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Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
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12:00 pm - Talented Tuesday- Scarlet of Scarlet Impressions
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Tuesday already? Time for another fun artist interview! This time it's the talented jewelry-maker (and one of my cool Plurk friends) Scarlet. I just love her photography style and her jewelry is lovely! :)
What's your name?
Scarlet Leonard
Where can you be found on the internet? (Website, Twitter, shops, blog, etc)
http://www.scarlet-impressions.com - Main Artfire Store
http://scarletfusion.artfire.com - Second Artfire Store (Graphics)
http://www.artfire.com/users/scarlet-impressions/blog - Blog
http://www.twitter.com/scarletleonard
http://www.plurk.com/ScarletLeonard
http://scarlet-impressions.deviantart.com
http://www.facebook.com/scarletimpressonsjewellery
http://www.handmadenews.org/columnist/index.php?aid=1384
Describe yourself in five words.
Random, Bouncy, Outgoing, Friendly, Helpful.
If you were a color, what would you be?
Pink - it's welcoming, happy, girly and fun.
If you were a "Dungeons and Dragons"/fantasy character or creature, what would you be? (Can be a specific character, or something general like "elven bard", "centaur", etc).
In my RPG days I was always a halfling/hobbit loved playing them. I once had a WHFRP halfling (cook) that became narcissistic and developed anorexia, she lost a leg towards the end trying to control an earth elemental. That was an interesting time.
Shadowrun was an exception I was human (made sure I was only 4'2" though) and always a decker. I ran with a troll that shot up my deck one day literally kicked that guys ass (OOC)
If you could live anywhere (or anywhen), where/when would it be?
Middle Earth, Hobbiton, 4th age.
What is your greatest dream or goal?
My husband and I share a dream of being self sufficient (Chasing the Good Life) We would also like to build our own house with completely handmade/artisan items (he doesn't know that last part about handmade that is mostly my dream.)
What was your very first piece of art? How long have you been an artist?
I used to make friendship bracelets when I was about 8 loved making those and other little craft projects I think I have always had the creative streak though 10 years ago I was introduced to jewellery making and have been addicted since.
If you sell your art, how did you get started?
I started jewellery making by making a few things for myself (hating the current trends) and a friend from work liked them and asked where I got them, I ended up making her a pair then some more pieces for her daughters. My mum got me to do a mini show at her work and I sold a few bits there so I got into going to other local shows.
What is the strangest thing you've ever made?
I have no idea, I asked my husband and he said "There's some meals that come pretty close." I'm not that good a chef!
Pick your favorite project/artwork- what is it and what inspired you on it? If you'd like to share, tell a little about the process you used from inspiration to completion of that project.
My favourite has to be my Autumn Wire Wrapped Pendant. It was my first attempt at a wrap like that and it took me over 3 hours of actual work time on and off over a whole week of puzzling what should go where and how would I do this and that.
I had always had a love for wire wrapping and really wanted to get into it, I had tried easier ideas but not got very far with them, I may have been a little silly to try a more complex idea but I had seen some shapes that I had taken a fancy too and the idea dawned on me.
I made a similar design more recently (Lilac Turquoise Copper Wire Wrapped Pendant)
What kind of advice would you give to other artists?
As artists? - To always believe in themselves and never give up on anything no matter how long it takes you to get there.
As sellers? - Read everything that you can find before embarking on anything, pick the best option for your business goals and always have a plan.
What is your favorite:
Color? Pink
Quote? Sometimes you have to take the leap, and build your wings on the way down
Book? Snow Crash - Neil Stephenson
Character? (book or whatever) Diddl loved that little guy since my first trip to Germany still have a heck of a collection.
TV show and/or movie? Flash Forward
Season? Late Summer
Food? Chocolate (What woman wouldn't say that?)
Animal? I don't pick favourites on fur babies.Though I can't wait until we have the space to keep pigs
Art medium and/or supply? Wire and my glass rods so pretty picking out the colours
I just love her location of choice! Hey, Scarlet- if we ever find ourselves in Middle Earth, expect a Mirkwood elfling to show up at your door for tea. ;)
Tune in next week for another artist interview!
current mood:  geeky
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| Monday, February 8th, 2010
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2:05 pm - Treasuries for the "Turning of the Wheel" challenge
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Snagged two treasuries (a regular and a t-west) for the PaganTeam challenge. :) The treasury west is here and the regular treasury is here. Please click either (or both) to visit them, if you'd like; clicking on the items in a treasury and commenting may get it to the front page of Etsy. :)
In case you're viewing this post after Tuesday (the 9th) afternoon (when the treasuries expire), here's what they look like:
Just click it to go to the flickr page, then either click "all sizes" to view it fullsize, or click here to view it fullscreen. To get to the shops, type the name in grey under the image in your browser's address bar, then add ".etsy.com" (minus the quotes). For example, I'd be merigreenleaf.etsy.com.
