tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5379505754281252472024-03-07T23:00:19.965-08:00Crushes on Craftsriv talks about past, present, and future obsessions with a bajillion types of crafts.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-24120572243182593712010-06-20T11:56:00.001-07:002011-04-15T22:06:29.490-07:00This blog has movedI've switched to updating at <a href=http://purpleshiny.com>purpleshiny.com</a>. Come follow me over there!rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-85224571359147613722010-01-19T19:50:00.000-08:002010-01-19T19:50:02.082-08:00(Mostly) successful time at Arisia!I say "mostly" because I think I may have come away from the weekend with some kind of con crud (probably a cold). But I did better than I'd expected at the art show, and then made another sale on Etsy as a result of someone viewing my work at the con. I'm planning on transitioning from renting studio space to working in my own basement during the month of February; making these sales means that I'll be able to afford more tools of my own sooner, and hopefully there won't be much downtime while I piece together a metalsmithing setup of my own! This weekend I'm hoping to do at least a preliminary clean of the basement workbench area. I'm planning on posting "workspace in progress" photos as I collect tools and organize my materials so that readers can get a glimpse into how and where I work.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-8816502590883124422010-01-13T12:45:00.001-08:002010-01-13T12:45:08.950-08:00LearningI'm not entirely sure how to articulate this, but biking home from metalsmithing in the freezing cold last night made me feel fantastically alive.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4268483990/" title="Carnelian flower by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2763/4268483990_648399b7d3_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Carnelian flower" align="left" hspace="20" vspace="20" /></a> I'm learning more and more metalsmithing techniques and concepts and gaining confidence in my abilities to execute them; I'm making things that I see as a fusion of the metalsmithing world and the assembly jewelry I was working on before; watching copper glow bright red from my torch and shift on the flowing solder is a pure, elemental rush. Likewise, I'm immensely proud of myself for bicycling in such extreme cold, and surprised and delighted at the muscles that can suddenly Do The Right Thing when I want them to. After only walking and taking public transit for so long, a bike really gives me a new feeling of freedom-of-place. And it's fun to go so fast!<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3993030227/" title="My bike (now with panniers) by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2466/3993030227_1ba46ca35c_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="My bike (now with panniers)" align="right" hspace="20" vspace="20" /></a><br />
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I know that at some point my rate of metals-related learning will stop accelerating, my bicycling-related fitness improvements will plateau. But I hope that I'll retain the feeling of hungrily racing forwards, able to smoothly and competently go wherever I can imagine.<br />
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I'll be at the <a href=http://arisia.org/>Arisia</a> art show this weekend! I can't wait :)rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-79505787594370906512009-11-17T12:01:00.000-08:002009-11-17T12:29:39.859-08:00Gearing up for open studios! And a craft fair!OK, so <a href=http://www.joystreetartists.org/OpenStudios2009.html>Joy Street Open Studios</a> are this weekend! I'm in studio #19.<br /><br />In anticipation of this, I've tried to make a bunch of cool stuff to show off.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4064418431/" title="Finished in studio last week by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2741/4064418431_acb433cdbb_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Finished in studio last week" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4082383196/" title="2009-11-06 23.41.03.jpg by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2781/4082383196_8f693194a9_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="2009-11-06 23.41.03.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4087972021/" title="2009-11-08 21.18.12.jpg by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2749/4087972021_2dcc58511c_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="2009-11-08 21.18.12.jpg" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4108515806/" title="Little gear moons by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2487/4108515806_40f23a06a6_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Little gear moons" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4094657366/" title="This evening's earrings by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2566/4094657366_dc136ec9cf_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="This evening's earrings" /></a><br /><br />I had business cards printed, and they showed up yesterday. I'm really happy with how they turned out:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4111373136/" title="Business cards! by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2779/4111373136_30abb75cc4_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="Business cards!" /></a><br /><br />I did the design myself using <a href=http://inkscape.org/>Inkscape</a>, with help from some vector art found at <a href=http://openclipart.org/>Open Clipart</a>. Hooray for open-source software and resources! I used a vertical format so that I could also punch holes in the cards and display earrings on them.