Make an Impression!

In May of 2011 I went to the PMC Connection's Retreat at Arrowmont in Gatlinburg  TN.  At that time I took the Level 4 Certification class from Mary Ann Devos.  The focus of the class was promoting yourself as an artist and as a teacher.

Now anyone who has ever met Mary Ann remembers her.  That is not an accident.  She stated in class that when we go into a gallery, we want them to remember us.  She advised us to be unique, to stand out, to make an impression.  She does this through what she is wearing; a glove, a feather in her hair, an unusual hat or a unique article of clothing.

I think it is a great idea (but again, that is not in my nature and something I would have to consciously work at........ basically I guess I'm boring.  I'm an only child and I''m supposed to want to be the center of attention. What happened?  Must have been my brother "the Boat!"  But that's a whole different story.)

Anyway, this post is about my friend Carol Scheftic.  (http://convergentseries.wordpress.com/)  I met Carol when I was seeking out a metal clay guild.  We've taken several classes together and gone to a couple of conferences together  (which is where we are now) and have become good friends.    Carol makes an impression. (I'm not sure this was her intention.) She wears a "fishing vest."  The vest serves the purpose of being able to carry many of her metal clay pieces since there are so many pockets in it. It's not only useful, but I really think it also makes people remember her.  It makes her stand out.

Another thing that made her memorable at the current conference was her necklace made from bracelets of charms collected at past conferences.  She strung together three such bracelets and of course is working on her fourth.

The charm exchange at the conference is something I always look forward to.  It's fun to have a visual memory of the people you meet.   My previous posts were about the charm that I was making.  In future posts, I'll share some of the charms I received.  

The finishing touch

The Flex Shaft is a great tool (if you use it and I finally am.)

The past May I took a class at The PMC Retreat at Arrowmont in Gatlinburg, TN.  It was a short class that gave us an overview of how to use our Flex Shafts.  (Seems I wasn't the only one to own one and not use it.)  Ruth Greening taught the class and made up kits that included rubber wheels, sanding drums and 3-M wheels.   Basically, the class consisted of us trying out the different wheels on a scrap of copper sheet.

My favorite is the 3-M wheels.  They are rather expensive and you don't use just one.  A minimum of three wheels are used on the mandrel that is inserted into the Flex Shaft.  Luckily they last a long time.

The wheels are used progressively from the coarsest (the white) to the finest (the green) to clean and polish the metal.

Another reason I like the 3-M wheels so much is that they don't hurt your fingers if you happen to hit them.  (Unlike the sandpaper wrapped around the split mandrel.)  I'm such a klutz.  

Favorite tools

What is your favorite tool or tools?   (It doesn't have to be related to metal clay.)

       If we were talking about power tools it would have to be the band saw and the router.  (I had a college professor who cut his hand in half with the table saw.  So he had us all scared to death of it and of the planer......... I didn't want to get scalped!  Needless to say they were not among my favorites.  Neither was the circular sander....... too many bloody knuckles.)

But when it comes to metal clay I have a couple of new "favorites."  Both tools are ceramic tools but like many other things, they "work" for this medium too.   I discovered them at the Arrowmont store when I was there last May taking Holly Gage's Repousse class.  (Actually I think I bought them the day I cut my hand on the glass.)  These tools are great for scraping and cleaning up details.  I used them to undercut the design on my repousse piece and lately I've been using them to help carve the copper clay.  (So, not only am I using my new tools, but I'm also using what I learned in Holly's class.)  That's a two-fer-one in my book.

These tools are very similar to some dental tools that I have, but somehow they are still different.

So...... how about sharing your favorite tool or tools with us!

It's done!

Well my repousse' piece is finally done.  I've taken lots of pictures (which I'm not great at) and this is the best of them (it doesn't have the reflection of my orange shirt in it like the others.)  And as with most of my photos, the picture doesn't do it justice.

The design was from a plant I photographed at the North Carolina Zoo in Ashboro, NC.  We often take our grandchildren to the zoo when we visit and the plants were near a children's play area.  It was an interesting plant that was very green and very twisted.  (Should have checked to see what it was.)  I've always been interested in negative spaces and the twisting of the plants created all sorts of interesting spaces.  

