"Hey, if I had somewhere to go, I certainly wouldn't be in Cleve-Land." -Howard the Duck

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Spring is in the Air

I'm eagerly counting the days until Spring arrives...and we can say good riddance to winter.  Spring cannot arrive fast enough, so I've been creating some pretty little boxes to welcome it's arrival.

The pretty flowers are sure signs of things to come.

And Easter will be here before you know it.  These would be a sweet addition to any Easter Basket, especially with a pretty little gift tucked inside.

These & other altered matchbox gift boxes are currently available in my Etsy shop, KittenCreates.  I'll be adding to the selection as I finish new sets...please stop by to take a look.  Thanks!

Friday, February 24, 2012

Mail should be beautiful, too...

My friend Kimber has been inspired lately...she has been busy sewing paper to make some awesome collages that can survive a trip through the USPS.  I know they can...she sent me one of her Valentine postcards & it arrived safe & sound. 
Kimber is selling her original collage cards in her Etsy shop, Kimberiginal.  She has these beautiful postcards & notecards available there.  These are original collages, not digital copies, which is nice as the texture of the stitching adds so much to their appeal.  Each one would look stunning framed & hanging on a wall.  You can see more of Kimber's art on her blog, A Journey in Creativity

Please support independent artists...we really appreciate your business.  Thanks!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Wire Wrapping

More Egyptian inspiration...and some more experimenting with wire wrapping.  I like the fact that "sloppy" wrapping can be a desirable outcome...sure makes the process less intimidating.  This is actually a small charm...under 1.5" with the jump ring.  I've had the stone donut for years...and after seeing a photo by Christine Hansen in our ArtCharms group of the wire wrapped donuts she designed, I decided to try it myself...and I'm glad I did.  Thanks, Chris!

Then...somehow this little guy made his way into my studio...perched on his little matchbox.  I really like him...he's got lots of personality for a lizard.  He might need some friends soon.



Tuesday, February 21, 2012

It's Mardi Gras!

We'll be celebrating tonight with Shrimp Etouffe...how about you? 

Laissez les bons temps rouler!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Walk like an Egyptian...

Or at least keep making Egyptian themed charms...I know I can't stop myself!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Bast the Cat Goddess

So here's what I've been up to lately...the ArtCharms group is having an Ancient Egyptian swap.  As soon as I saw the swap announcement, I signed up & ordered the brass Bast charms.  I knew just where to get them...from StampDiva, who has awesome stamps & supplies, including a very wonderful selection of unusual charms & beads.  I already had one of these beautiful cat charms, so I got to work designing around that. 

Since spirals are a big motif in Egyptian artwork, I took the plunge & attempted to make a wire spiral...my wire working skills needed some polishing up...so I jumped in & tried the coiled spirals.  To my surprise, they were easy to make & it was fun to hammer them flat to work harden the wire & give each coil a bit of personality.  I'm no longer intimidated by wire after making so many spirals for this swap.

After struggling with some tiny seed beads that I loved, I had to admit defeat & switch to a slightly larger bronze seed bead to use with the chunks of turquoise for the final element of my charm.  I do love how the elements came together in this charm & they're now all completed & will be shipped off to the swap hostess soon. 

I went a bit crazy with the packaging for this swap, too.  Years ago, I was in an ATC swap where we were each assigned a letter of the alphabet to use for our ATCs.  I was lucky enough to get "B"...so I created the ATC you see above...without the charm, of course.  I simply scanned in my ATC, resized it to fit in the small zip bags I use to package each charm, & used those as my ID tag.  The back has a sticker with my name, email, blog & Etsy shop links on it so each swapper will know who created the charm.  The Bast image on the ATC is from 100 Proof Press & the column is Stampington & Co.  The cool brass safety pin gizmo is from SkyBluePink.

I'll be making additional Egyptian charms for my own use & will need to decide what to create with the swap charms once they return home sometime in March.  This has to be one of the most interesting swaps I've been a part of in a long time...and I'm looking forward to many more this year.  If you're looking for a fun & challenging swap group for art charms, be sure to check us out here.