I used to be a Glass Artist......

I used to agonise in my early 20's that I " needed to be something".....

Sure they ask at school what you want to do but I found it extremely hard to put it in a "Title" as such.... I just knew a lot of what I was good at & what I liked....my Art teacher.... She was lovely btw, said " being an artist is tough, you will never be well off" ......mind you that was a time before the Internet entirely became what it is now, before there was that potential worldwide audience....before "commercial art" really took hold as it is now..... It was wise advice..... But I knew my creative side would always be apart of what I do..... Money or no money......

( Funny I watch the same pressures on my own teenagers ( yes I have teenagers) & I assure them.... Not a lot end up doing exactly what they choose as a " Career " at school..... They may do it for abit but it may end up leading to other ideas.)

Anyway mid 20's I discovered glass art..... I had been making jewellery & I came across an American bead maker I had been buying off....she seen my paintings etc & strongly advised I give glassworks a fair go.....
And I did......

It became my first serious passion.... I could get so lost in glass some nights that suddenly I'd look up & see the sun rising.....I practiced basic skills & pushed myself, sketching ideas, pulling inspirations from around me..I lived glass.

Before I knew it i was published & offered a " dream job" as the head of a glassworks..... Despite the challenges, including a difficult boss, I loved it & gave it my all.....locally & internationally I forged a reputation & style.... Sometimes it was a hard slog, without much thanks......
I couldn't go to bead or craft shows without being recognised & much to my shock was asked to " sign stuff" ( that still weirds me out! Lol) ......on top of my published work, I was romanced by many galleries,brought out a best selling tutorial & flirted with book deals..... .at the end of the day I knew not to take it too seriously.....
I was * just a glass artist* ....not a heart surgeon.
 ( there are those who say *this* made me a bad business woman ...and in a now commercial arts sense I was).....I just wasn't an uber competitive person .... I was more a high 5 kinda girl,  than cutting my competitors throat kinda girl...... Apparently this is a very big no no in the glass art world.

To put it simply the people were quite the nightmare.
( man I could list some moments, people, disasters )
Total passion killer.

And I was easy pickings......

So after a hard fight & around 8yrs......." I bowed out "

I don't use glass as my creative medium very much anymore.
Sometimes it breaks my heart as I know how much I honestly loved it.

But I accept & I grow.

My Aviary....

So Ive been stuck about what to blog about for some time.....which is kind of ridiculous considering i constantly have "ohh i should blog about this" moments..... but i just never actually sit down & do it, almost like a "bloggers block" of sorts!......most of what Im creating just typically ends up on fb,which i dont overly get to talk to much in depth about the hows & the whys of what im doing... so Im about to make a major effort to change that! :)

There will be abit of back tracking to include past projects but Ill also be adding "what Im doing today" to keep my posts current.... & hopefully get me into a better blogging pattern!

One of my recently completed projects was this Bird Aviary I decided to make from an old wardrobe/cupboard..... 

This was actually inspired by this post i had come across on Pinterest....

BIRD HOUSE !

 which I just instantly loved & sent my mind running & I instantly started researching things like bird safe paint?.... what would be best in an Aviary like this? etc.....And obviously I started the hunt for a suitable wardrobe....

I also was a good girl & set a budget of $200...

I came across this large old robe at my local Lifeline store... costing $80, delivery was an extra $20 but well worth it & the man delivering was a kind old man who lives on a pension who does it to help himself along....

Built of hardwood & ply with barely any damage... this would be a perfect piece.. main this is it had no chip board!... My Aviary would see a little weather so I definitely didnt want all my hard work undone by wood swelling etc, not to mention what the birds would do to chipboard! gee! 

  

I Removed all the doors (3) & the 2 doors ( L & R) were cut in half horizontally to create 5 doors in total.... this would be easier when cleaning out the Aviary without letting birds out I figured!!! Each of the doors then had a window cut in them for the screening to go.... opening up the structure....

Also as you can see the entire backing was removed, along with the shelves & the divider separating the inside of the robe.... I managed this by turning the until on its side, then drilling a hole to which i could fit my jigsaw blade to cut out the opening..... the robe certainly looked quite bare bones by this point!! but was actually still quite sturdy!!

The entire outside ( including doors)was then sanded & cleaned ready for painting...

As far as paint goes I learnt that basically anything the birds were able to chew needed to be water based & child safe.... basically if your child cannot put it in their mouth, your bird cannot chew it!!

The other major issue is fumes!, dont do a project like this wanting your bird to move in the next day.... give things at least a few days to really air out & cure... 

For the outside ( where the birds will never chew!) of the Aviary I used a Taubmans sun proof exterior water based paint, in a low sheen, I only used 1L for the entire project so came in pretty cheap around $35? ( ill have to check!!)

I did 3 quite heavy coats because I decided from the outset I wanted to distress the paint & play with it abit!

For the inside I used a water based child safe craft acrylic which I watered down to make a white wash of sorts.... I would paint it on then rub it back before it fully dried.... leaving a thin fairly transparent coat of colour.... I wanted something bright & light but wanted to be very careful to be sure if chewed wouldnt cause any harm to my pets.

Then it was onto the distressing....
I LOVE the distressed look... i guess it comes from my love of everything mixed media atm?....To achieve what I did here I started by giving the entire paint work a sand back with my handheld electric sander using a sanding pad that had already been quite worn... this worked perfect because of the layers of paint i had put down basically giving the very top coat a velvet/ worn jeans look!... Then I concentrated on some areas harder just digging in to reveal the wood underneath.... I then actually raided my mixed media supplies rubbing in some of my darker Tim Holtz distress stains to darken patches of wood & the pain work itself, buffing & rubbing it in using my hands & a soft cloth....

