Author: plyders

ByPauline goes to market…

| plyders

The first show for ByPauline. I am participating in ARTist Saturday today at Armature here in Bend, OR. After considering traditional vendor displays using tables and shelves, I decided to create a flexible, affordable, alternative installation using standard cardboard boxes. I created the display for my 6×6 space with 12″square boxes – some open and some closed. The system is secured with blue painter’s tape and binder clips so the boxes can easily be dismantled and reused. My Plicious clothing is hung on an Aspen branch that is balanced on top of a stack of boxes and then secured with blue zip ties. ByPauline Instagram images adorn some of the empty box faces. I am promoting myself as an architect/designer/artist/maker who creates custom handmade pieces for special events and holidays. So I am displaying a variety of things as “samples” for what I can make. I am also offering services as a creative consultant to help individuals and groups, young and old, to realize their vision for unique handmade items.

My first experiment in wet felting inclusions…

| plyders

This is a one-piece bowl and mat centerpiece. I experimented with wet-felting an inclusion into a flat square layout of alpaca wool roving. I wrapped a plastic egg in dark gray roving and then placed it on my layout of cream roving, then covered everything with a few more layers of cream. After the felting process was complete, I carefully cut a hole and extracted the plastic egg. The result is a bowl with a dark interior that is integrated into a cream mat. Three edges are trimmed and the fourth is left raw like the top of the bowl. I absolutely love this piece. Yes, I will be making more.

A cardboard light box…

| plyders

I have been brainstorming ways to use what I already have to create an interesting display of products from BypPauline for the upcoming ARTist Saturday at Armature. Supplemental lighting is encouraged, so I decided to make my own ambiance floor lamps. Using heavy duty cardboard (yes, I’m still making use of moving boxes) I created a “Golden Section” rectangular light box. Tracing a few glasses of various sizes as templates, I cut a few holes on each side and even across one corner. I’ve never wired a lamp from scratch before, but the plug and inline switch were super easy to install onto the cord using the instructions. The actual lamp holder was more of a challenge to wire because it didn’t come with instructions. But thanks to YouTube, I safely attached the hot and ground wires and turned on my light box with giddy excitement.

Minimal, Modern, Matryoshka

| plyders

I love nesting dolls. I have several versions of them as toys, decoration, and even measuring cups. So in my experiments with felting, I decided to try to create a version of nesting dolls. I used a set of plastic ones as a form. Many attempts failed as I found it hard to keep the thickness of the wool roving consistent in the wet felting process. Needle felting a hollow shape proved challenging too. But I persisted and was able to create this set of four dolls using a combination of wet felting and needle felting. I need to add some sort of reinforcement or fabric stiffener so the top and bottom actually securely connect and close. But I am a bit burned out by the struggle to get to this point, and I am a bit afraid to screw them up. Sometimes my experiments develop into a finished product, but often they are left unfinished and placed on a high shelf or tucked away in a box marking one more moment along my creative journey.

Paper polyhedron for an air plant…

| plyders

Continuing my play with geometry and paper tubes, I created a Himmeli-inspired polyhedron. You can find varieties of Himmeli all over the Internet. Traditionally a Finnish craft, these geometric shapes were made using straw and combined into mobiles to celebrate a bountiful harvest. Contemporary versions are often made using metal tubing or straws. I really like these made from colorful magazine paper tubes. Using floral wire, I tied four three inch paper tubes into a square. Then I threaded wire through one side of the square and into four six inch paper tubes to create a pyramid shape on top. Adding another pyramid below completed the Himmeli shape. This geometric sculpture hangs from the ceiling with string and is adorned with two air plants.

Constructing with magazines…

| plyders

The possibilities of magazine paper. I have often used magazines for various art and craft projects. Paper beads, collage, origami, paper mâché. For this project, I scoured old magazines for full color pages and rolled them tightly along the diagonal around a bamboo skewer, gluing the edge to create a tube. I then cut them with scissors to measured lengths, and used floral wire to construct open pyramid structures. Elsewhere on the Internet, I’ve seen these geometric structures made of metal tubes and have wanted to make them myself. But I didn’t want to have to buy any new materials (My craft bins are overloaded anyway.) I really like my version of the pyramid and how I was able to play with color in making these out of magazine paper.

A handmade zipper pouch…

| plyders

When I first received some roving from local alpaca farm Flying Dutchman Alpacas, I wet felted a few “sheets” with the intention of making something useful. I love the texture and thickness of the hand felted material. I decided to make a zippered pouch for my new iPhone 6 Plus (that is so enormous it does not fit well in the open phone pocket I had made in my leather hobo bag for my previous iPhone.) I used a vintage cotton material for the lining and handstitched the zippered opening using a contrasting pink cotton thread.

Folding spheres from paper…

Image | | plyders

As I focus on making things with my two current favorite materials – paper and felt – I am revisiting some craft books I’ve had in my library for years. Extreme Origami by Kunihiko Kasahara includes instructions for weaving various spheres from strips of paper. One of the simpler spheres is made using four strips and a weaving technique that is similar to braiding with four strands. These small paper spheres can be scaled up to become ornaments or bowl fillers, or strung together in their miniature form to be used as garland or as part of a mobile.

Succulents for a tiny felt pot…

| plyders

I created this tiny wool wet felted pot a long time ago. A couple days ago, I decided to complete it with some succulent pups cut from an Aeonium suffering a slow death in my front yard. The inside of the felt pot is painted with a bright yellow rubber coating that you can find at hardware stores for dipping tools, so it is waterproof. Wool felt is dirt and water resistant by itself, but I wanted to make sure the little pot didn’t decompose from constant contact with the moist potting soil. In restrospect, I prefer to keep the wool raw and natural rather than add the rubber coating. But of course I would not know that if I didn’t experiment in the first place.