Art Elements Forest Challenge Reveal

This month's challenge for the Art Elements blog was set by Susan.  To see the original post for the challenge click HERE

I have found with these monthly challenges that I don't actually 'complete' a finished 'thing'.  I think I am challenge... er...challenged....  On the one hand I could have made a collection of glass creatures for this challenge and I did make a few because I was thinking about this challenge but the other part of me thinks I should be challenging myself, it is after all a ..challenge; but what actually happens is I dabble away and never seem to finish what I started.  So here is part of the collection of 'things' that I was inspired to start, with the intention of finishing, for this month's challenge.

First up is this layered illustrative piece.  It is approx 15cm x 15 cm round and is on a wooden disc that I painted with gouache paints in blue and green to create the backdrop for my forest scene.  I then painted using watercolour and coloured pencil, trees in various shades so I could cut them out and layer them to give depth as well as the castle and the leaves.    In this piece I imagined a castle deep in the forest, a magical place that lives in the heart of fairy tales and books.  I had a whole idea planned for this, not least how I was going to mount it but at the last minute I changed my mind - I have a large circular metal 'thing' that I hoarded ...ahem..  thought I could use in the last month's challenge of repurposing.....  but in the end I decided I didn't like that idea and I don't have a shadow box big enough for this one.  

Next up is another wooden based piece and a ceramic owl from Jenny of the team.  I have had this owl piece for some time and he needed to come out of the box he was living in.  I came across the work of  Betsy Youngquist a few years ago and her work has fascinated me,  the patience she has for her work but also the macabre aspect that I feel when I view it.  Take it from me that using seed beads to create a mosiac effect is exhausting and frustrating, as you can see I didn't get all my beads the right way up because those things are fiddly and I got covered in glue!  My idea started with a simple (ha!) plan to create a tree like texture so the owl appears to be looking out.  I quite like the concept but if I do it again I will need to use a different glue as the one I used did leave a residue.

Because I had the theme challenge idea in my head I quite often thought of creatures that might live in the forest.  Influenced by the art of Brian Froud and the words and stories from various authors like CS Lewis and Terry Prachette who bring to life a world we can't see with the naked eye I doodled a few of these in my sketchbook.  The one above is the 'Bird Lady' her hair is a nest of ever green (nothing ever dies or grows old in magic forests... you know... ) leaves and sprouting white delicate flowers, her limbs are twisted and gnarled - but not arthritic! - like an ancient tree.....

Then I had a bit of scrap paper and Bear Time Story Bear was born.  I modelled her purple fluffy slippers on my very own ;)  I am going to laminate her and use her as a bookmark as I seem to have a habit of leaving my bookmarks in the library books when I return them, I just hope they get used by the next person rather than thrown away. 

..and last but not least, Felix the Fox in glass who will be in my on line glass show on Facebook  when this challenge reveal commences, he will be with his other glassy friends, just click on the link if you want to come and see them, but don't forget to pop back and hop the other blogs of those who took part in the forest challenge.

Guests

Alysen

Divya

Evie & Beth

Hope

Louise

Michelle

Sarah

Tammy

AE Team

Caroline

Cathy

Claire

Laney

Lesley

Niky

Sue

Tree Challenge

 Caroline from Art Jewelry Elements gave a challenge at the beginning of September - how time flies as now we are at the end of September! - for a Tree Themed Challenge and I said 'go on then I will play', then promptly did nothing for two weeks.

Panic set in last week and I realized that the month end was dawning and I had no ideas so I picked up my doodle book (most people call it a sketch book I just doodle in mine....) and was flicking through it and found this doodle...obviously it fit the theme.  

I LOVE eyes, I doodle them all the time and this one morphed into the finished doodle is now.

The other night I sat with doodle book on my lap watching the TV and this fellow arrived in the bark of a tree trunk....

...another evening doodle this time I was thinking about my dog walk and the ancient woods I walk through, a corridor of trees that can feel very spiritual and very ecclesiastical and I was reminded, during my doodle, of many Sundays spent in church listening to the organ and so doodled some music notes.  This doodle is actually quite flat and I really couldn't get  a good feel to it so was a bit disappointed but all doodles should be for pleasure and we shouldn't judge ourselves too harshly....

