Finding treasure on a gloomy spring day.

 Short version:

Dave and I went for a drive, walked on the beach near Queens Bay and I found a neat skull.

  

Longer version: It was gloomy but mild today, so Dave and I decided to go for a bit of a drive to Queen's Bay. We parked at the side of the highway, and took a steep little trail down to the beach. 

 It was cold, windy and noisy! I was surprised at how big the waves were, so I took a little video .

The rounded rocks are hard to walk on, but I love beachcombing… every chance I get. I found a "couple" of rocks to take home…so many rocks, so few pockets.

  Then I made a most unusual find!!

The partial skull - of a small deer, I think.  One of the short antlers is broken, but the weird part is that they were growing in opposite directions!  If you know anything about this, let me know… PLEASE! (Here's more photos from different angles).

 We didn't walk too far, as the wind made our eyes water and our ears got cold, but I have a new treasure to show for our efforts :)

  Next we drove up to see the little church, of course I had to stop and take pictures. It's rare to find a church with an outhouse out back.

   When we got home, I took Spike for a walk to the mailbox, hoping for one of my bead orders to arrive... but was disappointed. Oh well, there's always tomorrow :)

 Have a great week...

Finishing up some paintings, and new earrings.

 A wintery weekend, and some creative time in my studio. What a way to end February.

 Here's some pictures….

Some earrings I made, with my new beads.

The armadillos, and many other earrings are available 

in my Etsy shop.

These little paintings just needed some final touches,

so I finished them up, and clear-coated them.

The same little paintings- back sides.

This painting just needed a couple of clear coats,

I call it "Crow's picnic" and have listed it for sale in

my "Original paintings" section.

This painting is called "Eagle View".

 I'm sure you can see why.

Goodbye February, it's been fun.... Hello March - let's see if it's a lion or lamb.

Comments are welcome... surely you'd like to say something.

Things I'm working on...Ok, who changed the format?

Has Blogger changed the format? Or did I mess up my settings last time I was here?

I was just going to post some photos of pieces I'm working on... and everything here has changed.
Note: The blog looks the same to view, but the screens for updating and creating the actual blog has changed.

 I've been in my studio for about 10 hours, making a couple of pieces with my new Plainsman clay.
Finally have some photos to add. It's midnight, my eyes feel as gritty as my hands, and I'm too tired to be amused by the totally different look, but will just muddle my way through and hope for the best.
I'm listening to Susan Jacks... in case you're interested.

(I started these birds last weekend)

Made a small bear head, wallhanging...

I love the way his mouth turned out 

When hanging on the wall, this is how he'll look.

And I made a dog vase...

front view

side view

(Update- March 27/12-He's ready for a first firing and 

I've decided on a glaze ... it's called "Dalmation" how fitting.)

Update- May 15/12- see him finished and fired.

 That's how my day off was... fun :)

I'm off again tomorrow too, just not sure what to make next... 

(Update: I like this new format- especially for adding photos, now that I've tried it a couple of times :)

What to do this Valentine's Day?

Valentine's is only 10 days away, and I'm trying to think of something special to do with my Sweetheart. It's the 30th Valentine's day, we'll be celebrating together.

Many Valentine's days have passed, with nothing special to mark the day, but there have been some very special ones, and I'd like this to be one of them.

A nice dinner out is always a treat- for both of us… no cooking, no dishes. It's definately on my list :) He's not a movie fan, so that's out. Our taste in music is so different, so forget that.

If the weather's nice and his back's ok, a long walk on a snowy beach (thinking Kokanee Creek Park) would be pleasant enough.

After all the year's we've been together, it's hard to find something new to do.

Any and all suggestions are welcome.

***********************

Blatant Etsy shop plug: Click to see some heart items in my shop.

My horse needs a home.

Watching the snow (dropping from the trees, tumbling puffs, knocking off more on lower branches, and landing with a thump by the time they reach the ground.)

It was a good time to come back inside and finish my little horse.

I did his eyes and some touch ups, this morning, but need the paint to dry completely, for the next step. (Note the paintbrush in this photo... I made it myself, from horse hair.)

At last, I've finished my little Horse sculpture. He'll need another coat or two of clear gloss over the next couple of days, but I can consider him complete.

To see his "in progress" photos click here "Horse with no name" .

Now all he needs is a loving home. Contact me if you're interested, or you can wait and hope that I list him in my Etsy shop :)

Update: Sorry, he's sold.

Bye bye Big Blue Bird.

As I write this, Dave's on his way to town, to ship my Big Blue Bird, to Australia.

Here's some final photos.

I can't tell you how stressed I get about packing & shipping,

it's enough to drive both of us crazy.

Anyhow, he's safely packed and on his way

to a much warmer home in no time...

Bon Voyage mon ami.

To see how he was made: from the beginning.

Big bird clay figure- in progress photos. Part 5

To see previous in progress photos. Part 4

Well, it's New Year's eve, and I really wanted to finish this bird, so

after a lot of procrastinating, I set my mind to it.

I added highlights to his feet, wings and tail...then painted his eyes.

It's so hard to get the eyeballs "just right", but I think I got it.

I'll take better photos tomorrow (in natural light), and then give him a

couple of clear coats, to protect the paint job. Not sure if I should give

him a satin, or matt finish...

Here's the underside... I carved my signature on his foot.

What a perfect way to say goodbye to 2011, finishing the details on

one of my best clay pieces, ever. (It also reminded me that I have a horse

that's still waiting to be painted- he's next.)