Fini Friday! An Unusual Balance!

Hello Hello! 

Welcome to Fini Friday! 

I've a whole bunch of the unusual to show you today! 

I took a break and a brief trip to some of the woods on our property this afternoon. What glorious colours!!! I had to share them with you! 

How is this an unusual balance? I'm not certain how many others besides me are blessed to be able to travel to the woods on their breaks and breaks are, of course, part of the balance of "work" and play! 

The remainder of this post is devoted to the finishing of a creation that is unusual for me and that has languished too long in mid-growth! Here are the materials.... To the left is a new tag that could be used to attach to a cow, bull or steer for identification (with a wire-wrapped Wild Heart Swarovski Heart in Jet Black), black velvet ribbon drapes across the middle and a Fairy and her Serpent pendant are to our right. I love using materials that are meant for something other than jewelry, so the use of the cow identification tag is not unusual for me. The Fairy and Serpent pendant is not my usual style and came to me in a batch of nifty beads and materials from another artist! I decided to challenge myself and design something with these two companions  and the their overt sensual nature than re-gifting her to someone else. 

In keeping with this challenge, I decided to modify this pendant so that it was became the bar portion of a toggle-and-bar clasp, with the identification tag being the toggle.  Here's the back of that pendant, showing the wire-work that turned this into a bar portion of a clasp. 

Next is a close-up of the focal-clasp all complete!

And finally, the necklace in all it's completed glory!

Title: Sensual Balance

Ingredients:  Cow Identification Tag (plastic), Swarovski Crystal Wild Heart (Jet), Velvet ribbon, metal, copper wire.

There are so many delicious details in this necklace creation and I'm so pleased with it!

So, there you have it, a Fini Friday all finished!

Have an excellent weekend!

Ciao! 

P.S. Want to know where I and Sprite Creations will be "in person" next?

Oct. 12th, 13th and 14th, we'll be at the Saint Paul Art Crawl in the Atrium of the Lowertown Lofts Artist Coop! 

This is the 20th Anniversary of the Saint Paul Art Crawl and it would be lovely to have you celebrate it with us! 

Whee! 

  

Whimsy Wednesday! Playing With Materials!

Hello Everyone! 

Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday! 

I hope your week is flowing well! It amazes me that this is Wednesday! 

I didn't have a particular idea in mind for this blog post, so I picked up some wire and beads that I haven't used in ages and played! 

This is what grew out of that playing! 

Title: Let's Play! 

Ingredients: Carved bone, Cultured Pearls, antiqued copper wire, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires(hypo-allergenic).

 I started with the carved bone beads because they reminded me of games that include boards with indentations in them meant to hold markers of any sort, marbles, seeds, etc. The pearls are meant to evoke the idea of those markers or game pieces as I wanted it to look like the game was in process already. The two pearls of each color hanging off the sides are the spare playing pieces that have not yet been used. I'm pleased with how this turned out and hope you are, too! 

This second creation is also a pair of earrings, again using beads that I haven't played with for a while. 

This design came together quickly and, though simple, has a lot of colour and texture going on! 

 

Title: Flowers of Industry 

Ingredients: Swarovski crystals, Czech glass, antiqued copper wire, surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic).

I love the idea of flowering, growth and whimsy, even in the midst of potential toxins, dis-ease and hazards. 

So, there you have it! 

Another Whimsy Wednesday at an end! 

I look forward to seeing you on Friday! 

Ciao! 

P.S. Want to know where I and Sprite Creations will be "in person" next?

Oct. 12th, 13th and 14th, we'll be at the Saint Paul Art Crawl in the Atrium of the Lowertown Lofts Artist Coop! 

This is the 20th Anniversary of the Saint Paul Art Crawl and it would be lovely to have you celebrate it with us! 

Whee! 

Magical Monday! The Magical in the Mundane!

Hello Everyone! 
I hope your weekend was most excellent! 
Mine was, full of errands and meetings, yet also the excellent company of good friends, excellent conversation and nummy food! YAY! 
Today's post has a decidedly mechanical and extraordinary-mundane feel to it! Let's get started! 
I love everything about what this photo captures! It has a working title of "Concert Solidarity" and credits for it are here.
  

 This second bit of Magic can best be summed up by the title, "A General's Birthday Wish" and credits and details about it are here.
So incredibly awesome! 






The last bit of magic I have to share is about a man in Honduras building a helicopter. 
The link to the Youtube video is here and it is entitled,"Everything is Incredible". I love that idea! I don't know if his helicopter can fly or not...but then...perhaps that's not really the point of it. Perhaps the point was to simply build and complete the helicopter...Take a look at the video and see for yourself! 

