Life of an Item with Emptynestegg

I would agree that I really don’t need more beads. Sometimes you can not resist the temptation. Surely I can go to a bead show and just look…

Ok so I can see how Manhattan was sold for beads.

I really didn’t buy that much and I think they came out well.

First I found some great green rectangle stones.
At the next booth I found the seed beads. I really can’t resist seed beads.



But still how to put them together as something to wear? You can’t just throw them on your arm and expect they will stay there.

Shapes, Mary, think shapes. Rectangle and Circles they will look nice together.
And a nice peyote toggle.
Beads, how I love beads.
So, the shapes are done now to put it together. A little bit of crystal for flash.
And viola an eye catching bracelet.

Life of an Item with Lemonadesun

The process of creating a stamp always starts with a spark of inspiration and my sketchbook. My eyes have learned to recognize great ideas. As I go about my day, I will often see something that makes me say "Man, that would make a great stamp!" Before long I have my sketchbook in hand (or a notebook, scrap piece of paper, or even...yes...a napkin), a cup of tea nearby and I'm doodling away. Not all sketches end up as stamps, of course, and not all my creative sparks translate well into stamps, but that's just part of the process I suppose.

After I have a great sketch, I transfer it onto the vinyl carving medium by placing the sketch upside down and rubbing it with the end of my large exacto knife. It has a rounded end and doesn't tear the paper.


After the image is transferred to the vinyl, I go over the pencil lines with a dark sharpie to make them easier to follow and to eliminate any possible chance of smearing, which pencil is infamous for on vinyl. There's nothing worse than carving away on a design and then smearing it beyond recognition, because realigning the design again is a huge pain in the hiney! Hence the sharpie. :)

Next I use my lino-cutters to carve away everything EXCEPT the sharpie lines. Yes, I know the design is backwards. Think about it...when you stamp it you want it to imprint correctly, right? Well then, you have to carve it in reverse.



After I get all the details carved, I use my small exacto knife to cut away all the excess vinyl along the edges until I'm happy with it. Then I glue the vinyl stamp onto a piece of 1/4" thick foam and trim up the edges to fit the shape of the stamp. And Voila! A new stamp is born.

Life of an Item with Yarnabees

I have read many of the posts of Life of an Item and to see how organized everyone is makes me sigh, if only I was that organized. The life of my items all begin in my brain and pretty much stays there till I decide which one to let out. Don’t worry, the above picture is not my actual brain, though it might be a tad bigger. The way I go about creating an item is, sometimes if I see something cute, I take a picture of it and later decide if I am going to crochet it. I’ve also read books, seen a movie or something just catches my eye and moves me to crochet it.

I begin by choosing the color of the yarn that I will use, which I have plenty to choose from. Here is my wall of shame aka my stash, but this is not all my yarn. I have around another 20 or 30 skeins of yarn in my to go bags which I keep by the side of my bed, so when I go to bed, I take one with me so I can crochet a little before I go to sleep. I really try not to have too many WIPs (works in progress).



Once I choose my colors, I then sit in one of my two favorite places, my bed or the recliner and begin to crochet, I start with the body. I have been crocheting long enough to know that when I crochet X amount of stitches I will get the shape I need for a body. It is the same for the arms and legs which I then stuff everything with Cluster Fluff and sew the arms and legs onto the body. I like Cluster Fluff because it does not get lumpy like regular Poly Fill and it makes my stuffed creations nice and squishy. I like Squishy!

I then work on the head. That is where it all comes together. I so enjoy when I am finished with the head and sew it on the body just to see that cute face looking up at me, which always makes me say "hello there little fellow". I am in a house with four boys, that is counting my husband, so most of my items turn out to be a male. We do still have a daughter at home who has inspired my new baby dolls. Once I have finished my item I then take pictures, edit, and crop, crop, crop! I put all of my items in a big plastic bag that I got when I purchased a new comforter so they don’t collect dust as they wait to be adopted. At least they have company while they are waiting. So this is the life of my items, come by my shop and look around, you might just find a great new friend! ***Disclaimer: No brains were hurt will shooting this story.***

Life of an Item with Undercoverst

I was inspired to make this journal when I found the newspaper clipping between the pages of an old atlas I have. I could not find a date on the clipping, but the browning definitely made me think it was close to the age of the atlas which was 1939!


