Song Lore Saturday: Manticore's Lullabye

Ok, today's Song Lore inspiration is a little different.  It was actually someone else's inspiration before it was mine.  My friend Sheryl and I were out craft supply shopping and she mentioned wanting an amber lock because of a song by SJ Tucker called Manticore's Lullabye.  I liked the idea of an amber lock and remembered that I had just bought a beautiful lock at an antique store that I wanted to mold.  I also remembered that I had been wanting to try casting the Ice Resin into rubber molds and I also bought some amber resin dye.  So I set out to do this experiment one night. Here are the results!  The casting turned out ok, but my brother, the Mold King, told me that I should try a release spray next time, because my casting turned out to have a pretty rough texture.  After I cast it, I tried to give it a blackened finish in the crevasses, and I used Rub N Buff, which was probably not the best choice   At least, it was not the best choice for that rough finish, because it took a lot of cleaning to get the high surfaces back to amber.  Good lessons, overall, and a successful enough casting to want to try again with some modifications.  I have a zillion rubber molds, so this opens up a lot of possibilities.  So Sheryl will get this amber lock next time I see her...hope you like it, Sheryl...thanks for the inspiration!

SJ Tucker is a musician and storyteller who is well known with my friends for her performances at conventions and her wonderful folky music.  She has a wonderful library of songs that are sure to appeal to lovers of myth and literature and fandom, and her music is available on her website.

Here is a video of SJ performing this song that I found on You Tube, but you can find a clearer version to listen to (and buy!) on her website. "My amber cage had an amber lock
and the girl had an amber key
and a manticore was bound and sore
in the city in the trees."


Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Maker Faire Weekend!

 Maker Faire starts tomorrow!  Alex and I went early to check in and drop off some stuff and get a feel for the place.  There is so much great stuff happening and I am really excited to be a part of it all!  It is going to be a really fun weekend.  There were all sorts of contraptions and events being setup, and I was particularly fascinated by the life sized game of Mousetrap that you can see in the pictures here.  Isn't that fun?  The woes of this week are fading away until next week, and I am determined to enjoy the weekend, meet some great people, and maybe sell some stuff.  Hope to see you there, we will be in the Craft tent!

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Improvement?

Three new colors of the Detroit Skyline pendant, getting ready to go to Maker Faire.
Alex and I are gathering our things together for the booth and finishing up some last minute pieces for Faire.  I am excited about it, but the recent house problems have really put a damper on the happy mood I had hoped to have going into the show.  It seems that the recent home improvement project I took on, which was clearing old bushes and dead plants and fencing from the side of the house created two new problems.  First, I appear to have disturbed an eco system which seems to have driven carpenter ants into the house.  I have been trying to treat that and kill the buggers, hoping that they haven't invaded too deeply into my woodwork.  Then I discovered a leak in the basement below the same area I cleared out.  Apparently, all of the plant material and stuff that had been there was keeping out the rainwater, so moving it created a new path for the water to go...right down the wall to my basement.  We are hoping that adding a gutter and filling in the ground with more dirt and maybe pea gravel or other filler will stop the basement issue.  I really don't want to have to get a basement or foundation specialist or an exterminator, so I am hoping that the solutions we have been coming up with will solve these problems  I am really frustrated that my "improvements" created two new problems.  And it happened the week of a big show.  I don't have the time or money for this, and it makes me feel that the work I did was wasteful and harmful, actually.  Not much motivation to continue working, you know?  Anyway, that's what's going on here. I am trying hard to keep my chin up and see the bright side, but I am really struggling.

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred

 I have been crazy busy getting ready for Maker Faire and dealing with house issues, but I wanted to make a quick post to tell you about a new book that is coming out that I am super excited about!  I met the author, David Erik Nelson, while working on the DIY track for Penguicon.  We ended up speaking on a panel together about publishing and crafts, which somehow meandered into a lot of talk about bacon instead, which made me know he was a really cool guy!  He has this new book coming out that exemplifies the DIY and Maker ethic.  It is called Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred and is available for pre-order from No Starch Press.