And that wraps up another Magical Monday! 
Have an excellent next few days and I'll see you on Whimsy Wednesday! 
Ciao!

Fini Friday! Precision & Play

Hello Hello! 

Welcome to Fini Friday!! 

I hope your week went swimmingly and your weekend looks peachy! 

I've been busy this week with various projects and cooler weather preparations around the home. This also means that on the warmer days, my motivation to complete indoor tasks was not high! Hee! 

I'm pleased to have a few very-patient-and-finally-finished creations to show you as well as a charming little fellow that I found on one of my Walkabouts this week! 

First up are the finished creations that have been set aside for some time now. As might be guessed upon sight, the designs and materials were gathered at the same time. 

Title: The Gritty Beauty of Industry 

Ingredients: Glass, Acrylic, oxidized Sterling & German Silver (Sterling Silver earwires).

This is one of the new experimental designs using oxidized Sterling and German Silver metals. I'm sure I'll almost always prefer the shiny, yet there is a certain enchantment with the oxidation pattern and the gritty ambiance it lends to the design. I'm quite pleased with the juxtaposition of that feeling and the precision shapes and crisp white and clear colours.  There is much to admire about this creation!

 

Onward to the next creation! Title: Fire Geometry Ingredients: Amy Fill Glass, Swarovski crystals, Acrylic, antiqued copper wire, Surgical Steel earwires (hypo-allergenic).   I personally selected and purchased the sunflower yellow and flame orange spiral beads from Glass Artist Amy Fill. She is no longer creating art beads and so these are truly one-of-a-kind! I love the concept of the unlikely marriage of precise shapes and the very organic nature of fire! 

And now, that charming little fellow I picked up on Walkabout!

I believe that's a hand-blown glass whale! The colours are so delicate! A beautiful peach fluke and fins accent a clear body and little round eyes! I'm not certain what he's destined for, but I knew he had to come home to the studio with me! 

So there you have it! 

The fini of Fini Friday! 

Ciao! 

 

P.S. Want to know where I and Sprite Creations will be "in person" next?

Oct. 12th, 13th and 14th, we'll be at the Saint Paul Art Crawl in the Atrium of the Lowertown Lofts Artist Coop! 

This is the 20th Anniversary of the Saint Paul Art Crawl and it would be lovely to have you celebrate it with us! 

Whee! 

Whimsy Wednesday! Faerie Keys & Nests and New Nostalgia!

Hello Hello!

Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday!

I hope your week is fabu so far!

This has been a week of many blessings and fun in my world so far!

I'm still happy every time I look at the photo of that nifty gargoyle I posted about this past Magical Monday!  Hee! He's so awesome!!!

There has also been a computer upgrade in the studio which is a great happiness! As some of you may know, we tend to run Open Source software or utilize Mac whenever possible around here and so when upgrades to my OS were needed, the switch was made to...(drumroll please)... Commodore OS !!! Yes! Yes! It is true!! Commodore is back!!!!

This is my first day test-driving the OS and I'm so pleased with it so far! It is truly bringing the fun back into computers for me!! So many visual shinies!!! And little sound effects and nostalgia - oh my! Hee hee!!!

Yet more happiness is a new Shiny to show you!

Title: Faerie Nest

Ingredients: Faerie Key (hand-coloured resin from a hand-made mold), Glass, antiqued copper wire.

This is the first of my Faerie Key series. These are keys created from hand-coloured resin I pour into a mold I made from vintage keys. I'm in the midst of refining the mold process and the Faerie Keys, so the first prototypes will undoubtedly be woven into other pendants, such as this Faerie Nest! I'm excited at the possibilities of these keys! Stay tuned to see what happens with them next!

I'll end this blog post with a heads-up as to where I and Sprite Creations will be "in person" next!

Oct. 12th, 13th and 14th, we'll be at the Saint Paul Art Crawl in the Atrium of the Lowertown Lofts Artist Coop! 

This is the 20th Anniversary of the Saint Paul Art Crawl and it would be lovely to have you celebrate it with us! 

Whee! 

See you Friday! 

Ciao!

Magical Monday! An Owl, A Gargoyle and Levitation!

Hello Everyone! 
Welcome to Magical Monday! 
I hope your weekend was fabu!!! Mine was! I was honored to attend beloved friends' Fairytale Wedding!  It was truly amazing!! Many good wishes and love and Congrats!!! to the happy couple! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYYY!!!

Today I have a post for you that could be straight out of a wizard's world! 
Let's ease into the magic by starting with the more mundane! 
Owl Tree!
Mother Nature is a truly awesome artist! 