<br /><br />In two weeks, I'll be vending at the <a href=http://www.washingtonst.org/exhibitions.php>Washington Street Art Center craft fair</a>. In addition to my stuff, I'll have a basket of yarn and roving made by my housemate, aka <a href=http://theyellowhobbit.etsy.com>theyellowhobbit.etsy.com</a>. I designed a business card for her last night, and I'm pretty happy with how it came out, especially since I made the image of the drop spindle from scratch:<br /><img src=http://web.mit.edu/riv/www/theyellowhobbit-card.png /><br /><br />And speaking of yarn, I've started knitting <a href=http://www.ullaneule.net/0307/ohjeet_revontuli.html>this amazing shawl</a> (using <a href=http://muro73.googlepages.com/Revontuli.pdf>this English translation of the pattern</a>). I'm about 30 rows in. At first I thought it would be way too difficult, but it's actually fairly easy now that I've worked out how to read the pattern :) I'll post pictures when I'm a little father along. I've also started a spinning project, but it's on semi-hiatus while I try to make the shawl before the winter starts getting cold in earnest.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-56720264237693394572009-10-25T15:09:00.000-07:002009-10-25T15:20:30.880-07:00Exciting texturing!<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/4040622069/" title="Earrings made in studio this afternoon by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2663/4040622069_2f5f9bdee8.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Earrings made in studio this afternoon" /></a><br /><br />I discovered that I can achieve all sorts of lovely, organic textures with the help of a small brick in the jewelry studio. I'm really excited about these earrings--they remind me of the moon and underwater kingdoms.<br /><br />These earrings will be at open studios on November 21 and 22!rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-33972788481991087392009-09-21T12:32:00.000-07:002009-09-21T13:30:59.879-07:00New developmentsFirst: I moved to a new apartment in the Inman Square area! My girlfriend and I share a one-bedroom unit within a much larger building that houses us and 4 other housemates. Many of my housemates are crafty, and after things are a bit more organized, we should have a workspace in the basement for all sorts of projects.<br /><br />Second: Jewelry studio! I was looking around for jewelry supplies on Craigslist and saw a listing for what's essentially a subletting of bench space within a studio in <a href=http://www.joystreetstudios.com/>Joy Street Studios</a>. The artist who rents the studio is John Lerner, someone who's been making jewelry for 30 years. For what's a pretty reasonable monthly fee, I get free run of a fully-equipped jewelry studio whenever I want to show up, and instruction/supervision/tips from John on Sundays and Tuesdays. I started at the end of August but missed a couple of weeks. Here's some of the stuff I've made so far:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3848804651/" title="first nice-looking pendant made in studio by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3583/3848804651_11552bdfff_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="first nice-looking pendant made in studio" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3938355459/" title="2009-09-20 14.50.18 by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2514/3938355459_e31deb9479_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="2009-09-20 14.50.18" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3938359715/" title="2009-09-20 14.50.51 by rivenwanderer, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2651/3938359715_80e86df844_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="2009-09-20 14.50.51" /></a><br /><br />As you can see, I'm currently in love with the combination of dyed blue freshwater pearls and textured, oxidized copper :)<br /><br />There may be a time when I decide it would make more sense to buy my own equipment and work in the basement of my apartment instead, but for now, the studio bench solution fits my needs really well. I can get away from the clutter in my apartment and work on jewelry whenever I want; I have access to a really great teacher; and the other people sharing the studio space with me are great to bounce ideas off of. Oh, and it's in ideal <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/tags/bike/>biking</a> distance from my apartment, or a direct ride on the bus.<br /><br />Oh, and we're having <a href=http://www.joystreetartists.org/Contact.html>an open studio on November 21-22!</a>rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-14271755577387984722009-06-14T00:39:00.000-07:002009-06-14T00:43:10.446-07:00Silversmithing and jewelry class<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3623132785/" title="hello-world-ring by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3403/3623132785_585283a1d7.jpg" width="500" height="269" alt="hello-world-ring" /></a><br /><br />I made a ring today in the Cambridge Center for Adult Education's intro to jewelry class--it's many weeks' worth of material crammed into two 6.5-hour long Saturday sessions. I'm learning lots of cool stuff--some stuff that I can't really use until I invest in some more equipment, but some stuff that I can use right away. It's pretty cool :)<br /><br />(I of course had to texture my first ring with the traditional message a programmer displays for their first foray into a new language!)rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-11789720928270887302009-06-13T23:17:00.000-07:002009-06-13T23:22:19.191-07:00Yarn!Spinning! Yarn! I've made more of it with my drop spindle and it totally looks like real yarn.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3624450416/" title="img_2314.