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Fairy Wings and Pookie Fur

I have been working on stuff for my swap partner in the Witch/Wicca/Pagan Swap on Craftster and I know that my partner likes fairies, so I have been working on fairy wings.

These were made from wire, beads, glitter and transparent liquid sculpty, I used these instructions. They were easy to make and turned out well, but unfortunately I made 2 left wings, d'oh! I will be making at least 2 more (right wings this time) and I do plan on painting the back or something since they are plain and the beads are hidden by the sculpty. I have to paint the wingless fairy and then insert these wings and she will be finished. For this swap I need to make 2 small items, 1 medium, and 1 large (the size refers to crafting time, not actual size) and this is my large, I have almost completed the 2 smalls, (just a bit more gluing), but I have not started on the medium yet and the package must go out on Saturday.

On a non-crafty note, I have also been busy doing some cat grooming. My cat, Pookie, has super long, extra silky fur and every spring when she sheds her winter coat she ends up a matted mess. It is my fault for not brushing her properly and to fix this problem I usually shave her.

Here is the pile of fur (almost enough to make another cat) and unfortunately, there is still more that needs to come off. Don't worry, she actually likes being shaved and grooms (licks) me while I groom her, but it does take quite a bit of time to accomplish, I wonder if I could make something with the fur, she has an endless supply, anyone have an idea just let me know!

Bargain Hunter #5 Package Received

I got my swap package on Saturday, but I have been a bit distracted with other things to share, until now.

Here's the full package. There are several cup type organizers and 2 plastic divided organizers, 2 day of the dead hand painted skull canvases, an eyeball picture frame, a decoupaged coupon organizer, 2 vintage magazines, and a vintage crafty book.

Here's a detail of the skulls, notice the sequin accents and you can also see the top of the eyeball frame. (If you look close you can see where some of the sequins and eyeballs have fallen off.)

Here's a detail of the vintage book and magazines, the one in the middle is my favorite, it has several purse patterns and at least 6 apron patterns, yay!

This is the bottom of the box, as you can see there were a few casualties, but a little glue and everything will be good as new.

All of this for $5.00, wow ollieorange! I love this swap!!!

Strangest Project Ever, Update

Okay, my partner in the bargain hunter swap round #5 got her package yesterday, so now I can share. I had been having artist block when it came to this swap, I just could not find anything I wanted to make and finally, one night while I was playing with my kids and there new play dough toy it came to me moustache necklace.I used the little molds on the toy to make the moustaches and beard out of polymer clay. I don't know if it is something that my partner would actually wear, but it was made in the spirit of fun. As you can see she also received a gear pendant and the zombie bunny patches, I think I did pretty good for only having a $5.00 budget.

Strangest Project Ever

I have just finished working on the strangest thing that I have ever made. It is for my swap partner in the Bargain Hunter round 5 swap on Craftster. I will be sending this package out on Monday, so I don't want to spoil the surprise so I'll just say that it involved this:As soon as my partner receives I will post the whole story.

Yard Sale Finds

It is the peak of yard sale season here and today I really scored at the American Lutheran Church Rummage sale! I found two vintage floral comforters for $2.00 each, I think that they will make great bags. They are in the washing machine right now and will spend tomorrow hanging on the clothes line and hopefully that will freshen them up a bit. The floral fabric is on both sides so I will have plenty of fabric to work with.

This vintage apron complete with rick rack trim, it is to small for me, as most vintage aprons are, but it will make a great addition to my collection and it was a steal for $1.00. This is not the best picture, it is a really cute apron and after being washed and pressed it will be good as new.

Here are the rest of my finds: a heart shaped tin $.10 that will be covered with polymer clay, a wire art kit for $.75 the copper wire will be fun to play with, a watch for $.25 which will be taken apart for the gears, and a purse for $.25 that I'm planning on taking apart for the hardware and handles.

T-Shirt Recon

I've been seeing a lot of t-shirt reconstructions and when I saw this peeps shirt I knew it would be perfect. They are quick to do and you don't ever need a sewing machine.

It's a XL men's shirt with no shape, not a good look for a zaftig girl! I cut the bottom and the sleeves off and reshaped the sides. I used the bottom to make lacing for the sides and neckline.

