bits

(that's what my friend barry calls the pieces he works on... )

i love making bits... they feel very complete to me all by themselves - and i can leave them sitting on my bench for weeks... just looking at them as i pass by... but one needs to help them move forward... 

bits can also help to jump start a brain that has too many things it wants to do all at once... and the brain trips itself up... and then doesn't know what to do... 

so it was a torch fire week... there are lots of ways to play with fire... 

ways that i am so happy i am learning... 

i also realized that i am feeling very influenced by the koi tattoo designs i have been looking at - the fiery reds and golds are oh so far from my usual choices... but i do love working with them and appreciating the whole process - enjoying each step of the way... 

and then there is my grunge-y comfort zone... 

i love the grunge-y comfort zone... 


happy friday...

welcome to your first stop

barbara lewis of painting with fire generously invited me to host a stop on her virtual book tour...  there will be 16 days of people sharing all kinds of information about barbara and torch-fired enameling... if that doesn't have you racing for the book, i don't know what will... 

so let's get to it - 

if you have purchased the tutorial (which got me started in may of 2010) or own the book (which is a must if you want to take the technique further) you will know that often enameling is done so that it covers the whole bead or component.... this is a gorgeous effect, but it doesn't have to be done that way... 

'i found i could say things with color and shapes

that i couldn't say any other way - 

things i had no words for.'

~ georgia o'keeffe

this is how i feel about enamel... it allows me to add my own color - the way i want to apply it, where i want to apply it... in my work, color is sparingly used for emotional impact... 

leaves - mjdodd 2011

with hints of red or green...

landscape of the sky - mjdodd 2011

with layers of opaque and transparent enamel... 

and this week i set enameled metal into a bezel, the way i would a stone... i am beyond thrilled with the possibilities present for this use... 

cold connection bezel - mjdodd 2011

there really are so many applications - and i look forward to finding more... i think the most important thing for you to take away from this is the realization that enamel can be used to reflect your aesthetic... (and did i mention that it is affordable and quite easy to do?)


in addition to everything you want to know about torch-firing enamel, barbara shares all kinds of tips and tricks... this is truthfully one of my favorite parts of the great books... those tried and true hard learned things that we all work through... this book is one of the ones i refer to often - for information and inspiration... 

during the book tour, there will be prizes given - 

i would personally like to offer a pair of earrings similar to 'landscape of the sky'... i will draw a winner for them at the end of the day from those who comment on this post... 

but there is much more... 

first, here is the list of hosts for you to follow:

October 6, Mary Jane Dodd, www.mairedodd.blogspot.com

October 7, Gaea Cannaday, www.gaeabeads.blogspot.com

October 8, Linda Larsen, www.objectsandelements.typepad.com

October 10, Andrew Thornton, www.andrew-thornton.blogspot.com

October 11, Lori Plyler, www.waterstonejewelry.blogspot.com

October 12, Diane Cook, www.rosa-josies.blogspot.com

October 13, Lori Anderson, http://www.prettythingsblog.com

October 14, LeAnn Weih, www.summersstudio.blogspot.com

October 15, Jen Judd Velasquez, www.jenjuddrocks.blogspot.com

October 17, Melissa Meman, www.melissameman.blogspot.com

October 18, Lisa Crone, www.abeadaday.blogspot.com

October 19, Shannon LeVart, www.missficklemediacom.blogspot.com

October 20, Cindy Wimmer, www.sweetbeadstudio.com

October 21, Laura Twiford, www.souvenirsfromlife.blogspot.com

October 22, Erin Prais-Hintz, www.treasures-found.blogspot.com
October 24, Jennifer Cameron, www.glassaddictions.com

October 25, Sharilyn Miller, http://sharilynmiller.blogspot.com/

barbara has set up these rules to play along:

"We'll have prizes throughout the book tour plus a grand prize at the end! The more you spread the excitement, the more chances you have to win some of the goodies our bloggers are giving away!

Leave a comment at your host's blog and become a follower = 1 chance.

Tweet, facebook or blog about the giveaway and leave a comment at this post (the original Virtual Book Tour post)  = 1 additional chance.

While you're at my blog (barbara's), if you become a follower or say that you're already a follower in your comment = 1 additional chance.

