drawings ~ sculptures ~ jewelry

Do You Etsy? Etsy Shop Statistics Beta Now Available!

2009-11-03T14:43:00.007-05:00

So, I've been playing with the Etsy API and have created a shop statistics site. It's definitely a work in progress, but currently, you can view statistics about items in your shop, favorers of your listings and shop and get summary information about listings and favorers. The URL is here: http://www.etsygoth.com/. It provides some of the same functionality as the Heart-o-Matic (also a very cool site), but I've given the user the ability to sort by the returned information as well as show summary data regarding the returned results.

It's got a bit of a goth flair to it (had to throw some of me in there), but anybody can use the app. Any feedback is much appreciated as well and definitely let me know if there are any buggies running around.

So let me know what you think! I look forward to your responses! Enjoy!

Oh, and if you'd like to advertise, just contact me!

Birth of a Big-headed Man Pendant Necklace

2009-03-09T21:07:00.018-04:00

Here we are...the beginning...an egg, if you will. My little clay BHM egg.
It's pretty simple to start. I simply make indentations where I want the eyes and mouth to be and pinch up some clay for a nose. Very rudimentary.

Next, I start creating a little more definition in the shape of the skull, browlines, cheekbones and chin.

Here's my favorite part, shaping the nose. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I always start with it. It really helps things form in my mind. It is the center from which I create my big-headed man. So I define the nostrils and the philtrum (that's the vertical groove on the surface of the upper lip) and blend the nose with the eye sockets.

The next step is blending and detailing and going over what I've already done, the cheeks, the nose, the eye sockets. This is where I tend to work too much, but the piece changes in so many ways just from the handling of it, so when I'm working on the nose, for example, sometimes it smooshes the cheekbones and I need to go back over to make sure everything is still looking good together.

The back of the piece is just as important as the front. This is part of what makes these guys such great worry stones. Feeling every curve, defining a jaw line, the base of the skull and the overall shape of the head.

We can really see the piece taking shape, developing a personality. The jawline, chin, cheekbones, nose and eye sockets are pretty well finished. Now it's just a matter of maintaining their shape as I work on the final phases.

So what's missing? We need a mouth, eh? Let's slice one open on this guy.

Define some lips for him and work on the overall blending and refining of the piece.

If I'm not going sparkly with Swarovski flat crystals, glass seed beads work great for the eyes. They come in so many colors and have such a beautiful sheen. I've chosen a lovely blue jeans shade for this little man.

Give the eyes more depth by adding eyelids and more detail.

Next step is to put the hole through the head since this is a pendant which we want to put on a necklace and add little details, like eyebrow hairs and lower lids, indentations and wrinkles, just making sure it has an overall smoothness. This is the part I love about Super Sculpey. It's like the clay "settles" and you get this really fleshy, definite smoothness that you don't always get with a lesser quality clay.

These pics show pretty much the only tool I use when sculpting my pendants, but I also use a tiny rubber straight edge for details like the eyebrows or wherever I need to cut in some deeper, tiny lines.

Now our guy is ready for firing. Okay, so I throw him in the oven, but it sounds cooler if you say you fired a piece, which is essentially what you're doing, you just don't need as much heat for polymer clay. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a pic of this guy after cooking. If you've never seen it before, depending on how long you cook it, the clay color will begin to darken to a rosy pinkish brown. So pretend I've got that pic in here. It would basically look the same, just pinker and less shiny. At this stage, it's ready for painting.

I won't bore you with the painting process, but it's another 10 to 15 layers of different color paint that I think I'll cover in another article. I chose greens and golds for this particular piece.

So, do some wavy hand motions to signify the passage of time and we'll move to finishing off the piece. After the painting process is complete, I make a lovely, oh-so-soft, deerskin leather necklace in a chocolatey brown, finished off with sterling silver hardware and add the pendant.

And then I name them and give them some personality traits.

This guy has such a poop-eating grin on his face, like he knows something really juicy, but he's not telling. I think I'll name him Jack. Jack's good at keeping secrets.

And, that's it. He is thusly born and sent out into the world. Good luck, Jack!

