Happy Fall!

This past weekend was a welcome break from all of the hustle and bustle!  We had lovely weather and I was able to start decorating my front porch for Halloween!

In honor of the approaching fall, I started playing with some clay and these little guys rolled across my table!

I love pumpkins...almost to an obsession, which has been commented on more than once by friends, families, therapists...  Pumpkins just make me happy and I have a hard time passing a large pumpkin pile without adopting at least one, much to the chagrin of those shopping with me as I run squealing towards a pile.  (Mind you, I'm not a squealer, so it does come as a shock to my friends when I burst out of quiet conversation into a hyper child!)

These little pumpkins are just beginning their journey and will soon be part of something larger, so stay tuned to my blog or my Facebook page to updated project pictures!

Also making it's way across my work table is Cat-hulhu!  He likes souls, he likes yarn, he will purr all types of madness into your ear!

This little guy has been vying for attention for quite some time.  I finally managed to get him into a form that I really liked.  He was inspired by one of my friend's cats and makes me giggle every time I say his name, "Cathulhu!"

PPD Wrap-up and New Beginnings

What a wonderfully busy weekend!  I met some great people this year at the Central North Carolina Pagan Pride Day and I'm already looking forward to next year.

Several of my Itty Bitty Cthulhu sculptures found new homes and I was able to get some great advice from veteran vendors.  A beautiful and busy weekend, but now that it is over, I must turn my attention elsewhere!

Up next, I will be starting work on my annual State Fair entries, which I will be posting work in progress pics as I start sculpting.

But, in the meantime, I have reopened my Etsy shop!  Please feel free to go check it out!  There are several Itty Bitty Cthulhu that need good and loving homes. :)

I also love making custom Itty Bitty Cthulhu, so feel free to contact me through Etsy or using the form on the left side of this blog.  I will happily work with you to make your very own Itty Bitty Cthulhu to live with you (or your friend!)

I will be adding more Cthulhu and other items as the next few weeks progress.




















I have also branched into working with precious metal clay. The two charm necklace and leaf earrings will be added to my shop as well and I will be providing more details about this amazing medium as I begin my learning process.

Ten Days and Counting!

I think that one of the most stressful times can be the last stretch before a show.  This will be only my second one and I'm excited, as well as nervous.  Be sure to check out my Facebook page, which I am updating more frequently with work in progress (WIP) pics and mini-updates!

Last year was amazing and I was able to share a booth with Yarn Twisters, two fabulous ladies, who make the most awesome knitted nerdy items!  This year, we will continue the nerdy fun together, so stop by to say hello!  Go to their Facebook page to check out some of their wonderful designs!

I am hoping that we will have some gorgeous weather, but it is always a challenge in the autumn!

Yarn Twisters and myself have some new designs and layouts that we will be showcasing at this festival.  The first few people that come by to say hi to me on each day will receive a free goody! Just mention this blog post or my Facebook page!

Check out the Central NC Pagan Pride Days Festival page for more information on the festival.  You will find schedules of events, vendor info, raffle pictures and much more!  Be sure to register for the Blood Drive in advance and score a swag bag!  I have donated thirty-six handmade bead pendants for the bags, along with a magnetic business card.

There are so many awesome raffle prizes donated each year!  I always buy tickets myself, since we are located very close to the raffle announcement booth!  It's so much fun to see what everyone is donating, fund raise and have a chance to win something amazing.  I have donated an Itty Bitty Witchy Cthulhu for this year.  Check out some of the other donations here!

Hope to see you at the fair!

Celtic Cross

I love the design of this Celtic cross.

The never-ending knots that are woven into the ends create a very elegant and simple beauty.

Pictures really cannot do justice, since the clay has a gorgeous iridescent shimmer that catches the light just right from certain angles.  I tried to capture it in this photo; it gives an almost inner glow.

You can see this pendant at The Gamer's Armory, along with so many more great gaming products, as well as items made by local artists!

Unicorns!

At least, that is always what I hear when I am working with one of my favorite mythical creatures.  I am a huge fan of Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn and had the honor to meet him last summer.  It also doesn't help that a dear friend of mine cries out "UNICORN!" in King Haggard's voice every time a unicorn makes an appearance. 

So, with all of those awesome memories of past and present, I have to bring unicorns into my craft at some point or another.  Enter, the unicorn pendants!

At least these will hopefully not release a harpy onto you.  (If you do not get that reference, please do me a favor and either pick up a copy of The Last Unicorn, book or animation.  I promise you won't be disappointed).