And don't forget to vote for this challenge! Voting is up on the team blog- just click your favorite in the poll on the right hand side. You don't have to vote for me, just your favorite. :)
Speaking of treasuries, here's another one for the challenge, made by my talented teammate BlessedBeadJewelry. Click that one, too, if you'd be so kind. :)
current mood:  surprised
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| Saturday, February 6th, 2010
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2:16 pm - Can you please go vote on a challenge?
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| Friday, February 5th, 2010
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1:49 pm - Trove Thursday- To Melt Winter's Heart
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| Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010
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12:22 pm - Talented Tuesday- Marjorie of Whskr
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This week (yup, finally remembered to post an interview this week!) I'm interviewing one of my Plurk friends. As someone who also makes dolls, I really admire Marjorie's because I can see how much work and detail must go into even the smallest of pins (and the detail on these just leaves me in awe!). She makes beautiful and unique art- definitely check out her shops. :)
What's your name?
Marjorie Dawson (or Whskr for short!)
Where can you be found on the internet? (Website, Twitter, shops, blog, etc)
http://www.etsy.com/shop/WHSKR
http://felt.co.nz/browse/user/whskr
http://www.artfire.com/users/Whskr
Twitter : http://twitter.com/whskr
Facebook Fan Page http://www.facebook.com/WhskrDesign
Describe yourself in five words.
Doll maker, metalsmith, exploratory, technophile
If you were a color, what would you be?
Red
If you were a "Dungeons and Dragons"/fantasy character or creature, what would you be? (Can be a specific character, or something general like "elven bard", "centaur", etc).
Witch - I’d love to brandish a wand!
If you could live anywhere (or anywhen), where/when would it be?
Anywhere permanently warm with the option to visit snowy peaks once a year.
What is your greatest dream or goal?
To build Whskr handmade craft into a little brand all its own.
What was your very first piece of art? How long have you been an artist?
I love Lego bricks. When I started school I totally ignored Mum waving goodbye and set to building things, totally disregarding the sobs of those kids who felt them selves abandoned on their first day at school!
If you sell your art, how did you get started?
I heard mention of a place called ‘Etsy’ on a podcast about knitting called ‘Sticks and String’ (David Reidy) I investigated and set up shop a few days later. Small scale online selling has been revolutionsised by sites like ArtFire, Etsy and Felt.
What is the strangest thing you've ever made?
My larger art doll pinds with long dangly arms or with overlong arms. I really like them but some people find them strange. They tend to sell to practising artists (!)
Pick your favorite project/artwork- what is it and what inspired you on it? If you'd like to share, tell a little about the process you used from inspiration to completion of that project.
Mr Dangle. He was my first larger sized pin and was just wacky with long arms and a face set slightly askew. I never thought anyone would buy him I just him up online so show that I can make stuff that isn’t just cute, or sweet.
When I was making Mr Dangle, I used my favourite sheet copper and just went with the shape - trying not to be too exact, or exacting in my demands, but relax. A simple shape isn’t always easy to work with you can sit there and go blank but I had some of my fun charms from a fave Etsy seller and I had a lightbulb moment!
What kind of advice would you give to other artists?
You might not always find that you are doing the thing you love most straight away. Don’t be afraid to explore other skills and crafts. I am a decorative painter who spends a lot of time learning about jewelry now. All artists should explore too, to freshen your outlook, to take a break, returning to what you to love with a happy heart.
What is your favorite:
Color? Red
Quote? "The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Ghandi
Book? The Old Kingdom Trilogy by Garth Nix.
Character? (book or whatever) Mogget (see above)
TV show and/or movie? As we don’t have a TV, it has to be a movie right? “The Lives of Others” was stunning and as I have never read The Lord of the Rings (I tried....) I love the movies.
Season? Spring - warmth, growth, joy!
Food? Anything eaten in a nice restaurant that I didn’t have to cook (yeah!)
Animal? Cat, Dog, Guinea Pig.
Art medium and/or supply? Metal and any tools I can get my hands on from Rio Grande!
Thanks for letting me interview you, Marjorie! I love learning more about my favorite artists, and I hope my blog readers enjoy it, too. :)
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| Saturday, January 30th, 2010
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11:01 am - Createability Team is exposed! ;)
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But exposed in a good way, of course! Our team was lucky enough to be part of VickiDianeDesigns' series of treasuries, and I was lucky enough to be included in it! :D It's so cool to be able to see the faces of some of my teammates:
If you're viewing this post before Sunday morning (the 31st), you can click here to go straight to the treasury to see it full size. If you're catching this post after that, you can view the screencap full size here. See the names in grey under the picture? Just enter that username then ".etsy.com" (minus the quotes- so I'd be merigreenleaf.etsy.com) after it in your browser's address bar, and you'll be taken to the relevant shop. :)
The treasury has switched around some since I took the screencap, but I think everyone in it is still the same.
current mood:  pleased
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| Friday, January 29th, 2010
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2:54 pm - Wolf Moon / Old Moon
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| Thursday, January 28th, 2010
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8:09 pm - Trove Thursday- Love in Fairyland
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| Monday, January 25th, 2010
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12:49 pm - Art update: jewelry, a dragon scarf, and wolf ears
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Whoops! Had this post saved and ready to be posted, but then forgot to make it go live. So this is a bit behind, but it's some of the stuff I've finished lately. :)
First some jewelry:
These aren't really new, but I hadn't blogged them yet; I made these earrings and bracelet for my grandmother for Christmas and her birthday (her birthday was two days after Christmas). The picture doesn't do them justice because the earrings and bracelet are really cute!
