John Cusack Not Throne Away

I've been going on so much about the earrings lately, it seems I've almost forgotten some of the other work I'm busy with... like necklaces. That's actually how the earrings came about; I started creating necklaces with scrap pieces, and wonder of wonders! if you cut that in half, you've got earrings! It's amazing. Anyway, here's a pic of a necklace I finished today. It's pretty big. I like them bigger; they're like small works of art that you can wear around your neck.




For some reason, I also felt compelled to post some photos of my older work. A "greatest hits" of sorts. MY favorites. Sometimes I get focused on what I'm working on at the moment, and I forget that I've gone off in all these other directions that some day I'd like to re-visit. Anyway, here they are:

"Be In Your Barbie" hangs out in my studio. Her legs wiggle, and I love that. It's a great mood-lifter! If you come by the Open Studio, I'll let you wiggle them.

"Idle Worship" hung on our wall for a looong time, much to my husband's dismay. (He HATES John Cusack; I wonder why? I love him. Hmmm...) I gave John to a friend who really loved the piece (and John). Her name is Stacey, and she's a very brave woman, as well as a talented ceramic artist, who is currently waiting for a liver transplant, so think good thoughts for her.

This last pic is my functional recycled toilet paper roll throne, titled "Not Throne Away". That was raffled off to benefit the local Tahoe library. (Our local library rocks!) It was alot of work, but some day I'll make another one. And keep it.

Forget Blondes, The British Have More Fun

'The best way to predict the future is to invent it' - Alan Kay

I love this quote; I stole it from the Secret Garden site, which I found through Hungamunga; these people are definitely having too much fun. Hungamunga does recycled art parties, among other things. "Arty parties without the arty farties". Wish I could go...

But here's a photo of me and Kristen having fun at the TAP show. Not as much fun as an art party...

Family Heirlooms

I've got a lot to learn... The computer aspect of an art business is part fun, part confusion. But one thing I learned this week was that I want to focus this blog on my art a bit more, less with the various ramblings.

So. Today is my dad's 81st birthday (wait, I WILL bring this around to my art...) and he's been wanting me to create a piece for his back yard. Most of my work is not meant for being outside, so I've hesitated because I didn't know what that would be. But last week, when he visited my new studio, I showed him the piece I created for WNCC's Recycled ARTicles show. I had used an old steamer lid that I'd grown up with; it's full of dents and stains and is basically kind of gross. But with character. Anyway, turns out the lid was my grandmothers, and my dad remembered it well from many dishwashing sessions as a kid. (That's the kind of family heirloom I received...) Anyway, as it was a recycled piece anyway, I decided to re-recycle it into something he could gaze upon in his yard. So now the well-used steamer lid has a new life as garden art. And the best part is, he won't have to wash it.






Steamer Lid Shield,
mixed media
Melissa Lanitis Gregory