The Enchanted Masquerade

Feather earrings

2011-10-07T18:15:00.001-07:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate to jump on band-wagons or "go with the crowd".
I was really interested in the feathers in the hair when I first saw Steven Tyler on American Idol sporting them last year, then 'everyone' and their dog (literally) started wearing them and I decided that I wasn't going to be a part of it.
And the feather earrings have come back around into style again...at first I resisted those, but I've been seeing some 'really' gorgeous one of late. While in Estes Park last month I saw some BEAUTIFUL pairs, but they wanted $35 to $50 -'after' the sale markdown. Fuck that, I can make these myself.

So, now I am. Yes, I have joined a band-wagon, I do realize...but right now I don't care. These are fun to make and I'm enjoying myself. I also enjoying wearing them.:)
I don't have access to a huge selection of exotic feathers, but I'm doing my best with what I've got.

So here are pics. of my first two pairs of handmade feather earrings:

close-up of the 'jewelry':

And I made these in the same night:

Close-up:

I have an idea for some red-toned earrings next. I have some dyed rooster tail and pheasant feathers sitting around along with several different shades of dyed duck feathers. Today I bought some more feathers off of ebay, and just a little while ago I stopped in a bead store downtown and picked up some more cones for the tips, and some AWESOME iridescent green beetle shell wings to add to some pairs here and there.

Even if I don't sell any, just wear them myself...I'm having a good time.:) It is a pain making them, but it's just getting the hang of it that can be 'trying'...and I've learned a few things here and there through trial and error with my first two pairs, so that helps.:)

Looking around on etsy.com at the feather earrings there, I'm inspired...wish I could find more feathers...I'm thinking of hitting up some fishing stores soon for feathers they sell for fishing lores, perhaps I could re-purpose them for my jewelry and masks.:)
I don't know if this is a good price-point or not...it seems to be about average for the size and amount of feathers + jewelry I've got, but how does $25 sound?

Thoughts?

Steampunk, perhaps?

2011-04-20T13:21:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, my user acct. on the shared computer I am currently using was hit with a nasty virus recently (it's now been cleansed) and destroyed all the WIP pics. I had saved on my computer of my latest mask projects. :(
-Thankfully, I had already uploaded a couple to my DeviantArt acct.: http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com -you can check the WIP folder in my Gallery for the latest WIP photos. Soon I'll get around to posting them in here, but for now...a text update:

I am currently working on 3 mask projects. Each is another bird mask.
2 of these will be for sale once they are finished and have been photographed to my liking.
-1 mask will be another Phoenix, the 2nd an "Enchanted Phoenix" -this one has been tumbling around in my gray-matter for a number of years now. It's going to be a bit larger and more ornate than my usual Phoenix masks...more jewels, feather styling, etc. I'm not sure yet whether I'll keep this one or sell it, we'll see.
And lastly...the 3rd mask will be a bird but with a Steampunk theme to it.

The Steampunk bird mask:
-I've picked up bronze colored acrylic paints for the feathers and I might dry-brush parts of it with dark brown or black for an aged look, not sure yet on that, though... I want to give an effect like it's made of metal, so there will be 'seams' where the 'metal' is fitted together with little gold studs as the nail-heads.
I'm trying to do a 'hammered metal' affect in the clay, but with the characteristics of the clay as it dries...I'm not having the greatest of luck with that so far. It seems to have taken somewhat with the beak, though.:)
-I've been trying to figure out which metal-accent color I want for the beak.... I've got liquid metal gold, silver, and copper....I'm hopping back and forth between the copper and the silver on the beak against the bronze of the feathers. I'd do some kind of dry-brush black effect over the beak to 'hopefully' better bring out the hammered metal effect in the clay.

I wish I could say I had some cool metal accents to add to this piece, but as this is my first attempt at the Steampunk style, I'm going to start off rather simple with this design.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks!

Professional On-line Portfolio...

2011-04-09T16:40:00.000-07:00

I have just created a Professional On-line Portfolio through DeviantArt.com

http://meganajohnson.daportfolio.com/

-While it is not yet completed, please view it and leave me a comment on your opinion of it.

