have been playing with my silver

I wont write to much as its only me that reads it ;0)




anyways I have been playing with some silver, I have a zillion things I need to complete, but I got this idea in my head for the silver so I had to do it.
I wanted a very 3D effect so i made a cork clay form, and then partly surrounded it with the silver clay, filled the area in the middle with syringed silver, then fired it, after cleaning up and doing all the usual things you have to do to prep it. I then used 3 silver dragon flys and placed them in the middle of the charm and then filled the charm with a resin. The finished item is pretty heavy, but effective....well I like it and i have another zillion ideas to expand on this one





The pendant here is based on Arab Egyptian type houses, cant think of the name...the ones built into the sand/rocks you know which ones I mean - anyway I like the finished item and hey the OGNO sort of liked it so thats a good sign!!! or just good humour from her ;0)


And then I had wanted to experiment with some of my paper silverclay - well that didn't go too well, it didn't do what I wanted it to do, so rather than waste it as it is rather expensive. I ended up just folding it and layering it onto some silver I had used a texture sheet on, not very exciting i know but at least i didnt waste the silver. I need to have a long think about the paper silver stuff.


And lastly a wee photo of the lid of the jewellery box that i altered with clay and stuff's!!! give me a couple of days and you will see the great stuff we have for sale on our Your Creative Journey website to alter, I just need to get a few things sorted and then you can buy some awesome goodies to alter

So where the Gordon Blimey Bennett have you been...................

Well all I can say is it has been a very trying and tiring month of April and May....We had Your Creative Journey in April, which with the help of the delegates was a great success, and I suppose I am still talking to the Great Norfolk One as she did give me back my metal tools she borrowed.......but she did manage to walk off with some other stuff of mine....goood grief.

I will update the website with some photos, and also we have some great products for sale soon, so watch this space.

The other thing that has happened is I have moved, and this allowed me to have a mass sort out before I set up my den to play in.....................well blimey I have no idea who bought all this stuff, and some of it I have to say made it down to the charity shop as I am so embarrassed to say I owned certain things.....and be assured I will never tell what these items were as I am so ashamed!!!!! So now fully in and have a fully functioning art's and crafts room, and whether I produce anything of note is yet to be seen!!!!

So onto what else I have been up to, well a certain sparkley one had a birthday, so i managed to finish making her a silver and jade pendant thingie, which she seemed to like...well she convinced me she liked it LOL, Happy belated birthday.

So onto some WIP stuff that I thought I had better get round to finishing as I now have the perfect wall to place it.

I had managed to force myself an age ago!!!!! to buy a load of canvases, and had started here and there, well finally four of them are now finished.

The main picture with all four canvases does look rather odd in the photo, but honest the do look pretty cool all together... well i think so and that's the only person who's meant to be happy I suppose. I have used all sorts, clay, lots of paints, grunge board, beads, glass, stampes, UTEE, metal, you

name it, its on there somewhere. Its all very 3d and taxtile which was the main aim. So I am happy now they are hung so onto the next project to be finished.....

Well I have a couple of things....to be honest LOADS of things started that need finishing, but I will plough through them when the inspiration takes me.

To start with I this totally awesome wooden plate that I purchased at a knock down price from a craft fair. The chap selling it said he couldn't sell it as no on wanted it as it had too many cracks in it.....not for me. I LOVE natural woods, so had this idea in my head of what I wanted to do with it. I plan on it being like a wood setting with the little people around and about. I have started with my premo clay - which Nicks hates, but I love and think is the best clay - shes just toooo lazy to condition it properly ;0)~ , anyways here's the start. I plan on adding some natural materials using Paverpol and bits and piece's, but have not yet found the right bits, so I have decided to hang it in any case so it get's used to being hung LOL, also will make me make certain I finish it.

The next thing that needs finishing is a huge wooden mirror.....so wait and see... mind you I'm probably rambling on to myself, so it will only be me seeing how that turns out hey ho.

Ok as promised, but my bro is gona kill me.....

My photography is getting worse by the day, I can take photos of anything other than stuff that I need to do and is important. I should be soooooooooo ashamed as by brother is one awesome professional photographer - so will kill me to see the crap photo's I am taking, even with the help of a thousand clicks from photoshop nothing is saving me at the moment hey ho!!!!!!

Right as promised the necklace that I have redone - well the chain really. I made the silver heart a couple of weeks back using my Art clay, cork clay and kiln. I then put this onto a choker cable necklace, wore it for a couple of days and really did not like it. So decided that I needed to change the chain, and this is what i came up with.

I threaded 3 chains, two with silver beads, and one with silver and glass no 15's and then weaved them through the beads, and have to say I really like it now so that's the main thing. Interestingly two people I didn't know today commented on my necklace saying it was really unusual and one was a bloke who reckons his girlfriend would love it, so that's cool.

Way back in my ramblings I posted the Paverpol project that I started - the tin foil man. Well he has a name now - David and he has progressed, and I suppose he is Angel David as he has grown wings - sadly the photos really are totally crap and it really really does look better in the flesh as they say.

I have covered him with materials soaked in the Paverpol, sadly what I found out was that the "Bronze" Paverpol doesnt go Bronze unless it is on black material, but hey you live and learn. The wings were made from a bit of a Eureka moment, and a certain person knows how i made them - and OGNO was even impressed that I could come up with this idea. Well you just gonna have to book one of our Your Creative Journey workshops to find out. Anyways I hope you like him so far. I think he still needs a bit of tweaking but will get there. This has given me other ideas of what I want to do next with some canvases so as they say watch this space.... or not ;0).

Well the photo is pants.............

well for some reason this really will not photo well....honest it does look quite nice in real life, but for some reason is not photographing well. I am not sure if its the colours that I have used - I used about 6 different paint colours but they are just not showing up properly. Oh well lets hope the birthday recipient likes it which will be the main thing???????????

