Labradorite chips, german glass beads and antique metallic lace....

Embellishment has begun. My favorite part.
I love the look of Labradorite....they are kind of grey, but with a subtle glow of fire within.
The white glass beads on her head piece and her tail are from Germany, circa 1940's.
The antique lace on her sleeves is beautiful golden metallic work and her bodice is crystal beadwork.

Shards of abalone......

The tail, while aready in form, has now taken shape.
Abalone shards like beautiful deep opals whisper the siren's song.....

Texture and Treasure.......prelude to the Mermaid

For me, the first step in costuming a piece is to reach into my drawers of antique trim, beadwork and various embellishment pieces. For me, that's where inspiration lives.

I have collected so many fabulous treasure pieces over these many years, but sometimes I find myself unwilling to let these gorgeous trims leave my clutching fingers....however now I've decided that it's time to let go and use these pieces more freely on my artwork. What am I saving them for?

It is the beauty and quality of these metallic laces, 100 year old netting pieces and amazing beadwork that really infuses my creations with incredible energy and rather than hold back, I'm challenging myself to let go.

The mermaid now has a tail of capice shells.
Little shell disks, so fragile and beautiful.
Along with the capice shells, I added abalone shards and micro beads....and some white velvet leaves.

A salute to a young goddess.....on her 8th birthday

Here are some other photo transfers that I've done.....

From a photo into a faerie....

Kobain's birthday is coming up very soon.
She will be 8 years old. My mermaid has to wait while I take a photo of her and turn her into a faerie queen.

I am not a painter. I started to paint when I was in my early 20's but when I turned to clay, I never turned back to painting.

And I am into instant gratification....so creating a painting by the use of a photo transfer gives me a sort of hands up, and allows me to have fun and get a great result. I'm going to put a class together on this method because it's so easy to do.
So I'm photographing each step along the way.

Here's the 3x5 photo.
Come back tomorrow to see the finished painting. It's so much fun!!!

Shells, coral and quotes....what makes you happy?

Foil, apoxie sculpt and shells.......the foundation for the mermaid.

I thought I'd share some fun quotes on happiness that I just came across.......

"It's a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy." Lucille Ball 1993

Aristole: To be is to do.
Voltaire: To do is to be.
Frank Sinatra: Doobedoobedoobedoo


"Happiness is butterfly which, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you."
Nathaniel Hawthrone

I hope your day is happy.

A Shy Rabbit.....

My White Rabbit is refusing to face the camera! He says that he will only turn around on Oct.27th for the Durwaigh Show, so look for him, in all his glory, then!

This "Wonderland lies Within" piece has been so much fun. What I love the most about this piece are the found object embellishments that found their way into his costume and onto his body.....the coral for his fur...fabulous red seeds that drop on the dirt road that runs behind the house....the French handwritten journal pages with the date 1882....and his fun shredded scarf that I think maybe is part of an old fishing net....and the pine tree needles that I used for Alice's hair.
I love the challenge of thinking outside of the box.

And now onto my mermaid. The paints used on her are acrylics done in washes. I've only painted her face and her hands as the rest of her...her arms, torso and tail will all be layered with embellishments.....both fabric and ...oh, who knows what will show up! So her body, tail and arms are just sort of sketched in right now.
I think she will be holding a baby mermaid coming out of a small shell.

A tale of a tail.....

I love walking the beach here with the intention of gathering inspiration and I am always gifted with great finds.
The little puffs of hair on The White Rabbit's forehead, feet and his tail are actually bits of a delicate white coral that wash up on the beach. I've dried it in the microwave and preserved it with Powertex ( which is like Paverpol ) and it's just the perfect touch.
Wait till you see the fabulous scarf the he will wear too.....found on the beach...

Today in the studio there was a lot of waiting for glues and sealers and crackle glazes to dry......so I started a new piece.

Here in Hawaii I have no distractions and so I get to be in the studio every day....unlike when I am in Calif. where there are so many distractions and I never seem to find much time to create. So I really value my time here and I sculpt each night so I have something to work on in the studio during the day.

Tomorrow I think the The White Rabbit will be done.....I'm a little sad because it's been so much fun being with him every day.

A new French jacket .....

I didn't have much time in the studio today.....but I did get to begin the jacket and the collar......and applied some grout on The White Rabbit's body to add more texture.

Today's progress.......

Today the White Rabbit got his fur, and Alice got a home....thus the name "Wonderland lies Within"

Now as the apoxie sculpt cures over night I have to decide whether to make him a jacket out of fabulous handwritten French journal pages from 1880! or create a different kind of costume. I'm leaning towards using the French journal pages because they are so amazing!! I have used them on the bottom of the piece and then gave them a crackle glaze and an antique wash.
They are from a journal that I found at a Paris flea market and the handwriting is so beautiful. Evidently it was a business journal of some one in the antique business and he lists what he sold by date and by description. If only I could read French!