David has generously offered a free sample project, this amazingly geeky-cute Sock Cthulhu, to show a little glimpse of what to expect from Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred.   If you are going to Maker Faire Detroit, Dave will be there to talk about his book:

TIME: 3-3:30 pm on July 31

LOCATION: DIY Theater in the Hall of Fame

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Disrepair

Architecture Charm and Links
Not much to say today.  I am feeling a bit defeated. Again. By this house.  Just when I thought things were starting to come together and I could be *gasp* optimistic about things, I get slapped with more reality.  I guess that is one of the consequences of living in an old house.  The repairs and needs of the house just never seem to get met, and I am once again overwhelmed.  It's just one thing after another, and I try to work hard on it, I really do, but I can only do so much and afford so much.  I spent most of the day running away from home, because I just couldn't deal with it anymore, but now I am back, and am going to try to get in a little work, which makes me feel better, before getting up early tomorrow and dealing with the latest house issue.  Bleh. Home ownership is highly overrated.

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Auntie's Beads and Extra Links

 This past week I received a shipment of really great lampwork glass beads from my friends at Auntie's Beads!  They have a new blogger program so I will be showcasing some of the beads they send me and will start incorporating them in some of my designs.  The first shipment contained a variety of lampwork glass beads*. Above are Lampwork Oval Pendants, Black with Gold Foil and Lampwork Coin Beads, Black with Khaki and Gold Foil.   I like the coin beads the best from the whole assortment!  The shape feels very nice to the touch and I like the black with the earthy khaki and the little bit of gold.  I think these would work really well with my ceramics.  The black and gold ovals are very elegant as well.

The next set of beads are these Lampwork Rondelle Beads, Black with White Swirls and Dots and Lampwork Discs, Black with Beige Bumpy Dots Bead.  Both are nicely made and inexpensive beads with nice details.  The swirly rondelles are quite adorable, not a true black but more of a transparent dark gray with wonderful little scrolls and dots.  The bumpy discs have these really neat geometrically placed bumps that have a depth to them like looking into a little world.  I am eager to use both of these in some new designs!

Click on over to Auntie's Beads to see their entire collection of lampworked glass beads!

And now I have this week's Extra Links for you:

A Bead A Day
If you enjoy recycling, Lisa shared a bracelet idea using an "old" canvas belt. 

About.com Jewelry Making
Tammy catches you up on some of her latest free jewelry tutorials.   

Art Bead Scene
It's the Art Bead Scene Monthly Carnival Blog. This month's theme is "Commitment." 

Beading Arts
You won't believe the goodies that Mama's Minerals in giving away on Beading Arts this week!  

Carmi's Art/Life World
Carmi has completed the necklace featuring her "found again" bezel! 

Cindy Gimbrone aka The Lampwork Diva
Mad for Monday features Cindy's new Step by Step Wire Jewelry Double Dip Adjustable Ring Project.   

Earthenwood Studio Chronicles
A shopping spree at an antique mall grants Melanie with some new old treasures! What will she make with these little bits of history?  

Lorelei's Blog: Inside the Studio
Lorelei's blog ended up on the Wikio.com Craft category, check out the others!  

Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done!
Jean made some summer fun earrings for Artbeads and they are soooo pretty! Go see! 

Strands of Beads
Melissa has finally hung out her shingle and opened a modest store-front on her website.  

The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton
Up for grabs in this week's Thursday Giveaway is an organic, lampwork glass bead by Susan Jones Designs.

*FTC compliance disclosure: the '*' items mentioned in this post credited to Auntie's Beads were provided as a promotional gift for review or design purposes.

