Saturday, December 20, 2008

Can I have it now, puleeeze?????



This is Boots. Boots is doing what we call his 'bear trick'. He does this when he wants something (like a yummy treat). Boot's is a very polite dog, he's never messed with the Christmas tree or with the presents under it. But he loves Christmas, and knows exactly when it starts...the day I pull out the decorations.

He will not leave my side until everything is in it's place. He noses each present as it goes under the tree, but he knows, just like any little kid, that he has to wait until Santa comes and makes it official.

There is no cue when that will be though, and the anticipation builds and builds. Last night a new present went under the tree...he 'helped' to wrap it even. I walked out of the room and when I came back I noticed him with his head to the floor and thought I heard a paper crinkling. 

I rushed over and sure enough he had a present there...nice and soppy wet from him licking it. Now here's the thing...when he's given a package he rips the wrapping right off, just like any eager kid. This wasn't torn at all...but that's not what is amazing. He had pulled HIS present out from under the tree. 

There was no give away that it was his...no scents, no sounds, no obvious shape. And he had to go through a few other presents to grab this one. How did he know? Even if he figured out it was the only package that he hadn't helped put there...how did he know that? Sometimes I think these doggy friends of ours hide their 'light' behind affable grins just to keep us guessing. 

Anyways, I put the package right back where it was and told him 'not yet' and it hasn't been touched since. But I think Santa better hurry :)

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Latest Wearable Art design - Shimmer

Shimmer Designer Necklace
This is my latest Wearable Art necklace, Shimmer.

I designed this one to be flexible so that it would have movement and catch light in different ways. It wasn't really an easy design for a perfectionist...I like every i dotted and t crossed.

I had to let go of that, though, wire is springy and although it is a thick enough gauge to be sturdy it is still bendable, so the many components are able to be shaped to an individual person's form.  

The bell cones are based on the practice of Native Americans use of cone shaped shells as decoration. The cones are made of a pale blue polymer clay and then hand embossed with a fine silver metallic powder, then sealed. So they look blue, silver or a combination of the two, depending on the light.

If you notice, the glass beads around the neck are glittering in some places (click on the photo to see this piece on my shop, then zoom to see detail). That is because part of the beads have been treated with a photo emulsion and as the beads spin on the wire base they sparkle like little jewels :)

Every component on this piece moves in one way or another, bouncing or turning. But the main frame does hold it's shape unless manually adjusted.

It really shines on bare skin, so would be lovely with an open necked top or dress.

I think maybe I've strayed a little from my usual minimalist approach but sometimes whimsey is just as appealing :)



Sue
http://www.1000markets.com/shops/ninedragons

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Fantasy and Reality


A few of my fellow members at The Wearable Art Market live in the southern climes and have been saying how much they are missing the change of the seasons, and mostly, snow.

So I thought I'd give them a nice snowy little view of the hills behind our house. I took this photo early this morning and about five more inches have fallen since then.

One thing about pretty little fantasies is that there's usually a not so lovely reality lurking around behind the scenes. 

The photo below (and my aching back from shoveling the driveway and front stairs) is a good example :D






Enjoy those balmy days, ladies!!!








Monday, December 15, 2008

Wearable Art Market feature - Art for Your Head

I've talked about being a member of The Wearable Art Market at 1000 Markets on this blog and while you may be familiar with my wearable art jewelry maybe you haven't had a chance to see some of the other member's work there.

So I thought that each week I'd feature one creation from each member of our group, starting with DreamWoven, our Market manager, just to whet your appetite.  

The name of the hat featured here is 'Ambrato'. This is part of the description of this fantastical creation:

This hat is a freeform creation done with a combination of techniques.... felting (fulling)and needle felting. She is made from bits and pieces of fulled (felted) merino, alpaca, llama.... needle felted to achieve the 3 dimensional quality (the ridges as well as the ruffles in the back)... I used an absolutely drop-dead gorgeous amber ("Ambrato"), honey, butterscotch, hand dyed merino as the accenting colour to the different shades of greys and browns. The embellishment of the domed vintage wood button (very reminiscent of the contours of the hat itself) along with the handsewn Adventurine beads, makes for a wonderful focal point.

Trust me, this is just a wee taste of  some absolutely beautiful and innovative pieces of her art that are also wearable. I've an eye on her fey series hats...they have adorable side tassels that look like the cutest little pigtails, I think my granddaughter would love one :)

Sue
http://www.1000markets.com/shops/ninedragons