Altered art ... what do you prefer?

What's your favorite genre of altered art ? ... a mixed metal collage of auto parts, a paper collage of vintage ephemera, a shadow box full of steampunk items? 

Mine is, hands down, art I can wear ... wearable altered art, as in clothes and accessories ... most so jewelry !!

 

This past weekend The Man taught me how to use the tile wet saw {I've only been asking for like 2 yrs now}... you see I have a zillion dishes sitting in my basement waiting for me to create with ...

I started cutting tiles from the prettiest and most intricate patterns ... the tiny tiles look like miniature oil paintings to me ... aged and cracked with a perfect patina.

I gathered various vintage and antique elements to embellish my mini tile canvas' ... old keys, bits of tattered lace and seam binding, tarnished rhinestones, brass chains ... then soldered all the components together ... creating ... wearable altered art.

I managed to make six necklaces total and have more in the works.

These first six have been listed on Etsy.

I want to extend to my blogging babes a discount on my new designs ... you guys totally cheer me on when I introduce something new or show you something I've made. I can't tell you how much that means to me ... this is just my way of saying a very small thank you for all of your encouragement.

So, the price at Etsy is $38.50 each, but if you see one you are interested in, just send me a note and I will send you an adjusted invoice ... your price will be $23.50 plus FREE shipping ... a savings over $15 on each !!

I'm only offering this price here on the blog, first come, first serve ; )

 

{click here to view listing} No.01

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

{click here to view listing} No.02

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

{click here to view listing} No.03

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

{click here to view listing} No.04

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

{click here to view listing} No.05

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

{click here to view listing} No06

SOLD ~ THANK YOU!

Today I'm linking up to TWO parties, first over at the French Cupboard

is the Altered Art Party

Check out all the goods!

and second, Kecia's Flea market Friday's.

 

I figure since ALL of my treasures I used to create my wearable altered art came from a flea market or tag sale ... coupled with the fact that Kecia was my teacher who taught me how to solder last summer ... this post would be "allowed" to join in ...

and you all know, I'm all about joining in the party!

Sneak peek for tomorrow ...

Here's a sneak peek of what I've been working on for 

the past few days ...

I'll be serving up these necklaces tomorrow at the

"Atlered Art Party"

over at the French Cupboard.

I hope you'll come by ... when it comes to "altered", you never know what surprises are in store!

Something About White Bloomers ...

Today I'm wishing I could wear bloomers, walk in bare feet, and pick fresh berries ... with no cares, no worries, and no boundaries .... how does that sound to you?





After you  pick which pair of bloomers you'd wear, pull them on and head on over for more white treasures at Karen's, "Faded Charm" ... see you there, I hope I'm not the only one dressed in bloomers!

Flea Market Friday ... a new blog party at Lemoncholy's

Happy Friday! Today I want to introduce you to a new blog party my friend Kecia ... of Lemoncholy's flight of fancy ... has begun hosting ... "Flea Market Friday"  It's very simple to play along, simply link up and share some photos of your recent flea market, thrift store, garage sale {you get the idea} finds you were lucky enough to come across.

I have been selling more lately at the Barn Market ... way more than I have been shopping ... good thing, I need some sort of income to fuel my junkin' addiction!

Below are my latest buys ...

an antique embroidered sampler ... perfectly aged and distressed .... perfectly priced ... $5

A French book for photo props or using the pages for altered art creations ... $1

And third ... a gorgeous old rosary with red glass beads and lovely findings ... prices on rosaries have sky rocketed here in my area .... I believe I paid $25 for this one ... Not too long ago, I used to be able to pick them up for a few dollars, not anymore. {sigh} Those were the days.

Will you be getting out to treasure hunt this weekend? I am ... The Man has generously volunteered our home Saturday morning for community theatre play practice ... I need somewhere to escape and we all know what goes on Saturday mornings .... Garage Sales here I come !!

Have a great weekend and please checkout Kecia's new party.

Rosette swap ...

How many rosettes did you fall in love with in the past few days over at the French Cupboard's Rosette Blog Party? 

Me? 

Every single one ... as expected!

 So, if you've been following along ... today I'm announcing the start of a "Rosette Swap" {... and giveaway!}

The swap is open to all 

active bloggers and rosette addicts!! 

The challenge is to create or find a beautiful rosette to exchange with another fellow bloggin' rosette lovin' addict. We can all help each other out with a little "fix" ... and then we'll party like we love to do!

Does it sound good to you? 

Keep on reading ....

