Author: plyders

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Again I have been working with fused plastic. I’ve experimented with different thicknesses and with various methods of cutting and folding. This time I stitched a layer of white felt to one side, adding a soft texture and a bit more stiffness. I was inspired by the simple modern design of the Avva Breadbasket, and created a much smaller, slightly altered version.  I’m not sure my version is very practical for holding anything, but I enjoyed the process of making it.

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In an effort to add more art curriculum to our daughter’s school, my husband found this not-for-profit called Trash For Teaching. “Trash for Teaching collects clean and safe cast-off materials from manufacturing processes (that would otherwise become trash) and repurposes them as educational resources.  With those materials we provide a comprehensive arts education program in local school districts, which includes teacher workshops and classroom instruction.” (excerpted from their website)

For a nominal fee per pound, my daughter and I scoured the numerous bins of materials and filled two bags with stuff like giant spools, tape reels, yarns, fabric scraps, etc. When we got home, we dumped everything out, excited to make something.  My daughter had the idea of making a doll.  A few weeks later, we made her a friend, and she named them Romeo + Juliet.  Once they were a couple, it wasn’t long before, yes, a baby girl was born.  With baby swaddled and tied to Juliet, the family is happy and complete.

Image | | plyders

Fur hats are more than head warmers. I found some handmade versions online that will make you stand out in a crowd as well as lift your spirits. Just try to keep a frown while wearing one of these hot pink creations with ears. I cobbled together my own version, and you can too. Or if you’d rather buy one, try these sellers on Etsy. mspresto, doriumlux and gobbolino

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Every few days, my daughter’s playroom “explodes,” as we say.  And as much as I try to encourage, plead, and threaten her to put one toy away before taking another one out, her room remains a disaster zone until I take the time to organize it again.  

I admit it – I am a bit of a neat freak.  Everything has it’s place.  And I love empty, open, horizontal space.  It frees me to think and imagine.  

But I am trying to be more open to the chaos.  So my creative project for this week has been to make something of the mess.  I started by taking a few pictures and then using the computer to process them into something else.  I kind of like the end result.

Maybe mess CAN be inspiring.

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I used to have a milk crate filled with scraps of wood and other various bits – pieces saved from a woodworking class I took in college.  I’d build little sculptures using this really potent super glue called Zap-a-Gap.  Sometimes I’d bring the box into my office and my colleagues and I would make a sculpture over the course of a week.  One piece per person per day.  We’d treat it like a game of design strategy – trying to see if we could create something balanced, even beautiful.

Eventually I purged that box of wood scraps during a move.  I miss it.  You got any wood scraps?  I’m now accepting donations…