Finally! After 54 attempts and who knows how many pounds of clay, I finally made something I could stand to use as my entry for PCAGOE's September challenge, "Texture". I don't know why this challenge was so hard for me, slap a stamp on a slab of clay and call it a day, right? Texture out the wahoo, right? WRONG! In the first place, I didn't want to do a stamped piece or one impressed with a texture sheet. That felt like cheating for some reason. I really wanted to stretch my imagination, and my limitations, and do something outside the box. Easier said than done. I got lots of pretty beads out of the effort, but nothing I wanted to use as an entry.
Just when I was about to give up and admit defeat, I decided to go through my little library of inspiration, books which mean a lot to me, and I spotted my copy of Anna Johnson's book, Handbags: The Power of The Purse. I don't want to get off on a tangent here, because I could talk ALL DAY about pocketbooks, but this little, bitty paperback packs a whollop of inspiration. It is full of jaw-droppingly beautiful handbags, and I found one in an animal print that got me thinking... and this brooch is the result.
The base of the piece is made from Black Kato clay embossed with an animal print texture sheet. I stippled some of the stripes for interest and applied teal mica powder and copper alcohol ink to the surface, cured it and sanded and buffed it to bring out the solid black stripes. I added a faux turquoise cabochon I set in a copper metal basket mounting. The turquoise cab is made from a cane of Clover and Peacock Studio clay and Black Kato clay. I recessed a pinback mounting into the reverse so it would lie flush when worn.
I found my happy place with it. It's not perfect, but I can live with it. The best thing is, the challenge is DONE! Move over Snoopy, I am doing the happy dance!
HALLELUJAH!
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