Color / Colour- Les Couleurs Focus on Life Week 17

Today, we will quote from the immortal words of Kermit the Frog-

"Why are there so many songs about rainbows
and what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,
and rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we've been told and some choose to believe it.
I know they're wrong, wait and see.
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers and me.

Who said that every wish would be heard
and answered when wished on the morning star?
Somebody thought of that and someone believed it.
Look what it's done so far.
What's so amazing that keeps us star gazing
and what do we think we might see?
Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection.
The lovers, the dreamers and me.

All of us under its spell. We know that it's probably magic. "

OK- kind of a goofy song, and who knows what it really means, but color is such an important part of what we do every day- it can make us feel happy or sad, the difference in light can make a day dreary or lively, it influences us whether we are paying attention or not! I was getting ready to make a kind of blue/ aqua deep sea creature pendant, and then I looked at the colors that were already on the table and saw how lovely they looked together, thought of the prompt for this week and went off on a bit of a tangent. So here you go! 

And end with the words of Henri Matisse:

Seek the strongest color effect possible.. the content is of no importance.


Want to hear more colorful thoughts? Start at Sally's Blog!

Handmade Lampwork Glass Bead Headpins and Sets

I've been working on beads sets a little at a time lately. Trying to make more supplies available in my etsy shop. I've kind of decided on the name 'stone soup' for the types of sets I'm making right now. They look like they've got bits and pieces of stone all through them- very organic.



I've also made some headpin sets. These are great fun to play around with! When I made the pins, I left the copper wire about 5 or 6 inches long, so there's plenty to work with. Before I used them, I decided to hammer them flat just because I like the way that looks; then I went to town! I've made a few necklaces out of them-added a few flattened copper baubles as well- making these little paddle dangles is a wonderful way to use up copper scraps. Being new to metal working, I always seem to have a lot of those lying about!

Hearts!

I've just been ignoring my blog-no fun lampwork posts for a while. So I'm just going to show off a few hearts. I love arranging beads into fun shapes. The heart that sits at about 2 minutes to twelve is my fave of this bunch- lots of odd color reactions!

Go For a Walk: Focus on Life Week 16

The week 16 prompt for Focus on Life was 'go for a walk'

I decided to take a jaunt downtown to the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden in Little Rock and show you a few sculptures. I was a bad tourist though and did  not take notes on the sculptor or the title of the works. Here are a few of my faves.










Actually, a lot of these photos are of the same piece. There's just something about the texture, the color the swirls and overall shape that I find irresistible.
 

To see where others were walking, start here.

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Aged Beauty- Focus on Life Week 15

 Well, two things came to mind right away when I saw this week's prompt from Sally at the Studio Sublime. One was my eyes- well, got the aging part down anyway! And the second was Wabi Sabi. Don't know about that? Well, you'll have to go to that link, because it's complicated- it acknowledges three simple realities: nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect.

What wabi sabi always makes me think of is the beauty of aging things and all that they;ve seen abd been through like this tree, with its woodpecker holes, knurls and plants that have attached themselves to it. And what happened to this other tree to make it grow in so many different directions?

I found myself looking for little bits and pieces all over the place and just had to dig this odd bit of metal out of the ground. Didn't know what it was at first, but it turns out it's the tooth of a backhoe.

I noticed a couple of old 'express' wagons over by the train station a few weeks ago. Wish I could have gotten closer for these pictures to see all the details better.



And last but not least- that closeup of my poor old eye!

Look here to see more aged beauty!

Up Close (and personal) Focus on Life Week 14

 This week's prompt from Sally was perfect for me. I love to look at things up close. And with spring finally here, there are so many things to look at- flowers, stones, birds and bugs- everything is coming to life and it's all so wonderful!

So, without further ado- here are some lovely little bits and pieces all right around my house, starting with the base of some iris flowers- what a cool design!

 I have a bit of a love/ hate relationship with wisteria- the buds and flowers are so pretty, and the twists and curls of the vine are too- but it's so destructive!

The convergence of stones leaves just enough room for a wee bit of a plant to grow!

And these purple flowers- my grandmother referred to them as 'flags' -iris is just lovely!

Go see some more close-ups of life starting here!