I tried to make the earrings in colors that are kinda Christmas-y, but could be worn year-round. I made the bracelet to kinda match the earrings and the anklet I had made her before. The round beads are ones that I got from an old thrift store necklace that I took apart (well, my friend had gotten the old jewelry, then gave it to me), and the other beads were matching glass ones I had in my stash. :) It's on an elastic cord so it's easy for my Mommom to take on and off.
I don't think I shared this one yet- this bracelet is my first finished knotted hemp thing (I practiced first on some random cord to learn some knots). I think it came out pretty well. :)
These were a custom order for one of my very favorite customers. :D Basically it's the Imladris earring in my shop, but with a matching lobe earring and a cuff on top.
I really have to find more of these butterfly charms- I've only got one left, but I can't find ones this cute. :( So if anyone knows where I can find these exact butterflies, please let me know!
Edit: And as I was posting this, I just got a package from my awesome friend Luthien with a whole bunch of the butterflies in it! *lots and lots of hugs!* Thank you so much, Luthien!
The other things I've finished lately were crochet:
I made this dragon scarf for a Crochet-Along on Ravelry; the pattern was designed by crochetqueen. We're allowed to sell what we make from this pattern (as long as we credit the designer), so I want to add these to my shop. :)
I wanted to use yellow-green yarn coming out of its nose to represent the chlorine gas that green dragons breathe (yup, I'm a D&D player, so accuracy is important, lol), but the only fluffy green yarn I had was this light green stuff. I joked that it looks like snot. ;) Everything on this dragon is yarn, even the eyes (I crocheted those, too. I was going to use felt, but it wouldn't stay glued on).
Overall, I love how this guy came out! :D Next time I'm going to make one longer (I prefer really long scarves), and maybe make the snout longer. And maybe come up with some wings and horns? Generally I put horns on dragons.
And the other thing I finished lately are these wolf ears:
They're in my Etsy shop here and my Artfire shop here. I made them for the "Wolf Moon" challenge the FAEteam is doing this month, but they'd also work as dog or cat ears.
They're crocheted from acrylic yarn and fun fur yarn. The headband is white, the center of the ears are grey yarn, and the outside of the ears are also grey, but with fun fur that shifts from white to grey to an almost-black, so they don't quite match (I figured that's fine since animals tend to have mottled fur). There are pipecleaners crocheted into the outside of the ear, so they can be bent in pretty much any direction, like you can see in the bottom picture. Well, kinda see. It was really hard for the bent part to show up in the photo when the lighting was terrible; can it be spring yet? I miss being able to take good outdoor photos.
current mood:  busy
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| Saturday, January 23rd, 2010
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11:34 am - Can you guys go vote on a challenge?
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| Thursday, January 21st, 2010
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12:10 pm - Trove Thursday- Fiber Arts Cuties (Knitted and Crocheted Fantasy Dolls)
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I wasn't sure what I wanted to do for the BlogFire guild's "Wow Items: Knitting and Crochet" blog carnival; I love crochet so much that I definitely wanted to jump on, but I didn't want to just share what I do. Then I realized "Hey, it's Thursday!", so the answer was clear; make a Trove post showing off crocheted and knitted items from fellow artists. Of course I chose fantasy dolls as my theme, since I have a thing for cute dolls. ;)
So here's the Fiber Arts Cuties Trove:
1.) "Legend of Zelda - Link Crochet Doll" by deadcraft.
2.) "Knitted Zelda Fairy Plush - Purple" by oishiiocha.
3.) "Knitted Pixie" by woolies.
4.) "Mermaid Bookmark Pattern PDF file" by AndersonsCreations.
5.) "Knitted gnome, dwarf, elf, weird, magical, fantasy, strange-small size" by oritdotandolls.
6.) "Kitsune Fox amigurumi pattern" by skyfirearts.
7.) "Amigurumi Elf - Crochet Pattern PDF" by madsbear.
8.) "Crochet Dragon" by redoakcrafts.
9.) "Mermaid Crochet Pattern" by anapaulaoli.
current mood:  happy
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| Tuesday, January 19th, 2010
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3:16 pm - Talented Tuesday- Lady Steel of 88Links
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I'm all sorts of behind with posting these interviews, but I'm trying to get back on the ball. This week Talented Tuesday features another of my awesome and talented FAEteam (fantasy artists of Etsy) friends, Lady Steel.