How to Put a Dust Cover on a Frame

2009-02-12T11:56:00.020-05:00

A while back, I took down all my framed big-headed man drawings and opened those babies up. I needed to take them out of their frames and get them scanned into a digital format so that I could start selling art prints of my work. I still had the frames and the glass and foam board backing, but I never got around to putting them back together with the dust cover and mounting hardware.

So recently I was getting ready for an exhibit and it forced me to get them all framed again. I called a few frame shops to find out what it would cost to get the paper backing or dust covers put back onto the frames. They said probably about $15.00 per piece. Well, I had about eight or nine pieces to do and I thought that was a little out of my price range AND I would have to lug them over there AND wait a couple of weeks until they finished with them. Being the poor, lazy and impatient person that I am, I decided to take matters into my own hands and learn how to put a dust cover on a framed picture.

"How hard could it be?" I thought. I've taught myself so many other things, this should be a cinch. A few Google searches brought up some web pages, but nothing that really told me how to do it. Also, I didn't know the term was "dust cover" so I kept searching for "paper backing on frame." Eventually, I got to a site that sold the materials in a kit that also came with instructions. Turns out, the process isn't hard at all. You just have to have the materials and know the process. So I'm here to share that with you to make your journey a little easier...I hope.

Here are the materials you will need (besides your already-framed piece):

brown craft paper (sometimes spelled "kraft" paper)
roll of double-sided adhesive transfer tape or -plain old Elmer's Glue
spray bottle with water or wet sponge
hairdryer (optional, but recommended)
dust cover trimmer or a utility knife and straight edge (I highly recommend the dust cover trimmer. It's very easy to use.)

Once you have your supplies laid out, get your framed piece and lay it on a flat surface. The pic of my piece below shows the remnants of the dust cover that I had ripped off to remove my drawing from the frame, so just pretend that's not there. ;-) Cut your craft paper to a size about one to two inches larger than your frame on all sides. For example, if your frame is 20 x 26, add two inches to height and width, and cut a piece 22 x 28. It doesn't have to be exact. You just want the additional paper hanging over the side for cutting. Set the paper aside for later use.

Start rolling out your transfer tape onto each of the four sides of your frame, completing the process on each side before moving to the next one.

Step one: Roll out the tape

Step two: Press the tape firmly onto the frame, making sure that the tape is, in fact, adhering appropriately.

Step three: Peel the backing from the tape so that you are left with the double-sided tape sticking to the frame with another sticky side up to adhere to the paper that we will use in the next phase. Repeat this process until all four sides of your frame have the tape adhered.

OPTION 2: Apply white glue, such as Elmer's, along each side of the frame. I personally like the tape because it's not as messy in the next step.

Now we're ready for the next phase: Applying the craft paper.

Take the paper that you previously cut and dampen it in one of two ways. You can either spritz it with a spray bottle or wipe it with a damp sponge. I personally prefer the spritzing method.

Lay the dampened paper on top of your frame so that the paper is hanging over the sides. It doesn't have to be perfectly taut, since this will be taken care of in the drying phase.

Using your thumb and forefinger, crease the paper along the sides, so that the paper is folded over the edges, then run your finger over each side to press the paper onto the double-sided tape.

You don't have to do this next step, but I found it helpful. Fold the excess paper underneath your frame to hold it in place during the drying process. As the craft paper dries, it becomes stiff, so this will prevent the paper from lifting up.

This drying step can either be achieved by allowing the paper to air dry or you can hasten the process by using a hairdryer. I recommend it highly. Take the hairdryer and start blowing the paper dry. This is the cool part. As I stated previously, when the water begins to evaporate from the paper, it begins to stiffen and "shrink", removing the creases and crinkles right before your eyes. I enjoyed it. It doesn't take much to entertain me. This process will make the paper very taut and drum-like.

I've also included a video of the process below, so you can see how the paper begins to tighten up. You may want to turn your volume down, since it's a bit annoying with the hairdryer drone.

Once your paper is completely dry and taut, you're ready for the next phase: Trimming off the excess paper.

