Etsy Spotlight On.... On A Whimsey!!!!

There was great excitement in our household today!  Why?  Well, if you asked you to  read Etsy Spotlight On today, 12 September 2008, you would find out all about ME and other shop, On A Whimsey!!!!   Yes, it is my turn to have the spotlight and I have to say that Rod from Block Head Rod has done me proud!  Thanks a million Rod, you have made me one very happy bunny!!!!

My other new interest continuation

As some of you will remember I have been having trouble with my muse who keeps going on holiday!  Then out of the blue she came back to me and made me try my new interest called wire wrapping.

I really wanted to make some more quilts but since my shop of Precious Quilts does advertise quilt, blankets and so much more... I thought I would try to develop this new skill.  Well a girl has to try, doesn't she?

Wire wrapping is not an easy skill to acquire but I will persevere and see where it takes me.  As you will have seen, below, I have incorporated some beading with it to make my butterfly and spider.  Now I am trying my hand at making my first necklace with glass beads.  Easy peasy, oh really!  Well................ Don't look too closely will you?  I still have a long, long way to go.

 

Note I haven't given you a good close up..... I wonder why?  LOL

Anyway, I will keep you updated as I create more.  At least I now have the proper tools.  My dear husband, an ex aircraft engineer, had all the pliers etc and offered them to me.  Bless, somehow tools for mending aircraft didn't sit too well with winding wire around beads!  When I showed him my new tools he did realise and admitted his pliers were a little on the large and clumsy side for this sort of work.  Still, it did help me get started and loved the support he offered me.

I feel so honoured!

Woke up this morning to find a message from a friend of mine, Janine, to say she had awarded my blog the Brillante Weblog Award!  My blog!!!!!!

Well, what can I say except, a great big thank you!!! 

Let me introduce you to Janine Maves / Althea Peregrine who is an extremely talented and versatile artist who has been a silk painter for over 20 years.  Amongst her paintings on silk is this wall hanging pictured below.

Silk Wall Hanging with Celtic Theme

The painting is done on silk shantung and is lined with beige silk dupioni. Drawing from medieval illuminated manuscripts, it features the lion, symbol of Mark the Evangelist, and Celtic knot and braid motifs in subtle pastel colours.

The textile measures 29" wide by 34.5" long. When mounted on the hanger, it is 41.5" wide x 37" long and is truly awesome!

 

 

 

Other works take their form in mixed media collages, assemblages, and paintings on canvas.

As if this is not enough!  Janine has another shop on Etsy called Talking Dog Productions where she concentrates on art cards, jewellery, and unique hand-painted accessories.  So, maybe now you can understand why I feel so honoured to have been chosen for this award by someone who is so talented!

As a winner of this award it is now incumbent on me to nominate 7 blogs for this award.  Blogs that, in my opinion, are enlightening and deserve to be recognised.  If one of the blogs below has been nominated before -you can feel doubly honoured!

1. http://lizplummer.com/blog
2. http://scottieacres.blogspot.com
3. http://nineandahalfdesign.blogspot.com
4. http://thecreatorspalette.blogspot.com
5. http://jillstreasures.blogspot.com
6. http://gunnelsvensson.blogspot.com
7. http://psoriginal.blogspot.com

And so, my work is now done.  However, if you have been nominated there are some rules, aren't there always?

• Add the logo of the award to your blog
• Add a link to the person who awarded it to you
• Nominate 7 other blogs
• Add links to those blogs on your blog
• Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

Now go ahead!  Check out the above blogs for some wonderful inspiration and discover the talent that these people offer to the rest of the world.  Enjoy!

Another interest?

Sometimes the muse just doesn't want to visit! So, if IT won't come to me, then I will have to go to it!

Looking around me and whilst chatting to some of my friends I came across the phrase 'wire wrapping'. Interesting, I thought! What is that all about?

Literally, wrapping wire around itself but a lot more subtle than that. In fact it is a form of costume jewellery which can be very plain and simple to very intricate work. It is in fact a very extensive subject. I have seen the most extraordinary pieces created out of copper, silver or gold.

Well, after all that I had to have a bash, didn't I? I have been practicing wrapping wire and have definitely decided it is not easy! Never thought it would be but you have to try.

Here I have a couple of examples of using wire with beads.

