Klimt Veneer Continued ... Day 3

Still uncured, going as far as feels comfortable, and finally making notes, something I fail to do, much to my chagrin a year or five later ...Pendants and earrings here ... a trinket box is about to be cured, but not yet photographed. The heart will have a pendant/brooch finding.

327 Years and Counting

Just back from a road trip down the Eastern Seaboard from Georgetown SC (a very sweet town) to Key West, less sweet but pretty cool.

 I'm somewhat obsessed right now with turquoise (waters).  I'm always somewhat obsessed by turquoise, but that's another story.

Also, fresh from a vacation, or perhaps I should say a break, since road tripping that distance in just over 2 weeks with six people isn't exactly relaxing, no matter how much fun it might be. 

And it was.  Exhausting.  Fun.

So, upon returning and spending two days doing cat laundry, our laundry, and remembering the most basic of Things Which Must Be Done Daily, I returned to the worktable determined to use up every bit of  clay, beads, findings and assorted I've held on to through several destashings, gifts to local school arts teachers, etc.   This is either before or commensurate with the painting supplies, canvases, oils, watercolors, acrylics and colored pencils, papers, canvases, brushes etc. 

If I opened an art store tomorrow, it would rival Cheap Joe's or Blick's  for at least a week. 

This is where the 327 years come in. It will take that long, at least, as long as I do not buy anything other than fill-in to finish this or that.  Ear wires.  Chain.  The once a year 2 oz block of orange I like.  

That sort of thing. We live long in my family, but this may be pushing it. 

The focal in this piece, as well as the two triangular beads in earrings, were made about 6 years ago.  I made a statement necklace which I then couldn't part with and these remained. (pictured) There are still 3.    The faux faux amber (I wasn't trying to make amber, just the color) are from the red bird pendant I made earlier this year,  the turquoise ovals and heishi from The Stash.  I used 20 including the 2 large beads.  Okay, make that 479 years. 

They don't look like Florida so much as they feel like it, at least to me, and my friend Sheila who is lucky enough to live in St. Augustine, says I got that right. 

Red Bird Mosaic Pendant and Necklace

January 2016   Red Bird

A spontaneous sketch ... two sessions later. a Mosaic Pendant

 

A thin layer of gold Premo was applied to the back before baking just enough wider than the front to accept the extruded bezel. An admitted afterthought, but useful to know. The bail was then added as well.  

A hollow cord was used (shown off-center) to allow wire to be threaded through but to have soft material to protect against wear on polymer bail.  Wire required to accommodate coral beads.

The beads were made from scrap from the tesserae (tiles); the large beads made from translucent clay tinted with alcohol inks.  Beads were lightly buffed.   Red beads are dyed coral.

A polished black chain was used to complete.  It is 25 inches long and is intended to slip on over the head. 

My Blue ( mosaic) Cross

Added to my Etsy shop today  $24 including shipping in USA. 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/patibannister

 

Ivory Keepsake Box

I am in the process of pulling things together for the "Misadventure" box, so took the opportunity this morning to photograph a box I completed about two weeks ago.  
I am very happy with the flow of the design, which reminds me of the sea .... it is quite elegant and feminine in feel.
This box is cedar, and covered in textured and carved pieces of  white-ecru polymer clay.  Graceful curved areas were left and then filled with handmade circular motifs, also carved.  In some, tiny aquarmine beads were inserted for delicate contrast.
The interior of the box as been antiqued, as has the bottom.  The underside of the lift-off lid has been signed. 

Cedar Faux Ivory Cigar Box

I am so pleased with this box, and as often happens in such cases, I've held onto it for a long time. I made it out of a white-ecru mix which I textured, then cut into I don't know how many narrow strips and covered the entire exterior, including the bottom. Once that was done, and the box cured, I sanded and buffed and then applied a glaze of raw sienna and burnt umber. A striped agate bead I especially liked was then fixed to the top, a narrow black bezel created and the piece was cured again to fuse the glaze and cure the clay bezel. I've left the interior natural to allow it to be used for proper cigar storage, and cut a removable dark brown suede piece for the base. The box is 5 3/4 inches long, 4 1/2 inches wide and 4 3/8 inches tall. The entire exterior of the box is covered, including the bottom. I have signed the underside of the lid.

A Bit of the Blues, Cross-Wise

A bit of the blues today: Woke up to find a small waterfall occuring in downstairs entry hall; seems a pipe from upstairs had sprung a leak...end result for now a hole in the downstairs ceiling and a big hole in the wall between the upstairs laundry and master bath. Two fans a'blowin' for the next 2-4 days to dry everything out before repair.

The upside, no doubt had this gone on for another few hours or so, the laundry and maybe part of the bath would have been in the entry hall. Mixed feelings about that as I wouldn't mind a bath remodel...oh well. Stuck, as I was, I took the opportunity to upload this bangle and earrings to my Etsy shop along with a tiny bit of my too-many-beads stash and rephotographed two of my pretty crosses.

David and I went out for a nice lunch.

Could have been much worse.

