Abandoned Melodies

Hello readers, thanks for joining me today. I am awaiting the spring equinox, and once that is done with in a few days, the green buds on the trees will begin to unfurl, the weather will get warmer and my beloved garden will stretch, yawn and awaken like a sleeping giant. The days will grow longer and we can finally throw open the doors to the house and let in some fresh air. 
Until then, I've contented myself with buying a few props to cheer the garden up - a fake bonhomie to give the impression that all is well until the greenery emerges. 
I was driving back from the hospital the Saturday before Mothering Sunday and I saw a metal peacock on the forecourt of the florists shop by the hospital. I wanted that bird so much, my car turned around on itself and parked outside the shop. I handed over my credit card in a daze, and Mr Peacock the second came to join his friend in the garden.

---

The colourful gypsy chandelier we had hung from a branch of our crab apple tree grew faded and dull in the sun and we had been thinking of getting a new one for a while. This time I wanted one that wouldn't fade, and without the swathes of beads strung on nylon. The nylon stringing material perished and I spent ages picking up little beads, and restringing the lot using a metallic beading wire which was such a waste of time and energy, it bordered on the criminal.

---

This is the one we finally plumped for. I'm not sure whether we didn't just settle for convenience over beauty, but it is slowly growing on me. There are no beads that might go astray and the metal of the arms may grow faded or rusty, but it can just be touched up with  lick of paint when it gets a bit shabby from being out in all weather. I do miss the colours of the last one though - it always made me smile when I looked out of the window. Neither chandelier is wired to the mains, they are entirely decorative.

---

Melody D'Amour

I grew up with this record, it was one of my dad's and it actually survived a move from the UK to India and is back now in our house in the UK. Nina and Frederick called it Maladie d'Amour but everyone else who has sung it calls it Melody d'Amour. 

The floral beads in this necklace were made for my tutorial published in Bead and Jewellery Magazine. They were sent out to the magazine office to be photographed and recently returned to me. I made hollow beads using polymer clay from a tutorial by Orly Fuchs Galen and covered them with extruded strips of ombre clay. The beads are big, some of them about 16 mm in diameter, but very light. This necklace is definitely a Melody!

---

I spent the rest of the week redoing some of the pictures for my next tutorial in Bead and Jewellery Magazine that is due to be out in a short while. I should have the proofs to read shortly and I am quite excited about that. This will be a piece that incorporates both polymer clay flowers and wire work, and that's all I'm allowed to say about it at the present moment.

The Art Abandonment Project

Michael deMeng, an assemblage artist with a surrealist bent from Vancouver, Canada started a little group on Facebook, called Art Abandonment, which involves abandoning ones art in random public places. In the first week of its creation the group went from zero to 2500 members, and now numbers almost 27, 000. 
According to deMeng,
"It is important to be able let one's art live a life beyond its creator.   I love imagining what becomes of my art after it is gone…whether given or sold. 
Some folks can't seem to let go of their work…even when they sell it.  This is a great way to learn to move on.
It's also a way sharing work with an unsuspecting patron.   In this day and age when money is tight, this is a way of encouraging folks to stay involved in the arts.
This is good for the soul.   A random kind act,  a bit addictive…and fun"
I've joined up as well as I'm up for anything that's reportedly/ allegedly good for my soul, and will be 'abandoning' pieces of my jewellery in random places. The group has created templates for little cards to attach to the abandoned art, giving a centralised email id so that people can contact the giver and we get to find out where our pieces end up. The ceramic bowl above was abandoned somewhere in San Fransisco.
One of my colleagues at work said it was all a bit creepy and that he wouldn't pick up a piece of art even if there was a label attached, exhorting him to take it. He was worried that there might be a microphone or surveillance device attached and that this was a Trojan Horse that would then find it's way into his house - I thought that was a bit paranoid. What do you think - would you pick up a piece of art and give it a good home or would it creep you out?

---

That's me for this week, have a fabulous weekend and I'll catch up with you next week, same time, same place.
Until then
​xx