A Peek Into the Creative Process...

I awoke to 3 degrees Fahrenheit below zero this morning, so therefore, I am chained to the fireplace trying to warm the house up.  It was 63 degrees when I got out of bed and I have been running the fireplace since 7am.  Now at 11 am, it is only up to 65 degrees!  No studio work today, so I thought I would bring you a special blog post:  A look into the creative process!

When I begin a design, I don't really go into it with any ideas in mind.  I retreat to the old button storage and pick out a button/buttons that suit my fancy for the day.

This drawer so happens to be mostly metals, but I have everything from mother of pearl to fabric to vegetable ivory in this storage box.  After I choose the buttons I will use for the piece, I set to gently restore them.

As you will see, this is a multiple stage process, and probably more time consuming that the actual creating of the piece.  And, yes, I did knit those fingerless gloves.  I have been a knitting fool every night and weekend since I learned how!

My main goal is to restore the original beauty of the buttons while retaining the aged patina.  One must remember that most of the buttons in my stash are from the mid to late 1800's, so there are many problems that have to be dealt with such as rust and the "green meanies" (the unsightly green oxidation on brass that is more suitable aesthetically to garden fixtures and outdoor decorations).  These issues are dealt with and removed with museum approved techniques and products.

 
For the final stage, a museum wax is applied to protect from further rusting and oxidation as well as water damage and retains a smooth, clean shine.  *Please note that this button looks the same from the first picture to the last as it was not actually restored, it was only used to demonstration purposes*.  While I am restoring the button/buttons, I run through ideas of how the button will be converted into a piece of jewelry, all the while running through techniques that allow me to create a piece of jewelry without harming or altering the button in any way.

By the time I am completed with the cleaning process,   I have a good idea of how to design the piece.  I retreat to my bead boxes (my red vintage bead box is shown above)...

and my brass filigree boxes and choose pieces that would be most suitable for the design I have in mind.

As you can see above, the actual piece begins to take form.  This piece is still a work in progress.  I guess I will not get to it again today...I just hate having to take all the supplies I need out of the studio to bring downstairs simply because I have to cart them all back upstairs when I am done.  These are the days that I catch up on computer work and maybe do a little tatting for chokers and bracelets.

As you can see, creating button jewelry is so much more than just making the piece.

Meet Evelyn...

I want to introduce you to Evelyn.  Evelyn has been in the works since Christmas!  I have been very unsatisfied with the way my necklace photographs have been turning out as they just don't look the same when you cannot see the drape of them and I tired of pestering my family for live models.  The solution?  Evelyn.

Evelyn as she arrived.

Evelyn actually started out with the name "Creeper" and was known as such for most of the month of January.  When she arrived, she looked like such a creeper that I needed to completely change her look!  I first had to drill her ear holes as she was supposed to come pre-drilled, but didn't.  Then I had to ground down her eyelids as her eyes were half closed.  I knew I had to paint over them and didn't want a lid sticking out in the middle of her pupils!  

After the drastic changes, I then mixed up a shade of flesh acrylic paint and completely painted her whole person.  All of it.  This is where she earned the name Creeper.  My husband said she looked like a flesh colored Blue Man with blank eyes and she creeped everyone out!

After reducing her to a blank canvas, I had to decide what style she was going to take.  Victorian?  Flapper?  1940's?  As you can see, I settled on the 1940's look.  I figured it would look more natural for a 1940's woman wearing Victorian inspired jewelry, but not natural for a Victorian woman wearing 1940's inspired jewelry. 

I painted her dress on, painted her lips and nails, then painted her eyebrows.  Her eyes came last as this part took the longest of all.  During the time I was painting her, I had a wig coming in the mail for her.  I sealed her dress with a shinier matte sealer and a sprinkle of bluish synthetic glitter around the edges, sealed her skin in matte sealer and sealed her nails, lips and eyes with high gloss sealer.  

When her wig came in, I secured it to her head using E-3000.  I had settled on a war-time victory roll home front hairstyle, so I had to cut her hair (it came down to the bottom of her!).  I gave her two reverse rolls on either side of her head and attempted to train the remaining hair under. 

As you can see in this photo, her lips do not match the original lip line.  I had to paint over it as the original mannequin just did not have a mouth that was 1940's worthy!  The mannequin's face was long, but her eyes and lips were placed too close to her nose rendering her a squashed looking face and a super-long chin.  By shifting her eyes up higher and her mouth lower, it gave more balance to her face.  The proportions seem more realistic now.  I am still not crazy about her silhouette as it is sort of manly, but there is only so much you can do with a mannequin blank!

So, there's Evelyn.  I promise you will be seeing more of her!  Oh, and Paige is jealous as Evelyn actually has a face!

Treasuries Galore!

I have been hit in 22 treasuries since last Thursday!  Whew!

Don't worry, I won't hit you with them all...just my favorite ones :)

Blue Marine

by

cocodollz

It's Golden

by

ORphotography

INK

by

LifeOnSale

Today's Etsy Alterity Treasury!

Thanks to my dear friend Anna of Anna's Adornments!

Another from oldohiofarmfinds:

And one from yw1911:

Thanks, guys!

Be sure to stop by them and leave a comment :)

New Year, New Blog

A new year brings new beginnings...or at least new directions for old ideas.  This is the year that will be focused on this blog.  It has been difficult staying on track so far in 2011 due to a couple family emergencies, but things are starting to slow down and I am finally regaining my momentum.

After spending the end of December looking back on this blog, I realized that it needs a new direction and a new focus.  I invite you to take this journey with me, offering me feedback as we walk down that road together.

The fact of the matter is that people just don't have time to waste on blogs that don't have a clear-cut purpose or a certain element of focus to it.  This includes myself.  While my blog visiting has been pretty sporadic since the holidays, I aspire to get back on track with this also, but want to offer my readers a reason to keep coming back.  So, this post marks the beginning of this new journey.

So, you may be asking exactly what is the purpose of this blog?  I have thought long and hard about this and this is what I intend to offer:

• I plan to continue to embrace the handmade movement and share my enthusiasm for this with you.
• I will continue to share my designs and creations but include you more into the working process, inspiration, the eras that my jewelry reflects and any other aspect revolving it.  
• I will continue to share my love for antique buttons and plan to educate you a little bit more than I have in the past.  You may not end up loving them the same way I do, but I guarantee that you will find a new appreciation for them at the least.
• I will add into the blog elements of fashion, design and the typical life of the eras that my jewelry reflects.  Those of you who follow my blog will know that I am simply in love with the years between 1880's and 1946.  To me, it is the most interesting eras ever seen.  The Victorians, the Edwardians, Art Deco and the Flappers, and I cannot forget the greatest generation...the World War II era.  To me, any era after this is a bad Twilight Zone episode (although I do adore the old B&W Twilight Zone shows!)
• I plan on having much more giveaways and features.  I can only tell you so much, but to see for yourself is a whole other animal.
• Finally, I want my readers to know what I create, why I create it and what I hope to gain or share by creating it.  Sure, there will be snippets of family and fun, but I believe focus to be paramount.

So, buckle up.  You are in for a ride!