Before glass I used to do much more fine art, mainly pets and their portraits but sometimes I did trees too.  I was once told that to become more able to study a face, be it human or animal then practise 'seeing' trees as each one is different like a face they have unique lines.  Both of the drawings below are artist grade coloured pencil and ink.

This has to be one of my favourite paintings and it hangs in my bathroom.  It is approx 4ft wide and is painted with acrylic.  I am not a painter my use of the brush can be quite messy and I end up with more paint on me than the canvas, I prefer pencil, but I went through a stage of painting and produced many paintings, most of which featured a tree or animal.  This one was inspired by a wonderful trip with friends to Symonds Yat near to me on the River Wye on the border of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire within a few miles of Monmouthshire and the Welsh border.

Even in glass the trees, or more the spirit of the woodland, finds its way into my beads and small sculptures.  The first two beads are my take on the Green Man.

This one is supposed to represent the bark of the tree...

Oddly in glass my muse is whimsical, I suppose really my drawing is now too, being too serious doesn't suit me and I am known for my beads with bums.  This little chap was inspired by my love of everything whimsical, he is the Tree Spirit or Elemental and came about after my looking at the work of Brian Froud.

...and.. this is Trevor and Trevor was inspired by the Tree Theme Challenge....   It is time for all good squirrels to start collecting nuts as Autumn descends the leaves turn golden brown  and ruby red and Trevor here is told by his wife to buck his ideas up and start contributing to the family's stash of food for the Winter and to out into the driving rain and collect enough acorns to stock the larder. Poor Trevor is seriously hen pecked, in fact it has been known that Trevor is a frequent visitor to the hen house just to get some peace for an hour or so!

So after thinking I didn't have a single idea about using trees in art it turns out I have been immersed in a forest of ideas for a good few years!!

I am looking forward to reading all about those that took part in this challenge and seeing the ideas that others have come up with, if you want to blog hop with me here are the links....

AJE Team

Jennifer Stout Cameron

Lesley Watt

Jenny Davies-Reazor

Laney Mead

Niky Sayers

Cooky Schock

Cathy Spivey Mendola

Caroline Dewison

Guests

Brooke Bock

Karin Grosset Grange

Merja Sundström

Cindy Martin Shaw

Allison L Norfleet Bruenger

Melissa Trudinger

Kathy Lindemer

Gloria Allen

Shai Williams

Tammy Adams

Mona Arnott

Terri Del Signore

Art Jewelry Elements Blog Hop Head Pin Challenge.

*blows dust off blog.....*

I have recently joined Art Jewellery Elements via Facebook having long admired and read their posts via their blog and am a very proud member of the 'staff', yes I am one who will write stuff, interesting, intellectually entertaining stuff every month...how do I get myself into these things.....  so I thought that why not jump feet first into a challenge which had less than 24 hours left for the sign ups and about 4 days to create a 'something' that was brilliant!

So sign up I did.  Then instantly worry and debate my sanity.

The challenge is head pins and I 'luckily' had some in my bead box that I made last year.  I don't make head pins as a rule so this really was a lucky find.  These head pins are lampworked glass berries, holly and mistletoe on copper wire.  I had (!) 7 - read on why I had! and a lone holly leaf glass bead.   After a long walk down at the river with the dogs musing on what on earth I was going to create, I had a brilliant  *light bulb moment*....

I would create a sculpture of wire and beads and it would be fabulous.

I obviously forgot the last time I used wire was circa 2000 - head pins not included in this realization.  I just don't make jewellery.

So I gathered my supplies, a vague idea of a sculpture in my head, grabbed a piece of paper and dashed off a doodle of a wreath/garland being held by a fabulously crafted wire robin - the latter will get completed but I ran out of time.. 

The supplies I collected together was some seed beads in greens and silver and gold, some copper wire in various gauges, I found in my stash a rather cute silver tone charm of a Christmas stocking, some silver balls, the head pins and the glass bead.

