New Steampunk Jewellery now in my shop

Hi all. If anyone is after some of my new steampunk jewellery its just been photographed by the awesome Bevlea and its now in my shop HERE.

There are these two steampunk puffy heart necklaces....They have their own page HERE

Then there are two pocket watch poppets-one in silver tones and one in vintage brass tones...they are HERE

and lastly the propeller ring is HERE

Please feel free to share the links to my shop and facebook page :).  I'm thinking of doing a paid tutorial on how to puff metal without a hydraulic press...its how I puff the steampunk hearts....would anyone be interested?

hugs

Annette In Oz

Boab Sunset Painting

Morning all. Well I have almost finished my first ever acrylic landscape painting. I really had no great expectations this would turn out OK and now I am near the end I am astounded that it does indeed look fairly OK...even to the point I would frame and hang it on my wall. I've had 2 three hour lessons in my intro to painting class and only have one more lesson day to go where I'll do any final highlights and adjustments needed. After that when I have some spare money I'll join in a drop in session at the local art gallery/teaching place which is for beginners and advanced people and has a teacher there to help if you need it.

In case any of you missed it I'll show you the progress photos and then where I am up too. Firstly here is the PHOTO I used as a reference

Here was how my painting looked at end of first day of lessons which was a 3 hr class!

During the week that followed (while I was at home) I added some more highlights to the sky, some grass and a hint of water to the background plus sketched in where the Boabs should go

On last Saturdays class I started to block in the boab colours and add branches

Over the last few days at home I have finished adding the branches and have also added some highlights to the trunk and highlights to some branches.

This is how it all looks now

There were so many branches I had to stop looking at the photo and just put them where ever I wanted in the end. I need to tidy up the blending on the truck but its nearly fully done and when I place the original photo near it its darn not bad for a newbie at all I think.

I've really enjoyed learning to do a painting and hope to do more soon.

hugs

Annette In Oz

Drawing and painting classes-so far

My introduction to drawing and painting classes are going well. I'm trying hard to not be critical of my results and just enjoy the whole process. Two week ends ago we drew our own hands and then we had to draw a skull using a real skull as the reference.

My skulls still need some shading done but we only had three weeks of lessons left so we were all keen to start the painting part of class which we did do last Saturday. Two of the students used to paint and were quick to pick up their past abilities. Me I found it all interesting and a great learning curve indeed. I chose a landscape photo of some boabs to paint and we are using acrylics to paint with. This is my reference photo....

At end of class I had blocked in the background colours and during the week I have added some highlights on top and started to sketch in the boabs.

I'm not sure this will end well LOL but today in class I'll paint in the boabs...well at least block their colour in I hope. For a first time painter I don't think I am doing too bad though my ability to mix and paint colours exactly like the original needs allot of practice!

hugs

Annette In Oz

Steampunk Puffy Heart Necklace, Pocket Watch Poppet Necklaces and a Commissioned Cuff

The mosquitoes are still a problem here but I really wanted to make more jewellery so I lit mozzie coils and kept the garage doors closed to get some work done. The mozzie coil smoke smell gets in my clothes and the lighting isn't that good with the doors closed but I did get some items made! I finished another steampunk puffy heart...here it is with photo taken inside using the flash.

And next photo was taken outside with no flash.

The back is etched copper left overs that have been soldered and cold connected back together again...like a mended broken heart that has been fixed again. The propeller, cog under the propeller and the arrow on the bottom dangle can all be moved.

I also had wanted to re-create "The Time Keeper" necklace that I had made awhile ago and I made two of those...these I have called pocket watch poppets as I think there maybe more to come....One is silver toned and the other vintage brass toned in colour. They both have watch parts, cogs, vintage child image, tiny keys etc and lots of ice resin.

The propellers on the silver toned one can be moved

I drilled thru a little light bulb to use it as a little dangle on the vintage brass toned one.

Lastly a friend asked me to make a special cuff for her sister using an image of them as kids...such a great idea! Jen's sister loved it and cried when Jen gave it to her!

This evening I shall be working on my first ever landscape painting. I started it in class last Saturday...such an interesting and eye opening process this is and will continue to be. I may show you all where I am at tomorrow...maybe LOL...if its too hard class is this Saturday again. My teacher keeps telling me to relax as you can always paint over mistakes on acrylics but committing that paint to the surface with my shaky hands scares me none the less. I have to ignore the critic within and just remind myself I'm just a beginner at painting.

hugs

Annette In Oz

Drawing classes

Where we have moved is some what more remote then where we lived in the NT. I'm at least lucky in that I know a few local people and they have given me the heads up on a local art studio/gallery that does lessons!. It's called DAB or Douglas Arts Base and its in Mossman just down the mountain range from us.We had a fair bit of rain up here and the mosquitoes were hammering me every time I tried to do jewellery making in the garage so I joined DAB and now I am doing an introduction class to drawing and painting for five weeks on a Saturday. I'm once again finding that when I draw some things look OK and at other times its terrible LOL. It's perspective I have the most trouble with.

