A new logo for me!

I finally got around to designing myself a logo. I wanted something that represents that I am an artist (the paintbrush and pencil) and that I am predominantly influenced by whimsy, nature and myth (the floral flourish, poppy and moth silhouette).

I chose orange as it is one of the colours of my favourite little friend, the orange banded tiger moth (the silhouette shape) who often visit me at home when I am feeling conflicted or down. I paired it with green, one of my favourite colours, which makes the design a little extra nature-ish I think.

 

What do you think?

My latest tiny Griffon

This little griffon is a girl, I haven't named her since she is a gift for a fabulous friend who gave me a pushbike.

I have included some before-paint pics too so you can see her naked :D.

 

  

  

  

  

  

To show scale

New girly griffon meeting Griff, my first tiny griffon sculpture. Awww.

She is polymer clay (mix of Fimo and Sculpey III), wire, acrylic paint, felt, chain and a cats-eye bead. I am quite happy that I could recreate the style of my first griffon. She is definitely different though, a little chunkier for one, but try not to mention it to her face,

How to turn cheap white shoes into rockin purple skully flats

I found these cheap white Kmart shoes for $6.00 a pair. They are totally comfy but I wanted purple, NOONE has purple! Then, either by some covert Australian conspiracy or crafty fate I couldn't find purple shoe dye anywhere, *sob*.

I wanted my purple shoes dammit! And then, pondering the possibilities and reaching the conclusion that all rockin purple flats should be emblazoned by skulls, I figure I could jump in the craft cupboard and use some existing materials to reach my dream.

Acrylic paint is actually really great for faux leather and I have used it many times to antique book covers and the like. The trick is to not 'paint' but rub the colour into the fabric so it absorbs as much as possible.

I masked off some hand drawn skull pictures on each shoe and after the masking fluid had dried I mixed up some acrylic paint. One tip is to mix a colour a little darker than you want, since the white will show through a little unless you really paint it on and that leaves the shoes open to cracking and peeling. Dab on the paint with a soft cloth, covering the shoe completely and then dab off the excess with a clean cloth. You want the material to absorb the pigment and then remove the excess. It will take a couple of coats but each coat should be so thin that by the time you have finished a coat on one shoe, the second shoe will be ready for another coat.

Each coat should dry to a mild tacky finish before adding another coat. If you want a pastel colour, dampen your cloth and dab into your paint. Rub the paint into the shoe and buff off, leaving a light coloured dye.

When the shoes are completely dry, remove the masking fluid. If you are careful, you could use a sticker in place of the masking fluid.

 

  

I finished these shoes off by painting the rear seams and where the shoe meets the sole with a fine paintbrush and then touched up the skulls with a white paint pen around the edges and added my final details with a fine point permanent marker. I buffed them with a beeswax furniture polish to seal them and add a little moisture back into the fabric.

Cool huh? And reeeaaaly comfortable.

My new wheels!

My outstanding friend and co-worker Carole is going to give me her bike! Yay! I have never seen it but it's purple :D and that is all I need to know.

Now I need to make her a thank you gift, she loves my little Griff so I was thinking of a gift involving something similar.

 

  

This is an amazingly generous gift and such a great surprise. I was going to op-shop a bike but this way I get a great girly bike in a fabulous colour and I know it has been taken care of.

I can't wait to post some pics and get stuck into pimping my ride!

A loooong day

I have had a very long day, a long weekend actually, sculpting shapes for my new jewelery/art endeavor. If i can get this to work the way it looks in my mind, I will have my first shop items before you know it!


How did your weekend go? Any new crafty avenues?

A new month, a new challenge

Craftster's latest challenge is to make something tiny, no more than 2 inches in any direction. Should I or shouldn't I?

I am going to ponder my options and see iif I can come up with something super. That's the real challenge, deciding on something unique and innovative. All the artisans at Craftster are so multi-skilled that it takes something really inventive to catch their attention.

Pampering body powder and powder puff - tutorial

This week's tutorial is in the spirit of Valentine's Day. Something decadent and pampering for a loved one or for yourself.

Our project is a sweet-smelling body powder made from kitchen ingredients, no fancy stuff or chemicals, just the good stuff. Plus, an adorable powder puff to make it extra special.

Approximate time for powder and puff: up to 30 minutes

Materials: 

   

• A wide-mouthed container with secure lid
• Fun fur in your choice of colour/pattern
• A handful of wadding of soft fabric scraps
• Needle and thread
• Cornflour
• Bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) - optional, not pictured
• Your choice of scented oil

 Tools:

•  Scissors

 Steps:

• On the reverse of your fabric, trace around the lid of your container twice to make two pattern pieces

• Cut your shapes. TIP: when cutting fur fabrics, carefully snip the backing fabric only, NOT the pile. Otherwise you will end up with a fun fur haircut on your finished piece
• Spike up the fabric so none of the pile hangs over the cut edge and pin the pieces together with right sides facing

• Sew around your edges with a simple stitch, you could use a sewing machine for this part but it took me less than 30 minutes for this whole project including hand-sewing. Leave a small gap to turn the puff back out the right way.

• Turn your piece right-sides out and stuff with your wadding. If you do not have wadding available, use a handful of soft fabric scraps or cotton balls.
• Stitch the puff closed carefully. Once again, ignore the pile of the fabric and stitch only the backing fabric.

• Grab your container, make sure it's clean :D. Half-fill with cornflour and add a teaspoon or two of baking soda if you like. Baking soda has deodorising properties and is refreshing on the skin.
• Add a few drops of your favourite scented oil (or perfume), replace the lid on the container and shake well to combine. Check the scent and add a little more oil if you like.

• Pop your puff in the container and seal it up.

• Add a label or message if the powder is a gift and you're done!

TIP: if making the powder ahead of time, you can infuse your cornflour with herbs or spices. Pour cornflour into a large container with a secure lid and add your choice of scents, eg. cinnamon sticks, vanilla pods, lavender or rosemary sprigs. Shake well and allow to infuse for a week.


TIP: no really, don't try regular flour. Honestly, you will end up covered in papier mache glue if you dust yourself with flour and sweat in the night. Not attractive, especially for Valentine's Day.