A Mish-Mash; Catching-Up & Coconut Dreams...

Blah!

 

 That's what I have been for over a week...

 

well, not really me so much...

 

~

The weather.

 

When it's like this, I just don't want to do anything (creative, that is)!

 

I've been waiting for a sunny day to take good photos

 

for my Moon Brooch tutorial, and it just hasn't happened.

 

:^(

 

~

~

 

Last week when so much of the country, from Arizona and Texas on east

 

got SNOW
~

 

We got a tiny little bit of ice. Enough to slip around on if you weren't careful.

 

But not pretty.

 

I wanted just ONE more snow day!

 

I think we've had one school "snow day" this year...



(I had to add a starry overlay on this photo for a little interest!)

 

~

 

~




I went out  with my camera to try and find something frosty and photo-worthy,



but there just wasn't much...



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~




I couldn't resist taking a picture of my "Green Man", though...



Look at him...



Don't you just have the urge to SNIFF? ;^)



~




The ice was all melted off by the next morning...:^)



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One thing I have managed to do is move my "studio" to the end of the living room.



I have several areas where I could work, but I seem to gravitate to the kitchen/family room...



 I was making such a mess in my spot at the end of the kitchen island, however,



that I was getting on my own nerves...



(That's bad...)



I need to be where the "action" is...so I can watch the news and monitor



 the household's comings and goings... ;^)



And I just really don't want to be off in an upstairs bedroom or the basement...



Not right now, anyway.



~



The kitties love it when things get moved around,



even a little bit ~



They all stalk around like lions,



and sniff each thing, to see if it smells like our house or not, I guess.



~



~




Cyrus has decided that he really likes this chair...



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I have an 8-foot work-table behind the love seat, facing out into the family room...



Now "company" can't quite see all the clutter.



The idea was that it was long enough that I could have different little areas



for clay and beading...maybe a watercolor "spot" for my ACEOs...



(Which I really should be painting...if you have time, look up "ACEO cat"



in eBay's completed auctions (under Advanced Search) ~ WOW.



Ebay is better for little artworks than Etsy, for some strange reason!



~



Anyway, that was the idea,



 but as usual, I do everything right in front of me (no moving down)



until I literally have to stop and clear enough room to work...



it's like it all just sort of creeps closer and closer...



Does anyone else do this?



~





~


Here's the little "mini" Fairy House, so far...



I'm anxious to see what the little pine cone scales are going to look like on the roof,



but I have to get all the oven-firing finished first...all the little details...



or my hot-glued "shingles" will all go sliding off!



~





~




Tallulah and Cyrus looked so cute this evening...



They don't usually lie together like this.



They are on the loveseat right in front of my work-table.



Always close.



♥



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I was trying to get them to look at me, but they were just sooo sleepy!



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None of the kitties fight, but Tallulah often annoys Cyrus...



Then he will stalk her and get reaaallly close to her, right in her face,



and just stand there.



She takes it for as long as she can, then quickly swats him and runs!



~



~




One more thing...



A couple of months ago I happened to see these cookies...Coconut Dreams...




And I thought "Hey, those look like Samoas!" (the Girl Scout Cookies)
~



(I LOVE Samoas...ever since my daughters were Girl Scouts...I never even remember



when it's Cookie Time, now, though ~ we don't have anyone come "door-to-door",



and right now we have no one ~ family or extended family ~ who's in Scouts) ~



Well, I got a box and they ARE practically Samoas...and they lasted about 5 minutes!




(I've since read that Keebler and Little Brownie Bakers are owned by the same parent



company, so that could explain why they are so similar...) ~



So, a few days ago I was in the grocery store and thought about them again...



So I got a package, and when I got home, before anyone saw them,



I hid them.



In a lingerie chest by my bed.



About 4 o'clock this morning (my sleep schedule has been really off...)



I thought about them and decided I would have one or five or so...



the packaging was really crackly, but I managed to get a few out.



Then Mr. B. stirred, and I quickly pushed the package back in the drawer,



and heard ~



"HEY YOUUU!.... CUTESY-POO!....Yeah, YOU! ~



You are LOOKIN' FINE!!



(Yeah, doggies!!)



(Wild, maniacal giggling)



..."Did it hurt when you fell from Heaven?"