Right onto the next thing......... I have a silver heart pendant that I made with my Art Clay, well I hung it on a heavey duty floater choker chain, wore it for a few days and then decided I really did not like it, so I need to rethink the design of the necklace I have some ideas, so lets see if I can get sorted....will post it later once I have played

PS my get interupted as it's the Easter Dr Who special... can't wait ;0)

Have been playing.....

So what have I been up to.... well other than running around like a headless chicken...


I needed to make a present for someones birthday in April - i do have another two weeks to go, but because i wanted to get it right i gave myself plenty of time to redo it. So this is the box unchanged. I will upload in a sec the finished article.... this was a good buy at £3.50

A bit of tat and some more silver

Well I finally finished/ish the altered tin challenge, I say "ish" because I am really not happy with the lid of the tin, and OH Great Norfolk One took a look at it and said it was crap as well, so I need to do some work on it, as if its not up to her standards well then its no good ;0)~ .

I have lots of stuff going on at the mo and a zillion things I need to get sorted for YCJ , so I think the lid may have to wait in a que to get finished - maybe by then I would have a clue as to what I can do

Well my silversmithing class seems to be going great guns and I am really pleased with what I have made so far. My latest project is an unusual shaped pendant that I faniced making. I thought you may - or may not ;0) - like to see some WIP piccys.

I took my sheet of silver, cut - and trust me by hand its ruddy hard work - out four sqaures that were 3by3, and then made even more work for myself as I then cut the centre out of each one - again ruddy hard work mmmmm I am sure it would have been less painful on my hands if I had popped to the local jewellers haha.

Anyways I then annealed and bent - ooppps sorry carefully shaped - three of the sqaures to bend up in an uniform manner - well sort of, slightly organically shaped on the middle one ;0)

Then I soldered all four together, but allowing a gap at the top for my chain to go through - how I did this is top secret!!!!!!! worked it out all on my own and it works really well so well chuffed.

Next I made a bezel for my moon stone to then set this in at the stop - hey presto done - have one more class before the Easter break and then I am going to have to think of what I want to do next. I want to be able to do hinges and rivets in silver so need to come up with something that uses that so I can learn how to do them properly.

just some wee bits I have been making.....

Of course I have had to play around with some of my silver art clay and my kiln. So this one is a nettle leaf - found one nettle in my perfectly kept garden ;0). I have antiqued the piece at the end to just lift the colour and so its not shiny shiny silver

This is a cork clay mould that I made and then covered in silver art clay, it doesn't show up very well on the photo, but i have etched into the clay, and again it needed to go into the kiln to fire as i have used cork clay. I have soldered on a finding to the back and it makes a great looking pendant - I plan on doing another one but making a brooch with an unusual backing...won't give to much away!!! but no nicks it won't be for your birthday as I am sure you don't deserve it

and finally a ring that I have made on my silversmithing course. I am totally chuffed to bits with this one.

I cut and shaped the ring out of a sheet of silver, made the bezel for the stone setting soldered that to the ring and then set the stone - an opal - into the ring. I'm not into the shiny shiny silver so have made it look more "brushed" looking, but have drawn the line just this time and have not antiqued it!!. hope you like them.

I have lots of ideas for the full day Your Creative Journey projects and also just as many for our half day sessions... hope you have booked your place as we're selling fast

Right lots more piccys to come later in the week as I have two full days to play - can't wait.

What have I been up to....

Well sadly work seems to have got in the way, which means I have not been around much at all, and also not managed to play with my stash. But I have managed to squeeze in some silver work and a couple of necklaces that i have done as gifts.

They consisted of some crystals and hours of beading, and of course also playing with some silver clay to make the hanging round pendant necklace to the left.
The Silver clay ones look much better in the flesh, I used tiger tail to hang them from, so they became floating necklaces



I have just started a silver smithing course in the evenings, which I am thoroughly enjoying. I am 3 weeks into making my first "real" silver ring, from a sheet of sterling silver. I managed to hold off for a whole two weeks before feeling the need to buy all the tools and gadgets for silversmithing, but suddenly found myself online. I will post the silver ring once it is complete, I am hoping to finish the setting the stone this week. The ring is complete and the bezel that I am setting the stone is done - all by hand from a sheet of silver - so exciting.
Well all my tools turned up, and some sheets of silver as well, so it would have been rude not to have a play. The pendant to the left I have started, and was cut,bent and shaped out of a sheet of silver. I am not sure it is finished as yet, i'll wear it this week and see how I feel, and then decide if I want to add more. I have a zillion and one ideas of where i want to go with this, just need to find the time to finish ones started, let alone start any new projects. And of course I need to get ahead with plans for the Your Creative Journey workshops.

Your Chance to win

Have your brought you copy of "The Craft Stamper", if not get to the shops pretty quick or get to a online supplier and order your copy. This is for a chance to win a place at one of our Your Creative Journey Craft ReTreats. If you've not checked out our website yet, go have a look as our special offer prices run out soon, so secure your place by placing an order or chance it with a competition....good luck, and we hope to see you there

Just to show the last of..................

....the bits and bobs that I have been making while i have been off work. I now need to go out more often to wear all of the pieces that I have made, mind you saying that I have made a lot for presents and so I don't feel quite so guilty!!!!.

OK so I have been playing with the "paper" version of the ArClay, with some good and some really not so good, and some totally pants results. I have 1 1/2 sheets left and they really are not cheap, and also very small. They are only 7.5cm by 7.5cm so not a lot to play with, and not a lot before you make a mess of it!!!. I have just found a great way to roll the clay even thinner. I've never come across this idea in any of the books i have read or things i have read on the tinternet, it was from a happy accident, as most great eureka moments are, so I am pleased about that.

So this batch of jewellery has been created with lots of stamps, one mould slightly adapted, lots of badger balm and of course my new kiln. Which was great - and now I understand how to do a basic "fire" I'm away, and no stopping me.

