A Little Off Center

A Little Off Center

I've been focused on the bottle I talked about last time. I went on a bottle binge. I found some nice bottles that are waiting to be covered. This morning I thought I will call them “ Message on a Bottle” Sometimes I wonder if all artist are a bit mad. I know I'm in a world apart from others. I've always felt that. I see the world differently than most.

 

As I work on a project my mind is in another spot. I really like taking parts from other places and putting them together. When we were young I liked playing a game, where you would stand in a circle and hold hands, then we would tangle ourselves up together and then call “Doctor Doctor” the person chosen as” it” would come and try to untangle us . Our job was not to let go of each others hands. So I guess that might be where I get the penchant to untie knots. I also like to mix techniques together. I guess I'm sort of a builder not in the usual sense but a builder just the same. It's fun to see the building as it takes shape. As you go along you find problems that need solving. I also learn how things work together or not. I guess I like solving problems. Sometimes I'm successful and sometimes not.

        I'm finding there is a process to knotting and beading around a shape and getting it to hug the thing I am covering. It’s a kind of wrestling that goes on. Somehow the working opens a different part of my brain and ideas just flood in like water filling a vessel. I guess I run the rapids of my mind, which I must say are pretty fast at times. To see me on the outside you would never know it, because I'm pretty slow and quiet. Sometimes the desire to create is a bit on the painful side. I ask what is this for? How can I help in the world? With this little project? Yet the urge will not go away. I think there is a purpose to why we have these feelings and Tendencies. I guess we learn as we go. Like faith or an iceberg you only see a bit of it. It takes work to uncover the real meaning. Does anyone else feel this way? If we just keep going it will come to us the purpose of the journey.

Here is a picture of my journey this time.

do are just exercise to work my mind and hands. 

 

While I was looking for bottles a couple of neighbors were going too. It was suggested we go to a new shop in downtown Provo. http://unhingedslc.com/store-gallery/nggallery/slideshow/ if your in the neighborhood check it out. So we stopped there first. I had my last little bottle with me and showed it to the person at the register. This shop wants to feature items by local artists. They also have a shop in Salt Lake City. I found some earrings that I brought home and deconstructed for future use. I was able to disassemble them and multiply them into four. That kind of math is fun. I also found a new use for the heat gun I have. It softens old glue so you can unstick things. 

The earrings were glued onto some metal filigree. I took them apart after heating them and then stuck some other things onto the filigree pieces.

I also made a little necklace out of a practice piece of needle lace.

I hope you will also look for the passions in your life and work to uncover them and see why you have them.

 

Earth Bound Lace

Earth Bound Lace

       For as long as I can remember I have had a love for rocks. I have collected them and thought of them as treasures. To me it is quite remarkable how beautiful they can be. I love the shape, look, texture, weight, and age. Some other loves have been with me for, not quite as long as rocks, but important to me just the same. They are thread, string, knots and lace, also, beads and glass. All of them have an elemental nature to me. Rocks have age, a permanence and stability. Lace, thread, and knots also have an age and story. Knots and fiber . They have a connection to generations past, the skill has passed down through generations. Different from the rocks, they have a light and an open texture. It is from these elements that these projects evolved. 

 

      I started with a carved pink jade rose and I tatted around it, incorporating the stone as I went along and also, picked up tear -dropped shaped beads, which included tiny white pearl-looking glass drops, I got to the very bottom, I added two vintage pink trumpet-like flower beads held on with some more tiny tear drop beads. In between , I added a vintage Chrystal-cut bead, and below , a wonderful softly swirled pink and clear glass teardrop.

I made a chain of Josephine knots and pink crystal bi-cone beads, finished off with two tiny pink seed beads. I Closed it with s loops and a vintage crystal closure. 

 

      This next piece has an Asian feel to me. With it's Chinese knots, Chinese chess piece, and handmade Asian glass bead, I have used an oval stone bead with three beads in the center. The one in the middle looks like a carved red bead but is made of something lighter. The necklace portion is what took the longest . I used tiny nylon thread, and, several kinds of assorted glass seed beads. I finished this one off with a lobster claw clasp and a few loops to make it adjustable.