(I had forgotten that the Hallmark "Hey You" button



that I rescued from someone's trash



was in that drawer ~



(Long story ~ I have enough junk of my own and should leave others' trash alone...



but it was cute....)



It made me laugh....Instant Karma!



Good thing Mr. B is a sound sleeper...



;^).



Have a good Thursday, everyone!



Send me creative, "get stuff finished" vibes if you have any extra, please!



Love,

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Moonday, Moonday....

Happy Moonday, Everyone!

 

Really, it is!

  

Wikipedia says ~

 

 The English noun Monday derived sometime before 1200 from monedæi,

 

which itself developed from Old English (around 1000)

 

mōnandæg and mōndæg (literally meaning "moon's day")...

 

A number of songs feature Monday, often as a day of melancholy. For example, "Monday,

 

Monday" (1966) from the Mamas & the Papas, "Rainy Days and Mondays" (1971) from the

 

Carpenters, "I Don't Like Mondays" (1979) from the Boomtown Rats, and

 

"Manic Monday" (1986) from the Bangles.

 

It is a grey, rainy Moonday (doesn't that sound better, anyway?) here in Southeast Missouri

 

 and I'm trying to make the best of it!

 

Really, though ~ I've always loved anything lunar, even calling my arty-stuff

 

 October Moon Designs/ October Moon Art...inspired by my October birthday.

 

♥

 

~





Isn't this 1903 postcard of a lovely Moon Lady just wonderful?



Like the nursery rhyme says, "Monday's Child is fair of face"...


~

~

 

And then there's one of my favorite books from when I was little,

 

Little Audrey and the Moon Lady...:^) (1960)

 

~

 

You know I love playing with polymer clay and making all kinds of little

 

things to go on my Fairy Houses...the flowers I make to embellish them are

 

among my favorite things to create...

 

I've had clay and beads and beads and more beads collected

 

for a couple of years now, knowing I wanted to make jewelry,

 

but not sure just what...lots of polymer artists make beautiful,

 

realistic flowers, but I wanted to do something unique,

 

and it just hadn't come to me.

 

A few years ago I got Christi Friesen's Dragons book,

 

and right then I knew I wanted to add beads and pearls and crystals to polymer clay...



~

~




~





This is the little dragon I made after reading Christi's book in 2007.



Looking at him now I can see that he could use a little refinement,



but I was hooked!

 

~



Back to moons and flowers...



~

~




A few days ago I was waiting for my little "mini" Fairy House to come out



of the oven, and I was conditioning (playing with) some clay with which I'd planned



to cover the house's base...



I'd used my Grandma's biscuit cutter



 to cut out a round of clay for covering an area of the house ~



(I know...who would have thought? ~ Wish I



had learned to make her biscuits with it, but...)



Anyway, I cut a circle with it and then moved it over about an inch and cut



another circle, accidently making a perfect crescent moon, and I thought ~



"What a good shape for a flowery brooch!"



It would be perfect, curved "just so" on a sweater or lapel...



~

~




So here is my first pin/brooch...the crescent shape works really well, I think,



with the gently curving flower, buds and leaves.



I also added some copper jewelry headpins with Czech glass flowers



and Swarvoski crystals...(love them!).




Then as a finishing touch,  I wired in some genuine peridot briolettes...



(I didn't think I'd ever find a use for them...they are so pretty,



but the holes are too tiny for most headpins.)



~

~




One thing led to another...



And now I have all sorts of ideas...



I have a smaller round cutter as well, so I plan to make



two sizes of moons...



Finally something for my Etsy shop, October Moon Art!






I will post a tutorial for the rose pin later this week. :^)



~

 

~



Now ~ Can you believe it?



Another "oopsie"...



I should be too embarrassed to show you!



I had finished the little leaf and tendril on the Fairy House,



and had it curing in the oven.



Jonathan came downstairs to fix himself a pizza,



and I told him I was baking something (he would instinctively know it wasn't food),



 but that I would put it in for him as soon as mine was finished.



A few minutes later, the oven timer went off, signaling that the little house was ready.



I turned the oven temperature up to 400 degrees for the pizza,



and went about playing with more clay.



About ten minutes went by; maybe a little less.



The oven beeped to let me know the temperature was right.



Something made me look around...



where did I put the Fairy House?



Uh, oh.



Yep.



