Rusted Stuff

Rust...Yeah, so what do you think of when that word comes to mind? Someone left the bike out in the rain?! Old metal lawn chairs from the 50’s and 60’s? Your parents old car from back in the day? A buried treasure of coins...no, those were just rusted screws found in an old jug out back. No, no, how about this...the weekly challenge over at Three Muses? Yup, this is the last day and I’m getting this one in just under the wire! Gawd, talk about old and rusted (me...LateFreightSuzie). Did I make it...think so.

Remember in the last post I said that I would do something with those rusty gears? Well that did happen, and this piece started out with the idea of being a plain ol' magnet (where the skellie is) for the fridge. I kid you not! But my muse came in and totally took over, again! Which is why it’s right at the deadline. Just kept my mind open to her prompts and building upon what was there. Geez, she's so pushy sometimes.

click image to enlarge

Then I got a bee in my bonnet. It had to have an ornate frame. There was no way this was gonna rest till one was found. Searched through hell and high water for the right frame. Michael’s (two locations), Joann, Aaron Brothers, even a garage sale! Grrrr, could not find the right one...until I went to Urban Ore.

Hawt damn! Found it! Recycled, you betcha. It wasn’t as ornate as I wanted it to be, but it was wood (yush!). Washed it up, painted and distressed it, and there you have it. I rusted the ball chain and other elements then added some magic to it. This is a perfect piece for DOTD or Halloween. Guess the magnet will have to come at another time? Hah!

Thanx so much for stoppin’ by!

What Can Ya Do With This Stuff? Part 3....

Well, you could do a lot with it, just depends on you imagination. Thank gawd for Imagination and Tools! What would you do with it?
 

Since I’ve been on an ALTOIDS tin kick lately (see last post), the decision was to Keep Calm and get on with it! Do you see those tiles at the bottom of the first pic?... those are Formica tiles samples...some of them were gesso prepped to be used in the last workshop I taught. Huh, they never made it into the stash of classroom supplies. The idea was to make a “book like” thingy to go inside the tin. Nope, never happened. But the idea still lingered in the ‘ol noggin so I put it aside in the Later Reference Files brain compartment.

Last week I came across a challenge while visiting some Art Blogs. One is over at Three Muses (they have a weekly art challenge every Wednesday). This particular challenge piqued my interest and set it on fire. Steampunk! Oh yeah! *reaches into the Later Reference Files and pulls up the Formica tiles “book like” thingy* Oh I got busy on this one right away so it could go into the challenge. Who knows, it may show up in other places. Here it is...love the way it turned out too.

Shout outs go to The Graphics Fairy for some awesome graphics to play with and Spirit's Journey Designs. Other images came from various places (wish I could remember….brain freeze). Thank You all!

Some serious collage, mixed media, assemblage goin’ on here. I intentionally painted it all over so that it wouldn't close….to give you a tiny peek inside. How or why I came up with the color is beyond me. What was I thinking?! But it worked out tho. And because of the Formica tiles (5 of them), it has a bit of weight to it. The eyelets and jump rings used completed the set. A perfect match indeed. Just pull the tiles out by the little key to see all the dapper gentlemen inside. Sprinkled with bits of watch parts here and there. See those rusted gears in the pics? That’s my next project/challenge. Thanx for stopping by….see ya soon!

Sacred Shrines and Altars Workshop

Hello there, and thanx for stoppin’ by for a visit today.

HAPPY SUMMER!!! 

It’s been really busy on the other side of this Blog...which is why it’s behind on posts. But I’m here today to share some magic with you all that happened on Saturday at my Sacred Shrines and Altars Workshop. Not gonna be long winded here ‘coz I wanna share the pics with you all. But I’m...

...Givin’ a great big hug and shout out to Jordan (what an Angel you are!), for inviting me to her Ventura Street Art Studio to share this special class with everyone. And much, much thanx all who came out and made the magic happen. A remarkable group. Mannn was that awesome! And let me tell you, the creative juices were flowin’! ....see for yourself.



I prepped, primed and rusted the ALTOIDS tins for the class and made three samples for eye candy. There were two tables (12’) of trinkets, charms, papers, fabrics, notions, specialty papers, ephemera and other yummy items to embellish with (overkill? yeah, I think so). How could one not create something special?

Magnificent works of art flowed from every hand, giving way to the magical energy within. What an amazing group. I created this slideshow to share our day with you. The day was incredible! Enjoy!

The Collector of Things...2009

Was looking at some beautiful Mexican punched tin niches and wanted to do something like it too. Sooooo, I altered an Altoid chewing gum tin and created my vision of a niche.

OUTSIDE: Alcohol inks, punched design. That was fun.

INSIDE: bits-n-bobs of transistors, computer and watch pieces. Chips of jade, glass button, mini strainers, old necklace chains, and other jewelry pieces.
I so wish that my picture taking skills were better.

The Collector of Things

Manifesting A New You workshop

For the month of January, I held a workshop on manifesting. It was a small gathering of seven women (perfect size, perfect number). The purpose was to bring thoughts, dreams, wishes and other positive gems to the workshop. I wanted to do books because there is so much that you could do with a blank one. The outcome was wonderful! We created these books
(40 pages!) from the bottom up using handmade papers, velvet, beads. And altered tins to fulfill the hopes and desires of each artist for 2009. I just wish that I thought about taking more pictures while I was teaching this.
It was a splendid afternoon.

Altered Altoids tin that my daughter made for her boyfriend. what's so special about this? Well, she has never been interested in this type of art (she likes to draw). But she joined the group and created this beautiful piece. Collage papers and other embellishments. I am so in awe of her.