This one gave me some grief . I had to set it down in between working and had the bright idea to put it all in a bag, and it got knotted together in a mass of nightmare knots. It took a long time to untangle and unknot. I hope I never get in that kind of mess again. After untangling, I put each thread in separate little baggies to keep them apart. It worked a lot better and kept me out of trouble. 

      The next necklace I call lost and found treasures. First, I did tatting and knotted lace around the stone, In the center, I added a vintage eye-shaped rhinestone given to me by a friend from The Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. After she died, her niece, (I think also a member of the group)who knew that I liked that sort of thing and gave me this along with some other beads that must be older than me. She was almost 100 years old. On the bottom, I put two teardrop shape old beads from a necklace I found at my favorite thrift store. I think these are a bit rare. They appear to be amber with some interesting inclusions. In the middle I added an acrylic bead sent to me as a bonus with some other beads I bought recently on Ebay. Above that is a tiny silver heart with some tiny diamonds and a sweet opal. On the topside I attached a link from a belt and added a nice old chain with and old metal flower bead and a round intricate clasp from an old broken clasp. It has a nice mirrored back that shows through the open-work front. There are lots of tiny treasures . I think I will keep this one because it has a bits of sentimental pieces that remind me of friends and finds.

        This next piece was a fun learning experience. I and finds. started with a larger rock in mind, but as I knotted the cover,it was too small to cover. I started with tatted picots to make feathers for the front of the little bird. Then the back and sides are made of knotted needle lace. To represent the eyes, I used some delightful eye like agates. That I think are from Africa, if I remember correctly. For the beak I used a tiny conch shell. As the top of the plume I used some metal leaves that look like feathers, reminiscent of some birds I have seen. 

 

I should call him fun and whimsical, because most of the time male birds are a bit more flashy than their female counterpart. The necklace part is made up of a heavy nylon cord, dotted with polymer swirl beads and rock looking beads with a few wooden spacer beads. This brings a smile to my face. I hope it does for you too. I had to use a drill to enlarge the holes on the beads to fit them on the heavy cord. I wanted to add a nice clay bead. I tried to drill the center of it, and to my surprise6, it got red hot and stared to shoot sparks, So I took it to the kitchen sink to finish drilling to be close to the water if needed. I thought the clay was becoming molten inside, but it turns out that the drill bit was actually melting . I'm not sure how I will attach it to a project,but it is a metal reinforced center now. I've never had that happen before. I think that clay is some sort of fire clay. Really hard. I made do with the ones I could drill and finished up. 
 

         The next project is made with lots of odds and ends, silver metal beads of assorted kinds,a glass cube, cylinder and triangle shaped beads, A few gunmetal -looking tube beads, and some nice decorative carved looking beads. I added last of all a dragonfly made of an acrylic body and needle laced wings with a top

Chinese knot for a head. This one took some reworking. I started it but didn't like the result ,so I took it apart and started over. Now I like it better. 

 

       Last I made one with an Onyx donut bead and a few vintage pieces from other necklaces. In the center of the donut ,I put a faceted black bead that has a hole in the back, making me think it must have been on an earring at some point. Dangling from the bottom is a silver encased black stone which could be onyx, but I'm not sure. On either side of that are two glass leaf-looking beads. On the back of the donut I added a vintage metal button. I had to do something I don't like to do if I can avoid it I had to glue the faceted glass piece and the button. I could not figure out how else to keep them in place. The tatted lace was not going to be enough to hold them in. I found in my stash a nice black chain and added that to finish this one. 

 

So we are at the end of this journey for now. See you next time.

Thanks for checking this out.

Found Object

Found Object

Hello again. This adventure started with an object my husband found while we were out walking. He picked it up and said, “you like found objects, Here is one.”

It came off of who knows what and had been run over . It was folded and smashed together. I took it home and unbent it the best I could and considered the possibilities. It was made of what looks to be copper and it consisted of two ring shapes connected with a bar between the two circles.

