Restless weekend

The weather wasn't exactly super nice this weekend and I felt too restless to settle down on any one thing so.....

I started on the next chair...the very very ugly one. This one is going to be super simple. The top will be this old green color. The legs another more turquoise-ish color, and then the crossbars a nice blue. 

I got this far and had to find something else to do.

Debra at She Who Seeks, posted her art space, so while I was organizing my messy space, I thought I'd take a crack at mine.

This is what it looks like where I keep my paints while I am in the middle of a project. Messy. Messy. I do clean it all up and make it tidy at least a few times a week since I dislike clutter.

I have another space where I do a lot of my table top photography. 

The tubs hold bits and pieces I've created for Diorama photos. I use the bits for creating scenes.

I have bits and pieces of cardboard and repurposed 'trash' to make scenes. The original thought was to toss the 'bits' when I was done with them. However I keep using them over and over in different scenarios so I had to find a spot to store them.

The different drawers hold Lego Minifigures along with some other little 'toys' that I like to use for photography.

Toys are my favorite thing to do.

[Everything in the shot below except the little Droid are bits of things that were trash. I painted the bits, used old dried coffee grounds glued to surfaces for texture, and made a lot of whatnots ---> that's okay, I don't even know what the whatnots are!]

Sometimes I attempt still life shots of interesting bits of plants.

I'm not very good at this, but I need to keep practicing to get better at it.

Hopefully I will! These were supposed to be 'flat lay' shots. I didn't like the shots that much but found the textures of the plants and the old wood I placed it on to be interesting.

I worked on making a wire tree. I'm still practicing how to do water droplet macro photography. Right now the outdoor world and forest isn't exactly inspiring.

So I took this wire 'tree' and used a clip to hold it upright. I took a wooden block I'd painted years ago and stuck it behind the 'tree'.

I was going to practice 'water droplet' macro photography. So the tree looked like this.

I used a heavy gauge wire and then had wrapped jewelry wire around it to make surfaces for water to cling to.

The fun part was the macro 1:1 part. This is where focus and what I saw through the lens got interesting. I took a lot of shots, but this one is the one I settled on.

When working with with these small droplets and this close up, everything is manual. 

That lead me down the road to the world of abstract macro photos. The shot below was a red feather I had in my craft stuff. I used an old CD as a backdrop. I did a double exposure sort of and ended up with this.

Does it mean anything? Nope, not really, but the colors are vivid and it was a brain engager. 

My table top looked like a disaster when I tried something else and it didn't work. I put everything away. When I get frustrated, it doesn't help creativity at all. I have to clean up and give it a rest.

I took a walk in the crunchy and icy snow instead and got a breath of fresh air.

When I came in I looked at my desk and thought....I should be answering my Aunt's letter. She is old fashioned, we write hand written letters. 

I took out my Lensbaby lens and ... well....

this is the shot that made my day.

By the way, I was still to restless to sit down and properly write my Aunt back. 

I really should do that. 

Do you have a creative area that you knit, sew, cook, or do something amazing in? I don't do most of those things. 

Eir the Healer & Crystals

I generally don't look up names of Lego minifigures, but I was curious as to the real name of this one. She is used in the Lego Dungeons and Dragons set of characters. She is a Tiefling Sorcerer. [I have no idea what that is!]

I've had this character nearly all summer but haven't really found a 'use' for her until I picked her up and took her to the forest.

I hiked up and down and through the creek just peering at things. During the winter, the creek always has beautiful green grasses growing along its edge. This is a creek that is fed by multiple small springs. The water temperature is almost always near 45 degrees F. 

I photographed her in the creek. What would she be so intent on?

I still wasn't sure what she was doing until she got to a mossy area.

She had to be a healer, she seemed to be collecting items for medicinal purposes. That had to be it.

I looked up names that meant Healer and found a Scandinavian name that fit the bill.

Here she is, Eir, the Healer.

What a find! Scarlet Elf Cup!

I couldn't spend too long in the forest as the winds picked up with 40mph gusts. I heard too many trees creaking and saw too many swaying.

I headed indoors to see how my crystal experiments turned out.

Tiny branches...

A bizarre tree made out of pipe cleaners. It looks much better painted.

And...it seems like my Druid and Eir seem to like the crystals just fine!

But last but not least, a fun little shot of my table where the crystal forest is taking shape.

