Black and Green Mermaid Necklace

It's a special time of year - a time of year were it is not only acceptable to play dress up in public, it is rather expected and celebrated. For me - I love playing dress up and embrace pretty much any reason to do so. It also means this girl needs a new costume and all the trimmings (yes, any reason for a new outfit is a good one) and I have been working on the pieces that will make my whole costume complete and will be sharing the process.

I needed a new necklace for to go with my new outfit and decided to use a mermaid charm that I had gotten a few years ago at the Renaissance Faire a few years ago, some green seed beads (yes, the beads from  that package I picked up at the dollar store just keep showing up), and black wire and jewelery making bits.

Medievel Dress

I believe that we are never too old to play dress up. (That does help explain the love of theater and the amount of time I have spent costuming myself and others.)

While still in my 4-H days I made this burgundy and ivory medieval dress as a sewing project one year. It's all one piece with a zipper down the back, made of an under skirt and under skirt, puffing sleeves, and fitted bodice. The burgundy over skirt is made from four panels, each panel big enough to wrap around my waist. The bodice was fitted to my body, but fits a little differently than it did ten years ago.

Over ten years later and it still gets a lot of use, I wore it for a camp skit one summer (with a piece of lace underneath as a kind of modesty piece), and have worn it more than once at for the Ren Faire, and a couple Halloweens.

Gifts Recieved - Gifts Treasured

 Over the years I find some of the greatest treasures to be those that were created or embellished by hand, not machine. Creation and art is life and means more than you can find at any superstore. We need to celebrate the hand made arts more, the people that create them, and the people who give them. They are truly beautiful.

The first is a hand made cross, I think it was crocheted. To be honest, crochet, knitting, and the like are things I know little about. (I'm just learning to knit on my own.) Someone made these cross bookmarks for me and my siblings but I can't remember who. An older family friend perhaps. (I feel bad for this, but I can't help it.) Some of them were of only one color, but I favored the one with the rainbow of colors. For years it hung on the bulletin board in my bedroom.

The little girl figurine was a gift from a my grandmother years ago for Christmas, crafted  by a friend of hers from church. The tiny book in the doll's in hand is "Christy." It is a movie and mini series that we shared. It doesn't sit more than 2 inches high.

The small chest was a gift fro a friend in high school. She found a small chest and stained it in a cedar to match the cedar chest I had made years before. I use it now to hold coins I've collected from different around the world as well as my small collection of pressed pennies. It sits on a shelf in my room amongst old family photos.

Embrace the gifts that mean the most because they were chosen just for you, made with someone's own hand.

Cross Stitched Feminism Pillow

We can find power and celebration in many things. We can turn old fashioned skills and arts into an expression of something else. I find some sort of strange comfort from turning something that used to symbolize much of a woman's bonds into something that can symbolize what we are capable. A woman doesn't have to reject the arts of her grandmothers to embrace the ideals of equality and feminine power.

For this project, I used the female symbol, cross stitched in black and red to embrace the ideals of feminism and equality.

I started with a template made on graph pattern for the pattern. The lettering and phrases around the edges were mostly just to get a template for the letters not for the final placement.

Using black and red embroidery thread, I cross stitched my female design with phrases around the edges that emulated the theme. "Never let the hand you hold, hold you down." "History and Herstory." "If your not outraged your not paying attention." "A woman's life is a human life." "I am not your Barbie Doll." "The meek are ready." "Proud to be a feminist." "equality.""I resist." And so on. I then embellished the sides.

When the needlework was completed I cut a square of a red velvet-like material (seen in a few other projects) for the backing. Instead of sewing them right sides together, I opted to sew them wrong sides together.

Wrong sides together, I pinned the edges securely, especially taking into account the stretchy nature of the red backing fabric. Then, using a strong backs titch hand-sewed the two sides together with black embroidery thread, using the stitches along a clear straight line as part of the overall design, but making sure to leave a small gap to stuff.

Using the opening I left, I carefully stuffed the pillow to the desire fluffiness with some poly-fil I had on hand, being careful not to rip open the stitches around the opening.

Once full, I pinned the opening (once again being mindful of the stretchy nature of the red fabric for the backing), and sewing it securely shut with black embroidery thread and the back stitch. I pulled the loose thread from the fabrics to give a fringed edge to the small square pillow.

A pillow to make any feminist proud. (Take ye inspiration where ye may.)