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3635/3624450416_9d91349623.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="img_2314.jpg" /></a><br /><br />From left to right: 2-ply wool (the dyed strand is from roving that came pre-dyed in those colors); Navajo 3-ply tussah/merino; and a swatch knitted with said 3-ply. I kind of want to make a knitted version of <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2598270835/in/photostream/>this hat</a> from the 3-ply with some as-yet-nonexistent colorful/wacky handspun stuff for stripes, but I'll need to do some calculating first to make sure there's enough. I haven't yet decided what I'm doing with the 2-ply; <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3624452186/>the colors</a> are kind of cool but also kind of terrifyingly retro. (I'm half-jokingly calling it "The Last Juniper" in my head--there's no good reason to reference The Last Unicorn, but the colors *are* pretty juniper-ish.)<br /><br />Still haven't gotten around to dyeing <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3624451360/>this two-color stuff</a> purple. It may need to wait until after the move.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-10518458749909910912009-04-19T14:03:00.000-07:002009-04-19T14:07:11.937-07:00New stuff in the etsy shop!Tell all your friends! :p<br /><br /><a href=http://purpleshiny.etsy.com><img src=http://web.mit.edu/riv/www/etsy-promo-image-april.png></img><br />purpleshiny.etsy.com</a>rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-4106527883110651592009-04-16T21:59:00.001-07:002009-04-16T22:35:19.526-07:00Oh man, found objectsThe coolest metal bits ever are lurking around the streets of Somerville!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3448740765/" title="img_2091.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3401/3448740765_95882bb852.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="img_2091.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Do you think I should oxidize (darken) the silver on this one, or leave it shiny?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3449575560/" title="img_2084.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3632/3449575560_f7768ed8f9.jpg" width="500" height="426" alt="img_2084.jpg" /></a><br /><br />It figures, just when I've decided I have all the jewelry supplies I need for a while, I stumble across even more cool things. At least these ones were free :)rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-80216305458130152982009-04-04T22:34:00.001-07:002009-04-04T22:37:08.374-07:00Spinning yarn!I tried to learn how to spin yarn a few years ago and didn't do very well. Sometime last week, I stopped by Mind's Eye Yarns and asked for some basic wool to learn to spin with--and I managed to make something that mostly looked like yarn! No pictures yet, as I still want to dye it. But then I took out some of the roving that I'd bought the first time I tried spinning:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3413715128/" title="img_2059.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3620/3413715128_a94e3dfc34.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="img_2059.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Oh my goodness, it looks a lot like real yarn! I'm going to get some more roving and ply together different combinations of singles--I find this particular combination a little too much like all the yarn I already own :) But yay, spinning is neat!rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-61038004726588577602009-03-28T21:08:00.000-07:002009-03-28T21:10:50.127-07:00Finished projects, in the "Jewelry Inspired by Palimpsest" categoryI tried to make these visually interesting in their own right even if you're not familiar enough with <a href=http://catherynnemvalente.com/novels/palimpsest/>the book</a> to know what they're alluding to... did I succeed?<br /><br />Casimira earrings:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3390827657/" title="img_2023.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3452/3390827657_99c5c5615d_m.jpg" width="180" height="240" alt="img_2023.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3390829601/" title="img_2030.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3606/3390829601_1b79ba9f72_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="img_2030.jpg" /></a><br /><br />A more abstract November pendant:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3391648998/" title="img_2052.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3623/3391648998_b050e25e22_m.jpg" width="240" height="180" alt="img_2052.jpg" /></a><br /><br />(these are available at <a href=http://purpleshiny.etsy.com/>the etsy shop</a>)rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-83579960391593064672009-03-20T10:19:00.000-07:002009-03-20T10:52:02.539-07:00Pasta machine printing<a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/sets/72157615576841259/><img src=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3474/3369112917_1713f518f7.jpg></img></a><br /><br />I had the idea to use my pasta machine (which I've previously used for <a href=http://crushesoncrafts.blogspot.com/2008/03/more-stuff.html>rolling out polymer clay</a>) as a printing press. Ink a thin plate with a raised design, place it on top of a sheet of paper, and roll it through. If you click on the image above, you can see a sort of haphazard step-by-step sequence of the process I used. I'm fairly happy with this technique, although the rollers on my machine seem to not be exactly parallel. I may investigate alternate press approximations. (Maybe a vise would work? And a vise would be a useful thing to have around anyway for other crafts...)