To Wing it or Not to Wing it

Well here is the Spider Heart with a red flame that I riveted to it with copper wire.

I'm not so sure if I like the Faux Bone wings that it's sitting on. I had planned to attach the wings with rivets but now I don't know.

One thing that is putting me off is that the wings look a bit like antlers to me. That's not so sexy.

Another option is to use two-part epoxy but that would be a permanent bond. So if I were to use screws to attach the faux bone to the heart... it's easy to remove and then I have to work out a way to hang it.

So many decisions and so little time.

Gifted and Talented Year 9 Students

A few pics from the two-day class that I taught at a local high school to Gifted and Talented Year 9 students as part of a Literacy and Numeracy Project at the Trade School.





Year 9 Students creating art





Polymer Clay beads created on Day 2





Proudly showing off their creative talent







Pendants the Year 9 students created on Day 1 and some of their Polymer Clay Art on Canvas







Stevo putting some details into his Polyclay Story




Adrian proudly showing his necklace and bush tucker bracelet. Click on image to see  his amazing colour combinations and details.



Caged Buddha

Whilst visiting a friend yesterday, he gave me this little Buddha tile and shell because he knows that I make mixed metals and found objects jewellery.  Here's what I created with those bits plus a chunk of sea glass that I found on the beach a while back.

Measures 7cm long x 3.5 cm wide x 2.5 cm deep

Found Objects Sacred Heart

I am loving, at the moment, making things with the sacred heart theme.  I acquired this old spoon from an Antique Shop in Macksville, last week.  I removed the spoon handle with a jeweller's saw.  Formed a sheet of copper to represent flames beneath the heart.  All metal layers cold connection rivetted with copper tubing. The Mexican Folk Art Antiqued Copper Heart Milagro is from etsy shop "Alamo 2003". The pieces are very versatile since you can use them for anything or everything! They are ready and perfect for jewelry projects like charm bracelets, necklaces or even earrings, also they look awesome on any stationary piece.

Milagros are a small part of Mexican culture that gives you, your project, and your house a peculiar sense of being unique. Milagros, also known as an ex-voto or dijes, are religious folk charms that are traditionally used for healing purposes and as votive offerings in Mexico and other areas of United States. In Spanish, the word milagro literally means miracle. Meaning of the Flaming Heart Milagro : a healthy heart, bringing passion to your life, love you have for another.

Milagros derive their meanings in several ways. They all have a traditional and a literal meaning. Milagros also gain meaning through the wearer’s intentions. Your thoughts, your hopes and desires attach themselves to the milagro, making it a tool for your intention to be carried in.

Happy Valentine's Day

This is my good friend, Gabriel, modelling one of the found objects jewellery pieces that I made in Keith Lo Bue's classes over the weekend.  This is made from a bit of concrete that I found which contains some small pebbles.  I wrapped the focal bead with rebar-wire and whipped up a necklace (leather cording) for which to hang it from. 

Can you tell that I'm on a sacred heart roll at the moment?  Also see posting below dated Friday, January 22, 2010, titled "Primitive Sacred Heart".

Photo taken at Maggie's at Potts Point this evening where I met up with a few good mates celebrating Valentine's Day.

Who says a Zebra can't Change it's Stripes?

Today I made this Translucent Skinner Blend Stripe Cane‏ with a bit of yellow that I mixed up and a bit of green.  Seems like I'm always picking those two colours for some reason.  Don't know why, guess I just like 'em.

I love this technique that I learned from a Donna Kato tutorial.  She's one of my favourite polymer clay artists.  She's always making fabulous things with bold designs and colours.

Below is an image of the pillow beads that I made using this skinner blend plug. I find that it's better to use a sheet of white clay, rolled on the #3 setting, as the base. Unless you'd like to bring forward another colour. So in this case, I shaved thin slices from the cane and applied them randomly over the top of the white sheet of clay.



This fresh summer bracelet includes coral beads and shell pearls. The shell pearl beads are spiral encased in 20 gauge non-tarnish artisan wire.

Made this for a flyer promoting a caning class that I'll be teaching at Studio Amara in the Southern Highlands later in the year.

A limited number of unique and original loose beads created with this cane will be available for purchase on my website soon!