Coming up for Air

       I have been lost in computer land lately. I don't see myself leaving anytime soon either. I do think I need to change a few things though. Let me explain. 

      About six months ago I embarked on a new adventure. Something I don't have any experience in at all. I started making graphics for a video game. I had a little experience with photoshop and by that I mean very little! I had no experience with blender which is another software that is even more complicated than photoshop if that is possible. So for the last six months I have been working hard trying to learn how to use these two software to accomplish what I need to do.

     It has been mind-bendingly hard. I am fairly good with technical things but blender makes me feel like what I thought was good is nothing. It deals with all things 3d. Modeling, animation, texturing, particles and so forth are what I play with most days now.  It has called into question my abilities as an artist. I am persisting though because I love it! I really do. Every time I make something it gets more exciting. The things I made 6 months ago look terrible to me now and I am sure the things I make now will look terrible in 6 months but I am continuing to improve. I don't plan on stopping with this project anytime soon. 

      BUT, and this is a big but, I miss my art. I know what I am doing is art but it isn't the same. The screen is great but I want to touch my art. I want to get my hands dirty and play with colors, splash paint, squish clay, bend wire. I'm not sure what, but I think I need to do some hands on art.

      I am thinking of giving myself a day each week where I do a project. Not anything to sell probably, maybe for the house or for me or gifts. I do think it is needed though. 

      I also want to write a few things about what has been going on with the house. We have continued to work on it. For quite awhile we were planning on selling so things halted but then we decided to stay. Now our plans are up in the air but the work goes on. I can definitely say though that this house has greatly improved and I am really starting to love it. 

      So all this to say I think I will start writing here again. I didn't see much use in writing about what I am doing now, although if there is anyone out there interested in my graphics work let me know and I can throw a post in now and then covering what I am doing there. So here I go again. I am quite excited *grin*

    Can't wait to talk with you all again. Hope you are having a great week!

And We're Back!

photo for attention. *grin*

Excuse all the hiccups while I get this blog back up and running again. I will sit down soon and try to catch ya'll up. 

How Life Gets in the Way

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Autumn Tree

Hello all, I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer despite the high temperatures in so many places. I have been fortunate with the house here on the mountain. Since it is built into the mountain the downstairs maintains a nice cool temperature even on the hottest of days. It’s like built-in air conditioning without the cost! Though I think we pay for it in the winter.

Kumihimo Beaded Bracelet

I am steadily working on my new collection but I must admit it has been hard. Though I had high aspirations of working on design ideas when I was on my trip to the US, that was not the case. But I don’t regret this. I enjoyed every minute of my trip and all the people that I was able to visit. Then when I arrived home I was sure I would be right back at it but jet lag reared its ugly head and I wasn’t functioning for a good two weeks if not more. When I finally had a clear head I hit on another problem. My muse had left the building. I could not come up with one good idea so I spent the last month frittering my time away on a bunch of disconnected pieces.

Finally, I feel like I have a theme going and ideas are starting to arrive. Of course, as soon as this happens I have to leave again. A week away in Bretagne to go to our dear friends’ wedding. It’s true that I am looking forward to seeing them and attending the wedding but once again I am off course. I am not sure how to solve this problem. Each time I leave, when I return it seems to take forever to find my place again. I told myself that I would release four collections this year. Right now I think I will be lucky to get three done. I know there is no way to do four. Who knows, there might only be two.

A row of mica resin leaves.

All of this to say…I am sorry for any delay. I am here. I am working daily to make new pieces. This is a whole new way of working for me so I guess it will take time for me to find my groove. Does anyone else have this problem when they go away?

New Experiments

I have been experimenting quite a bit the last few days. The final vestiges of my jetlag seem to be falling by the wayside and I feel my mind opening up and beginning to be creative again. I brought home a treasure trove of fun stuff to play with. New paints, micas, tools and mediums. Much fuel for a creative fire!

I have been tossing a few ideas around for my new collection. I had planned on fleshing it out more when I was on my trip but vacations really are another world aren’t they? I completely just let it all go and so I came home with not many more ideas than I left with. Loss of sleep further deterred me but finally, I am making some headway.

I learned a new technique this vacation from a dear friend. She makes awesome pieces and let me play with her tools. This dotting technique is just lovely in how it works up. It is a bit tricker than I expected and I am having to really work to get it right. I am pretty happy with the last few things I did though. I know I have to get more even and exact with those tiny little pinprick dots but I am working on it,

I also had a try at mixing my own paint! I bought some lovely pearlescent mica pigments and mixed this wonderful pearl white and gold paint myself. Although I am still not happy with my tiny dots I am getting the fluidity down and the dots are smoother. I have to wait for a few things before I can finish this experiment but I am happy with what I have made up so far.

What do you think of this method? Do you like it?

I have been experimenting quite a bit the last few days. The final vestiges of my jetlag seem to be falling by the wayside and I feel my mind opening up and beginning to be creative again. I brought home a treasure trove of fun stuff to play with. New paints, micas, tools and mediums. Much fuel for a creative fire!

I have been tossing a few ideas around for my new collection. I had planned on fleshing it out more when I was on my trip but vacations really are another world aren't they? I completely just let it all go and so I came home with not many more ideas than I left with. Loss of sleep further deterred me but finally, I am making some headway.

I learned a new technique this vacation from a dear friend. She makes awesome pieces and let me play with her tools. This dotting technique is just lovely in how it works up. It is a bit tricker than I expected and I am having to really work to get it right. I am pretty happy with the last few things I did though. I know I have to get more even and exact with those tiny little pinprick dots but I am working on it,

I also had a try at mixing my own paint! I bought some lovely pearlescent mica pigments and mixed this wonderful pearl white and gold paint myself. Although I am still not happy with my tiny dots I am getting the fluidity down and the dots are smoother. I have to wait for a few things before I can finish this experiment but I am happy with what I have made up so far.

What do you think of this method? Do you like it?

Finally

Another failureLast time I wrote here everything was still in upheaval. I was deep in the throes of unpacking and tying to settle into a life of living in two places. It took quite awhile to sort everything out and get to a point where I could create again. But time smooths most things and I fell into a rhythm. And finally, yes finally, I managed to complete my collection. The break-thru moment was when I was able to create the resin pieces I wanted. There are a lot of methods out there and I discarded them all. None satisfied me on their durability or looks. Now I am able to make pieces that I feel comfortable selling. Once this was accomplished I started to play 😉 I am constantly amazed at just what you can do with this amazing stuff! It’s like the strongest glue you can find. It is an amazing glass substitute. You can add things, build on it, just so much you can do!

sparkly, pink and bubbles. What's not to like?

So now my latest collection is finished and I publish it in two days. I am so excited to finally be here. I have learned so much along the way and gained much valuable experience. Making a collection is nothing like making one piece of jewelry. It involves a lot of planning and failure but now I feel confident to go forward with that knowledge and make another collection! And that is exactly what I am doing. I am already hard at work in my head, planning and designing a new collection. So I hope you enjoy my latest one “Flight of Dreams” and be sure to check back in the future for my newest creations. I will try to do better about posting my experiments along the way. I get so lost in the process that I often forget to take photos.os.