Work in Progress: Bountiful Blissful Beautiful

This is what my new sculpture looked like after 16 hours of work. I made a few decisions that weren't really smart. I totally forgot to build a support for the neck and head! When I cut it open to shave off some clay (so that my sculpture wouldn't be too heavy), I took off too much clay and caused the neck area to cave in. Luckily, I managed to stop it from collapsing by using a lump of clay to support the head. Now that the clay has become a little dry and stiff, the neck and head seem to be stable (I hope. Keeping my fingers crossed).

After 20 hours of working my sculpture is finally complete. All that I can do now is to wait for it to dry slowly and evenly, and then bisque it. Again, keeping my fingers crossed, hoping it will survive the rest of the process. 

Here's the back view of the sculpture.  I resisted the urge to fill up the space with delicate pieces of decoration which will make it very hard for me to carry the sculpture.

The title of this sculpture is Bountiful Blissful Beautiful, after a song/mantra of the same title. I fell in love with this mantra the first time I heard it in a yoga class. So I decided to create a sculpture based on the song. And that's all I listened to when I was working on this sculpture. For those who are interested, visit this site to listen to Nirinjan Kaur's Bountiful Blissful Beautiful.

Take some time and look deep inside yourself. The truth is, we are all really bountiful, blissful and beautiful. So live gloriously. Sat nam.

Winner of Give Away

This card now belongs to Betty :) 

Work in Progress

This is what I managed to accomplish with 6 to 7 hours of sculpting. I still have a long way to go with this piece. It might take me another 6 to 7 hours to complete it.
This sculpture is hollow on the inside. I used coiling technique on the body and neck. I like coiling. Most of my work is created with this technique. Pinching is another technique that I use quite frequently. I usually pinch my clay heads.

And this is one of the best sculpting tools I have in my collection! It is designed by Philippe Faraut, I used it to sculpt the eyes and lips. It works beautifully.

 

This is the very first time I sculpted hands for my sculpture. And I just couldn't resist doing the Vulcan salute.

This is what the hand looks like when it's not doing the Vulcan salute.

Flower Viewing Daruma and a Daruma ATC Giveaway

This little daruma is having a wonderful time under the tree. And he is now available on my etsy shop.

The tea cup is so small but I somehow managed to write the Chinese character for tea on it. And those are dango (rice dumplings) on his plate. 

I've always love daruma and I enjoy making them. And now I have decided to spread the fun around. This is what we are going to do: leave your comment here to be entered for a chance to win this daruma ATC (artist trading card). You have until next Monday to do so. And I will announce the winner next Tuesday. 

Have fun! 

To find out more about daruma visit this page. And to learn more about Artist Trading Card go to this page.

Dreams and Demons

Title: Dreams and Demons, 2011

Hand-built ceramics, oil paint and acrylic paint

Status: Sold

Sometimes people fall asleep on their journey in life, and they lose sight of things that are important. And then, their dreams and demons begin to take over and go out of control. 

Are you asleep or awake?

My Etsy Shop: Soul of 11

I have an etsy shop. It's  etsy.com/shop/Soulof11.

Right now it is a humble little shop that sells small craft items that I made with my own hands. I hope someday my shop will grow into something beautiful and meaningful. 

Today, I added a new item to my shop, and that is this little Christmas penguin ornament. He is small, light, and very adorable. And he is ready to celebrate Christmas.

Other items that are in my shop are these Kanzashi flowers that I made. If you go to my etsy shop, you will be able to some more of my flower hair clips. 

These flowers take a lot of time and effort to make, but turning ordinary fabric squares into delicate flowers give me a lot of joy and satisfaction. I really love working with my hands.

I fold my petals in a way that's different from traditional kanzashi flowers. Please leave your questions and comments here. I love hearing from people. It helps me grow and learn, and I really appreciate it. 

 

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone :)

Candy Corn Plushie and Pterodactyl Plushie

 I worked hard yesterday. I spent almost all day sewing these two new plushies. 

A certain little kid is definitely getting spoiled by her mom. 

An Experiment

 First, create a silk screen using a simple design.  

Once the screen is ready, print design on a piece of plain fabric.

Now sew the printed fabric and decorate it with anything you like. 

The result was nothing like what I was hoping for. But the more I look at it, the more it grows on me. Now I have a peace charm hanging in my work space. It really makes me feel good whenever I look at it. 

If you have the time, sit down and create a simple peace charm with anything you have, and give it to someone you treasure. Or, if you feel like doing more, host a peace charm making party! Let's spread the peace around :) 

Sat nam. 

A Dream's Song

Title: A Dream's Song, 2011

Hand-built ceramics, oil and acrylic paint

Status: Sold

One day, out of the blue, I asked myself, if dreams where allowed to be, what would it look like? I first thought that if dreams were nurtured, and were allowed to live, it would be like a swan: beautiful and free to sing its own song from its heart. And then I went on to imagine that a dream's song is magical, it comes out as a plant. I can only imagine what amazing flowers it would bear.

These are the imagery I had in mind when building this sculpture. I hope you enjoy it.

Soul of 11

One year ago, I started practicing Kundalini yoga. And then amazing things started to happen. First, I learned to heal with reiki. A lot of ghosts and demons from my past started to go away. Old wounds started to heal. Then, opportunities for prosperity showed up, and with that many new and wonderful people also walked into my life and bring me lots of joy.

Later, I learned that I possess a soul of 11. This is what I learned about myself from Tantric numerology analysis: "You have a great conflict because you want to be the complete master of yourself, and you can't see how to do it. The only way you can become a master is to surrender to God, let God run your life, and know that God is the ONLY master. If you relate to and experience the inner wisdom within your own consciousness, you will know that you represent the Infinity incarnate and you will be the master of your physical universe and nothing will be able to bug you or bother you in any way! The solution is to relate to the infinite teacher within you, and to surrender to that flow of inner wisdom. In your highest and deepest consciousness, you are a Universal person. That is, the true essence of who you are is someone who can express yourself through all the ten spiritual bodies in all situations of life and in relation to all people." 

Seems like a lot of heavy stuff to handle for people with a soul number of 11. I'm not quite sure how to surrender my ego and become a Universal person. At least I understand myself better now, and I am going to do my best and continue to make my art, practice yoga and reiki. No more being neurotic and feeling insecure (I'm trying really hard not to!).