So, you can earn up to three chances per giveaway.  A winner will be selected by 10 p.m. eastern time and be announced the following day. You can check back at my(barbara's) blog for the name of the winner or at any other of the participating blogs.

To thank you for following along, we will have a BONUS PRIZE at the end of the book tour!  All of the entries will be included in the drawing for a kit containing all the elements of "Floral Cascade," one of the projects in the book! You'll receive everything you need to make the necklace, including the chain, jump rings, clasp, enamel beads, and head pins!  

But that's not all!

For a chance to win the Grand Prize - a Torch-Firing Kit (or $110 shopping experience at www.paintingwithfireartwear.com) - please leave a review at Amazon.com by November 24.  Remember, leave an honest review... the book must stand on its own.

Thanks for playing along! This is going to be a lot of fun!

P.S. Unfortunately, we have to restrict the giveaways to U.S. residents.  Winners should contact me with their name and address through my author website:

www.torchfiredenameljewelry.com so that you can receive your prizes!"

thank you, barbara, for allowing me to share my experience with enamel and to participate in your first book tour! i am personally so grateful that you shared this technique (and am certain i speak for so many others) - you are helping to spread around a lot of beauty... i wish you only continued success...

what if

on october 5th, barbara lewis' virtual book tour begins on her blog... 'torch-fired enamel jewelry' is now available and i have been asked to host on oct. 6th... 


in playing with things to show you, i came up with a 'what if' and am quite happy with the concept and result... 


see you then... 

inspired by

the woods that surround my house...
a treasured book on fold forming...
renate at put a little magic in your life
barry at rustnstuff
that special hammer i splurged on that has been awaiting a turn... 

there is space now in my head to experiment... a loosening of the shoulders that allows me to hunker down with metal, hammers and a torch... an exhale that allows me to inhale deeply and leap... 


the leaves are coming from this place... 

i am grateful, as always, for the inspiration... 

too many

too many words, too many feelings....


decided to go with what moved me in the natural world - the reminders of how you are a small part of a very large whole... 

last night a fast moving and  powerful storm rolled in - the clouds were actually purple...

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

the foliage is beginning to change - one of my very favorite things in the whole wide world... 

&

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

a sky so blue and dappled with wispy clouds it took my breath away...

inhale...
exhale...
repeat - 

like going to oz

yes, going to newark, nj can feel like going to oz! emily and i headed off to the opening of the exhibition 'make me something beautiful' the 2010 craft arts annual... i was fortunate enough to have a piece accepted into the show - and how strange to see it in a glass museum case with so  many other unique and beautiful pieces... sculpture, metalsmithing, ceramic, and on and on... no pictures were allowed - but there will be a catalogue... 

'there are two ways to live:

you can live as if nothing is a miracle;

you can live as if everything is a miracle.'

~ albert einstein

it felt like one of those miracle moments - and one of the neat things is that a lot of the artists knew each other... i introduced myself to thea clark who heads the nj metal arts guild - an organization i would like to become active in... 

thank you for the interest in my new etsy shop speakingyourtruth - i already have sales and am so glad that you are finding things you like... i have yet to get to etching and mica and more resin... end of school year activities are plentiful and keeping our family very busy... 

here are some of the things i have in the shop:

'dream' bead caps - 3 colors of enamel layered in different areas - blues, purples and deep turquoise... on antiqued copper...

'bing' bead caps - the deep blue red of bing cherries on antiqued copper... 

'sante fe' bead caps - 2 colors of enamel layered in such a way that the overlap creates an almost adobe red color... 

this is a ring i made for myself... i really love the symbolism and meaning of lotus flowers in buddhism... how they are firmly rooted in the muck and mud of the bottom of a pond, growing up towards the light... and upon reaching the surface, they blossom... opening and unfolding... this is symbolic of awakening... 

work in progress... 

'the secret of happiness is freedom.

the secret of freedom is courage.'

~thucydides

visual diary

'painting is just another way of keeping a diary.'

~ picasso

i would take it a bit further for myself and say 'creating'... 

this week i have longed for respite into a world of elevating dreams, swirling colours... 

i had to concede to time after taking many pictures of this and not being wholly satisfied with my ability to capture the painterliness of the enamel (i now completely feel the name of barbara lewis' business)... not quite sure what i will do for etsy!

textural, aged, light... shakespeare's words float in the resin and are set off against layers of different colored enamels... 

