If You're Thriftin'

I'm unveiling my new idea, an ongoing live art project. The idea has been brewing for quite a while, so I may have mentioned it to you IRL. Please feel free to leave comments on the idea itself, regardless of your interest level.
The complete outline of this crazy idea is on the Thriftin' Page.
Here's the plan, Stan:

I'm compiling a list of things we're looking for. Check the list. Or add to it. Then when we're thriftin', we can be on the watch for things on the list. Fun.

Thrift Store Gold

Thrift Treasures

Here's the latest thrift store finds. Sea shell beads, plastic purple beads, and cool striped beads. There's two stores on the same block, so one trip can hit both. Under Five Bucks for the trip!

Happy Leap Day

Snowball

Lucy as Three Wise Monkeys

Lucy as the three wise monkeys.

A photo posted by Shelly Fowler (@seeshells64) on Feb 25, 2016 at 7:56pm PST

I finally got on Instagram!

So check out my silly pictures. 

I was watching Face Off, and on the third round of the gauntlet challenge, they had to create three make-ups, one each for Hear No Evil, See No Evil, and Speak No Evil. That reminded me of a set of toys I thrifted, so I thought I'd share them. 

Three Lucy dolls, with moving arms, shoulders, and heads. Got them for under five bucks.

I arranged them in the same three, you'll have to squint your brain a little to get my jokes.

Hear No Evil, first Lucy, is making a face like she just heard some horrible gossip and she's thinking 'why did you say that?'

See No Evil, middle Lucy, has a devilish grin, because what she shouldn't have seen made her blush, probably when someone's pants fell down. 

And Speak No Evil Lucy, well, that's probably Usual Lucy, that's clenched fist and jaw trying not to say a bad word. She's just a kid, she needs to keep it clean. ;p

Deep Dreamin'

Sorry that I sometimes just post a photo or a link without much info. I just get excited to share!
;p
Here is more info:
This is a cool, weird, artsy website that my fella found online and turned me on to. You upload your own photo (and it doesn't have to be a good one!), click a few buttons to make it into a piece of surreal art, which you can download,* publicly or privately.*
There is also a Mac program that does a bunch more stuff (he purchased his in a bundle so we don't know the exact price). I've had fun playing with the free online part!
*You do need to make a profile and log in to be able to do some things, I didn't play with it without a profile.

Here's the link: Deep Dream Generator
Here's my gallery: seeshellsdreams
Go have fun!

Deep Dream'ed Photo

Original Photo (for comparison, it's a crappy photo)

Also

Go play with THIS!

I'm such a NERD!

Keychain I made for Brian Posehn

Keychain in Tin

Me and my second favorite Brian

One of my favorite podcasts is Nerd Poker, hosted by one of my favorite comedians, Brian Posehn. In addition to being in a few of my all-time favorite shows, Mission Hill, The Sarah Silverman Show, and bunches of movies, he also writes comics.
I bought a couple Dead Pool issues that he and fellow Nerd Pokerian, Gerry Duggan wrote on, to have him sign.
But, I am such a Nerd that I had to make a Dangle just for him, thanks for all the laughs.

Happy President's Day!

Fun with Index Cards

I'm working on organizing with index cards for a while now, and I've recently been looking for more ways to use them. Checking around, I found something fun to try.

SNOW

Almost Finished Treasure Box

Found this in progress project while organizing recently. I'm going to have to make a section for "waiting to be finished" projects. lol
This came from a set, I think, of little paper boxes, round, square, rectangle, and this oval one. I painted, and poked holes, and strung cool beads onto the pieces.
Next step is in the thinking process. I want to secure the strings, and maybe line them, but not sure.
Oooohhh!
Just had a good idea, this one might be getting finished sooner rather than later.

Business Card Stamp

Stampin'

I thought I would make a straight stamp, and I'm glad I stopped and measured, because the letters were just a bit wider than this stamp can hold.
Serendipity again, I like it better round, but I never would have guessed.

See Shells

A few See Shells amongst the Seashells

Here's my new favorite photograph!
I wanted to update some online profile pages, and thought of this shot.

Next

Stamp kit found at the thrift store for under $3!