What's your name?
Kathy, which is rather boring so my husband chose Lady Steel for me to promote with.
Where can you be found on the internet? (Website, Twitter, shops, blog, etc)
http://88Links.etsy.com
http://twitter.com/88Links
http://twitter.com/faeteam
http://88Links.blogspot.com
http://companies.to/88Links
http://www.flickr.com/photos/88Links
Describe yourself in five words.
Fun, Thankful, Curious, Happy, Sarcastic
If you were a color, what would you be?
Purple because it's a mix of the basics but becomes its own power.
If you were a "Dungeons and Dragons"/fantasy character or creature, what would you be?
Woodland elf. I always fancied the tall, mystical Tolkien elves.
If you could live anywhere (or anywhen), where/when would it be?
Medieval England was always my fantasy. Learning about history and the conditions, now I would choose somewhere warm and gorgeous like Hawaii or Mexico.
What is your greatest dream or goal?
Find happiness in everyday.
What was your very first piece of art? How long have you been an artist?
I've been crafting with found materials since childhood. I remember being proud of a sock horse marionette I made, thinking it would get me a part on the Muppets.
If you sell your art, how did you get started?
I began selling jewelry after being laid off from the hospitality industry in October, 2008. A newspaper article about Etsy brought it to my attention and I opened my shop, 88Links, in November 2008.
What is the strangest thing you've ever made?
A locking slave collar for a couple...
Pick your favorite project/artwork- what is it and what inspired you on it? If you'd like to share, tell a little about the process you used from inspiration to completion of that project.
I love animals so my favorite project is my Etsy icon, Slinks. Slinks lives a life of his own as he guards my patio. He is a swimming dragon made entirely from handmade steel rings. The inspiration came from a bamboo dragon I received as a gift. Staring at it one day, I realized he would be perfect in steel! It took an entire day to roll 12 ga wire and saw rings, by evening I had the body completed but I couldn't stop. In front of the television, after dinner, I absent mindedly kept putting rings into, and taking them out of, his imagined head. Before I knew it, his face was looking back at me. He is like a pet so if anyone ordered him, I would make another.
What kind of advice would you give to other artists?
Be your own cheerleader. If you like your art, that is enough reason to create.
What is your favorite:
Quote? "I Believe"
Book? Love to read fantasy, history, culture, biographies. I will read anything even a catalog.
Season? Autumn
Animal? Dog
Thanks for letting me interview you, Lady Steel! (I love that dragon so much!) Tune in next week when I hopefully remember to make the next Talented Tuesday post. ;)
current mood:  delayed
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| Thursday, January 14th, 2010
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4:31 pm - Trove Thursday- Be My (Elven) Valentine
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Arg, I missed Talented Tuesday again this week, didn't I? I'll try my hardest to get the interviews going again next week. The good news is, I am doing a Trove Thursday post on schedule. This week's theme is in honor of Valentine's Day coming up and is called Be My (Elven) Valentine. Did you expect anything else from me? ;)
If you're viewing this post before 6:15pm Saturday night (the 16th), you can find the treasury by clicking here. If you're reading this after that, click the image to go to the flickr page then click "all sizes" above the image, and it'll take you to a bigger version. From there, just type the username (that's the name in grey under the images) into your browser's address bar and add ".etsy.com" (minus the quotes) to get to the relevant shop. For example, the first one will be magickmermaid.etsy.com.
The "Alternates" are the ones that the curator of the treasury picks that don't show up for anyone else (at least not until they're switched in), so you get a top secret peek at them here. ;)
To make the linking even easier, here are the items:
1.) "Elf Sweethearts 8x10 Archival Giclee Fantasy Fairy Print" by magickmermaid.
2.) "Fairy Romance...Ruby and Emerald Sterling Wrap" by GoddessAdornments.
3.) "A'maelamin 5x7 Fine Art Print" by twosilverstars.
4.) "Forevermore" by pimpandpaint. (Alternate)
5.) "love gnomes / needle felted and whimsical / valentine's day gift" by SewnNatural.
6.) "Swirled Hearts Armlet, Upper Arm Band" by 88Links.
7.) "Realm of Love Map ... PRINT (Fantasy Cartography and Imaginary Places)" by paintandink.
8.) "Queen of Hearts Valentine's Day Elf Hat" by RagamuffinDesign. (Alternate)
9.) "Heart of the forest" by Danagonia.
10.) "In the Eyes of Love - Print" by Mizzdraconia.
11.) "Rose Fairy Earrings" by Danagonia. (Whoops! Got her in here twice; ah well, her jewelry is lovely, so I doubt anyone will mind.) ;)
12.) "Blossom love Act 1 ACEO - limited edition print 5/20 by Delphine Levesque Demers" by zerick. (Alternate)
13.) "PERSONALIZED SYLVAN LOVE-KNOT PENDANT - pyrography design" by flyttamouse.
