More tentacles.....

 

.......because you can never have too many! This necklace is now on sale in my Etsy store here and is the first of a couple of new pieces that will be going into the shop this week. Also, all pre-exisiting stock is discounted at 10% for the rest of September!

Kracken battle!

I'm part of a fantastic group on Facebook and we recently had craft exchange where the only real rule was that the item had to be handmade and if possible incorporate some of the recipients likes. I've had this kracken in my head for ages and this was just the excuse to go crazy with the tentacles!
Using an old picture frame as the base, I built up the ship first using sculpey and then added the kracken around it. Acrylic paint, metallic waxes and gloss varnish were used to create the details. I'm so happy with how this turned out and even more thrilled that my craft exchange partner loved it too.

The beauty in decay

I find myself fascinated by pictures of abandoned places being reclaimed by nature- old theme parks, dilapidated hotels, disused factories- the combination of rusty browns and patina blues mixing with the bright greens of new vegetation always reminds me of what a wild and unpredictable force nature is and the great strength it has compared to man-made objects.

This canvas has been a work in progress for a long time- I could never seem to get the picture I saw in my head onto the page. After throwing pretty much every product I own at it, I'm finally happy with how it turned out!

Stencils, modelling paste, inks, paints, sprays, chipboard, papier-mache, grit, wires and ephemera all went into this vision of decay and rebirth.

I'd like to enter this canvas into SanDee & Amelie's March steampunk challenge.

Butterfly book

I've had papers from the gorgeous His & Hers collection by 13arts sitting on my desk for a little while, waiting for the chance to use them. When I picked up some old books from the charity shop, inspiration struck!

I started by gluing the inside pages together, then cut different layers to create a space for depth and texture. Then a bit of gesso and dry brushing some brown paint to give a vintage/ aged look.

For the cover, I added some old clay frames and chipboard then covered everything with a coat of black gesso to see how it looked. I used glass beads and grit from 13arts to create areas of texture and covered everything in black gesso again.

I then added some wine red shiny powder to water and painted over the cover to give a nice shimmer to everything and highlighted some details with turquoise Inka gold wax.

For the inside, I cut out a lot of butterflies from the papers along with some other designs and layered these up over some sisal. I used the turquoise wax and wine powder to add some colour and tie in with the front colour, and it was done.

A manly challenge

The November challenge on the Canvas Corp Brands blog incorporates a metals, rust and mechanical theme. Since I love all things Steampunky, this is right up my street!

I have a collection of old coffee tins that currently hold my brushes and tools and were perfect for a bit of altering.

First I glued some wire, die cut gears and keyboard keys to the tin to create the design and then used gesso to cover everything. I added some areas of crackle paste and grit for texture, then started applying the colour.

13arts Cinnamon Latte and Cardamon Machiato paints formed the base colours. Over this I sprayed Tattered Angels Red Maple glimmer mist. I added some 7 gypsies rub-ons on top of the keys and then highlighted some areas of details with turquoise patina paint. I finished off with a light spray of Chalkboard Chalk mist.

Now I just need to alter the rest of my coffee tins to match!

#ccbmovember 

Planetary horoscope determination device

The Hellenistic period of history saw the combination of the Egyptian zodiac with the Greek system of planetary Gods, sign rulership and the four elements. This device was inscribed with the zodiac symbols used during this period of history. It is available to buy here.

Antikythera-prototype ancient computational device

The Antikytheria mechanism is a fascinating piece of ancient technology- found on a shipwreck off the Greek coast in 1900, it was another 70 years before historians realised it wasn't simply a lump of corroded bronze but actually a complex computational device designed to predict astronomical postions and eclipses. If you'd like to find out more about this really amazing piece of ancient mechanism, have a look here.

This is my imagining of what a prototype Antikythera mechanism might have looked like- apparently such a prototype device might actually exist but I highly doubt this looks anything like it! If you would like to own it though, it's for sale here.

Astrolarium moon-phase pendant

This necklace has been handmade from polymer clay, swarovksi crystals, acrylic paints and die cut gears. The astrolarium piece itself measures approximately 6.5 cm across and the entire chain plus pendant measures approximately 56cm in total length. The pendant is attached to a silver style chain with a toggle fastening. If you like this piece, you can purchase it here.