Holiday Ornaments 2008! :D

Well hello there, thanks for checking in!
I hope you are enjoying the holiday season! :)

Oh my goodness is it Christmas already?! I have been so busy I lost track of time and just realized Christmas was not a week away, but only a few days! The tree has finally gotten its decorations, the house is almost ready for Christmas dinner and the shopping is just about done! But wow, where did that time go!?

I'll tell you where it went! Making holiday ornaments, thats where! :) I got so sucked in that the month just flew by. If I haven't mentioned it before, let me just express to how much I LOVE making ornaments! The fact that they were created for friends made it even more enjoyable and special.

I always set out thinking 'this year I do something simple' but, I have come to realize, I just cannot do simple! I was a little late with sending some of them out but think they forgave me. They seem to be pleased and I know I am thrilled with the ones I received!

First, as promised, a clearer picture of our naughty lil' thing WIP. She's only half sewn & pinned, shhhh I kinda like her that way ;)

She's said she wanted to help me with my ornaments but I think she was just up to some mischief when I wasn't looking.
What do you think?

These are the ornaments I made for my partners....Since theres a lot going on in each view I put in a couple pics of each :) Hope you like them!


Jack Frost - Nipping at your nose!



























Escaping with the swift of the wind in the night...leaving only the bitter cold and frost of winter in his path...



burrrrr.....









A little elf caught out in the snow. Standing outside, alone, on a quiet winters night, under the glow of a street lamp.Content and just enjoying the falling snow.



















Look what I found? A baby candy cane dragon peeking out of a chilli pepper shaped stitched leaves stocking. How'd that lil guy get in there, anyway!?

Uh oh, he's been munching on all the candy canes again! I bet he's got some fresh breath! Got any mistletoe? ;)



















Here, a teeny tiny sleeping mermaid in a kelp blankie, cuddling a coral heart.






She's been about most of the day, swimming and collecting treasures....suddenly, she becomes very very sleepy and slowly drifts into a small sea bed. The kelp begins to wrap itself around her; securing and protecting her and keeping her tiny body warm. Her favorite treasure falls from her clutches, lands and nestles onto her chest.

Cuddling the little coral heart, she falls into a deep sleep...

Sweet dreams little angel...
















Wishing you and your family the happiest of holidays...

Always,
Sprite

Naughty indeed!

Hi everyone! :)

Not the best pic, but good enough for a sneak peak? ;)

She's still a wip (still sewing her body here! ha ha) but at least she's got some hair! She wants to wear black, we were trying on some clothes not too long ago and she got very attached to this one. So much, that she wont let me take it off! We'll just have work around that ;) Wish me luck, please! hee hee

Our beginner group has our annual holiday ornament swap taking place at the moment, so I need to focus on those right now (fun!! :D) but hopefully she'll get finished in between. I'm excited to see where she's going :)

More and better pics soon!

Have a super~fantastic, creative and magical day everyone!

Thank you for visiting :)

Big hugs,
Sprite

A naughty little thing she is!

Well Hello there :)

It's been a while huh! My apologies!
If you're reading this... thank you for not giving up on me and for coming to visit! I haven't been very creative lately but at least my house is starting to look like one again :D Just in time for the holidays!

This is my newest wip, She's been a slooow progress but were getting there. I had pictured her quite different than how she is turning out so I kept getting stuck and ended up arguing with her over it, repeatedly!

I know they will always win, I'm just the hands that are bringing them out, right? ;) But, that doesn't mean it isn't frustrating!
(This is why deadlines for me, are good. No time to over think = not stuck!)
No wonder I have so many unfinished pieces! ha ha ha

Anyway, I put that naughty little thing in the corner for a while, in a "time out". I wasn't quite ready to fess up to her that she'd won but she'll find out later tonight when she gets the crazy hair she's been asking for. ;)

Hope everyone has been super!
Take care and stay well!

Again, thank you so much for stopping by.... :)

Luv n Hugs,
Sprite

Newest Hatchling :) - Baby Ice Dragon!

Hi Everyone!

Before leaving for Iowa, I managed to finish a new piece, Yay! Thank goodness too, since he was to be my travel companion. :)

I haven't really done much traveling, especially alone, so I couldn't help but wonder if the security people were going to have a problem with me carrying along a baby dragon creature. (Really, I was afraid he'd have to get all fierce on their a*s!)
Luckily, neither was an issue. ;)

I barely had time to snap photos before packing him up, but managed to get a few decent ones in the rush!