The brilliant purple unicorn pendant is available now at The Gamer's Armory, located in Cary, North Carolina!  You can also find my Itty Bitty Cthulhu, Cthulhu pendants, earrings and more in the store!

Give Gamer's Armory a "Like" on Facebook to see all of the awesome items they carry and the amazing events they host!

My First Show!

My first craft show was a couple of weeks ago at Central NC Pagan Pride Days  and it was a success!  It was also a huge learning experience! Thankfully, Yarn Twisters and I had completed a dry run of booth set-up, table arrangement, decorations, etc. about a month before..so we were able to get everything up in about two hours on Friday evening.

On Saturday morning, we were up early (or myself, very late, running on less than three hours of sleep).  We had two hours to raise the tent, arrange everything we had left overnight, unpack our cars and get all of our items set up and arranged.  We took every bit of that time!  But, it came together very nicely!

And in perfect time, because we were very busy all day on Saturday!  We had so many visitors come through our booth and it was so wonderful to meet such sweet and wonderful people!

When we had a small break, I ran outside of the booth and sketched some tentacles on both of our display boards, highlighting our unique items!  I had Cthulhu sculptures, pendants and earrings to offer our customers, while Yarn Twisters had Cthulhu hats, dice bags and tarot/cell phone bags!  As you can tell, we created a "Cthulhu Alley" of tentacle goodness.

I had the right side of the booth to display my sculptures, magnets and jewelry on.  We also shared the rack in the back corner and mingled a bunch of items, including some of my larger sculptures and a friend's awesome bookmarks!

I missed out on grabbing an early picture before I sold two of my Cthulhus.  I also had a slideshow going on my tablet, showing previous work.

Notice the tentacle boxes, also created by me. ;)

We had inclement weather moving in, so Yarn Twisters and I had to scramble on Saturday afternoon when a brief shower moved through, protecting everything we had on display.  It cooled off nicely, though, and people lingered around after the rain passed through.  We did have to batten down the hatches on Saturday, since more storms were moving in that evening after the show.  Everything was packed into our vehicles, with the exception of the tent & tables.  I think we were all a bit apprehensive to what we would find upon our return on Sunday morning.

Thankfully, everything of ours still stood when we arrived on Sunday.  It didn't take us nearly as long to setup, since we knew where we wanted everything.  Having straw tossed down to help with any mud, it was amazing at how quickly it dried out and we had a gorgeous day!  It was cool, breezy and the sun was shining.  Surprisingly, there weren't as many visitors on Sunday, so I had time to work on some sculptures and pendants, finishing four of them before leaving that afternoon.

We had some great visitors on Sunday as the American Wildlife Refuge brought some feathery friends around to visit and educate the public.

Finally, I was informed that you haven't truly experienced Pagan Pride Day until you have consumed a Cthulhu Cake or Cake Pop.  Well, I couldn't resist bringing both home to share with my boyfriend, who was an amazing supporter through this entire journey. *heart*  

My parents were my biggest fans and I sent them pictures constantly from the craft fair!  Dad had given me the tropical fish clips that are holding down my tablecloth (there are also dolphins and orcas scattered around our tent, holding down essential items).  They worked better than any professional clips!  Mom was constantly listening to my ideas, concerns and offering constructive suggestions from her years of experience in craft fairs. Without my amazing support group, I would have never had the courage to attempt something like this. :)

Yarn Twisters and I have already reserved our booth space for next year.  Hope to see you there!

March of the Earrings

Here are some of the earrings that I finished over the weekend.

This first group includes a snazzy pair of pumpkins with green Swarovski crystals, two festival red holiday light bulbs and a dashing pair of golden witch's hats with fire opal Swarovski crystals to set them off.

This group has a pair of jet black raven feathers, hand sculpted and adorned with denim blue Swarovski crystals.  A pair of evil Cthulhu post earrings are next, along with a pair of dove feathers with blue undertones and light blue miniature Swarovski crystals.

A pair of gray earrings, featuring a heart sunburst in the center.  Two Death Star pendants sit in the middle, both featuring a tigereye polished bead.  The final piece is a pair of hair barrettes, featuring a rainforest tree frog sitting amongst colorful foliage.  The perfect accessory!

Busy Busy Busy!

Another weekend has finally come to a close and I have been frantically working on several projects, both for the Central NC Pagan Pride Days Festival, as well as for home and work!

One of the projects that I worked on this weekend was a large assortment of magnets.  I had a lot of fun creating these and will probably try my hand at a few more before the end of the week.

Butterflies, dragons and unicorns, oh my!

