Sunday, January 23, 2011

2011 Brings on the Birdies

Sometimes I get something into my head that just has to get out into the glass. 

A number of months ago I had this image of a dancing elephant wearing a hula skirt.  She found a home quite quickly and I never made another like her.  I do like elephants and sometimes think I will try again.  I really think she could use some tweaking.  There are so many little details about her that I see and say, oh come on - you could do better.  But she has quite the cute personality. 

Recently I got it into my head that I wanted to make birds - now many, many of us make birds.  I had this image of birds with hearts on their breasts and hats on their heads.  Now, the earliest ones did have hearts on their breasts, but really, they could use some work. 

Turns out there are many things to consider when creating a bird - especially one wearing a hat - that mandrel can be quite bothersome!  Some of the first ones I did not have the hole going all the way through - not exactly a bead - and they are sort of hunchbacky - again, I need some perfecting.

I like to take an idea and play and play, tweaking as I go. 

My Ottoman series is very detailed and exact, these new beads are much more playful to look at and to make - I don't have to be quite so exacting.  I have been having so much fun with colour combinations and different colours on the beaks - I am having too much fun with stripey beaks. 

I also decided to try my  hand at making legs for the little guys.  I don't have the very best tools.  Last year at Bead and Button I took a class with Anne Mitchell - she advised to have tools with long handles as they are easier on your hands and the ends don't poke you right in the middle of your palm - Wow - Anne is right - I will be looking for better tools as my  hands took a beating as I tweaked making birdie legs out of wire.


I have been continuing with the birdie theme and tried my hand at owls - well, they are too much fun - again I can play with all kinds of crazy colour combinations!  I actually think that that guy on the left has no wings!  Hmmmm - I will have to go and check him out - perhaps they are just little wings hiding - perhaps they got forgotten in the adding of toes!  Silly me!  He could be a new species of flightless owls - related to the ostrich?

It is winter here and today it is much too cold for beading.  We have also had tons of snow recently.  I took this photo on the back porch about a week or so ago.