Still experiementing, still unsatisfied

I had done some cabochon as a test this week.  Now, it is time to go for the next level: time to try with the resin cabochon.  I still have to perfect doing the stitches with beads.  I did a second row of beads.  Not to my taste but I guess I get the hang of it.  I haven't made the bezel yet.

Here what I had done until now:

The first row is green and the second row is blue.  I tried yellow as a second colour but it didn't show at all.  Seeing the photo, blue and green was not a great idea after all.  In real, it show a bit more than on the photo.

I don't see much progression since the first one I did.  More practice is needed.  I am lucky that I have plenty of resin cabochon in reserve.  I hope my learning curve will improve soon.  I don't see much improvement since the first cabochon I made.  This one is the third one.  It seems so easy on diagramps for this kind of project.  I wish there was a class or a knowledgeable person who could give me advice.

A time to practice and experiment

Time for a follow up for the resin cabochon.  I found a cameo piece and a small snowflake obsidian cabochon.  I decided to practice and experiement on those two piece before heading for the resin cabochon.  Here are the evolution of the cameo in disorder:

Here is the evolution of the snowflakes obsidian cabochon:

I don't know if I am getting it right.  For each one, the seed beads are place in a different position.  The cameo is horizontaly and the snowflake obsidian, it is vertically.  Both are looking decent.  For the cameo, I would had liked to put a second row of smaller seed beads but it didn't worked up as I would liked.  So, I decided to do another row of green seed beads beside the red ones.  I may miss something.  Some further experiement is needed.  The only problem now is that I will have to do the experiment on the resin cabochon.  Lucky me, I have many resin cabochon done, so plenty of experimentation that I can do.

Happy chocolate day!

There are two major orgies of chocolate in the western calendar: Valentine day and Easter.  Chocolate is a known aphrodisiac.  Too bad I don't have a chocolate tooth.  I don't work with chocolate, as a material of choice.  I prefer delegate the chocolate making stuff to the specialists of the house.

Easter is also linked with Easter eggs.  I haven't touched to the artwork of decorating Easter eggs.  Nor I was not an expert at it.  I used markers on them, not the dying technique.  So, my past Easter eggs looked like more rustic arts than the extricate decoration seen on tv.  I must admit I never saw an Easter dyed decorated eggs in person.  I think I miss a special experience there.

I think the difference between Valentine day and Easter is about the shapes.  For Valentine, there are the heart shaped and the cherubin shooting arrow shadow.  For Easter, the Easter Bunny, the chocolate eggs shaped and wrapped in cute metallic wrapping.  Would be fun to see a VS video like in America's Funniest Home Video (http://afv.com/)

Memories, sugarcoating and the mind

I am in a busy period of my life right now.  I admit juggling a few things.  It does have a side effect: as I am busy in my daily routine, my mind seems to work an extra shift.  My mind is working a bit too effectively.  I get ideas, I works on stories, I also seems to be effective on some projects, I seems to want to get everything done right away.  I sense that I may get a new bunch of new ideas in the near future.  I know that my dream life work on an written story, to get it even better, with extra more layer.  So, some rewritting and editing is approaching.

My mind seems to wander in all direction.  My mind seems to be like a octopus stretching his tentacules in various tasks.  It is a mental multitasking.  It brings various things that I saw in the past and present.  I don't know why but I just remembered a film that I saw on tv a long time ago.  I didn't remembered the title and I only remembered a small part of it.  So,  I decided I feeled lucky.  After a few unlucky keyword search, I found.  I feel a bit too much lucky on it.  The movie was Solarbabies (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solarbabies).  When I saw it, it was an interesting idea.  I saw a clip on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFcDCJyP9fo).  So, seeing this trailor made me remember the rest of the movie.  I also remembered that even the idea was not too bad (could have done better), the movie was not a great epic movie.  It is not the first time that memories seems to be better than reality.  Youth seems to easily sugarcoat the little the mind remember.

What surprised me the most: it was from Brooksfilm.  Yes, the Brooksfilm that made The Producer, Blazing Saddle, Young Frankenstein, Robin Hood men in tights, Dracula dead and loving it in addition of Spaceballs.  I have learned something new today!  All that for saying that my memory may have sugarcoated the movie (Solarbabies).  Maybe it is something that happen when we are young and a bit innocent, without much experience and much emptied of deep critical thinking.

Some really quick projects

There are projects that are really quick to make.  All it's takes is some materials and assemble them with pliers, well, it is the case with those I have done.  Here a look at the result:

On top of the photo, there is a bracelet.  I only added a clasp and a jump ring at each end and it was done.  The two pair of earrings, I used small beads and jump rings and the hooks that goes into the ears holes.  It was all really quickly done, a question of minutes.  It was nice to do those projects.  I hadn't done that kind of projects in a while.  It really good for quick creativity fixes.