Celtic crosses

My pumpkin Cthulhu was also finished this weekend.  All he needs is a pumpkin chai latte and he would be the perfect fall accessory! 

Check back later this week to see more of my creations, specifically some earrings that I finished or you can follow me on Facebook to see more of my WIP (work-in-progress) pictures and sneak peeks at finished projects.  

Double, double toil and trouble..

I have been working diligently on several projects, because I am getting ready for my first ever festival!  I would be more nervous, but I'm running around in circles so much, that I really have not had the time to worry about anything but my next project.

Speaking of, here are some of my finished pieces.

Double, double toil and trouble;

    Fire burn, and caldron bubble.

These little witchy Cthulhus don't seem to be getting into any mischief, do they?  Nah, I didn't think so either...though, maybe I shouldn't leave them together to plot in the darkness of night.

The top fellow there, with the bubbling caldron and purple hat...will be donated as a raffle item at the Central North Carolina Pagan Pride Days Festival.  If you are in the area, come check out some of the amazing vendors and folks that will be participating at this weekend event!

Cthulhu Has a Heart

Remember this little cutie pie?

Well, I entered him into a Valentine's Day Contest on Jerry's Art-a-rama!

There are some amazing and beautiful pieces of art on the website!  You should check them all out and vote for your favorite ;)

Voting is for two more days, so hop to it!  Cthulhu needs lovins' too!

Work Table Weekend

So, I've been fairly busy this weekend.  I purchased a new table for my boyfriend and I to share while working on our hobbies.  He has one half for his miniatures and I have the other half for my sculptures.

Speaking of which, he asked me to make a few accessories for his miniatures.  He is working on this undead army, so what better than to have a tombstone and a ~tiny~ skull to go along with it?

So....very...tiny!

This was the first skull I made, just to see if I could pull it off...but it was 'too' big.

I've been working a couple of other pieces, including a commissioned pendant, but I won't show pictures until I hear back from my friend first to see if she likes it. :)

Work Table Weekend

Here are a couple of projects that I have been working on this weekend...

A little brown mouse that hopped onto my table...

  

He is a bit droopy, but he makes me smile.  He was made using a base brown clay, then layered meticulously with various metallic paints to give his coat more detail.

The other piece I finally finished from a couple of weeks ago is a mini Dalek.

I think this little guy is perfectly harmless...wait...what is that noise?....

Work Table Wednesday

The final touches have been added to the Santa Cthulhu and he is getting ready to travel to his new home.  Hopefully the snowballs won't melt, considering how warm it is here at the moment!

As I finish up a couple of more sculptures, I will be embarking on a new project..trying to mesh a couple of techniques into one item.  As it progresses, I will post pictures along the way for you to see.

When I came home tonight, I had a wonderful surprise waiting for me!  Star from Coltpixy.com and I did an exchange recently...I sent her a miniature koi pond, hermit crab with betta fish and a snail necklace...in return, she sent me this gorgeous black and white mosaic keepsake box that she created using multiple techniques, including Sutton Slice, stamping and sculpting. 

It's absolutely amazing and pictures cannot do it justice, because it is so beautiful.  And let me tell you something...working with white clay is probably one of the hardest things to master...the fact that she was able to blend white and black polymer clays in such an elegant fashion continues to amaze me!

If you haven't checked out her blog or her Etsy shop...you really should!  She is one of the most talented artists I have the pleasure of knowing and I am honored to call her a friend.

 

 An even bigger surprise were these three little treasures tucked safely inside of the jewelry box!  A tiny, miniature mask that is just gorgeous in detail, a bunny booty pendant, which she is a master at making and a gorgeous tiny glass bottle that she created.  I have collected mini bottles and vases since I was young..Star did not know this, but she has sent me something that immediately reminded me of my collection and happy times. :)

Pirate Crab!

So, my dad requested a special sculpture from me for Christmas. He wanted a pirate blue crab that had taken up residence on Blackbeard's sunken ship.

After baking, before painting:

We brainstormed for quite awhile on all the different options before settling on a crab with an eyepatch and missing claw that was replaced by a fishing hook, of course!

After baking, painting and giving:

Argh...I'll guard yer parents' kitchen table with me broadsword!

Seriously, I forgot to take his picture before wrapping him up and traveling home for Christmas.  So, enter beautiful green tablecloth backdrop :p

Oh, and did I mention my Dad also wanted an oyster..."with attitude"..this one turned out more like a muppet...

But, he had such a hilariously cute expression, I couldn't bear to smoosh him back up into a lump of clay.  That happens sometimes..what you start out creating, might not turn out like you envisioned him...but maybe something better.  He even got a pearl!