I highly recommend using a dust cover trimmer. It's specifically made for this process and will make your job much easier. Holding the trimmer at an upward angle with the point of the blade on the frame, begin making your cut by sliding the trimmer down the length of the frame. The trimmer has about an eighth of an inch lip on it so the blade will sit at the appropriate spot on the frame and guide the trimmer along the edge of the frame.

Once you've reached the bottom of the first side, pull the excess paper away and move on to the next side of the frame, repeating the process until all sides have been trimmed away.

You now have a fabulous dust cover to complete and finish off your lovely piece of art. The next step would be to apply mounting hardware, which is pretty simple, so I haven't included it in this tutorial.

By the time I got to my last framed piece, I felt like I was a pro. There are little nuances here and there, but this is the basic process. Happy framing all!

Blending with Color Pencils

2009-01-12T17:41:00.015-05:00

So I've had this picture of a big-headed king that I've been working on, but then I lost the motivation and put it away for a time. I've just recently pulled him back out to finish him and I must say it's been very rewarding for me. I've learned some blending techniques with colored pencil that I'm really excited about. The first pic shows the piece at the time I put it away, already colored in with marker with some rough sketched color pencil fill. The second is a photo of the finished piece after blending in phases. I should have thought about taking pics of the process from the beginning, but, alas, I did not.

I think the shading and color overall turned out pretty well. It's all about working in layers of colors, much like the way I shade in a grayscale pencil drawing. I learned a technique a while back of coloring in a pencil drawing with markers, then doing the shading and highlighting with colored pencils. I've only done it a handful of times, though I've had cool results. I don't know why, but I've always been a little afraid of color in my drawings. And oil paint just scares the crap out of me. It seems so permanent. That's one of the reasons I like to work in clay. It's a very forgiving medium. But, I digress...

So using this technique, I'll work from my lightest to darkest colors in sketch lines, finishing the first phase by blending with a blending stick. Then I start the whole process all over, concentrating on filling in the white divets in the color, created by the grain of the paper, as well as filling in "missing strokes" where the previous color's lines didn't touch. I love the effect this produces and have used it while painting some of my clay pieces, too.

I've discovered if I take the lightest tone (a whitish pink or whitish yellow or whitish blue, etc.) of an area and cover where it's already saturated with that hue of colored pencil, it starts to actually blend the colors together, leaving the highlights and shading intact. It's pretty sweet and gives a really cool effect, but it does take a lot of time since there are so many colors involved in each layer.

I've only ever taken a pic of one other thing I did with color pencils and that was on black paper. It's my big-headed skull. Check it.

All in all, I would say I'm pretty pleased with the results from my latest color endeavor. Hope this info is helpful to someone, somewhere, delving into the world of blending with color pencils.

Understanding Jumprings in Jewelry Making

2008-11-29T21:17:00.007-05:00

In my exploration and experience with jewelry-making, I've had to research things to gain an understanding of terminology and engineering of jewelry design. One thing that I encountered in my beginning days of exploration was the need for jumprings. You simply can't create a piece of jewelry without jumprings. Any time you want to connect two things together, you need one. They come in all different sizes, diameters and thicknesses. I was a little lost and overwhelmed at first. What size do I get? And, hey, what do all these numbers mean?

The majority of jumprings in my jewelry design happen to be in your 3mm to 8mm diameter range, but they go from 2mm all the way up to 20mm. One would assume that the lower the number, the smaller the ring and when dealing with diameter, you would be right.

However, with thickness, it's just the opposite. The smaller the gauge number, the thicker the ring. Generally, in my jewelry design, I'll use 22-gauge, which is very thin and flexible, all the way up to 16-gauge, which is very sturdy and thick. I like 16-gauge a lot, especially when you get into the bigger-diameter rings. It's tough and stands up to a bit of yanking and tugging and, because it's a bit thicker, you get a beautiful shine off the metal. My designs are all sterling silver, but the same would hold true for any shiny metal, I suppose. My average, most-used jumprings are 3mm/22-gauge, 5mm/18-gauge, and 8mm/16-gauge. Definitely a pattern as to the diameter versus gauge. If you want sturdy rings, the smaller the diameter number, the larger the gauge number. Thicker rings are definitely better when dealing with chainmaille designs (something I've always wanted to do, but I don't think I have the patience for it) and thinner rings are great for delicate, flowy designs.

