In September 2014 I made a button art tree by sewing colored buttons to a stretched canvas.
My button grandma had a high distain for anything that destroyed buttons, such as glue or cutting off the shank, since that makes them unsuitable for button collectors. So all the buttons are recoverable from this art, should they need to be. I do like how I used the lighter colors to indicate light direction.
In July of 2014 I was experimenting with making “viking knit” wire chains. I did a number of trials with different metals and gauges of wire. I stumbled across this picture that also showed the time it took to get a small section of work done.
I like viking knit chains, they have a nice feel and drape. The technique is looping, which years later I learned to do with yarn in a method called nälbinding. I still love nälbinding too. Neither are fast crafts, but they are satisfying.
In May of 2014 I crocheted a rather large owl basket for my Mom.
It stands up well when it is filled with towels. I like the spiral eyes as a choice. I believe I used a wool yarn that I had in my stash at the time.
I love trees. I have made many wire trees, and I feel I have a flare for them. In December of 2013 I made an ornament with copper wire and a brass loop with “2013” done in wire along a branch of the tree.
I like this style of tree. Larger versions do well as wall hangings, which, for me, is preferable to sculptures that take up horizontal space. The market for wire trees fluctuates, for while every craft fair and mall had a wire tree booth. So anymore I mostly make these when I want one, rather than to sell.
Today we look back at August 2013 and the library bulletin board to welcome kids back to school. I did a concept test on a regular sized sheet of paper, using strips of sand paper for sand, and ribbons for water. The kids love running their hands on the bulletin board, so I thought the sand paper would give them something nice and tactile.
The fun part of the full board is that there was a vent that blew air across the surface, making the ribbon move and giving motion to the ocean. I did not use backing paper; I was still fire shy after the previous year’s board was deemed a hazard by the fire marshal.
Critters and Craft 