Adventures in Casting: Soot Sprites

Posted on by
2

Adventures in Casting: Soot Sprites {an Art School Dropout's life} #totoro #spiritedawayI talked a bunch about quilt swaps lately, and just how much I love them. I also commented on applying to be part of a few more!

Well, above you can see a piece I made for the Studio Ghibli Craft Swap I’m in. It’s a swap purely dedicated to everything Studio Ghibli (think Totoro, Spirited Away, Ponyo, Castle in the Sky, Kiki’s Delivery Service, etc etc) and can be any type of handmade project! My partner likes Totoro A LOT! So I sculpted, made a mold of, cast and then painted this little dude. I think I’m going to make him into either a brooch or a needle minder.

Adventures in Casting: Soot Sprites {an Art School Dropout's life} #totoro #spiritedawayThe piece measures almost 2″ wide and is about a half inch thick. I cast a few in a black with a little added glitter to make it fancy. The mold had a few bubbles (I Think something was wrong with the sealant I used on the clay) but I decided it added to the texture of the whole thing and didn’t make a second mold.

Adventures in Casting: Soot Sprites {an Art School Dropout's life} #totoro #spiritedawayI really hope my partner likes it. It was a fun item to make and it’s got me itching to sculpt again. I have soooooo many toy ideas. SO MANY!

P.S.: I won’t be making any to sell, but I am up for using them in trades. Like “I’ll swap you some fabric, thread, toys, etc for a brooch” type of thing. 

Pin It

Silhouette America Creative Team: Call for Applications!

Posted on by
Reply

CreativeTeamCall_2015blogSilhouette America is looking for new members for their 2015-16 Creative Team (what was called the Design Team). Applications are open until February 13th and you can find all of the information on their blog, here. You can see some examples of the work I did for them here.

I will not be applying for another year. Not because I didn’t enjoy it! I totally did. It was so much fun testing out all of their supplies and files, plus it forced me out of a creative zone. Something I really needed this past year. So Thank you Silhouette for everything!! (especially you Jeana!)

Originally I wasn’t going to re-apply because I wanted to go out and try more stuff and didn’t know how that would work with my Silhouette schedule (since I really struggled juggling everything when I was sick this past fall and winter). Now it’s because I will be part of a new design team come April 1st, where the schedule isn’t as packed. I’ll share more the closer it gets.

I will continue to post tutorials using my Silhouette CAMEO in the same fashion I did on their blog, so keep an eye out for those! I still have sooooo many ideas!

 

Appliqued Home Sweet Home Banner for Silhouette America

Posted on by
Reply

Appliqued Home Sweet Home Banner for Silhouette America by Jessee M {an Art School Dropout's life}Last month on the Silhouette America blog I shared a very informative post on how I made the above Home Sweet Home banner!

The fabric I used is from Alison Glass’ line Sunprint, and is from Andover Fabrics who sent me the fabric to try out!

Pin It

Adventures in Casting: Quilty Necklaces

Posted on by
2

IN about 10 days I will be boarding a plane all by myself, and flying to Austin, TX for this years QuiltCon. The last two years I did BlytheCon (I STILL need to blog about that experience), and this year I decided to mix it up a bit and go the quilt route.

Adventures in Casting: Quilty Necklaces {an Art School Dropout's life} #quilt #necklkace #patchwork #jewelry

I had this brilliant idea to pull out some of my old molds and make a few quilt inspired necklaces for myself, my hotel roomie and a handful of friends. I posted a teaser on Instagram and they were a big hit. So of course I went overboard as usual and cast a bunch more!!

Adventures in Casting: Quilty Necklaces {an Art School Dropout's life} #quilt #necklkace #patchwork #jewelry Adventures in Casting: Quilty Necklaces {an Art School Dropout's life} #quilt #necklkace #patchwork #jewelry Adventures in Casting: Quilty Necklaces {an Art School Dropout's life} #quilt #necklkace #patchwork #jewelry

Any that aren’t already spoken for will go up in my etsy shop Late Feb/Early March once I get back from my upcoming trips. I’m also working on a few other block designs for fun, and I’m totally up for suggestions!!

Pin It

Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made

Posted on by
2

Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made {an Art School Dropout's life}Last week I talked about the quilt I received in the Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3. This week I’ll share the quilt I made!

My partner, who was also named Jessica, received her package this past weekend and by the comments she left on my instagram account, it seemed like she LOVED it! It was completely out of my comfort zone since her favorite fabrics and colors are not something I normally buy. I didn’t mind that though, since it forced me to step out my comfort zone. How else am I to grow creatively if I just keep making the same thing over and over again?

Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made {an Art School Dropout's life}I had the flu and then pneumonia during the time I was supposed to be working on this, so I decided to go the hand sewn route as much as I could so I could rest AND work at the same time.

I went with a simple hexagon cluster using 2″ hexies (that means one side is 2″) and hand stitched them all together. The fabric I used was the line Miss Kate by my partner’s favorite designer Bonnie and Camille (for Moda Fabrics). Then I went through my fabric stash and picked out all the white and light beige neutrals I could find to piece together the background. I could have just used a fat quarter, but I thought it needed more texture than that.

I used an invisible thread to applique the hexagon cluster to the background and then straight line stitched the entire thing with beige thread.

Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made {an Art School Dropout's life}It’s funny to say, but my absolute favorite part of this project was the binding. I loved how a random scrap piece I threw in just happened to end up right at the corner! A happy little accident.

Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made {an Art School Dropout's life}Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap Round 3: The Quilt I Made {an Art School Dropout's life}As with every swap I do, I added in a few little handmade extras. This time I included all of the leftover scraps from the Miss Kate fabric, plus some coordinating pieces. Then I made a marine grade vinyl pouch with a cute little hexagon flower appliqued on. Lastly I added some handmade quilt inspired jewelry and accessories.

It all went over very well, and as Ive said before these swaps just make me want to sign up for a whole bunch more!

Luckily I’m not too crazy and I’ve only signed up for three due in the next four months. I have some trips coming up, plus projects for Silhouette (and some other companies), and a few other obligations. So I knew my limit. Keep an eye out here if your interested in seeing what I make!!!

Pin It

Instagram Photo Recap: February 4th, 2015

Posted on by
Reply

Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life} Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life} Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life} Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life} Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life} Instagram Recap: February 4th, 2015 {an Art School Dropout's life}I have noticed I am using my Instagram account as a makeshift blog. An insta blog! I post things there that I would normally post here. It’s just easier sometimes.

So I thought it would be neat to just cross post some of my favorite photos every other week! If you’re on Instagram and would like to follow me, my username is: Jessee_ArtSchoolDropout !

Pin It