Just my little tidbit of information to anyone out there who is going through what I went through in trying to understand the "mystery" of jumpring measurements. Have fun!

The Value of Art

2008-11-16T21:05:00.002-05:00

So how does an artist price one's art? Should it be priced differently than a one-of-a-kind component-assembled piece of jewelry that was designed by an artist? Obviously, a print is less expensive than an original. So where do you start with pricing? Well, you obviously need to make back at least what the materials cost you to make it. Right? And, there should be some compensation for the labor as well. But, does it stop there? The artist had to come up with a design or an idea. Shouldn't they also be compensated for that? Does a one-of-a-kind jewelry design also count as an original? I think so. If there will never be another pair of earrings like that, then, yeah, it's an original. Then, there's the actual execution of that design or idea, the creative process of sculpting or drawing and the quality of craftmanship. That should certainly be accounted for, too, shouldn't it? Then, there's marketing costs, advertising, listing fees, etc. Then comes packaging, like pretty boxes and ribbons and shipping materials, not to mention the actual cost of shipping.

I've recently been re-evaluating my prices for my silver and sculpted art jewelry. I didn't realize how many pieces actually go into these designs. When I thought of cost of materials, I really just concentrated on the focal pieces of each item, for example, larger Swarovski crystal drops. But once I started analyzing each individual component of my jewelry designs, I realized there could be up to 32 sterling silver jumprings in a pair of earrings or 25 inches of sterling silver chain for a necklace, which really adds up, but I wasn't accounting for it. Just seeing the total cost of the materials, not even including labor, design, packaging and all the other things mentioned above, was a true eye-opener for me as to whether or not I was making any profit from my labors of love.

So I started thinking of the "value" of art. What kind of value can you place on the creation of something unique and individual just for the sake of it being one of a kind? Do people care if the jewelry they wear or the art they hang on their wall is one of a kind? I would hope that many consumers would want something unique, something that's not mass produced. Something different. Should value be placed on the fact that an item is individually crafted with love and care and not by a machine that doesn't give a rat's ass what the finished piece looks like? What value can you place on the personal nature of buying a piece of art from somebody that has created it with their own hands. How about being able to speak directly to that person if necessary? You can't talk to the factory worker that put together that pair of earrings or the necklace you got from Claire's or Macy's or any other chain store. There has to be value in excellent customer service.

But what IS that value? So far, I've been doing it by gut. I think of the time I invested and all the other happy stuff and I think, "What would I be content with accepting for this piece? What price would be fair to my client? Would I pay that much for this?" Above all, I want to be fair, but, of course, I want to be compensated for my art. So WHAT IS THE VALUE???? What is the actual number that you can plug into these little segregated categories of creation? I'm not sure there's any set algorithm or formula you can use to figure it out. I think it's got to feel right for the artist as an individual. But each area needs to be thought about and taken into consideration. Some people may agree with you and be willing to pay it and some may not. Just be happy with the price and be fair.

So after evaluating my cost of materials, I brought some items' prices down and others I brought up. In some cases, I was only making 98 cents after only minusing material costs! Yikes. but I feel more comfortable with my prices after the process, though, it was long and drawn out. If I would have kept track of all this stuff from the beginning, it would have been less tedious. But now I've got a system implemented and it should be easier from here on out. I'm in the process of creating a database app that allows me to track all this stuff.

So remember, my fellow artists, to take these things into account when you're pricing your art and/or designs. And don't sell yourselves short. Really evaluate the cost of materials. You might be shocked at how the little things add up.

I'd love to get any feedback or comments regarding this. Let me know what you think.

Calling all Artists!

2008-11-12T16:44:00.006-05:00

So I've decided that I'm going to host a Featured Guest Artist page on my web site, with pictures of the artist's work on my home page and then a link to an internal page with a bio and maybe a little interview, a pic of the artist and of course a link to their web site. I love to support my fellow artists and this is a great opportunity to do that. I know how hard it is to get exposure and get your art out there into the world.