Camp Tales - A Girl & a Drill Press

One of the benefits of working at camp as an Arts& Craft Instructor, was being able to teaching basic woodworking to kids 9-14, a good portion of them never having any previous experience with it. This was especially true with many of the young girls. It was nothing too difficult; hammering (for string art), wood burning, sanding, and the drill press (for wood games using golf tees and wooden squares pre-cut for them). I had safety lines, safety goggles, and strict rules about no one using the drill press without my supervision and wood burners needing my supervision or the supervision of one of my counselors or other staff.

I was exposed to woodworking young through my grandpa and 4-H, debating in Middle School of becoming a Shop Teacher. I took woodworking projects in 4-H and even built a cedar chest that went to State Fair (for another story). I even helped with 4-H woodworking judging at State Fair one year (a great story for another time). I wanted my campers to be safe, but I also wanted them to know that the basics were attainable.

One sunny afternoon, I had the usual mix of boys and girls in the Craft Hall ready to take on the drill press. A little girl of about 9 or 10 crossed my red line into the drill press area, safety glasses on, her sanded & marked piece of wood in hand. She didn't act too sure about the powerful machine she had watched others use & was now standing before. I went over the basics again, encouraging her that she was just as capable of this as anyone else. There was no rule that said girls couldn't do woodworking or handle power tools. We lined up the first hole to be drilled as she took a hold of the handle, slowly and gingerly pulling the drill bit down into the wood, making the hole. As she raised the handle and released, I watched her change as her face lit up. In an instant, something changed and suddenly the little girl timid about a power tool knew that she could do it and knew that she had done it. There was excitement and a realization that come about in drilling that first hole as well as a truth that she was truly just as capable as anyone else. That day a little girl was introduced to woodworking and maybe to the power she was a capable of.

Perhaps, it's the feminist in me or a reminder of the little girl I was, going to woodworking judging surrounded by boys, but that afternoon a little girl realized that girls can and being a girl shouldn't stop her. That afternoon, I got to be make a difference in one little girl and I got to watch it happen.

Poetry is My Bag

Poetry is my bag... or all over my bag, as the case might be. Check out my bag just in time for National Poetry Month (April), complete with the poem "Phenomenal Woman" by Maya Angelou embroidered on the side.

It took me a few evenings of embroidering the black lettering and the red female figures. while watching 'Bones' and 'Criminal Minds'. The inside is lined with a velvet-like red fabric (both fabrics leftover from other projects) with a braided red and black yarn strap sewn into the layers. Sewing the pieces together took less time than the actual needlepoint, but sometimes that's the way it goes.

Phenomenal Woman

                             Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s seize
But when I start to tell them. They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet,
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed,
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s In the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
The palm of my hand,
The need for care,
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal Woman,
That’s me.

Felt Doll

This felt doll and her clothes were made using a pattern I found on Martha Stewart's crafting site, with a few adjustments of my own. I had found the pattern and decided to use what I had on hand to try out the pattern. I used brown and gray felt for the body (there wasn't enough brown so I used gray for the legs), black yarn for hair, embroidery floss for the eyes and a heart on her chest, and some pieces of material for the shirt and pants.

Most of this was done by hand.

Sculpted Mermaid

This mermaid, painted with green fins and seaweed was made from salt dough (I had some extra leftover from the napkin rings and started playing around) and baked in a 200 degree oven slowly until dried through. (I also turned her over after I knew the top was dried to help evenly dry her out and dry the bottom.) \

She was painted with acrylic paints, letting each layer/color dry before starting the next one. (The salt dough absorbed the paint quickly with the first layer and I had to be careful of the paint "pulling" the not yet dry stuff as I added more or with details.) I didn't have flesh colored pain, so that had to be mixed. Once the green fins and black hair was painted and dry I added details of red seaweed through her hair and across her body, then little flowers of orange-ish and white buds.

I love, love, love mermaids and keep trying to perfect my abilities to create them as well as find new ways to utilize them in my creations. I'm sure they will show up again... and again... and again. There really are not enough mermaids in crafting, art, or life.

Bring on the mermaids!

Easy Sewn Clutch with Geisha

This Easy Embroidered Clutch was made in one evening and made from scraps of material I already had on hand. The exterior was made from a sturdier material (leftover form place mats I made my sister on year). The lining was made a a velour-like red (leftover from a Mrs. Santa type costume I've been working on). The button and red bias tape loop were both from my assorted notions.

The Geisha was embroidered with black embroidery floss BEFORE the pieces were sewn together. I used a simple running stitch to hand embroider her.

It was super simple, but I still included the basic instructions. I've been wondering if my needlepoint gets enough use for things that are more personal to me. See, needlepoint isn't just for your Grandmother. (Actually, I don't think my one Grandmother has ever done needlepoint.)

