Clamshells, Papier Mache' and the Bucket List

Do you remember the Papier Mache' Giant Clamshell I made and showed you last summer?  I was trying to develop a new mixture that made newsprint turn into something resembling modeling clay - only it wasn't.  And I wanted it to be hard and "sandable" but not brittle when it dried.  I came up with a mix that I loved, and here's a photo of my finished Giant Clamshell:

With the exception of the shells used for the base and inside the Clam Shell, the rest was my "Paper Clay".  Life intervened and I had to drop that little experiment, but I'm dying to get back to finishing the four others that I had started, all different sizes. 

This morning, I found this photo at Hooked on Houses:

As you will see from her link, she found this at Caron's Beach House.

Now, do you think that as soon as I finish this renovation, I will be finishing those Clam Shells, or what??

Giant Clam Shell Comes to Life

So, Mr. Piggy is now taking a backseat to my paper "clay" Giant Clam Shell, which I finished and photographed this week.  I put lovely pewter colored shells in it that I had collected from the beach, and I think it looks quite lovely:

I'm so excited by this medium - the sky is the limit!  If only there were more hours in the day...but that is just whining.  If I would just quit drinking wine and eating fabulous dinners every night, look how much more time I'd have to make stuff.  Plus, I'd loose my extra 20 pounds.  Sigh!

Mr. Piggy Gets Fine Tuned

Okay, I promised a photo of Mr. Piggy on the workbench, so here he is:

 He's almost ready to fly...I just need to add some jowls to his face to fatten him up.  This new papier mache mix I'm using is really amazingly easy to build with.   It's just like clay!

The recipe needs to get written down before I forget what I did - 

• Soak cheap newsprint with Clorox until it gets soft.
• Grind up in blender until it is mush, drain well.
• Add white glue, linseed oil, drywall mud and stucco mix - I'm using a Sto product. 
• Store in covered container in a cool spot.  That's it!

I made a wire armature out of expanded metal, and went at it with a spatula until I got to the tight places, then I used the back of a spoon.  Pretty cool.

After his bigger cheeks dry (they won't get put on until tomorrow night), I'll sand him down and paint him.  Maybe with a bathing suit, since it is so darn hot!

Tomorrow I'm back at Tideline Fabrics...my REAL job!

Here Goes Lula Belle!

Taking a deep breath and opening the doors of my studio for the first time - welcome to my studio!  Here is where all the creative demons flourish and whiz around, bouncing off walls and generally trashing the concept of neatness.

Lula Belle Tassels, Lula Belle Satchels, Mitzi Cornelius Handbags, Stationery, Custom Fabric and a whole bucket load of other things the world never sees get mooshed around in  here, and I promise to let you in on the fun.  

Right now, I'm secretly working on a recycled newspaper stucco mix that can be used and worked just like wet clay - it's sort of papier mache, sort of mud pies.  When it dries, you can sand it down and paint it, or leave it alone and let it look like stone.  I'm thinking that I'll use some of my fabric designs to decoupage onto this life sized pig (really!) I'm building, just for kicks.  I'm supposed to be finishing up my presentation of custom fabric botanical prints for perusal by Paragon Art, but just can't keep my hands off this pig.

Since this is my first post, I'm not ready with photos yet, but I will get some posted this weekend.  Right now, I'm just learning how to use this blogspot!