Friday, June 24, 2011

A bit of 'out of the box' fun...

After the creativity prompt series ended - created and run by A Creative Dream, I noticed as I followed her blog, that she does many creative things....and one of them was doodling.

Yep, the same thing we all used (or still) do during classes, at work, at church....whenever we have paper and pencil, and are using ears, but not hands....I know I'm like this (not always.....but a lot of the time). I told myself that one of these days, I was going to try my hand at doing what JC does - making the doodles an artistic creation. So..the thought sat and simmered through the entire year of creativity prompts, until....

I got out one of my ATC cards and decided to see what would happen if I just started doodling. I drew a bunch of curved lines in no particular pattern, and then began filling in the spaces with lines, dots, flowers...whatever. It was kinda fun.....like making a picture that isn't an idea first!

When I was done....I liked it - but it was all so ....black and white. Duh. That's what a pen and paper look like - but then I got out my markers (another of my favorite things that I don't use enough), and added some color. Not a lot....I didn't want to fill it up with color - it was quite busy enough without that!

So now it is done! And the next thing is....what do I do with it? Frame it? Make a card out of it (like that, but I've not made many cards...hmmm), keep it, give it away...
Help me out here, readers! Give me some suggestions....(not including 'good grief, Trish, what were you thinking - I've already done that one).

Here it is in all its glory!

This was fun.....and I just may do it again....even think of a general theme....or not...




Saturday, June 4, 2011

May Creativity Prompt....

...and ahem.....just a tad late - but that's ok!

This time I have something truly new. Some of you may know I have been learning a totally new craft - and it turns out to have (for me) a pretty steep learning curve. But I persevere, and now things are beginning to progress.

What is this craft, you ask? Ah, it is glass bead-making - and by this I mean the torch and the glass rods that one turns into lovely glass beads in the flame. The videos I watch make it look so easy....but in my hands....decidedly not!

There are a few examples of the 'oops' variety of beads on my beadblessed.com site
but since those pictures I have an entire bowl full of them...lol!
I love making the beads, and am steadily getting better at it...

I picked out four (three are promised to some very dear people), which I dress up in some gorgeous filigree caps - two shades of blue, lavender, and albaster pink (love that color!), and this is my 'artist's choice' for this month. Sadly, this is also the last of the Creativity prompts from A Creative Dream - I have SO enjoyed trying to make lovely things to fit the wonderful themes June comes up with. I am hoping she finds another variation on this to continue on with the fun.....have to wait and see.

So, here are my 'Remembrance Raindrop' charms....ready for whatever lovely use you want to put them!



Now to go experiment....and see what new things I can come up with! Stay tuned....


Thursday, June 2, 2011

May is done....and so is my BJP project!

I'm just a bit tardy in posting this, but was thrilled to accomplish at least one thing with my May project - got it done in time!

The 'new' thing for this month was to put an edging around a cabochon in the center of my piece. As usual, I made it more difficult than necessary - and chose what I had on hand, which happened to be a rectangle....grrrr. It is a piece I made back when I could afford to 'experiment' with precious metal silver clay...a distant dream these days! It is a little rectangle of fine silver with the word 'wish' stamped in it.

Funny that what runs through my mind when I see that word 'wish' - is my mother saying to me when I was little...'if wishes were horses, beggars would ride'. Guess that was in the back of my mind as each little section of my project was a different bead, a different color, a different pattern....wishing for lots of things...

It also occurred to me that the element I have been 'missing' in all these projects so far is a unifying theme....the 'do something new' just isn't enough....and now that June is here, that's my new goal for the rest of these little works of mine....to find that element to build each one around....be interesting to see what evolves!

At any rate....without further ado....my May project....appropriately titled "Wishes":


Now I'm really looking forward to June.....with a whole new perspective.....woo hoo!