KATE...

It’s the name of her facebook account and not her real name. She’s a client whom I find interesting. When I do custom made pieces for clients, I usually check their facebook profiles and make something appropriate based on personal impression, but her facebook profile is blank and I have only seen her photo twice. Before I start working on her pieces, she just sends me amazing quotes and inspirations… a “moodboard” of some sort and I can instantly feel that she’s naturally classy (in my opinion)! I just love her taste! Let me share with you some of the pieces I made for her and her lovely feedbacks. I’ve got a lot from her which turns me giddy at times…

"Your work really reflects your personal touch.. it really looks like inspired art. And it does reflect the time and thought invested in each piece. " - Kate

This is the first personalized piece i made for Kate..

"Hi Ghie.. Wow! Wow! Wow! I adore the locket.. It is so me! Its like you read me like a book! Super thanks!"- Kate

"The aquamarine necklace you made for me with the lady sitting on a rock near the beach is still my all time fave. 
Aside from the recent gun metal necklace you made for me with our picture on it . "-Kate

Yes, that's her and her cute kids.. I blurred it a bit to protect her privacy.. =)


"Wow, I love the details.. You should also take a picture of the back of your works. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw your handiwork @ the back of my son's bag tag and my daughter's pendant. BTW, you were right about my necklace.. it is simple yet elegant... " - Kate

Among the pieces I made for her, this set was the most challenging. It took a lot of thinking on how i will be able to put all all elements together in one cohesive look.. they're too many! Not only that, I need to interpret the quotations she gave me. She wanted pieces that will remind her of the most significant message she got from a retreat. It made me inspired all the more,  knowing that I'm becoming part of her personal journey. =) 

"Healing Necklace"
"Healing can only start when you see the beauty in yourself and not just the woundedness."

Meaningful elements:
woundedness: rose
hope: anchor
love: heart
joy: bells
peace: dove or bird

courage: fleur de lis
hope: anchor 

 "MINDFUL THERAPY BANGLE"
Breathe in - mentally think: " I am a flower."
Breathe out - mentally think: " I am fresh"

Breathe in - mentally think: "I am a mountain"
Breathe out - mentally think: "I am strong."

"I am crystal water"
"I reflect things clearly"

"I am space"
"I am free"

"I accept"
"I let go"

"My MTO necklace and cuff is "lovelier in person". Wore both pieces already this afternoon.   "- Kate

This is the hunger game inspired necklace i made for her. I made a version that I thought would suit her style...

"Ghie! You never fail to surprise me!!! I love every single work of art you have created for me." - Kate

I made some cane flowers that represented "Katniss on fire" 


Thank you Kate for your unending trust.  I'm so proud to have an awesome client like you.  You inspired me to keep going and create more...Looking forward to working with your pieces again... =)

Molding Hunger Games Inspired Pieces In My Hands...

My good friends Ciela and Tina have again challenged my creativity by doing some Hunger Games inspired pieces for them. It’s been a long time since a movie/novel like Hunger Games has made me inspired and kept my right part of the brain functional. But the irony of it all, the inspiration came out last... that is... after finishing all the pieces… haha! I never had any idea what the story is all about but I just feel the urge of doing them. I believe that something in the project was fascinating and without any reservation, I gave it a try…

I called this cuff “The HG Flora Cuff.” Each flower in the cuff embodied some characters and images in the film. Though the whole piece was made with polymer clay, I’ve tried to make the flowers look just as pretty as the real ones. I appreciate that Ciela made these illustrations with some inspirational quotes from the novel: 

                       

 

As worn

Here are Tina’s pieces. The mockingjay necklace symbolizes rebellion and the bloody rose ring represents President Coriolanus Snow, the main antagonist in the story.

The Mockingjay Necklace

The bloody rose ring made with polymer clay =)

I had the great pleasure of seeing the film and found those pieces I made come to life in big screen. Haha…  It’s really a wonderful experience! Thank you Ciela and Tina for the inspiration… may the odds be ever in your favor! =)

My Steampunk has... WINGS!

Quoting from wikepedia,  Steampunk is most directly influenced by, and often adopts the style of, the 19th century scientific romances of writers Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, and Mary Shelley.  Their works often feature the Victorian Era or the Wild West Era where steam engines are still widely used and mixed with elements of science fiction and fantasy.  I guess, Steampunk jewelry can be often inspired by such literary style.  Sounds interesting, right?

What actually inspired me to do steampunk style jewelries are my bookworm cyber friends (Ciela and Tina) who requested a steampunk angel inspired by Cassandra Clare’s Novel entitled “Clockwork Angel.”    There was a slight hesitation at first but fearlessly, I said YES! The project had finally tapped my creative nerve and I was able to finish more than one version of the steampunk angel project. Look how they evolved:

The  1st version of the clockwork angel was not so steampunky:  I didn't have gears then. I just used some jump rings, chains and spacers.

2nd Version: The design was submitted by my client Ciela and I made the execution now with gears!

The ring version of the wings. =)

3rd Version: This is the version i made for my hubby's cousin residing in Dubai, UAE. 

My style doesn’t bear that steam engine look but I guess it will always have that Victorian feel.  I just love how I layered the gears in this necklace and portrayed some switching motion.

