Bunny tutorial? Peeps too?

I'm thinking I would like to do a simple bunny tutorial here on my blog. How about a bunny holding an egg? I will keep it simple for those of you who haven't tried sculpting. So, go get a bar of Sculpey and let's do it! We have plenty of time before Easter! We might even have enough time to make some peeps! Michael's has their own brand of clay bars, so you might want to try that. If I need Sculpey, I try to get it when it's on sale at Michael's, but you can use one of their 40% off coupons to get a bar if they are not on sale. You can sign up for Michaels or JoAnn fabrics coupons online and print them off. If you want to make peeps, you will need some light yellow.

This will be fun! I love to teach. If you are more advanced than a simple bunny, you can always print off my tutorial for a beginner.

I am working on a new fairy and have listed some jewelry on my website. So much to do!

New OOAK necklaces and pendants listed

Yesterday, I started out sculpting a new fairy, but I got side tracked and worked on listing some of my new necklaces on my website. Working on a website is tedious work and I still have a long way to go, but if you would like to take a peek at some more of my necklaces please go to:

http://toodlesocks.com

More new ones to come!

Home made Pancake recipes

In these tough economic times, there are some ways to cut your grocery bill. You can cook the way my mom, Ginny Bell Bartocci cooked....from scratch!

Don't have BisQuick or store-bought pancake mix? No problem! Go to your pantry and use your staples.

Here is Mom's pancake recipes. One is made with regular milk and the other one (my favorite) is made with buttermilk.

Pancakes (regular milk)

1 cup flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup milk

You know how to do the rest! Just spoon onto hot griddle or pan with a little oil on it so they won't stick!


Buttermilk Pancakes (love em!)

1 cup flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg

Same thing...heat griddle with a little oil and spoon on!

You can add cinnamon (I did that last time I made them). I even added chocolate chips for my daughter-in-law.
Have some left over? Freeze them and nuke them later!

OT Happy Birthday To Gina, my little sister! Button bows!!

Even though my blog is basically about sculpting and soldering, I like to pass on some of my other lifestyle tips and techniques.
My sister's birthday is just around the corner! I wrapped her presents today. She send me such beautifully wrapped presents for my birthday so I wanted to make my wrapping special for her! The idea of buttons came to me. I used buttons with shanks to dress up the bows on her presents. Simply run one strand of the ribbon through the shank, then tie your bow! You may have to cut the tip of the ribbon to a narrow point just to get it to slide through the shank.
The white box is one of those "origami-like" tops that you fold inwards. I added a button to the top of that one too.
I really like the look. The buttons gave them a pretty feminine touch. Oh! Don't buy expensive buttons. These were some that came in one of those discount variety containers.
Martha Stewart, I am sorry if you have already thought of this idea. It's new to me!

"Tranquility" my first OOAK for 2011

"Tranquility" is finished! She is very aged looking,and intentionally primitive,especially her hands. I wanted her to look like a relic. She is removable from her base which is highlighted with an Austrian crystal chain. I often use these chains for my jewelry and decided that they would look perfect as an embellishment on this base.

My big decision is where to list her. I will list her either on Ebay, on the Fairy Society website, or on my own website. Since I make only one piece at a time and don't have my work reproduced, I can't keep a lot of inventory going on my website. So, I will think about it and let you know where to find her!

Watch for my next post about my birthday presents I wrapped for Gina, my sister, today!

"Tranquility" is coming soon!

If all goes as planned, I should have photographs of my new doll ready to show you tomorrow! She is one of my antiqued, white faced fairies.....very different. I think you will like her. Her title or name will be "Tranquility." Lord knows we could use a little of that right now! So, please watch for her and let me know if you like her! I look forward to your comments.

Back to my OOAKs and soldering for 2011

After a very fun and very busy Christmas (two trips back to Ohio in December), I am nearly ready to start on new pieces for 2011! I have some new ideas in the works and can't wait to share them with you!

I am really into dolls and fairies with extremely white faces right now, so that will be one of my first projects. I plan to make some larger soldered pieces for wall hangings. As always, I probably have more ideas than time.

Alan is officially retired right now so he will be helping me rep my work to various local shops, particularly in the quaint city of Orange. I am also going to work on pumping up my website, which I have had to put on the back burner for a while.

See you soon!