The Blue Brick

The Brickworks pt 1

November 19, 2013

I got back from Italy with epic jet lag. Luckily Tito was on a weird work schedule too, so we were both awake at 5 am the next morning and we decided to suit up and take the cameras to the brickworks, see if we could find some owls. The Brickworks is an old brick factory that was derelict for many years before being restored to a nursery and wildlife rehabilitation area. The area is woody and quiet, especially early in the morning.

It was a good call – the morning was fine, clear and cold with a delicate frost on everything. We didn’t find owls that morning, but we did find some gorgeous maple leaves, birch bark, bright red sumach and Queen Anne’s Lace flowers that hadn’t yet closed their blooms for the year. Score!

This piece is the first of my ‘brickworks’ series, and possibly my favourite of the lot.The next three pieces combined these elements into layered jewellery. I love layered pieces because, though they take more patience, resin and pours, they are so gratifying when they’re done.

Intense red maple leaf is combined with a corner spray of delicately cut Queen Anne’s lace, with a layer of clear resin between them so the Queen Anne’s lace ‘shadows’ over the leaf.

The copper bezel has had a patina added by hand to darken it and give it more of a steampunk look. The resin cured to a perfect, glossy shine – it’s perfection!
Prepping for my Holiday Sale – the Three Sisters

November 18, 2013

Yesterday was a massive resin-fest at the house. I was up to my elbows in the stuff literally all day and I’ve got to say, the results are lovely :) Every day this week I’ll show off some of the pieces created yesterday, all of which are going to be on sale on my Etsy page, starting at noon on Sunday November 24th. The sale will run for exactly one week, until noon the following Sunday.

I will also be featuring a contest giveaway for a very special piece I’ve been working on, details on the piece, and how to win it, coming soon! Here are some of yesterdays pieces – the ‘three sisters’.

The Three Sisters were special because, believe it or not, they all come from one, massive maple leaf. I couldn’t believe how many colour variations were present in that one gorgeous leaf, so I divided it into three silver plated bezels.

Here they are with the resin 12 hours cured – the colours are so bright and saturated and the resin cured to a glossy, mirror shine.

The three sisters will be part of the holiday sale starting on Sunday, and will include a 16 inch, silver plated snake chain. More goodies coming soon!
Resin and Graphic Inlays

November 13, 2013

I’ve been experimenting with a new direction in resin – combining it with prints (specifically, transparent prints) to create transparent pendants with inlayed graphics.

The results have been very cool. In this case I’m printing the graphics with gradients that I’ve already prepared, rather than adding dye to the resin after the fact. Check out some examples below of what I’ve made so far!

In response to a few requests I will be doing a pre-Christmas sale, for one week, beginning Monday November 25th. The sale will include some of these resin and graphic pieces, plus a few pieces in wooden bezels, some spherical work and of course traditional silver bezels with plants and flowers. If you’re keen on shopping hand-made this Christmas, you might want to have a look :)
FO – Romney Kerchief

November 12, 2013

The Romney Kerchief by Jared Flood was a delight to knit. Not just because it was super simple and mindless, not just because it was a knit for Tito, and not even just because it was knit from squishy Ella Rae Lace Merino, My favourite thing about this kerchief is that it was knit here:

and here…

…and here.

Once off the needles it looked way too small, but of course blocking made all the difference. Mods, I used 420 yards of sock weight yarn instead of the recommended dk weight, on 4mm needles. Tito loves it :)
It Ain’t Over ’Til the Resin Cures

November 10, 2013

A few weeks ago I threw my largest plate yet on the wheel. It was lovely, and I had plans for it. I painted the middle in a denim blue underglaze and ~~painstakingly~~ carefully freehanded in the filigree.

Alas, something happened between then and when I got the bisqueware out of the kiln – the filigree section was damaged and had a few ‘bald spots’. I decided to try just glazing it blue, hoping that the centre where the underglaze was would turn a deeper blue, and the glaze would pool in the filigree and become black, thus rescuing the design. The plate I got back was just…. blue. Not an even blue, which I would have been content with, but a blue with a few crummy lines in the middle, marking where my design used to be, and to me, obviously looking like a flaw.

I refused to let this plate die – I got out my polymer clays, YouTube and of course, resin.

The plate took about 4 hours to cover completely. I poured the resin over the top of just the clay design, without baking the clay first because I was afraid that shrinkage and curling would ruin the perfect fit on the plate. Here are my results:

The resin cured to a perfect, glassy finish.

I will never put it in the microwave, oven or dishwasher, because I’m honestly not sure what would happen. In fact, it will never be used for food at all, the plate is on display in our home.

I’m sure one day when I actually know what I’m doing with polymer clay this plate will look wonky and asymmetrical, but for now, as rescues go, I’m pretty happy :) It’s also fired up my enthusiasm for polymer clay!
Positano

November 8, 2013

Ok, last photos of Italy, promise! I know it’s supposed to be the Friday Shiny – and I’ve got some adorable pieces to show off, but first I must share my absolutely favourite part of the Amalfi coast.

