Dia De Los Muertos inspiration..and latest fall porcelain creations

Carol Dekle-Foss

The colorful shades of autumn and the crisp air have finally arrived here in Northern California. This is my absolute favorite time of year for so many reasons. My creative juices are alight with fire and I find myself losing time playing in the studio.

This creative stirring has been very productive!

For one, I have accepted Karen's Dia De Los Muertos, a celebration of life challenge. Are you participating? We would love for you to join us! For me, this holiday was somewhat of a mystery. I knew the basics, but to help me with what I wanted to make for the challenge, I set out to learn more about this special occasion.

Some very cool facts I found interesting:

The Ofrendas or altars, are built inside and are decorated with many obejects, including the loved one's favorite items, photos, Cempasuchil or Marigold flowers, pan de muertos and sugar skulls. The children's altars are decorated in a special way to include miniature toys, tiny food etc. The Marigolds are also used in many other ways including decorating the graves. 

They widely display beautiful Papel Picado, or cut paper banners. I love the fact that there are still artisans in Mexico that hand cut these banners. Here's a short video in English on the history the Papel Picado if you're interested.

I think what amazes me most about this beautiful tradition, is they portray the dead as humorous, happy, and fun, and not macabre in any way.  Also that the children are included in the celebration honoring their deceased loved ones. I have a new appreciation for this holiday, and plan to attend a local celebration to learn more. Here is a list of events in the United States as well as a few abroad if you are interested in attending one. How amazing would it be to go to one of these celebrations in Mexico!

  I was so inspired by Sherri's shrinky dinks and hand-drawn shoes that I thought I would try and draw my own sugar skull. I used common motifs and then embellished with a bit of my style. 

These pendants will be included in a shop update tomorrow. 

 

I think they are adorable! I've saved a few for the challenge, and will probably end up keeping the finished pieces to wear during Dia De Los Muertos.

Here are some new designs coming out of the kiln as well.

 I love the intricate stained glass look of these leaves.

And more leaves.

Another skull design.

Ronnies beads. He nailed the fall colors!

All beads and pendants shown will be included in the shop update that will be happening tomorrow.

We hope you join us for the Dia De Los Muertos challenge! You can find out more details here.

My first attempt at Precious Metal Clay..and latest creations

Carol Dekle-Foss

I have always wanted to try precious metal clay, but I was under the impression that I couldn't fire it in my kiln sitter kiln. I was very happy to discover this is not the case! All I have to do is use cone 014. Easy! After I realized this, I immediately bought a pack of  PMC+ 45g to give it a try. So on top of practicing making rings in different sizes, I have also been playing with precious metal clay. Here are my latest creations over the past couple of weeks.

First, I have been obsessed with plain stacking rings and bands and have been wearing this set ever since I made them. 

I then decided to make a ring using the reticulated silver I made a few weeks ago. I tried to make it a size 9 but it ended up being size 10. Oops! Oh well, it's meant for someone! I listed in my Etsy shop here. 

The crescent moon and pleiades ring was made from precious metal clay and then soldered to a ring shank made from sterling silver crazy-8 half round wire from rio. I love this wire for ring shanks because it's super comfy to wear, sturdy and easy to use.

I was able to get more detail from the metal clay than if I had rolled sterling silver sheet through a rolling mill. The stars and moon are a bit more puffy and show up more after being polished. I learned quite a bit about metal clay making this ring. I also nailed the size as well. Win! I love how it turned out, and will be making more, but I want to set a tiny faceted gemstone in a stepped bezel in the top left hand corner. More techniques I have to learn! 

Here are some more precious metal clay pieces I was able to complete. 

After I finished the below piece I realized it had a tiny air bubble. I tried to fix it by sanding but it just made it worse. It looks like a little crater, and unfortunately it's not part of the design. Lesson learned! Porcelain gets air bubbles too, but at least you can somewhat cover them with glaze. Air bubbles in metal clay can wreck a piece!

These pieces are fired but still need to be brass brushed and tumbled.

Overall, I love working with precious metal clay.  I think the design possibilities are endless and it's fun to work with. What I don't love is the price. Holy moly it can be pricey. I would have to mark up my pieces quite high to make a profit. Hmm. I am still debating on what to do about that. I may give white copper clay or bronze a try, we'll see.

