Valentine Steam Punk Heart

It's been way past time to create with clay again.  I decided to start back with a valentine inspired creation.  The heart is crafted from polymer clay, wire, glass vials and gears; I use pink tones, and brushed a pearly copper powder over all the metallic clay accents to pull the different colors together. The imbedded glass vials are filled with micro glass beads in further pink tones.   It's pretty neat, when worn the content of the vials shift around.   As always I love to use silk sari ribbon and in this case I threaded it through a vintage gold chain. Hope you enjoy and are inspired to create your own

painting is the best way

    It has been awhile since I have been creating. Life threw a time of depression and family medical drama my way.  I find that painting is the best way to get me out of my uncreative funk and start up again.  As such I have four new gloves to show off. Please enjoy.

         

        

         I wanted the birds to look like an old Victorian print that had been hand tinted

  

The black leather takes the longest as I have to build up thin layers of white and pastel colors for  the design background.



Painting Gloves

I Love vintage gloves, especially a new- old pair that have never been worn. Even better, is when it is a soft washable doe skin pair such as these. They just don't make lovely gloves like this anymore.  I have been feeling the urge to paint more gloves recently. It's the perfect project to do in the afternoon after dinner, as I can set up a little TV tray and paint away while the huby watches his shows.  I really wanted to come up with a steam punk design that had not been done as yet.   I took inspiration from a lovely Egyptian scarab that was in full wing spread.   I played up the top of the wings mechanics in an almost bone like construction and painted in some detailed wings and jewels.  Hope you like it as much as I enjoyed painting and designing this pair.

Vacuum tube necklace

So,I have these great vintage vacuum tubes and I wanted to see if they could survive the baking process of  having polymer clay added on to them. In anticipation of the carnage to come I placed the tubes on an oven safe plate and covered them with a ceramic bowl.  There were no issues what so ever. I did let them cool down very slowly so there was no shock to the glass.    I think this turned out pretty well for an experiment piece.

Victorian assemblage chocker

I found these amazing copper findings along with some lovely old glass pearl chains from Japan, on Larks Etsy store.  When I opened my delivery and saw them I knew they had to be used together somehow. The metal finding is perfectly rusted and the links on the pearls have a great patina of greens and dark brown. I added my favorite German glass cameo and matching sugar glass drop and mounted it on a layered sari silks on the chocker.  Simple but elegant and a great example of another use for the sari silk

Steampunk assemblage necklace and Tears

Today was an emotional roller coaster. I craft as a form of therapy for my depression, sometimes it is too much to even think about creating ,others I can't wait to get to work.  Today I wanted to work but was in one of my crying moods. I have to laugh about it know because the whole time I was creating this piece I had tiers streaming down my face. I had to turn off the radio because each time a sad or slow song came on I would just start bawling again. I have nothing to be sad about, it's just how my emotional whirlwind of a life roles.  In fact my husband has a love hate relationship with these days, he hates to see me cry, but he loves to make me laugh and see my giggle and cry at the same time.  Any way, here is what I created today from some incredible vintage and new metal findings. I love the middle, it is a vintage pin from and artist sample, the copper is aged and rough but the rhinestones still shine and sparkle.

vintage jet glass bar pin

I have amassed a collection of vintage jewelry in different states of repair.  It is way past time I started using them or begin to find them new homes with other who will.  Today I am showing off a repurposed assemblage necklace featuring a vintage jet glass bar pin, religious medal with prayer on back and vintage rhinestone bits and pieces. It is mounted on a choker created with layers of up-cycled hand dyed sari silk ribbon.  I like to try and maintain the usability of vintage jewelry by leaving pin backs and existing elements. In this case all the chains are looped through the stick bar and alternately through the silk. This way, if wanted, the pin can be removed and reused.