fanciful devices

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.

5/7/11

Tanglestones.
I chose the name as a warning, since big chunks on long thin strands are sure to be trouble. I even took a picture of them tangled to add to the listing, so no one can complain.

Tanglestones. Shoulder Length Dangles.

Lovers Disgrace. Cuff.
This one was a lot of fun. The frayed rhinestone trim on the piece of belt. In fact the belt piece is just one layer of a belt, the top ripped off to become something else... Also finally found a use for that gorgeous jet stone fancylinda sent me.

The House of Wisdom. Cut Saucer Earrings.

The House of Wisdom.
This was a little decorative plate. I hammered up some sterling earwires... quite fun.

The Angel of Spheres. Neck Piece.

The Angel of Spheres.
I showed y'all the beginnings of this one ages ago. Oh, I'm so happy with it! It's so cute. But not. Doesnt it look like a little Native American figure holding up 2 birds as if for a ceremony of some kind? I did some fancy riveting and stuff to mount the dapped coin:

The Angel of Spheres. Neck Piece.

Well, that's all I have to report for now. I feel like I should have more to say. Jeez I just realized I'm watching Paul Blart Mall Cop. Here I have shop fans who think I'm all deep.

4 comments:

Flotsam Tide said...: I couldn't even sit through that movie. :) Shaking my head over here just recalling the "depth" of that film. Love the Angel of Spheres piece, and I like the cautionary front loading on the Tanglestones earrings. xo!; 5/7/11, 9:12 PM
Penelope said...: Man that is one FANCI coin mount!! Puts me to shame, I did some tinkering on a belt buckle to get it to stay even, I was so proud of it but yours makes mine look like KMart next to Gucci!

Nah not really- mine's still good. But yours is fabtastic. It's funny what we see in things, I was looking at the back of that and thinking 'WOW it's got tiny hammers on it!!! Then I realised they were the back of the birds.; 5/8/11, 10:25 PM
fanciful devices said...: omg- they look exactly like little hammers!!!; 5/9/11, 12:19 AM
Claire Maunsell said...: Love the tanglestones, tangled or not, just the sort of necklace that appeals to me. The cuff is incredible too...just love looking here most days, but don't always comment (I should)!; 5/9/11, 9:21 AM