Starting the New Year Early with Valentine's WIP

Not too sure where I'm going with this so far, but I love the old sand tart molds and thought it would be a great mold for a head for a doll. So, after all the chores are done I will tackle this again. The jar is much smaller than it appears. I do like that you can wrap a glass anything with polymer clay and bake it and it doesn't crack, yay!

Once There Was a Snowman.....

 A sweet vintage style snowman with enough charm to steal your heart, this little guy will be hard to part with. I guess I can always make more, right?

Hand sculpted out of paper clay, painted, sealed and antiqued, he sparkles from a coat of sparkle glaze. He may show up in my etsy shop, I've not decided yet. For now he will keep me company as inspiration for more little snowmen.

PFATT Marketplace Offerings A Sweet Snow Angel and Santa

 This sweet snow angel was created to bring a little light and cheer. Her head was hand sculpted and painted, and then she was mounted in a vintage glass light shade. She has been gussied up with pearly bead garland and fluffy feather boa with tinsel. She stands on a wood base that has been gussied up as well. You can lift her up to turn on a little tea light that is included.

This handsome santa was completely hand sculpted from polymer clay. He has loads of charm and has also been hand painted. See them both at:  PFATT Marketplace

New Santa from polymer clay, a plug for Polyform Products

Finally got my first polymer clay Santa done, and I am so thrilled with polymer clay! Super sculpey is so easy to work with, and takes paint nicely. I love, love, love it! So, if you have ever wondered if you should try polymer clay I say yes!

One Santa Blue, Two Santas Red.....

 When we lived at Fairchild AFB outside of Spokane, Washington, Mom decided to have a turquoise themed Christmas. We had just moved from Taiwan, where they had picked up furniture and drapes with teal and turquoise in them. So Mom melted down some crayons and made the prettiest turquoise candles that she topped with whipped paraffin "snow". I loved the colors we had that year, which is what inspired me to created this Santa. This Santa is made of Wallowa Lake driftwood and clay. You can find him in my etsy shop: MothersDreamRtworks

 Another driftwood Santa, sporting a wreath and cones. He is up for auction on ebay: Mothers Dream Artworks

A 5 inch gourd Santa, he is also on ebay: Mother's Dream Artworks

I hope you take a moment and stop by to see what else is available. Have a great day!

Philgrimm, Thanksgiving Pilgrim Pumpkin Man, My First Finished Polymer Clay Piece

Oh boy, a new art doll adventure and a fun one for sure. I have never really taken a good look at polymer clay, as I didn't like the baking process, but I was given some tips by some folks I met at Hallowbaloo, and found out it isn't as bad as I thought. So, I wanted to create something for Thanksgiving as I feel it's a much forgotten holiday, but one that is so important because its a time of celebrating harvest, family and our blessings from God. I hope to make some more, but am waiting on an oven here in Utah. This handsome fella is available at:    MothersDreamRtworks

PFATT Marketplace Offerings....

 Wallowa Lake bark driftwood is the inspiration for this piece. Hand sculpted features, hand painted and dusted with vintage mica "snow", this fella comes ready to hang.

Another driftwood Santa, all hand sculpted features and the same attention to details. These handsome fellas can be found at PFATT Marketplace. Thanks so much for stopping by!

And the Halloween blog Hop winner of my little gourd clown is......

I just want to say thanks to all who stopped by and left comments as well as started following me. How fun this has been! So, without further adieu,  CONGRATULATIONS FRAN CASWELL!
Now for all of you who are waiting anxiously to see if you have won, and can't wait to be notified, just go to the blog list in the Hop announcement post and start clicking. Happy winning everyone!

2nd Annual Witches of Giggleswick Halloween Blog Hop!

Welcome to the 2nd Annual
Giggleswick Halloween Blog Hop!
Beginning Sunday, Oct. 5th – Wednesday, Oct. 15th
All 21 lucky Winners will be announced
on each of the participating blog sites on Sunday, Oct. 19th!

Hi my name is Sheryl Parsons and I am the Artist here at Mother's Dream Artworks and one of the 21 Witches / Warlocks participating in the 2nd Annual Giggleswick Halloween Blog Hop.  It is a thrill to be a part of a fun and slightly wacky group of artisans who love to create holiday folk art.

Below is a picture of my Giggleswick giveaway.  It is one of my Halloween gourd folk art creations.

To be entered into the drawing you will need to hop to all 21 blogsites and do Steps 1 and 2 below. 