I opened the oven door, and stinky, burned-polymer smoke rolled out...



Oh, shoot, shoot, SHOOT!!



I couldn't believe I had done this...but sometimes you just have to laugh!



As I said previously, polymer clay is wonderfully "fixable"...



So I laughed. So did Jonathan.



I told him that if it had been the new little moon brooch, though,



I would have been sad!



(I think the papier-mache is finally truly dry, however...)



This will make me think, the next time! (Hopefully!)



I let it cool and peeled off the blackened blob of clay...



~

~




And here it is, one more time!



I think I like this leaf and tendril better, anyway. :^)



~





~




Isn't this a cute vintage post card?



Look at the little acorn "light fixture" ~ Like mine!



I guess the pull-cord is the doorbell...



I think I like my tiny acorn "button" one better ~



I do like the little window-sill/shelf, though!



That's all for now...back to making little moons!



(Thank you to all the new folks who have visited me...welcome!)



Love,

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Two Drawing-Winners and One Oopsie...

Hi, everyone!

 

Since I show you my "successes",

 

 I thought I'd also
show you my "oopsies"...

 

This is what happens when one uses papier mache that is still damp underneath...

 

and covers it totally with polymer clay for a little Fairy House, and puts it in the oven!

 

It blows its top!...Uhh, roof, I mean.

 

Not to worry.

 

The good thing about polymer clay is that it fixes very easily...

 

I will just cut off the ragged bits of this little "roof-eave"



 ~ I guess that's what you'd call it ~



and make a new one...



It will stick perfectly to the already baked clay and be fine.

 

I took the opportunity to leave the roof open like this and thoroughly dry it

 

in the oven on the lowest temperature...

 

(The papier mache felt completely dry when I started putting polymer clay

 

on it. I had even left it sitting on a heating vent overnight...)

 

However, the underneath-middle part that was sitting on the glass ornament

 

was just as damp as could be, I found out!

 

I'm just glad I wasn't doing a dozen at once.

 

For the next one, I will probably mold the papier mache (Creative Paperclay)

 

on the ornament in the same way, let it dry a bit,

 

then remove it to totally dry it before re-attaching it and starting with the polymer clay.

 

The reason I used the Creative Paper Clay to begin with is because it is a bit less

 

expensive than using polymer clay on the parts that don't show,

 

and it is quite a bit lighter.

 

Live and learn!

 

I told the guys that live here that it was a science experiment.

 

~

~




Now for the drawing winners...



I wrote everyone's names on little strips of paper,



 and had Jonathan draw out one for the heart pin,



...and one for the little pendant. ♥



 (I know he thought it was silly...I told him it was fun!...:^)



For the brooch, it's Ellie Foster (her lovely blog, Feltabulous, can be found here)...



and for the pendant,



Irina ~ (who has several delightful blogs, but my favorite, Gypsy in Me, is here)!



Thank you all for your sweet comments and compliments...



they mean so much to me, and keep me creating!



More on the Fairy House fiasco tomorrow!



Love,

 

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A Mini How-To & A Valentine Giveaway...

Good Sunday evening, everyone!

 

I am running a little behind (surprise!)...

 

I was thinking of doing something for Beverly's Pink Saturday

 

(that would also be appropriate for Valentine's Day),

 

and then all of a sudden it was Sunday!

 

♥

 

It's okay, though...hearts are good anytime, not just on February 14th...

 

~

~


Here are a couple of little polymer clay hearts I made,



and I will tell you...



 (and show you...to a point...I didn't take as many photos as usual)



how I did them.



For the larger pin/brooch, condition (knead) a ball of light pink



 polymer clay...make it about the size of a large gumball.



After rolling it into a nice smooth little sphere, take a straight-edge blade



and cut right down into it about a half an inch.



This will make the top lobes of the heart.



At this point you just start smushing and shaping....



pulling the bottom into a little point...



You really just have to play with it...you'll get it!



If you're wondering, I tried using a heart-shaped cutter, but believe me,



this free-form shaping looks much better!



It doesn't have to be perfectly symetrical...



If you Google "polymer clay heart" (images), you'll see all sorts of shapes...



Honest ~ a little wonky looks best!



~

~


Pat it flat...about 3/8" is good...you just don't want it too heavy.