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Song Lore Saturday: Detroit '67

I have been busy getting ready for my next show next week, Maker Faire here in the Detroit area.  I am really excited and proud for this event to be here in the city.  I have had the logo above and the matching postcard floating around my studio for months now, and finally the impact of seeing that great graphic of the Detroit skyline got to me.  I have been interested in buildings and industrial motifs and urban imagery for a while now, so it was a natural move to want to incorporate the iconic image of my nearest metropolis.

Here is a photo of the skyline in silouette.  The Ren Cen, Michigan's tallest building, is included in the series of buildings in the middle. 

This is the first piece I did that was inspired by the skyline.  I love it, but it's quite a statement piece of jewelry, as it is large and heavy.  It was also rather tricky to cut out the buildings and the skinny spaces between them.  So I figured I would do a carving and make a mold of something that I could do in production.

Here are a few of the finished production pendants of the Detroit skyline.  They are still a somewhat hefty pendant, measuring about 2" across, but they have a nice weight and curve to them.  I experimented with a few variations of "shading" with the glaze, and I like them all.  They are a little metallic and gritty looking and graphic.

I wanted to make them into jewelry in a very simple way.  I think I have settled on a brown suede like cord with dark gunmetal accents.  I wanted these necklaces to be clean, unisex, adjustable, easy to assemble, and not using a lot of materials.

The song I have chosen as inspiration for these designs is Detroit 67 by Sam Roberts.  I think the song and the video capture my feelings about the city and its history.  I was not alive in 1967 (born in '73) so I was not here to experience those years that ended up having such a massive impact on the city.  I have always lived in Metro Detroit, so I see the impact, but I wonder what life was like here in the heyday of industry, before/during/after the Riots, and in those years when I was too young to really be aware of the social and political happenings around me.  I wonder what these old, burned out and abandoned buildings were like when they were first built, when the Motor City was full of life and promise, instead of the hurt city it is today.  I have always had the feeling that it was something awesome, because people here still have pride in Detroit, and hope that it will renew and recreate itself.

"This is Detroit, see the skyline
A commotion on the assembly line
Raise a glass to the Ambassador
As she's moving you to the dance floor

Does anyone here tonight remember those times?
Can anyone here tonight just tell me what they felt like?"

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Cluster

I have been busy working on orders and stock for Maker Faire as well as some tedious Real Life stuff that really takes a lot of energy out of me.  But the good news is that I have finished and signed all the paperwork for my refinance, which I hope will get finished soon.  After months of calling and researching and trying to figure this mortgage stuff out, I think my timing was just right for some new refinance programs, and I was able to get a good deal.  Just have to wait now and hope nothing goes wrong.  I really need for this chapter of my life to be over.  I made some new Detroit skyline pendants for Maker Faire and was so excited to get them fired, I put them in the kiln too soon and most of them exploded.  I feel stupid for having made such a beginner's mistake.  What, am I new here?  No, I guess just overly excited and in a time crunch.  I will get the 8 or so glazed and fired by morning and maybe I will love them so much that I will make a new batch.  It's hard not to be a little bummed about that time and work lost, especially because of such a mistake. I made the necklace above a couple of weeks ago to show an example using some of the new ceramic Toggle Clasps that I have been making lately. I'm waiting on some pewter toggle bars to come in so I can list more!  The necklace is made of a bunch of chunky semi precious stones and pearls, in a variety of earthy and dusty grey colors.  I really like this color palette!

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Making a Name

I spent most of yesterday afternoon with Sheryl and the girls, with my portable metal studio, making pendants outside on their patio.  I am working on these for the Craft Faire at Maker Faire in about a week and a half.  I wanted to continue the line of thought that I started with my Steampunk Sampler as well as have some mechanical/steampunk/industrial looking things that both compliment Alex's work and which might appeal to the tech geek crowd that will likely attend the Faire!  I am not sure how to sell these pendants...I am thinking on a simple brown suede cord or chain.  I don't want to add too much to the cost of the necklace, and they are pretty intricate as they are so I am leaning toward the cord.  What do you think?  I also need a name for these, any suggestions?

