Forwarding Address

If you have been following this blog, (a long time ago!)
I wanted to let you know that I have moved to: http://markasky.blogspot.com

Ring A Day #7

Well, I am way behind on blogging my Ringadays. Here is #7 and today I am actually on Ring #270, so I have some catching up to do, or maybe I'll just move ahead and not catch up. Although it is nice to go back and look at the ones I've completely forgotten about.

Ring a Day #6 -- Angel Hair Pasta

Angel hair pasta, cooked and curled and then of course torched. The hardest part of making this ring is while I'm curling it into a ring shape, I have to keep my dogs from trying to eat them.

Ring a Day #5 -- Rice Noodle

And then you start getting into the food ring category. This was only ring 5, but already I was looking around my house to see what could fit around my finger. Noodles wrap well and then they dry up. Good option. So I cooked up a couple of flat, wide rice noodles. You always think it should be easy, but it took me about 3 or 4 tries before it actually did what I wanted it to do without tearing. Of course, it didn't dry fast enough for me, so I thought I would help it along with my torch. Of course, I have to take it to the limit, so I didn't just dry it out slowly, I started giving it a pretty good amount of flame and it started turning black and bubbling up. I liked it!

Ring a Day #4 -- Chapstick

This one is the cardboard from a box of Chapstick, folded and rolled into a ring shape, then wrapped with brass wire, with a coral bead wired in. Then I burn the cardboard, not completely, but just enough to singe it.

Ring a Day #3

This ring was based off of the first ring that I made out of paper only this one is made from 3 pieces of copper cut into circles, rolled and textured in the mill, hammered, drilled and wired together with brass wire.

Ring a Day #2

I took this art class that teaches how to teach art to kids and the last project was scratch art. You use oil pastels. You start with bright colors colored on a piece of paper then you cover the colors with a black oil pastel, then scratch through a design. I've become somewhat obsessed with it and thought I'd try it on metal with enamel. Bright colors fired underneath, then black on top, scratched through and fired again!

It's been so long since I blogged, that I'm not really sure where to start or with what! I guess what is mostly on my mind is making a ring a day for the Ring a Day group on Flickr www.flickr.com/groups/rad2010. Check it out, you will be amazed by the creativity. I wasn't sure that I wanted to do it because it seemed like a big commitment -- Ring a Day for a year! Every day! Of course, there's no huge penalty if you don't end up making a ring every day, or drop out of the group, only your own deep sense of failure of never being able to follow through on anything , again!!

So I'm in. I'm on ring 25 of 365.

This has been one of the most inspirational and fun groups I've been a part of in a long time. The ideas, designs, photos, and conceptual art abounds! So for right now the commitment hasn't been a big thing. Actually, Ring a Day is all I think about and want to do. It's this part of my life where I can create with no rules (except that it has to be a ring, a day). Then I get lots of practice taking photos and then I post it and share thoughts and comments with a group of obsessed, immensly creative and talented like minded people that I wouldn't know anything about if it weren't for this crazy Flickr Group.

I walk around my house and yard looking at everything I see, thinking, can I put this on my finger?!!! Apparently, I'm not alone.

The ring above is my 1st ring. It is about 15 pieces of white paper, cut into a ring shape and wrapped with brass wire. Then I torch the paper and singe it. You will learn that I almost always must torch things! My brother had a similar obsession when we were growing up. You'll have to wait for that story.

What I did on my Sunday

I went to the gym, I had some leftover popcorn from last night, I went on Facebook -- Restaurant City, yes I'm addicted, I won't even begin to talk about Pet Society! (How old am I?) I colored my hair (old enough to have to color my hair), fed the dogs, found some safety pins for my son, watched my other son play with the dogs, watched Legally Blonde, read a book, finished the following earcuff and took pictures of it and posted it, and now I'm hungry. The popcorn wasn't very filling. I'm thinking scrambled egg sandwich!!

Hours-n-hours

Well, I finally took some new pictures of things I've been working on...here's one (see above). Took several hours to get to that point. On a roll now, but it's getting late, but I'll just work on onnnee moooreee..... I'm in PhotoShop, I'm cutting, I'm pastin, I'm workin on images, I'm almost done........and then.......PhotoShop decides to 'quit unexpectedly!' Augh! Guess I'll go to bed instead!

Lost Goddesses

The inspiration for this series of pendants and brooches comes from this book I got called Lost Goddesses of Early Greece - A Collection of Pre-Hellenic Myths by Charlene Spretnak. Goddesses were "associated with order, wisdom, protection, and the life-giving process." In the patriarchal myths that came thousands of years later they were turned into jealous, troublesome, frivolous goddesses.

So I take the myths and use my old family photos to turn them into sort of a modern day icon...

This is from the myth of Pandora, where instead of opening a box of troubles because of her curiosity, she becomes Pandora..."Giver of All Gifts... I bring you wonder, curiosity, memory. I bring you wisdom. I bring you justice with mercy. I bring you caring and communal bonds. I bring you courage, strength, endurance. I bring you loving kindness for all beings. I bring you the seeds of peace." (p. 56-7, Lost Goddesses of Early Greece, Charlene Spretnak, Beacon Press, 1984.)

Is this lame or what?!!

Well my youngest son just graduated from high school last week! However, after the ceremony when he went to get his actual diploma... he got this paper instead saying he hadn't returned a book and wouldn't get his diploma until he brought the book back or paid $73!!!!

Well, he said that he didn't have any books out! So we had to go back to school on Monday and check it out and when they looked him up on the computer they found out that he DIDN'T have any books out!!!!!

Has this ever happened to you or someone you love?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Computer Work or Metal Work?

Thought I had this great 4 day weekend with nothing to do but play with metal making, but for some reason(s) it didn't quite happen like I planned. Fundraisers, graduation parties, auctions and lets not forget ... 'the computer!'  And you know I wasn't just on Facebook playing Word Challenge (ok not the whole time), but I was updating my pictures and website (www.evelynmarkasky.com -- let me know what you think) and it feels like I'm only there for maybe an hour but then I look up at the clock and it's been about 5 hours! Another lost weekend!

My Husband's Store is Having a Sale!! Memorial Day Weekend

Sylvan Music, Santa Cruz, CA

831-427-1917

www.sylvanmusic.com

Golf

My husband keeps asking me to go golfing with him and I keep saying no. I don't golf. I have golfed, but only a couple of times. So for his birthday this month I am taking him to Monterey to play golf with me. He keeps telling me I'd better practice. But I feel that going golfing WITH him will be enough for me. He keeps telling me that I'm going to embarrass myself and I say I don't care. Then I actually realize that he's worried that I'll embarrass him! Oh, well. Nothing I can do about that, except practice I guess. But I probably won't. 

Babylonian Gypsy Copper Enamel Earrings

Night Sky

I've been trying to figure out how to shoot a gradient behind my jewelry. Can you tell if these have been shot direct or photo shopped? 

How do you do this?

After being inspired by a book of ancient Egyptian jewelry, I cut, formed, and torch-fire enameled these beetles. I had them sitting in a cup for about a year, while I tried to decide how to connect them. I'd think about them periodically, but couldn't decide how to put them together, so I just didn't do it. Finally, last week I decided that I'm just going to sit down and do it!!! It took me about a half hour! (If you don't count that year of indecision!)