The patchwork one to the left - I am really pleased with as I covered a twig with silver paste and then dried it, then built the hanging around it, so when I fired the piece the twig burnt away leaving a hollow twig/tube to thread the necklace through. Also the paper clay hanging with the tree, it looks really nice on, i need to work on this idea more as i want to take it in a different direction, and I have lots of ideas.

Well sadly I am having to go back to work on Monday that two week break seemed to go ohhh to quickly, maybe if I had managed to get out of bed earlier in the morning I may have had more time.

Well here's to a great new year and new idea's and new projects and a new diet boo!!! I have managed to polish off rather a lot of very awesome birthday cake this week made for me by the wondrous G - OGNO's daughter!!! Thanks G that was the best birthday cake I have had, but not sure why my jeans dont fit me..... I thought chocolate was good for you and of course sugar free!!!!!!!!!!!!.

I'm making no new year resolutions as i dont like to, but I am going to say I will be putting 110% into YCJ, and oh I promise to try and be nice to at least one person a month..........

I love time off work.....

I can actually get some of my projects finished when I take time of work, the rest of the time I seem to be either working or chasing myself to get "Jane" jobs done, or doing other stuff other than things that I adore doing ie creating Tat!!!!. So I am really pleased with the finished front of my wall hanging box. And of course the other thing i adore now doing is work for Your Creative Journey, which look out next week we have some exciting news.

I brought this box from the wonderful peeps at Capture The Magic store, and i thought it was a real find and great price, i only went in for some lovely paper. If your out this way you have just got to go visit their store, i know they are as good with on line supplies, bit its so much nicer to go touch and see things before you buy them, but be warned each visits cost's a fortune as you come out with more than you had gone in for haha but well worth the effort and money spent.

Anyways here's a wee look using video and a photo, the video shows it slightly better than photos. Hope you like it I know I do, not sure if anyone else in the house does!!!! but its on the wall in the dinning room so you can't miss it oooppss!!. I do like the idea of getting other people to make the bits that go inside each box in exchange for a bit of my tat.....just need to find some friends to swap with!!!!!!.
Ok i must now get back to playing with my new kiln and sorting some photo's out to show you what I have managed to do, i was even brave enough to show the OGNO, and you must go check out her page (after finishing looking at my tat that is!!!) anyways go see what awesome gifts i got from her daughter G, and she made me the most yummy to die for chocolate cake, and oh yeah i nearly forgot the OGNO Nicks made me "Monty" who is to die for xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx to you - the huge downside now is I'm going to have to make an effort this year when i make her a birthday pressie - i always made an effort with G's present LOL!!!. And before I play any more I just off for a trip down to the gym for a new year swim and run to try and burn off just some of this birthday cake, Christmas cake, mince pies, sweets.......need i say more!!!! Happy New Year hxxxxxxxxx

Now finished

so i have had a rethink about the middle of this wall hanging - and with some totally useless comments from Matt and some rude comments from OGNO and her budding OGNO daughter - i couldnt change what they were suggesting i should change..... I have finally finished this plaque and very pleased I am too. I would like to point out that I really do not feel you need to post any useless "constructive" comments thanks Matt as its not changing again and i know my crowns. I will have you know this is and has always been the Crown from the Queen of the recycled metal objects mixed with clays kingdom. Ahhh and oh yeah i do not need a correction of my grammer from G thankyou very muchly. ;0)

Maybe after all the stress i will have to sell it!!!! who knows whats going to happen to this........

ok so starting bid......................... I pay you £3.20 to take it away

I think it's finished

Ok so i started this a couple of weeks ago, and christmas present making and other bits and piece's got in the way, but i finally managed to spend the day finishing it - or is it??????, the trouble is i think the middle is lacking something. I have taken it to bits about ten times, i have also used some material that i had this idea of drapping it around the head and crown, but it just was not working. The fairy at the botton looks pants but looks much better in real life - my photography is really pants, also what doesnt really show up is the paper/image in the middle behind the metal mesh.... oh well will think on, may add to it may not i'll see what happens... anyways lots of stamped images into premo clay and lots of tat added, used my fabby zetti stamps

Now i am moving onto my next wee little project for my Tat wall gallery!!! - its a wooden box quite large its 16"by16", and boy am i going to have fun doing this and filling it with tat. I have made a start on the doors already the other week, and so have only about half to finish which I hope to do in the next coule of days. I think this will be an ongoing WIP to fill each section inside - maybe i could get peeps to do a swap with me and I will put there tat in each section!!!!!!!!mmm need a plan

Some gifts that i have made

So can you tell what it is LOL - its a clock - shock i know i bet you would never have guessed - anyways it is. I have used the great arch from LBcrafts that Lin and Leandra use in their workshop - well I gave it a bit of my own slant

Then theres some silver cuff links i have made, also a necklace and wine box that i managed to cover in metal . Now i wonder what else i could cover in metal................. christmas pud ooohh. Right i best go play some more.... with my new kiln and lets see what i can come up with while i'm off work

Birhtday

Its me birthday LOL

go check out KatherineT's blog - i hope she will post a piccy the most awesome thing i have ever had - Katherine you have made my day huge huge hugs and thanks - i nearly peed my pants when i opened it, it is stunning
hxxx

So who brought christmas forward.............

I am sure i have missed a couple of months this year, or someone has taken them away or someone has deffo moved Christmas forward at least two months, as it really can't be Dec again!!!!!!!!!!!!. I have been really busy with work, also some stuff for Your Creative Journey so i seem to have got side tracked. We do have some really exciting news for YCJ but shhhhh for now - well I could be bribed with a huge bit of chocolate cake ;0). I have also been busy making the Christmas cards which drive me nuts each year - sent the ones overseas in time to catch the last posting, but am now £20 lighter, but don't ask how much it cost for posting the parcels - i keep looking at the receipt and feeling faint!!!

