fanciful devices: Because you haven't seen enough of me lately.

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.

The Throngs.
I've decided that just like I'm a mess of fatigue and inaction when pre-menstrual, I am equally manic when post-menstrual. Cuz look- more stuff!

The Hanging Librarian.
Impossible to get a good picture while simultaneously capturing the blue goldstone glitter on these.
But they're on necklace strand separators! Squeee!

Now I Am Become Death.
These cones are from the same necklace those separators where from. I glued the opal glass stones into 'up eyes' instead of bothering to find matching settings.

Up eyes:

Palgolak.
Since all these comments about rushing through these posts for missing out on something, I'm all tense writing this! Especially since I have nothing much to say.
But y'all know you can go to the shop and then come back here to peruse at your leisure, right?

Flora. Flourish.
Also, you can go to "Subscribe to feed" At the bottom left of the shop, in the "Actions" section. That way, you can put a bookmark to the shop's RSS feed on your toolbar, or whatever you have, and a little number will appear there whenever there's a new listing. I'm not sure how it'll work for you guys, I have a Mac.

Flora. Flourish.

So go do that and stop stressing me out! Oh wait no that's just my hyper-mania...

Longevity and the Pharaoh.
Lookit- the amethyst slab is dipped in ~~gold~~ silver all around the edge. What would you call this? A geode slice?

Here's some more angles because I feel like you can't get a feel for the details from just one angle. The pink and purple rhinestone bit? It's from one of those cheapo necklaces full of aluminum roses, this one was a gift from Chinatown.
Longevity and the Pharaoh.

Light Vessel.
Eeeee! Here's the dazzler of the pile. And it sold before I even started to make this blogpost. So there you go. And here I was worried about charging too much.

Why do some things sell right away and others sit in the shop for months? And why come I can never predict which will be which?

8 comments:

Jackie said...: Oh what a treat!! OMG Fanci, you're so amazing, I so love these new pieces. I thought I'd just take a quick peek before heading off to bed...WOW, all new creations! Now I'm all inspired but too tired to act on it. Sweet dreams!!; 7/23/11, 10:10 PM
Pretty Things said...: The opal glass on the Now I Become Death earrings are JUST the right touch. Excellent.; 7/23/11, 11:27 PM
stregata said...: You continue to amaze me - using pieces I would never think of and combining them in such ingenious ways. As for why things sell and others don't - they are waiting for the person they are meant for... it is part of the magic.
Love that 'aladin's lamp' focal...; 7/23/11, 11:42 PM
Penelope said...: I have such a boner for those pink rose ones, I know you know that. And the stars coming off that necklace is lovely! I'm such a sucker for stars. And roses. And yeah that's a geode slice- not lookin' very gold now though huh, Miss Grunge pot?; 7/24/11, 3:50 AM
Spirited Earth said...: U R killin' me..love ..
the pharaoh,palgolak
the necklace with the bling was devine; 7/24/11, 8:59 AM
Jennifer Valentine Morford said...: miss grunge pot...LOVE that. mgp.
I gotta go make some stuff....; 7/24/11, 11:28 AM
betweenreader said...: Gadzooks!!!! Is that some sort of little lamp? Your new run of stuff is sooooo exciiiiiiting. Love all of it. And of course that lamp was snapped up before it even cooled down. Of course.; 7/24/11, 1:39 PM
In the Light of the Moon said...: I am so inspired by your work..totally cool!!Warmest Regards,Cat; 7/24/11, 5:32 PM