<br /><br />I recently read <a href=http://www.amazon.com/Palimpsest-Catherynne-Valente/dp/0553385763>Palimpsest</a> and have a bunch of crafty ideas in my head because of it. It's a great book with lots of rich, visual language and interesting characters.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-66021019098886567532009-03-03T21:59:00.000-08:002009-03-03T22:03:23.933-08:00a horizontal surface of one's own<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3321470664/" title="img_1909.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3538/3321470664_9a5c92d607.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="img_1909.jpg" /></a><br /><br />This weekend Susannah and I rearranged a bunch of stuff in the house so that I could have a corner of the living room as a crafting area! It is so amazingly awesome. Since the above picture was taken, I also brought out my stacking drawers that I've been using for my yarn stash; I need to weed through it so that only yarn I actually care about is in the drawers.<br /><br />I also made a mixed-media painting! The media are acrylic paint and silver wires.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3327034641/" title="img_1920.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3664/3327034641_4955dfaccd.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="img_1920.jpg" /></a><br /><br />I am pretty happy with the technical side of things on this painting, though I'm still mulling over whether I like the final composition or not.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-9903248984535271822009-02-24T12:35:00.000-08:002009-02-24T12:48:45.390-08:00Quick postI've finished a few <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/riv/3299492164/">knitted</a> <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/riv/3139185343/">objects</a> and have a couple pairs of armwarmers in progress. Also, I updated <a href="http://purpleshiny.etsy.com">my etsy shop</a> with steampunk jewelry left over from Deceminate and used some of the earnings from the craft fair for awesome new jewelry supplies. And I suspect I'll be making more jewelry soon, and possibly also playing with making small felt objects.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-39267671188020178482008-12-17T13:14:00.000-08:002008-12-17T13:21:56.247-08:00Post-mortem of Deceminate vendingThat was pretty interesting. Unfortunately, my microphone wasn't working well enough for people in SF to hear me talking, but I could hear them, so between that and the IM client, I had some conversations with the other people at the craft fair. Andrea (another friend of mine who was there) took the laptop and webcam around to all the other booths at the fair, so I got to see a bunch of other neat things. It was an awful lot to ask of Sasen to vend for both of us, but Andrea being there to help vend for me made it a bit more reasonable. I need to think of a suitable thank-you present to give Sasen when she next visits!<br /><br />Sales were not spectacular, perhaps because of the rain, but I didn't *lose* money, and I got to sort-of-meet some neat people, so I think that on balance, it was certainly worth it. Plus, it was good to see exactly what my production rate can theoretically be when under pressure, though I don't plan on working at quite that rate again in the near future.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-30453708358131336292008-12-11T11:13:00.000-08:002008-12-11T21:47:46.016-08:00Jewelry reboundI think I am reacting to the pressure and craziness of putting together a bunch of jewelry on a deadline last week by gravitating towards fiber arts. I ordered a bunch of yarn (though not as much as I might have) from <a href=http://yarn.com>yarn.com</a>, mostly for knitting a dual-tone Noro stripe scarf, but also some bamboo yarn for sculptural crochet. (Their Noro Silk Garden Chunky was almost half off! How could I resist?) And now I am drooling over <a href=http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5296594>pretty fabric remnants</a> and reverse appliqué techniques. But I will be good and play with the fabrics I have now before flipping out and buying more.<br /><br />I've discovered a style of T shirt that's a little more fitted than the boxy Hanes that I have so many of from college, but still really comfortable, and I'm thinking about buying several blank ones and doing cool things (like reverse appliqué, block printing, embroidery, etc.) to them. We'll see if this actually happens or not.<br /><br />I'm currently crocheting a cloche style hat in Lamb's Pride yarn. I'll be felting it and then probably embellishing it with smaller crocheted things and/or embroidery (depending on whether I decide it's for me or for my mom).rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-78619532745288063212008-12-08T15:16:00.000-08:002008-12-08T15:47:27.217-08:00Mailed a box to Deceminate!Things that I hadn't previously photographed got photographed this morning and uploaded <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/riv/tags/fordeceminate/">here</a>.<br /><br />This was a crazy, awesome, and tiring experience. I wish I had decided to be in the craft fair earlier so that I could have gotten more done without staying up so late. But I'm glad that I made so many things! Sometimes it was a fairly simple, mechanical process, and sometimes it was very creativity-filled and challenging.<br /><br />Photographic highlights:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092631201/" title="img_1733.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3272/3092631201_93f5072780.jpg" alt="img_1733.jpg" height="500" width="375" /></a><br /><br />I had wanted to make some earrings that were one continuous piece--no break between ear wire and the rest of the main structure. These were a lot of fun (though the spirals were essentially shaped free-handedly, so it was a little tedious to make lots of them).