'survivor' is defined in the 1877 dictionary that i used as 'one who outlives another'...  almost 130 yrs. later, our definition has greatly expanded... one can survive a natural disaster, a serious disease, a damaging relationship... i chose the colors of beige and red to allude to the root chakra... i think that often 'survivor' speaks to our self - the very core of who we are here and now... the root chakra acts as a grounding force - it empowers by allowing us to connect to the earth's energies... the faux shibuichi is rough - as trials can be...  

'remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness.

every act creates a ripple with no logical end.'

~ scott adams

a copper ball representing your act... set within the depths of resin... a three dimensional ring, allowing you to gaze upon the potential you carry within... 

on light and love ~

'only from the heart can you touch the sky.'

~ rumi

these earrings are meant to reflect the vastness and transcendence of an open heart... antiqued sterling edged in enamel... beautifully faceted labradorite which is believed to purge negativity... softly colored fibers by myfanwy... at once ephemeral and timeless - 

'beauty is not in the face;

beauty is a light in the heart.'

~ kahlil gibran

beauty emerges - bronze and layered enamel... as we move through and past the societal demand of physical beauty, we unearth what we had all along... and when we connect with it, it shines like a beacon to others... rubellite used for its ability to allow one to open up... fibers again from sassalynne at etsy... 

'all material in nature,

the mountains and the streams and the air and we,

are made up of Light which has been spent,

and this crumpled mass called material casts a shadow,

and the shadow belongs to Light.'

~ louis kahn

just one of those 'what if' thoughts

the words will be returning, in fact, i have a plan for how i am going to work them into my new venture... 


but at this moment in time, it's about color, texture & process... as i mentioned in my last post, things are raw... the transformation of materials is speaking for me... 

'you have to have an idea of what you are going to do,

but it should be vague idea.'

~ pablo picasso

i am smitten with the look of shibuichi - i am drawn to the texture that can be described in so many ways... but i wanted to add color... i think subconsciously i must have known where i was headed when i placed them next to each other in this bracelet... 

so i ordered some enamel... i have been in love with barbara lewis' enameling - she is such a talented artist and generous teacher... she wrote a tutorial for belle armoire jewelry, has tutorials and supplies on her etsy shop painting with fire... 

and now, i'm hooked! beyond hooked, this is going to become something i completely incorporate into my work... 

i love how this vague idea was able to become something more than i imagined... 

on finding new passions and a winner ~

'he who nurtures benevolence for all creatures

within his heart overcomes all difficulties

and will be the recipient of all types of riches

at every step.'

~ chanakya

these were my gift to my mom - using a new technique that i am in love with and will be using more... lampwork by mika at pinocean... 

'i found i could say things with color and shapes

that i couldn't say any other way -

things i had no words for.'

~ georgia o'keefe

'pure emotion' was created in just this way... i was feeling a lot, too much to pull apart... and so i allowed the texture, color and technique to speak for me... beautiful enamel bead by barbara lewis and raku by keith o'connor... 

and, as promised, a winner for my giveaway!

first, it had to be decided which child would get to pull the winner -

thank you to everyone who commented - some new faces and many old friends! i think the overwhelming sentiment was that blogging has connected us with wonderful people from all over... that we share, learn and are inspired by them... and that we cannot imagine life without these people and resources in it... 

congratulations to doreen of backyard beads! 

winding

'winding'

'may your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view.

may your mountains rise into and above the clouds.'

~ edward abbey

whether you agree with wishing this upon someone or not - the first part at least, i think we can agree that the most rewarding achievements and periods of growth come from times of difficulty... marsha neal's shard (this time) made me think of winding and movement... the subtle color changes on top of the chocolate clay flowed right into barbara lewis' enameled connector - both pieces had played with fire and come through it with great strength and beauty ... the ceramic and the metal, both with soft color, asked me to be joined... and so i acquiesced, because it really was such a great request! 

after manipulating a little metal myself, i had some etched copper rounds and findings... beautiful glass beads from mary ann at linden avenue designs and marie at bleu verre...

it became a bit elemental, greens, blues, ivory & browns... air, water, earth & fire all playing their role in the creation of each part... things that live & grow in the greens and spirals... masculine and feminine... 

all united in moving towards the most amazing view...