Thanks!:)

New Orchid Garland and Goblin mask sculpt...

2011-03-16T17:08:00.001-07:00

Been working on another floral garland and so far I'm nearly half-way done with it. I started it and then kind of just put it up and stopped working on it...bad me, I know. ;)
And I'm working on another Goblin mask sculpt...unfortunately, I'm thinking that the styrofoam head I'm using as the base is the wrong size/shape to get the same look as the original one had.

and the Goblin Sculpt(original:

Any thoughts?

Flower Garlands

2011-02-06T19:09:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, I'm not dead..yet.;D Still haven't done anything with my masks, though I'm building up to it...slowly.

I 'have', on the other hand, started working on some ideas I've gotten for flower garlands which could be worn to Renaissance Faires. I've made two so far and have some ideas for others. I've put these two up on my Etsy.com shop to see how they do. If they do well then I'll make some more. If not...well, maybe later on in the future I'll try to make some more..we'll see.

I've never worn a garland to a Faire before, but I'm considering wearing the Autumn one to the up-coming Colorado Ren. Faire this summer. Not sure if it's for me or not, if I like it I may make some more for myself.

So here's what I've been up to:

"Rose Red Garland":
Front:

Side:

Back:

Modeled by Me:

And the 2nd one I recently made:

"The Autumn Renaissance":

Front:

Side:

Back:

Modeled by Me:

I've posted both of these up for sale in my Etsy.com shop, here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Sphinx

What'cha think?

Some mask-related stuff

2010-02-28T13:53:00.000-08:00

Just some stuff for me to refer to at a later date...interesting read for mask-makers out there:

Goblin Art
-Check under the Resources section for tutorials and recipes on how to do molds and the like.

Interesting article on leather mask-making:
http://www.csu.edu.au/faculty/arts/commun/cycle/mask/

Merimask's tutorial on mask making: http://merimask.deviantart.com/journal/22959138/

Acrylic Ink site, read it's good to use on masks for cool effects:
http://www.dickblick.com/products/daler-rowney-fw-acrylic-water-resistant-artists-ink/

A mask maker's guide book that I very much want to get some day soon:
"The Masks' of Prof. Agostino Dessi" by Agostino Dessi and Jenny Stewart on Amazon.com

Art that is inspiring to me...dolls #3

2010-02-28T12:54:00.000-08:00

Not only am I a mask artist, but I'm also interested in hand-made, fine art dolls. So I have a few artists I like to watch for this reason.

One in particular, she's always coming up with different subjects to create her dolls around from fantasy with Fairys to mythology, to masquerade and steampunk, etc. It's always a treat to see what this amazing artist comes up with.:)

"Cinderella Tea Cup Faery" by wingdthing on Deviantart.com

Click on photo to go to site.

More dolls...

Click on photo to go to site.

"Glamorous Tinkerbell" by wingdthing

Click on photo to go to site.

"Phedre no Delaunay" by wingdthing

Click on photo to go to site.

"Steampunk Angel -Sky Ranger" by windgthing

Click on photo to go to site.

"Valkyrie" by wingdthing

Click on image to go to site.

Check her out!

~Sphinx,
http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com

Art that is inspiring to me...dolls #2

2010-02-28T12:49:00.000-08:00

I'm working on trying to find out how to do a sort of cut with these posts so that you have the option to click on a link to see more of this post rather than all of it at once.
Please bear with me...

So, I've got a couple more artists and their work I'd like to share with you all. These are also fine-art doll makers whom I greatly admire the work of:
First up:
One of my very favorite artists, whom I've enjoyed the works of online for a couple of years now...

"Forest Rogers"
-click on the name to go directly to this artist's website, please.

"Flidais":

-please click on the images to go to the image page on the artist's website.

"Eros":

-The Eros Gallery page: http://forestbeings.squarespace.com/galleries/eros-gallery/

"Mushroom Faery":

"Sea Maid's Music":

Next up:

Marina Bychkova:
These are some beautifully made and anatomically correct ball-jointed dolls.
This artist not only makes each doll by hand, not sure about the use of molds or no, but I assume yes. She also hand makes the costumes and wigs, casting every little metal accessory down to tiny little silver shoes. Amazing attention to detail!