I started by looking around for other metal items and found a piece that I had made into a necklace once before. I took apart the rest of the necklace and saved that part. I joined the two and went on from there, finding other pieces that seemed to go together. I was able to use some copper-like circles. I had wondered how I to use them. This seemed to be just the thing. Off I went, putting together all the pieces. I liked the result. I also used some chalk turquoise and other turquoise-looking beads. It was nice to reuse a piece that I had saved. I think it was originally from an earring. When I got it I made it into a necklace. Maybe this will survive as a group this time. 
 

My next adventure started with three beautiful stones that were carved and put together as a set. They are quite heavy with all three pieces . I wanted to make the piece with strong enough cord to support it. I found heavy nylon cord that I already had would fit through the drilled holes. After I put the cord through, I had to find how to make it a unified piece that would be strong enough to hold it all together. That is a problem I have had before. First I used a ring covered with knots to hold it in place. It was still not enough to support the whole thing. I decided to make a wire framework to give it further support. I knotted cord over it to give me a base to work in some needle lace to fill in the space and unify the whole piece. I also attached a knotted cord with assorted beads along the way. I used two vintage buttons and some other beads to finish off the bottom. This is the sum of the adventure in reusing items to make something new. I hope you enjoyed the process and result. Thank You for your visit.

Harmony In the Chaos

Harmony In the Chaos

Out of our comfort Zone

I learned a lesson this time. I do not like being out in the public eye. I've had several friends encourage me to “put myself out there'”a bit more. So I ventured out there a kind of a leap of faith. There is a little shop a few blocks from where I live that also took a recent leap of their own and opened a little shop. It's in a sweet old pioneer house and is called “Harmony”. A gathering place to sew,knit and learn. They offer classes and get-to-gathers as well as lots of supplies to get the creative spark going, With a sense of community and help, all gathered from lots of places in the world. Some of the things offered are: vintage buttons, yarn, fabric etc. A nice mix of finished projects as well as supplies to start your own creations.

If you want to take, a peek, thanks to the wonderful internet. http://www.harmonyprovo.com/

Well this is where I took a leap and brought in some of the things I've made and asked if they would consider putting some of them on consignment. We had a nice visit and I left them with some things to see how it will go.

Then my husband and I went off to the office supply store. I had some business cards made up. I guess that makes me a little more official. 

 

While at the shop, I picked up some of those vintage buttons. I love old buttons. The one I picked to use first is a square glass button. 

It has a nice mix of colors. I started by bringing out one of my old poker chips, I drilled a hole in the center to be able to attach the button to it and have it lay flat without damage to the wonderful button. I was able to attach the button with some wire through the shank, which is metal attached to the glass front. Then I took the poker chip and rolled it on an embossing ink pad and rolled it into some embossing powder. I heated it with a heat gun and fused it on the edge. I gathered a vintage yo yo around a cardboard circle. Then I began to make needle lace around the edge of the yo yo. I worked on that part of the project at the block party of the “Museum of Peoples and Cultures” They hold this event each year, with different displays and crafts and artisans from lots of times and places. Some of the exhibits were: Spinners/Weavers, Basket makers/Quilt, Pioneer Games, Academy Square Lacers, Dolls & marbles, Flint Napping, Spinning, Historic Weapons, Native American Tipi, stories and dancing by Morning Star Native Dancing & Stories, Pioneer Songs and stories by Clive Romney & Willingly.

I was there with the “Academy Square Lacers” This is a lace group that meets together at the Library once a month. We learn and work together on projects. These are some amazing people. http://aslacers.blogspot.com/ .

After a nice morning and afternoon, my friend and I gathered up our things and left. On the way home, I asked if I could make a quick stop at the shop I talked about earlier. They were also having a bit of a celebration. I wanted to pick up a couple of bird knobs I had seen when I was there last. They are made of metal and old paint. So we stopped there, and I was able to run in and pick those up.