I like the more fitted version a lot better, although I may have made it a bit to short. I think that it needs some yellow beads to put on the ends of the strings. Now that summer is here I think that I will be making several of these, they're a great alternative to the plain tank tops that I normally wear.

I also think that I need to touch up the roots of my hair, it looks like I'm going grey!

Zombie Bunnies

So I've been crafting away for my swap partner(Bargain Hunter Round 5) and I was working on a few extras for the package. I wanted to make her a stenciled or painted shirt, but it just wasn't in my $5.00 budget, so what about an iron on patch...hmmm. What to put on the patch, I checked her profile for things she loved and saw bunnies and zombies, what about zombie bunnies? I googled "zombie bunnies" and there were over a dozen pages, wow, who knew? This threadless shirt was my starting point and I came up with these.

Here they are after painting, but before outlining. I just traced the sketches I made using pencil onto some muslin type fabric and painted them with acrylic paints mixed with textile medium.I outlined them with dimensional fabric paint, I think it made them look more evil. Once they are dry I'll fuse some stitch witchery on the back and cut them out and then they will be ready to iron on anything!

Altered Journal-A-long

PhizzyChick on Craftster has started an altered journal-a-long thread and I am going to join in. I bought a book at the local thrift store for $.25 and checked to make sure it was not valuable(internet sources indicated that it is worth $4.00 - $5.00). It's in decent shape, the corners are a bit worn and the pages are yellowed, but that just gives it character.



I really like the look of text behind the images so I decided to white wash my first pages using acrylic paint and water mixed half and half. I opened to a page near the front and was just looking it over when the word "climax" caught my attention. I decided that I would read the two pages and see if there were any other naughty words and phrases(yeah, I know I have a dirty mind). I found several and decided to mark them with squares. When I painted the pages I just left those words exposed.I'm now waiting for it to dry. As I was painting I was thinking about all the conversations I've had with several of my good friends about our significant others and all of the intimate details we've shared and that is what this page is going to be about, sex and friendship. I should get to work more on this later in the week, so look for an update soon.

I'm on the Front Page at Etsy!!!

My Gear Head Messenger Bag is on the Etsy front page, I'm so excited, this is the first time I've been on the front page, YAY!

Yard Sale Finds

I am so addicted to yard sales and thrift stores, I can hardly wait for Saturdays! Today was an excellent day for bargain hunting.

I found a vintage Skyway suitcase in decent shape for $2.00, an adorable picnic basket for $1.00, a large brandy glass with the world ugliest candle wreath(which is already in the trash) for $.25, and an embroidery hoop for $.25.I also found a bag of 18 pillowcases for $2.50 and a stack of 7 round tin trays for $.50. I have big plans for most of my finds today. The suitcase will be gutted, all that stinky old fabric will be removed and replaced. I will also paint the outside, probably a soft blue or pink and then I will paint or maybe decoupage something on the side and it will become a dress up case for my daughter. The brandy glass will be used for a plant it's just perfect for keeping my kitties from munching on the foliage, but allowing in light and air. The embroidery hoop will be used to make a screen printing frame and the trays will be painted, decoupaged and sealed and used for holiday treats. The pillowcases will be made into pillowcase dresses for my daughter, a couple of summery tops, and maybe a couple of reusable grocery bags. The picnic basket will most likely be left as is, I just have to make some place mat/silverware holders and cloth napkins and we will be all set to have a family picnic! So many projects, so little time, if only I had a maid, a nanny, and a personal assistant!

The Resin Experiment

I have been wanting to try resin for a while now, it seems like one of those things "everyone" is doing. Unfortunately that means that almost all the resin jewelry I've been seeing is made with the same six molds. After reading The art of resin jewelry by Sherri Haab I was inspired to use polymer clay to make my own bezels. I shaped, baked, and finished the clay and then began the process of arranging the watch gears(salvaged from old watches I bought at yard sales). What worked best for me was putting a layer of black glitter in the bottom of the bezel and using that to hold the gears and other bits in place. I did not glue anything down. I then mixed the resin according to the package directions and poured it over everything, I did try to dome the resin a bit, but since the sides of the bezels weren't perfectly even that did not come out quite as planned.
Here they are with the resin all cured just waiting to be drilled and made into pendants. The polymer clay worked great for making forms for the resin and I think the possibilities are almost endless combining these two mediums. I am very pleased with how this project came out, especially for a first attempt, stay tuned for future projects!