media Monday

in which our plucky heroine returns to a crepuscular state, as the weather returns to daystar prevalent...

This showed up on my FB feed and I found it oddly compelling...

Closed Circles Performance in a Three Faced Suit by Shao Buugeng Manipulations

And, this excellent flashback to an earlier time seems somehow appropriate on a hot summer day...

It's a Beautiful Day - White Bird - 7/7/1970 - Tanglewood

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July SMART goals

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	pewter casting	Thora cuff trim	bag of hangers
2	charter #12	Thora trim bands	yard waste bin
3	charter #13	pruned apple tree	bag to Goodwill
4	chicken hurdles	hem rayon dress	bag to Goodwill
5	twin Laurel enamels	-	bag to Goodwill
6	tiny Pelican enamel	-	galvanised mesh
7	-	-	-
8	-	-	-
9	-	-	-
10	-	-	-
11	-	-	-
12	-	-	-

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tiny and tinier...

in which our plucky heroine continues to push the envelope and shares some process pictures of the work that has happened here in the last two weeks...

Been working on some SCA peerage regalia, grateful that the weather has been surprisingly cooperative (working in front of a hot 1500°F kiln is a treat in the winter, but less pleasant in the heat of summer. The last few days, unusually cool and cloudy for July, have been a respite...

This Laurel enamel is filled enough that the next step will be hand grinding the surface down to a smooth contour.

Some time and careful work with the alundum stone really smooths out the surface contour; the rough surface will be cleaned with a fiberglass brush and then fired in the kiln to melt the glass to smooth again. Any remaining irregularity can then have small amounts of enamel added in a few more firings to fill any remaining irregularity in the contour

adding enamel in the shallow areas of the piece

This enamel is small, about 1" diameter. I decided to add central veins to the tiny leaves, which starts by adding some painting enamel* to the surface. Even using a 10/0 brush, the enamel goes on in fairly large irregular splotches...

The next step is to use a clean damp paintbrush to push the painting enamel into a more refined shape, detailing the center of the leaves...

One last trip into the kiln, to fuse the painting enamel to the surface, and my work on the enamel is done. Next step will be to create a setting so this can be worn as a pendant jewel

and the finished enamel as set: in a simple setting with a single pearl drop.

But in fact, I actually created a matched set of two medallions... as requested, for Christiana and Aelisia

and here they are as finished, prior to being sent on their way! Enamels are both 25mm (1") in diameter, cloisonne with limoges detailing, in simple silver settings with pendant freshwater pearls

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and once those were completed, it was time to be starting on another tiny peerage enamel, this time a Pelican. This enamel is even smaller than the previous set; this one is just under 21mm in diameter (the size of a US nickel coin). Am working on this one as a joint project with my former studio partner Bill Dawson who will be creating the elaborate setting with a Laurel wreath surround, and set with gems and pearls.

This is probably the smallest Pelican enamel I have done so far in my many years of creating regalia... I'm pretty chuffed at the amount of detail I managed to get with the cloisonné wires at this scale.

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July SMART goals

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	pewter casting	Thora cuff trim	bag of hangers
2	charter #12	Thora trim bands	yard waste bin
3	charter #13	pruned apple tree	bag to Goodwill
4	chicken hurdles	hem rayon dress	bag to Goodwill
5	twin Laurel enamels	-	bag to Goodwill
6	tiny Pelican enamel	-	galvanised mesh
7	-	-	-
8	-	-	-
9	-	-	-
10	-	-	-
11	-	-	-
12	-	-	-

:::

* Vitreous enamel is ground glass, that is applied to metal and fused at high temperatures. Doing this is one of my primary art forms, which I use to create jewelery and regalia. Regular enamel has the consistency of fine beach sand, and I work with it dampened with water, for safety and technique. Painting enamel has the consistency of talcum powder, I work with it dampened with lavender oil, which allows it to behave more like a substance halfway between paint and sand.

Thursday tidbits

in which our plucky heroine notices the beauty in the everyday....

The apple tree in the backyard has become a sort of pet vegetal companion, as I learn by doing how to care for it.

While I am pretty arachaphobic, somehow I don't mind that tiny spiders build webs here and there in the apple tree. The tree has it's own community of folks that live with it, I am only probably the biggest one. There were several webs visible today, in the early morning light...

There is an apple ripening that is already bigger than the palm of my hand, on one branch. This is one reason why the books say to thin the baby apples to only one in each cluster of infant fruit. For the last two years I have been learning how to prune the tree, to keep it productive and at a height I can reach without a ladder. I am slowly learning as well the other ways to encourage it to produce apples that will be a treat for our plucky heroine. If you have ever seen a neglected apple tree, of which there are plenty all round the city, you have surely seen the clusters of plum sized scabby fruit which even so are likely worth picking for cider should one happen to have a cider press (I don't have a cider press, or the vehicle to transport masses of produce).

My goal is to do what I can to add a modicum of zero food mile apples to my everyday life each autumn. The tree is sort of "tame" in that I keep it groomed aka pruned so I can reach the branches, and I clear away the dead leaves to compost, and mulch the underthetree with nutritious comfrey. This year I will be able to let the chickens under the tree in the late autumn, to help dig up the weeds and to add their fertiliser contribution to the surrounding earth.

...and there are quite a few apples ripening on the tree. I have been learning to prune the tree, and thin the apples, this year and last year. (Next year I will add some apple "footie" covers and kaolin powder as mechanical barriers to help protect the fruit from insects, which will help dissuade the apple maggots and codling moths. I acquired the relevant supplies too late this year to use them)

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While decluttering, I found a random rayon challis tank top summer dress. More hot weather clothing is sorely needed, but tank tops are not my best option. Fortunately the dress is at least six inches too long, being almost ankle length, so slicing off the hemline at a more-safe-for-bike-riding level will allow for plenty of matching material for covering my shoulders. I was initially thinking of trying to draft a short sleeve, but then saw this simple tutorial that I can easily adapt... There might even be enough leftover fabric to do something interesting with the overly wide neckline as well... shall see what ensues (photos later when there is something to see)

I've been putting off sewing for myself for over well more than a year now, as my added avoirdupois has made all my TNT patterns less or not useful, and facing both my own increased girth and the effort of recreating useful patterns has been and remains dreadfully daunting. Still, since finding RTW clothing is an even worse option, I must take self by the scruff of neck and get over it. Perhaps actually sewing some comfortable and acceptable clothing will improve my outlook

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July SMART goals

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	pewter casting	Thora cuff trim	bag of hangers
2	charter #12	Thora trim bands	yard waste bin
3	charter #13	pruned apple tree	bag to Goodwill
4	chicken hurdles	hem rayon dress	bag to Goodwill
5	-	-	bag to Goodwill
6	-	-	galvanised mesh
7	-	-	-
8	-	-	-
9	-	-	-
10	-	-	-
11	-	-	-
12	-	-	-

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