More Eye Candy

Two more finished pieces from the metal clay repousse class at the Arrowmont Retreat.  (Darn I knew I should have gone in today and fired my piece.  Hopefully will be able to share by Friday.)  Took a nap instead..... it was a good, dreary, rainy day for sleeping.

 Created by Lynne Edgar

Created by Laurie Yoder

Eye Candy

When we left Arrowmont, all the pieces from the Repousse class were in the greenware state (dry but not yet fired.)  The first person to finish and share her piece is Dona Miller.  

Dona started with a linear design of a Husky.  (One of my favorite dogs.  RIP Hanna and Sasha.)  I think it turned out great and can't wait to see the others as they get finished.  Thanks for letting me share your work on my blog Dona.

Making Progress

Friday was the last day for the Retreat and since I didn't have any classes I stayed back in the cabin and worked on my repousse piece. It still needs more work but I'm making progress. At least it's out of the "ugly" stage.

The Big Finish

Jude Carmona testing out the 3-M wheels

Glenda Hinson showing off her Bling Ring after the Big finish with the 3-M wheels.

For me this class was the Big Finish; my last one.

Thursday night Ruth Greening taught a class on finishing metal clay pieces. The class was a chance to play with our Flex Shafts or Dremel tools and try out different finishing wheels.

I sold my floor loom a while back so I could buy a jump ring maker and a flex shaft. Also, got a book about flex shafts when I ordered them. It has nice pictures! (That's as far as I got.) Up to this point I was only using it to cut jump rings.

We got a small kit with several wheels in them so we could practice on a piece of copper before we used them on our silver.

I took only one heavy duty class (Holly's) this year. My other classes were not as intensive (but every bit as informative.) Two years ago I wore myself out taking heavy duty classes every day so this year I took it easy. (It was also easier on my pocketbook.)

Already looking forward to the next one.

Marketing

Pmc Connection has four levels of Certification. The first three are skill based and the fourth level is business oriented. Level four focuses on marketing yourself as an artist and as a teacher. The retreat offered all three levels during the week.

I took Level 4 on Tuesday and Wednesday evening with Mary Ann and Ken Devos. It was an informative and interesting class. Most of the things we talked about I was already doing (but I need to get out there and do it with a vengeance.) It was a good refresher course and I did pick up some good ideas.

Marketing myself as a teacher is easy, (I've had 35 years of experience doing that.) Marketing myself as an artist is more difficult. Even though I was trained as an artist first and a teacher second, teaching was always my goal.

We had to write an artist statement and an artist bio. It sounded easy, but it wasn't. A bio is not a resume. So far I've written three and still writing. The lesson plan was a piece of cake.

As with any of these classes, there is much to learn and try. But what makes it all great is the friends that are made. The metal clay community is a sharing and giving group. I'm glad I'm part of it.

Things that go in threes

As mentioned in yesterday's post, things the first two days at Arrowmont didn't go as planned.

Well....... neither did the third day.

I thought I was doing pretty well at packing tools and such for the retreat, but I still didn't bring enough carving tools. The metal clay vendors had some things I wanted but not everything, so I headed down to the art store inside the building and found more exciting tools. But, in the process of checking out the supplies I caught the edge of a piece of glass in the stained glass area and gouged my thumb.

With blood dripping at a darn good pace I turned to head to the bathroom when the store clerk directed me to the sink in the back room (dripping all the way.) Hansel and Gretel could have taken lessons from me on how to leave a trail! After many blood soaked paper towels, I held pressure on it and returned to class (I had too much to do to let this interfere.) Everyone thought I should get stitches but that takes time. (Didn't have any.)

Lora Hart (one of the Senior Instructors.... check out her website) said she wasn't squeamish since her Dad had been a doctor and agreed to apply butterflies and band aids. She did a great job and I sat down to get back to business, when Teva Chapin (another Senior Instructor who is also an EMT) came into see and offer her opinion. Darn, the cut went through three layers of skin so it was off to see a doctor.

Jennifer Roberts of PMC Connection and the Arrowmont staff were all so nice and found a doctor (who was close) that would stitch me up. So off I went assuming that I would get stitches and be back ASAP (which did happen but not without a few nervous moments.)

The staff at Doctor Vickie Moore's office was waiting for me when I got there. (Such nice people!) They took a look and thought that I might have to go to Sevierville to the Emergency room. The cut was deep and they weren't sure it hadn't gone through things it shouldn't have or not. Now anyone who has ever been to this area knows that the traffic through Pigeon Forge is atrocious. So I was really nervous about the work time I was losing.