This next Magical bit is a most excellent yard companion and I'd love to give him or her a home in our yard!!!!! 
Giant Inflatable Gargoyle!!!!
I "heart" everything about this wonderfully detailed, heart-warming and mischievous beastie! In case you've fallen in love with him or her, too, here is where to purchase/adopt him or her! 

And now! 
Where Science and Magic meet!!! 
A short video about Acoustic Levitation and how it's actually being played with in laboratories right now!!!
What is Acoustic Levitation and how does it work, you ask? Click here for more details at How Stuff Works.com! 
So awesome!!!! Whee!! 
So!! What a nifty, magical, science-y (which I'm certain is a word!) start to your week! 
See you on Wednesday! 
Ciao!

Fini Friday! Cats and Cases!

Hello Everyone!
Welcome to Fini Friday!
I hope your week has been grand so far!
I have a bit of news about additions in the studio and a new creation to showcase to chat about in this blog post!
Let's start with the studio additions!
I acquired new-to-me display cases as I was on Walkabout on Wednesday!
These will need to be cleaned up, possibly have the display fabric changed and etc. I'm very much looking forward to playing with these! Here is a group photo!
And a few individual cameos...
 
I love the white-washed wood and all of the character in these! They are somehow more organic and approachable in their not-perfect condition!

And now for the new creation!
Title: All About Cats
Ingredients: Jasper, Sunstone, Lapis Lazuli, Kyanite, Bali and Sterling silver, cable, lead-free pewter, metal.
I love all the little details about this, including that cat-and-mouse-clasp! This necklace has been languishing for years as I fought with the balance of a simple and stunning yet not boringly repetitive design. I wanted the carved cat to be the unequivocal center of attention, yet surrounding her with gemstones that had their own brilliance and beauty was in order so that the entire creation glow with elegance and understated beauty. I think it does! 
 One little note about this piece... it is not quite Fini. I'm in the midst of restocking the crimps I tend to favor using and so used another type to (almost) complete this necklace. They reminded me of why I choose to use the type I do and so I'll be re-stringing this necklace with my favorite crimp when those come into the studio! 
Just one of those fascinating little peeks into an artists' life and all the details and work that we do to create the best art we can! 

And so! There we are - all Fini for now! 
Have an excellent weekend and I'll see you on Monday! 
Ciao!

Whimsy Wednesday! A Fairy, Her Prince Charming and Stars!

Hello Everyone! 

Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday! 

This WW is a bit of a continuation of another posted a few weeks ago and a love story all in one! 

Whew! 

Let's start with the continuation! I first introduced you to the focal beads in this necklace in this Whimsy Wednesday post. Some of them have grown into a complete necklace creation! 

Working Title: Quilted Stars 

Ingredients: Polymer clay stars (prototypes hand-crafted by Serena Mira Astra), Czech glass, stretch cord, metal, lead-free pewter.

What a lovely, softly-coloured creation! 

And now for the love story!

This next creation is a wedding present for friends who are planning a Fairy Wedding, complete with Fairy Wings, mushrooms and much, much more! 

 It will be so much fun and I'm really looking forward to it! 

Working Title: A Fairy and Her Prince Charming 

Ingredients: Squinkies (rubber), Bali silver, Czech glass, metal, sterling silver earwires (hypo-allergenic).

I was so pleased to find this Fairy with her darker-coloured locks as they match the brides much more closely! 

YAYYYYY!!! 

So, that's it for this Whimsy Wednesday! 

See you on Friday!

Ciao!

Magical Monday! Discoveries!

Hello Everyone! 

Welcome to Magical Monday! 

This post is heavily influenced by Science!, different perspectives and discoveries about our known and unknown worlds! 

Let's start with an unusual view of our more mundane world.... 

Source credits are here! 

 

Do you see the word "Pow!" and the Batman-style bat? Pretty awesome, eh? 

This next image is another very intriguing perspective... 

Source credits here! 

Amazing how that, due to merely a reflection, a person can hold a world between 2 fingers! 

The last bit of Magic I have for you today is to introduce you to the Tardigrades! 

What are tardigrades? 

Click here to find out! 

Absolutely astounding! 

See you on Wednesday! 

Ciao!

Fini Friday! Growth Spurt!

Hello Everyone!

Welcome to Fini Friday!

I hope your week was good and the week-end looks to be even better!

Today is a good, old-fashioned Fini Friday post where I have a finished creation and a creation that experienced a growth spurt after languishing for a long while to show you!

Let's begin with the finished creation!

You may remember this past Whimsy Wednesday where I introduced some bead-frames I was playing with... One more earring creation grew out of that experiment, which is below!