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Antique Mall Treasures

On the way back from our weekend trip to Columbus/Dayton, Ohio we stopped at "America's Biggest and Best Antique Mall...The Heart of Ohio" for a few hours. It was indeed a HUGE antique mall.  We love walking around, spending hours looking at old stuff.  Alex and I enjoy old tools and gadgets, particularly, and will pick up all sorts of things to figure out what they were used for.  I purchased a few things, shown above.  At the top, a collection of keys and locks, which I always have to pick up when at an antique shop.  I should have bought more!  I hope to use the really flat ones in some new work. The center picture is another purchase: a set of little cards with what looks like time zones on them.  I believe they are related to world globes and go on the top or bottom axis, but I am not sure why there were so many of these available.  The last picture was my really exciting find!  There was a whole booth filled with letterpress engravings!  I chose these because they had very dark and graphic lines and didn't have advertisements on them.  I love the architectural quality of them and how they can be used to connect together to form new designs.  These will be used in clay, and I am very excited to try them out!  So those are my treasures from the antique mall!

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

House and Home

I made this necklace last week as a special request.  The owner of the train hobby store, Rainy Day Hobbies, where I have been buying my train and house model parts commissioned it for his wife's birthday!  I hope they both like it.  I thought I would share it here, as I have quite a few Heart Window pendants left in the Etsy shop and I thought an example of something made with them would be nice to show.

I had a great time on my little weekend vacation, but as is usually the case with time off, coming back is challenging.  I am trying to get the house, myself, and my business stuff back in order.  I will show some of the goodies I brought back from the antique mall soon!  Alex and I love antiquing!  

Speaking of home, I decided to put the remainder of my Raku on sale at half off in the Etsy shop.  It has been way too hot to play with fire, but I plan to return to it when it is a little cooler outside.  So help me make room for more Raku by enjoying the sale!

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Open Doors and Extra Links

I needed to make sure that the door toggles that I posted about yesterday would actually work in a finished piece, so I made this necklace.  Yep, it works, wouldn't you say?  At first, I had hoped that the toggle would naturally fall into a V neck design on its own, but it didn't, so I dropped a copper wrapped old key from it as a pendant. I think that added to the rustic feeling of the piece, so it was a good adaption. Also, I discovered that I love these tiny size 13 bronze seed beads!  I grabbed them to use with the pearls so it looked like a tiny faux knot, but ended up using them for the toggle bar and the pendant, and I just adore it!  Must find more teeny seed beads!  These clasps have been so popular, I added more to my Etsy shop as Pre-Orders.

If you like the look of this handmade toggle, then check out my Etsy shop, where I just listed a bunch of new toggle designs!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and here are this week's Extra Links: A Bead A Day
Lisa learned quite a bit this week about the need to clean beads if they have a powdery residue inside. Stop by if you have a chance for some safety tips.

About.com Jewelry Making
Who says jewelry tools are mainly for metalsmiths? There are plenty of cool tools and gadgets for beaders too!

Art Bead Scene
It's July and the Art Bead Scene has a new monthly challenge. Wondering what the prizes are for this month? Come check them out!

Barbe Saint John - New Jewelry from Forgotten Artifacts As she gathers inventory for her show, Barbe wonders why no one buys bracelets these days.

Beading Arts
Cyndi has a copy of "Beading In No Time" to give away! Pop on over and sign up to win!

Carmi's Art/Life World
Carmi makes a new necklace featuring the funniest artwork images!

Cindy Gimbrone aka Lampwork Diva
The schedule has been crazy and the studio is in disarray. Cindy is going to take back her workspace by....brace yourself.....cleaning!

Earthenwood Studio Chronicles
Summertime is the inspiration for a new necklace using glass flowers from Artbeads.com and Earthenwood Studio birdie and lumber themed components.