If you're interested in being a Featured Guest Artist on my web site, drop me a line and let me know why. Be sure to include a link to your web site and some pics of your work. I'd love to see what you've got!

My first featured guest artist is Christopher Longenecker. Check him out! He's got some really cool color infrared photographs of Cleveland, Ohio.

I got listed in a treasury!

2008-09-14T20:25:00.007-04:00

YAY! Smoking Man with Fractal Art Background from my Big-headed Man Series got listed in an Etsy treasury entitled weird WEIRD artwork - And that means -- FANTASTIC, CREATIVE and COOL! I'm honored to be listed.

So thanks to aweebug for putting that together! I especially like this little bugger named Earl.

In fact, I really dig dancesippydance's style altogether. Very cool stuff. So props to you, too, Dance!

Anyone can Collect Art

2008-09-14T14:28:00.006-04:00

Have you ever thought to yourself, "Man, I would love to own some really cool one-of-a-kind art, but it's so expensive, I can't afford it"?

Me, too. Especially when it's a big, sprawling, wall piece, and, of course, if it's been created by a well-known artist. But what I'm discovering is that you don't have to buy those well-known artist pieces to be an art collector. Who cares if no one knows who the artist is. If the piece speaks to you, then that's all that matters. Lesser-known artists sell their work for a less expensive price, and that's how they start to get more well-known.

There is also the option of artist trading cards, also known as ACEOs, which is an acronym for "Art Cards, Editions and Originals". These pieces are little lovelies of fine art in miniature, most of them no larger then 2.5 inches by 3.5 inches. Because they're smaller, the price is smaller, I guess (though, I've seen some amazing works where you can tell a lot of talent went into it). It's a great way to collect art, without the big price tag. Some people keep them in a book and other people frame them. They're not limited to 2-dimensional images, either. There are sculpture art cards as well. If you haven't yet, check them out. It's a pretty cool concept. They usually sell for around $10.00 to $15.00, but I've seen some up in the $100 range as well. I just discovered this art card site and thought it was pretty cool. They have an ENORMOUS amount of art cards for sale. You should be able to find something that meets your artistic style there, whatever that may be.

So if you always wanted to collect art, but didn't think you could afford it, think again. Support a lesser-known artist whose work you absolutely love or maybe be able to afford a tiny piece from your favorite well-known artist. And if you don't have a favorite artist (One of mine - Derek Hess), well, you should get one. You might even find a particular artist whose work seems to emulate your mind, thought process and emotions, as if a lot of their work was done specifically for you.

Sparkles and Tassels and Dangly Bits

2008-09-07T20:16:00.009-04:00

I've discovered that I like tassels. I mean, I've always known it, I suppose, simply because a lot of my jewelry designs tend to dangle and flow like tassels.

I don't think they make enough clothing with tassels or dangly bits...and sparkly things...oh, yes, let's not forget about sparkles. Sparkles and tassels and dangly bits...how lovely. It's all so sexy, don't you think? The way that chain drapes around a neck and one crystal falls, catching the light, dripping oh, so delicately down into the cleavage teasingly. I love jewelry. All of it, feminine, masculine. Masculine jewelry can be equally as sexy...a thick, solid, heavy ring, with heft and balance, or a worn-in leather wristband with a piece of frosted beach glass hanging from it.

May I digress for a moment? Okay...I shall:

I would love to make leather cuffs. Awesome cuffs, like this:

I wish I knew how and also had the tools and materials to do so. There are SO many things I want to dabble in. Each area of art and/or jewelrymaking requires a new investment, however, and when you're an out of work starving artist, you just can't do all those things you want. It's sad, but true.

But, if I were allowed to dream, I would love to just have access at any time to the knowledge of experts in the field, who could come to my house and give me all my tools (or just let me rent them to see if I like them first) and teach me wonderful techniques and it wouldn't cost me anything, but my time. And, while I'm dreaming, they'd all bring chocolates and banana bread with them...and cheesecake...and money...in fact, they would pay me to learn from them. Yeah...that would be cool.