On the Worktable from Monday . . ...

When I started making my color stacks last Sunday, I was inspired by the colors outside; brilliant Carolina Blue skies, autumn leaves and shades in between. This was my greenest stack, comprised of gold, bronze, two blues, two greens, two yellows and a dash of alizarin and pom reds.
I'm especially pleased with two things: The surprise of learning how to make a herringbone or modified bargello design due to an unintended cutting of the stack, and the wonderful way the odd bits, when cut into tiny circles made that delicious focal bead into a complex and rich mosaic.
Some finishing yet to be done...a fragment of the stack is visible; also can be seen, I think, on the larger picture posted earlier.

Hand Carved Artifact Bangle Bracelet

I loved making this bangle as well as a number of others using similar techniques. I built the mosaic on a simple bangle base; tiled inside and out for comfort and strength. The textured tiles are patterned from an original design of my own, and are accented with circular tiles and small individually made balls. The piece has been glazed with a burnt umber-burnt sienna glaze.

The inside is also tiled and signed. The interior diameter is just at 2 3/4 inches, medium to medium-large in size, and the width of the bangle is 1 1/2 inches.

It is currently in my Etsy shop.

Square Bling Mosaic Bangle

Another bangle, using some of the grout sticks (thank you Laurie Mika) from my tessarae box along with several hand-painted squares, on a SQUARE black bangle with gold and silver leaf channel edges. Soon to be in my etsy shop.
Very blingy...can't capture the sparkle.

Stropple Cane Inspired Bangle Bracelet

Two forces inspired this piece...one my desire to use up pretty bits and pieces and two, the wonderful technique of Alice Stroppel, Stroppel cane. I don't work with canes, except once in awhile, in the most basic way, but thought it might be possible to cut tiny pieces of lots of colorful scraps, layer them between thin sheets of black polymer clay, squish them all together and then slice.

By their nature, the slices were less complex in design than they would have been had they been canes, but with some careful running through the pasta machine, interesting blends formed. I then sliced the results into thin strips and affixed them to a previously cured black bangle base.

Thank you Alice!

Tiny Squares Mosaic Bangle

As the year approaches its end, I have felt the need/desire to use up as many of my little bits that I felt to interesting or pretty to mush up. This is another bangle designed to help in that quest.

The piece is made entirely of polymer clay, tho' tiny bits of leaf are evident here and there. The squares were built on a cured polymer substrate.

Marbelized Bangle

I love working with leftover bits and peices and know many of us do. This bangle reminds me as much of marbelized paper as anything.
The piece is made entirely of polymer clay; the scrap mokume gane added to a base bangle.

Day 6: Coral-copper/gold striated veneer applied to center motif......crisis! While the colors looked fine together I expected the coral to deepen more than it did in curing and simply didn’t care for it. After a day of looking at it.....

Day 7: Dremel Stylus to the rescue ....not only did the carving dilute the strong color contrast, but I found I loved the element of additional texture

July 22 2011 Cedar Box in Progress

Day One: Cedar box, gessoed black and incised with Dremel Stylus to establish overall design.

Day Two: Top covered in Polymer Clay (using old fashioned Terra Cotta school clay) at various thicknesses to establish dimensions of design. I then textured the “cross” motif with a ball tool, and incised the outer “frame”.

Days Three & Four: The sides were covered (two each day) in the same manner as the top.

Day Five : The textured areas were antiqued with straight black acrylic paint, forcing paint into the grooves and divots, then wiped.
Then the center motif was dry brushed with a mixture of metallic gold, copper, green and black. Three very light applications were done to achieve sufficient contrast with the outer area with was simply wiped.

Next I will apply polymer clay veneers to the "raw" terra cotta areas and set stones, most likely turquoise, in the centers of the motifs.

June 19 2010 Faux Venetian Glass Tile Mosaic Pendant

June 19 2010 Faux Venetian Glass Tile Mosaic Pendant,
originally uploaded by pati b.

I have always loved mosaics, and must admit that I am having an absurdly wonderful time making these pieces. I am loving working with all sorts of colors and trying different mixes (much as when painting). Even the hand-sanding, buffing and waxing is fun as this is when the colors come to life.
This pendant is 1 3/8 x 2 3/8 , finished with a gold aanraku bail.

April 27 2010 Pear "Kiss" Box

April 27 2010 Pear "Kiss" Box,
originally uploaded by pati b.

Various views:
3" square paper mache box box; polyclay, burnt umber/red oxide acrylic glazes; polish.
Box interior; metallic acrylic

The pear image is a transfer made from one of my paintings; the tiles are all textured with stamps I've made.

Feeling art-starved at the moment...between excitement and trip to Boston to welcome our first grandchild, needing to help hubby with a few Furniture Market projects for his showroom and planning - setting up garden I've made nothing for several weeks.
A Flickr contact posted this from a site which as a lot of cat art inspired by famous paintings, and I fell in love with it...isn't she wonderful!
I've been missing painting for awhile and might have to see what I can do about that...so many ideas so little time.
Sometimes it's bewildering.