While I was waiting my turn to pay for them, one of the items I had on consignment was being bought, or at least the customer was thinking about it. It was a little bracelet I made quite awhile ago. I almost threw it out because of it's imperfections. I was introduced to her, and she to me, by the worker at the cash register. They were having an interesting conversation about the piece. The prospective buyer said things like “It reminds me of my life, lots of little bits and pieces rather unexpected and a bit spooky” 

 

I started to think this morning of how maybe our learning and mistakes can actually bring a bit of light and laughter. Into the busy, sometimes hectic, lives we live. It can bring hope of another chance to try again. It was made of lots of odds and ends old poker chip, glass millefiori bead hearts, a random cat head bead, with needle lace and tatting, as many of my things are. It reminded me of Tim Burton movies, a bit dark and quirky yet with some sort of charm. Even our mistakes can bring hope and light to others in ways we have never expected. I came across a scripture that seemes to speak to this situation.

2 Corinthians 9:9-10.

“ 9.(As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad;he hath given to the poor; his righteousness remaineth for ever.

10.Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and incresase the fruits of your righteousness;)”

This says to me that even our mistakes can do some good and be food for the spirit of a poor and weary soul. Who can use a lift. It often surprises me how God can take our little offerings and make some good of them in spite of all our imperfections. How much time do we spend in what looks to us as mundane and unimportant, and find it helped someone unknown to us?

I guess even our mistakes are not wasted. They can bring hope, and encourage us to keep trying. Part of the important work we do here is just keep getting up. Don't be afraid to cast your bread upon the water. It might just spread to another's life, and bring and unexpected harvest.

So summing it all up, things worked together in a nice blend of old and new with a soft color and texture, blending with some quirks and kinks to make a simple folksy finish.

Keep on going!

Rock On

Rock On

It has taken me awhile to get back into the groove of things. I've finished five projects this time. I made a necklace with knotted lace and Teneriffe lace,and also a bit of needle tatting. I worked the center pendant piece with an old poker chip and Teneriffe lace center around the edge that I tatted and added blue Chrystal beads. On the back of the chip I put a glass disk. As a result, I had to remake part of the necklace, because that made it too heavy for the thread the necklace was made of. I think it finally hangs better. Live and learn. This necklace is made reversible. 

 

The second necklace took longer to make than I had expected . I'm guessing it is due to the tiny thread it is made with. The center piece of this one is made with a nice carved bone disk. I tatted around the edge of this one . To the bottom I added a fringe of pear shaped glass beads and some round stone beads. Topped with a vintage triangle shaped bead and a bone spacer on top of that with some more small stone beads. On the necklace portion I used some tube shaped stone beads, then I used oval shaped stone beads spaced around and finished with a button and loop closure.

Third I made a necklace with a nice array of stone beads I had in my stash. The donut shaped stone was the inspiration for this one. I found it in a necklace at my favorite thrift store. I think it fit well together. The necklace part is made with some small seed beads woven between two cords. This one closes with a button and loop closure. 

 

The fourth necklace is made with another stone from the same necklace I found. I made it with a chain fringe ended with brass looking disks, and clay glazed beads on either side. On each side of the focal stone is a brass metal spacer bead, and also brass -looking filigreed piece from a belt. It is one of the links. On top of that I have a Josephine knot and then a wooden bead. I knotted the rest with four more wooden tube beads. I made this one adjustable, knotted with a heavy nylon cord. 

Last is an experiment of a knotted net around a stone. I finished the bottom with a few tear dropped stones. The necklace part is done with a knotting tool that has a two pronged fork. The finished project is a square cord that is sturdy, made with the same heavy nylon cord. My husband said you could use it as a weapon like a slingshot. I guess he's right. My thought was to put your favorite scent on it and the body heat will make it defuse in a subtle way.. This was a fun project. I call it “Rock On” thus the name of this blog.

This was a learning process as well as fun and frustrating at times. Hope you had some fun. See Ya!

Memory Work Come out to play

                                        

Memory Work

come out to play

A friend of mine Margaret Willis gave a lesson a few weeks ago on a Sunday and one of the points she made, touched me. She told about how she has gone to beaches all over the world, and it used to be her goal to find the perfect shell. So she overlooked the imperfect ones. Then she changed her way of thinking and began  to look for the beauty in all the shells she found. Many had imperfections chips, holes, rough outsides etc. She found  that even through the outside could be rough the inside was smooth and beautiful and full of light and color. 

