Etching Copper Experiment

Collage

I have made collages before but not exactly like this one.  Most of the papers I used are painted by me.  I enjoy the layering and moving paint around to see what colors and textures will show through in the process.  I discovered what Citrasolv does to National Geographic photos and this includes some of those papers as well.  That was a fun experiment except for all of the honey bees that it attracted.  I have lots of other things stashed away to play with including a paper making kit that a friend found at a garage sale.  All I need is a old blender to start making my own papers.  There are not enough hours in the day.

New Chalcedony Beads!

These look much better in person and I can't seem to capture the depth or the color with my camera.  I didn't make these all in on session and I plan on making more.  This is only two colors of glass and one in particular gives all the colors under the clear encasing.  It is a process of lots of oxygen and heating and cooling over and over. My concentrator only puts off so much oxygen and it would be interesting to see what I could get if I used tanked oxy instead of a concentrator.  It is fun to see the difference in each bead and I could not make them exactly the same even if I wanted to.

My last post had a glitch in the photo upload and I can't seem to figure out why there is a white space at the bottom of the photo because that only appeared when I uploaded it to this blog.  Any ideas?

Making stuff.

I don't seem to be able to focus on one medium but at least I am back to making things again.  I made this little mixed media piece and the first person that I showed it to wanted it.  That inspires me to keep going!  It is only 12" x 12" and I think it looks bigger in the photo.  After making tiny art pieces in beads for so long, it is difficult for me to adjust to working bigger.  I actually made beads yesterday but have not photographed them yet.  We have had smoke in this area all day from a "controlled burn" somewhere North of where I live.  It makes it hard to breathe outside and I hope it clears up quickly.  That can't be healthy for those who have to work outside.  It has also made driving hazardous.  More soon!