14.) "Red Fairy Elven Forest Necklace" by Thyme2dream.
15.) "Valentines Faeries Watercolor Art Print" by PencilShavings.
16.) "Heart's Desire Earrings" by AthenasArmoury. (Alternate)
current mood: geeky
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| Sunday, January 10th, 2010
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3:52 pm - Lots of geeky (mostly video game) plushies
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I've made a whole bunch of video game and generally geeky dolls recently, and since it's past the holidays, that means I can share them. Yay! This is going to be a very image-heavy post, though. I warned ya. ;)
First up are the dolls I custom made for the same person who wanted the Henry Hatsworth doll for her husband. I'm so glad they both like them because I think they came out so cute! :D These two dolls are from the same game ("Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure"), but since I still haven't played it yet (I did buy it, though! I'm waiting until I finish Zelda: Spirit Tracks before I start it because I have this awful habit of getting distracted before I can finish a Zelda game), I had to go off of pictures of the characters.
Meet Cole and Weasleby:
(Click to view the smaller images larger)
 
 
The kid is Cole and the other one is Weasleby. They're both almost entirely crocheted from acrylic yarn and have felt and polymer clay bits added (the suspenders, the strap of the glasses, the belt, and the band around Weasleby's hat [you can't see it well in these pictures, though] are felt, and the glasses and cane are polymer clay), and the facial details are painted on with fabric and acrylic paints.
These two came out so cute; I'm very very proud of them. :D
The other dolls I made lately were for my fiancé as Christmas presents. These four were entirely from patterns so I can't claim the creativity and skill with them that I can with the above dolls. Someday I'll design my own Mario crochet things, though! For now it was just easier to make these off an already existing pattern. Most of the patterns came from this awesome crochet blog; the tiny mushroom came from here.
Two mushrooms (one's on a keyring- Josh keeps this on his laptop bag), a Fireflower, and a Bobomb.
Once again, click the images to see them larger:
Random present for Josh:
Okay, so it's still kinda wonky looking, but I'm slowly making my way towards a crocheted die that looks like a die. I figured I'd start with a 4-sided one since that's the easiest of the shapes (ie has less sides to crochet, lol). I'll keep working at it, but I gave this one to Josh.
And lastly, another doll of my own design... well, I used a pattern for the shape of the head/body and limbs (like I always do with my small dolls- it came from one of the fairy dolls here), but everything else is my own (the overalls, the hat, nose, ears, mustache, hair...).
Luigi (from Mario Bros)
This originally started out as gift for my friend to give her grandson, but I didn't have enough time to finish it and get it to her before Christmas, so I ended up finishing it and giving it to my fiancé instead (he, too, really likes Luigi).
He's crocheted out of acrylic yarn and I used fabric paint for the L on the hat and the buttons on the overalls (yeah yeah, I think the buttons are the wrong color, but I didn't have a more yellow paint). The eyes are plastic safety eyes I painted blue.
I'm pretty happy with how he came out, except next time I make a Luigi I'm going to fiddle with the overalls more; they came out kinda thick in the front and I didn't cross them in the back the way overalls usually are. Still, my fiancé loved it. :D Pardon the Christmas tablecloth; as I was wrapping the crocheted gifts I realized "Eep! I need to get a picture!". His ears look off center, but that's just the crummy photo; they're actually fine.
I think I have pictures of more things I made for gifts, but those'll wait until later. This is enough art for one post, methinks. ;)
current mood: geeky
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| Thursday, January 7th, 2010
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8:44 pm - Trove Thursday- Roll a Charisma Check
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I've been waiting for a Treasury to open up on Etsy, but silly me was off playing video games and missed it. Ah well, if I can catch one in the next day or two, I'll stick these things in one. Until then, I found enough relevant items on Etsy to fill two spotlights on byhand.me. ;) Since I've been geeking it out (ie putting together my own Dungeons and Dragons game), I decided, hey, that's a good theme for this week's Trove post! So without further ado, here are my picks for the Roll a Charisma Check Trove (why Charisma? Because it's my favorite stat, of course!). So get your D20s handy!
I'm not linking to everything individually this week since there's so many, but don't fret! You can click the items to go to their listing pages. Which you'll probably do, because I just cast Charm Person on my loyal blog readers. ;)
current mood: geeky
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| Wednesday, January 6th, 2010
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12:35 am - D&D character (NPC) development
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Someday I'll get to posting the art I made for Christmas presents and awesome things I've gotten recently, and get back into my posting schedule for Talented Tuesday and Presenting Pretties, but it's not this day (sorry- I've been feeling so lethargic lately that I'm all sorts of behind with everything). Today I'm just going to post about a drawing I did of the character who is going to be my main NPC for the Dungeons and Dragons game I'm going to be running. Yeah, I haven't felt up to doing much, but luckily I have been putting together said game.
