Step Through The Duirwaigh

I found the most amazing website tonight. You have to go have a look at it...it looks like what my website wants to be when it grows up! I was making new graphics for the site and blog for Halloween when I found it...and after seeing it I think I am going to throw mine out the window! Be prepared for a visual feast! I saw it and fell in head over heels in love!

Duirwaigh Studios

A Third And Final Post On The Subject Of Using Old Things In Art

Boy I haven't made this many posts in one day ever. But I wanted to segregate the three subjects because even though they are part of a whole topic, I felt they deserved separate posts on the aspects of each. So this post is dedicated to using every day vintage and antique items in our works.

Recently I saw a piece on someones blog that had been made using some really nice vintage cardboard pieces. I was dismayed to see that they had used a hole punch to make holes in order to string them together with ribbon. Looking at this piece I could think of three other ways off the top of my head to achieve the piece and the look they were going for, while easily preserving the integrity of the items that had withstood the test of time that had been incorporated into it.

Over the years I have used many vintage items with the bears and other pieces. I really love old things, they have a story and history. If I am going to use an authentic old item, I don't want to destroy that history, I want to add to the story. So I rarely take anything apart. (The rosary mentioned in my previous post wasn't that old.)

If I do take something apart, I will only do so if it's already falling apart. I have taken quite a few hats apart for the decorations on them, because straw will rot, felt gets terribly moth eaten, etc. But if the hat is in good shape I will use the whole thing on the bear. Even so I try to attach the pieces in a way that doesn't alter what I salvaged. I am not a big fan of glue. I rarely use it on new things let alone something old, unless there is no other way, and I NEVER glue anything directly to mohair.

It's not that difficult to take something new and distress it to make it look old to fit the continuity of what you're creating. So frequently that's what I do. I also make sure that it's clearly labeled as such so that the person purchasing it doesn't think they are getting something genuinely old. In the case of Delilah's roses on her bow and collar...a friend was looking at her after I completed her and asked where I found those fabulous vintage velvet roses. I explained that they were not vintage, they were from the bridal section of the craft shop, and I simply employed the techniques I have figured out over the years to give them that appearance.
(I also want to note that when making something look old, worn or dirty that what I use to create that effect is not dirty or unsanitary in any way.)

When I create something, I feel when using old items, it's my responsibility as an artist to preserve things for future generations to enjoy just the way I enjoy them now. I know it might be hard to imagine that a lot of thought needs to be put into the creation of a teddy bear, but I put a great deal of thought into every piece I make. As an artist, I create...so it's not in my nature to destroy.

There are no rules in art, it's all subjective and about what you, the artist are willing to do, and what the person who purchases it is comfortable buying. Whatever you choose to do, I just urge you to think it through for a moment before you do it. Now I am done with this subject and I will be moving on tomorrow to something a little lighter.

I hope everyone who took the time to read all three of these posts has a lovely day, and I want to thank you for taking the time to read them. Hugs, Kelly <3

A Follow Up Post About Being Respectful

I want to do a follow up post to my last one from this morning. I am going to tell a little story. I realize that things of this nature can be a touchy subject...but that's ok because I think as adults we can handle touchy discussions once in a while. So here is my story:

About ten years ago or so, I was working on a very large wizard bear. I had hand soldered his staff with crystals, and he was wearing a velvet hooded cloak. He had a small leather pouch filled with wizardy type things, But I felt he was lacking something. I decided I wanted to put some beadwork on his cloak.

I didn't have just the right thing, so I went out looking for some beads. In those days what the craft shops had to offer was pretty basic. So I went to one of my favorite antique shops. They had just gotten several boxes of items from someone who had recently passed away. She had been quite a jewelry girl like myself.

I was digging through a box of her jewelry and down in the bottom I spied a necklace that had just the perfect beads on it. When I pulled it out however, it wasn't a necklace. It was a rosary.

I am not Catholic, I don't know all the ins and outs of rosaries, and it means nothing to me really. However, I understand that they are items of great importance to the person who owns them.

I have always believed it's important to respect the core beliefs of other people. Our system of morality and our religious beliefs are a very integral part of what makes us who we are. So I personally believe it's important to be respectful of those beliefs in others even if we don't agree with them or simply don't understand them. I respect the right of others to believe anything they want as long as no one is getting hurt, and I always hope they will do the same for me in return.

So I left the rosary sitting on my work table for a few days, unsure what to do. If I took it apart would I be desecrating another's faith? Finally I called a priest and asked them if it would be ok to take it apart. He told me that since the person was deceased their main blessed rosary would have been buried with them. Since this one had been given away by the family after they had passed on, it was fine to take it apart. So I went ahead and did it, but if I hadn't called him, I don't think I would have.

Now I know some of you reading this might think I was being silly and a little too cautious. But that's ok, it's just who I am. I guess I look upon these things as I would if I were an archaeologist. If I found religious relics, mummies, or skeletons from an ancient culture, I would be respectful of what they are and how I treated them. I don't think recent people and cultures deserve any less respect.

Conversely, I had a friend years ago who told me a story about another friend she had who made a cross out of Barbie arms and legs and had it above her bed. (She couldn't understand why she couldn't keep a boyfriend either...I think I might have an idea why. *Giggles*) Now while I find that bizarre and a tad creepy, it's not really offensive to me. I am sure some people might find it so, but it was just an expression of her art, and she is welcome to it. Barbie isn't a real person or a religious artifact though.

I am not saying you shouldn't use old photos, articles, or even Barbie limbs in your pieces. I just think it's important to think about what you're doing and the person they belonged to before you incorporate them into a piece. I am well aware not everyone shares this view...and I respect your right not to!

Monday Inspiration: Meandering Along

I have always had a love of meandering along pathways, especially if I don't know where they go. It's fun to see where it takes you.

I spent a summer in Canada with my aunts, uncles and cousins when I was 13. My Uncle John had a farm with woods on it. I spent many hours wandering along to see what I might find. I discovered huge toadstools, ferns, a broken fence covered with moss and a rock large enough to lay on in the sunshine and daydream.

That summer we went bike riding on a dirt road, and found wild blackberries, a lovely old church and even a bear cub. The latter scared us so bad for fear it's mother might be lurking around that we rode home the 8 miles so fast I think we set a record.

On this last trip to Montana, my Mother took us to Reeder's Alley. (Shown above.) It was a very old, lovely little winding walkway that led us to hidden shopfronts. Unfortunately the shop we most wanted to go into was an antique store called Cinnamon Toast, and she had a sign on her door that said she was away at a show. It was still fun to peek in the paned window and see what treasures lie within. We also discovered an old mining shack behind it, and a tiny place to get drinks that had a huge walled lawn in the back with tiny chairs and tables to enjoy your iced teas and sodas.

Even in Tokyo when we went shopping, the main street was fun and we found an amazing shop filled to the rafters with enough exotic buttons, beads and ribbons to make any bear artist's heart happy. As intriguing as that shop was, it was the alleyways crammed with tiny establishments that set my mind soaring to new heights with flights of fancy as to what they might contain.

Even online, I still like meandering along. I found a blog tonight when I was searching for something that was interesting and had lovely pictures. When I was done perusing her posts, I decided to click a link she had posted to another blog from her list...that led me another link from that blog and so on. I followed the links until I finally hit a shop instead of another blog and decided to end my journey.

As I traveled along virtually, I gained inspiration just like I do on any real trek. Sometimes it's fun to just follow an unknown path, deciding which fork in the road to take as you go along...and just let fate lead you where it will. The discoveries make those trips memorable and inspirational beyond measure.