Thinking of it, it could be the kind of projects that I could do when I am in an hurry.  I am definitively in need to create tangible objects.  As I think more of it, I could set a time each day to do something creative.  Depending of the day. it could be of various lenght of time.  It would be something to consider.  Taking the habit is another thing.  I have food for thought.  I don't know why but springtime seems to affect my ideas.  Maybe it is a side effect of a period of mental hibernation.

Stroke of Genius

Yesterday, I was getting ready for doing my seed beads and resin cabochon and I stumbled on some rings.  I put two plus two together and the result are show above.  I am mainly happy with the result.  If I try this again, I will take a bit more time, not stressing myself.  I was in a rush and hurry to get it done.  I was too much into getting result.  I wanted to see how it will end up into.  It is what happen the first time I do a project.  Too much in a hurry to see the end result.  I want to see if it will be a success or a failure.

For the resin cabochon on a ring, I consider it a succes, even if there is little minor inperfections.  For a first try, I can live with the inperfection.  What I liked about this project was the colours of cabochon that I have.  It is nice to do a variety of colours for those rings.  I don't know why but I thought of Sailor Moon.  In his manga/anime, each sailor scout have a colour for her costume.  The colours of my cabochon doesn't exactly match those of the sailor scout.  Nice thought anyway.

The hardest is to wait for the glue to set.  I also took a glue that is smelly (the e-6000).  The rings were bought at a craftstore.  It is a one size fit all except for one.  Would be fun to be able to do myself the rings, I guess.  I had done some rings in the past but not like that and it was in a class setting.  I don't know if I could try to do one right now.  I do have some of the material.  I don't know if the soldering part will be possible with what I have.  It will have to go on the to do list for a later time.

Sewing but no project

Those are some of the fabrics I have.  A pillow had been made with the Hello Kitty fabric.  I also made a bandana with the same fabric.  Beside those, I have not done anything yet.  I thought that projects would come easier if I have fabric under hand.  It doesn't seems to be the case.

I thought I could do some little bags, like those for cards.  I think to do a few, just to become familiar and confortable with the process.  I don't want to do clothes with those fabrics.  I would like to do sme small fun little projects with them.  I know, it limit me on what to do.  Time to look around and see if I can get some inspiration and ideas.

I also want to practice a little bit.  I never made much with a sewing machine.  Now that I have one, better have the excuse to use it.  Not just to do repairs.  It is already nice to have it to do some quick fix on clothes.  I have the desire to do more and get more at ease with the machine.

Two wood pieces

Just bought two wood pieces, blank.  I find they have two nice shapes:

One oval and one square.  I don't have any drawing to do on them yet.  Maybe some flowers design on the oval one.  It will suit well the shape.  For the square one, I will have to think a little bit harder to come with a drawing.  Nothing in mind for now.  Maybe something geometrical?  Still have time to think on that.  I don't have any deadline.

I feel my interest in woodburning is being reborn.  I can't explain exactly why I stop.  I think it is mainly because there was not any wood pieces with drawing on them and also, I didn't ask for more material.  Now, there are piece of woods and I am returning to wood burning.  No wood with drawing on them.  Would be nice for beginner and people like me who don't always want to draw something on their woods themselves.  I guess it is a cyclic return to a past interest.  I think I will put some colours on the finish project, as the last two I made (raisins and an apple)

Project resin cabochon

I had a period where I did a lot of resin.  In various form.  I have a lot of cabochon in a few colours.  Here is a sample:

Orange, green, blue and red.  I want to add a few seed beads around some of them and do a bezel.  It will be a first for me.  I don't know if it go as well as the picture I have in my mind.  I hope so.  If not, I will have to improvise and turn to solve problems as they come.  I will have some fun with this project because I like that.  In the past, it was really fun to experiement.

I do have other shape.s.  I dom't know what I will do with them yet.  I have not thought about them.  I don't think that some seed beads will do for every shapes.  So, I will have to find other projects to use them.  I will have to think about it a little harder for that.  Just some brainstorming for the solution and I am working on it.  Ju7st thinking about it have something going on for some shapes, like some frame like shape.  I may post the result if it goes well.

My unconscious is at work

It is official, my unconscious is hard a work.  How do I know it?  Well, it is not just doing brainstorming.  I start to have some little dialogues or little scenes that play in my mind.   They are pretty much realist, what I would like to have as a conversation, for example.  Could also be a little bit of drama.  I could take them and put them in a story.