His name is Biter. A baby ice dragon.
He was created for a very special teacher, and friend.
A thank you of sorts, and is currently residing in Reno.
I hear he loves it there... ;)

I truly enjoyed every second of creating this piece and hope she's enjoying his company almost as much as I did while making him. I have no doubt they are taking very good care of each other.

Below is a slide show with a few more pics of him in his icey cold geode base. :)
I believe if you click on the pictures they stop moving and get bigger.

Have a super~fantastic day everyone and as always, thanks so much for visiting!

Big hugs,
Sprite

Wow! :)

Hi Everyone!

Earlier this month I had the absolute pleasure of attending Sherry Goshon & Jean Bernard's Doll Artist Retreat which was held in Iowa.

I was just a TAD nervous but everyone and everything was just wonderful!!
I knew these two women were great teachers online but let me just tell you - they are incredible in person. I was in awe. I cannot wait until next year! I will tell you all about it when I have more time :)

I took some pics but obviously haven't had a chance to upload them here yet :/ I will as soon as I can.

You have to see the terrific dolls made in the class if you haven't already!
Both Sherry & Jean have some pictures on their blog sites if you'd like to take a look at some of the fun we had. I tried to dodge the camera, see how well that worked?

http://www.jeanbernardv.blogspot.com/
http://sherrygoshon.blogspot.com/

This is mine, she is still not finished but I hope to work on her over the weekend and will post more pictures then :)


Catching up hasn't been easy, but I'm getting there!

Thanks so much for visiting!

Hugs,
Sprite

A magical mushroom... and some words on online classes :)

Hi Everyone :)


As most of you reading this know… I’ve been taking classes online, learning different ways to use products. Love em! It’s been completely mind opening to say the least and I am forever grateful to these teachers who offer and teach these online mixed media classes.

My most recently finished piece, below- originally started through Marilyn Radzat’s Mushroom class. :) As you can see…. this piece had a bit of a mind of its own. I always feel a little weird at first when the direction begins to shift and then so drastically, but really... who am I to fight with my muse and where she wants to lead me? (We argue often enough when she won’t play with me!)

A few months ago, and when I say few I mean a whole lot of them, I signed up for Jean Bernard’s Chair class, which I have yet to make simply due to lack of time. (bad Sprite!) However, through reading her lessons, I must have picked up some of the magic that is her teachings because this piece undoubtedly incorporates the techniques learned through both of these amazing artists.

Let me tell you... it feels incredible when you visualize something and know you can actually create it!

Which leads me to these words on classes since it's come up a few times in discussions. For those who teach them and to those who are interested in taking them.....

We all take them for different reasons and get different things out of them. Although I wandered from these classes, I don't feel that makes me a bad student. I still learned each of the lessons being taught, just used them in different ways. I was able to get out my own vision and wasn't afraid to try to. Isn't that what it's about? I really think so and believe these teachers do too... ;)

I am mostly self taught, but with the recent help and guidance from some terrific mixed media online teachers. I simply cannot recommend taking online classes more. They open your mind to endless possibilities. If you see something you would like to learn and it’s in your budget (even if its not!?) try to take it. The knowledge you get out of them is yours to keep for a life time of creating.

Do it for your creative self and sake of expression. You deserve it.
It took me a very long time to realize that.

A quick thanks to both of these teachers for gently guiding me further down this creative road and for helping me finally express myself through these mediums. I really enjoyed creating this piece, and sharing my vision.

Please, again, accept my apologies for my lack of photography skills.
Hmm, wonder if there's an online class for that! :D
If i get better pics, Ill post them. Maybe next time the lid won't be on backwards!

I went with the slideshow to show the different views and because its not exactly easy to format so many pictures on here but I am fairly sure if you click on them they get bigger and stop moving.

Once again, thank you so much for taking the time to visit me.
Especially when I'm writing books and being all sorts of sappy ;)

hugs n' luv,
Sprite

From the hatchery... baby dragons! :)

Ok, so I'm really slow at this.., you forgive me?


A couple months ago Sherry asked me to create two dragons in collaboration with her and Jean for a piece she was making for her husband.... one was to be climbing over the top of the book peeking down at the other, sleeping in the cave....