That tool in the background is one of a set of three that are meant for some sort



of "embossing" paper craft (they came with instructions for making paper flower petals),



but they are excellent for adding texture to polymer clay.



 I got them at Hobby Lobby in the scrapbooking section.



That said, however, there are a multitude of



household objects that make great texture-tools...



just rummage around in your junk-drawer a bit and experiment!



~

~


I already had some lentil-shaped freshwater pearls with little bi-cone crystals



on some headpins, left over from a jewelry project...



I also added a freshwater stick pearl.



The leaves and fronds are just little snakes and



 rice-sized bits of green clay. You can roll these out and pick them right up with



a needle-tool (they'll stick with very little effort),



 then use the tool to press in the leaf centers



and veins...this will be enough pressure to attach them securely



to the clay, as well.


~

~


I made the rose exactly like I did here, on the little "arbor" over the Fairy House door...

~


I trimmed the "tail" with my straight edge, and also used just a dot of liquid



polymer to secure it in the leaves...

~

~


Brush just a little Pearl Ex powder here and there...



(Believe me, a light hand is best with Peart Ex...it's easy to go over-board!)



~




Bake per your brand of polymer clay's instructions...

~

I finished it with a light coat of Diamond Varathane (a water-based sealer)



(It will also have a pin-back) ~ :^)

~

~


I also made a smaller pendant, using the same basic technique.



I will be giving both of these pieces away...♥



Just leave me a comment before midnight (CST) Tuesday night..



and I'll draw two names...(well, I will have Jonathan draw them ~ :^)

~

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Here's something new...a little tiny Fairy House...



Made with papier mache and polymer clay, over an ornament...



Fingers crossed that this will turn out as planned!

~

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And finally, one of the "arty" things I told you about a little while back..,



Since "The Holly King" is now in his new home,



I can show him!



He is made with Creative Paper Clay (and a little polymer clay, in the holly leaves and berries)



on a dried gourd, painted with acrylics.



That's all for now!



Have a good Monday!



Love,

 

~

Linking to Beverly's Pink Saturday

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A Finished Project & More Valentines...♥

Good Monday evening, everyone!

 

I know, Christmas is over...

 

but some of my projects are still hanging on!

 

Before Christmas I showed you this chair that has been in my family for ages...



(it was my Great Aunt Anna's)...

 

it has been in very sad shape for as long as I can remember ,



 then it was in the fire, and stood in water in the basement...:^(

 

The post to see the "before" back in December can be revisited here ~

 

~

~


Here it is!




 After looking at the inspiration photo again, I may need to sand it a little more...



I'm pretty happy with it, though. So glad I gave it another chance...



It looked so awful, it would have been pretty easy to throw it away!

~

~




I'm sure the little birdcage in the photo (below) is an antique,



but I just happened upon mine in Hobby Lobby,



and it was 50% off ~ :^)



Until I spied it, I hadn't planned on doing the project just yet,



but I took it as a sign that I should...



so I grabbed it ~ (there were a lot of styles; some fancier...



  but this one looked the most like the actual antique)



~ and went back over to the ornaments to find the perfect color!



This color was interesting, I thought ~



not mirror-bright silver, but a darker, more pewter-tone...



However...



Now I wish I'd gone for that pop of pink or maybe red...



Oh, well ~ in just a few months Hobby Lobby will have Christmas decor again!



BTW, the bird cage was originally a dark cream...



I sprayed it the "Jadite Green" color,



which is actually Valspar Satin "Leafy Rise"



and then lightly sanded the metal here and there...



~

~




Here is the original Pinterest photo from Suzanne Duda; I thought it was so pretty!



~



And, here are some more vintage Valentines for you...♥

~



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From 1910...such a beautiful little face...John Winsch cards are so lovely!

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More gorgeous Winsch ladies, from 1910-1911.



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So cute!



The car ~ and policeman Cupid ~ is another Winsch, the one above it is unmarked.



~





~



~


More sweet kitties...



That kitten that the little boy is holding could be a baby Cyrus!



~




~


And last but not least, the little love-struck girl and her kitty, "Fluffs"...



(Poor Fluffs was crying on the card in my previous post...)



Poor Baby! Choose Fluffs, little girl, not that boy!!

~




~


Told you so!

♥




Have a great Tuesday, all!



Love,

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