May
08
2012
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| The bracelet & phone charm that I received from coolbeans on Swap-Bot |
Hi everyone! Here's a new design that I created for a recent bracelet swap on Swap-Bot. I've been experimenting with multi strand pieces, the hat bracelet was the first & I really love the beachy feel created by the crocheted strands . This one has more of a medieval feel, created by the chains & the center piece. The birds & the leaves add a complementary fairy tale/Sherwood Forest appeal.
I received a sweet little bracelet in green, black & red stones, with a little butterfly charm. It has kind of a sweet 60's/70's appeal :)
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| porcelain, Austrian crystal, silver findings, metal chains & charms |
What true stories & tall tales have you been working on lately?
Apr
09
2012
I had a lot of fun making this upcycled vintage straw tote. I picked it up once & put it back, amongst a number of finds being destashed for a move. I'm glad I went back for it though :) The lining was badly damaged, so I removed it & used it as a pattern for making a new lining out of a great French country print fabric (covered with chickens, chicks & flowers. I love chickens!), I had purchased a while back. While the lining was out, I added patches, cut from the new lining fabric, to the front & the back, some yarn stitching & a carved horn button, shaped like a fish, as well as a recycled cotton loop, for the button closure. I machine stitched the lining & the hand sewed it into the bag:
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| The front of the tote |
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| The lining fabric |
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| The back of the tote |
I really love how it turned out, so cute! A great rescued vintage tote, given new life & it has chickens, yay :)
Apr
03
2012
Something new: a little cuff bracelet, I like to call "Summertime," that I made for a hat themed challenge, Everything on this one is vintage, except the little birds. The hat is a pin from the 80's, the milk glass beads, that look a little like sand dollars, are rescued beads that I purchased from
TUTreasures on Etsy, the waxed hemp string is hand crocheted & from the 70's. Even the snap closure is vintage, also from the 70's. This can be worn with or without the hat pin & of course, with other bracelets. This was fun to make & I think I'll make other, similar bracelets, with other beads & with or without a pin.
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| Summertime hat pin cuff, shown here with the hat pin |
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| The back of the Summertime hat pin bracelet |
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| Summertime hat pin cuff, without the hat pin |
What have you been making lately?
Please note that all designs & photos posted here are the property of Shelley McElhiney, all rights reserved. Feel free to "share with love," that is, share with full credit back to this post. Please contact the blog owner for any other usage.
Mar
28
2012
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| Time by Shelley McElhiney |
Hi,
So I thought I'd write & check on how you're doing, its been a really long time. You probably don't remember me, I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. The last time you saw me, I was very small, a baby really.There might be a little around the face but...We've all changed a lot, even you, I'm sure. I really don't remember what you looked like, though I've seen photos. You were tiny, quaint, sometimes filled to overflowing with visitors, sometimes there were just 2 or three of us. Often it was my parents & I: my father with his southern, kind of Elvis/Johnny cash type look & my mother, a mid western girl from a small town, just outside of Chicago, a place that was a mix of Mayberry, with a big city influence. Sometimes it was only my mother & my grandmother, away from her husband, my grandfather (a railroad man) & her beauty shop, but never away from the practice of beauty, as she often practiced her skills on us. Always, it was a place filled with love.
I wonder how you've weathered the years. Times have changed. Eras have gone by, filled with construction & destruction. I hope you've survived, filled with years of beautiful memories, families old & young, couples just starting out & grand parents surrounded by their loving children & grandchildren.
Anyway, I thought I'd write. How are you doing?
Love,
Me
* All rights reserved. Image & story both the property of Shelley McElhiney. Share only with proper credit. Please contact the blog owner for any other usage.