If you haven't seen her piece.... take a look and read about it on her blog, heres a direct link but be sure to see what else shes been up to :) http://sherrygoshon.blogspot.com/2008/05/finishedyipppeeee.html


To say the least, I was honored, completely flattered, excited... and nervous as hell.

Why? Did I forget to mention that aside from a few little swap ornaments these are the first actual pieces sent to live elsewhere?


I finally got up the courage to get cranking so I would get finished on time... On no sleep, no time left and having work the next day... the finished pictures you see below are the best I could come up with at 3 in the morning. I wasn't being rushed, I just wanted it there on time for his birthday/ anniversary... :)

I'm posting a few photos for now until I can sort and see if I have better ones.

Above is a wip pic, next is a shot outside before they were finished - which I believe to be most accurate as far as colors, and below which were taken inside.. All cleaned up with lil newly hatched wings....

maybe you can piece together a visual of what they looked like :)

Their new parents seemed very pleased, which makes me very happy! :D

As always, thanks for stopping by :)

Hugs,
*Sprite ;)

Giant Dragon Fly Sculpture- WIP

It's been a while since I updated, so I thought I would upload a quick picture of the armature I built for a giant dragonfly piece I started recently.

Since taking these pictures I've done a bit of work on his body. I've been playing around with some new mediums on this one, plaster cloth, paper clay & aves critter clay. They are all so much fun to work with for different reasons!! We'll call this one my experimental piece and hope he turns out ok :) I'm kind of excited about how his eyes came out so far..













I have a few other projects in the works I just have to find the time to sit and sort out the pictures!

More pics soon!

Thanks so much for visiting :)

Hugs,
Sprite

Excited and I just can't hide it! :D

We had our first multi-level challenge with Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced levels in my polymer group. I can't even begin to tell you how proud I am of our members!!
What an awesome turn out, I was amazed by each and every entry!

I created these little guys for this challenge - they fought to come out but eventually showed up. It turns out I work better with deadlines! :D I finished in the nick of time (uhhmmm 2 am) and the reason I'm so excited?

"We" entered in the advanced category and were pretty nervous, it was VERY close, but..... we won! WOO HOO!!

They are not "quite" as finished as they will eventually be... I will upload more and better pictures then... but in the mean time... please meet the little hachlings :)



And thanks for visiting!!
Hugs
Sprite

A Creative Creature Explosion!

Here I am! and I'm carrying a basket o' wips :D

After a long and nasty argu-ment with my inner demons to just let me, let go and create whats in my heart... it seems I won for now. These are the little guys that poured out out and I was very happy to see them! I think this is the most creatively productive I've ever been! There are so many new wips, I can't fit em in one blog entry, so...in these next few entries I'll take a few out of the basket. (ther are four updates! keep scrolling :) Some pics were very crappy so I'll take new ones when there is more progress.

Feels so good to be creating again....
As always, thank you so much for stopping by. :)
Big hugs, Sprite ;)

New Wips!

Meet.... Goaty Corn?








and a tiny little Faun...










My newest dragon.. He's Royalty!?

Goblin gets some parts!

One more hand to go!









And....a new friend? :)

Ok, So this one is not in the basket :)

But at least you can see he's not entirely neglected!

I first posted this dragon WIP in a June 07 entry, he's had a paint job since but it still waiting for a little more detailing, his base & wings. :)

A friendly? Little Goblin..

Well here's the newest little forest creature to visit me. Doesn't he look friendly? :D

He's just a head right now, but I'm excited to work on and finish him. Next up, Hands!
I haven't done hands this size yet or quite like what I have in mind, what fun this will be!

He's considerably smaller than the troll head on an earlier blog entry, but I think (hope) starting smaller will make him less intimidating and then I'll continue working on the big guy.

He's been tickling my muse.. I think she likes him, thank goodness.
It feels good to be creating again. :)

Thanks for visiting!!

Hugs
Sprite
*Lisa

A Wonderful Surprise!

Today my Polymer Clay group presented me with an amazing surprise.
The Artist of the Month Award!

The words that were said along with the award brought tears to my eyes...

I am truly honored.

This group is where my polymer journey really began and will always be close to my heart.

Thank you BPCAG! :)

If you're a member, make sure you check out the January newsletter Judy did another outstanding job putting it together. If your not and you are interested in learning to work with polymer there isn't a better place to begin.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Beginners_Polymer_Clay_Art_Guild/

Hugs
Sprite