I always make the covers first. I find a piece of cardboard that fits the paper I am displaying and then measure, cut and fold. For this piece I covered it with a paper sack and bright orange paper. This journal started off with an entirely different display piece but when it was done I hated it. This is when I found the newspaper clipping. I knew instantly that the paper sack and the clipping went together better than the first try. I carefully removed the first work from the orange paper and replaced it with the newspaper. I used a brown stamp pad to make the dark marks on the edges. The fast walking young lady came from a Good housekeeping magazine. I felt that she looked like she was on her way to work early in the morning which goes quite well with a morning newspaper.

I then cut and fold the inner pages. 10 pages per section and start punching holes. Then comes the stitching. And then it's all done! This may be one of my favorite journals as I want to keep it as my own and sit in a coffee shop writing and drinking :) Sometimes mistakes make the best work!

Life of an Item with Waterrose

Ideas run wild in my head. I look at something and my brain makes the leap to the colors and shapes that make up the item. I start thinking in terms of embroidery thread and what colors I will need and what stitches to use. Shiny Brite ornaments have been my current muse. In this case most of the design is easy, but I'm already trying to decide on how to make that center portion come to life in my embroidery design. I try to break the whole down into manageable design elements. I also simplify elements as much as I can so that the embroidery doesn't become too complicated.





I may begin designing on paper with colored pencils, or I may begin on the computer. If I hand draw the design then I will transfer the image into my drawing program to refine and get to the measurement or size that I want the completed item to be.







Here's my color palette. Embroidery thread chart and my notes detailing the colors I think that I want to use. As I take needle to fabric the colors and types of stitches I want to use may change. (actually they often do)




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It's time to choose the fabric. If I'm making a cuff I decide between linen, cotton, or felt to place the embroidery on. I also need to choose a backing. I love to find unusual fabrics and prefer designs made in linen for the lining. I look for specialized designs and love to use independent fabric designers. I think how a creation is finished is as important as the design.



Then the fun begins. I sit down in my favorite chair...surrounded by all of the tools, thread, buttons, fabric that I'll need. My favorite scissors and the best needles around...John James! I create a sample piece if it's a first time design. Sometimes the sample turns out exactly the way I want and I can use it for the final composition. However, in this case the piece didn't turn out the way I wanted so it sits in a box with other samples.





After some thinking and redesigning the final piece is mounted and finished. It's now ready for it's photo shoot and listing to be sold!

Life of an Item with Glassali

Several months ago two fellow lampworkers and I began a group on Facebook called "Play on Words Lampwork Challenge." It's a group for lampworkers or word smiths or anyone who is interested (we're very picky) to suggest a word or term or phrase that is then used as the theme for the group for that week (or, as is the case for the summer months, the month).

Last month one of the words was "Love." Easy, right? My submission idea came to me as I was getting my teeth cleaned. I was reclined, mouth open, drool dripping down my chin, when I thought, "Hey, what about a rainbow of hearts on a large white bead?" Because who wouldn't be thinking about hearts and love while being tortured in a dental chair?

Lampwork bead making involves a lot of steps. Glass rods are bought, melted in a flame, and wrapped around a stainless steel mandrel that has been dipped in bead release. Each color you see on a bead is a different rod of glass. Sometimes the glass rod has to be heated and then pulled into a smaller rod called stringer in order to make smaller lines and dots on the surface of the bead. Sometimes colors are mixed to make a totally different color. Once all of the elements have been combined into a bead that you're satisfied with, the bead should go into a kiln to be properly annealed. Lampwork beads have been around for 400 years or so, but properly annealed beads will ensure that your beads are less likely to break. I'll spare you the science, but take my word for it.

After forming the base bead of white, I made a rainbow bead. However, rather than being Roy G. Biv, I forgot/didn't-have-room-for the green, so this bead actually is Roy Biv. The second try was the bead with the outlined hearts, and the third try led to my favorite, the one with the black curlicue details.

Once baked in the kiln, usually overnight, I open the kiln and it's like Christmas: who knows what I will find. Or it can be like Halloween and I'm scared. This time I was happy with the results, removed the beads from their mandrels, cleaned the holes, photographed them. Photographed them again, edited the pictures by cropping and adjusting the colors, and then listed my favorite.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/50832405/love-bead-one-lovely-heart-focal-sra

After listing on Etsy, I usually post a link on my Facebook fan page:

http://www.facebook.com/glassali

Then I cross my fingers and hope for a sale!