Here is what happened... I have a boat load of bottle caps at my disposal in my studio. I am talkin' hundreds. I have been wanting to find new way to work them into really cool jewelry designs. I have been pushing my creative thoughts to a place far outside the bottle cap box in pursuit of amazingly awesome possibilities. Suddenly it hit me... I could make them into bead caps... no wait, they need to be more then "caps" for the sides of beads, they need to be the bead. Wait, I have seen bottle caps made into beads before... how can I make them different? OH I KNOW! I will make them BIGGER, I will paint them... oh that would be cool.
Now picture me in my studio on Monday with a bag of bottle caps, a bench block, a hammer, loud music, a dapping set, a blue tutu, metal cutters, and spray paint. Yeah, it was good times. I smashed and bashed and cupped and cut and dovetailed those bottle caps with all my heart. With each whack of the hammer I was getting a stronger foothold and climbing higher and higher up High Hopes Hill. I left my studio with bead parts all over the floor, covered in drying paint, and full of promise. *sigh* I was a happy artist.
Fast forward to an hour into my Tuesday morning... cause ya know, before I even had my morning coffee, 2 seconds after I finished my run on the treadmill, sweaty and smelly, I tried to make those hollow painted bottle cap beads I had dreamed about all night long. I figured out really quickly that these were not going to be as cool as I thought and my slow slide down High Hopes Hill began. I felt determined though... could I ride the avalanche wave down the hill rather then tumble helplessly into a heap at the bottom? Maybe I was going about it all the wrong way? Maybe these caps would make for better bezels than beads? I could still paint them right? Paint the insides instead of the out!!
Insert wasting a few more hours here and start to picture me losing my cool as an avalanche surfer. Although the idea really sounds cool, and in theory it could be really cool... these things are crap. Where is Tim McCreight in your studio when you need him? I bet the King of Metalsmithing could create the lovely things clogging up me head.
Determined to make the most of my studio time, I very very begrudgingly decided to flip on my kiln and light up my torch. What is the beady saying? When you are having a bad bead day, go back to basics. Right? Right. I was having a bad metalsmithing day, but that is just semantics. Whatever. A funny thing happened when I sat at my flame... my begrudged attitude faded out of site within minutes. I picked up my snow covered butt, brushed off the debris from my High Hopes Hill tumble, and with glass in my hand and even more new ideas in my mind, I set to climbing that hill again. This time a little bruised, a little wiser, but none the worse for the wear.
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12 comments:
Try rubbing liquid sand on the exterior of the bottle caps before spray painting and spray multiple thin coats? Might work. Love the caps with the interiors painted.
I love the idea of doing something with the bottle caps. Could you fill the caps with resin? I really like the caps with the insides painted. Keep trucking and it will hit you when you least expect it.
what a great post...you really put it out there kerry...i like the inside painted bottle caps too...i think resin is also a good idea...i know you will do something wonderfully creative with them...
keep on keepin on...
maybe they aren't the thig for jewelry...but what about your mixed media pieces?
your posts are always a ride, kerry!
i like the insides painted too. and resin would only magnify that. i have been doing little experiments with layers in resin. building it up so there is separation. i see something like that here.
keep working at it. it will be grand. enjoy the day!
erin
Thanks for sharing the whole human-ness of your creative process. I think the painted insides look like they have promise...I'm sure you'll end up with a streak of an idea in the middle of the night and you'll be on it!
I just hate when you spend all day on what you are SURE is a "brilliant idea" only to have it turn out to be not quite as brilliant as originally imagined - happens to me ALL THE TIME! I'll have to remember your "go back to basics" advice!
Pushing the envelope is always a great. The results may not be what you want or expect and the whole idea gets rejected. At a later time (when you least expect it) you will have the epiphany that pulls it all together.
Love the bead caps btw.
i think i need to try a tutu too. Maybe two tutus. sounds like it might help with my mojo. i think the painted ones with resin in them would be cool earrings. or bracelet links if they were still flat.
I think I need a tutu too. Or maybe two tutus. Two blue tutus. Sounds like it works some mojo! Those painted bottle caps with resin in them would be way cool earrings or bracelet links.
Ahhh...thanks for sharing your "growth" as an artist. I've seen so many of your breathtaking pieces that it's nice to see you're still expanding and growing. Gives me courage as I try new things, too.
Reading about your frustrations, your dashed hopes, I felt guilty that I was smiling through the entire post! It was so much fun to read! This is the first post of yours that I have read and I can't wait to read one on a day that you have unbridled success!You are a truly gifted reader and I'm sure that you will use some of the things you learned today on a future project.
"Nothing so bad ever happened that something good didn't come out of it." ~ No Clue
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