Bling On The Holidays...

I thought I'd share some more images from my recent jaunt into jewelry making before I go ahead and retire my flat and round-nosed pliers for awhile! This found object necklace is chock full of buttons, baubles, sewing notions and even a vintage jingle bell. I chose an off-white monochromatic color scheme because it complimented the silver patina perfectly. If it doesn't go to a good home during my December showcase at the Oceanic Library... I may just keep this one!

This wedding bracelet is a fun and whimsical statement for that bride-to-be! With silver and pearly-white charms, embellishments and more, this themed piece has an extra-special set of charms made with beads that spell out "YES" and "I DO". It would make a perfect gift from your Prince Charm-ing!

These two golden pieces were made for each other... and gathered from flea markets years apart. A gorgeous opal bracelet-turned-choker, with a deconstructed pin, hung with vintage gold chain makes this piece a simple but elegant necklace. I'd wear it with a throwback party dress or even a tee shirt and jeans.

Keys, keys and more vintage skeleton keys! I have a whole bunch of them, but run out of ideas for what to do with them. So when a vintage metal pin matches the steely grey-blue patina of an old key, it's a great opportunity to combine the two for added interest. Pair them with some vintage costume beads and the door is now open!

And this time I did something a little different... creating necklaces out of squished pennies. I love squished pennies! I've made bracelets with them before, adding tons of beads and charms that went the themes of these awesome 51¢ souvenirs... but they take quite a while to create. I wanted to make something for my jewelry show that would be a great gift at a better price point... and these embellished copper keepsakes were just the thing.

So now it's time to retire my jewelry tools, put away my beads, baubles, charms, and head out into new territory! I've done some really hard thinking this year and I'm going in a different creative direction for 2014. Stay tuned...

Lincoln Had a Twin?

Junking. I love it. Especially when you find something that you've never seen before. And what do Mike and Frank say? The time to buy something unique is when you see it! Well, that's what happened after stopping in an antique cooperative out in the middle of nowhere'sville. I was seeing double when I came upon these twin Lincoln porcelain doll heads. I had NO freaking idea what the heck I was going to do with them... but they intrigued me tremendously.

I walked away, as they had no price tag... but I kept walking back to visit them. I tried to justify purchasing them in my own little hoarder brain (do you do that too?), so that I could take them home. I thought so many things...

Eh, maybe they're out of my price range for not knowing what I'll do with them.

Maybe I'll just buy one. Yeah, that would make sense and probably fit my budget. But how could I leave one head behind? Which one would I choose? Ugh.

Maybe I can use Lincoln's head as a part of hybrid animal assemblage?

Or maybe I'll make a really, really tall rag doll.

Perhaps I can gather up some of my tin items and have a Tin Man Lincoln?

Ooooh! Maybe I can use their heads on a carnival style assemblage.... like some weird ride or something... with giant Lincoln heads on top of the "building"... and teeny arms beckoning the children to come inside! Yeah, that's it!

SOLD!

And, you know what? When I trepidatiously brought them to the counter and asked their price... the kind-hearted gentleman behind the counter said...

Five dollars.

I said, "each?"

Nope, $5 for both.

So I walked out with my twin Lincoln heads, smiling all the way home. Now to just find some time to bring my wild idea to life!

Upcycled Jewelry: Everything Has A Repurpose...

Lots and lots of jewelry-making... that's what I've been up to lately! Since I had all my jewelry stuff out from a recent custom order, I figured I would take that momentum to build up my inventory for an upcoming art show. And suddenly... I got on a roll...

This "official" Junk Dealer's badge became a whimsical necklace with all kinds of junk (I mean that in a good way) on display. This fabulous flea market find turned into a real statement piece.

At a recent church sale, I found these vintage metal bobbins — a whole margarine tub of them actually — for a buck! When I grabbed them for inspiration, I realized I had a complete rainbow of colors. Add a tape measure neckpiece and voilà!

These are a couple of pieces I collected over the years. I knew I wanted to turn this fun little kitty pin into a necklace, but had no idea it would take me here. I love asymmetrical balance and it kind of makes me think of the Cheshire Cat! Meeeeow.

At a recent wholesale show, I found this awesome antique booth with lots and lots of one-of-a-kind salt and pepper shakers. I was pleased to be able to create more of my bird nestlaces with them, like this blue birdie here.