OK so what have I been up to - I made a retirement card, i thought i would play around with some metal and clay - used the cuttlebug folder onto the metal then added the clay birds attached to my fav background of all time - acrylic paint burnt to an inch of its life and then rubbed with metallic rub on's and jobs done



For a friends birthday (and yes it may be a shock to some but i do have some friends!!!!!) (well rent a crowd really) - well shes not into arty farty tat at all so she is quite difficult to make stuff for as she is quite a fluffy person as well, also she has no end of bits of jewellery so thought i had better do something different. So in the end i went with this diary. It was a a plan brown hard back book diary that was inked to death and a few stamps, then windows cut out and ladies stamped inside for a bit of a girlie thing going on, then used diamond glaze to seal them. Then got my new fav item out premo clay and made a couple of "things" to attach and the bottom one with a written quote which was very appt. Well i took my friend out to dinner and she insisted on taking it with her to open at the restaurant - well she was chuffed to bits with it - but I was even more so when the waitress made the comment that she loved it and wanted to know where she could buy one from i rather blushed lol

Well the last thing I will blog for the mo is a wee clock that I have just hacked together - and of course its nowhere as near awesome as the queen of clocks herself OGNO Nicks, but hey i tried my best ;0). Its for a male friend to hang in his "man shed" where he mends anything that he has taken to bits. He had admired all my metal bits and bobs and showed an interest (or pretended too) - so i thought as he is quite difficult to buy something for I thought he may like something in metal

Well I had planned in just having a stand alone metal clock - but decided that even with the idea i had of building up layers that it would not be heavy enough, so in the end I decided to cover a piece of hardboard about A4 and a half in metal completely. Of course i used every ten second studio item that i had and then some more stuff, basically went to town on it. I then used the timmie inks and some paints using the peasant paint from lins shop which really makes a difference to the paint sticking. Then heated it, added some utee and also diamond glaze and finally some crackle glaze. Well if he doesn't like it I'll take some beer as back up lol

P.S I haven't forgotton about "can you guess what it is yet" project, well its just that it has taken a wee back seat for the mo - should be finished in the next two weeks ;0) but it is looking pretty good at the moment

Can you tell what it is yet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

................................hopefully all will be revealed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

so what have i been up to

Ok so what have i been up to - well a zillion grand Ideas for Your Creative Journey and i have been playing around with some shells and silver wire and pearls - this little bit of tat is of to live with someone else!!!!.

But I also found myself on a 3day spending spree ;0) - I went to Lins shop on my way up to the NEC and was forced against my will!!!!!!!!!! to buy some of the lush new metals, and some paperartsy christmas stamps that i really really needed!!! Well then had a spend out at the NEC at the Cake show and the art and paper craft show - yep i said the cake show - and i have not a sponge in sight to show for it - I will reveal later what i got from that show. I also met up with the OGNO + her very patient hubby and wonderus daughter G - who sadly lost a brooch she had managed to talk me into handing over - so have made her a new one.
Well to finish off the weekend I found myself at yet another "show" and it was the Bead Fair at Newmarket Race Course and Lin kindly mmmm!!! introduced me to a great find some fabby paints for jewellery so a few days and rather a few pounds lighter i have been a busy bee so i will share later what i have started to play around with and I am pretty impressed with items that i brought

New Brooch

Well i brought myself a beautiful long black woollen winter coat at the weekend, which of course i really really needed, as my dark navy blue one and grey one clashed with some of my suits ;0), and anyways of course it was crying out for something to be added. So out came my silver clay and I made a brooch.

I just love my zetti house stamps so thought i wanted to use on. so i stamped into the clay, using 21g of clay, made two rolled beads and the "leaf" shape with the leftovers, used my Liver of sulphur to age it, attached the beads and then soldered on a brooch pin. So now i have a rather unique silver brooch to show of now on my lapel.

well thinking about it now i''m just going to have to make two more to go on my other coats!!!!!!!!!!!

A couple of ReTreat demo items

Well now the craft ReTreat is over for this time phhheeewwwwwww, but lots of hard work is already underway for our next one, and of course Matt or Nicks didn't kill me or mmmm me them LOL. We had a thoroughly great day, and i think what pleased me the most was that people enjoyed it enough to book already for next year.

I have been soooo busy up dating the website, sorting other bits out that need doing, making a list of certain items that a certain crafter borrowed but in return had left me with a box of tat!!! i know where you live Mr & Mrs N, and oh yeah still working and getting on with other stuff that needs doing that just doesn't get done!!!. Well finally late i know i thought that i would post a couple of images of some of the silver pendants that i made as demo items.

All of the pendants that people made were totally different, out of both groups no one made the same thing which was great, everyone said they thoroughly enjoyed the workshop.

The biggest surprize for all of the people attending was when after we had all made our items and they were dried and then i got to play with "fire" and I fired all the pieces, but still they just looked like bits of clay - but in lovely shapes - well to finally take the wire brush to the items and then give them a good scrub and finally see that in fact they were totally solid silver - we had ooohhhhsss and arrrrggghhhhs in unison which did sounds very funny.

It does still amaze me every time i do it, it is just darn clever. Well here is a small collection of the items that i made. The long oval pendant in fact i put into the draw as we held a raffle to help raise much needed funds for The Animal Health Trust where our ReTreat was held. We were very grateful to people to buy the tickets, i put in the pendant, nicks kindly added a clock, Debbie put in a silk paints picture, and we have two wax pictures, two books of poems and of course the bottle of wine that is compulsory.

The piece that i like the most is the round inards of a watch - i made the mould myself and it really does look so effective in the flesh - in fact i liked it soooo much i just by chance had to make two - one for me and one for Nicks daughter as she missed our ReTreat - and G loves it!!!! it really doesnt photograph well as its silver - and of course nothing to do with me being pants at photography

Well back to working towards the next Your Creative Journey ReTreat and I will have a kiln by then and boy are we going to have some fun with that!!!!!!

necklace

So what have I been up to - well getting over the shock of working with Nicks and people coming and telling me how wonderful her workshop and work is gooooood grief as if i didn't know already ROFL.