Lorelei's Blog: Inside the Studio
Lorelei gives a sneak peek to the new Craft blog ratings from Wikio.com

Snap Out of It, Jean! There's Beading to be Done!
Jean is thrilled that Margot Potter's latest oeuvre, Bead Chic, is already available at Amazon! This is a super concept for a jewelry design book, and Jean will explain why!

The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton
Andrew creates a necklace called, "The Keeper of Memory" around one of Anne Choi's sterling silver beads.  

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Song Lore Saturday: Landed and Mess

Today is a two song inspiration, maybe that makes up for missing the one the other week.  I have been listening to Pandora a lot and really love it!  I get a good mix of music and have been liking and unliking things to get a blend of music that I enjoy.  For some reason, though, in the last couple of months, I have been hearing a LOT of Ben Folds on my Pandora stations.  Like, a LOT of him!  Which is ok, because I do like him, but I never really gave him a good listen.  Maybe because he is depressing as hell!  lol.  But that's ok sometimes, listening to sad music can help either lift the blues or let you wallow in it and really feel it until it passes.  I guess that's how I feel about Ben.  So I am going to get these songs out of my system so maybe they will pass...

The first one is "Mess".  As I have been struggling this year with post-divorce house related issues, this song has played through my head many times.  These house issues are probably why I am making so many house and construction themed things lately, as I am cleaning up the mess of many years of neglect and trying to reclaim this space as my own.  Well, at least I am not setting the little houses on fire anymore, which is what my whole Raku phase may have been about, on a deep psychological level, lol.

"there are rooms in this house that i don't open anymore

dusty books of pictures on the floor
that she will never see
she'll never see that part of me

all alone as i've learned to be
in this mess i have made"

The second song inspiration from Mr. Folds is "Landed".  While still sad, it is a bit more uplifting, and shows someone with some new hope.  There are a lot of great songs with imagery of doors opening and closing, and this one is no exception.  So here are a few new door pieces that I have made, inspired by that image:

"But I opened my eyes and walked out the door

And the clouds came tumbling down
And it's bye-bye, goodbye I tried"



Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Bead Chic Announcement!

Exciting News!  Margot Potter's newest book Bead Chic is now available on Amazon!  I am a contributor in this book, with two projects that I designed and my beads used in a couple of other artists' pieces. The necklace above is one of the pieces I made for Bead Chic. I have been really excited for this one to come out, because I love the concept behind it.  Each artist was asked to make a piece inspired by another piece of jewelry.  The point is to show how to be inspired without copying, which can be a really difficult task for new artists and beaders.  From Amazon: 
"Bead Chic will show you how to take inspiration that you love and forge your own creative path. After learning basic jewelry techniques, you’ll be launched into 36 gorgeous projects. Each project comes with a variation, so you’ll learn how easy it is to adapt virtually any project to suit your individual style, making you your own designer." I'll show more about the pieces I made and the pieces that inspired them soon, as well as giving a full review and giveaway as soon as I get my hot little hands on the books!  Grab yourself a copy now, it is bound to be an excellent book, as Margot is the queen of beading!

Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.

Art Bead Artistry: Summer Fruit Salad Bracelet

I have one more Summertime inspired piece that I did for the ArtBeads.com blogger program.  This one uses these sweet little brass fruit charms*!  I have a weakness for fruit, both in real life (yummy! I must have some kind of fruit everyday) and in beads, so these brass charms appealed to me right away.  I tossed them into a simple jangly bracelet with some brass jump rings and my own porcelain fruit charms.  Delicious!

 *FTC compliance disclosure: the '*' items mentioned in this post credited to Art Beads were provided as a promotional gift for review or design purposes.
Melanie is an artist, blogger, writer, and ceramic beadmaker at Earthenwood Studio. Her beads and components can be found at her Etsy shop and her jewelry can be found in her Etsy Galleria. To comment on this post, visit the original post at the Earthenwood Studio Chronicles Blog.