Next came the quick doodle of the design. I am rarely this organized but with the lack of time I figured it was a good idea.  I thought the scale was about right in the doodle for the garland, in hindsight when I get round to making the bird (should I get round to making the bird) the bird is going to have to be HUGE for the design to work. 

First up bending the thicker copper wire into a round-ish shape.  Not that easy when you are round-ish challenged.. thank goodness for salt pots, I wrapped the wire around the salt pot and it was the perfect size. 

And this is why there 'was' 7 head pins.  As I have already stated, I don't make jewellery and during my wire wrapping of the first head pin I was a little bit over zealous with the wrap and the glass berry bead came away from the wire, I could have glued the wire back in but if anyone has seen me with glue they will know that wouldn't have ended well so I just had to use 6 and be a bit more careful.

Three on and three to go.  I was just seeing how the design would work out with the 6 pins.  After the breaking disaster I did decide to use some seed beads on the wire to separate the glass berry and the wrap and make me less heavy handed in the wrapping.  

We are all wired on including the glass holly bead.. Now to make it look pretty.

I decided to go with the gold seed beads and the green ones, they are different sizes which helped with the over all effect.  

I was quite pleased with how it was going but it really did lack a 'something'.

So I dived back into my cupboard of beads and found some little green drops I liked and promptly spilt beads all over the dog, carpet, table.....  I really should have got out my bead board....

I wired the drop beads in groups of three and the balanced look I wanted started to come through and look right, despite me breaking the 7th head pin.  I added the cute silver stocking charm and declared my head pin challenge a success.

I am still wondering about making it into the sculptural piece with the wire bird - that has yet to be born - so will have to carry on with the wire and my doodle.....

To see more of those that joined in the challenge here are the links ..

Guests:

Alison Herrington

Renetha Stanziano

Karin Grosset Grange

Gloria Allen

Deb Fortin

Cate van Alphen

Mona Arnott

Shai Williams

Sarajo Wentling

Kathy Lindemer

Solange Collin

Brooke Bock

Melissa Meman

Patricia Handschuh

Tammy Adams

Melissa Trudinger

AJE Team Members:

Caroline Dewison

Lesley Watt

Cathy Mendola

Jenny Davies-Reazor

Susan Kennedy

Laney Mead

Diana Ptaszynski

Lindsay Starr

Niky Sayers

Blackberries and mild days of Autumn.

....and as another week ends and we are a day nearer to the onset of Winter, we are still having very mild Autumn days and nights, last night reaching 18 degrees C still at around 8/9pm and did mean that Izabel panted her way through the early hours of this morning before either she, or I, nodded off to sleep in exhaustion.

 

I am still remembering Autumn, the berries and golden vines.

 

 

This bead is one of my favourites of the week, its a big bead with layers of glass, gold and silver leaf and lots and lots of hand pulled canes in which I can mix the colour to get what I want.

Its not always easy to mix glass colours as they don't mix like paint, blue and yellow don't always make green and red and white don't make pink, its a lengthy process of layering the glass and pulling into canes which can be used to 'paint' onto glass.  I am really enjoying this painting style of bead making it both relaxing and meditative and I have found that I prefer to work without the radio on so I can disappear into my own world for hours at a time.

Its Friday!

 

I don't have much to say tonight, which is something coming from me, other than the rain lashing down at the windows after a very mild October day, I am sat at the computer with a cup of tea, I really know how to rock a Friday night.

 

I just listed these head pins, the blue ones, in my Etsy shop but to be honest I just can't find the energy or the inclination to list anymore so I am calling it quits for the evening.  I might make myself some cheese on toast I have a fancy for that right now, and sit in front of the television for an hour before going off to bed to read my book, like I said, I know how to rock on a Friday night!

 

Blue icicle head pins now in the Etsy shop.

Head pin bouquet of lilac buds and leaves.

 A couple of buttons.

A two holed button.

Another head pin bouquet.

Have a fun Friday, it can't be more exciting than mine!!

Wordless Wednesday and a few favourite beads of the week.

My beads can be found on eBay.com or click the Etsy link in the side bar to your left. 

Just beads and weird days.