Well i have been playing with my beads again. We were given a fab pattern at my bead group, and could i get my head around making it..................................... nope. Its done as two parts really - the centre column which is herringbone stitch which is easy peeesey and i managed to whizz two off quiet quickly in differnt colours - silver and black, well then second part you stitch the fringe at the bottom and then the middle, well the blow's the mind bit was having to stitch around the centre column with the same beads you have used to make the fringe. Well i seriously got annoyed with it as i just couldnt get my head around what i needed to do. i had a sneak look at my friend Debbies over the weekend and my brain got what to do DOH!!. The top image is my black one and in fact i have photographed it with only the one side complete just so you can see how i did it, as the photo's really do not do it justice, they look better for real HONEST!!!. Bottom image is the complete necklace - which i dont think i will keep mmmm now who to dump it on LOL, anyways it does look better in the flesh. Right onto the next project.....

Just Love Dem Bones and Day of The Dead Stuff!!!!

OK so I won't admit to which shop I somehow seemed to find myself in, but basically its not one that I would admit to shopping in... and nope its not poundland.

Anyways I seemed to have purchased some great wooden boxes that I want to alter. Well today is the first chance I have had to play around. So box no.1 is with a box that I would only describe as a collectors box - its got a tray inside with lost of compartments for bits and bobs. So I have decorated the top - I have a thing with dark and dead!!!! it may be my job but who knows.

I have used premo clays, moulds and stamps, some diamond glaze and glass beads, also i found myself buying about 30 oh yes 30 skeletons which are totally awesome, going to make some moulds with one of them, and well a thousand other projects with them. This time i seemed to find myself cutting up sid the skeleton to fit into this project, as I wanted body parts here and there!!! I have also recently brought a Day of The Dead chocolate mould, and found myself having to share these great moulds with a certain norfolk crafter!!!!!!!!!! the skeleton on the right is one of the moulds made with makins clay. I have just started to use Premo clay and I have not yet made my mind up as to if I like it, takes some work to condition but it does hold a stamped image well.

Next I plan on filling the inside with all sorts of awesome finds and makes so will have to update once i have done this. I think this will be an ongoing project as there are sooo many compartments, and I really don't have much time at the moment. maybe after the 26th, but then again i must start to make the Chr...... cards!!!

Have you booked

Have you booked your place onto Your Creative Journey Craft ReTreat

26th October 2008 - a date not to be missed

We are looking forward to sharing the day crafting with you, sharing ideas, meeting new friends, have a great lunch and not to forget a goodie bag - what more could you want for a sunday

playing with silver

OK so I thought I needed to play with some more silver clay before our YCJ workshops as i dont want to show the great Nicks up ;0), and in any case silverclay is such a great medium to play with, and I never seem to have enough time to do much of anything at the moment. I made two hearts and two 'bits' and then used some silver wire and some small fresh water pearls and hey presto this is what I came up with. I am sure i really really need to get a kiln so i can play with the paper silver clay which i have huge ideas to do with it.......................is it christmas yet santa!!!!!!!!!!!!!

one last thing......

just a quickie that I made - a certain OGNO was extra nice to me......... I won't go into those cheap shops LOL so she does for me and managed to get me some wonderful wooden box's that I have started to play with, and also she kindly shared a bamboo matt, and this is what I managed to come up with with one of the tiles, I inked and then sealed the image, put some cooper around the edge, and then made the chain using some rose copper beads using a "right angle weave" stitch, and then changed the stitch just below the tile to tie it all in, I think it looks quite good!!! anyways I have a few more to play with and hopefully get better!!!!! maybe make some to do some swaps with who knows!!!!!!

so another clay................

Ok so I admit I got so into playing with my clay and I ended up starting another part of a project that I needed to complete. I have painted 3 long canvase's to hang on the wall side by side, and I have hung them waiting to decide if in fact I liked them.
I have now decided that I sort of do like them, but they do look incomplete which I knew they would, and I knew I wanted to add some "junk" and "tat" to them.

Well I have now sort of completed a "face" that i want to add to it. It still needs to be coloured and painted and inked and tinkered with - once it has dried first.
- I also managed to make some moulds for myself of a watch and some keys and a "green man" and boy am I pleased with how they have turned out!!!!!!!!!!!! so miss smug here had to tell OGNO hahaha

So this is what it looks like to start with, it took me a couple of hours to get this stage. I just need to find some more time to complete and also decide what other "tat" I need for the other two canvases.

Also if someone knows where I can get black hearty clay PLEASE tell me as I have run out and just love using black the best, I have tried colouring the clay before I mould it, but it really is not the same and the clay just does not behave in the same way, I NEED TO BUY SOME BLACK HEART CLAY HELP>>>>>>>>>>>>>

what have I been up to....................

I have been told off yet again for not boring you all with what I have been up to on my blog...... So what have I been up to - well lots - working mainly, also having a few probs crafting but hey we battle on.

I have been doing lots of different things, and I managed to finish 4 of the round robin pages which seemed to take forever to do, and repeated and remade sooooo many times as i wastn't happy with what I had made, but in the end I got there....... I hope.

Well for the I dare you swap i have been playing with some clay, metal, and the soldering iron. The clay plaque to the left is not yet finished, i need to colour and ink it, I have run out of the black clay that I normally use, so have had to use flesh colour, so will take three times as long to do as i need to colour it and then dry it and then finish it - but thought it may be worth showing the picture of the half finishe item. I have made a mould of a watch (haven't I ONGO hahahaha) which is totally amazing, well I think it is and have crowed about it to a certain person!!!!!!!!!!!!

ok so another I dare swap item was to make a brooch from an altered item- well this again is not quite finished but getting there, should be able to post out by the end of the week. I started with a small glass vial thats normally used for samples or vaccines and have put a zettie leg in it, have made a copper background, embossed and soldered to the bottle - and of course took proper precautions with a soldering iron and a glass jar as glass seems to explode when heated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Second Metal Project

Well we all got so engrossed in making the first project below that we didnt get time to move to the second, so Linda - LBcrafts - showed us the second project and we were packed off home with the items to make it.

