Digital dump.
Prior projects from Caboodle Doodle.
(Photos to come)
Clay time.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on AUGUST 31, 2015
Face building
I thought it would be cool to recreate some of my drawings as clay works, aiming to make some wearable art. My problem at the moment is sizing; I’m trying to create a successful translation of brush strokes – clay lines, whilst also still keeping it small enough to be worn comfortably.
Ready to bake.
I was hoping that by creating an outline first, that it would be quick to fill in the gaps…. I was wrong. Aiming for a ‘Van Gogh’ inspired style took time, especially since I wanted to be quite meticulous with the line work. I attempted to create texture in the face with line and shape, which I feel came across, although next time I would like to include other colour tones for emphasis.
Basic face.
Although it was time consuming, the whole process was rather cathartic; terrible for my posture, but relaxing nonetheless. My biggest problem really is the size and the issues that come along side with that. They are not heavy, but due to the technique used (lots and lots of lines), the creation has an undesirable amount of flexibility in it. So I need to work on making smaller, sturdier faces, while still keeping the level of detail and shape.
Filling in the gaps…
The end result is just over 15cm in length, so I am hoping to achieve a more wearable size in the next few trials…..
Slowly but Slothly.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JULY 30, 2015
Sloths. I love them. How much more awesome can you get? They live the most chilled life ever, hang out all day and potentially have the answer to the worlds’ antibiotic problems… (http://motherboard.vice.com/read/how-sloth-fur-is-going-to-revolutionize-medicine)
Recently, a new art supplies shop opened down the road….. And I got a tax return. Those two factors combined = overspending on supplies that I didn’t know that I needed! My mum had Fimo when we were kids and this new place had a MASSIVE range of colours (and glittery goodness) which just screamed out to my inner child. So I grabbed every colour in the rainbow, spent far too much money (single items seemed so cheap!), got home and…… didn’t know what to do.
Original childhood work. Courtesy of Mum.
I recall making a pretty kick-ass snake when I was little, so I felt like I could handle the classic coil shape as a starting point. In case you have looked at some of my other posts, you make have noticed that I like colour. A lot. So the most logical thing to make with a coil shape and a myriad of colours is a rainbow!
Making a rainbow connection.
Smashed out a couple of rainbows and I was feeling somewhat confident. I try to encourage my students every day to experiment and try new things, even when it is the unknown and can be slightly daunting. It is always easier to hand out the advice, rather than take it, but this is what I attempted to do with a clay Sloth creation.
Oven ready.
Time to combine two loves, to equal an even greater love.
Rainbow+sloth= ❤Wearable love.Take Two: Sloth+Rainbows+Clouds+BananaHanging on.
Rug life.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JULY 20, 2015
I didn’t chose the rug life, the rug life chose me. A modern interpretation of Tupac’s infamous line, that wonderfully lends itself to all kinds of occasions and puns.
Re-loved Rag Rug.
A little while ago, I had a attempt at making my first crochet rug. It was a journey of trial and error, but one that I really enjoyed… so why not have another go? I’ve been pondering what sort of things I could make, that others would like to buy. I found myself staring at my rug for an age and just thought the answer was staring right back at me. First things first, materials.
Cutting linen
Tip shops. Op Shops. Friends cupboards and washing baskets. These are the three best places to find old linen, as far as I am concerned. Recycling is always a good thing and you are guaranteed a good price for a decent amount of fabric if you pick up old sheets from these places
My lovely assistant: ripping up a flat sheet for fun!
I love pillowcases and doonas because they are super easy to cut into one single strand of yarn. Flat sheets also work well, but with any of the options, it is all about making the right cut. If you don’t, then it is not the end of the world; it just means you will spend a bit more time tying together the ends of yarn to make one whole piece.
Protective Mask. A must when ripping old linen. Serial Killer look is an added bonus.
Discovered pretty quickly that a mask is a MUST when cutting/ripping old linen. Especially if it has been around for awhile, the older thread can quite susceptible to fracturing into a million tiny bits, all of which love to float into your lungs when you take that next breath.
