Made by Donna Saladino-Irvine, these heart hoops are a perfect send-0ff for our February challenge, My Heart's In My Art.
Are you a member of the B'sue Boutiques Creative Group at Facebook ? Consider this your personal invitation to join us and participate in the Challenge. Each month we will have a new one and I'm also planning some blog hops soon!
The challenge is simple and the parameters broad: It would seem the logical thing to do for the challenge is to use heart stampings, or make things in the shape of a heart.....and that would be fine.
But since this is not so much about heart shapes as what is IN your heart.....your challenge piece could go so many different ways! Perhaps yours will be a sentimental piece, featuring an image of a dear relative. Maybe it will simply be something made in *colors* that make you feel productive. If you make your own components, perhaps your piece will feature your favorites. This challenge is about YOU and what makes YOUR heart go pitty-pat.
At B'sue Boutiques Creative Group at Facebook you may work in any media whatever, and use whatever components you wish. Many use a combination of things found at B'sue Boutiques and things they already have; others are accomplished metalsmiths who use fine metals and gemstones....yet others love polymer clay or cast resin. It's your call. It is not a rule that you use goods from our website to be a member of the group, to post photos or be in the challenges.
Our group is about sharing, creativity, originality. Some share freely every technique they use, others cannot, but simply share photos and basics. It's up to each one. We do ask that members be encouraging to one another as we are all taking this journey together. People on similar paths need support from others who are of like mind.
If you participate in the challenge, you can start posting your photos to the FACEBOOK GROUP,now. Photos should be posted to the GROUP first, and you should write FEBRUARY CHALLENGE on your post, first. Then, take a minute to write something about the piece and why it demonstrates your art...in your heart.
We have an active pinterest board for the group as well as a challenge board:
B'sue Boutiques Creative Group Challenge Board
Items for the challenge should be pinned to this board. If you are not a Pinterest member or not interested in being one, you can simply ask someone in the group to please pin your photo when you upload it to the Group page. If you are on Pinterest and are not yet enabled for upload to our Group board, please first:
1. Follow me at Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/bsueboutiques/
2. Private message me at Facebook (not here) to Brenda Sue Lansdowne and ask me to follow you. IMPORTANT: Give me the name you use at Pinterest, and that way I can enable you for the Group boards so you can pin your own photos.
3. You have until February 28th (2013) to show us whatcha got! and get it pinned to the Pinterest Group Challenge Board.
4. On March 1, 2013, I will annouce a winner. Our winner is randomly drawn from among all the entries. Winners are never talent or creativity-based, I cannot be that sort of judge and jury. My purpose is to encourage you and my blesssing, to watch you grow! So ONE gets a 25.00 gift certificate to B'sue Boutiques
EVERYONE who participates is a winner, because you get to expand your thinking process, draw from inside you, and produce a piece you might not have made before. Challenges can open new doors for artists. They are important to working out new ideas....as well as being inspired and better still, being an inspiration!
Here are a few pieces that over the years have been a part of my heart:
This is a polymer clay focal that I made and just haven't quite decided what to do with it yet.....nor do I want to sell it. It was something that was a new direction for me,far from perfect, but something I enjoyed making.
I've shared this piece before. I've never sold it, and I don't think I will. It was a reprise of a far more primitive piece I made back when I had my designer line of jewelry in the 1990's, and a perfect example of what Five and Dime Style jewelry is.
I encorporated many techniques in making it, including a backless resin bezel made from an earring, with an embedment.
This photo is what I use for my avatar at Facebook Business Page for B'sue Boutiques:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bsue-Boutiques/123052674404364?ref=ts&fref=ts
I took this photo about five years ago, nd what you see in it is very indicative of my heart-style as an artist. I love mixed media. I made the teapot pin with the dangles in 1998 and it is a signed piece that I still own and wear. The polymer clay necklace is also a fave that I often wear. I love the bracelet, it was the first one like it I ever made, and I never sold it.
This funky spiral wire bracelet is full of organic style polymer clay beads that I made when I first TRULY discovered the medium. They are wonky in nature, but that's what I personally like.
When I took my first day class with Linda and Opie O'Brien of Burnt Offerings, I took a box of jewelry I'd made over the years to show them. Linda fell in love with this bracelet and I gave it to her.
That day with them brought me back to the jewelry-making world. Though I had been in the business for years (in fact, 25 this month!) I had become very ill in 2005 and had an ordeal of several years where I felt unable to make much jewelry. I needed some encouragement, and that day was the beginning of a new 'era' for me. I also felt enabled to be able to go on, and teach the things I already knew as well as was picking up, about mixed media art.
Now we have over 80 videos to share:
http://www.youtube.com/user/bsueboutiques
I could go on and on showing you pictures, but I think I've said enough. Time for you to put on your thinking cap and see what you can come up with for the challenge....and time for me to see what new trick I can devise and try out!
Love the piece with the horse stamping and the teapot brooch, which is just so adorable!
Posted by: Catherine | February 13, 2013 at 06:03 PM
The horse stamped brooch was really amazing...The tea pot pin was a unique piece of creativity.And above all the cute heart hoops are just outstanding.
Posted by: body jewellery online | May 01, 2013 at 06:51 AM