But when Doctor Moore arrived, she took a good deep look (that's the only time I could have said ouch!) and said that she would be able to stitch it up. Thank God! She loves to do suturing (her staff had already mentioned that) and it was true. She was as sweet as can be (they all were) and did a great job. Ended up with three stitches underneath and four on top. (Also learned that a tourniquet can only stay on for twenty minutes.)

My thumb is in good condition today. No pain and I'm ready to work. (With my rubber gloves on of course.)

Stopped by the store today to show the assistant director what had happened and the clerk forgot to clean up the blood spots where it happened. She got the trail cleaned up but missed those. Kind of weird seeing my dried blood on the floor.

I filed an accident report today with Arrowmont and learned that the doctor is a gynecologist. Too funny. That just adds to the story!

Third time's a charm!

Yesterday was the first day of classes at the PMC Retreat being held at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, TN. (One of my favorite places.)

My first class was "Metal Repousse" with Holly Gage. (Check out her website.) Holly's work is amazing both technically and artistically so I was really looking forward to this class.

Day one (Sunday) was eventful because of our alarm fiasco.

Day two (Monday) was also eventful. Our class was supposed to start at 9:00 AM. It didn't start until 3:30. Poor Holly was held up by problems with (I think ) a couple of airplanes. She finally was able to get out on the third plane but that didn't include one of her bags with most of the supplies, her make-up and toothbrush. That bag arrived at midnight.

While we were waiting for Holly, Janet Alexander (one of the new Senior Instructors) filled in with a demo on carving a rope border and a demo on how to use a variety of torches. She did a great job.

Holly is quite a trooper and teacher. She was determined to get class going and not dwell on the stress of the morning. We were able to get our pieces started and we all stayed later to make up for lost time.

The process is interesting and challenging. It involves carving a mold in different levels and then carving and refining on the metal clay that comes from the mold.

Mine is not finished (for another eventful reason that I'll post about tomorrow) but the pictures give you an idea of the process. Holly says the piece is in "the ugly stage" when it first comes out of the mold. That's where mine is right now. "Ugly" Hopefully I can get mine to look as nice as the rest of the class. There were some pretty impressive pieces. I'll post more pictures after I refine it (in other words..... in a few days. It's pretty intense work.)

I'm here

Yay!! We got to Gatlinburg today and tomorrow is my first class at the PMC Connection metal clay retreat. I thought the excitement would start to tomorrow when I went to class but instead it started tonight..... about 15 minutes ago.

Now, I'm not familiar with home security alarm systems and the cabin we are renting has one. We got into the cabin around 3:30 and both of us were rather nervous about the alarm system. They gave us info on using it (of course they weren't very clear.) We practiced arming and disarming the system and using the keyless entry. For some reason we couldn't seem to get the keyless system to lock the door. So we called the rental agency and of course they were closed and we had to call their answering service which asked us if it was an emergency. We thought it was and waited for Terri to call us. When she did, I took the phone with me to the door and tried to lock it following her directions (which were exactly what I had tried numerous times before.) Just like an automobile that's been acting up and quits acting up when it gets to the garage...... the door locked. I assured her that I had a college degree and I really did do those things before. She was very nice and assured me that was fine.

Next we kept trying to arm and disarm the alarm system, lock the door and try to open it to see if it worked properly. Well, we couldn't seem to set the alarm off no matter what we did. The alarm just kept beeping (and we didn't know if it was supposed to or not.) When we were getting ready for bed, we set the stay button on the alarm and it said it was armed. (But we weren't sure.)

Well...... we are now sure. I went to check the back door to the deck (without thinking) and set off the alarm. A siren started to go off and the thing kept yelling "Intruder, Intruder... Leave now." (Over and over again.) We knew the code to the alarm, but when the noise is ear piercing and it's yelling at you it's easy to get confused. (I can get confused easily without being yelled at.) So of course, it took about six tries to get that thing turned off.

Then the security company called........ the owner of the cabin called........... and the police stopped by.

Before this all started I was really getting sleepy....... Not now! I'm wide awake.

But when I do get to sleep, I can sleep secure knowing that thing is working (Man is it working!)