Title: Ruby Jewel, Framed.

Ingredients: Czech glass, lead-free pewter, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic).

 

I love those Czech glass window beads and the idea of a frame within a frame and so forth! Also, aren't those luscious colours? Mmmmm! 

Onward to the newly-grown creation! The inspiration for this necklace is Australian Aboriginal culture. The dots-as-design style is something that can be seen on digeridoos, bullroarers and other items unique to this culture and can be seen on the round red beads with dots of cobalt and sky blue as well as sunflower yellow. 

Dolphins are said to be messengers to and from Dreamtime, which roughly translates as Nirvana/Heaven/Divine Unknown in other cultures. Hence the beautiful dolphin pendant at the center of the necklace creation! 

Each of the jewel-shaped glass beads represent both the colours of the rainbow and also colours commonly associated with each of the seven chakras of the human body. So, there is much meaning, myth and magic woven into this creation already! 

As you can see, the creation still needs a completion in terms of clasp or a way to secure it around the neck. I'm also considering painting the dolphin pendant with hand-coloured resin...I'll ponder it! 

One more update around the studio before the weekend commences! 

 

Here is where I'll be tomorrow! 

Fall Art Festival 

Saturday, September 8th Only! 

10am to 4pm City Center Market 

122 North Buchanan Street Cambridge, MN (USA)

Hope to see you soon!

Ciao!

Whimsy Wednesday! Portraits of Growth!

Hello Everyone! 

Welcome to Whimsy Wednesday! 

I've been playing with bead frames and bead caps today and have a few little vignettes in the form of earring pairs to show you! 

Let's get started!

Title: Portrait of a Rose

Ingredients:  Swarovski crystals (rose, olivine), Czech glass, lead-free pewter, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic). 

I love these bead frames! They remind me of vintage picture frames and so spark my imagination to ponder what to fill them with and the stories to be told in doing so! 

 

Here is another portrait and another story! 

Title: Portrait of a Gothic Flower Ingredients: Czech glass, lead-free pewter, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic). 

The beads within the frames shaped like flowers have a wonderfully darkened iridescent coating on the back, lending a graceful, gothic feeling to this creation! The faceted glass beads closest to the earwires are edged with a weathered gunmetal finish, completing the gothic beauty of these earrings! Ah! You can almost hear the stories being whispered out loud, can't you?

I'm looking for a little bit of input from you, the reader, regarding this last creation! 

Two titles popped to mind and so I'd like to hear your thoughts on which is a more suitable title! 

Working Title #1: Another Time, Another Rose 

Working Title #2: Roses Show the Way 

Ingredients: Swarovski crystals (light amethyst), Lampwork glass roses (Artist Unknown), hand-finished brass bead caps, Czech glass, metal, gold-plated surgical steel earwires (hypo-allergenic).

So! Let me know your thoughts about those titles and I'll see you on Friday! 

Would you like to see these and my other creations in person? 

If you're in the central Minnesota(USA) area this Saturday, you can! 

Here is where to find me!

 

Fall Art Festival 

Saturday, September 8th Only! 

10am to 4pm City Center Market 

122 North Buchanan Street Cambridge, MN (USA

Until Friday!

Ciao!

Temporary Tuesday! Flights of Fancy!

Hello Hello! 

Welcome to Temporary Tuesday as it stands in for Magical Monday! 

I've a more imaginative post for you-all today! 

Let's start out with the more mundane and end with the more fanciful! 

I love this Harry Potter Quilt! I would proudly display it in my home! 

How many nifty items can you identify? 

The Sorting Hat? 

 Hedwig? 

Heeheee!!

One of the conversations with a treasured friend this weekend was about the Tiny House movement. I investigated a little about this on teh Intertubes and became enchanted by the Vardos, more colloquially known as "Gypsy Wagons". This is a Vardo that is hand-made by the Book Artists who use it to travel and sell their wares and in which they conduct their classes. Read more about it and them here! 

It looks like fun to me! I might have to consider something along the lines this, yet as a Faerie House! 

 

And finally! 

The awesome thing that I've been excitedly waiting to show you-all! 

A remote control Dragon!! 

Jet powered! It flies AND....! Breathes Fire!!!! Wooohooo!!! 

Click here for the video!

One little note of where you can find me this weekend!

 

Fall Art Festival 

Saturday, September 8th Only! 

10am to 4pm City Center Market 

122 North Buchanan Street Cambridge, MN (USA

Until Wednesday!

Ciao!

Magical Monday on Temporary Tuesday!

In celebration of Labor Day, I'm moving Magical Monday to Temporary Tuesday!
See you tomorrow!