Kalaya Steede

I think these are the most fun things I have made this month or was that last month? Have you guessed what they are yet?  Yes, they are money clips made from brass and copper and found objects.   I think the hardest part of the whole process was cutting out the blanks.  Talk about arm fatigue and these were only 20 gauge! At the market someone asked if I made the one on the right out of a ruler.  Hmm...what an interesting thought but no.   I took a bullet casing and sawed off the top which is not for light weights.  I have to use the force to decide where I place my saw blade because being too far up means sawing more and who wants to do that?!  The reason being is as you move up the casing the metal gets thicker somehow.  Also, while I am sawing I often wonder if the casing is going to blow up or something which is totally ridic!   After sawing the blank I file, anneal, clean, and patina.  Riveting is alway...

Does everything I make have to be great? NO!!! But sometimes it sure feels like it.  Every now and then this creature that is locked up inside of me comes out and starts whispering in my ear... pss...Kalaya, that is not good enough... no one is going to like that... look, that artist work is better than yours... you really should be making things that are going to sell... maybe you should just quit... AaaaHhhhhh!   So then I become paralyzed.  I question every step I make and end up not making anything at all.   And this is where I have been for an entire week. Full of FEAR!!! How does one get out of it?  I have not a clue but after a week here is what worked for me.  First I had to talk to myself in letting go of the outcome.  To just roll with it and realize that it was going to be okay no matter what.  That is when I went to the bench and made a piece.  It sort of helped that it was Valentine's ...