Dollar Frames and Oodles of Earrings

So I finally acknowledged that my earring collection was just not working on my small earring tree anymore. I've been seeing these picture frame earring racks around and decided to make one for myself. The best part was, I made it for a dollar! I bought an unfinished wooden frame from the dollar store and used balsa wood I had stashed in my closet to make the slats. I slapped on some tacky glue to hold it together and ta-da! I loaded it up with all my earrings and it gave me way more space. I may go hunting for some red spray paint to finish it off, but I really love the unfinished look on my black bookshelves.

Fabric Rings are Pretty Things.

I thought I'd post a picture of the ring I stayed up last night making. It's made me smile all day. I found a tutorial online and it was so fun and easy now I want to make one in every color.

Some Earrings

Finally thought I post some images. Some of these are less wearable than others just due to size, but they all can technically be worn.

 And here's 2 of my pendants...

So all of these were made from recycled magazines and, believe it or not, floral stem wire.

Paper, Wire, and Waiting Rooms

I've been working hard today and have a huge batch of new earrings and a couple of pendants. It's the first few pendants I've tries and I think they are pretty unique, playful peices. I'm starting to see a unity in the line and something I could really get excited about. This whole process of recycling magazines and bending wire is such a relaxed way of working for me. I can produce all of this stuff while watching tv or sitting in a waiting room. I've made myself a basket with all of my tools and supplies and just cart it from one place to another. And having people around while I'm working brings in lots of questions and potential buyers! The etsy is now definately on the way. I promise to post pictures of the new pieces soon!

Beautiful things.

So as part of my new attempt at joining the internet, I've spend a huge portion of my free time looking at Etsy, particularly because I'm considering opening a shop there for myself. The problem is, I keep finding piles of things I wished I owned and even more things I want to learn to make. In general my philosophy is, learn to make as many beautiful things as I can, and buy as many beautiful things as I can that I cannot make. I have quite a list for myself of things I'd love to make, from more paper beads to fabric jewelry to candle holders. We'll see what wins out when I have free time again.

Plaster

So I just finished this new piece today. I'm pretty happy with it all in all. As with most projects, I just wish I had more time!

I do 3D too!

So I feel a bit like I'm binge-posting right now but I really want to get alot of work up so that people can get a sense of me straight away. I think after this I'd like to set a goal to update twice a week but we'll see how that goes.

Anyways, I figured I'd post some images from my 3D class as well. My first project was to do something with paper and even though I seemed to join the crowd with using paper rolled into tubes, I feel like using the sphere/egg shapes made it look very purposeful. Even though someone said it looked like something out of Starwars. The second thing is a replica of a cicada made out of matchsticks. I was a big fan of this shot of it.

Collage!

Collage has been the biggest surprise for me my first semester of college. I have never really attempted collage before and it has really just blown my mind. Something about the process of it is really appealing. I didn't expect it but its also really helped me overcome a fear of color in my work. In collage, you can work by process of elimination and keep covering or ripping out what doesn't work. So I wasn't afraid to try out color systems that I hadn't before. I made a ton, but I'll just post a few of my favorites.

Jewelry

I've started thinking about recycled jewelry and trying out a few things. I really love the paper flower necklace but I can't figure out how to make it truely functional. I'm really excited about the paper earrings and they are definately wearable. Plus I've gotten very positive feedback from everyone that's seen them. I think I'll be looking for a place to sell these before long. I've debated about an Etsy account but I'm still up in the air. I also am working on some cardboard peices with matte medium transfers. Hopefully I'll have time to document those in a few days after I move back home!

My Blog

I've been pretty resistant to the idea of a blog. I feel like I'm surrendering and joining the rest of my generation in the internet age. But as I am quickly learning, its a necessary evil if I want to really take advantage of opportunities, especially as an artist. I intend for this to be a place for me to post work, as well as document my new endeavors, so we'll see what comes of it!