If you want to learn more about metal clay, there are tons of tutorials online and on Youtube. Our very own Staci makes beautiful pieces in metal clay and has done quite a few posts on Love My Art Jewelry. In fact, if you haven't read it yet, she recently tried steel clay and did a post here about her experience. And here's another post from her on white copper clay. Thank you Staci!

Never stop learning and growing!

Thank you for reading. 

Creating price tags that will make a lasting impression

Carol Dekle-Foss

 The details are not the details. They make the design-Charles Eames

I believe that creating a cohesive brand identity is the key to impressing customers and enticing them to "want" to buy a product. This though, is no easy task.  There are so many details to focus on, your amazing jewelry of course, but also your business name, company logo, cards, price tags etc etc...it can be very overwhelming. My best advise? When creating your brand identity never lose sight of what makes your jewelry unique to you, and have your marketing materials resonate with your style.

So price tags are just a tiny part of this whole process. They are just as important as say your logo, or business cards. They will help to create your OVERALL brand identity and highlight your unique style.

I'm going to share how I solved my price tag challenge and also provide a couple more suggestions

Here is some of my tagging arsenal.

Ok, the bottom sheets are rectangle barbells from Online labels. I like the larger rectangle size because it has more room for my logo, but you can also get them in round. What's nice about Online Labels is they have a label design software called Maestro.  You can use this program to design your own personalized labels by uploading your logo, unique backgrounds, and also use fonts that you have on your computer. The downside of the program is that it's a bit tricky to calibrate and line up the print option, and also the access code they give you is only good for one month. I now just use Photoshop to make and print them. They are a great price too, $22.95, for 100 sheets, for a total of 3600 tags. If you want,  you can just buy one sheet for $3.88 if you would like to try it out first.

Here are the tags I use if the barbells are too small for a piece and also for pricier items that I want to give a special touch. Also these tags are great for writing out any product details I would like to include on the back. I created the tag design using Photoshop, printed them out on textured card stock using an inkjet printer, and then cut them out with a paper cutter. The hole punch size is 1/8" in diameter. I then use chocolate brown string to tie it to the piece. 

I just love these earring card hang tags! I was inspired by the oh so talented and ever clever Erin Prais-Hintz. She talked about some earring cards she designed in this post on Earrings Everday. Check out how she used one of Vista Prints stock business cards to come up with a unique earring card holder that stands up! Clever girl. Thank you Erin for the cool idea! It was just luck that they fit perfectly in my shutter mirror display.  If you use leverbacks for your earrings, you can use this punch to cut out your holes. On the back of the card is my web address, a place for an item number and price, and plenty of room to include an item description. You can see the backside in the pic above. 

I used the same card stock for continuity and the tag designs are similar so there is cohesion with the overall look and feel of my brand. Now If I could just do the same with my jewelry designs!

There are so many ways to be unique with your tags, that it can be impossible to decide. Just remember to focus of what makes your products unique and try to create tags that resonate with your style.

Here are some more tag ideas! 

You can use punches to cut out your own tags.

 Use embossing punches to create texture.


Use punches to make pretty edges

Have a custom stamp made with your logo and use it on tags. This one is from Rubber Stamps.

There are just so many ways that you can be creative when designing your own tags. If you do a Google or Pinterest search, you will find tons of inspiration!

Also there are shops on Etsy that have ADORABLE tags that can be custom made for you, and will have a professional look. Personally for me, I like the creative freedom (and price) of doing it myself.

So how do you tag your items? Do you have a cool technique that your love? Please share what has worked for you!

Cedar Wall for Craft Fair Booth-TUTORIAL!

Do you sell at craft fairs or festivals or do you plan to someday? Here's a great tip for you to attract customers. Create height! Creating height adds interest and entices customers into your booth, allows for more room for customers to move around, and also, all your wonderful creations will be at eye level and easier to see. 

I am going to share how my husband and I created height by building a portable wall.

DISCLAIMER: If you do build this wall, just make sure your breakables are secure. As you can imagine, craft fair tents aren't very sturdy, so sometimes when the wind blows...the whole booth rocks. Just to be on the safe side, I wouldn't put large ceramics items or glass mosaics on display.  Also, to counter weight the other side fill jugs with water and rope tie them down. We use about six kitty litter containers. (We wouldn't want to crush a customer or take out a booth neighbor right??)

