creative gallery archive 2009

[Stacy]

My eldest son (who has had some difficulties at school) was recently told at camera club that he had a real eye for photography.
As he is never really picked out for anything other that his behaviour I thought this was brilliant and decided to enter him into the local village fete photography comp for under 12s (he's 10).

However, after he picked out the category (portrait) and a photo which he wanted to enter we were told at the competition tent that we had missed the entry time and the pictures had already been judged.

It was such a shame that he didn't get to show off his piccy I thought I would put it up here for you guys to see.

I just wanted him to know how very proud of him I am and any thoughts or comments you might have I shall pass directly onto him!!

[theflyingbedstead]

I have been making more mosaic cane bundles using 2mm Bullseye glass sheet following on from Diana East's masterclass.  These bundles have taken several weeks to produce and the largest (the white one) has 168 seperate sections of glass in it.  I have to say that my glass cutting skills have improved quite a bit recently!












I am taking them to the lovely people at Liquid Glass this afternoon, where they will pull them into cane.  Fingers crossed that they hold together ok...I used 250ml of PVA sticking em together.  I love playing with PVA glue...

I hope they'll be ready in time for a class I have with Di Saturday week.

[theflyingbedstead]

Well...

Ben took some great pics this evening of the canes and some of the worked pieces made at Diana East's Studio 19 on Saturday.  Kim from Liquid Glass did a fantastic job pulling the canes, and the red / blue ones were the best.  The green ones delaminated in places...such a pity, and after speaking to Kim and Diana East, it is thought that the Bullseye aventurine glass may have compatibility issues.  The pale mauve bundle delaminated too in so many, many places...I am gutted as I spent so long putting the bundle together.  I have been sticking the sections back together with masking tape and pva in the hope that they can be rescued by re-heating in my kiln.  I am experimenting tonight, so I will let you know how I get on!  Once I have established what went wrong then I can update the Bullseye resource - hopefully it won't happen to others, as it can get expensive.



The red and blue bundle produced a fabulous thick cane which Diana cut into three big chunks for me and we shaped them into three large beads on the flat lap coarse disk.  I will smooth them a bit more with diamond pads and then tumble them.  Diana also polished a smaller section which is in the centre of the picture.  Photos don't do it justice though, as you get the colour and depth when you move the section in your hand.  We also ground some end caps - these are the thin slivers of cane, which I can slip over the end of a bead...



The pale mauve bundle did produce some large sections which we polished, and I have cut some murrini from much smaller canes:



The green and purple cane also allowed us to cut some chunky beads and endcaps...these will look so vibrant when I have flame polished them in my kiln...



I have popped in an order for some diamond grinding pads to use on my ground beads before they are tumbled...hopefully they'll arrive by Wednesday evening...can't wait!

[Chameleon]

I made a handbag, based on Amy Butlers Birdie Sling pattern with a couple of amendments -



there are work in progress pics on my blog if anyone is interested 

[Stacy]

Here's a leather sholder bag I made this weekend..
This is a draft version as I kind of threw it together and think it can be better.  
I'm going to play around with the strap, add a large glass lentil as a button/clasp and maybe do some embroidery on the flap.  

[Zoe]

That is really lovely

Zoe

[Zoe]

I now only do these on rare occasions as they take me far tooo long!!!!

[Stacy]

I mentioned a few days ago that I was trying to come up with a pressie for the lady at school.

This is what I came up with after hunting down some copper sheet!



Its free standing and about 10cm in diameter with a glass cab stamen.
The petals look really flat in the photo but in real life they have an outward curve making them a little more lifelike.

[Blue Kiln Beads]

Here are some knitting projects that I have been working on for a while.  The cardigan is my first ever knitting project - there is a picot edge and moss stitch border.


I am going to be an aunty soon, I don't know if I am getting a niece or nephew so I decided to knit this blanket in neutral colours.  It is nearly finished, just needs wadding added and backing.


I have now got a baby jumper on my needles - hopefully I'll get it finished before the baby grows to be a toddler.......

[Steampunkglass]

Doubtless all you needlework people have already seen this technique, but as I don't venture often into the strange word of 'thread and needle' I'd hadn't. I was trying to make a new coat for myself, and last one I made (actually it was first thing with sleeves I'd ever made) I struggled to get the sleeves on, and this time it was even worse. Needing a dummy, but not doing needlework often enough to warrent the expense  I came across this;
http://www.threadsmagazine.com/item/3659/clone-yourself-a-fitting-assistant
It's fantastic! I got my other half to help cover me in gaffa tape, and I am now seachig out old rags and pillows to stuff myself with! Only downside is a rather nasty bulge where my stomach is that I think means more salad and less pies!   

I am not taking a picture of my silver spare body, as the amount of stuffing I need for it is rather depressing!  This might however be quite handy technique for anyone planning some halloween fun though, as you could probably put mod-rock (the plaster of paris impregnated bandage) over it to make it more solid.

[Zeldazog]

Ok, so I said the other day, that after a bad few days, something nice happened in the print room at Uni.  Certain smutty minded people likened the print room to the bike shed or the stationery cupboard, tsk, tsk (you know who you are).

So here it is.  It probably doesn't show up nearly as lovely as it is in the flesh, but I have been experimenting with laser cut lino (block printing lino this is) - as I am casting from it into plaster, and then will be trying to make ceramic tiles and glass panels. Well, before I started casting with it, I decided to try some blind embossing (using a printing press and plate but no ink, so you just get the texture) of the laser cut lino.

This is the result - its not been photo-shopped in any way, the colouring is purely where the printing process has picked up the burnt lino.

I think its a lovely effect (I am quite pleased with the graphic too).  I love printing anyway, whether it's block, or monoprint, or collagraph - I am supposed to be developing the casting side of the work (I am on a Crafts course after all!) but I would love to do further laser cut lino prints....

(click for larger pic)

[Lush!]

Here's mine (rubbish picture, this was the best of an appalling photo session, I blame the weather)



They make great stocking fillers in boxes - these are coming to the Handmade show in Oxford at the weekend



Anybody else got any to show?

[Hamilton Taylor]

These were a thankyou gift, for a class



Cool, no?

Sean

[LesleyMac]

I have been experimenting with painting in wax and it is a fabulous medium for anyone thinking of trying it, the idea is to combine this with glass eventually, Pipyr on LE is amazing at these.

These are my experiments so far


Poppy Fields





Graveyard






Moon Garden






Landscape with birds

[LesleyMac]

and some Abstracts


The Net











Oh and another landscape


Stormy weather






Sorry to hog.