Seedlings on a Shoestring 2

Today I assembled a small grouping of forced hyacinth bulbs in tea cans; this particular project has been around for a number of years, notably on a Dutch site that is now unreachable, and on the Spanish Advent Calendar several years ago.

The photo is not good; although it printed right side up, the flash insisted on going off and I didn't center the photo. I hope to assemble some inexpensive vases of flowers for the children that like to come to the show, and as they will be simple, they will also be affordable for them.

The flower heads are made of quinoa seeds, wire, and paper; the bulbs are polymer clay, while the printies are from the internet. That's it for today!

I hope to feel well enough to go to a mini afternoon tomorrow....

This Is Several Days' Work!

I am not even going to try and figure out why the photo is suddenly sideways; however, I suspect the Carpenter-in-Chief has fiddled with my controls again. This is a week's worth of polymer clay baking, interspersed with being sick, feeling better, going away for several days, and being too tired to figure out how to rotate this photo!

There are pies, tarts, donuts and petits fours pastries. I experimented with liquid Fimo and oil paint for icing, and it worked very well for the white and chocolate donuts, but the pink turned out looking too much like, well, flesh; it has been repainted and glossed.

The petits fours are decorated with candied violets and angelica pieces; I first made these years ago for the baker's stall of my market. Clays change fairly frequently; soft clays and I do not get along, but the harder, professional clays do not really seem to be available here in town. I'll have to talk to staff at my local artists' store....



And the carrots are sideways too, of course. I am going to just leave it for today, but will, hopefully, have it sorted again for the next post. There are floral pieces on the go.

Working Away....

I've caught a flu, and am coughing and sneezing all over the place. If you would like to see the Remembrance Day Project, photos are now up on the Charminis site (side bar for link).

In the meantime, I am working away on stock for the Moncton Miniature Show; there is all kinds of cooking going on - well, the polymer clay kind. There are also still florals in the production line, and I hope to have some photos soon.

At least I can still work on minis....

On the local front, the Saint John River is, once again, in serious flood. In the course of a few days, the levels have gone up many meters, and a lot of low-lying areas are under water, including the road we take to get to the TransCanada Highway. We are detouring along the old TCH which runs along the river. Fortunately for us, we are at least 100 metres (more than 300 feet) above the river valley, so we are safe. This happens every spring....

Remembrance Day Project

The project is currently living in Louise's house, but as Marilyn took photos, she will have them up on her blog, Charminis (side-bar right) before too long. I still have to make the veteran's beret....

Remembrance Day Project Update

If you have taken a look at the Charminis site (see side bar), you have seen the work Marilyn has done to age the inside and outside of our project. A little bit of outside aging remained to be done, so the project came back to me. If you look at the photo above, this is the before version of the dugout side.

I felt that after five decades of rain and wind, the sandbags would have become quite dirty, possibly have some algae growing on them, most likely moss as well, and dirt would have collected over the years here and there.



I have a wonderful colour of paint called English Ivy Green; I tend to think of it as "sludge green", and it is a go-to choice when I have to create algae and moss effects. Some was dry-brushed up and down the metal siding of the dugout, some was rubbed here and there on the sand bags, anywhere I felt wind would have deposited soil and seeds and where rain might have pooled to provide moisture or create algal growth.



Dirt made from railroad ballast, glue and paint was glued into crevices, moss was planted here and there where shadow and moisture created a good environment, and bits of grass caught hold in various deep soil pockets. It adds decades. The problem is when to stop; I hope I have quit in good time.  Aside from a beret for our veteran, the vignette is pretty much finished. Marilyn will do the final reveal on her blog, the Charminis site.

Seedlings on a Shoestring Part 1

As mentioned, I need some stock for an upcoming miniature show. The first installment of the theme, Seedlings on a Shoestring, are pansy faces in rusty tin cans. (The dark blob just beyond is the cat, who seems to feel she requires attention.) I hope to produce at least two more installments on this theme.

It snowed again overnight. I still can't go out and spray my printies, and until I can do that, I can't go forward. Due to the snow and other things, we have again had to postpone our Remembrance Day Project get-together, but I do have a little more time to do my part of the outside aging for that. As well, I have to make a beret for my veteran.

Later on, when the various installments are done, a decision will be taken whether or not to add a tiny ladybug to each plant....

Remembrance Day Project

The project has arrived at my house for a little outdoors aging. It was supposed to have been picked up yesterday, giving me today to work on it before we get together tomorrow, but - you guessed it, we had another snowstorm. Well, we got 15 cm or about 6" of wet, heavy snow yesterday afternoon, evening and overnight. It can stop as far as I'm concerned, but according to the weather forecast, it is going to continue to flip-flop the rest of April.

Today is pretty much taken up with other projects. I am painting paper for the tin can project, and painting leaf paper takes several light coats on both sides of the paper. I hope to punch leaves this evening, and finish that little project. It is intended as part of my stock for the Moncton Miniature and Doll Show, to be held in Moncton the first Saturday in May. Two more projects for the show are being assembled. I need a dry, sunny day to do some spray painting out of doors.

In the meantime, I am taking apart a sweater I knit for myself I can't remember how many years ago; it has never fit me properly, so rather than let it sit in a bag in my storage area, I am going to knit it up in a sweater that I hope will actually fit. I love Aran knit cable sweaters, but have yet to make one that actually fits me; one of the first I knit was even too big for my brother, who is 6'8" (about 2 m 10 cm) tall!

It is difficult to balance my time between all my various hobbies!

Saturday's Work

A load of old tin cans. Stay tuned to see what will happen with them....

Another Wednesday, Another Snow Storm!

We were expecting about 4" or 10 cm of snow, but I swear we got way more than that. Well, our get-together was cancelled again due to weather; we hope to get back together a week from today, to put the Remembrance Day Project to bed.

In the meantime, I am going to work on some items for the Moncton Miniature and Doll Show, coming up the first Saturday in May. And then I am going on a short vacation, and I need it....