I strengthened some of the integrity of the crystals with an adhesive spray and then used some clear glue on other pieces. If handled a lot, the crystals will fall off. In the mean time, I will enjoy their colors.

But golly I am having so much fun!

Keeping busy

Not the best of photos, but here is the peanut butter jar house after I painted it. The tree came from Amazon and I'll use that in a summer project. I'm considering trying my hand at making a 'fairy garden'.
I'm not sure about the little house, I will most likely have to spray it with a fixative to see if it can withstand the weather.

The little 'hut' is perfect for the toy dachshund that Allison gave me!
And there is Mr. Morris too.

I have this over my kitchen sink at the moment. Just to make me smile while I do dishes.

So I watched a few more videos and decided to try some more projects.

I put a bottom on a 'mushroom' I'd made with a toothpick in it...

Then I thought I'd try using foil to make a gnarly tree.

I know the clay I was using would crack but I didn't mind as I'd use Elmer's Glue and repair it with a bit of more clay. I think the little cracks make it more interesting.

This is after I patched it in places. Now I have to let it dry and do some magic with moss and paint!

These were experimental mushrooms. When the material is not put over cardboard or foil, it doesn't seem to crack!

Those same little mushrooms now with the bottoms and the tops attached with some glue and clay. I set them upside down in a 'possum skull to dry for the day.

I decided to try another form of Fairy House...made out of things I could find in the woods.

Allison and I gathered some branches and cardboard. Then we had a bit of fun spreading everything over the floor first and then picking out pieces to 'do' something with.

Since I didn't know what I was really doing ... I just winged it. Allison said she kept having new ideas and I let her flow with it.

I was aiming for some sort of little wooden house/hut.
It certainly wasn't as cute as what I'd seen on line.

But.

It is sort of fun and cute!

I have a bit more work to do with some moss and final touches.

On these dreary days, I love to try new things.

Snow Day, Snow Play

Justine came down with his tractor and cleared the driveway and the little turn around. He said his wife and kids were going skiing.
I thanked him and ran inside to change my clothes and grab my dad's old skies.

I did a very quick change and re-dressed from doing chores into a face hoody thingy, goggles, knit gloves, and snow pants!

I got up to the ridge and put on my father's old skies and took off across the crop field. I caught up to Lauren and the kids out in the wide open.
By the way, Dad's skies were awesome. I literally felt like I was flying. I guess I can't help but smile knowing that I am using his skies. Feels like he is with me in a way.

I suggested we go up towards the woods where we could get out of the wicked winds that had Sno-nadoes whipping up all around us.
Lauren agreed and then stopped for a moment.

"I have an Up-day Gift for you!" she said reaching down inside of her coat.
I smiled at that. Up-Day was giving someone a gift for reason other than making them feel 'Up'.
She handed me a package of extra long socks that had little wiener dogs on them! The package had three sets of socks. The socks will go up to my knees and are thin enough to wear under a pair of my wooly socks.

We played for a while and then headed back to our places.

I can say that my neighbor's kids are no strangers to outdoor activities. They take cross country ski lessons in the winter and do indoor soccer.

I did some indoor crafts yesterday. I experimented with polymer clay. I've never worked with the stuff before, but decided to have some fun. I watched some tutorials on making a fairy house and little mini mushrooms and thought I'd try it with the air dry stuff before actually making the home made material I'd seen being used in the videos.

These can be painted after they dry.
I tried making a fairy house which used things I had around the house.

Don't laugh:
Peanut butter jar
Foil
craft sticks

So. Overnight the tiny 'mushrooms' I made have dried out nicely. The lady in the video I watched had said that air dry clay would crack as it dried if used on the project she was doing.

Um. Yep, she was right. This morning I have a cracked up gnome looking house.

I don't see it as a failure as I can let it dry and then fill in the cracks....or I can leave the cracks and paint it so it looks cracked and gnarly!

The materials for making a air dry paper mache clay with household items is pretty neat. It involves toilet paper, oil, glue, and patching plaster. Who knew?
I can see making that and trying it on one of these wicked awful cold and blustery days.

Then again.  I would probably have to take a walk to the creek to see what has frozen over also.

Oh. One last thing. I was feeling so crafty the other day I bought some felt pieces. When we were kids we made clothes for our trolls out of felt.

I made LIL Bear a jacket, hat, and scarf. After all, LIL Bear needs to be protected in this cold weather too!

One must bundle up properly while walking your dog!