Oh man. Between not drawing in *months*, a black pen that's far too thick for the details that were originally on the drawing in pencil (I swear, it looked a lot better in pencil!), and taking a picture rather than scanning it in (that green is supposed to be a dark forest green, not a minty green), this picture is definitely not up to par with where I left off with drawings about a year ago.
That's not a tunic; it's a wizard robe that she hemmed to be knee-length so it doesn't get in the way when she's off Elf-ing about. I gotta work on the design for that, too. I wanted to make the robe look kinda bunched where it's tucked under the belt and bracers, but it didn't really work. And the longbow ended up looking like a banana. And her eyes... they definitely looked less bizarre in pencil before I inked it. Note to self: get better drawing pens.
Yeah, I definitely have to work on drawing again! I'm going to keep working at the character design, though, and will hopefully get a character sketch done that I'm more satisfied with. Then probably draw more NPCs. Because I'm crazy like that.
This is going to be my main NPC in the D&D game (as in she's going to be part of the adventuring party, rather than someone they meet once). She's an Elfling (Wood Elf/Halfling) fighter/wizard, although she'll be the first to admit that she's more fighter than wizard. She was raised as a Wood Elf (although she does know a bit about Halflings from her mother), generally acts and dresses like an Elf (she's slightly shorter and will occasionally go barefoot, but she's got the stealth, the archery skills, and the tattoos of her father's kin), and is entirely uncomfortable with being indoors or underground. In a tree is preferable, but she'll take anything outdoors. Except the sea. She doesn't like large bodies of water, either (she gets that from the Wood Elf side). She'd have preferred to be a regular Elf, but when her father realized she was using magic to help guard their camp (Wood Elves are nomadic; they don't have a home base, just tents), he had the good sense to send her off to the nearest wizard before she ended up catching the forest on fire or something. And have I mentioned that she has a much better sense of humor than you'd expect from a Wood Elf? (That's not saying much, though, lol!) Her personality is the only real Halfling thing about her; she's much more cheerful and charismatic and fun than you'd expect from someone who looks like a Wood Elf. ;)
Note to Ruthie and anyone reading this who happens to be in the D&D group: remember, your character won't know anything about my NPCs, so even if you now know a bit about her, they wouldn't know anything. Trust me, a character like this is going to leave yours scratching their heads because she's so ... well, contradictory. ;) I suppose I should have kept this secret, but I'm so excited about running a game and playing a character who is my favorite race/s. :D (She's not quite the Elfling that's my alter-ego, but she's close, so I'm happy!)
I'll probably be blogging more D&D-related stuff in the future, so don't mind me. :)
current mood:  excited
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| Sunday, January 3rd, 2010
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3:40 pm - 2003-2009 Art Meme
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2003 - 2009 Meme by ~merigreenleaf on deviantART
My friend Niere did this, so I decided to, as well. :) Click it to go to the DeviantART page, then click it again to see it full size so you can read it.
The first few years I didn't do much art because I was in college, then concentrating more on writing and roleplaying than art. I didn't really big up art in a big way until late 2006; unfortunately, I don't have pictures of any of my early crocheted stuff, so all crochet ended up in 2007.
It's crazy how much my art has improved- I can make things now that I never dreamed that I'd be able to when I first started crafting in 2006, and even my drawings (which I don't practice nearly as much as the physical art) have improved greatly. In 2003 I never would have been able to draw a dragon!
The problem is I keep finding more and more things to add to this; by 2008-2009 I was doing so many kinds of art that I needed way more than four spaces!
In 2010 I'm planning on new designs for jewelry and costume accessories (and combining the two- like attaching my chain earrings to my costume ears), and learning new weaves for chainmaille and new ways for working with hemp. I'd also like to improve my skills with polymer clay and work on more icons and graphics this year. Oh, and get back to painting things onto fabric again; I haven't done that since early 2008.
And drawing; I want to work on drawing some more, too. I'm going to start by drawing some of my Dungeons and Dragons characters, so look for that soon. ;)
current mood:  thoughtful
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| Thursday, December 31st, 2009
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5:05 pm - Trove Thursday- Happy New Year!
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Happy new year, everyone! Sorry for the lack of updates recently; I've been busy with family things and not feeling up do doing much. Mostly I've just been curled up with the new Zelda DS game I got for Christmas- it's so much fun! My updates may be sporadic for a bit longer, though; I'm stopping my meds tomorrow, so I'm predicting feeling pretty lousy (well, lousier than usual; since I've been decreasing, I've been feeling generally icky for a while) for at least a few weeks. Here's to hoping I start to feel better sooner, though! I have so many ideas for things I want to make- I just have to feel up to doing them.
Anyway, this is a Trove Thursday post, and I was able to get a treasury this morning for it. :) The Trove theme is Stand Out at the Party, and is filled with pretty things to wear.