The Best Seasoning in the Whole World!

2008-08-03T14:16:00.003-04:00

I know this has nothing to do with my art diary, but I had to share my favorite seasoning with the world. It's McCormick's Roasted Garlic & Bell Pepper Seasoning Blend. It is the finest and most delicious seasoning ever! That is, if you like yummy!

Here are the ingredients:

GARLIC, RED BELL PEPPERS, SALT, ROASTED GARLIC, SUGAR, RED PEPPER, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL FLAVOR (MILK), AND EXTRACTIVES OF TURMERIC AND ANNATTO (FOR COLOR).

It's absolutely fabulous on eggs, grilled cheese sandwiches, mixed in with ground beef, cottage cheese...pretty much anything that needs flavor without a tremendous amount of salt. Don't get me wrong. I love my salt (and this has some), but this just seems to have the perfect amount of flavor for everything. So get some. It's good.

My Jewelry Packaging

2008-07-28T09:22:00.010-04:00

So let's just say that you were to purchase a piece of jewelry from my store. I'd like to walk you through a sample of what your experience might be like from your point of view when you receive your wonderful item in the mail. Your thoughts may be something similar to the following:

I walk to my mailbox, in quiet anticipation, hoping that today is the day when my fabulous jewelry will arrive. Wait. I see a yellow, bubble envelope. Could this be it? Oh, joy! It's from a Kish in Cleveland, Ohio, and it feels like there's a gift box inside! I carelessly rip open the envelope because with all this bubble wrap and cardboard, I know I can't possibly damage anything. I pull out a lovely, shiny, black box with a ribbon tied around it.

I delicately untie the ribbon. One simple, satiny pull is all it takes. Now I can see the image on the box. Ah, yes, the Screaming Man. A trademark of the artist. But let's get to the good stuff. I open the lid.

Oh, lovely. Some business cards that I can pass out to my friends because I'll want to tell them where I got this fabulous jewelry when they compliment me on it.

And there she is, waiting patiently for me to notice her. My beautiful piece, still tucked away in her temporary bed, snug like a bug in a rug. I lift the handmade card from the box, so that I may remove her ribbon dress to get a better look.

Oh, the card is so pretty. The back is reinforced with a black cardstock. Very sturdy. And such a pretty design on the front. The artist obviously made this card specifically for this piece. The name is even written on the card as well as the artist's signature. I'll have to go back to her store when I want to get a gift for someone. This packaging is so nice!

So that's it. This is merely a sample of packaging, mind you. The cards are definitely made to complement the piece and no card is ever the same. I hope you enjoyed this little journey through what I imagine your experience would be like. Now go buy something, so you can experience it for real!

My Very Own Web Site!

2008-07-15T13:07:00.005-04:00

I took some time off for a little while to finally get my very own web site up and running. I'm a programmer by trade (artist for life), so I've been able to do it all on my own, from database creation to web site development in .NET. I'm really excited about it. And you wouldn't think it about me, but I went with pink. Hmmmm....pink. Not really my style, but it seemed to fit somehow. So check it out and buy something! Feel free to let me know what you think. I'm always looking to improve. And since I got laid off recently, if anyone is interested in having me develop a web site, let me know! I'm just throwing that out there. ;-)

http://www.shannonkishartist.com

A Sale...YAY!

2008-05-17T00:23:00.004-04:00

I finally sold this pair of earrings on Etsy!

I made them so long ago. They had like nine different people favorite them, but nobody wanted to buy them at $18.00. Then I raised the price to $23.00 and someone bought them. Interesting. Do people think if they pay more for something that it must be better? It seems silly, but I know of a couple different scenarios where this has proven to be true. For example, I have this friend who is a photographer, http://www.justinkphotography.com. When he first started his business, he didn't charge quite as much as other photographers and business was slower, but as soon as he raised his rates, he started getting more jobs. It could just be coincidental that business started picking up around the same time he raised his rates, but there seems to be some correlation. I suppose it depends on your target audience.