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092637727/" title="img_1739.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3176/3092637727_b0cb839c1b.jpg" alt="img_1739.jpg" height="500" width="375" /></a><br /><br />Labradorite is hard to photograph well--it's a grayish stone with iridescent fire in a variety of colors (blue, green, and yellow seem to be the most common). This pair of earrings has yellow fire that (I think) matches pretty well with the gold-toned gears.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092641841/" title="img_1743.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3059/3092641841_840ffc446e.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="img_1743.jpg" /></a><br /><br />Meanwhile, the highlights in these beads is a bluer color, matching the silvery gears.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3093467868/" title="img_1729.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3143/3093467868_722a79794e.jpg" alt="img_1729.jpg" height="375" width="500" /></a><br /><br />These necklaces were fairly simple to make and turned out fairly interesting-looking.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092619871/" title="img_1724.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3146/3092619871_f22879676b.jpg" alt="img_1724.jpg" height="500" width="375" /></a><br /><br />The hanging purple droplets here make me happy :)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3093442736/" title="img_1707.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3005/3093442736_058a2244cf.jpg" alt="img_1707.jpg" height="375" width="500" /></a><br /><br />Bracelet made with typewriter hammers! I figured out a clasping mechanism: a magnet! The hammers are the right kind of metal for the magnet to stick to them.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3093443908/" title="img_1708.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3016/3093443908_84c22e369b_m.jpg" alt="img_1708.jpg" height="180" width="240" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092595793/" title="img_1702.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3280/3092595793_22edecd16a.jpg" alt="img_1702.jpg" height="375" width="500" /></a><br /><br />Lots of OM NOM NOM bracelets...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/3092594813/" title="img_1701.jpg by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3145/3092594813_665787a739.jpg" alt="img_1701.jpg" height="375" width="500" /></a><br /><br />Cute little bubble glass magnets! One issue I ran into with them was that the gears are sometimes magnetizeable, so they will drift around on the magnet while the glue is drying.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-74359902118640500782008-12-04T13:55:00.000-08:002008-12-04T14:25:06.275-08:00Virtually vending!I'm going to be vending at <a href="http://www.instructables.com/community/DECEMINATE_SF_Craft_Fair/">Deceminate</a> from across the country! Sasen will handle the in-person interactions, and I'll be using a webcam and chat to interact with customers. I'm mailing a big box of stuff to California next Monday. Having a deadline is great! I've done more crafting in the last week than in the last several months before. I'll take pictures as I'm boxing up everything on Sunday.<br /><br />Things I am definitely selling:<br />-gearrings (earrings with gears)<br />-watch movement pendants (both plain and with silver decorations)<br />-OM NOM NOM bracelets<br />-a crocheted hat<br /><br />Things I am probably selling, assuming I finish working on them:<br />-small <a href="http://www.notmartha.org/tomake/marblemagnets/">glass magnets</a> with gears sandwiched between the glass and the paper backing<br />-bracelets involving typewriter hammers (just need to work out a good clasp mechanism)<br />-linocut prints/bookmarks (still trying to come up with a design, but should be quick to carve and print up once I've done so)<br /><br />Things I might sell:<br />-paint chip bracelets, if I decide they're not too time-consuming to make a few more of them<br />-gear-related rings?<br />-more complicated gear/watch movement assemblage necklaces, if I feel creative in that directionrivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-16814498063899095262008-10-31T14:06:00.000-07:002008-10-31T14:08:18.539-07:00Riven fangirl moment<a href=http://flickr.com/photos/riv/2988580426/in/photostream/><img src=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3153/2988580426_82acdf2ebc.jpg></img></a><br /><br />Trying out linocut printing. My inking technique still needs work, but I think it's getting better. I'm planning on making postcards as part of an art contest/participation incentive at Mystcommunity.com.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-66991379632567555432008-07-17T20:31:00.000-07:002008-07-17T20:37:32.738-07:00Trying knitting againI felt like making something out of a skein of Noro Matsuri yarn (it's a somewhat thin yarn made of a lot of smaller strands woven together rather than spun). I decided that the texture wasn't cut out for crochet, so I'm knitting with it instead. I've done a bit of knitting here and there, but consider myself a crochet fan for the most part. Knitting feels a bit like going from using Linux to using a Mac--like I've crossed over to the shiny, elegant dark side :)rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-37591394766121134982008-07-03T16:18:00.000-07:002008-07-03T16:19:46.791-07:00Most recent thing<a href="http://flickr.com/photos/riv/tags/omnomnomnom/"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3282/2635179900_04166facf8.jpg"></a><br /><br />It is a bracelet that EATS YOU.<br /><br />Also I want to play with acrylic paint some more.