Pal Tiya: Dragon Castle

Posted on 12th July 2018 by perfectly4med

Once upon a time, on a screen in front of me, there appeared an advert for a new non-fired clay that promised to be weatherproof when cured. That clay was called Pal Tiya, and it was new to the UK having travelled far from New Zealand (via manufacture in USA, but let’s not mention its carbon footprint). And that advert caught my eye, more than once (ah, the joys, and effectiveness, of placed ads). And so it came to pass that I joined Bob and Joe at a workshop to make my very own castle. Continue reading →

Altered Art: Solar Light Post Roses

Posted on 3rd June 2018 by perfectly4med

There was an adage in my first career as a doctor, that goes along the lines of ‘see one, do one, teach one’. Today, I saw a Youtube video where a copper tube magically became a copper rose. Me, being me, thought ‘I’ll have a go at that’…

Meanwhile, in the garden, I’d just been sorting through the solar lights that, well, still lighted up. Most didn’t and I’d kept the stainless steel posts that they were on, just in case they became useful. And because I had those, and didn’t have copper pipe, stainless steel roses were on the cards. Here’s what I made this afternoon. Each rose has a diameter of approx. 10cm and now takes me just 25 minutes to make.

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Altered Art: Weathered, Part I

Posted on 28th May 2018 by perfectly4med

In my efforts to move things out of The Studio, I have started making things for sale. That, in turn, has created stock – for the first time ever – which then needs its own storage, but that’s another issue. I bought these papier-mache frames a long while back, originally to use for Powertex painting. Instead, I have created a weathered faux-zinc frame complete with moulded flower motif. I popped in an acrylic mirror for good measure. What do you think?

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Altered Art: Powertex figurines

Posted on 25th May 2018 by perfectly4med

It’s been some time since I have had my Powertex and old t-shirts out. This week, however, saw four new figurines completed. For the uninitiated, Powertex is a pigmented liquid textile hardener – add to absorbent fabrics/surfaces, squeeze out, drape and allow to dry. With the addition of varnish and more pigments, it is possible to create faux-bronze finishes.

A bit more detail

Ranging in height from 16½”/42cm to 23″/53cm, they stand on faux-granite wooden bases. The heads and shoulders are pre-cast plaster. Everything else is either a wooden dowel, masking tape, foil or an old t-shirt. I also raided my button box for suitable buttons to make brooches.

Bishop’s School of Prayer, 2018: Praying Hands

Posted on 14th May 2018 by perfectly4med

I’ve just returned from the inaugural Bishop’s School of Prayer, hosted at Launde Abbey by Bishop Martyn Snow. I was dubbed ‘artist-in-residence’ and was responsible for creative input, visual prayer workshops and an artist’s overview of the four-day conference. It was an amazing experience, and I hope it happens again (though probably won’t be annual).

As a ‘corporate act of art’, I created a pair of praying hands and invited attendees to add their own prayers and intercessions. After a short will-they-won’t-they period, they came good and prayers were stuck on steadily over the time at the School. For more details on the making, read on below, but in the meantime here are some pics of the finished sculpture, which will be remaining at Launde Abbey.

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Tutorial: That’s Crafty! Art Shrine

Posted on 10th October 2017 by perfectly4med

I don’t know how much of this art shrine sample was shown on TV last week… I certainly didn’t have enough time to demonstrate how I put it together, so here comes a tutorial to follow if you want to make your own 🙂

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That’s Crafty! Show Samples: Christmas

Posted on 22nd August 2017 by perfectly4med

Following on from yesterday’s post, here are the Christmas demo samples I made for the live Hochanda shows. Unfortunately, we seemed to enter a time warp for the final hour, and there was not much time to go through all the demos I had lined up.

Merry Christmas Wreath

That’s Crafty! Surfaces MDF Wreaths and Baubles Set
That’s Crafty! Surfaces Bits & Pieces Greyboard: Christmas Sentiments 2
That’s Crafty! Surfaces Bits & Pieces Greyboard: Holly & Mistletoe
That’s Crafty! Surfaces Bits & Pieces Greyboard: Christmas Florals 2
That’s Crafty! Multi Surface Paint: Christmas Red / Green / Purple / White
That’s Crafty! Multi Surface Paint: Antique Gold / Gold / Silver
That’s Crafty! Multi Purpose Craft Adhesive Pen

Try mixing different colours to make shades of green – red for a warm brown, purple for a rich evergreen. Use Craft Adhesive for a doming glaze over the berries, and a glaze for the leaves.

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That’s Crafty! Show Samples: Autumn

Posted on 21st August 2017 by perfectly4med

As always, a quiet blog usually means frenetic activity in The Studio. The start of this month has been no different, with not two, but three live hours of craft TV demos to prepare for. And, as usual, there was a press embargo on sharing the products, or the samples, until the live shows aired.

So, without further ado, here are my samples for the Hochanda shows that aired on 18th August 2017. Please let me know if you’d like fuller instructions on how to make any of these, I’ll see what I can do. Later this week, I’ll also do a review of the new That’s Crafty! Multi Surface paints based on what I learnt making the samples.

’tis the season

That’s Crafty! Multi Surface Paint: Black / Christmas Red / Yellow / Brown
That’s Crafty! Multi Surface Paint: Metallic Gold
That’s Crafty! Bits & Pieces Greyboard: Acorns and Leaves / Leaves
That’s Crafty! Bits & Pieces Greyboard: Christmas Sentiments 1
That’s Crafty! Surfaces Set of 2 MDF Shadow Boxes [small] That’s Crafty! Multi Purpose Craft Adhesive Pen

Use the Craft Adhesive as a doming glaze for the berries. The metallic gold adds a little bit of shine to the leaves.

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Magazine Article: Junk Drawer Journal

Posted on 1st August 2017 by perfectly4med

Today sees the publication of my first magazine project. It’s a Junk Drawer Journal, in association with That’s Crafty!, and is published in this month’s Mixed Up magazine. Mixed Up mag is an digital only publication. The digital format means that many articles can also include interactive elements such as videos and slideshows that wouldn’t be possible in a paper version.

I’m allowed to share little sneak peeks to whet your creative appetite, so I do hope they prompt you to go get your copy to see my step-by-step guide to making the project.
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Bas Relief Roses

Posted on 4th February 2017 by perfectly4med

At today’s bas relief cards workshop, I did the unthinkable (for me at least) – worked on a technique and a sample alongside a workshop guest, without trying it first weeks before. And despite the gung-ho attitude, we both ended up with, even if we do say so ourselves, a cracking outcome. There was something rather pleasing about making a 2D stamped image a little more 3D, smudging and smoothing paper clay into place before letting the stains and paint do their thing.