My First Moldmaking/Casting Experience

2008-05-14T00:04:00.018-04:00

So I decided to make latex rubber molds of some of my big-headed sculpture wallhangings (as discussed in a previous post). My experience was arduous, time-consuming and only produced so-so results. I had three sculptures to work with. Unfortunately, I'm an idiot and I did all three at the same time, instead of doing one whole process for an individual sculpture, so I could learn from my mistakes. Note to self: "Don't be impatient."

I also didn't take photographs of the process, which I'm a little sorry about, but what are you gonna do? Note to self: "Start taking pics of process."

But, alas, I have photos of my finished products, both the molds as well as the first castings.

These are a couple of the latex rubber portions of the molds
after they were pulled off of the original piece. There's some strange fungus or mold growing in the rubber, which really sucks. I think it's because I left the rubber mold in the mother mold before the plaster used for the mother was completely dry. Lesson learned.

Here are a couple of the mother molds.

And here are the rubber molds sitting in the mother molds.

Here are the castings sitting next to their originals. Some of the pieces broke off when I first peeled off the rubber. I've already glued them back onto the original pieces in these pics. There were some impossible undercuts where rubber got totally underneath and connected back to the top. Another lesson learned. Make sure you fill in undercuts as much as possible without losing detail. Because I didn't do this, my castings didn't turn out so well in those areas. The most noticeable was in the piece with the curlies on the face. There were some areas where the plaster didn't get all the way into the rubber mold because of the curly details or improper pouring.

All in all, they didn't turn out too badly. I've since returned to the rubber molds where the undercuts connected and cut them with scissors, so, hopefully, it won't happen on the next casting. I'm going to try painting them before I try more castings, just to see how much they absorb the paint, et cetera, to make sure I know the proper technique for next time. All in all, the exercise was informative and definitely a learning experience. The amount of detail you get with the latex rubber is really quite amazing. I'll report more as I keep learning.

Until then...I'm gonna go have a shmoke and a pancake.

Custom Wedding Party Jewelry

2008-03-25T20:34:00.004-04:00

Here's some custom jewelry I did for someone for their wedding party.

A lesson from an old sketch

2008-03-17T15:16:00.009-04:00

I was looking through an old sketch book the other night and I saw this sketch I had done that looked kinda cool. Here's the scrap:

But it was interesting to think about what I was trying to get across at the time I drew it. I was trying not to be so normal, maybe a little more surreal. Just get really bizarre where anything is possible. So the product was this weird mutated alien creature with an oversized extra-jointed arm, no face and a head on a long neck coming out of his shoulder. It looked kind of like a comic book style villian's henchman.

So, the lesson I gleaned from going back and looking at an old sketch: Don't put things where you expect them to be and don't limit yourself into thinking they have to be proportionate or symmetrical. Just, generally, be more creative.

So it inspired me to incorporate that way of thinking into a pendant I made out of Sculpey. Here's what I came up with:

I think the end result looks rather lovely and unexpected, but I still need to let my creativity go a little more.

Latex Rubber Mold Making

2008-02-13T19:09:00.002-05:00

So I'm trying to learn how to make molds of my big-headed men sculptures and it's REALLY time-consuming. Given the fact that my faces have lots of curves and more than a few undercuts, I decided to go the latex rubber in a mother mold route. I got a couple of books and read up on it, but some things are left unsaid. These are the situations where it would be cool to take a class or know somebody else that has done it so I could get some advice. I'm wondering, once I finish putting on the rubber (about an 1/8 of a inch thick, which is approximately 20 coats of rubber, the first ten being 100% rubber and the next ten a 2:1 ratio of rubber to paste maker)--but, I digress--so, as I said, I'm wondering if I've still got some undercuts after the rubber application, am I able to make my mother mold out of plaster at this point? Won't I become interlocked? I think I need to have no undercuts at all to be able to do this. Is there some sort of filler I can use to remove the undercuts? Woe is me...I need to do more research. I'm now into my third or fourth week on this stupid project. I'm starting to wonder if it's worth it.