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-64490499095640883922008-06-02T22:53:00.000-07:002008-06-02T23:18:41.706-07:00UpdateI haven't stopped crafting just because I haven't posted here in a while. I should be asleep, but here are some quick pictures/links.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2546819957/">Gift for some friends' commitment ceremony</a>--doesn't photograph really well, but it's some sterling silver with tiny purple bells on an earring.<br /><br />Working on that made me realize, hey, sterling silver is NEAT. I made this with the leftovers from the present and an old watch movement from my steampunk-ish stash of stuff:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2546810181/" title="IMG_1428 by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3065/2546810181_659fdb9220.jpg" alt="IMG_1428" width="500" height="375" /></a><br /><br />Then I bought more silver on the internet (from monsterslayer.com). So far I've made one more thing, and hope to make many more:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2547636852/" title="IMG_1425 by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3030/2547636852_4ec43a2c9b.jpg" alt="IMG_1425" width="375" height="500" /></a><br />(I'm not sure if this picture shows it very well, but the color of the hanging pearls really echo the color of the watch movement jewels, which makes me happy.)<br /><br />I was helping a friend pick out colors to paint his room with, and was inspired by the paint chips:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/sets/72157605403189004/"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3074/2547641374_9b9814fb92.jpg" /></a><br />(these are bangle-style bracelets, in case it's not easy to tell.)<br /><br />I'm also <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2546875889/">working on </a> a new version of <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2546877407/">a hat I made a while ago</a>. It will probably end up on etsy. I love the yummy colors Noro yarns have! I wish this blue and green one had changed a little more quickly--it will just be green on the very top. But I think it will still be cute. I was carrying it around as a fidgeting-thing to social stuff this weekend, but I think I'll mostly just work on it on the subway now. I think this hat was prompted by Susannah's mom needing me to make her a hat to wear to her trip to the Netherlands--I finished it in just a few days (but sadly forgot to take pictures--I will when they return).<br /><br />OK, that's it for now. Sleep for me.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-83888613611524420642008-03-08T22:36:00.000-08:002008-03-08T23:17:31.817-08:00More stuffOK, I lied about not being as excited about polymer clay. I bought this awesome pasta machine device.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2320619794/"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3114/2320619794_443947fd96.jpg" width="500" height="375"/></a><br />And lo, it is awesome, and makes sheets and tiles of clay an easy thing. I made some <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2319807855/">dinosaur</a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2320621372/">scale</a> pendant thingies. Interference powder is neat! It makes things shiny! The first set had the interference powder brushed on before baking, and then I added a clear acrylic glaze. For the second set, I mixed interference powder and translucent liquid Sculpey and painted it on before baking. It seems to have turned out slightly less glossy.<br /><br />So, sewing. I got out my Singer and played with a silk shirt from dollar-a-pound. I was kind of fixated on making gathers. This was annoying when the thread decided to break and stuff, and I <a href=http://flickr.com/photos/riv/2320617352/>got kind of frustrated</a> with my early attempts. (Though the frustrated/screwed up fabric looks kind of cool in retrospect, and maybe will be used for something else later). Then I realized that silk + water = wrinkles.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/riv/2320618436/" title="IMG_1349 by randomly intersecting vectors, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2063/2320618436_6de7981a00.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_1349" /></a><br /><br />I sewed a few lines of running stitches, gathered with them, ran the whole thing under water, and twisted it as much as possible and let it dry. Then I pulled out the gather stitches altogether, leaving tiny holes and lots of pretty wrinkles. I folded up the ends around some ribbon to make a pretty, modern-looking choker thingy (which doesn't look good on me, but would look amazing on someone with a long, graceful neck). I think I'm proud enough of it that I'll add it to my etsy shop later this weekend.rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-537950575428125247.post-91427742856461778552008-03-04T21:30:00.000-08:002008-03-04T21:49:01.127-08:00Because I'm totally not that distracta--oo, look, a shiny!Thinking about smaller fabric projects too. Sort of tempted to get some <a href=http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7345779>silk remnants</a> and some <a href=http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8927118>pearls</a> and combine them in interesting ways to make some kind of ruff/choker or something. But I think I will play with the shinies I have first.<br /><br />Edited to add: found an unwanted bracelet of peacock-colored freshwater pearls that I'd made a year or so ago. Cannibalized! And I think I have a couple of silk shirts in one of my bags of Dollar-A-Pound finds... too bad it's bedtime now :/rivhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15064291940609433515noreply@blogger.com0