Not much to say, just tons of pics. A little town nestled into the mountainside. Colour galore. Charm galore. A patio with a view straight from heaven. Much knitting was accomplished.
Capri, and the Bluest Place Ever

November 7, 2013

The island of Capri lies just off the Amalfi Coast, about an hour long ferry ride from Amalfi itself. The ferry ride is gorgeous, passing the town of Positano on the way in. Positano was so lovely, that I decided then and there to spend my last day exploring it, but that’s for another post :)

Capri is stunningly, stupefyingly lovely. There’s a reason celebrities have been setting up little private villas on this rock – it’s so charming that I can see why people fall in love. Just look at the colour of the water.

My favourite part of Capri though, is a place called the Blue Grotto. The Blue Grotto is a cave in the side of the cliff face with an opening so small you have to lie down in the boat to get inside.

The boatman pulls the boat in via a chain on the ceiling of the cave. Once inside – you turn around, and the water glows. It glows with an incredible amount of sunlight, turning the water a deep, iridescent blue, like nothing I’ve ever seen. The boatmen circle the cave for about 2 minutes, no kidding. They sing as they do it, and combined with the light it’s quite surreal.

The wikipedia article, which I read before going, says it’s a ‘love it or loath it’ type spot. Either you’re blown away, or you’re amazed that you paid €25 to be in a cave for 2 minutes. Well, I loved it. Even better, I loved the friend I made before going in.

One of the great things about travelling alone is how many folks you meet. I met Barbara and Ernie at the docks before the boat ride to the cave. Ernie decided to forego the cave, and Barbara and I went in together. In the spirit of Harry Potter; there are some things you can’t do without becoming fast friends, and lying down on top of each other while being pulled into a glowing cave is one of them.
The Amalfi Coast

November 6, 2013

Amalfi has been on my list for a very long time, so this time when I went to Italy I knew I had to make it down there.

My first revelation was that ‘Amalfi Coast’ referred to a number of communities along a rocky shoreline of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Amalfi itself is a medium sized town, and I used it as a base to explore other areas, easily accessible by ferry.

Getting down to the coast is a bit tricky – you take a train into Salerno (in my case, from Rome) and from there you can take the bus or a ferry into Amalfi itself. I took the bus, and I highly recommend taking the ferry instead to anyone heading down there – the bus is hot and crowded and, though it’s only an hour, it feels like a long ride. I only had a backpack, but I imagine if you’ve got luggage it’s even more difficult.

Once I got there, wow. It’s stupefyingly beautiful. All I can say is, if the Amalfi Coast has been on your bucket list, you need to just find a way to go. You won’t regret it. Tomorrow – images from my trip to Capri!
Roma – the Minnow

November 5, 2013

The Fuljifilm x100s is not a camera I would have chosen for myself, despite its gorgeous design, simply because it’s an all-digital that costs twice as much as a beginner DSLR. However, now that I’ve test-driven one in Italy I’ve got to say that I’m in love.

The camera has got some weight to it; an all-metal body provides a robust shell for lots of travel yet the camera never feels heavy. It’s small enough for a handbag, making it a great ‘walkabout’ cam, and the settings are easy enough to master after only a little play time.

The exposure, aperture, shutter speed and white balance can all be adjusted manually–giving you more control than you expect from a point and shoot. The 28mm prime lens is a good size for general work, and any limitations you might feel are dispersed right away by the sheer quality of the glass. In the image above you can see the results at f2 – not bad!

The camera shoots raw, but for fun I shot in jpeg mode and took advantage of the camera’s built in tributes to oder fuji films, including black and white and sepia toned images. I feel just as creative, if not more, with this one as I do with the Mark III – and it’s a lot easier to carry ;)
Roma – the Mark III

November 4, 2013

It’s been a week, and I’ve been sitting on about 70 gigs of photography from Italy – yesterday morning I finally made some headway.

I’ve been to Italy before and it’s always a new adventure – being immersed in so much history, art, and the best food on the planet. Seriously, all I do in Italy is take pictures and eat. I also got to spend some time with a dear friend of 15 years (and be her couch-girl!) who, as it happens, is also a photographer who loves to eat. Was there ever a better combo?

I present to you a random selection of beautiful Roma, shot with my 5D Mark III. I used three lenses on the trip – a 50mm f1.4, a 100mm f2.8 and a 28mm f1.8. Here are some of my faves – shots from the Amalfi Coast and ‘minnow jr.’ coming next!

Trevi Fountain – if you can manage the crowds it’s always worth a look!
Another angle showing the sea of people.
A charming sculpture in every square, a city of hidden gems.
Gazing up a narrow street from the Spanish Steps to St. Peters Basilica
A million and one tiny, amazing restaurants everywhere you go.
The senate – all lit up at night.
2000 years old meets a modern road – what a dramatic landscape.
So much history, you’d need weeks and a guide to really appreciate it all.
One of my favourite things about Rome involves wandering down random small streets…
The Big Stopper and someone selling roasted figs on the street.