Soldering jump-rings revisited

2008-02-13T18:28:00.003-05:00

So I believe I'm really getting a design down for soldering these pendants. Instead of placing the jump-rings on a perpindicular plane, I'm now soldering only one on a parallel plane. I then attach another jump-ring to the soldered jumpring and then I have a charm. I'm so pleased! I'll post a pic soon.

Newfound Wisdom

2008-02-01T15:29:00.000-05:00

So I think I figured out the soldering of the jump-rings. Cut a piece of copper foil in half and attach the jump-ring to the piece with it. AND USE FLUX!!! I think that's what did me in last time. I forgot to add flux because I had already used it on the piece for the initial soldering. Instead of doing the jump-rings last, as I had in the past, I soldered them first. It made a huge difference. Now I can make memory glass pendants! YAY!

Learning to Solder

2008-01-21T12:53:00.001-05:00

Learning to solder is relatively easy. You have a soldering gun, copper foil, flux and the pieces you're going to solder. I'm learning to solder to make jewelry, pendants specifically for right now, to incorporate my Big-headed men into art for your body. I find it useful to use a vise when working with these small pieces. For my purposes, I'm using the following items:

Soldering Gun (I use a Weller 8200 family)
Silver-Gleem solder

Copper foil
Flux
Microscope slides (cut in half with a glass cutter)
Mini-pic of one of my big-headed menO-rings to attach to pendant so you can hang it on a necklace

Clean your pieces well. I've had issues with dust in the glass and if you don't catch it immediately, you're pretty screwed.

Attach the foil to pretty much anyplace you're going to want the finished metal (solder). For my purposes, I just placed my pic between the two panes of glass and added the copper foil (which has an adhesive back) around the perimeter of the glass pieces. So you get what looks like a copper framed mini-pic.

I then lightly apply flux to all of the copper foil (brush it on with a paint brush).

I then put my piece in a vise, and heat my gun, placing the solder against the tip of the gun and (once the solder starts to melt), gently gliding the solder and the gun along the edge of the copper foil. Solder hardens super fast. It's like it's melted, then snap your fingers and it's not. You have to work fast, but if you mess up, you can always just reheat the solder on the piece with the gun and it will instantly melt and harden again. It's pretty cool actually. But I've discovered you can't do it TOO frequently because your solder gun tip will melt if you use it for too long AND your solder on your piece will start to yellow because it's getting burned. AND it can end up being a globby, burry mess. In these cases (when it gets burry) I'll sand it with some sandpaper, which scratches your metal, but it actually gives it a pretty cool effect. So, if you want something perfectly shiny, obviously, don't do this. You'll just have to get really good with your soldering so you don't need to go back over it.

So that's basically it for the initial soldering process. Where I've been having issues is getting the o-rings onto the top of the piece. You need a third hand it seems. I still haven't discovered a concrete way to do this, but what is sort of working is to put a globule of the solder where you want the o-ring to be, let it harden, then using the gun in one hand and the o-ring in some tweezers or jewelry pliers in the other, place the o-ring on the globule of solder and place the gun tip inside the o-ring. The heat will melt the globule and the o-ring will "drop" into the melted solder. Quickly remove the heat and hold the o-ring for a moment until the solder rehardens. It's not perfect, but I think I just need more practice with it.

So that's that. Here's my first finished piece (that turned out decent).

Time to sell, sell, sell!

2008-01-14T15:57:00.001-05:00

Well, it's official. I've been partially laid-off from my "real" job as a programmer...the one that pays the bills. So I've got to start promoting my art with a vengeance. I've got my ETSY site and this blog and I'm on TalentDatabase.com (http://www.talentdatabase.com/channels/1-Art/profiles/1190201-alphagrl). But I've got to get out into the physical world (oy!) and pass out cards, talk to some art galleries, shops, sign up for some art festivals and such. I need advice! How do I make money selling my art? What are fair prices? Can I make enough to pay my bills and support my family? Now's the time to move, I suppose, but it's pretty darn scary making a change this big. Maybe we should sell our house and become gypsies...hmmmmm

I can't believe I'm a blogger!

2008-01-07T17:52:00.000-05:00

This is my very first blog. I'm a little nervous. Do people really give a crap about what I have to say? Read it or don't, I suppose.