Our First Workshop of the New Year

Like all of you I'm excited to be starting a new year and I'm excited to announce our first workshop of the year.

Remember the clock case jewelry box? Junk find.

It's called Junk Camp for Beginners. Over the holidays when I would tell my friends and family what I was doing with junk these days they looked at me a little funny. So....I thought I'd give others the opportunity to catch the "junk bug" and join me in the studio for an afternoon. I have to warn you. It's addictive. You will never be the same again. 

I've already told you about all the "good junk" I have stored under my work table, in the stove house, in the barn, behind the tool shed and even a piece or two behind the tractor shed. To the naked eye, it is only junk and the typical things you see around farms, but to me I see art supplies.

For those attending, this may be the cheapest afternoon of fun you've had in a while. I know, we are all running a little short after shopping, eating out, partying, and splurging more often for Starbucks in December, but this mini workshop is a DEAL. Registration is $10 and the cost of the class is....what ever you decide you want to spend. 

We are setting up bins with junk ranging in price from $0.25 to $25.00. You choose how little or how much you want to spend on your project. We also encourage you to bring your own junk to swap with other participants. 

We will supply tools and materials for manipulating or connecting your junk into art objects...functional or decorative...large or small. It's up to you. Cool? We think so. I will have new projects on hand for inspiration and I will help you to see the potential in the items you choose to work with. 

When is this workshop?

Saturday January 22, 2011.

1pm - 4pm (you know I am NOT a morning person, and too, I am most likely going to be out yard sale(ing) until noon.)

Where is the workshop held?

Free Rein Art & Design Studio (upstairs studio in Ranch Dressing Handmade and Vintage)

1882 Kennedy Farm Rd

Thomasville 

How do you register?

Online click here 

Or call, text or email. I will pencil you in and you can mail in or stop by the studio with your $10 fee. All of our contact info is in the sidebar.

Is there a deadline to register?

Yes, January 15th. The workshop is limited to 6 students. If we should have more interest, I will offer the class the following Saturday as well.

When you register, be sure to leave me all of your contact info for further instructions for the class. I will send and email or post card before the 22nd. 

Have I left anything out? Ask any questions in the comments section and I'll clear it up for everyone. I look forward to hearing from you and am really excited about the workshop!

Talk to you soon!

A Clock Case No Longer

Today's post is NOT about guitar catalogs! I've almost sold them all thankfully and am moving on to more fun things. Today's post is about the clock case project I've been slowly working on. As you can see in the photo above it's finally finished.

For me, the best projects evolve. I can't usually just walk out to the studio and make something in an afternoon. It has to grow into something. With this clock case, I let it sit out for a month while I worked on other things and when I was out and about either in the trailer or shopping for my usual art supplies or junk...I  kept the box with so much potential in mind. Eventually I started collecting things I liked and then began to put them together until they evolved into a jewelry box.

I am not sure what happened to the photo of my before shot of the clock case...but, just to give you an idea, it was mildewy brown and black with an oxidized alligator skin finish....and smelled musty.

I first put a wash of green blue paint over it and continued with several coats until I liked the intensity. This sealed up the "stink" and was the beginning of the new finish. I love how paint works with old oxidation. The texture is wonderful visually and after a very, very light sanding it's considerably smooth.

For me the solid color was just too much of a good thing so I then gave it a light wash of linen white and let it seep into the grooves to highlight the design in the wood...SO much better.

Since I don't speak French I have no idea what the label is but to me it looks feminine and maybe like a powder box top. I got it from The Graphics Fairy after I had already painted the box. It was an almost perfect match, so that really sealed the deal.  I love how the graphics on the glass door frames it too.

I'm sorry this is horribly out of focus, but I wanted to show you the pull...it is part of an earring and I epoxied it to the door front.

This brooch came from the same estate and just seemed to fit the bill for some added oomph to top.

Inside behind the label is a piece of textured wallpaper I got from my Junk Swap partner a couple of months ago. It was the perfect solution to hide the holes where the clock fittings once were and also to brighten up the background so that you can see inside when it's closed. I am considering putting a tiny light inside for nighttime display. To the sides I've put in 4 coated hooks for necklaces or bracelets.

I removed the shelf supports from the top and moved them to the bottom of the case and added the shelf for the ring posts. They are simply dowels inserted into holes and glued up. I finished the top with nickle studs painted with gold leaf. On the front of the shelf is brown velvet ribbon which is the same trim as on the boxes below.

These were as much fun to make as the jewelry case. They are paper mache covered in paper and sealed with poly. The lids are painted and embellished with jewelry-like stickers for scrap booking or card making. the insides are also lined with paper and velvet for holding small pieces of jewelry or earrings.

 I am working on two smaller coordinating boxes to finish out the space inside the case. Since they have been such a fun project on their own I will be making more to sell individually. 

All in all this fancy froo froo jewelry case not going to hold a ton of jewelry but more likely to hold what someone wears on a day to day basis during the week. The basics. So, it's really intended as a place to put "regulars" away at night and find them quickly the next morning....or it could just be used to display treasures or family heirlooms.

So, did anyone guess correctly a few weeks ago when I showed the supplies? Did you know what it was going to be?

It will be for sale at our first open house sale this summer along with lots of other recycled items I'm trying to save from the landfill. I hope to see you then!

Weekly Shop Update

Last week's news of the metal siding order being completely messed up took a turn for the better. After witnessing a 2 day tantrum by a 47 year old man and wondering how he handles mulit-million dollar projects at work...????...he finally figured that it would be a lot easier to borrow a metal break from our neighbor and fix it himself. Soon thereafter he had 3 sides on, the attic vents bought and the door frame in place...

I'm amazed at what that man can do in a weekend.

 I'm really liking the view from the back porch...(those dead vines on the rocks were from ivy we are trying to get rid of. They are finally brittle enough to tear away, but I've already seen a couple of snakes and am a little leery.)

So, as he gets his new shop closer to being closed in and the floor poured, we are both closer to getting what we want! In about 3 weeks we will be able to start unloading  the trailer and get all of Rick's stuff out of the studio and moved into his shop. That will be the staging area while we get Ranch Dressing ready for our first Open House Sale. Some day...it will all be organized and that will be a... great day!

This day, I am working on a small project for the shop...I've already started painting and working on the interior of this old Victorian clock case.  

The case will get a white wash over the blue...you know me, I can't be happy with solid color.

I'm only using one piece of the jewelry on the card...Aren't they fabulous with the paper?

The little blue pieces of wood were originally inside the case as support...I removed them and am adding them back for the same purpose but in a different position.

Can you guess what it's new purpose is? If it will help, there are some hooks going in there as well, I just haven't found them yet.