We have little carpentry experience and pretty much winged this project, but we are very happy with how it turned out. If you are planning on building this wall and know someone in construction, I would consult with them and see if they have any suggestions for you!

Tutorial

Product list

9 12"x88" cedar planks.The planks we used are recycled and from a deconstructed building. Try your local wood supplier. Because cedar is so light it makes it very portable. (this is the most expensive part of the wall)

9 Simpson Strong-Ties

6 Aluminum Angle Bars

1 PVC Pipe

12 Pipe straps

1 Copper pipe

Construction screws The thickness of your walls will determine what length your screws should be.

2 Redwood Lattice caps

Rustic Glazing Formula: Translucent Color Glaze; Mocha, Antiquing Glaze, Clear Mixing Glaze

I found a tutorial on how to make wood look rustic from Brittany Bailey over at Pretty handy Girl. Thank you Brittany!

Paint brushes 

Tools

Tie down straps

Clamps

Drill

Drill bits

Caulking gun for Liquid nails

Two saw horses

Step One

We constructed a total of 3 panels. They are very light, even for little ol' me to carry and move around.

First, place three planks on the saw horses. Using the tie downs, tighten the planks close together, so there are no gaps.

Using liquid nails, and screws, screw 3 of the strong ties to the back of the planks.

Do the same with the aluminum angle bars, but first you have to drill holes with the drill bits for the screws to go in.

See below pic for placement. Do these steps for the other two panels as well.







The cut in the top is because my tent has a bar that comes down. We had to cut a groove for it to go between. Depending on your tent, you may not have to do this step.

Step Two

Cut PVC pipe into 3 equal pieces. Lay all three panels on a flat surface. Then place PCV pipe pieces on the back of the panels. Line up all three and then screw in place with pipe straps. The goal is to get them lined up so that the long copper pipe runs through all three panels and holds them in place. When we set up the wall at events, we use plastic zip ties to hold the copper pipe to the tent bars. 

Step Three

Ok, time to throw on some painting clothes and mix up some paint! Brittany's tutorial is here and provides the amount to mix up. I painted a bit more around the edges of each plank to give it that rustic aged look. You can see the effect in the above pics.

A couple more of tips. We used the lattice caps on the top and bottom to frame the whole wall and give it a finished look. We place them on when we are setting up. Also, sometimes the wall doesn't line up properly when at events due to the ground being uneven. We fix this by using a tie down on the bottom, back side of the wall. Since the tie down is in the back, you don't even see it.

There you have it!

Once you are finished making your wall, I would draw a diagram on what you would like to hang. Shelving? Picture frames? Now is the time to make your wall tailored to suit your needs according the your style and the products that you sell! Have fun, and if you have questions please feel free to contact me!

Custom orders, and one happy customer. Me

Carol Dekle-Foss

In keeping with the topic of Karen's post yesterday of doing custom work, I wanted to share a positive experience I had as a customer with the talented ceramic artist Natalie Kay of NKP Designs. 

While researching how the ceramic raku process was done, I stumbled upon a great post on the Beads of Clay Blog by Mary Harding of  Mary Harding Jewelry. I discovered some very talented artists there, including of course, Mary Harding, Lisa Peters of Lisa Peters Art, Marianne Kasparian of MAKU Studio, and Melanie from Earthenwood Studio. Mary's post had a picture of some of Natalie's raku beads. I fell in love with them immediately.  I then quickly did some more research and found these beautiful beads on  her blog. I just HAD to have them. The problem was she had made them in 2010. The chances of her still having them were nil, so I contacted her and asked if she would be open to a custom order. 

She responded immediately and let me know that unfortunately she no longer does the raku process. I was bummed for sure. I still loved the overall design of the beads though so we worked together and came up with these beads.

I am completely smitten with them.  I wanted two complimentary colors, green and red but left the exact color choices up to her. The beads ended up having two of Pantone's Fall colors. Great job Natalie!

To be on the other side of a custom order was refreshing for a change and Natalie was a delight to work with. She responded very quickly to my questions and also gave great suggestions. 

I am very grateful that Natalie was open to a custom order and will be purchasing more from her in the future.

Thank you Karen for your post on this important topic!