"Dreaming of colour" - Polymer clay leaf pendants

Sometimes a theme seems to be simple, a theme like wood. There is so much one could create, forest silhouettes, actual trees, leaves and flowers, small and big animals, insects, overgrown stones and moos, hidden meadows...

But nothing hit me. It seems that the more limited a challenge is (okay this was just a theme but I do love to use it like a personal challenge ;) ) the better my brain actually is able to think beyond my usual ideas. So.... not with wood... too many great and nice options... *sighs*

It took several days until I was on my balcony, getting some fresh herbs... that I thought of texture and pattern. I made some years ago lovely black and white leaves from polymer clay using (not innovative but always lovely!) some real leaf imprints. An idea I wanted to go back to but maybe with different shapes.

So there we go... not all finished because the gloss caught a brush hair (have to remove the surface and gloss and then add gloss again), not sure whether I want to add more colour to some and of course still have to add the ear pins for the little round ones.

But here are some closer images of the ones who are finished. I like this drop with two different leaf vein structures: Fine lines at the front (or back if preferred)...

...and rather bold lines with a more rustic appeal on the back (or rather front?). Just seeing the pendant now: It could be a tree silhouette, nai? And little holes to add dangle just because I love dangles!

Like the earring pair at the top of the blog entry just really tiny! Love the hint of blue at the top...

The long and round shape is covered all over with the leaf vein structures. I took care to have the middle line go directly down at the front and the rest of the structures are going all around. It gives a stylized and still very natural and organic look.

I also made a simple leaf pendant with a more gentle colour scheme, not so contrasting like black and white. The hints of blue and green are lovely but I have to say, I personally prefer the stark contrast.

  Or maybe the combination with a hint of colour somewhere :)

You can find some of them at my etsy shop here but not all right now. Some need more gloss and the ear studs still need to be finished. But if you would like to get something I didn't list on etsy, just write me :)

Streetart - "What do you wish?" (On the streets, Leipzig)

This just made me smile! :)

PS: For all the ones trying to learn or to reactivate their german: With a tiny wee spelling error ;)

"Time can tell" - Artist Trading Card

A collage made with paper, cardboard, book pages, fabric...
Painted with acrylic paint, gesso, stamping ink, water colour, black marker...

Maybe I will add some focus point... some day... but also love the tree as it is right now :)

Art Jewelry Elements - I am one of the new contributors!

Okay, here are some exciting news (yes, you may already have got that with the blog title alone ;) )! I will join Art Jewelry Elements as a contributor!

I may or may not have had a big smile over my face and may or may have not jumped up and down a little bit. I will leave this to your own imagination!

But I really feel honoured! AJE is one of the blogs I am following myself for years now and they always had one of my favorite challenges ever: Component of the month (all contributors get the same component by one of the members and some components will also be given away to readers as a giveaway... everyone will use this component to create something and show it roughly a month later).

My first introduction post will be soon and I am playing with some ideas in my head what to show / do / write for my first impression (don't hesitate to make suggestions!).

After some break I am also planning to join some markets again this year, hoping to get some new displays done with Rumpel (or rather get him an idea so he can create them for me! Including some LED lights...!) and last but not least: Rumpel and I will get married in October!

I you wonder, of course I'll create some special jewelry for this date (for me and maybe some loved ones).

"Moment" - Artist Trading Card

One of my favorites I ever made. Maybe even THE favorite ATC. It started quite randomly and gained shaped and contour, feeling and texture step by step.

I know it is an ATC but no, I will keep it with me! ;)

ATC - "In my dreams"

This little ATC arrived in its new home. I had a hard time to part with it but love the idea that it may inspire someone else (at least I hope so ;)). The background is made with acrylic paint and stamped with some of my handmade craft foam dot stamps. The work really great. Okay, they won't last forever but they are so easy and fast to make and the costs are really low.

The lace was painted with black gesso and then the back was painted with dark red acrylic paint. You see how it comes through. A subtle effect that creates a lot of depth. The face and butterfly are made with polymer clay and some molds, easy and fast and lovely. They are also painted with black gesso for the matte effect. This allowed me to create the clear and glossy teardrop on top.

I really like this little one... makes me smile.

"Aloud" - Some more of my mixed media work

As my time to create is limited after all and also sometime I fell rather tired, to take part in challenges is a good way to focus myself and find the energy to create nevertheless (strangely enough I feel more energized after I started creating but even knowing this, sometimes it needs energy to go there).

Challenges help to narrow down the topic, parts, colour schemes and/or narrative to find a starting point. There are a lot of ideas in my head, often too many to decide what I actually want to do. ;)

Therefore I also love to combine challenges if they fit. This time I combined two challenges: 1. The colour mixing blog challenge at Paper Artsy and 2. The july challenge at an online mixed media class "Wanderlust" (sadly only open to participants). The topic of the july challenge was: Create a collage with at least 4 different kinds of paper and be inspired by Coco Chanels quote: "The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud."

Here are my thoughts to my piece:

"It is rather difficult to see in a photo how different the paper qualities are as well as the tactile quality these collage pieces have. I used a lot of different papers with my homemade gelatine plates for printing. I didn't use words or script but rather wanted to show the ideas and thoughts as interlocking patterns, one above the others, being in her head as well as around her. If you have a closer look: Her mouth is open, she is talking right now and her colours and ideas change the world around her. Aloud not only by talking but shown through the bright and striking colours."

Since creating the piece I changed a few details, I added some contrast around the faces (very subtle but with a great effect) and very lightly darkened the edges.

There are 6 different panels that belong together. Maybe I'll mount them at a black background... or maybe I'll mount then as single pieces that could be arranged variably. I do think (at least right now) that they belong together but actually they also would work as single pieces. What do you think?

And to make and use homemade gelatine plates for monoprinting is so easy, I still don't understand why it took me so long to start using them :)

Inspiration - On the streets (Street art, Leipzig)

More than a little bit weird this time but somehow the face fascinated me and it actually caught my intention even being hidden in the corner (high above my head, yes, I am still trying to grow, but not getting taller ;) ).