After I was happy I sprayed the outside work with a clear coat matt sealer.... nothing fancy just something i found at the paint store.... being careful not to get much on the interior & knowing Id be leaving it for days to let the fumes go....

I love the result..... its made me think about doing something else in the same sort of way.. but maybe with a deep indigo/blue paint....I think it would almost give a beautiful worn denim look.

Then came working on the inside again....  I decided that i would like to mosaic the floor ( not that i knew how to mosaic at that point!) .. not only for look but thinking it would help water proof things & be easier to clean....I started with an idea of tiles but soon decided plates were the go!... most of what I used were chipped & broken wear that

I got from local op shops for a small donation..... I used typical tile nippers to help break them up... I bought a mosaic glue from the craft sections at bunnings to glue them down.... now the next bit became my first hassle... I had also bought the grout from the craft section too but my first attempt at grouting failed misrabely!.. I made the mix way too runny & it ended up all bubbly & barely covered half way across my finished work..... I ended up going back & this time grabbing white grout from the actually tiling section... this product was a breeze to mix & use & really ended up costing half of what another batch of crafting grout cost for twice as much grout!

One thing I learnt though with grouting is to watch the hands!... I actually did this with bare hands & ended up with plenty of sore little cuts on my hands!& my nails a mess! next time gardening gloves will be used!!
I love the result though & it has been a breeze to clean!
After this I started attaching the bird wire to the cage.... basically a small chicken wire... securing with u nails covering the tack downs with decorative skirting inside & out....the cost of that came in at $30 also...

The doors were returned....

 The only extra locks I added was to the lower doors... this is so the 5 doors open & shut/ lock individually...
Some decorative tacks were also added to jazz things up on the outside abit.....

I fitted the inside out with just some native Australian tree branches along with some store bought toys... I also bought soe nesting boxes for the very top...

What birds did I go for?
None other than the legandary Australian native Budgerigars.... I love their funny little personalities & Ive always wanted to keep a group of them....

Ozzie ( English breeding) & Jaymz...

Mercutio & Frida.

Its only been about 2 weeks since completion & since then Merc & Frida have already started breeding.... as of today we have 2 cute little eggs...so keep an eye on updates as the babies hatch! :)

The Aviary sits perfectly under the eve of the roof...but at night ive been covering the entire cage in covers & a waterproof tarp for the heavy rainy days...
All up the project did come in just over the $200 mark & i loved making it which is the main important thing!....

Im loving sitting out the back listening to them & watching them play.... perfect way to have a cup of tea in the afternoons....

Bliss !

~Sally

So it's been a while......

Since I started making this tip toe back into blogging.....tip toeing is ok, I've got to do things as they feel right....and I'm glad to say things are starting to feel very right once more ;)......
There will be many changes ahead, including a blog name change!!!, I'm slowly letting go of everything " Happily Ever Artist " stage , viewing it as my caterpillar stage.... With me now just getting ready to emerge from my cocoon I guess??.....
Anyway right now I want to share one of my all time fav quotes......
I have deeply thought it very inspiring & something I'm currently revisiting the book it comes from
" A return to love" from Marianne Williamson.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~ Marianne Williamson

Talk soon, Sally ...

Not knowing where to start....

 

So i guess it just start here? ....for those who used to follow my previous blog, i know it all just disappeared, Im sorry.......for those who "follow" my facebook, well they know why...

Last year my life.... as I certainly knew it for 15yrs exploded.....:(

Now id love to say 8-9 months down the track im doing high 5ing fine... truth is, im not....
not yet....
probably not even really close some days......
Ive endured one crazy battle after the other, laughed, cried & vomitted along the way...
truth is last yr feels like 10 yrs ago.
And man have i given my FB friends stuff to read about!!!!
Ive just yet indured yet what feels like another "shift" in life...like last 48hrs....
& now Ive just really gone "stuff it, perhaps i should just let it rip via blog once again".....
My blog has always included life stuff & i know some people hate that, un-proffesional some say....
but you know what......
 Im dead set seriously over pleasing people & worrying what people may think...

I just want to write again, about what ever the hell I really want too.....ive hd a couple of therapists now, but im kind sick of that atm, so im thinking " hey cheap therapy too!!! "..... plus my close friends (god love em) have seriously delt with so many of my crazy ramblings,
I do need to free them up abit......
There will be swearing here & there....because in person & in my head I do right now......sorry.
Im also going to be talking about some pretty massive life things...... love, sex, religion, depression, anger, fun & crazyness.... sometimes personal , other times what I see happening around me.
I guess Im declaring my mind OPEN....

Im still going to share creations & projects, alot actually....... this blog i hope will help with that some how..... push me along?... truth is since the explosion of my life Ive actually struggled to create at all..... I think about it so much though....
Im still a mum of 3 children ( i havent miss-placed any so far)... a very single mum now though :(..... So there will be alot of talk about life with that..... & the ups & downs of raising the 3.
along with my growing pet numbers....
Really in all honesty my latest drama has left me thinking I can only do one of two things now....

1. Curl up & some how cease to exsist....
or
2. some how "get my awesome on"........

Ive obviously chosen 2.
I have no idea where to start even finding awesome again.... but deeply know as crazy bad as things have gotten...
IT IS BURIED SOMWHERE.

~ Sal.