fanciful devices: Madre Perla

A Stone Is Nobody's

A man ambushed a stone. Caught it.
Made it a prisoner.
Put it in a dark room and stood guard over it for the rest of his life.

His mother asked why.

He said, because it's held captive, because it is captured.

Look, the stone is asleep, she said, it does not know whether it's in a garden or not. Eternity and the stone
are mother and daughter; it is you who are getting old. The stone is only sleeping.

But I caught it, mother, it is mine by conquest, he said.

A stone is nobody's, not even its own. It is you who are conquered; you are minding the prisoner, which is yourself,
because you are afraid to go out, she said.

Yes yes, I am afraid, because you have never loved me, he said.

Which is true, because you have always been to me as the stone is to you, she said.

Russell Edson

FAQs

1. Are you a Southeast Asian dancing girl from the 1800s?

No, sorry to disappoint. My avatar and banner images are from an ancient book I found in the depths of my grandmother's cabinets. More on that here.

2. How do you make everything look so old?

First, you need a good oxidizer to brush on every bit of metal you can reach. I'll tell you all about it here.

Then there's this wax. I first mentioned it here. You'll have to scroll down a lot.

3. How can you be so productive?

I'm insanely obsessed and I have no offspring. I do nothing else- I don't have a day job, I don't clean my house or cook, I spend all day in pjs, often completely abandoning personal hygiene... I only interact with other humans when I walk my dog. And I like people! But I prefer dogs.

And I'm sloppy- but I make that sloppiness work for me.

4. Any tips you'd like to share?

No! Except for these 16 posts about techniques and this one about how to find your aesthetic.

5. Would you be offended if I took some inspiration from your designs?

Well, I'd be happier if you outright copied them.

No really, imitation is how we learn. I have enough ideas to go around. And even if I don't- please. No one's going to do this obsessively enough to threaten my business. (Probably.) I learned by copying others and I've seen others copy me as a step toward developing their own voice. So feel free. (I'd love if you tossed me a link in my comments, so I can feel like a proud momma.)

6. What do you look like?

Why, what have you heard? Really? Wow.

6/8/10

Madre Perla

Antique Carved Mother of Pearl Button - Smoky Gray 28mm BEAUTIFUL IRIDESCENCE

LARGE Vintage MOP Buttons - Mixed Lot of 9 - Rainbow Iridescence

Antique Pearl Button - Incised Sun Design 18mm AMAZING IRIDESCENCE

Victorian Mother of Pearl Button - Carved Smoky Brown 30mm BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE

Carved Mother of Pearl Button - Smoky Gray 28mm BEAUTIFUL COLORS

Victorian Mother of Pearl Button - Carved Smoky Gray 18mm BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE

VINTAGE, LARGE SMOKEY SHELL BUTTONS, MOTHER OF PEARL

VINTAGE ANTIQUE IRIDESCENT MOTHER OF PEARL BUTTON CARVED ETCHED SHELL LARGE 1-3/16 inch SEWING

8 Mother of Pearl Buttons from 1940s on original cards - Lady Washington Pearls

Hand Painting Birds and Roses painted on Vintage Mother of Pearl Buttons lot of 3

Antique Etched Abalone Button FOUR FEATHERS

Antique Button Iridescent Brown Mother of Pearl 1/2 Inch

Smoky Pearl Shell Star Patterned Buttons

Today's Storque article and link to the Pearl Button Museum in Iowa got me in the mood to search for vintage carved MOP buttons. I'll have to keep an eye out next month when I go to visit my in-law's in Virginia. That's where I do my flea marketing. Like I really need more stash.

Antique/Vintage Beautiful Pierced Ocean Pearl Buttons Set of 4

Found these dazzlers via Cartolina.

3 comments:

Regina Moore said...: Cool buttons! I collect buttons...I have bunches and bunches...love to just look at all the various colors, shapes, sizes.; 6/8/10, 7:19 AM
Unknown said...: can you ever have too much stash? really?; 6/8/10, 10:19 AM
fanciful devices said...: lol- well, i'm sorta the anti-hoard. i get nervous realizing i have stash that i forgot about, or looking at stuff and remembering all my plans for it all. in fact i get frantic. which is why i make so much stuff!; 6/8/10, 11:02 AM