Studio Bijou

Well, can two people, with “9-5″ jobs, three cats, and thoughts of children, live aboard a 35-38′ sailboat in a Ft. Lauderdale marina? Lots of people seem to think so. I’ve been checking out forums, contacting everyone I know, meeting new friends, and thinking hard. It all started on Monday night when my DH said, “What do you think about buying a big sailboat and living on it instead of buying a house?” Honestly, although I want a sailboat, it hadn’t occurred to me to liveaboard. But I am definitely a risk-taker and to me, it’s not a far-fetched idea and I would do it! I just want to do it right. So, here I come, sailing world! 

Well, if anyone knows what we’ve been up to, www.craftedonline.com is up and running, with live classes offered for lots of arts and crafts- Carolyn’s polymer clay flower caning classes on Wednesday nights are filling up quickly. Ilysa has been terribly busy with laying the groundwork for the new site, so I will be posting a couple of times per week over at Polymer Clay Podcast- I’ve decided to feature artists or styles of work in polymer clay that I particularly like. There are other sites that do that, such as Polymer Clay Daily and Polymer Clay Notes, but I think I have a different take on the whole deal, so I’m giving it a shot. I’m partial to figurative/dollmaking work, so I’m sure you’ll see lots of that. I talked to the editor of Art Doll Quarterly last week, in fact you can listen to the podcast, and she said if you are a doll artist you should email her some pictures. They are always looking for great new work to show off in the quarterly magazine. In fact, if you have anything you think should be published, the best thing to do is just get it out there. The big secret is that magazine publishers everywhere are absolutely DYING for good content. You know what happens when they can’t find good content? They have to publish something anyway- which is why some issues are better than others. So stop being shy, get your work seen. The best way to become a “sought-after” artist is to get published and get talked about by someone “important.” 

I just got back from a training seminar in Vegas, baby! My job sent me to learn more about Final Cut Pro, the mac program I am using for video editing. I learned and lot and managed to have a great time, too. I gambled for the first time (penny slots, while having free drinks- the best 2 for 1 I can think of) and got to know my co-worker, Sue, a bit better too.

As for what else I’ve been doing, I’ve been working on www.craftedonline.com, where Ilysa and I will be hosting live, online video classes with artists in lots of different media. Also, of course, continuing work on Polymer Clay Podcast. Sometime I will get back to artmaking!

Today I joined an online weightloss program and I found this cool little tool- it’s called a ticker. You can make them for lots of things, like debt reduction, stuff like that. I made one to track my weight loss graphically, seems like fun.

The evolution of a “brand” and a shop has been interesting and sometimes difficult. I really like shops with a cute banner, but sometimes the banner (and especially the avatar) for a shop doesn’t really say anything about what the shop sells. I like to get an idea of what the person is selling right from the get-go. Sometimes I’ll click on a shop because of the avatar, and be totally dissappointed because the shop had nothing to do with the avatar. That’s a big debate. I think people who are hobbyists or just selling for a little extra cash are the ones who use pictures of their pets or kids. I prefer an avatar showing a product, but that’s just me

So I made a new banner today. I just love my new pendants, and I am trying to grow a focused group of beads. I will be sticking to birds, geometrics, faces, and leaves I think. I have this love of primitive folk art figures- I think they are called “pencil” figures because their proportions are tall and thin. I was thinking about trying to make a pencil doll, we’ll see how that goes!

Pendants below are $6 each.

This is so exciting! I promised I was going in a new direction, and boy have

Check out what I made here- http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8500923

And wait, that’s not all. I am planning a line of ponytailers, hair bobbies, purse mirrors, bookmarks, magnet sets, mini tins, napkin rings, tassels, ornaments, drawer pulls, photo clips, and buttons featuring my new stamp designs. I won’t be selling the stamps though- make your own!

I’m so excited. I’ve discovered the major turning point in my career as a polymer clay artist (I think!) I have been wanted to do geometric designs, and make my own stamps, and finally stumbled upon the answer, for me. I can’t wait to unveil my new line, which will be colorful and funky and provide some new twists on old ideas. Stay tuned.

I invented a new way of making armatures for sculptures, which I believe gives a nice amount of strength and a good amount of flexibility. So my first foray into small doll making is a 7.5 inch little goth fairy- although I prefer to call her a succubus. I enjoyed making her, with her cute little “leather” bikini and fiery auburn hair. I plan to make more, she was really my first of this type of doll. I really liked making real feather wings, I don’t like the plastic stuff fairy makers are using. So now I’m planning a few dolls with wings!

Today my company threw a Golf Gala for a local organization called Turtle Nest Village- it’s not about turtles, it’s about young adults. Kids in foster care become “emancipated” when they turn 18- that’s a fancy way of saying that no matter what time of year it is (for example, half-way through their senior year at highschool) the family taking care of them stops getting a paycheck and throws them out on the street. So unfortunately, these kids who have been abused their whole lives suddenly find themselves homeless, and many turn to unsavory ways of keeping alive. So TNV scoops up as many of the South Florida teens as they can and helps them learn how to live on their own, and helps them out with housing and other stuff. So, I donated an art class as a raffle prize at the event. I can’t wait to find out who won!