This is something I've taken in order to kickstart my creative juices, wake up my lazy muse, and start to feel like I'm accomplishing something.
The pledge is to produce, or do, something creative everyday over the Easter holidays.
I started yesterday with making a little ATC artcard. I don't particularly like it, but that isn't the objective here.
Today, I've made some 'Snap' cards with my son, and began designing another ATC, this time I'll be cross-stitching one as I have oodles of fabric that's just sitting about doing nothing!
It feels good to be using my creative brain again :D
I thought I'd better post something else, just incase you'd all gone to bleach your eyeballs after seeing the Butt-Ugly Bloke soap I posted about a little earlier!
So here is a visual feast of foot scrubby goodness containing bentonite clay, walnut oil, sea salt, pappermint leaves, beeswax and lavender and peppermint essential oils. It's dreamy to use, and smells divine. Yum!
That is, the soap is ugly, it's not meant for Butt-Ugly blokes *giggle*
The good news is, I successfully produced a batch of hot process soap.
The bad news is, damn that soap is U-G-L-Y!!
I used green tea as my liquid, and because I'm stoopid, I forgot that it would render the resultant soap a very dark shade of brown. I also used chromium green iron oxide powder, and, again, because I'm STOOPID, used too much *slaps self*.
The scent is very manly........sweet fennel with lime, and a touch of may chang.
It is very definitely Bloke soap. Green and brown Bloke soap. Pfft!
I haven't any pictures of the soap in it's cut state, but DO have some of the process, and the soap hibernating in it's mould.
I sprinkled the top with crushed fennel seeds, just to add to it's already aesthetically challenged appearance.
I'll add cut pictures tomorrow, when I've got over the trauma of producing such horrific soap! lol
There's something to be said for covering yourself in something delicious knowing that you've made it yourself. A sense of achievement, of pride. Well, this body butter is MY something delicious, and I am so so so happy with it.
Usually shea butter behaves badly and goes all grainy and unco-operative on me, so instead of heating it and holding at that state for around 20 minutes, I heated up, using the bain marie method, my other oils and butters(walnut and chia seed oils, and avocado butter) until the avocado butter had melted, then added my shea and used the heat of the other oils to melt it.
I have to say that the resultant butter is utterly glorious. It's light and fluffy, the shea hasn't(touches wood) gone grainy, and it smells divine. I scented it with lavender and cedarwood essential oils and oh my, sensory heaven.
Here is my little pot of wondrous, whipped delight.
My latest adventures in soap making have not been worthy of recording in print, and the only reason this latest batch is being blogged about it because I felt I needed to have something to show as
I'm far too embarrassed to post pictures of the croap I've made on the last two occasions! Having become somewhat frustrated by soap making I had to try to salvage something from the failed batch, so incorporated the grated croap, (below), into this batch. It was meant to be a shampoo bar made using the hot process method....PAH!
I had failed miserably at my first attempt at the hot process method(honestly, how hard could it be?), being a die hard cold process gal, and because I'm stubborn to the core I decided that I NEEDED to atleast try to save face and produce something worthy of being called soap!
I'd received through the post the Blue Azulene colour I'd bought from Aromantic and decided to use that to colour a portion of batch. I also added a touch of Blackstar Red mica, something else that is new to me.
Ofcourse, as was befitting the theme of the last week, the batch seized on me, and I didn't have the opportunity to scent it(shame, as I love the lavender/peppermint combo I'd planned), but I was happy with the save, and glad that I hadn't totally lost the plot where soapmaking was concerned! The coloured portion ended up a granite grey, which isn't unpleasant. I'm just dying to find out how the Azulene colour behaves on it's own, so as soon as I find my notes on ocean type scent combinations using essential oils I'll (hopefully) have a new batch to show :)
Courtesy of Deviant Art, I have the following prints for sale.
I occasionally delve into the world of photomanipulation, although i don't pretend to be anything other than a rank amateur! It's a medium I hope to develope further, although watercolour is where my main interests lie.
As I didn't actually get round to doing any sketching yesterday(a fact I plan to remedy today!), I thought I'd post an old sketch from last year. It was only a quick flick of the pencil over the page, but I'm happy with it :-)
I've woken up this morning totally inspired and itching to start sketching again. The last piece I began is still sitting, unfinished, on a large piece of paper somewhere. Unfortunately I haven't a clue as to where said piece of paper is, whihc is frustrating to say the least. I can, however, sketch out some ideas for inclusion in the aforementioned piece, so today will be spent with pencil in hand, downing copious amounts of tea, and quite possibly rather alot of head scratching and swearing!
So, now I've come to posting this introduction to my blog, I'm suddenly lost for words. The problem lies with trying to describe who, or rather what, I am. Am I an artist who makes soap, or a soaper with artistic ambitions? I suppose I am a bit of both. Painting is something I love, something I dream about, something I wish I was better at. Making soap is something I love, something that keeps me busy when my artistic muse is taking a break, something that still allows me to be creative when I get the jitters looking at a blank piece of paper and am too scared to proceed.
I haven't painted anything for almost 2 years, and getting back in the saddle is proving to be a challenge.
I last made a batch of soap a few days ago, and am already thinking about what I can do to improve my recipe, improve the finished article, make it better.
There are parallels there.
So, until I decide what, and who, I am, I'll describe myself as The Arty Soaper, and take it from there.
