Still feeling awkward as a new bride in the studio

Toyed with this old drawing as a Heart a Day brooch.  Would probably combine copper, silver and brass but it's just not grabbing me enough to push through this awkwardness.
Perhaps down the road a bit.


Repaired the ding in my rolling mill that happened during the move.  Pleased it wasn't any worse.  It's my most expensive piece of equipment.

 This is kind of calling to me.  A sterling compote thrift store find from back when silver was cheap. Imagining a Heart Brooch from a mix of these scraps.

More dinking around.  Two silkworm cocoons cut and tucked together.  This could be fun.  They're super light weight yet darn tough. Ripe with potential.
In my mind I imagine silver inlay but seriously question how to pull that off.
These are charming to hold and cogitate possibilities.

Are you Ready? 18 Days until Art-a-Day January 2016!!!

I'm beyond excited to launch into Art-a-Day 2016! 

Will you join us?

This is day 3 in my new studio space since selling our home and significantly downsizing 6 months ago. I am so excited to start making again. 

I'll be returning this year to a long time idea of making 29 totally unique heart brooches/pins and building a display for them, something like a February Heart-a-Day advent calendar (including leap year) of one-of-a-kind wearable hearts.  

Part of my goal is to stretch creatively both in design and materials. Last year during Art-a-Day January I completed five pin/brooches.  Below is the first: steel construction strapping and sterling silver.  Wonderfully Steampunk in look and feel. 

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Raw - Bottle Caps

Heart Brooch #5.  Twenty three more to go.
I wanted to go more Raw this time so looked through my stash of found treasures and scraps. Bottle caps are one of my favorite finds on walks - but they have to be 'ripe' with enough patina and destruction to give them interest. I cut a heart from brass to hold them.
I'm not happy about the composition and might darken the brass to quiet things down-  but I continue to learn - and continue to improve and be pleased with my soldering skills.  Not sure why I still fuss and fret so much - except there is always a chance the whole thing can be ruined in a nano-second. There are 12 separate welds. Each time the heavier brass base must be brought to red hot without melting the finer components or previous welds. There is a general easing of breath and shoulders when the final bit is soldered and all is well.
You might need to zoom to see the front left bottle cap.., "MMM...My Favorite"

 (Brass, sterling, found objects)

Front                                                                                       Back

Components                                                                                      In process         

Felted Bleeding Heart Flower

Well certainly an interesting adventure on this one. As with each, I see how I'd like to improve on it.  Which I might do once I complete the series. 
I look forward to setting up a proper photo booth.  Quick phone-pics at the desk are pretty, meh.  

Art Nouveau Heart

Completed brooch.  Sterling silver and copper.

In Process

In process:
I found this drawing in one of my old sketchbooks. It feels both Art Nouveau and Mae West to me.
I love the colors but they will change with additional soldering.  The little silver ball near the top was supposed to be the round tip of the curly stem but I moved at the wrong time and now it's set. I kind of like it. Seems ripe with meaning. :)

Day 6 Rawhide Heart Brooch

Ta Da!  

I wanted to to do something lighter, more delicate and the rawhide seemed a fun, quirky notion. 

So pleased to get this completed today. I think it's cuter than the picture captures. The agate "leaf" is a bit flat and washed out.     

Day 5 In Process

My cryptic in-process picture for today.

In process

Got a late start in the studio. Totally a random, redirect and let go process today. Here's a teaser picture.
Will finish it tomorrow.

a simple doodle, colorized, manipulated

a wild and crazy doodle, original

Wild & crazy doodle, colored & textured in PS

It seems only fitting to end the last few days of the month with doodles, since that's how it began. So here's a wild and crazy doodle for a wild and crazy day full of numbers, errant receipts, and a wasteland that was once a memory which can't seem to remember from one year to the next how to do a simple excise tax form. Whew, glad that's over, and I'm a day early.

The image was sketched with ball point pen on a lined tablet. (I've got enough art supplies, and still I reach for whatever's closest.) I colorized and manipulated the doodle in Photoshop, and then added texture with the crosshatch filter.