you are a maker

mary jane dodd

mjd - fragile strength 2013

and you are human.

it's no secret that last january i became mortally ill. 

there have been surgeries, 3 months of iv antibiotic infusions, and more.

more is the residual, lingering pain.

but this post isn't about the pain -

it's about being a maker and being human.

and what do you do when you get cut off from what allowed you to express yourself?

when i couldn't get to the bench to do metal working, it sent me into a depression. not just because of my inability to physically work (though that was big), but because it was and is how i process thoughts and feelings. 

mjd - pin weaving 2013

to my great good fortune, this post came to my attention - and i was able to interpret this technique into something that spoke my language. above you see it as a pendant. below, i changed the shape of the pins into leaves.

mjd - woven leaves 2013

mjd - 2013

i then became interested in small affordable looms that allowed me to make these:

mjd - mat with carved stone 2013

thanks to pinterest (that font of inspiration) - i learned about boro and japanese stitching

mjd - peace flag 2013

and added it to my weaving.

autumn arrived with its gorgeous foliage and hydrangea petals stained by summer.

mjd - fragile strength 2013

mjd - pumpkin garland 2013

i find the stitching to be very soothing

mjd - 2013

mjd - 2013

the point of this post isn't about me -

it's about you.

life doesn't always go along as planned.

and if you are a maker

it is imperative that you find a way to keep doing that.

for you it might be baking,

knitting

crocheting

making your own cards

sewing

or something else that resonates with you.

i just ask you to keep trying

depression

physical injury

emotional injury

are all debilitating.

but you are stronger than any of them -

even on your worst day.

mjd - open heart 2013

remember

'the wound is the place where the Light enters you.'

- rumi

Polymer Art and Fun

by Staci L. Smith

 

While searching out sugar skulls on etsy, I ran into this lightswitch.  I just loved it.

(if you don't see a link please click the picture to go to the item on etsy)

 

 

I remember the days when polymer was new and we covered everything in it.  We, meaning my brother and me.  I used to embellish boxes, and use altoids containers, and jars and bottles and cover them in polymer canes.  Polymer has come so far, but somewhere along the way I lost that sense of play.  I have been so focused on jewelry and beads, I forgot the millions of things we can use this wonderful material for.  (well, maybe not forgot, but just didn't entertain the thought of it too long)  Imagine combining the techniques we have now that polymer has been around for awhile, with the play of the early days of polymer.

 

 So I searched out polymer art, to see what other people have done with it........and oh did some cool polymer art come up.

 

Here are some of my favorites.

2-d art 

 

 

 

Franken Owl Box

https://www.etsy.com/listing/165601212/frankenstein-owl-box?ref=related-3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Hopefully I will have some fun in the weeks to come with polymer.  I am feeling the pull for some playtime.  Did you dabble with polymer in the early days?  What did you make with it? 

 

 



Boot Camp: Alpha-Texture

by Staci L. Smith

I think that when people decide to try out metal stamping, the first thing they buy is a set of letters.  I know I did.   I got this very basic set ages ago. It's capital letters, and numbers and a few symbols.  I didn't use it very much for letters though.  I'd like to share with you some of my favorite ways to use my letter to make patterns and textures on metal.  Remember- using letters as letters is NOT part of this challenge.

Here are my stamps, very basic.  I think I got these at Cool Tools many years ago.

 

Here is the hammer I like to use for stamping.  It's shorter, which gives me good control, (I hit my finger a lot less) its heavy, and its cheap, so I don't care if it gets marred from striking the steel stamps.  I got this one from Melinda Orr of Orrtec.

I took some discs I had lying around, they are made from about 24 gauge copper sheet.  Then I took my capital letter I.  In this simple set, it is just a straight line, and I use it a lot!

I hammered it over and over in some random patterns to create a sort of trail across my disc.

Then I took my letter O.

And I filled in the gaps, randomly changing the direction of the O so it gave it more natural look.

 

So using two letters, I created a kinda modern organic pattern on my metal.

 

Now we will get fancy. You can use a whole bunch of letters to make a really cool Boho like pattern.

 

I started with the period. I love using this as a dot texture.  I stamped it around the entire outside of my disc.

 

Then I did the same thing using my S going side-ways.  For the next inner ring I used the letter W.

After the W's were done, I took my letter X and stamped it, turned it on its side, and stamped it again in the same spot, to create these little star bursts in the center of the disc.

I thought I would show you one more thing I love to use as texture.  It's not an alphabet stamp, its my awl.  It's just a steel awl from the hardware store, sharp point on one end.  I use it with a rubber block, ILO a steel block to get the effect I want.

 

 

I hammer it hard into the metal (a brass strip this time).  It will curl as you do this, and that is fine. 

 

 

Then you can take your rawhide or rubber mallet and hammer it gently flat on a steel block.

 

 

I like it for the reverse side texture, with the bumps sticking up.  Sometimes I even break through the metal on purpose to create a rustic torn up effect.

 

Here they are, all done, I used Liver of Sulfur to antique the copper discs and then cleaned it off the high points.  It really brings out the textures that way.

 

 

If you didn't get to see Barb's post and video from last week you can view it here.

 

The blog hop will be on April 8th- so get those creative juices flowing.  Remember, we hope you will not only try to hand texture metal, but then, use it in a design, be creative with it.  Let's inspire each other!