New stained glass mirrors!

After mulling it over for a while, I went ahead and made a few new mirrors. I had this great avocado green glass that was left over from one of my business card holders so I used it to create another "retro" office mirror. I used one of my brother's prints as a background ( see http://www.etsy.com/shop/cdaviesart for more of his work). The picture on the right shows another small mirror with one of my brother's paintings as a background. For this mirror I experimented with a new tool (dapping block and punch set) that makes perfect little domes from copper sheeting. I used the dome for the center of the flower. I like the way it turned out.

Office Mirrrors

I've been thinking about going back to making some small office mirrors again (like the ones pictured here)! I started making the mirrors because I wanted to use stained glass in a useful way and do something small (lets face it, I don't have the patience for larger stained glass projects like my friend Shereen) ( see one of my favorites in her shop :http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=25435771 )

These little mirrors were made with the working woman in mind. It comes in handy when hung near your desk/computer to check your lipstick or eyelashes when you don't have time to run to the restroom!

Creative Madness- Artist Exposed!

Here I am in my messy studio (converted dining room)! My mess is always on the verge of chaos (but never quite over the top)! Every once in a while I simply have to spend the day organizing and I usually uncover forgotten ideas or half done and abandoned projects that I can look at with fresh (Zen) eyes. I often realize that those forgotten projects had lots of potential and will pick up where I left off or take it in a new direction. Other times I have to wonder "What was I thinking?!"

I often will take older projects and rework them into something new. For instance, I took a cuff making class with Connie Fox (here in San Diego) and though I learned a lot about working with metal, I will probably never get into making jewelry (too much work - but never say never)! I took one of the cuffs that I made and cut it up and used it on one of my plant stakes (see picture-right).

Easy Recycled Handmade Gift box

I have always looked for ways to recycle cardboard (I just hate to throw it away)! Then one day I received a free sample matchbook notepad from Alice's Piping Hot Papers (see http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=39143739)

which gave me an idea!

I had been looking for a way to make a quick and easy gift box for my shawl pins that would both protect when mailing and also be a cute way of packing. I decided to use cardboard from a cereal box because it is strong but still easily bent. I covered it with my painted paper and then cut to size, folded and viola, I had a very simple but sturdy gift box!

The matchbook gift box is three simple folds and I made mine to fit my shawl pins (about 3 x 4 inches) but could be made a bit smaller or larger to adjust to your jewelry products or small gift ideas!

Painted and Screened Photo Albums

I have so much fun making my painted paper that I wanted to find more ways to use it! I decided to cover these small photo albums which are very good for recipes or to keep a photo journal of your art work to take along with you on shows. Cyndie Smith, a wonderful metalsmith who makes beautiful jewelry ( see her shop at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/cyndiesmithdesigns) recently bought one of my photo albums to take with her to one of her shows!

I layer the paint using stencils, splatters, and silkscreen designs and try to create rich vibrant colors and designs. I use large sheets of paper and then cut out the sections that I want to use to cover my journals, photo albums, and file organizers. The smaller pieces are used for making my mini cards and I love the results (see these items at: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=39217079) .

Hand Painted Card/Bill Organizer and Journal

It has been a while since I posted anything new! I am currently focusing more on my hand painted journals and bill organizers lately (because I am having fun!) I am mulling around some ornament ideas but for some reason this has not quite taken hold of my fancy as of yet and if it doesn't soon, the holidays will be over! Anyway I am posting a couple of my favorite journal and card holders that I have recently created! They are matching because I used the left over paper from the bill organizer to cover the journal.

Story Behind my business card holders!

The design for my cards holders came about by complete accident. A few years ago one of my neighbors was throwing out a stained glass lamp shade that had white and pink glass pieces. I fished it out of the trash and diligently took it apart and was left with eight wide petal shape pieces (the back), 8 trapezoid shapes (the bottom), and 8 or so long petal shapes (which I used for the sides). I began playing around with the pieces wondering what I could make and stumbled upon the idea of the card holder. The pieces lent themselves perfectly, with only one cut on the sides (and I am all about less work). Of course now all the pink and white pieces are long gone and I have to cut all the pieces but I still enjoy making these card holders!

The picture of the pink holder is one of my original holders that sold long ago. I keep trying to improve my holders each time I make one and have changed the front shape but have stuck with the original overall pattern because it works so perfectly! I have made and sold about 30 card holders over the years and have had many satisfied customers!

Now for my new card holders, I pick out glass that is unusual and cut the pieces to take advantage of the most beautiful aspects of the glass. My favorite part is finding shapes and beads to adorn the holders. The Orange Mint holder is one of my new favorites!