A group I belong to are holding a swap with a twist this month. Basically, you create something in any craft which has a value of approximately $15 and below. Once completed you upload your picture to flickr.com so that everyone in the group can see. The twist comes at the end of the month when numbers are drawn to choose your swap partner. So you do not actually know who your swap partner is whilst you are creating. Saves many headaches of trying to figure out what your swap partner would like!

With the holiday season nearly upon us, well, nearly I saw a pattern to make this cute little spider! Again, using wire and beads to bend and twist into a familiar shape Incey Wincey spider was born.

Two fun little projects to lighten the mood whilst I carry on trying to hone my wire wrapping skills. One day I will get there. In the meantime, my workspace is littered with lots of little pieces of wire which have been discarded in favour of a better piece of wire wrapping!

Monday - a new week and a new blog post on Boomers and Beyond Blog

Since the Boomers and Beyond Etsy Team (BBEST) revamped their blog it has a very clean, crisp and inviting look to it.  In addition to keeping the blog 'alive' authors now regularly post to it every few days.  All manner of subjects are discussed from 'Etsy' to 'How to blog'.  The important thing about it is that the team blog has become a very important vehicle in the sense of marketing the team and Etsy to a wider audience.  There is absolutely no point in showing off each other's pieces, as wonderful as they are, if nobody else is included in the conversation!

So, why not follow this link http://boomersandbeyond.blogspot.com/2008/09/its-not-just-about-chocolate-cake.html to read the latest post by Bags and More by Pam  Pam has managed to draw the reader into thinking they are eavesdropping a private conversation whilst eyeing up some delicious chocolate cake!

Here is a favourite flower created by Pam "I love crocheting this flower and think they are adorable. They would look really nice as an embellishment on other items, or with a pin on the back, as a brooch!"

What better way to start a week by spending it with friends as well as chocolate cake!

Another new venture for me!

You may have heard of me mentioning On a Whimsey, my other Etsy store? You know the one where I journey through the land of encaustics.

Well, after much thought and mulling over I decided to take the plunge! Yes!!!! On a Whimsey now has a website all of its own! Here you can learn more about the fascinating world of encaustic art as well as buy direct from me or go to my Etsy shop to have a browse there.

Not forgetting my Precious Quilts shop a friend of mine from Van Fleet Street Design created a wonderful video on YouTube to represent both my shops. Do have a look at it if you have a couple of minutes to spare. Make sure your audio button is on because there is music too. I felt so honoured to have this done for me but also, the magical mix of music, words and pictures had me rolling over laughing! Thank you Brett, you made my day!!!!

The first official day of Autumn!

Where did the last 9 months disappear to?  Here we are at the beginning of September, in the last quarter of 2008!

Today our American members are enjoying a holiday called Labour Day.  According to Wikipedia Labour Day is officially celebrated around the world to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers.  America celebrates this event today whilst other countries use 1 May for their celebrations.  The origins of the concept came from the eight hour day movement which meant that eight hours of the day should be devoted to work, eight hours for recreation and eight hours for rest!!!  Hands up all those who follow those ideas!

Instead, I would rather concentrate on the Autumn theme which comes as a welcome relief after the hot summer days which normally occur during the summer season.  However, around the world, the weather has truly been exceptional in every degree.  Sometimes super hot or sometimes super wet depending on which part of the world you live.

So, let's reflect on a traditional Autumn or the Fall as our American friends prefer.  Images appear in your mind of nature providing a splendid last show of what she is capable of and to remind us of the bounty we reap.  Colours of reds, golds, browns and oranges etc abound!

This image from  clingingimages depicts the bounty of Autumn to me.
Cornupcopia, Horn of Plenty Roman Style Window Cling Suncatcher with Stained Glass Effects GlitznGlass  reminds us of another event to celebrate! Halloween with this Pumpkin Palm Wax Candle scented with a blend of orange, cinnamon, clove and a touch of apple.

Leaves begin to fall in the Autumn and backroomtreasures captivates this image beautifully with this ACEO Original Watercolor Painting Oak Leaf
As the leaves begin to fall, the cooler winds start to blow and so thoughts go to warmer clothing such as those created by bagsandmorebypam showing a lovely Autumn Red Poncho To complete the look why not try these earrings from a shop called streetnoodles - a pretty addition to any wardrobe Copper Leaves II
So, you are all set to enjoy this beautiful time of year.  Check out more ideas from the Boomers and Beyond Etsy Street Team otherwise known as the BBEST Team to celebrate the first day of Autumn and beyond!