And so this is my attempt. It really is very theraputic working with metal and also i find it very satisfying. Here are the before and after piccys - I am told these wooden frames were from Ikea, now there from "Heidi's stash"

Metal Work

I have just had the most fabby weekend playing with metal with the wonderful Linda from LB crafts - great workshop, i learnt soooo much, and managed to spend soooo much money as well oooppps not sure how that happened, but worth every penny. We made a wall hanging, with 9 sqaures covered in various metals using various techniques and all very different.

I have now mounted it on a wood sheet that I have distressed to death and will hang it somewhere. In fact we did so much that we didnt get time to start the second project, so I will upload that once I have finished this also.

Thanks Linda your a real inspiration, and I met a great group of ladies, and I promise Linda not too darken you door again toooo soon ;0)

Right I'm off now to do the other project

OGNO Birthday's gift

Ok so one has to make the effort I suppose!!!! - and I wont hold it against the OGNO that she decided in fact that the necklace I had made was in fact not to her taste so happened to "steal" another one more to her taste so has ended up with two mmmm - and the other bit of tat that I made her was the artist manquin dummie - the title of the piece was "The Queen of Clock Idea's" which I thought was pretty apt, just a shame that I produced such tat to make the point LOL.

Sorry about the picture qaulity as it wasnt taken by me - the OGNO took it - she cant be perfect at everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Last thing for the day

so what does a girl do with an artists dummie, light bulb and some clay.

Its a long story but I will tell you once I have finished it - well assembled it in any case, I had a request and then a mad idea................... watch this space

or not...........................

Do I need another addiction - Jewellery

So you would think I had learnt by now, play with the toys you have Heidi - you really don't need another hobby, let alone buy any more toys. But you know how its is, and in fact one arting thing leads to another.

A friend has got me hooked now onto beading/jewellery making - I know I "play" with the silver clay and thats greatfun and creatively addictive, but beads well thats another story altogether and trust me very addictive. And after visiting the bead fare last weekend and managing to spend a couple of pennies ;0). well see what you think. would love to know if you like them.

The one in the top left i think is a bit OTT for day wear so will just have to find somewhere to go in the evening!!!

I know I like them and I suppose that's all that matters....... well now I will just have to make 1 necklace per item of clothes that I own!!!

So have I left planet earth

No i haven't vanished i promise (well some might want me to) - i have been really really busy with work and life but also exciting times as finally our website is now live so please go and visit, and of course book your place and places are limited, but also be nice as the site is working progress so more will be added as we go

YourCreativeJourney.co.uk

also been busy doing out logo and poster and flyers - and trust me a certain norfolk couple are VERY demanding and insistant that anything and everything needs a curve in it!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;0)

Round Robin Part Two

OK so I thought I had finished the front page of my round robin and would be sending it off, BUT OHHHHHH NO diseaster - I can't use that one now and someone knows why hahaha - all I can say is it must mean that great minds think alike, and that mine was not my backside bit mmmm you will have to think what that means.

So after deciding that I couldnt use the last one that I made (currently reached -0.06p on ebay) I had to rake my little creative brain cells to try and come up with something new and that I would like and so this is it, and I am NOT going to make another one I seriously have used my creative brain cell quota for June up.

Its 3mm grey mountboard again, this time I have cut out 3 windows and used acrylic squares to make windows and stamped them. I have placed some words and some shapie thingies I cut out of thin card on the board. Next I have covered the whole thing in thin ducting sheet metal and "debossed", then distressed with my metal tools and painted with metal paints added the words and the girl on the small board piece's, edged around the windows with silver, large copper rivets that i had to ink silver and thats it FINISHED ;0).

My Round Robin

OK so its about time I posted something new - I was told off for being lazy and not posting anything new in ages, sadly work has got in the way again, but I finally manage to spend some time on my front page of my Round Robin.

I have made it with my all time and always used 3mm grey mountboard. I find its one of the most versatile products. It really can take a hammering, and seeings as I had an idea of what I had wanted to create and then as I always seem to do totally change direction and I changed it totally, the mountboard can take yet another coat of paint and ink - it may start off 3mm but I am sure most of the time it ends up being 4 or 5mm by the end

Ok so in theory the front page of the book now travels around to everyone in the group and its is meant to represent the theme that I would like people to follow. Well me being me I personally don't think I want to set a theme ;0), only because well ermmmmmmmm because I am awkward hahaha - I would love people to create something of themselves that I am adding to a book I own - if that makes sense. All I BEG is that they MUST NOT use any peel offs or devils dandruff PLEASE hahaha. Also I have decorated the back of the page - again so unlike me to be different ;0). The middle of the page does open with a small peep hole - but I took the piccy of the back of the page before I had totally finished the project - give peeps a bit of a surprize. Really looking forward to starting to make the pages and see everyones work in the flesh.

My ASBA ATC Swap

So the Great Norfolk One is hosting a swap where we can not use the standard

materials for our ATC background and also we have to have an 'altered item' as the main focus. So seeings as i am into the soldering anything that doesnt move at the moment - and of course I had to copy the Great Norfolk One ;0) as that is where I get ALL my ideas from LOL.

I just so happened to have some metal and solder, and by chance a can of Red bull, some watch parts, clay and some glass and managed to come up with these three cards. One the hostess WILL have to keep as host 'gift' - but some how i think she may palm it off onto some other unsuspecting soul. And the other two she will find some poor soul to send them to and they will have to pretend to like them, hey ho i like them and i've done my bit for recycling I suppose LOL

The top card is honestly the correct size, the 'Red Bull' crown flips down, the face has been stamped onto a clear acrylic sheet and then soldered onto embossed and aged metal.

