Frontal Lobotomy

Today's small Halfland act was to 'speriment with several different materials to simulate hand-blown glass bottles to scale. I started out rolling wafer thin sheets of translucent/transparent Polymer clay and wrapping it around various colored beads. Then I found that I had a bottle of liquid Sculpy on hand, a versatile little product, that I bought to use for image transfer onto jewelry. I dipped beads into that taffy-like goo too. When I feel brave, and well-ventilated, I will pop these samples into my home toaster oven to cure and render clear. (Safety Boy?)

Then it occurred to me, "Hey, what about that there non-tox, CLEAR-when-dry window paint I bought to use on the cottage windows?" I dunked a few beads in that and am letting them dry. Then I sez, "Hey!, what about this here TOTALLY CLEAR all the time Tombo paper glue type glue?" It immediately looked most like glass of all but the viscosity was too fluid and it kept dripping right off. It'll take a few dippings through tonight and tomorrow to build it up sufficiently into bottle shapes.

So, photos and results forthcoming. Hopeful, custom glass, fingers crossed.
Xm
Art Bonus
For the last eight or nine years for my mother's birthday, I've made a little theme birdie out of wool for her. I"ve named the series, "Crewel Birds" (Get it? crewel (made of wool)?). This year's bird, "Birdadette", clutches a little cross made of twigs and has her head covered in blue cloth (to connote my mother's recent conversion into Evangelical Christianity.) I bid her the best of luck on her new path.

Comments

  1. That Birdies So Cute, Your Mothers the Luckiest on her Block!

    How did you make the Nest?

    -Ben

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  2. hey, welcome back, shelley! looking forward to seeing the bottles!

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  3. The bird is so sweet, Shel. ( ' v ' )

    About the roses,
    I was sure the big one next to your miniature one is a real rose. WoW!!!
    If you say it was simple to make ( I thought it would take a day to make one) than I take it back, It's too expensive.
    I want to try it too. Maybe I'll try another flower...

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  4. Anonymous2:14 AM

    Re polymer clays: Safety Boy sez...

    From what I've read, I've decided to treat baking polymer clay as if it is safe. Can't speak about the more exotic stuff, like liquid Sculpey.

    Here's my link collection on the subject, so you can make your own decision:

    ACMI statement: http://www.acminet.org/ACMI_Addl_Response_Polymer.htm

    Sculpey's statement: http://www.sculpey.com/Products/PR_ACMI.htm

    Duke University's research (short version): http://www.polymerclaycentral.com/cyclopedia/polymerclay_safety.htm

    Duke University's research (long version): http://duketox.mc.duke.edu/polymerclayresults2.pdf

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  5. Go Shelley! Cant wait to see the results of your gooey play time :)

    I have a bottle of liquid sculpey that I thought might be good for definition/detailing on a puppet, but havent tried it yet...

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  6. Hey Herself!

    ....nice piece of artwork you got there.

    hey i need your help embedding the vimeo clips in our blog posts.

    It keeps giving us an error saying that begining isnt matching end or somthing......then it wont post.

    are we missing a step or somthing?

    jriggity

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  7. Hi and thanks All,

    @ Justin: Are you waiting the full time it takes Vimeo to convert your uploaded clips to Flash before you are copying the code to paste into your blog? That should be working. Tell me that and then we can go on from there.

    @ Sven: Thanks for sharing your links, I knew our Safety Boy would come through! I guess it's more of an issue to use a designated oven if I were running foam and other more toxitties. I shall bake at will (wearing my respirator, hee)

    @ Hila: YES! That's what I was a tring to say--the roses look completely real!! YOU should totally try it, really super easy. (I know you much prefer pinkish blue hydrangeas over roses, but still!)

    The secret that makes it work so well is absolutely the coffee filter paper. It takes the folding abuse and wet watercolors without tearing and the texture is exactly lifelike when dry! (She figured it out when she was making paper crafts with her kids and working as a barista in her family's own coffee shop--perfect.)

    Thanks so much Gretchin, Jeffery, and Ben!

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  8. Oh, Ben, I didn't make that nest, I bought it at Micheal's/Moskatels craft supply shop downtown LA. Of course I bought it for the 1/2L. "Birds in Hats" but I think I will make the nest their hat box will sit in instead.

    I'll probably take a hank of dried twigs and grasses and coil it into my hand and secure in place as I go with brown wire, like weaving a rustic basket.

    yep. cheers!

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