Mar
16
2012
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| Tacoma 11/11/11 by Shelley McElhiney* |
Some of the interesting things happening in March & April in the Tacoma area:
3/17 Blue Octopus
7PM
Wine & Canvas
$124
Ages 21 & up
For more info:
Phone #
(253) 678-4776http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/239159304-wine-and-canvas3/20 to 4/10 Tuesdays Tacoma Metal Arts Center
6PM to 9PM
Beginning Jewelry/Metalsmithing
$165 (4 sessions)
For more info:
http://www.tacomametalarts.com/http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/236653264-beginning-jewelry-classes3/24 Thurston County Fairgrounds
Farms Forever Art Show & Dinner
4:30PM to 9PM
$45 single, $80 couple
ages 21 & up
For more info:
http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/lacey_wa/events/show/242991864-farms-forever-art-show-and-dinnerhttp://communityfarmlandtrust.org/3/24 Lakewood Pierce County Library
12PM
Pierce County Reads- Origami workshop
ages 18 & up
For more info:
http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/lakewood_wa/events/show/244665744-pierce-county-reads-origami3/24 Sunset Studios
Tacoma Arts & Crafts Meetup
10AM
Polymer Clay Series Part one
$15
For more info & to sign up for the meetup group:
http://www.meetup.com/tacomaartsandcrafts/3/26 to May 5 Throwing Mud Gallery
6PM to 8:30PM
Pottery Class
$160
For more info:
http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/249108144-pottery-class-at-throwing-mud-galleryhttp://www.throwingmudgallery.com/class_info.html3/28 King's Books
7:30 to 9:00PM
CLAW Open Swim
Cartoonist's League of Absurd Washingtonians
Open cartooning
For more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/CLAWmar3/30 University of Puget Sound
11Am to 4PM
Collins Memorial Library, The Link
6th Annual Edible Book Festival
For more info:
http://www.pugetsound.edu/academics/academic-resources/collins-memorial-library/edible-books/http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/247754344-6th-annual-edible-book-festival3/31 Freighthouse Square
10 AM
I CAN! All ages family arts celebration
For more info:
http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/246224364-i-can-all-ages-family-arts-celebration4/1 King's Books
6 to 8PM
Wayz and Means Film fest
Short films celebrating letterpress & book arts
$20
For more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/wayzmeans4/14 King's Books
11:30AM to 3:30PM
Cave Paper Covers & Decorative Stitches: Series III
$60 covers $45 class fee & $15 materials fee
For more info & to pre-register:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/cavepaperapr4/14 Tacoma Public Library Moore Branch
1PM to 4PM
A Vision Board Workshop with Kathy Brassil
kids & up
free
For more info:
http://calendar.thenewstribune.com/tacoma_wa/events/show/245760844-a-vision-board-workshop-with-kathy-brassil4/22 King's Books
11AM to 4PM
Wayzgoose! Letterpress & Book Arts Extravaganza
For more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/wayzgoose4/29 King's Books
12Pm to 4PM
Vegan Bake Sale
For more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/veganbakesaleOngoing third Saturdays
3/17, 4/21*
Tacoma EtsyRain Meetup
9:30 AM
Sunset Studios*
*Unless otherwise announced
For more info & to sign up for the meetup:
http://www.meetup.com/tacomaartsandcrafts/events/49351652/Ongoing Monthly King's Books
Books for Schools Program
Help donate books for local classrooms through King's Books
For March: Jason Lee Middle School "The Dream Keeper & Other Poems"
For more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/schoolsFor more info on any of these events, please contact the sites listed.
Any artsy/craftsy things interesting going on in your area?
*Photo by Shelley McElhiney, all rights reserved
Mar
05
2012
The woods were a strange place, filled with odd juxtapositions & contrasts. One minute dark & foreboding, noises, sights & smells like no other place. Questions, not immediately answered, filled the visitors head: Is that smoke I smell? Is there someone (or something) following me, waiting to pounce at the first opportunity? What's that in the distance? Is it moving, towards me? The visitor moves slowly, cautiously, alert to any possible danger. In the next moment, a clearing to a whole new world opens. The sunlight beams through the trees, noise becomes a flock of birds taking flight. Caution & fear do not disappear, but perceptions are altered, lightened. The visitor continues on...SAM
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| In the Woods Bracelet: glass, betel nut beads, silver color birds, silver plated sun clasp by samsstuff |
My newest creations, created for a challenge & sent off to a new home...
* Short story & bracelet by samsstuff, all rights reserved. Share with credit back to original post only. Please contact the blog owner for any other usage.
Made by You...
Feb
20
2012
Hi all! I've been working on some new things lately & I thought I'd show you some of them:
A flowery pink cuff bracelet in organic cotton
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| hand crocheted & embroidered with brass beads & vintage button closure. I love how the embroidery makes the piece look quilted. |
and a couple of new embroidered bookmarks
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| Vintage cookbook images (don't worry, the book was in poor condition), hand embroidered. I also like these framed... The adorable images are so sweet! |
A ton of crocheted stuff...
Here's a new beach style wrap bracelet
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| This is 100% US sourced cotton with vintage 70's wood beads & freshwater pearls. The lobster clasp closure is silver as are the jump rings for the pearls. This also works great as a necklace or a hair wrap! It's so versatile & has a great beachy, surfer vibe. |
Oh! And last, but not least, I've found some amazing vintage finds lately! I love searching the thrift stores & 'picking' out all the amazing old things there, from jewelry & clothing to blankets & linens, even fabric & craft books (I found the most hideously wonderful 70's polyester double knit fabric the other day. It would make a wonderful "Brady Bunch" style dress or a great vintage style polo shirt, especially with a big, pointy contrasting collar...). I even found an old etching tool for 75 cents. Now I just need to learn a new craft :)
How about you? Have you been making anything recently? Spotted any great finds?
* Images & designs all by Shelley McElhiney. All rights reserved. Feel free to share this post, photos & its content with credit given, but please contact the blog owner for any other usage. Designs not for resale or to be copied without express permission.
Feb
14
2012
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| Birds of Paradise by Shelley McElhiney* |
They were the best of friends. The bond between them visible, almost tangible, floating mid air, between the the two of them. Distance did not alter this, even when that distance spanned over half the planet.