Where the Great Norfolk One leads mere mortals will follow!!!!!!!!!

OK so our Great Norfolk artist loves to solder and of course one just has to join in and of course follow the great one - sooooooooo I dug out some solder - had a new soldering iron brought for me for Easter (and a chocolate egg of course!!) and had a lesson from someone who's been soldering for over 20yrs. He gave me some awesome hints and tips and I had great fun, and can see all sorts of directions this is going to take me, but of course knowing my limitations being not as good as the Great Norfolk One

The two little girls in the photo are my OH great nieces who are totally adorable and sweet, and I have made this for their mum for her birthday. The charm is double sided and has a photo on the back as well and is about 2" by 2".

All of them have silver 'jump rings' to hang them by.
Also had a play around with a Domino, and was pleasently surprized when it didnt melt under such heat. i can see all sorts of things that really do need some soldering on now!!!!

MatchBox Swap

Ok so I got to swap with Mobunny for which i was very pleased as she makes some great stuff and she really did not dissapoint this time either as Ireally liked the one she made for me. And heres the effort that I came up with - and in fact Iwas keen for

her not to like it, as I really would have been keen to have kept it for myself, sadly she said she liked it and walked off into the sunset with it ;0). So thanks mobunny for the swap.

I used some copper sheet and my new ten second studio 'numbers' texture plate to create this, aged the metal using acrylic paints. Made a clay head for the inside of the box.

Made for Ally Pally show tomorrow - "Wizards Room"

Ok so a day early sneak preview of the card i have made to enter the competition at Ally Pally tomorrow, have great fun making this, took ages as made mainly one armed!!! The image to the left shows the card closed with its copper handle to open to reveal whats inside

I used my new ten second studio texture template to emboss some copper for the outside, then aged it with acrylic paints - it is a great texture plate but serious hard work doing it left handed!! when i am right handed, but well worth it i thought. I added a 'slider card' to the back to make a bit of interest to open as well as opening the card itself. The inside is made of two layers of foam board stuck together, then niches cut out, all covered in aluminium and then aged again with acrylic paints. Clay leg in glass vial added along with owls head, clock, lizard and thermometer. Added a bit more copper to the inside.

***Update... they cancelled the competition as apparantly they had a 'ringer' going to enter ROFL ***

Wall Hanging

Heres something maybe slightly different. I made this a couple of weeks ago, but firstly I couldn't decide if in fact I liked it enough to hang this on the wall, but more importantly how to hang it and lastly where to hang it!!!. So looks like I finally decided that I did like it enough not to bin it, and have hung it under a picture in my bedroom, and in fact it looks pretty good if I don't say so myself.
I have made them all from 3mm grey mountboard. Each one is a different style in the images that i have used and also different in sizes.
It was mentioned to me that it looks like the houses of Amsterdam. Heres a few close up shots.
I have used some crackle glaze on some of the houses, also some fibres for texture. Some of the roofs were plain card but I sanded them up to give the effect of a roof tile. Inks and acrylic painst were used also. The whole item was then covered in craft PVA to allow me to wipe it down if I ever by chance ever do any sort of dusting - which is a highly unlikely event ever to take place, but who knows maybe my cleaner may want to give it a clean !!!!!!!!!

I am thinking along the lines that this would make an unusual swap, where by each participant would make maybe 4 houses, they keep one but send three in for a swap back, possibly one tall and thin one, one small and one medium house, I think it may be very interesting and something different to do.

I will have to have a think about sorting this as a swap, and may have to make some templates for the houses so each person makes the correct size. But firstly need to find out if anyone else has any interest in making these as I may find that I am the only one that in fact likes these!!!!!!!!!!!!

edited as slight measurement mistake its 3mm mountboard - and no not 2mm mrs NN thankyou!!!!!

and another one....

- made a brooch as a wee thankyou

for someone and its now winging its

way there - messing around with some

clear resin, used some watch parts,
key and padlock and other bits

added some metal wings and

brooch pin to the back. Just hope they

like it, if they don't they can always try

and flogg it on ebay LOL.

Took the Lead from the Great Norfolk One

OK so I admit I got one heck of a stunning birthday gift from the Norfolk Great One- Nicks - and it is now pride of place in my kitchen. well this gave me some ideas of what I wanted to do for a couple of gifts this year. I had wanted to make my Skiing mad nephew something different for his birthday so decided on a clock. I started of with a cardboard square thingie!!! i got from the Range - its a bit like a picture frame.

Next I totally covered it in some wonderful striped fabric I purchased the other week from the Excel show (which I must add was a total waste of time really - except for the fabric), anyways - I covered the whole thing back included with the cloth, and then gave the whole thing a final good coating of the well tried and trusted craft PVA. This was to give it a good base to stick my items to it, but also make it sort of waterproof, 13yr old boys and most items need to be made waterproof. The next job was to decide which way i wanted to hang the clock and also to find the centre for the clock movement.

As you can see I decided to hang it not square but at 45 degree angle, which i think works well??. Well anyways i found all sorts of odds and ends to add to the clock to make it a one off one of a kind, made the '12 O'clock' and '6 O'clock' items from fimo clay, and again gave a good coating of PVA , I don't know where I brought the boot from??? but i think it works well.

