Day tomorrow!  After I finished the postcards for the International Postcard challenge I began working on something for Valentine's Day.  Just something simple again but with the theme of "two hearts beating as one".

I thought that I would show the "needle" that is used to force the wool roving into the organza fibres.  I also decided that I would use some beads as an embellishment.  Not too much, just a few well placed ones.  I could actually re-do this photo so you can see the beads but I just don't have the time.  I think the glare can be overcome enough that the beads are visible.

I need to continue working on my camera skills and I have added this on to my "50 things" to do list.  It is a challenge that I joined via the Art House Co-op, and the Sketchbook Challenge.  Currently, I am at number 33 on my list of things that I want to do in the coming year. I have to submit my "50 Things" by February 22, 2013.

This means that one of the items on my list are getting things done early or ON TIME!!

Blue Cheer - Mixed Media B-day Wishes

I have made another postcard for a good friend of mine who will be having a birthday this week.  I sent the postcard via express post but it will still take two days so she will be getting it a day late.  Oh well, I just couldn't be helped.

I call it Blue Cheer, the title of this project is not solely because of the song (okay so they were a one hit wonder!!) Summertime Blues.  It is because we will be going out on her boat in Lake Ontario again this summer.  So much fun and the view on the water is breath-taking; I never tire of the 1000 Islands.

In the snap above you can see it up close; you can see the netting over the organza, the sparkly fabric (I found it in the sale bin and I would expect it is used for skating costumes and such like).  I did a bit of embroidery work and of course my beloved beading.  I put the two fabrics to get using glitter glue for something else different in this mixed media piece.

  I knew that I had a blue button somewhere in my stash and I knew that I just had to add it.  But where?? I decided that it would be an abstract representation of the sun.  I sewed the button on and used slivers of organza to add more texture.

I made the horizon off-kilter reminiscent of being on the boat in a windy stormy day with the waves getting higher and higher.  I hope that my friend can see my vision.

I had a very "fluid" plan in my mind when I started my creation and I am quite happy with the results.  I hope my friend enjoys her card as much as I did creating it!!!

Mixed Media Fibre Art Card

I made a fibre art card last month for a friend's birthday, that day has come and gone so I thought that I would display it here.

I have been enjoying myself very much making these small art pieces.  I used:

• glass beads
• recycled onion bag netting (painted)
• sequins
• metal sewing notions - black and silver snaps
• embroidery floss
• cheesecloth
• acrylic paint
• molding paste texture medium
• purchased embellishment
• Strathmore watercolour postcard

I didn't really have a "plan" per se and it just could be that is why I like it so much.  I could have made it so much more but really I like the simplicity of it just as it is.

I am really glad that I choose to join the international postcard swap in January of this year as it has taught me to work smaller and to experiment with these small art pieces.  

Leftover Necklace

I love making these "leftover" glass bead necklaces!  I had to make this one up quickly so that it would be ready to wear tomorrow night!

It will be St. Paddy's Day and I have to make sure that I wear some green under my ugly blue uniform.  I married the blue and the green glass beads in this necklace so that it will read green but have enough blue in it to "match" the boring uniform.

I like to re-purpose things as well and used a button as my toggle for the lasso clasp.  

If it isn't clear, I am working nights once again and this is my first night and the day is getting late.  Must be off and get ready for the last Friday night in the March break and a warm one it is!  Me thinks it will be very bus!