For Laura

February 3rd was my supervisor's birthday. I made Laura a domino pendant and an altered bisque angel. She seemed to like them both, but has a special adoration for angels! In fact, the angel was a big hit with everyone who saw it. I probably will make a few more of them to sell. The picture does not do it justice though. Entwined in the strands of fiber are narrow strips of paper containing written scripture. You probably can't see the charms and buttons either but they are there!

This was simply a purchased bisque angel bust, which I added embellishments to. I like to find ordinary but aged items and alter them or embellish them. These little angel busts came in two styles and look aged and distressed. Really, they are pretty just by themselves. I was going to tie a ribbon on the back metal hanger when I thought about adding even more ribbon to it. These could be given as a set, or individually. I considered Laura's color scheme at her home when adding elements to the angel. She is a christian so scripture seemed fitting. The scripture I chose is one of my favorites and I chose it because I love Laura (1st Corinthians:13:4 -8). Amazingly this also turned out to be her favorite scripture! She had even used it for her wedding. What do you know! That is really cool that it worked out that way!

Anyway, I am glad that she liked it and I will wait and see if she wears the necklace! I had fun with the pendant which was an altered domino. Inked, stamped and embedded with metals and beads, it turned out a little more edgy than I had planned. I wondered if this was even a piece that Laura would wear, but since I had began with one particular outift that she wears in mind, I continued with the process. The result was brown, pretty, unusual and definately one of kind! I think that qualifies for altered art!

Many, many people ask me if I sell my work. So far, I have not sold any of my handcrafts on the internet, though I am forever contemplating it. It looks like the fees on some of these sites may have increased so I will have to see if the increase seems prohibitive to making a profit. Considering the costs plus the postage, it may significantly reduce the income potential especially when time is considered. For the artisan, time is the most costly factor and few want to pay you for your time! I truly do need to gain back some of the money I spend on art and art supplies though! And each piece that I do is planned and thoughtful.

Otherwise, I have not had much time to post here lately! It is the middle of February and only yesterday did we get our Christmas stuff up in the attic! Good grief! I have never been that late before! Now that Valentines Day is over, we have to prepare for St. Patricks Day and Easter and a whole slew of family birthdays are on the way!

I will be working on those gifts next and of course can not charge the recipient! So sad! Well, better get busy! It may be another month before I get back on here to post!

All the best! Norma