Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Inspired by Reading April Blog Hop...

The April book for the Inspired by Reading Book Club was "Paris to the Moon" by Adam Gopnik.  The premise of this book club is a little different than most book clubs.  Once we've read the book, we do more than just discuss it... we make something inspired by it.
My piece is a little rougher than I would have liked, but I do like some of the concepts behind the piece.  I did a photo transfer of an etching mentioned in the book (actually the inspiration for the title of the book) onto polymer clay panels.  The panels form the focal of the necklace.  Flanking the focal, I had two French coins that were turned into supporting charms.  I added milagros that were symbolic of themes and imagery from the book.  I wanted to add a pop of color with the Chinese crystal rondelles.  The author mentions a movie called The Red Balloon and I wanted to reference that.  The bronze chain is pulled together with a copper toggle clasp.

Some of our locals who intended on coming to the book club were out of town or couldn't make it.  However, Laurel Ross and Terri Greenawalt came!  Terri actually came from another state and drove over two hours!  For the meet up, I made some beef bourguignon and an apple and apricot puree puff pastry tart. We had some wine and Laurel brought some champagne!  It was a really fun time and I am so glad that we could get together to discuss the book and our creations... and a lot of other stuff.  


Here is Terri's piece!  Isn't it amazing!  I love all the textures and how she's managed to capture an eclectic spirit.  It's so rich!  I know that the gears were meant to symbolize the working gears within the French windmills... they also gave the piece a contemporary, Steampunk flavor.  Isn't it beautiful?!

This is Laurel's piece!  She combined the bright red with the black lace to create a really sexy and sensual piece.  The necklace has an interesting mix of fibers  and chain.  The bold focal really makes the piece POP!  Didn't she do an awesome job making this piece?

Want to see what others were inspired to make?  (This is just the first wave of submissions!)


There are more submissions to come!

The next month is slotted for "A Rumor of Gems" by Ellen Steiber.  If you want to participate, one of the best ways to keep in touch is through our Facebook page.  CLICK HERE to visit our Facebook page.

6 comments:

Mary K. McGraw said...

The book club meeting sounded wonderful. I bet your meal was delicious. Really like your polymer piece. What a great idea. Laurel's piece is stunning and looks great on her. Terri's piece is fun and also looks geat on her.

Mary K. McGraw said...

The book club meeting sounded wonderful. I bet your meal was delicious. Really like your polymer piece. What a great idea. Laurel's piece is stunning and looks great on her. Terri's piece is fun and also looks geat on her.

Jenny said...

Oh! We need to discuss... I have had good and not good results with polymer transfers... your piece has the look of a Polaroid transfer! Love it.

And heavens! That meal sounds delicious!
Thanks again for doing this, its a great group!

Lotus said...

It WAS delicious! I wish we'd had more people there to share it! As we all know, Andrew is THE BEST!

Sarajo Wentling said...

Wish I lived closer to join in the fun at the shop, but thanks for sharing some details of the night with us Andrew.

Such a cool idea for your polymer piece! Neat gears in Terri's design...especially mixed with the stones and other natural elements. I'm captivated by that bright red flower in Laurel's necklace. Great job all!

I'm finally starting the blog hop after a hectic couple of days...can't wait to read everyone's posts and see all the creations!

Mary Harding said...

Your polymer transfers are amazing. It is a technique I don't know anything about but I am so impressed at the clarity of the image. I love the idea of book pages being a focal for a necklace. Captures the Parisian feel of the book wonderfully Andrew!!

Terri your necklace is so full of energy and excitement. Love the bright colors and the kinetic nature of your piece. Just wonderful.
Laurel your necklace is lovely. I think the splash of color in your focal flower is so fun and such a statement piece. Looks so nice on you too!!
Sounds like you all had a wonderful evening. The French feast must have been delicious.
Look forward to seeing what you all make next month.