I’ve made quite a lot of steampunk works and some are Christi Friesen inspired. I love Christi’s works and I have her book “Steampunkery” to help me kick-start my creativity.  You can check her works at: http://www.cforiginals.net/

Here are some of my CF inspired works:

CF inspired slave bangle

CF inspired bangle

The heart here was CF inspired. This key-chain was given to a Filipino celebrity, Billy Crawford.

CF's moth goes steampunky!

Today, the Philippine Polymer Clay Guild concluded its valentine challenge: “Create a Heart with A Steampunk Theme.” My original plan was to actually make an anatomical heart. My last minute decision to join the challenge made me realize that I lack all the time to do it. I just let my hands played with gears and some reclaimed watch parts, scrap clays and voila… it gave me that steampunk look in no time!

It's romantic...

It's steampunk... It flies 'coz...

It has WINGS!!! =)

Love, free as air at sight of human ties, 
Spreads his light wings, and in a moment flies. – Alexander Pope

You can check the entries of other guild members by again clicking the logo on the right side of this page. ENJOY! 

Artful Inchies

I am part of the Philippine Polymer Clay Guild also dubbed as P3. It is the guild’s requirement to join quarterly challenges to hone our skills and keep us inspired. This month’s challenge is all about INCHIES.  Quoting from the guild’s definition: An "INCHIE" is a small piece of art; a snippet of self-expression. We’re required to express ourselves by making four (4) separate inchies. Oh well, I have to admit that this challenge is pretty intimidating at first and it’s not as easy as it seems. On my part, any attempt to define the kind of a polymer clay artist that I am is already a challenging task. Hence, those four (4) little squares though little as they are, should not fail me…  

I started the challenge by examining my works and by collating some common design elements. I found out that I like wings, steampunk, flowers, romantic images, vintage, rustic but vibrant colours.  I love mixing clay with anything that may end up with a tasteful, bold, and yet feminine piece.  I made some squiggles on paper to compose my ideas and decided to try out some techniques I’ve long wanted to do.

 Just look at what I've came up with:

Techniques used: Metal leaf, Alcohol Inks, Mokume Gane, Steampunk and Faux Cloisonne.  The later is the newest technique that I've tried and was inspired by Eugena Topina. 

I hope that I was successful enough in embodying my work through those four little squares. But I swear….  I’ve managed to complete this challenge with a smile! =)

The entries of the other guild members will be posted on our guild page soon! The guild's logo on the right-hand side will lead you to our Facebook page. Just click it, like it and enjoy! =)

A Thrifty Treasure Hunting Weekend

One of the things I love doing on a weekend is shopping. LOL! But let me clarify it… I’m fond of bargain hunting!  It was a pleasurable weekend for someone like me who loves the thrill of finding something beautiful but of course potentially inexpensive.  Just look at what I've found!

If you are a lover of art and lover of vintage like I am, I’m sure you’ll fall in love with this vintage vanity case I got from EGG (exciting gifts + goodies) at half the original price. This is perfect for my future closet  craft room.

I love its femme fatale design..

... and its romantic inscriptions are just so perfect =)

Next up is my all time favorite shop for bargain books --- BOOKSALE!  Everytime I sneak into this store, I always manage to pick up some hard to find books (craft and non-craft related) and beading magazines at a cheaper price. You just have to be patient quarrying through their heaps of second hand books and magazines but some are really new... and these gave me double happiness:

Beading Magazines!!! Can't wait to try some of the featured projects here! =)

Cake, Scrap booking and Polymer clay books

How about you? What are you most excited about when you go bargain hunting? Have a fun productive week ahead! =)

HELLO!

Hello! I’m Ghie.  I love to work with my hands. Crafting is something I do to express myself. As I start this blog, I couldn’t help but think of my Mom. My mom, hands down, is the craftiest person I know. When I was a kid, she would sew beautiful clothes I would wear for school programs and special occasions. She used to design carpets and curtains at home. With such an early influence from my mom, I started crafting as a little girl by making my own dolls and Barbie’s clothes out of scrap fabrics.  As far as I remember, I already did any and all kinds of crafts like cross stitch, paper tole, crochet, embroidery, beading, scrap booking, etc.  I even made everything decorative on my wedding day. Right now, I’m really loving polymer clay art and photography, but once in a while I would still dabble in embroidery and scrap booking (now digital scrap booking).

Crafting… some have a gift for it and I’m thankful I have. Aside from the creative outlet that crafting can give, I find a lot of value in something I made…

First, I get appreciated when I give something handmade to my friends and relatives. I feel proud when people compliment my work.

Second, I earn money by selling my crafts. It’s something I do as a hobby and turned into a lucrative business.  On May of 2010, I opened a humble trinket store I named, “Trinket Tales (hence, the name of this blog).” I sell handmade accessories made of polymer clay mixed with other raw materials like beads and metal findings.  

Third, I come to know new friends by conducting workshops and meet fellow crafters.

Fourth, crafting has allowed me to write.   I am a Chemist by profession and not a writer.  My sentences and phrases are made of atoms and molecules, thus, I struggle with words. So please forgive me for some grammatical errors. Trinket Tales is where I will embellish your world with my crafts and anything and everything about life that is worth sharing! =)