And yes the '3 O'clock' and the '9 O'clock' are meant to be back to front and spelt incorrectly and it just adds to the clock I think. I made his name in wooden letters and decorated, and added the lizard - which had to be moved three times as the clock arms kept catching it DOH!!!. After I added the collage items I again gave it a good coating of PVA. I think it works quiet well in the end, but i suppose the most important things is 'does the nephew like it', well I will find out next week. - click on the image to see a close up

The Tailors Dummie cont....

ok so just in case anyones interested in how far i have got - very very slowly at the mo...............





i have covered the entire thing in images - just adore the zetti thing so have used lots of those images - and given it a good coating of PVA glue - and yes before you ask Mrs Naughty Nicks of Norfolk the craft PVA glue and not my industrial one!!!! From the start I had this idea of it having a metal dress type thingie over - well to give it a rustic look but to be able to see the body but also to see metal... havent a scooby doo why or where I got that idea from. So anyway i have some metal mesh that I have now covered her with and secured around the neck and bottom, as i want to hang 'made' items to. The bottom of the metal mesh i have pulled about to make it look rough as it should look better in the end, rather than a smooth finish, will roughen the top as well. Have already started to make items to hang, but slow going with one arm at the mo.

Needed to make some gifts so.............

I thought I would make some broochs, all different - made a total of 16 - the other 8 were totally different - they were sqaure based, but muppet me didnt take a photo before i packed and sent them DOH!!!!! - but i thought they looked alright

Take 6 swap

so I joined Naughty Nicks Take 6 swap - and i managed to come up with the following three cards, two for her to swap out and 1 for her to keep for being the host and she can pretend to like it!!!!!!!!!! - the first one here on the right is shown as made closed and then open

I am very pleased with what I finally produced, I made about 10 that I ended up throwing away as I really was not happy with what I had produced. The far left card is zetti inspired and the one on the right I have no idea where the idea came from or what its meant to be, it just is!!!!!!!

Finally getting somewhere I think!!!!

well I seem to have found a little inspiration now whether that relates to anything decent being produced is another thing. I am in an altered art charm swap in the States so wanted to make the remaining charms, which I have to say I really do like the end results, bit of lateral thinking involved in the making, nothing was harmed in the making of these items ROFL.

The first on the left is a belt buckle with bits and bobs attached, the next one along is watch parts with bits and bobs, the third is believe it or not a picture hook with again bits and bobs ?artistically hung ;0), the last in the row is the one I am most pleased with the result, I brought a batch of tiny padlocks, so decided to hang various useless bits and bobs from the hasp then lock it, and then with the key still in I squeezed a lot of superglue in the top lock to keep it from unlocking. You can use the key to hang it from. Phewie now need to pack them up and post of, now off to create some atcs' that I am behind on (yes Mrs Perfect they are for your swap!!! UKNOW WHO)

Inpsiration has gone

HELP I have crafters total block, have a room crammed full of 'arty crap' as I call it but can I make anything can I scooby!!!! I have a number of outstanding ATC's for swaps to make, birthday cards, and that old chestnut Valentines card but can I think of anything, NOPE and everything I look at just looks well useless sooo I’m going to give it all away


OK so I lied....... you have got to be joking that would be like cutting my legs off phew mad moment, so lets hope I get some inspiration soon as otherwise I will miss some deadlines. One thing I can do is share a great tip - if working with alcohol inks or clay give your hands a good rub with Badger Balm(can purchase from any good chemist) and that way your hands are sooo much easier to clean.

PS random photo of my windscreen this morning great ice pattern!!

Charms for a swap - Zettiology legs captuted

these are some charms that i have made for an altered art charm swap I have joined in America, they all have silver hangers/rings on so they can be hung from a chain or attached to something else. I need to make some more but I seem to be a bit stuck on zettiology at the moment hahaha, so need to think a bit harder and do something else, the second and third one in fact are the same bottle just showing the front and back of whats captured in the bottle. I seem to be drawn to glass at the moment, not sure what that says about me - answers on a postcard please......mmmmm wonder if you could make a glass jar postcard ROFL

'Captured Beauty'

OK so here's my jar so far. Made a female clay body on a pedestal a couple of weeks back covered in some paper I made with txt on, and thought I would put her in a jar - this was where the idea grew from really. Made some clay dangles and added other silver dangles to the outside. Next step is to make more 'dangles' and hang on the inside so they float around the body. Also to fill the bottom of the jar with some more tat from here and there

So Whats The Next Dust Collector

Ok so I seem to make things and they then go to nice new homes so I want to do something for me to keep. So here are my next two projects which I plan on keeping and they will become dust collectors as someone in this house calls them ;0). So here they are in their raw state. I think the tailors dummie will take me a couple of months to finish, as I have some rather crazy ideas as to what I want to do with it, so I need something small to also work on - hence the glass jar, that should only take a couple of weeks. So maybe you will come back and see if firstly I manage to finish them both and of course if they are any good!!!! And if anyone else decides that they want to do the same type of thing well maybe we will have to have a vote!!!

Masquerade Ball

Ok so a girl has an invite to a masquerade ball so what's she to do - make her own mask. I took a papermache mask, covered it in black acrylic paint, then attacked it with my trusty heat gun until it bubbled and became distressed/dry. Then rubbed over with first bronze metallic run on, then gold over that. added black feathers and some threads. i like the effect

sad ole week

We have had a difficult week, sadly we lost our beloved dog this week, he was the grand old age of 17yrs and 1 month he had a truly great life, he gave much love and entertainment and we will miss him profoundly he was the best friend you could ever want

Birthday pressie

I had huge fun but a lot of pain!!!! making my latest creation as a birthday gift for a truly talented friend, who by the way under estimates her own work - Happy Birthday KT

Some of my past efforts

The Shape of things to come

A couple of shaped ATC's that I made for a group swap on http://www.atcards.com/ have to say i was really pleased with them and didnt want to let them go. Made with utee, acrylic paints and some stamps. They started off the correct atc size, but the one on the right I cut shapes into the card and in fact stuck the 'cut out' sections onto the card

Best Friends

Well they were always together and up to something or other that they shouldnt be doing

Some OLD TAT i made

OK so here's my attempt at a birthday pressie for a very talented friend(won't tell her she talented as it would go to her head!!) - who I am sure only said she liked it because she is toooo polite to say it was pants ROFL - would make an ideal workshop make and take item, I honestly think it has worked really well, but then again I do have very poor taste