To be in that mood, my unconscious must have material under it's teeth.  I am pretty buzy right now, maybe my unconscious become more active too.  I also feel a bit restless.  I find it hard to sit down and work on some projects.  During the day, I feel useless until the evening.  When the evening hit, I start to get things done, even if I am not that productive.  It is a little bit frustrating.

So, my mind is working fast but the physical is left behind.  It is not the first time that I feel that way.  It had happened in the past.  Anyway, the mind always seems to work lightspeed ahead than the time to put it on a more concrete way.  Would be nice that I could work as fast as my mind work.  It would be a nice change for a while.  Maybe I should set deadline because I like working under some little stress when it come to creativity.  There is a few exception where ideas (mainly for writing) where I have to let them sleep and evolve on their own over time.

Projects that makes me say 'Wow, I want to do it!'

i find this project on doing a red copper ring:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Red-Copper-Ring/
The first thing that popped in my head: «I want to do it!»   My nest idea: «I don't have any copper.  Where will I find the copper supply?»  That kind of thinking bring the moral down.  The desire to try the project is still on anyway.  I just get frustrated to search for copper.

Otherwise, it is rare that I stumble on a project done by someone else that I truly what to try my hand on.  I prefer do my own ideas.  I do like going on each step of the creative steps.  I do have a lot of pride when I have done a project from start to finish from scratches.  When I look at others projects, I get inspiration, a spin off of their projects.  I don't feel the urge to repeat what they have done.  If I want to do what they have done, it is more that I like their results.  i have not tried to do other projects yet but I would probably do it my way.

National Craft Month

Over the last few days, I had browsed around lik on amazon.ca and I found this:
http://www.amazon.ca/b/ref=sd_allcat_home?ie=UTF8&node=2206275011
It seems some sites are promothing the national craft month this March.

I was curious and have done a quick search to find this:
https://www.craftandhobby.org/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?WebKey=21740220-3565-4CB3-BA31-A7E46FB8DBAD
It explain what is the national craft month.  It is an association on the topic of crafting and hobbies.  They seems to have activities for this month.

Personally, I am tempted to go rogue.  Of course, I have done a few crafty things: I mainly have done some soap.  It was relaxing and it was beneficial for me.  The mains problem: I have not bought enough to cover my need for the soap.  So, I will return to buy some more to finish what I have started.  I will do other project too.  I have one that involve woodburning and it start to take shape.  I still have to figure out what I want to do with the yarn that I have.  For the rest, I will have to sit down and look at my crafting stuff.  Another way to get the brainstorming to go on further more...

I need my beauty sleep!

In the last few months, I really taken note that I am a night owl.  I feel more productive late afternoon and even more in the evening.  Mainly creatively.  Even more recently, let say in the last few weeks, I realised that I do need my beauty sleep when I go to bed.  Why? Well, my brain is working an extra shift in the night, while I sleep.  I have dreams and my mind work on ideas.  I got a few interesting ideas and I want to do them.

So, it is a receptive period for me.  I develop some stories.  I would like to get an idea for the next nanowrimo, not sure I will get it but better ask my unconscious mind and he may work on it during the night.  Would not be the first time I would get the idea of a story in my dreams.  Recently, I got an idea in one dream for a woodburning project.  I just hope I would be able to translate it to reality.  I will have to try and see if I will be successful, well, as good as i visualise it in my mind.  The reality and what I have in my mind aren't always in synchronicity.

I don'r known what triggered this period of intense brainstorming but I am riding the wave.  I think it is a good thing that my ideas get a lift up.  Working on new ideas is fun.  Just before this happened, I was working hard on some old ideas and I think I deserve something new for a little while, just to get a little bit excited again.

Assemble it yourself

I got an assemble it yourself kid bunk bed.  It is this one: http://www.braultetmartineau.com/ProductDisplay?urlRequestType=Base&catalogId=10051&categoryId=11624&productId=34089&errorViewName=ProductDisplayErrorView&urlLangId=-1&langId=-1&top_category=11619&parent_category_rn=11622&storeId=10151
To assemble the bed is quite an adventure.  Creativity must be used.  The instruction is quite pictural: two sheets where the components are shown.  The instruction itself have a lot of picture.  A lot of picures and a lot of guessing.  It is not always easy to distinguish the various pieces when they pretty much all look alike at first sight.  With some brain cells and figuring things up, it get assembled.

In hobbies, there is this trends to assemble it yourself.  I have to admit that I had fallen into this in the past.  I am not imune to fall into it again.  It does have it's merits when learning a new technique or getting new ideas for future projects.  On the other side, beyond the beginner level, it is can be useless.  When I tried a technique and feel confortable with it, I am ready for some challenge.