And while this hand grenade (yes, I said it myself... hand grenade?) salt shaker was gorgeous in its complex design, it gave me quite a challenge with a theme. I looked for items that matched it's beautiful patina and went from there. Once I found the daisy pin and the watch, it all came together! Let's give peace a chance... because time is running out!

I also had a collection of these cage-style purses and thought I'd like to do something with them. I engineered a way to make them hang correctly and was going to leave it at that. But when I started pairing up vintage pins on the front... Pow! Yeah... that just makes the piece.

And speaking of purses, I found this adorable little beauty (only 2" wide) at a flea market a few months back. Sewing on a vintage fleur de lis pendant, adding some well-patina'd chain and some luminous pink glass beads added just the right touch.

So that's only a little bit of what I've been working on these past two weeks! Getting ready for the Ocean Grove Boardwalk Art Show on July 28th. After that, I'll be adding the rest of these upcycled, mixed media jewelry creations to my Etsy shop.

Flea Market Weekend...

This weekend was Ocean Grove's annual Giant Flea Market... and giant it is! With over 300 vendors showing their wares, it takes me several hours to peruse all those wonderful pieces of vintage goodness.

You never know what you'll find at this particular mart... like this vintage gypsy wagon serving cart here. That was a first!

And of course there's always those items of rusty goodness that are a little out of my budget... like this antique kiddie car from an old amusement park. Loving it!

I typically shop for things to repurpose into jewelry, collage, assemblage, dolls, and mixed media art pieces... however, I didn't buy too much this time out. My brain kept saying, " you already have something just like that and you haven't used it yet!" And although my brain says that a lot... this time I had to agree with it. I do have lots of awesome finds that I need to upcycle. Guess I know what I'll be doing this summer!

Thoughtful Thursdays: Art Imitates Life!

One of the things I've learned about life is... if I'm in disagreement with how things are, I can create plenty of misery for myself. And that's no fun! Everything is what it is... my bank account, my health, the economy, the floor that needs repair, and so on. And the more I get mad at things and don't accept what is actually happening... the more aggravated I seem to be.

So every once in awhile I take a deep breath and say, "stop fighting what is!" And here, I've illustrated that point with one very amusing flea market family photo I acquired for my collection... by adding the "WHAT IS" in Photoshop. Just as a little reminder that... things are the way they are. Believe me when I say that... a little acceptance goes a long, long way!

Thoughtful Thursdays: Flea Market Family!

In much of my artwork I love to use vintage photos that I find at flea markets, antique shows, rummage sales, and the like. I try to buy them for 50 cents and I usually can find them or pass them by for that price. I also tend to be drawn the photos of strange looking people, so they usually go for less. Funny. Cheap and interesting, not a bad deal. I call them my Flea Market Family.

Thoughtful Thursdays: What Was She Thinking?

Last weekend, I took a trip to our local Flea Market to find some wooden thread spools for my next project. Unfortunately, I did not find any... but of course I never leave empty handed! I always get lots of disparate, weird and unique items... and so I thought I'd tell you what was going on in my head when I came across each of them! So, let's see what the heck I was thinking...

Eeeeek! Glittery candy garland! I could totally use this for a candy inspired assemblage! Maybe peppermint swirls hanging vertically... or maybe nailed to the side. So sweet for only $1.

Elephannnnnts! Need more elephants for all of my circus-themed dimensional dioramas. I always picture them — perhaps one on either side of the main element of my art — majestically guarding it. I'll never forget this buy at a mere 25¢.

Ooooooh, used vintage bulbs. Sweeeeeet! And I just heard the dealer give that guy a good price on something else! I could use them for a steampunk-themed art doll... as a funky cool hat! Hey mister, how much for the jar of bulbs? A great idea for only 50¢.

Gold teeeeeeth??? Hmmmmm... Gold. Metal. Freaky! Yeah... definitely some kind of jewelry thing. Only $3 for this extraction!

Gasp! Girl scout stuff! Even though it's new, I can make it look old... those patches haven't changed much over the years. Could totally see them on a funky green mailbag purse. Or maybe a skirt! Now that would be fun. And the badges are a bonus! Earned this stash for a mere $2.

Ohmigosh! A dirty, scary, albino bunny (all by itself on an empty table)! Must have! Love cute and scary. Not sure what I'll use it for but.... it's free! You know, I almost find as much free junk on the ground as I actually purchase at this place! Gotta love that.