“Helping”
I looked up a few tutorials of how to cut sheets and just applied the same principles for cutting old t-shirts, on to the linen. Here’s a link to the clip I learnt from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4ZUSvfYWiA. For the flat sheet, you can just cut and rip into strips (making sure you stop before the edge), cut and repeat. It is possible to make all of the cuts first, but it takes a little practice, so I would recommend the cut/strip method to begin.
Lay it out. Cut it up. Put it down.
Always recommend to roll up your yarn into a ball as soon as you have cut it, otherwise you could end up with a tangled mess. If you roll from the last bit that you cut, it should be a simple task each time (note: should, not WILL!)
Organising yarn.
I applied the same tactic to each rug. Try to keep it in a circle! When you are working with different widths, textures and lengths, it can be a bit tricky to keep up consistency. There were moments of frustration, deliberation and exasperation; rugs were made and then ripped to pieces because of the lack of symmetry….
Almost finished products.
Practice definitely helped and while perfection was not achieved, I’m still happy with the results. I tried to make with others in mind (i.e not picking colours just because I like them!) so hopefully someone else will be happy also…
Cat on mat.
Pom-pom 💜
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 14, 2015
Have you ever stood on a rug made of pom-poms? Not only does it look pretty damn funky, but it also feels like you’re treading on a soft, rainbow marshmallow. My first attempt was literally working with scraps and it was a bit of a similar effort. Scrappy, that is. Aesthetically, it looked great, but it lacked the softness and comfort of an awesome rug. I quickly found out that you must be generous with your poms, squish as many in as possible!
Ready to roll up
You can rock out a rug with very little equipment. Yarn+ rubber mat=rug. I’ve used ends of yarn and picked up some extra cheap balls from the local craft shop. I was lucky enough to find some rubber mesh at tip shop for my first rug and then located a local rubber supplier who could help out on a larger scale.
Using high-tech, modern equipment, is always essential. If you don’t have that, you can always use a cup and a scarf…
First off, I used the highly technical ‘cup’ technique for creating pom-poms. Wrap it round and round until you’ve got a decent amount of yarn built up, slide it off and tie it up! I actually bought a little pom-pom maker to assist with the construction, as I thought it would be a time-saver….. it wasn’t.
Spooled and tied up. Almost an official pom-pom.
I’ve been using a contrasting yarn to tie up the poms, to help out with the next step.
Ready to cut.
Once you have around 100 decent sized pom-poms, cut out your rug shape from the rubber. You’ll be using the long contrasting yarn to attach the poms to the mat. It’s as simple as threading through the rubber mesh and finishing off with a double/triple knot to fix them into place.
Threading through.
I’m still working out the kinks. Instead of working from the outside-in, I’ve found it is a lot easier to start in the middle and work out, to make sure that there aren’t any noticeable gaps between the pom-poms (you lose the comfy feeling if you can feel the gaps/knots) and to try to get a balance of colours across the mat.
Working from the inside-out.Under shot.
It’s still a work in progress, but the cat is happy with the results so far…
Busted, nestling into the rugs I hid from him.
Candle Composition
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 11, 2015
There’s nothing quite like the glow of candle light. There is also nothing quite like the outrageous cost of a pretty candle, which I am getting a bit sick of paying. Figured it couldn’t be too hard to make your own and luckily my partner was also curious, so I had a project buddy!
I’ve been keeping old ends of candles, as well as the glass jars, etc, that they come in. Sourced out a local shop to help out with the other ingredients (more wax, wick and sweet smelling fragrances), and picked up an old, sturdy metal saucepan from the op-shop.
Set-up. Glass jar, check. Wick stuck down with blu-tak, check. Precariously taped wick on bamboo stick, check. Plastic plate underneath for inevitable spillage, check.
The process was simple. Chop up the old candles (or not, it will just take longer for all of the wax to melt) and put them into the saucepan. Melt the wax over a low heat until it is all one lovely liquid.
Chopped Candles.
The saucepan had a few adjustments made to it, to help with the pour. We tried to hammer a dent into the edge, but to no avail. In the end, I used blu-tak to make a lip, although in hindsight, probably should have used plasticine or something similar for a more effective seal.
Add some smells if you want and pour the melted wax into a prepared container.
Pouring into the set-up.
Leave to set and then light that beauty up! I added a few bits of glitter on top, just to give it a touch more pizzaz.
The end result.
