Wordless Wednesday
Bear
The first art history class I took covered tribal arts. I loved everything about them - the Polynesian canoes and printed fabrics, the Maori jewelry and meeting houses, the Pacific Northwest Coast Native American totem poles and shamanic art, and the incredible pottery and jewelry of the descendants of the Anasazi.
The more I carve my animal charms, the more I think about the fabulous Navajo and Zuni animal fetishes. I have a turquoise bear fetish that I’ve owned for years - Navajo I think. So I found myself carving this little bear out of my most recent chunk of wax.
I’ve really been working to make these charms wonderfully intriguing and comforting to the touch. I love wearing pieces that are as fun to hold in your hand and run through your fingers as they are to look at.
Wordless Wednesday
Elephant
The next generation of wax carvings begins with an elephant. I’m really enjoying playing with simple forms, particularly my new little menagerie. Next up? I’ve been playing with some fish designs this week. We’ll see if any of them turn out!
Wordless Wednesday
Rubble
Welcome to my workbench. I thought I’d grab a snapshot so y’all could get a feeling for the controlled chaos that is my life…
Bird Charm
I’ve finished my bird! This is the brushed sterling silver version. I’m also making them in polished sterling silver, which is the version that’s up in my shop at the moment. I’ve finished this piece with a split ring so you can wear it as a pendant or attach it to a charm bracelet for a fabulous chunky charm.
My sweet bird is 1” long, 1/2” tall, and 3/8” across its chubby little belly.
Sprued
My lovely bird, all sprued up and ready for me to make a rubber mold out of it. The sprues are the dark parts in this photo. When I make the mold, it will be solid rubber apart from where the bird is and where the sprues are. The hole left by the sprues leads to the edge of the mold - this allows me to shoot the hot liquid wax in from the outside. Once the wax model is cast into silver, I saw the sprues off.
Casting my own designs is a pretty involved process, but it’s a labor of love!
A Wing and a Prayer
I just realized that I somehow missed posting my bird in wax form. So here it is, my lovely bird, while I was still carving it out of wax. After this I split it in half, hollowed it out, and cast it in silver. And then I made a rubber mold of it, made a lot more wax versions, and cast them all in silver, too.
Next up, some finished happy birdies! Yes, I’m overly excited about this one. It’s just such a lovely bird - very tactile and wonderful to hold in your hand. I love portable sculpture!
Sawed Free
I’ve sawed them free from the casting tree. The little blip on top of the egg is an air bubble, cast in silver. I love these little random air bubbles, even if I do have to pull them off when I finish the pieces.
Today I’m back in the world of flame and fortune, casting my birds. I do love this gig - it’s like Christmas every time I crack open a mold.