Newest Miniature Art Book

My newest soldered creation.  These are quite labor intensive but so satisfying to make!  Don't know if I could sell them or not.  They are little jewels.

Valentine Sweet

I have made this little palm size book from soldered metal and plaster pages after taking Stephanie Lee's  class called "Handbook of Elements".  The books shown in that class are scrumptious and it is so much fun to learn new techniques that combine all the vintage elements I adore.

The spine has been embellished with lots of vintage mother of pearl buttons.

 I added hand dyed pale pink cheese cloth embedded in the plaster pages for extra color and texture.

This was pretty paper napkin that I separated the outermost ply and adhered the tissue to the plaster.  I love this effect because it becomes part of the substrate and is seamless.  Working with plaster is so much fun.  Happy Valentine's Day!

Just For Fun

I had fun making these little Art Quilt Pendants based on an idea from Rebecca Sower in an old issue of Belle Armoire that I had.  These were fun and quick to make and there are so many possibilities.  I love combining all the colors and using these these hand dyed silk ribbons that I got off of Etsy.  The combination of old fabric and hard metal and beads pleases me.

Newest Creation "Blush"

This is what I have been working on the past few days.  I made the soldered charm sometime ago and knew that it needed just the right chain.  I made some unusual wrapped links with leather, lace and beads and used fresh water pearls in the palest pink.  It is a very romantic necklace and a long one too at 17 inches.  Very Downton Abbey-ish.   I think Lady Mary might like it!

The pouch was an after thought because well...presentation is everything.  Available in my Etsy shop.

Giving In to Strawberries

I know that you are only supposed to buy fruit in season but after a long winter I am always seduced by the Florida strawberries in the market and although they cannot be compared to local June berries, some of them are not half bad.  When I ran across this recipe for Strawberry Shortcake Cake from The Pioneer Woman on Pinterest I couldn't resist giving it a try.   I am bringing it to a friend's house for dinner this evening and hopefully it will be yummy.

I used my new King Arthur baking pan with the ridges that are supposed to distribute heat evenly and it worked beautifully and the cake popped right out.