Yarn Owl
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 11, 2015
I have to stop looking for ideas on the internet. At the very least, I need to stop coming across new ideas before I finish off the older projects. At the moment, my project board is a bit overwhelming, so I have been attempting to knock some things off the list.
Project board.
Ages ago, I saw the idea for an owl basket and I decided that it was the perfect task for a long weekend. Currently, there are several boxes under my work desk. They are all full of materials for use and the boxes are handy, but not necessarily ‘jazzy’, so time for an upgrade.
Under desk mess.
I used the yarn ends of past projects, took a look at the inspiration photo and got underway. One of these days, I will look at a pattern, take the time to understand and apply the steps. Maybe…
Spiral base, single crochet around, adding stiches when I needs to up the size and even out the circle. Once I was happy with the base size, it was time to start building up the sides with a nice puff stich. I decreased twice in each row on the way up, trying to keep it even. It worked out better than I expected, although it was just a big crochet sack until I added the eyes/beak.
Yarn Owl.
Just another circle for the eyes, with a small leaf applique attached to the top, to give it that dramatic look and just a small triangle for the beak. Really it only looks like an owl with some serious adjusting and stuffing in the right places, but it’s the thought that counts…..right?
Trying a new a-brooch.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 11, 2015
I am obsessed with Sugar Skulls at the moment. OK, fine, it’s been going on for quite awhile and it is unlikely to stop anytime soon. I’ve painted, drawn, cut and printed many varieties of these skulls, now I am experimenting with incorporating them into something wearable.
Skull sculpting.
I used soft Fimo for the sculpting. Never tried it before, found it easy and light to use. Slight draw back being that it is very soft, even once it is dry! I’ve taken out a bit of skull tissue just bumping and taking chunks out with my fingernails, which of course, just add to the finesse. While I was sculpting, I made dents in the back for the actual brooch and I dug out a small hole on the top of the skull. I figured I could use the painted feathers from the other day, glue them into the hole and create a fabulous feathery ‘headpiece’ for the skulls.
Fanciful feathers.
The next challenge was to ‘beautify’ the skulls. I thought Sharpies would work well, but I was kinda wrong. The Fimo is too soft to apply lots of pressure, so the colour had to be drawn on delicately. It was a bit pain-staking, trying not to indent into the skull or taken bits out, so my patience ran out pretty quick.
Sugar Skull brooches-adding character with Sharpies.
This doesn’t really work for my kind of style (slap-dash, haphazard, etc) so I am yet to pull out the paint to continue to decorate. Instead, I have adorned my beauties with eyes and headpieces, leaving the rest till later on…
Sugar Skull brooches-Plain Jane
Time to flock.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 4, 2015
I’ve been busy finishing off the next order for Grandvewe Cheeses, almost done! Trying out a different approach this time, with the assistance of a sponge, rather than just my fleshy hands. I have been using it as a prop/support when needling into my sheep shapes, rather than holding onto the shape with my fingers and risking certain puncture.
The operating table.Piles of parts.
All fleeced and ready to go to market.To market, we go.
Making a mess of mosaics.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on MAY 6, 2016
Exciting new things for all to see.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 8, 2016
I’ve been absent from this site for awhile now and it’s time re-introduce myself to the online world! No time for sad stories of where the time has gone, instead I present a fresh feast for the eyes. For your visual pleasure, my page has been updated with tonnes of images of past and recent works. New galleries represent my work with Fibre/Etching/Lino/Clay/Mosaic/Weaving. Check them out in the tabs above this entry. More coming soon….
Handmade print love.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JUNE 10, 2016
Original Tasmanian wilderness prints on handmade recycled paper.
Etsy/CaboodleDoodleStudio
Clickspiration
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on JULY 20, 2016
The beginning of my current body of work starts with a click. I’m so inspired by the natural world around me and I’ve been fortunate enough to snap a few photos to use for my creations. There is nothing quite like seeing the process all the way through, from photo to print, so satisfying! All images are my own and taken locally in Southern Tasmania. I hope you like what you see, check out my Lino and Etches sections for the other half of the process.
Pups and Propogation.
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on OCTOBER 25, 2016
Kaleidoscope Pam
Posted by EZZACRUMMS on OCTOBER 25, 2016