 “As we look for the ways to turn our hearts towards others, remember that Christ-like care-giving does not take a lot of time or money. We can all afford to give five seconds of service by saying hello, showing a smile and giving a complement. This month, let us not only increase our feelings of charity, but also find ways to extend acts of charity to those in our midst. We follow the example of the Savior and honor the Good Samaritan as we serve others”

Margaret Willis

She gave us all a chance to pick out a

 

shell and she challenged us to try to give this five second service to exercise our spiritual muscles and learn hot to serve om small ways. The shell was to remind us. I picked out a shell that had a hole. Then I cam home and had an idea of a necklace I could make.

   I gathered up lots of small bits and pieces, and I began to build. I had an old earring I used as a base. Then I added a small metal piece I placed over the hole in the shell and in the center of that I put a pearl bead that matched nicely and held it on with a head pin and fastened it to the base in the back. I wired it all together. Then I attached an old shell

button on the back to cover the ends of the wire, I added a metal button on top and glued it there. Then I added a small chain and bead to the top and also a Celtic knot piece that came off of something I had made for my husband's pocket watch, which has long since worn out. Then I attached a brass chain that a friend gave me to make something out of.

This turned out to be put together like a play date. This was fun and I have my reminder to look for ways I can help others no matter how busy I am.

I'm also reminded about a necklace I made sometime ago that is also a reminder of my husbands mother. I  made that with bits and pieces I had. I like hoe it turned out. It's one of my favorites. Made from an old earring of hers. So look for the beauty around you. See you next time.

                                             

Two Too Blue

Two Too Blue

The beginning of this Year has Been a DooZy.

I'm hoping That I'm getting most of the negative done for 2013. First my back has been taking me for a ride. 

Not a good one. After some shots to the nerves in my spine I'm getting some relief. That is a good thing. This all started around Thanksgiving of last Year. 2012. Now we have moved into 2013. Just as my back started to get better. We got a flu bug. I just finished that up and then I got a cold. So I've been a bit Blue.

Things are starting to look up again. Yahoo! I've worked on two blue projects. I think it is interesting that they were blue. I was not thinking about that at the time. As I started to write. I thought, what should I title this blog today? It occurred to me that the two projects just happened to be blue. So TwoToo Blue it is.

This first piece came about from a focal point of a glass blue swirl pendant given to me by my neighbor. She thought I might be able to think of something to do with it. So it was born of brass wire and blue thread with different odds and ends of things I had lying around. They consist of glass beads,an old glass button, two metal buttons, some chain and leaves, and glass dangly beads. Come to think of it, the chain was also given to me by the same neighbor, the metal leaves were given to me also by a friend, and the glass dangle beads from another friend. It is that many times, through the tough times friends come to the rescue. This project is a bit disjointed and busy, but the fact is, I had fun doing it. That is the important thing. It helped me pull myself up. I think creation is a bit like that. It helps you to look outward instead of inward. There are three little glass beads hanging on some twirly threads that might remind us of tears, but they also remind me of life and water. We are off to a new year and a new start. Some of the old problems are still here in the “back”ground, but we will deal with them as they come, one day at a time. Also in the piece I used a small globe-like bead that is studded with rhinestones. It kind of reminds me of a party or a disco ball in that it is reflective. This is how we should go about life, reflective and looking for the brightness we can bring to the party. I hope you can see the bright spot of blue as in a break in the clouds, and enjoy the journey ahead.

The second project came about because I'm still trying to learn a lace technique called Punchetto. So I'll just roll with the punches and keep knotting along. Funny how things work together to make a new start. I had some thread left over from the first project, I just started knotting, and this is what resulted. A small little ring, decorated with a faceted glass bead and a bit of warm rusty brown thread in a feather stitch.

I've also been doing a bit of research online and came across another technique called Teneriffe Lace. I was able to download a book of that. Perhaps I'll show you some of that endeavor next time. My husband helped me make a sort of loom to work on that yesterday and put the book together in a small format so I can easily carry it with me. I guess I will sign off for now. Hope you had some fun too. See ya next time. Look for the blue spots in your sky. Enjoy the days whatever they bring. If we didn't have the dark clouds sometimes, we would not enjoy

the bright blue sky when it peeks through at us. Take care.