He was an old school hippie turned businessman by the twists & turns of time & place that overtake us all throughout our lives. His look had become business casual, changed by the practicalities of life, but he retained the long hair & sandals that had once been part of his daily uniform. The ravages of age had given him bald spots & had turned his once long, flowing locks grey & wiry. His belly had softened as his life turned sedentary. No longer a wandering member of a scattered & forgotten tribe, he inhabited the bookstore, struggling to keep it afloat, amidst a sea of bills & a lease that eventually overflowed his income & ballooned out, enveloping the building with a sense of strife & struggle.
She was exotic, if a bit showy. Spending her days basking in the warmth of his attention, she was cranky & inconsolable when he was away. Best described as colorful, she spent her time as a rainbow of excitement, her plumage always in motion. She slept little, constantly watching over her little bookstore kingdom, above the store, but never really out of sight, never really a part of the background. Whenever it seemed as if the store was in danger of slipping into a sad & never ending slumber, it was she who would wake it up, letting out her own, unique squawk, startling customers & employees alike. She would not let them sleep, not while she ruled over all she surveyed. Her demeanor was regal, her appearance filled with more color than all of carnivale. She came from South America, the rainforest her original home. She never quite fit in with the beige walls & slow lifestyle of the store, but she endured it for him. He had brought her here, not directly, but after a series of other places, other homes. She had had other relationships, but had always ended up being too high maintenance, as the years wore by.
Eventually customers began to disappear from the little store, in search of the shiny & the new, perhaps or maybe just the more convenient. The store employees left, one by one, most pushed from the nest, by the lack of money & the lack of customers, sent to fly away on their own in search of other places to roost.
She too left in the end, forced out into the world, into another home, maybe even another bookstore. He could no longer afford her exotic ways, was no longer able to pay for the bookstore, her home. He found another, from a less exotic far away land, this time a fellow tribesman to share his time & his love. She left proudly, without her usual squawks, her colorful feathers ruffled proudly, her head held high & her little feet firmly clutched to the perch inside her gilded cage.
He visited from time to time, but they were never the same. Their friendship would always be, but they had new loves & new homes in which to nest. SAM
* image & short story by Shelley McElhiney, all rights reserved
Feb
11
2012
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| Wayzgoose Tacoma WA 4/17/11 |
One more Tacoma post & Then I promise something completely different :)
There haven't been many events this past month, so I was caught a little off guard by the number of events coming up. Here, a little late is a partial list of upcoming Tacoma area arts & crafts events:
2/12
11AM- 4PM
Artist Craft Fair
King's Books
for more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/craftfairfeb2/13 to 3/24
6-8:30PM
Pottery Class
Throwing Mud Gallery
$160
for more info:
The News TribuneThrowing Mud Gallery2/18
6PM
Art Bus Amour Tour
Part of Third Thursday Art Walk
For more info:
Art Bus Tour SiteThe News Tribune
2/18
7PM
Button Blanket Making
Native Quest
For more info:
The News TribuneNative Quest(they also have a first & third Wednesday pottery class, from 1-4PM)
2/24
6-9PM
Youth Art Show
King's Books
for more info:
http://www.kingsbookstore.com/youthart2/25
7PM
Cedar Basket Weaving
Native Quest
for more info:
The News TribuneNative Quest2/26
12-5 PM
Kids Design Class
Museum of Glass
for more info:
Museum of Glass Calendar 3/2
3 PM
First Friday Gallery Talk: Riding the Rails
$6 - $8
for more info:
The News Tribune3/3
6:30-10:30PM
Shake, Rattle & Grill: Slider Cook Off Competition
Museum of Glass
$35 advance tickets, $30 members, $40 at the door
for more info:
Museum of GlassThroughout the month:
Tacoma Arts & Crafts Meetup Group
Mini classes
Times differ
$10- $40 current price
Sunset Studios
for more info & to join the Meetup:
Tacoma Arts & Crafts GroupThird Saturdays (2/18 this month)
Tacoma EtsyRain Meetup
For anyone who has or is contemplating setting up an Etsy shop
Sunset Studios
for more info:
Tacoma EtsyRain MeetupContact the sites mentioned for more info & more events. Let the fun begin :)
Feb
05
2012
A beautiful winter rose for your sweetheart
I think everyone should have a crown, don't you?
Add a friendship bracelet, to show you care
And a lovely, old fashioned locket to steal their heartAn adorable print that says...
Or a journal for all their secrets
Add a fun card to make them smile
And you have a perfect Valentine's Day :)
See more Valentine gift ideas in my Etsy treasury, here:
I Heart You! * All items from local Tacoma, Washington area Etsy shops. Shop local!
Jan
19
2012
Today, everything was covered in ice: cars, plants, pretty much anything that was outside was glazed in ripples & sheets of ice...
Pretty to look at, otherwise not so fun...
Jan
18
2012
The Snow Blizzard (like wizard only with extra flakes :)
And we're expecting more...