Step 1 - Follow this blog -- Look for the blue Google "Join this Site" link to the left of this blog page.
Step 2 - Leave a comment below this post telling me that you are a new follower or that you are already following my blog.  

PLEASE NOTE: 
To be eligible to have your name in the drawing, you need to visit all 21 blogsites, follow them through Google, and leave a comment on each site. 
If you fail to follow through on your 21 visits, your name will not count in the drawing. 
Below is the list of blogsites and links for you to follow: 

                Carly Smith                                                

Darla Walk

LeeAnn Kress
       

Debb George 

Marguerite Noschese 

   

Karen Brady Hammontree

Susie Krichbaum    

Brenda Griffith
       
Heather Millott    

Arlene Sander
       
Joyce Tenay   

 Lisa Ammerman
       
Becky McClure Federico    

Jean Wheelock
        

Chuck McClenning    

Jorge de Rojas
       
Cortney Arndt-Rector   
                                       
Patrick James Gill    

Karen Blevins  
       
Faith Conroy        

                        
                      Good Luck and Happy Haunts to You!




"Like" me on Facebook if you would - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mothers-Dream-Artworks
If you love Pinterest, follow my Pinterest Boards!  Here is the link:
 http://www.pinterest.com/mothersdreamart/
        If you have a blog, add me to your favorites list and mention this giveaway! This Giggleswick Witch (or Warlock) will be most grateful!
Thanks for stopping by and have fun!

Get Ready for Some Fun, Halloween Style!

I have been fortunate to be a part of a wonderful group of artisans, who love to share the love of Halloween! So here's a sneak preview of what is coming.... after I tell you a little about this. The blog hop starts this Sunday, October 5th and runs until Wednesday, October 15th.  The winners (and there will be 21 winners) will be announced on Sunday, October 19th!

