When I ran out of flowers I handed out round beads and people painted their own flowers. I ended up with well over 100 Flowers
In my pottery studio I try to conserve resources. I save the glaze that customers don't use on their projects, the glaze that won't pour out at the end of the bottle and dried glaze that collect on the spouts of the bottles.
The background of this piece is made with that reclaimed glaze.
I was really happy with how it came together, the brownish that you see in the word blooms is a wax resist to hopefully prevent any glaze from sticking in the letters.
You can see all the chips of dried glaze that I loaded it up with to make the background
Waiting for the kiln to run the full 24 hour cycle was so hard!!
When I opened the kiln my hands started shaking I was so excited at how it turned out.
This was such a satisfying project to work on. I love creating with people. I love the calm I can feel after they create. It's calming, it's satisfying and I love sharing that with people.
I could not be happier with the final result!
This type of project has so many applications! Corporate events, family reunions, fundraisers for schools and organizations. I can't wait to create with more people!!
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I went down and gave the girl her second coat of primer.
APRIL 13
So I brought the kicker panel (that's what I call it) to the gallery with me today.
A blank canvas. A lot of white space on this portion but the rest of my "canvas" has a different feel. So what might work well on this wide open space may not translate too well to the rest of the piano. I've been thinking almost non stop for days on how I'm going to lay it all out. I've let my brain drift from the concept that popped in my head the instant I found out I'd be chosen, maybe it's time to go back and go with my gut.
When I paint one of my windows, I'll lay out the line work and often the window will sit on my work table for a couple weeks.
You can see that the color could have been divided a bunch of different ways. I slowly let the color plan come to me. When I feel it, I lay the color down.
Here is how it ended up.
Well I've been blessed with an opportunity to grow my business through a contest sponsored by ScoreMentors and Sam's Club, part of that is an all expense paid trip to Reno for training and networking (for more info on that you could go to championship.score.org). That trip begins Monday the 23rd. This means I don't have weeks to let color scheme percolate in my head.
I have all the colors!! I just need to let my brain fall on a plan that can be executed to look like the picture in my head, that isn't so tedious that I end up hating myself for creating a time crunch panic mode or that I am forced to scrap and re-prime the whole piano.
We shall see. It shall be decided today!!!
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APRIL 9TH
Today was my first work day in Mainframe Studios. Walking through the door here is nothing new to me, I worked here in the early 90's for USWest (now Centurylink). I walked in and immediately started reflecting. My life has changed so much since I called this my work home. I was so young then. Now? Eh, not so much. From working in this building to now, I realize that every job I have had in my life has prepared me in some way, shape or form to own Five Monkeys Inc. This place has a weird little place in my heart. I was downsized (I volunteered) in 2001 and stayed home with my children.
Here is a picture of the baby I'm currently tending to.
The music rack has to be secured or removed. I decided to remove it. I didn't remember to bring my bag of tricks so I had to improvise. Of course tweezers double as a screwdriver.
The whole piano has to be sanded and a couple coats of primer before the magic can begin. I'll use the time in between visits to Mainframe to solidify my initial design in my head and wrap my head around the most efficient way to execute it. One thing is certain...COLOR!! ALL THE COLORS!
As I was sanding and priming it I had a few awwww moments. The sharpie drawings on the front perfectly executed by what could only have been a tiny person. My daughter was a sharpie graffiti artist leaving her signature or a one word statement piece. My youngest son left his sharpie graffiti on almost every wall in our house. Due to our lack of motivation to repaint all the walls, many of his masterpieces remain today.
As I was priming the back of the piano something stuck to my brush. It was an X plastic refrigerator magnet. Again, awwwww. This piano was a part of a family's life. It made my heart smile that this piano will hopefully continue to have impact, get played a lot and visually have impact with my art.
I was super excited to find that the kick board comes off!! It will make the actual painting of that portion of the piano soooooooo much easier.
First coat of primer complete!!
I'm so excited to be a part of City Sounds: The Des Moines Public Piano Project
If your business or one you know is interested in hosting/sponsoring a piano please APPLY!
]]>YES! You read that right! A chance to win one of three $15,000 prizes!!
Five Monkeys Inc suffered greatly during the construction in our neighborhood last year and if we could win one of these grants it would go a long way towards the recovery of business that we need to stick around. It would allow for some advertising, investment in new supplies to offer different and exciting classes for my customers!
I am so honored and excited to have been chosen for this award. When I began my business four years ago, my dream was to create an avenue to sell my art, the artistic endeavors of others. I still do that! I've expanded to offering classes to inspire creativity in everyone!
The prizes, training, publicity and SCORE mentoring we have been awarded will help me take my business to the next level, and better serve you, our customers. I am so looking forward to attending the training event in Reno, and will be sure to check back in and let you know how it goes.
Thank you to the Harry Potter Club of Central Iowa for letting me borrow their decorations.
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Please be patient with me as I adjust, as I learn. Don't hesitate to contact me via email with product questions or direct shipping quotes. Some of the shipping rates are general estimates (especially on large wall art) and may not be correct in all situations.
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