The Return of my Muse...

August has been a whirlwind already! I just dont know what goodness to share first. After focusing primarily on the harp music, my muse wanted to play with mixed media again and she truly outdid herself. Earlier this year Kara at Mother Henna organized a personal healing and inspiration card deck. She did a marvelous job of coordinating between all the artists and we were rewarded with a gorgeous deck of cards. I've been wanting an appropriate place to keep my treasured deck, but just didn't know what I really wanted. My polymer clay was calling me so I went there to start. I love playing with UTEE overtop of my clay to give nice depth to pieces. I began to wonder if I could recreate one of my cards in clay. I started by sculpting out some fish in a pearly orange mix. I added some scales and fin detail then brushed over a layer of a yellow pearlx to make the little guys shimmer. OK, I decided that these were useable. Now I had to make a pond for the little swimmers. My first try, I painted a pond right on the box lid, surrounded it with clay rocks and filled with UTEE. When I baked this one, the UTEE bubbled up really bad. I ended up scraping it all out and redoing. I still had alot of bubbles, but it was ok. Unfortunately the rocks weren't creating a seal and the UTEE was leaking out of the pond and I couldn't achieve the depth I was looking for. It still turned out cute, and you can see the first one in finished form atop the purple box.

My second attempt, I made the blue water out of clay also, made sure I had a good seal around the rock bottoms, and tried again. Success!! Much better level of depth on the orange box topper. I continued to play with the purple box. I used a mixture of 4 or 5 paints to do a mottled background. I made large polymer clay rocks, drilled holes in the bottom corners of the box, and added the rocks for legs.

I added swirls of glue and coated them in 2 colors of glitter. I glued down a braid of fibers to add more texture. On the end of the fibers I tied 2 polymer clay hearts. Finally I added metal word tags such as dream, inspire, hope. Some of the metal tags have a glass bauble glued over them to make them pop.
The orange box was made using many of the same techniques. I used various stamps to add a discreet pattern that adds interest and depth. I sculpted a large goldfish to dangle off the fiber braid end. I added a star crystal to dangle from the middle of the braid, and a small swarovski crystal to brighten up the other end. I used letter stamps to add words as well as metal tag words.





Oops, I almost forgot about the inside. I used sticky backed felt, cut it to size and lined the bottom and sides of both the lid and the base to give a cozy finished look to the project.




So, what do you think? I had so much fun making these because I got to play with paint, clay, stamps and fibers all at once!




Lets see, I have adventures at the fair and an overnight camping trip pictures (I went dragonfly hunting with my camera) to share but I think that will wait until my next post. It seems amazing that its August 6th already. I want the remainder of summer to crawl by because it has been beautifully relaxing and rejuvenating. I do hope all of you are experiencing the same.

Another card for the deck

Sorry for the long time since the last post. Time just seems to slip away sometimes. I have been doing art, but just haven’t gotten to posting anything. Anyways, for today I would like your opinion again. I made both of these cards with thoughts for the Healing deck by Mother Henna. I'm not sure which would be better for the deck.

“Beauty Lies Beneath” was made for all the times we judge by first impressions or someone’s outer appearance. When we fall into this trap we miss out on getting to know the true person we have encountered. If we keep an open mind and block out judgment we can look with our heart and discover the treasures and beauty present within others.

“Love Unconditionally” was inspired by my dogs. They are always there with a friendly face and soft fur to bury tears into. They seem to know when you need something. They cuddly up right next to you and look at you with their big soft eyes and say “its gonna be alright” or “you’re the best.” Its been proven that spending time with your pets can lower your blood pressure and improve your health. I would love to see a thorough study of what having a pet does for your emotional health.

The text of both is not really on the card yet, I photoshopped it to see what it might look like, so that may change a bit. The “Nurture with Nature” card will be one of my two. Which of the other two would you rather see included in the deck?

In other matters, my Gramma spent some time in the hospital this week. I am very thankful that she is okay and home now. If you are lucky enough to still have your grandparents around you go tell them you love them. In fact, make a point today of telling people what they mean to you. So often we assume that they “know” how we feel, but can one ever get tired of hearing those precious words “I love you”? Embrace what you’ve been given and enjoy it while you have it.

Mother Henna's Personal Healing Deck

I worked on one of my cards today for the personal healing deck project sponsored by Mother Henna. I'm showing it here in hopes of getting some constructive feedback. I want to add the words "Nurture with Nature" or "Nurture in Nature". Originally I was going to use a monarch butterfuly, but I loved the spots on this one. Its a buckeye butterfly. It is done with acrylics on cardstock. I used the 2.75 x 4 inch size so I wouldn't have to worry about reduction later. The corners will be rounded for the deck, but I was afraid to round them myself in case they wouldn't fit the deck.
I chose the theme of nature because it is a source for much of my creativity. Things I see on my morning walk will often come out in sketches later in the day. When I'm feeling emotional just going out and sitting by my garden helps me work out what is bothering me. There are so many tiny miracles that happen without notice everyday. The transformation element of the butterfly is extremely useful to us when we are feeling uncreative, or in need of a change. If a caterpillar can complete such a drastic metamorphosis, what prohibits us from changing anything? It is very easy to become comfortable with routine. I am one of the worst offenders for this trait. The problem is that my routine can prevent me from branching out to new things, new people and new ideas. Stagnation may be comfortable, but it doesn't help me achieve all that is possible. Watching how things change in nature reminds me that change is not a bad thing. Change is necessary to growth. By embracing the miracles of nature, I open myself to seeing things in a new way and not being afraid to test out new things.
What makes you expand your views or try new things? What holds you back?