 Sign~ups will be open for two weeks, I will close the sign~ups on Sunday, August 1st {midnight est}

You'll be paired up with one swap partner and I will email you your partner's information by Wednesday, August 4th.

You will need to send your rosette out to your swap partner by Wednesday, August 18th.

That will give you two more weeks {plenty of time} to get your package out to your partner on time.

Finally ... two more weeks later ... on the 1st of September, we will have a swap blog party to show off and share our special surprises we have received from our partners!!

To sign up, email me at: gypsybrocante@gmail.com 

Just copy and paste the following info when signing up:

1. Name and Address:

2: Blog address:

3. Email address:

I will add a list of Rosette swap participants linked to their blogs on my blog sidebar once I have received your information ... if you have sent me all of your info and do not see your name on the blogroll, please let me know ... this way you can be doubly assured you are entered into the swap.

If you would like, Please feel free to use the button above to promote this swap on your blog to help spread the word.

 

PART DEUX

Oh yes, and the giveaway ...

For taking part in this rosette swap, I thought I'd share some more rosette loveliness with you, 

I'll be giving away THREE of my own rosettes !!

Here's how you can earn chances for the give-away:

Leave a comment on this post earns 1 chance.

Become a follower earns 2 chances.

Already a follower? 

Let me know, earns 2 chances for you .

Mention and link to my give-away on your blog, earns you 3 more chances.

Want 3 more chances? Sign up for the rosette swap!

Did I cover everything? If not or you have any questions, please send me a note ... I'll be happy to answer.

Have a great week girls ... and thanks for helping to keep the rosette love alive throughout the entire month of August!!

Rosette Party ... and a swap coming up {plus a giveaway!}

Nothing says romance better than an old fashioned rosette or two or ... twenty !!

That's how I like mine ... in great big bunches, just like bouquets.

A few Parisian Inspiration roses covering a mannequin ....

Coral silk with every inch covered in Prairie Gypsy Rosettes

A whole bucket full of more rosettes

If I'm limited to only one at a time ... I like them on a 

jean jacket, purse, hat, or lampshade

endless possibilities!

I see so many pretty rosettes created out "here" in blogland ... so many pretties I would like to have for myself, I bet a few of you may feel the same way.

So, here are three things I thought I could do to help the situation:

1.) Share a tutorial on how to make my Parisian Inspiration Rosette

2.) Giveaway a rosette or two ...

3.) Host a rosette swap!!

I've completed number 1 already, but you'll have to stop back on this

Sunday to read all the details for 2 & 3 !!

I'm sure everyone will be ready to trade roses after seeing all the eye candy over at The French Cupboard during this most "rosy" of blog parties!

Grab your supplies ... let's make French rosettes !!

I thought I'd take my first stab at a "tutorial" ... here goes anything ...

My way of making a very simple and pretty hand-stamped "French" rosette.

Supplies you'll need:

A silk flower of your choice{I like roses and peonies for this project}

Rubber stamps in a French theme

ink pad {I use waterproof ink}

a center piece, a crystal, a piece of jewelry ~ anything pretty that you can "wire"

florist wire

pin back

wire cutters

scissors

miscellaneous material, lace, scraps

Glue gun and glue

a little imagination ...

Let's get started by pulling apart your silk flower ...

Discard plastic stems

lay out your petals on something you don't mind messing up with the ink

and

start stamping, covering as much or little as you want ... going off the edges gives a nice realistic touch

{it's okay to go outside the lines here!}

Finish all your petals

and

gather your other scraps you want to incorporate into your rosette

 

 

I like to fold the material in half, cut out petals, open and make a small hole in the middle. Don't worry too much about size here ... just make sure your cut petals are big enough, you'll want to come back and trim them to your liking once your flower is assembled.

Wire your center with the florist wire, bringing both ends together to form a "stick"

you will gather your various petals along the wire.

Remember, you're working "backwards" in size ... small petals go on first working up to larger ones.

I usually do a "layout" of petals before I start to wire them ... this way I can change them to my liking without pulling everyone off the wire.

Once you have them all on and you're happy with the look ...

pull everything tightly together

and start bending your wire back and forth to secure your petals

wrap as many times as you wish, cut off extra wire

hot glue your pin back on

{oh, be careful NOT to glue your pin shut ... trust me, it happens!}

Take a scrap of material, cut to fit over ugly glue and glue into place for a finished look.

and lastly, my favorite part ... trim your petals to the shape and size you like

and then

start squishing and crumpling and rubbing between your hands

this will fray your raw edges giving your rosette a time-worn look

Fluff it all back out and viola! You've created a Parisian rosette!

Not too shabby, huh?