In thinking about what kind of a business card I might want, I knew it would need to be something different, a little weird, memorable, something to represent me, my ideas, my art, my photographs. Something that the card itself will remind you of me.
One of my favorite ideas was to use something upcycled as the card itself, and collecting old board game bits led to the idea of using board game money.
Eventually, I will have a customized rubber stamp made to look like a business card, with my blog address, and store(s), stamp it on the back of old board game money, and cute, unique business card.
But until I actually have all the addresses, and get all my stuff figured out, I'm not going to NOT hand out cards, right?
I found this rubber stamp kit at one of my favorite thrift stores for $2.98! It seems to have come from a set, everything goes together, though there was no box or instructions, and it appears to be almost complete. There are two trays with lids with two font sets, one all caps; two rounded and two rectangular stamps to put the letters in; a stamp pad and a plastic tweezers thing.
Until I get the letters sorted out and the stamp made, I've hand written a few business cards. So...
NEXT is sorting out a bunch of tiny, tiny letters. Good thing I have a good light!

Museum Pieces

Mother & Child

Family vacation in the summer of 2012 took us to the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was awesome!
Too much to see, pennies to smash, cousins to keep up with, I only had time for a few photos. Most were of this wonderful artwork.

The sign says:

Junk Art Figure of Mother & Child

Created by renowned "junk" artist Leo Sewell of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Believe It or Not!, these people are made from common kitchen utensils, plumbing supplies, auto parts, toys and rubbish.

Spoiler: I believe it.

  

"Child" has a Fisher Price mom in his face

Pinterest

Also, follow my mom's awesome board of cool ideas she finds for me:

HERE

"Alpha" Set

So here are a couple more shots of the first set of Dangles.
That's what I'm calling them so far. It's hard to explain to someone else what you're making when you don't even know what to call them. lolz
These are each individual Dangles, btw, easier to show them all together.
This is the "Alpha" experimental set, I tried three sizes; tiny (about 2-3"), small (about 5"), and ?? medium or perhaps regular size (about 8-10").
For the sake of the Alpha experiment, I made 8 'tiny's, 5 'small', and 3 'regular', just to see what lengths I like best.
A 'Dangle' is a mobile in a single strand.
A tiny Dangle might be used on your key ring, to designate your wine glass or water bottle, zipper decoration (not a zipper 'pull' per se, they are meant to be strong, but not necessarily strong enough to actually pull your zipper, just look nice), or maybe decorate your work badge.
A medium Dangle might be used as a rear-view mirror decoration, or to hang anywhere a sun catcher or mobile might be hung, the porch, the tree, the window.
And small might be either or neither. I'm still working on the sizes.
I'm also planning on making larger ones, maybe 13"?
Looking for any input. Thanks!

Show & Tell @ Work Day

Evidently it is. Happy Friday.

Beginning

991-Anipaintion Attempt

A photo from an experiment with animation and photography. And the subject matter: something personal: (the best art is, right?)
Monday after New Year's, so the first Monday of the year, (as in the 4th) would be nine hundred ninety-one days until my fifty-fifth birthday, and, being the state, possible retirement. And my dream, my goal, my wish, my "Scheme" is to use my creativity to work towards being able to retire. And to share it here with photos.

Birthday/Holiday Headband

Project about half finished.

Pipe Cleaner Chalice

Middle Drawer

Supplies Drawer

Let's see...

Back row:

Coke tin full of embroidery supplies with embroidery hoop and roll of magnet tape on top.

Clear duck tape, regular transparent tape,

Purple plastic flip organizing thingy, with washers and hook eyes, and some plastic cord,

Paper hole/gromet set (in silver box) cheap-o set of craft knives (in black plastic box), stick on googly eyes, two 'healing' mats.

Front row:

Various supplies in zippy bags; super glues, WD-40, tool sets, nail polish remover,
Various tools, pliers, hole punches, matt and craft knives, small scissors, small clamp, glue,
Pencil sharpener, round stacked container with different sizes and colors of googly eyes,
Plastic container made from bottom of juice bottle with:
Cotton balls, cotton swabs, alcohol swabs, rubber bands, screws, hooks, paper clips, fishing weights, and any other small random stuff.
Behind the back row are a few empty zippy bags in various sizes, rolled up.

Bulletin Board Update

Bulletin Board 7/28/15

Kool-Aid hair

Drawing of hair plan

Well, Kool-Aid didn't work great for my hair, mostly because I was trying colors that were too close to my own color, and my hair isn't as light as it used to be.

But this is my very artistic drawing of how I was dying my hair. No photos of the after shot, because you really couldn't' see any extra color.

Body Powder

Ingredients for body powder

Making body powder the easy way, after reading about it HERE.