Handmade Incense Burners

 After I made the Hippy Chess Set I was inspired to try some new projects with hand sculpting clay into things. I had been considering a way top make incense burners for some time and settled on a design that had a cup or saucer like bottom to catch the ashes with the incense sticking up from a central like place.

Using some of the clay (More Information on Sculpey Clay)I had left over from the chess set, I formed the base first, making a kind of basin to catch the dropping ashes and to serve as a base for whatever went on top. Then building on what I did with the chess set I started with three designs... a hippy mama holding a rose in one hand and a place for the incense stick in the other, a hippy shaman standing under a mushroom, and a rose. (I learned how to make roses for this: check out making a clay rose.) I baked all of them as per the directions on the clay.

When everything was hardened and cool I brought out the paints and started the the decorating process. (You could use the colored sculpting clay, but I had bought all white so I could play with colors.) The color really made them come to life.

I've played with a couple other designs since these pictures were taken, including a couple of fish for a friend.

Check my incense burners here too: http://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/handmade-clay-incense-burners

Hippy Themed Chess Set

A Hippy Themed Chess Set

There is something that sometimes happens when one is working and living at a camp, depending on living arrangements... a lot of quiet time. This was especially true one summer when I was living at a camp in which I had a cabin to myself and my little dog (much of the staff actually had dogs that lives with them on site). I was living in the middle on nowhere, surrounded by an on-site staff that had a lot of range in ages, with no cable, no Internet, and limited cell reception (which usually resembled me on a hill trying to find the right spot to get the best service and resembling a cell phone commercial). I wrote, I watched moved on my portable DVD player, I cooked, I took walks, I hung out with staff, and I found ways to keep my hands busy (I'm the type of person who usually can;t just watch tv, I have to have my hands busy doing something). Over this summer I took various crafting projects, including designing and creating my own themed chess set.

King, Queen, Bishop

I grew up playing chess as a kid and over the years have seen a ton of themed chess sets from King Arthur to 'Gone With the Wind' to 'The Simpsons.' What I had never seen was a 60's Hippy theme. (Maybe there is another one out there, but I hadn't seen it.) I thought about carving the pieces, but my limited carving background includes a nativity scene I carved one year out of bards of soap and pretty much nothing else. I'm not afraid of new challenged, but that is a big one to take on involving a knife and limits on how to fix ut ohs. I decided on sculpting it. While I didn't have a lot of experience here either, I knew if something wasn't turning out the way I liked I could always smash it back into a ball and start over. 

For more on these board: http://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/handmade-clay-hippy-themed-chess-set

I brainstormed tons of ideas for the pieces, including making a few phone calls to friends for ideas. I had some interesting feedback, but some seemed way too complicated for my limited sculpting background (Like Paul McCartney as a knight or a gun with daisy hanging out the end) & I still wanted to keep this accessible to my abilities. After a few trial attempts with clay I decided on the pieces and set out with some white Sculpty Clay to create the entire set over a few evenings in my cabin. (While I did not have a full kitchen, preparing most meals in a communal kitchen across the way, I did have a toaster oven in my cabin that I could bake the pieces.) Each piece was hand sculpted, baked, and painted. Instead of going with a tradition black/white theme I chose a fire/water theme with a marbled/tie dye appearance with flesh tones as needed. The board was made from a scrap of something leftover from some house renovation and painted with the same color theme. Once painted (acrylic paint was used for this project) and dry the pieces where sprayed with an acrylic sealer and let dry again.



The finished set got a lot of attention from some of the staff who had seen them drying or being worked on and a few campers. There was a teen girl who wanted to learn how to play chess after seeing them and I was ready to teach her, unfortunately schedules just did not work before she headed home. Hopefully, her desire to learn led her to someone else who could teach her.

For interested parties the pieces were as follows:
King - A long haired hippy male complete with head band, outstretched arms, bell bottoms, a beard, and a peace sign on his shirt.
Queen - a long haired hippy mama with flowing hair, a long flowing dress, headband, and outstretched arms.
Bishop - A shaman themed old man with long flowing beard and hair. (I fought the urge to put a joint hanging out of his mouth.)
Knight - My version of a VW bug. (This was really probably one of the hardest pieces for me to make.)
Rook - A psychedelic mushroom. (These probably turned out the coolest.)
Pawn - a dove (and boy did I make a lot of these).

For More Information About Chess


For instructions on how to play:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_chess
http://www.chessguru.net/
-OR- find do a simple internet search
-OR- find a friend or relative who can teach you.