We at first did freeing up exercises like drawing continuously while looking up at subject not at the page and not lifting the pencil up....that I could do OK. Then we tried drawing with the image upside down. I was given a sketch of a man sitting on a chair drawn cartoon like but he was upside down...now this was intriguing....I had read about this before but never tried it myself. So I gave it ago and started at the bottom of my page (with the upside down head) and drew upwards. When I was done I turned it right way up and too my shock the features actually looked quite realistically to the original BUT as I drew what I drew got bigger so he had a small head and long large body. I had concentrated so much on shapes that I forgot perspective!

At the end of class the teacher spied an old drawing of mine in the back of my sketch book so she handed me a vintage image of a lady in black and white and told me to sketch that for my home work! OMG it scared me just looking at it as it had lots of shaded areas as she had her head draped in a cloth. I took it home on Saturday and every day I looked at the image several times just too scared to even try to draw it. By Thursday I still hadn't started but I just thought "go for it....if it doesn't work out tear the page out". I did a light out line at first and then drew the face....My attempt is at left and the real thing at right....

I spent hours just getting that part done. Then I worked on it for hours each day till Saturday came around again and I had to take it to class and show the teacher. I went from one area to another working my way around the face. At the end I was quite astonished as this was one of the times I actually drew with a good end result! I just wish every time I drew I could get this sort of result. The teacher was impressed and in fact at first didn't believe I had drawn it *grin* 

Today I spied the drawing in my art room and again thought I had seen this on one of my rubber stamps so I had a look and sure enough I had the stamp :). It was a Judikins ?angel stamp...how funny

As I can't get much jewellery making done I did do some paper crafting stuff. I've almost put together a craft holder lazy Susan thing from Kaiser that I'll show you another day plus this card made of Opals embossing enamel tiles, fantasy and Angelina film, stamps and charms.

This Saturday in class we are going to try simple landscape paintings....feeling nervous about that one and I do suspect mine will be an abstract landscape in the end LOL. I'm enjoying being creative again indeed regardless of whether it ends up good bad or ugly.

hugs

Annette In Oz

Steampunk Puffy Heart and a Propeller Ring

Here is my new steampunk puffy heart necklace and a little propeller ring to match...

The arrow on the dangle can spin still and I really like the "On and Off" thing

The propeller and cog can still spin on the ring. The ring is adjustable to fit all sizes. Hubby is home for his off time stint but I hope to steal a few hours here and there to get a brass steampunk puffy heart under way. Oh thanks to all the bloglanders whom have sent me hello again notes too...you made me smile!
hugs
Annette In Oz

Steam Punk Puffy Hearts-WIP.The Creating Has Begun!

I've finally unpacked the last box of my stash and have it all stored away. Some storage I shall need to change at a later date. I've had to use allot of cheap flat pack stuff that really will collapse at some stage but we don't own a ute (YET) to buy furniture to bring home and allot of places wont deliver up here in Julatten. My messy unpacking and boxes everywhere has gone at last. Here is all my storage for paper crafts...from polymer clay to stencils and card stock etc plus some art on top to keep me inspired. I'm going to change the two rows at right to the same containers at left eventually.

This is the storage cubes that are inside the built in...again just cheap storage but at least its all put away. The other side has shelves for my stamps, sewing stuff and blank canvas

Sprays, glues, paints, pencils and pens are here

Books, my large how too folder, Opals embossing enamels, embossing powders etc

My desk with some items that need repair after they got broken in the move and more art work behind on the window shelf

I really need to get that Kaiser lazy Susan thingy covered and fully made

Art to go on the wall when hubby is home again

BUT here in the garage is where I am most excited about at the moment...all set up except I need to move the large kiln to another bench as it takes up too much room...its too heavy for me to move though. I sat in here all afternoon yesterday and late into the night and boy was I happy as LOL.

By 10pm I had two puffy hearts on the go...this is them just after coming out of the pickle and me trying various things on them

I've started putting the etched copper puffy heart together first...I can't decide if I like the light bulb or the cogs/arrow dangle yet for the bottom. I'm not going to put a cog over the tin type photo as it covers up the "On and Off" and I like that bit.

Today I have done the house work and I shall spend the rest of the afternoon soldering it all at the back, soldering on a base and attaching the wings. Creating again is awesome!! It's peaceful, inspiring and beautiful here in the mountains and now I have art to do as well...very content indeed :o)
hugs
Annette In Oz