21 CHANCES TO WIN AN ORIGINAL HALLOWEEN WORK OF ART!

21 WINNERS!!

~~~ Really ... Need I say more? ~~~

Here is a sneak peek of what is being given away!  Ohhh yeahhh!!

 

Come back to my blog on Sunday, October 5th and find out how to sign up to win!  Your chances are wickedly good! 

Halloween Extravaganza!

 Manny the Moon can be found at etsy now. Just click on my etsy link, or click here : Manny the Moon

 Harry the Hoot Owl has made his debut on ebay so click on my ebay link or try here : Harry the Hoot Owl

 VAnPire is also hanging out at etsy so try finding him here: VAnPire

And last but not least is Percy Punkinhead, also hanging with the gang at etsy: Percy Punkinhead

A Halloween Blog Sale at Mother's Dream Artworks

 PARTY MARTY

Hand carved and sculpted gourd figure. 

$175 + SH

 RUSTY PUNKIN HEAD

Hand sculpted gourd head with clay arms and legs on vintage tin. 

SOLD!

MAD MANNY THE MOON

Cannon ball gourd head on hand painted wood base. 

Head is removable to stash treats or cash or whatever your heart desires. 

$168 + SH

Each of my pieces is a one of a kind original that comes signed and dated. There is a lot of time and love that goes into each piece, so I am thrilled when they find a good home. Thank you for stopping by to take a look. 

I am happy to invoice you via Paypal and will consider other payment methods. If interested please contact me at mothersdream@mac.com

A few pieces going to Hallowbaloo....

Making Progress on WIP's for Hallowbaloo..

Finally! Wow, the internet connection here is incredibly slow! So, here's a few of my pieces for Hallowbaloo. I do commissions, and take all type of payment....lol. Seriously though, I am slowly building my inventory for the big event. Can't wait to meet all my contemporaries, and rub shoulders with some of the best creators in Halloween folk art. Oh, an FYI, these are all gourds except for the little fella in front of the guy with his hands holding his mouth wide. He will have a wire, as he is a candy cup.

SALS Challenge - Hair

 Each month for the Stansbury Art and Literary Society Meeting we have a challenge. This months challenge was HAIR.

I love Victorian Ephemera so I used this darling image to loosely paint my angel you see above her. It was so fun to see if I could pull this off in a day, I did it! I am looking forward to seeing what everyone shares.

An Autumn Abstract in the Making

Started off with gold and then orange. Now to the metallics. This will be fun!

Whoohoo! It's Time to Get Ready For Hallowbaloo!

 

Come one come all, 

We'll have a ball!

Enchanting creations 

To delight your imagination! 

 I received an exciting invitation to debut at Seattle's first Hallowbaloo show this September! Pinch me, I think I'm dreaming! Funny how retiring from working as an art teacher has given me the opportunity to say YES, to participate in a new show. I will be rubbing shoulders with some of the best Halloween folk artists, which is thrilling! More information to come as I gather my wits about me and get down to business.

Americana Santa on PFATT

Not a lot of creative writing to be found in my scrambled brain right now as I am just wrapping up my final year teaching art and trying to sort out my comings and goings this year. I will have so much more freedom to be here and there so I'm looking forward to that. My daughter and I will finally get some good time together, and our home is going to get the finishing touches so we can move in next year, yay! So here's the skinny on my newest piece, no fuss, no fancy smancy language.

 Using a beehive textile bobbin, some clay and lots of creativity I pulled this Santa together. He has moveable arms that are attached with wire, and vintage buttons to spiff up his coat.

 This Santa stands on a wooden star base, and carries a pipe cleaner wreath and bottle brush tree.

As always, he is a one of a kind original that comes signed and dated. Find him at the PFATT Marketplace. Thank you for stopping by!

My Three Entries for the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts

Calabaza de Cuero

 It's nail biting time again. Funny, I always worry about being accepted, and haven't been turned away yet, so why the nail biting? I guess it's that old lack of self confidence creeping in. Keeps me humble right? Lol.

Sunset In Sonora

 This was an interesting challenge, but a lot of fun to do. I wanted to try and use my doilies in a tree painting, and it worked, although I had another style in mind prior. What's nice is I can still try my other idea. I've learned though that joint compound does not like cold basement floors. It was a bit hard to spread, and a lot more crazing happened than I like. The paint filled most of that in luckily, and the antiquing process brought out what was left, to my advantage.

The Red Hen

Pastels and chickens, who knew that would be my new fun challenge to try?! I have a couple of other challenges in that regard, and my temptation is to blow past the sketch step and get right to it, but I think I will try and sketch out my idea first to make sure I have my light and dark areas figured out. I can do that while Kent is doing his dulcimer practice so it works for both of us.
I'd better get to finishing getting ready for work. I am introducing Mary Cassatt to my students today. It will be interesting to see how they settle in after Spring Break.

Western Style Tooled Leather Look on Carved Gourd

 Got this done finally, and it turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself. Nature Guy and I were both sweating it, as two days ago this was not looking the way I had hoped. Proof that details matter.

I had to change a plan or two, for instance, the holes around the top band of the gourd weren't doing it for me. As I was rummaging through my jewelry making stash I found some eyelets that intrigued me so I tried placing a couple in the holes and they sure made a difference so that was a nice discovery slash inspiration. I had another plan for the base of the gourd, but acrylics weren't working the way I had hoped. it's all good though as the end result turned out great as well. You can't really see it well in this photo, so when we get back from our travels I will share more photos. All in all, my art pieces for the show are going better than I hoped, whew! Are you working on anything new?

Gourd Carving... getting ready for the WVFA

 Trying out a new technique and flying by the seat of my pants so to speak. I see a new book out on gourd carving, right after I already started this...lol. Oh well, I've always wanted to try a tooled leather look on gourds, but I have another piece in mind. This may be titled "Trial Run".

I am getting close to my deadline, so I'd better get this done. So far, so good. I have a few tweaks to do before I finish the painting, but I am nervously and feverishly working to finish this and another piece before my deadline. I know, why wait to the last minute right? Well, work, and family stuff and illness and a family death put me behind big time so as usual I'm scrambling. It will all work out. In the mean time I think I'm going to order the book I saw and see what I can learn.

It's Easter Time at the PFATT Marketplace!

 One little, two little, three little bunnies,

Throw in a chick and you've sure got some honey's

 Here's where  you click, to see more about these....

PFATT Marketplace

Humpty Dumpty's PFATT Marketplace Debut Today... oh and the chicken as well...

On Humpty Dumpty I did some research, and it seems that no one really knows just how old he is! So I've decided to have a party for him as he is waaaay past due. He truly is excited as you can see, and hopes that you will throw him a party as well. Don't let the party start without him!

As for the little red hen up there, she comes with a hand painted barn wood frame and is ready to hang. For more information on both of these pieces stop by the PFATT MARKETPLACE this morning at 11AM mountain time.