If you're viewing this post before 9:15pm Saturday (the 2nd) night, you can find the treasury by clicking here. If you're reading this after that, click the image to go to the flickr page then click "all sizes" above the image, and it'll take you to a bigger version. The "Alternates" are the ones that the curator of the treasury picks that don't show up for anyone else (at least not until they're switched in), so you get a top secret peek at them here. ;)
And to make them easier to find, here are the links to them:
1.) "Black and Gold Venetian Mask" by ThunderchildStudio.
2.) "New Years Black Gold Crochet Bracelet" by CrochetHooked.
3.) "Gold Glitter Pixie Body and Hair Gel" by BerkanasGarden.
4.) "Black is still the new Black med large" by mtcoffinz. (Alternate)
5.) "Silver Venetian mask with shells, Oceania" by ladyinthetower.
6.) "Celebrate - Leather Pouch" by EvesOriginals.
7.) "Antique Silver Genuine Vintage Aqua Teal AB Glass Cabochon Gothic Lolita Steampunk Earrings" by LondonsGate.
8.) "Magic Party Earrings" by Danagonia. (Alternate)
9.) "Azalean Princess Mask in Crimson Red and Glittering Gold" by artisanmaskers.
10.) "KARA- New Year's Kiss Scarf Kir Royale Red" by smittenkittenorig.
11.) "Ruby Tuesday - Earrings Ruby Red Glass Murano Beads, Antique Brass Chadeliers" by CrystalImpressions.
12.) "Celebrate - beaded Necklace" by wiresNpliers. (Alternate)
13.) "OOAK handmade masquerade mardi gras mask irridescent pink and purple princess mask beautiful Halloween costume" by PixieStixx.
14.) "Amethyst, Ruby, Peridot and Morganite Earrings on Vermeil Hooks - Bouquet" by BrokenTeepeeDesigns.
15.) "Confetti wire wrapped Ring 14 karat Rose Gold-filled Ruby Amethyst Turqoise" by CrysallisCreations.
16.) "Hayley Earrings . Cascading Gemstones" by vickiorion. (Alternate)
And speaking of treasuries, I was honored to find my Hobbiton tree earring in this Arboretum-themed treasury. Thanks for including me, CelestialAxis! :D
current mood:  bleh
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| Friday, December 25th, 2009
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11:25 am - Merry Christmas!
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(That's my sis holding Clara; I had to take the picture.)
Merry Christmas, Blessed Yule, Happy Hogswatch, and Happy Holidays! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday filled with family, good food, laughter, and, yes, cats in silly hats (because that's a good cause of laughter, of course!).
current mood:  cheerful
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| Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009
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11:26 am - Talented Tuesday- Carapace
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Alas, I keep not getting these posts done in time for Tuesdays. But no fear- this one is on time! This interview is with another of my FAE (Fantasy Artists of Etsy) friends, Carapace. She makes the most vivid and bright paintings (err... drawings? They're pretty pictures, even if I don't know the medium) and sculptures, and is such a fun person (I loved reading her answers). I also love that when she sent me the answers she told me "I'm afraid I got geek on your questions". LOL! See, no wonder I think she rocks. ;)
What's your name?
Carapace!
Look, that's all you're gettin' here. have to maintain my whole woman-of-mystery aura. It's not easy, when there's not any actual mystery.
Where can you be found on the internet?
I have a somewhat-updated blog on
www.caramakes.blogspot.com
and of course my Etsy shop at
http://carapace.etsy.com
I'm also on Ning, though I still don't really understand it. And technically Squidoo, I guess. But Etsy and my blog are the sites I actually maintain.
Describe yourself in five words.
Physically and psychologically incapable of such brevity.
If you were a color, what would you be?
Green, no doubt. But I fear I would be a nasty avocado green, when what I really want is a scintillating emerald green or a bright vivid banana-leaf green. Man, banana-leaves are fantastic. They look like they've been painted with a palette knife on board.
If you were a "Dungeons and Dragons"/fantasy character or creature, what would you be? (Can be a specific character, or something general like "elven bard", "centaur", etc).
I reject your limiting concepts of alignment and class! D&D is number-slaved system built to glorify Demon Dice at the expense of true character creation!
Now, Castle Falkenstein, that's a game for proper gentlefolk! And I am a green Cait Sith, thank you. With Exceptional glamour.
I find it hilarious that you thought you might overgeek me with that question, you know.
If you could live anywhere (or anywhen), where/when would it be?
I hope to live in the future. The far future, even. Just in my lifetime, the world has changed in amazing and wonderful ways; I really want to see what happens next.
The great thing is, all I have to do to achieve this is not die. I was already pretty intent on not dying. It would really cramp my plans.
What is your greatest dream or goal?
My greatest dream is this one where I have wings, but the world is underwater, and there's a central power algorithm that allows everyone to keep living in this situation, but--
Ah, you probably don't mean that kind of dream. Shame, that one's fantastic.