"Kia -The Water Nymph"

-click on image to go to the DA listing.

"Cinderella":

"Cixi, the Young Empress":

"Holding a butterfly":

Be sure to check these artists out!:)

~Sphinx
http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com

Art that is inspiring to me...

2010-02-28T11:22:00.000-08:00

An artist I really enjoy watching the work of, and have subscribed to her mailing list:
Goddess Dreams
One of a kind Fantasy dolls
-by Aidamaris Roman

Recently Ball Jointed Doll's, BJD's, have become quite popular among doll collectors and doll makers alike, a new up-rise from out of Japan and their manga-infused culture.

"Baroque Mermaid" #512

-Click on image to see more views of it.

Here she is on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120537196837&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT

-Unfortunately, since these last three images are so large, they are getting cut off by the blog site, I don't know how to fix that. I apologize.
If anyone has any suggestions, I'm all ears.:)

Well, that's one for now.

~Sphinx,
http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com

Nail supplies for art uses?

2009-12-02T21:14:00.000-08:00

As a woman, I am really into nail polish right now and that means I tend to search all around looking at a variety of different brands, colors, effects, and even cosmetic blogs centering mainly, if not entirely, around nail polishes.
As an artist, I am ALWAYS keeping an eye open for possible materials and new uses.

Well, I've recently taken a big interest in the Nfu Oh nailpolish brand which, unfortunately, aren't readily available outside of Asia and New Zealand. While searching through the Nfu Oh website I came across a variety of nail supplies that I think could possibly work great for artists who like to do a lot of textured and layered work from mask making to scrap booking to doll making and even costuming and jewelry.

Here's the English version of the NfuOh website: http://www.nfuoh.com/english/
Here's their blog, which also features video tutorials: http://nfuoh.blogspot.com/

What grabbed my attention MAINLY are the 'Luxury Opal Glitters' -these are irregular shaped flakes of iridescent and metallic glitter material. To me, it looks a lot like cellophane, but as I've never dealt with it in person, I've no idea of how hard or thick it actually is.

- http://www.nfuoh.com/english/sub5/sub5_1.asp?cid=22

-I don't see why this material couldn't be replicated by cutting iridescent/colored cellophane into tiny little shards like these are shaped.

They also offer up what appears to be tiny, crushed up, color opal pieces:
http://www.nfuoh.com/english/sub5/sub5_1.asp?cid=21

They offer up a great selection of materials in a variety of colors and styles that I think could be used for things other than nails, too.

Here's a video or two from their nail blog to illustrate my point:

While watching this video I kept thinking that the material this artist is using to create the 3D flower petals, as well as the nail extension itself, would be great for artist's working on handmade/sculpted dolls, as well as a variety of other arists. I don't know anything about this material so I don't know how well it adheres to other clays or how durable it is, but if you can wear it on your hands for any length of time, it's got to be somewhat durable. I'm honestly considering it and the above mentioned materials as possible embellishment tools for my own art-work:

What are your thoughts?

"Creatures from El"

2009-11-19T22:20:00.000-08:00

I want to introduce you to an artist whom I greatly admire the work of:

Her LiveJournal blog: http://creaturesfromel.livejournal.com/

"Lyre Creature with Lanterns":

DA: http://creaturesfromel.deviantart.com/art/Lyre-Creature-with-Lanterns-144041888
LJ: http://creaturesfromel.livejournal.com/107839.html

"Sun Quetz":

DA: http://creaturesfromel.deviantart.com/art/Sun-Quetz-144043245

"Horned Red Wing Dragon":

LJ: http://creaturesfromel.livejournal.com/105913.html

If you haven't seen her amazing work before, definitely check her out! She also sells her pieces through her LJ blog and the pieces look to be reasonably priced, which is always nice.:D

Blogging question

2009-11-06T18:47:00.000-08:00

I'm still really new to blogging and this site, soo...

Is there a way that I can reply directly to your comments and you get alerts that I've replied and vice-versa?