 

Saturday's are odd days, they are neither a Friday; working day, nor a Sunday; resting, sort of as much as you can on a Sunday for a family that are not particularly religious or follow any family rituals of a Sunday nature.  Saturday's are weird.

 

I walked the dogs, then I came home, no one was here, I stood in the lane talking to people for about an hour, in my wellington boots, then the delivery man came and the postman, I was still in my wellington boots, then I came in, had a cup of tea and went to the studio shed whilst my husband returned home from a night shift and snored his way through the motor racing he had recorded, in the guise of catching up, meanwhile, Izabel snuggled and snoozed on the sofa, Gordy languished in his old cat tree, not the impressive tower in the hall but the more used small version now behind the sofa in the living room and Defi and I went to the shed and listened to the audio book from Terry Prachete, I am still unsure as to whether or not I like all of Prachett's books, I love the witches in his stories but the other characters just don't do it for me but listening is easier than reading them......

 

I was commissioned to make a Robin bead this week, I made a few and have offered them up for made to order in my Etsy shop, I love them, they are cute and colourful and well....Christmassy; don't shoot the messenger, it was a commission remember!

 



I have been making some very LONG focal beads, rather pleased with these two, the top one has been described, not by me, as romantic, I was thinking Victorian elegance when I was making it so I think that fits, the one below is my version of grape vines; I am wondering about my sculptural beads I rather like the more 'solid' versions too, maybe I should try sets like this style?  Who knows and next week is still a day away.

 



Its Saturday night and tonight I am going to finish this crochet poncho I have been working on for weeks, photos will follow in a day or two.  I have been looking at crochet lace and I really wanting to have a go, it looks so delicate and I am wanting to make some lace jewellery with the beads I have been making, so many ideas go round in my head at one time, the luck of the 'artiste' I suppose, but the down side being not enough hours in any one day!

 

 

Have a great Saturday evening and I will chat tomorrow, this Blogtoberfest and 31 days of writing challenge is keeping me blogging!!

Wordless Wednesday.

 

Well, almost wordless anyway; headpins. 

 

These sold this afternoon but I will be making more!

 



 

 

When the days start to shorten and the lights go on earlier and earlier,  the dew is on the hedges in the morning

 

 

and the bumble bees are not as active or busy; I captured this one on my phone just sitting in the morning mist on todays walk down at the river.

 

 

I start to get a bit down.  I am a SAD sufferer, Season Affected Disorder and when Autumn starts turning all the leaves golden and the hedges give up their sloes for gin making, berries for jams and pies and the tall whispering weeds become fluffy clouds of seeds waiting to be blown into their over winter resting places I start to get miserable.

 

Yesterday, I was walking with my lovely dog walking friends when we came across this little chap..

He gives this gorgeous grin on command, such a happy puppy and he is suffering with a skin condition at the moment which has made him itch and scratch until he is sore, his owner said that the vet has told them he is allergic to something so they are now undergoing various tests and fuss to find out what, but he can still give a grin.

 

My lovely dog walking friend said that she too is a sufferer of SAD and what she does is think lovely things that she can look forward to in the Winter.  Snuggling up with a warm drink and roasting toes near the fire after a long walk with the dogs, through the snow and late Winter sunshine, wrapped up in thick jumpers and socks with welly boots that mean you can crunch the ground whether it be snow or heavy frost.  Seeing the trees shed their leaves making huge piles on the ground that the dogs can charge through and play in.  Watching Defi roll in the muddy fields and knowing I have to go home and bath him seems to cheer her up too, although I am not sure its something I look forward too!

 

But I can look forward to toasty days with the kiln and create my beads, or sit with warm drinks and write my stories in the kitchen or even...

 



finish my crocheting with my favourite little friend, Gordy my little cat, he whose stories we write for Cat World Magazine each month.  He has taken to my unfinished poncho and sits with me whilst I try and finish it, I have plenty of yarn so will be busy this Winter in the evenings.

 

I have plenty to look forward too when the nights draw in and the wind calls at the windows.

 



A few beads from this week, just to remind myself that I have lots to keep busy with.