So thanks for coming along on my flea market trip! I'd love to hear about some of your strange and unusual purchases and how you intend to use them.

Mixing It Up With Mixed Media Jewelry...

Lately I've been nesting amidst an inspiring selection of flea market jewelry finds, vintage chains, blingy costume bits and interesting metallic antique objects. Having collected them for years and years, it was time to make something out of all my goodies. But as a mixed media artist, I couldn't very well just use actual jewelry items in my jewelry... now could I? Well here's a little peek at how I've incorporated my love of... well, everything and more... into my jewelry...

Speaking of nesting... one of my favorite additions to any necklace is a highlighted book page. Here I sandwiched a page between two pieces of mica and added eyelets for strength. Near the top of this photo, you can see a peek of the necklace which is actually strung on an embroidered fabric tieback from a vintage blouse.

For this piece, I repurposed a vintage metal pill box and an old butterfly pin. inside the pillbox, I affixed a vintage photograph of a cute little baby. I added vellum wings by cutting slits at the edge of the baby's sweater, inserting the wings and taping before I glued the photo inside. The words were chosen at random but still in keeping with the "flying" theme. I also added Spanish moss to make it look like the baby is in her own little nest. A string of tiny pearls completes the look.

The butterfly pin actually had white pearl accents, but I painted over them with a glaze of gold acrylic... to tone them down and make them match the necklace better.

Living near the beach, I am constantly inspired by anything from the sea! When I came across a treasure of unique, hand-carved mermaid pendants, I wanted to build some interesting necklaces around them. For this one, I inverted a pair of stone flower beads and hung a selection of coordinating fibers from them... instant jellyfish!

Staying on the shore topic, this fantastic oyster shell hinged "box" was one of my favorite flea market finds. I paired it with a photo bead that features two vintage swimmers and surrounded it with tiny grey pearls. I mimicked that with a trio of larger pearls and dictionary words I put together to read, "the world is my spiritual oyster".

This seamstress-inspired necklace was fashioned around a reproduction tapemeasure fabric. Originally, it was pure white... so I tea-dyed it for an aged appearance. The antique tin was plain... so I spruced that up with a vintage fashion ad, which I aged with Distress Inks.

These are just a few ways I mix age-old papers, photos, fabrics, as well as found and everyday objects into my jewelry. I have so many more ideas swirling around in my head. Now all I have to find... is time!

You can see even more photos of the pieces shown here (and more!) on my YesterdaysTrashArt Etsy shop.

COMING UP NEXT WEEK... A Valentine Giveaway!

Flea Market Finds...

Excellent haul from the Giant Flea Market in Ocean Grove this weekend. I think I really need to start bringing a wheelie cart of some sort to carry all this stuff! Made out with... a retro sewing book, multi-level brass candle holders, a French card game, lots of different plastic animals, bunches of vintage jewelry pieces, retro charms and beads, ceramic fish (oh, the ideas!), a silver salt and pepper set, some weather gauges, sewing notions, a Campbells Soup cupie doll, porcelain elf, polka dotted aprons in 3 colors, and more!

And here's my little helper, all tuckered out from assisting me in sorting out and finding inspiration in all this stuff... okay, well she's really just inspired by the plastic bags. Nighty-nite, Juliet...

Ocean Grove Giant Flea Market

This weekend was Ocean Grove's Giant Flea Market. I think there were over 365 vendors... a great turnout. I found some vintage jewelry, buttons and beads as well as a 1950's Girl Scout Handbook, an Auto Touring card game, tin soldiers, a very pretty sweeper set and some other miscellaneous stuff. Ahhhh, flea markets... I could shop them every day!

Letters and Photos and Games, Oh My...

Here's what $15 got me at an early in the season flea market this weekend. The games were $2 and $3... the 25 letters were 5 for $1... and the photos were 25 cents apiece... I got 20 of those. Not a bad haul... Tis the season!

Pick-A-Photo Tuesday: Flea Market Family

In much of my artwork I love to use vintage photos that I find at flea markets, antique shows, rummage sales, and the like. I try to buy them for 50 cents and I usually can find them for that price or pass them by if they are more expensive. I also tend to be drawn the photos of strange looking people, and they usually go for less. Funny. Cheap and interesting, not a bad deal. I call them my Flea Market Family.