Also, is there a way to hide part of my post so that you have to click on a link to see the rest...like an lj-cut on LiveJournal.com? I feel like some of my posts have gotten, and will get, a bit long and I'm not sure if that's an issue for my viewers or not.

Also, can I set my blog up in such a way that I get e-mail alerts when you guys comment on a post?
-As it is, I'm backtracking through all of my posts making sure I've not missed a comment or question somewhere every time I come over here and check in.

Thanks!:)

Leather mask tutorial on YouTube

2009-11-01T03:41:00.000-08:00

I'm interested in trying out leather mask-making at some point in the future, so here is a tutorial I just found on YouTube.com:

Part I:

Part II:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1j8Bx22YxA
Part III:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8CwuZR9XUs
Part IV:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgVXxsyaYSE
Final part: airbrushing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Dg2bEWfQ7E

ExpertVillage on YouTube has quite a few video tutorials on various leather work techniques from tanning to tooling:

If you like TigerTorres leather masks, then check out her "Crafters Coast-to-Coast" segment on HGTV:

As a mask-artist I'm also very interested in sculpture and learning how to sculpt better, as well as learning about different types of clays and which are best for certain sculpting styles and your intended uses of the finish sculpt.

So, here is a very neat sculpting demo:

If you know of any good leather molding tutorials, please post the links to them.

Thanks!:)

Words of Wisdom from the mouths of starving artists...

2009-11-01T01:30:00.000-07:00

I'm reposting some posts written by other artists because I totally agree with what they have to say.
-This is not aimed at one person in particular and so far, thankfully, I have not had a customer try to belittle my art and effort by asking that I drastically lower my prices. Though I have had a few people ask me 'how' I make my masks...which can 'sometimes' be insulting, honestly. :/

"I'd like to share with you an ancient piece of wisdom that I learned some time ago, when I was just a wee small brain in a wee small jar.

When you do creative work for others, it's good to make sure the people you undertake the work for understand this mystic triangle:

Good.

Fast.

Cheap.

Write these down on a piece of paper. Carve them into stone if you must. Chant them repetitiously as you spatter the blood of a freshly slaughtered chicken about your body. I really don't care. Just make sure these three ideas are burned into your memory.

Now here's the trick - when you're creating art for somebody else, they are only ever reasonably entitled to expect you to provide a combination of any TWO of these three. The third, whatever it is, gets lobbed out of the nearest open window.

You can work fast, and cheap, but the work won't necessarily be any good.

You can produce good work cheap, but nobody better expect you to be fast about it.

And you can maybe - just maybe - work good AND fast. But NOBODY had better expect that to come cheap!

This is fact. Here endeth the lesson."
-Original source: http://hde2009.deviantart.com/journal/27390342

And...
"Once again I must remind people about the business of fashion.

Designers such as myself put a lot of time and effort into what we do. We go to school for years to study how to make patterns and how things are sewn, as well as how to design garments. It's a lot of time, money, sweat and tears. We fight for jobs because they are so few.

When we do things, it's not because we're bored soccer moms puttering around Joanne's looking for a fleece no-sew project. It's because it's how we live. We design things, we sew things, we SELL things. When people BUY things, we make money. That money PAYS OUR BILLS AND PUTS FOOD ON OUR TABLES. I'm sure the concept is hard to grasp, but just pretend.

When someone asks me, or any other designer, how to do something, for a copy of the patterns, for a tutorial if we haven't already posted one, or worse, if you can knock it off, it's insulting and it's also robbery. If I give it to you for free, then how can I justify asking anyone to buy my products?

Do myself and other designers a favor and buy our products. Don't even ask about getting stuff for free, how to do things, or for patterns. Or, get $60,000 to $100,000 and go to design college and maybe then you can understand what we go through when you ask us these things."
-Original source: http://dedredhed.deviantart.com/journal/28020285/#comments

EVERY artist feels this way, including Me.

Up-coming project...

2009-10-31T01:17:00.000-07:00

First, Happy Halloween/Samhain!!!!!!!!!!