My fondest daydream is to become well known enough to have dedicated patrons, people waiting to pay me huge absurd amounts of money for whatever I turn out, so I can afford to do nothing but paint and draw and sketch all day. To any patrons thinking now of acquiring an artist, I assure you, I can be bought!
My big goal is to actually get a comic series going that makes enough money for me to live in the style to which I have become accustomed-- that is, artistic shanty dweller-- and gets enough attention to keep me satisfied. I'm working on it!
What was your very first piece of art? How long have you been an artist?
My first piece of art, as far as I can tell, was a mural of birds flying into the sunset behind sharp mountains. Or, as my mother would tell you, a bunch of Ms drawn all over the wall of our house with a crayon. My mother, being wonderful, assumed I had a reason, and instead of removing all marking implements from the house bought me enough paper to keep me off the walls.
I don't think people can choose to not be artists. It's built into our species. We see things that aren't there and try to make them exist. Some people do it in a useful form, and make bread and bikes and solar powered office buildings. And some people draw pictures of women with bike wheels for legs. But it's all art.
If you sell your art, how did you get started?
As with most things artistic, the genesis lay in boredom. I was helping a friend run a table at a convention, business was sloooow, and I started offering sketches just as a way to pass time. Someone tipped me, I started charging, and I've pretty well kept charging since.
What is the strangest thing you've ever made?
In my maskmaking days, I overcooked a clay mask. It's...disturbing, and inadvertently far more artistic than I'd intended. I wanted a basic face form, I got Echoes of The Future Holocaust. I keep it away in a shoebox where it can't watch me.
Pick your favorite project/artwork- what is it and what inspired you on it? If you'd like to share, tell a little about the process you used from inspiration to completion of that project.
I guess my favorite project is actually comicking. Comickery? I like making comics. My comics start with a rough idea for a story, usually with one central image. Then I try to line up a page or two in my head, thinking about what needs to happen for each panel and in longer stories, each page. This is the longest part of the process, and to outsiders it no doubt looks like I'm just staring into space and making a weird face. Not so! I am thinking! But that's not obvious until I start drawing layouts, and making really really weird faces, because I'm basically acting out each position and expression as it comes up on the page, and my hands are busy. Then I have to try and make my layout sketch legible, with all the manual dexterity that implies. Then, halfway through the inking and coloring, my hand cramps up, and I have to go do something else, and when I come back it's all completely wrong, so I redraw the whole page and three more besides, and then it rocks, and I cackle and run around insisting all my friends and family look at my awesome new creation.
Every picture I draw is like that, actually, since I do try to tell a story in everything. Comics are just a little more pronounced about it, and give me more room to play.
What kind of advice would you give to other artists?
Save your computer files, wash your paintbrushes right after use, and never let the cat near your artwork. Ever. Oh man. Trust me on this one.
Oh, and acquire a supportive housemate, who will understand that sometimes there will be paint in the drinking glasses, and clay in the carpet, and feed you regardless. That one's really important.
What is your favorite:
Color?
Green! To a worrying and obsessive degree. It's gotten to the point where I have to make a Will Check to even use soap that isn't green.
Quote?
"I reject your reality, and substitute my own."
Not really that big a fan of Mythbusters, even, but that line is just perfect for every occasion.
Book?
Momo, by Michael Ende. There aren't many works of anything that I can say with confidence changed my life, but Momo certainly did. I don't think I'd have taken half the risks or been nearly so regret-free if I hadn't run into that book when I was a tyke. I reread it every couple of years and it always centers me.
Character? (book or whatever)
Moist Von Lipwig, from the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett. A schemer and con man, but mediated by a total lack of malice, and currently in the process of becoming something more valuable. I like that in a character.
TV show and/or movie?
The original Star Trek is endlessly glorious. Not always good, mind you, but glorious. I can just put that series in the DVD player and let it go all day. The latest revamp movie is pretty awesome too.
Oh, and of course it helps that Star Trek got more than twelve episodes. No, I'm not bitter about Firefly, why do you ask?
Season?
Summer, all nine months of it! I love waking up and knowing what the weather will be like.
Food?
Fajitas! With lots and lots of peppers and onions, all caramelized by the hot pan. Mmmmm....
Animal?
Octopi. They're smart, they're shapeshifters, AND they have chromatophores. Humans fly, swim, and open jars, but we do not have chromatophores. I envy the octopus.
Art medium and/or supply?
It has taken me a lifelong journey and I suspect I'll always have many loves, but I have at last discovered my perfect partner in the form of a Cintiq tablet with Painter software. Even the immediacy of pencil and paper can't compete with the magic potential of endless undo.
And that's it for this week's Talented Tuesday. Thanks for answering my silly questions, Cara, and for actually out-dorking me. That's a rare skill. ;)
current mood: geeky
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hopeful
tired