*Image credit: http://www.sedonamagick.com/SAMHAIN.html

Yesterday (Friday) my customer received her Peacock mask in the mail and sent me a message thanking me and she sounded SOO excited. That made me quite happy -that my work/art is appreciated and even adored by a complete stranger.:D
I was so happy that she was so excited over it and I can't wait to see any pics. she sends me of herself adorned with her new mask at her Masqueradeball event.
I 'always' enjoy seeing photos of my customers wearing/enjoying their masks.:D

Now...as I've still got my mask-making supplies spread out in the livingroom (I like to work in front of the tv), I'm seriously giving some thought to creating my 2nd ever Fairy mask...the Autumn Fairy. I've got some gorgeous bronze and orange paints, velvet-textured fabric fall leaves, some lovely orangey/brown/red feathers, and I recently picked up some dried flowers called "Desert Rose". I'm going to let my wheels spin a little further on this one and consult notes I made back last year for this mask....see if I want to go with any earlier ideas or come up with some new ones.

Ultimately, I'd love to get some of those dried water lily seed pods, but really small, to use as decoration for my Autumn Fairy mask, but unfortunately...I can't seem to find any small enough.:/

Water Lily seed pods:

For those of you new to my blog and my art-work, here is the Fairy mask I made back in 2007:

*My DA gallery: http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com

The up-coming Autumn Fairy mask will be similar in shape and size, but I want to try out a new idea for the wings. I like the horns very much on my last Fairy mask, so I'm going to keep to the theme with this one, too.:D

I'm thinking of either going with a moth-wing 'look' or doing an iridescent film 'look' and painting some designs over top. I've thought about trying my hand at paper wings similar to those of Renae Taylor @ www.renaetaylor.com -gorgeous work!
But, I'm not really sure how to go about that or what paper is best to use. I may still give it a try though some time...we'll see.:D

I'm trying to get myself into the habit of posting my mask/art related thoughts, as well as art/craft items I find out about, on a regular basis. Give you some insight into my mind when it comes to art.

Hope you enjoy!:)

Peacock mask Commission Completed

2009-10-29T17:21:00.000-07:00

I finished the Peacock mask commission very early this morning -another all nighter *yawns*, and mailed it out this afternoon.

Unfortunately, I was in a rush and wasn't able to get any fantastic photos of it, so I did the best I could with what I had to work with.
(At some point I want to set up a mini photo-studio in a corner of my craft room...once I get that set-up, that is.)

Here's the finished mask:

With flash: -only photo taken w/ the flash...

Right side with ornate handle:

Left side:

Up-close detail of the beak area:

Me modeling the mask:

Instead of ribbons coming down from the sides of the mask as I usually do for handle-masks, I went with Peacock sword feathers and three little black feather thingies on each side.

I attached little dk. blue gems to the points of various feather tips, as well as some gold/copper gems to the beak, and gold gems at the centers of the various spiral accents around the mask.

Hopefully the customer will send me a photo or two of herself wearing the mask soon that I can post here.:D *fingers crossed*

Quick tip...

2009-10-28T22:12:00.000-07:00

Alright, so I just learned why liquid gold leaf is stored in thick glass jars....'cause it melts plastic. Seriously.:/

I've had this jar of liquid gold leaf for about two years now and have only used it a few times. When I tried to open it lastnight I couldn't get the tin lid off. So I've surmised that I must have gotten some of the gold leaf onto the threading of either the glass jar or the lid and once the lid was screwed shut, it dried solid. So, I ended up having to have a hole punched into the lid just to get at the product inside. In an attempt to save as much of the product as I could, I stored the rest in three little plastic bead storage jars and proceeded to work from the jar with the least amount of product in it. I left them sitting on my wood floor with lids tightly screwed on, lastnight.
Just picked up the little jar with the least amount in it to find that the plastic bottom had completely melted away and the gold leaf had gunked to the wood flooring -crap, right? Oh yea! ;/

I'm going to try to use nail polish remover with acetone in it to remove it from the floor, but I'm concerned about the possibility of any noxious/toxic fumes from the colliding of two powerful chemicals. As it is, you're not supposed to inhale too much of the liquid gold leaf fumes, it's dangerous and highly toxic.

After this mask is done and I'm finished using the gold leaf for this project, I'm tossing those two jars before they completely melt and make a mess, too.

I'll definitely be picking up another jar of liquid gold leafing as it's got a gorgeous and rich finish to it and it's so much faster, cleaner, and easier for me to use than gold leaf foil, but next time I'll be more careful about getting the liquid in the threading.

Hope this is useful info. for someone and if you know how to get liquid gold leaf out of wood, please speak up!

~Sphinx

Mask ramblings..

2009-10-28T07:03:00.000-07:00

So far, this Peacock mask is turning out to be one of my favorites. I've done a couple of things differently with this mask than I did with my first Peacock mask and I'm really liking it.:)

I'm starting to feel like I should make myself one.:D

Yes, I do not have any bird masks of my own. The only mask that I've kept for myself is the Amethyst Fairy mask I made last year. I've got some of my older paper masks still, but I've only still got them because no one has bought them, yet.

I've got plans to eventually make a very ornate and some-what large Phoenix mask for myself and at some point I also want to make a white/gold bird mask. Every time I've made one of these bird masks and it's all white with only the gold accents painted, I can't help but think how nice it would look to just leave it be like that.

I'll have more photos up either later today or tomorrow after I mail the mask out.

Peacock mask Commission WIP IV

2009-10-28T06:38:00.000-07:00

At this stage I've painted the mask several shades of a solid blue first and then from there I started in on the details of the eyes of the peacock feathers.

By this point I've added another layer or two of a sealant over the paint job.

A view of the very top of the mask, just the tips:

This is the backside of the mask after I attached the handle.

The handle will be decorated and painted and the backside of the mask will be covered in a decorative brocade fabric with a braided trim. I will also be adding peacock tail and sword feathers, as well as gems.

Peacock mask Commission WIP III

2009-10-28T05:56:00.000-07:00

At this stage I've used a sealant on the clay and then a primer over that. Liquid gold leaf as accents:

Peacock mask Commission WIP II

2009-10-28T05:51:00.000-07:00

It's definitely coming along...

More coming up in just a little bit...

Business Cards

2009-10-21T02:36:00.000-07:00

I recently discovered this business card company through another blogger and I'm really wanting to order some of these for my masks at some point.
I can see having each of my clay masks printed onto these awesome, glossy-looking cards and leaving them in book stores, coffee shops, art studios, etc., as well as sending two or three out with each of my sold masks. One for the customer to keep and two to pass out to friends.:)

http://us.moo.com/en/

I can't wait to try these out some time!

Have any of you purchased through this company before, and if so -how was your experience and what is your opinion of the quality of the product for the price you paid?

Peacock mask Commission WIP

2009-10-21T02:21:00.000-07:00

I'm currently working on a Halloween-commission for a Peacock mask.

As each of my masks is hand-sculpted, each one is totally unique. I'm adding a few little embellishments that I hope the customer will like, but overall, it's going to look alot like the first Peacock mask I made.:)

Here are my beginning WIP photos. I've got some more that I'll be uploading soon, too.

Here is how it looks after I've removed it from it's base and cleaned up the edges a bit:

I've added the beak and some detailing at the bottom edge:

And the beginning stages of the feathers:

I'm going to be adding Peacock tail feathers and hopefully some other blue or green feathers soon, as well as faceted gems around the base of the beak.

Before I'm completely finished I'm considering adding on some eyelids...at least top lids, anyway.

Will update again soon.:)

Introduction Post

2009-10-11T14:42:00.000-07:00

I have my old mask-making journal on LiveJournal.com here: http://enchantedmasque.livejournal.com/

My DA gallery: http://EMasqueradeGallery.deviantart.com

I'll be using this blog to show my new mask creations, share the Work-In-Progress (WIP) photos, some descriptions, maybe a tutorial or two, new materials I've discovered or have read/heard about, and also to talk about other artists I admire and am inspired by.

I currently have a commission going for a sculpted Peacock fantasy mask and so will be posting about that shortly.

I'm very new to Blogspot and this is my very first 'blog', so I'll be feeling it out as I go along. Please bear with me.

Thank you.:)

~Sphinx
of
The Enchanted Masquerade