gifts

Valentines Day is Just Around the Corner

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ January 25, 2013 ⋅ 2 Comments

I know… it seems Christmas and New Year have just passed and suddenly Valentine’s Day is upon us!

Goodness knows what’s happening to celebrate this day in Verona, Italy – the home of Romeo and Juliet AND romance – and where I just came from…

Me… I’m not a huge Valentine person… as an Australian I see it as a bit of an American thing, a bit like Halloween (sorry, putting myself ‘out’ there), BUT exchanging romantic gifts can be great fun… so why not make it handmade!

SO… getting to the point… I, of course, have lots of handmade romantic gifts in my Etsy store, suitable for both girls and guys.

Here are some examples:

And if you have made it to this far into the post you deserve a Valentine discount – simply use the coupon code WORDPRESS10 at the Etsy checkout to receive a 10% discount on anything in my Etsy shop.

Happy Valentines Day

Blackfiring: Saggar Bonfire

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ November 26, 2012 ⋅ 7 Comments

My most recent saggar bonfire was two weeks ago on the 16th November… we needed to clean up the underbrush from the property for the summer season, and whenever that happens I don’t pass up the opportunity to put some small works into the fire.

I am very happy with the outcomes, and will be making jewellery with the finished beads once I return from Italy. I am also happy with the little experimental teabowls I fired, and will definitely be doing more of those little gems.

The photo gallery below shows images of the process and step by step descriptions of the process. Click on the image for a larger view.

ENJOY!!

: The ingredients – yes including the champagne!

: Saggars are old coffee tins with holes punched through the base and lids. Fist a layer of sawdust…

: Then a bowl with sawdust, mixed with copper, salt and iron oxide..

: Another layer of sawdust, a sprinkle of beads, more copper, iron oxide and salt…

: More beads, more copper, iron oxide and salt…

: Saggars ready for the bonfire…

: Bonfire is lit… saggars are nestled into the middle

: Flames are catching on…

: More flames…

: The established bonfire…

: Sparks floating through the air…

: The smouldering embers when stoking has finished…

: The next afternoon, and the tins are still too hot to touch…

: When opened the fuel inside is carbonised and ashy…

: The results before being cleaned…

: A detail of the beads that had copper wire wrapped around them…

: The finished result… cleaned and polished…

Handcrafted Christmas Gifts – buy from small business and individuals this year!

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ November 19, 2012 ⋅ 3 Comments

There is only five weeks till Christmas, so shopping time quickly passing by. The simple solution may seem to go to a large department store, and buy everything in one frenzied spree, but why not consider buying from small business and/or self employed people this year, rather than from multinational companies?

Shopping online is a great way to accomplish this. Not only is it a time saver if you are feeling the rush of festive season, but it also provides easy access to a whole assortment of small businesses, individuals and artists that sell online. An added bonus is that usually these business are more sustainable and more ethical. These are people who are interested in customer satisfaction, and your goods are delivered to your door – what could be better?

My online store is on Etsy, along with lots of other artists and crafters that make a wide array of handcrafted goods.

As some regular readers will know my speciality is ceramic jewellery and tableware, but I also have upcycled button jewellery, ceramic buttons, and original artwork blank greeting cards. And I hope to be introducing a new line of tone jewellery in the next day or two.

To ensure Christmas delivery orders must be placed in my shop by 26th November. This is because I am going overseas to exhibit in Florence, but also because the post can be pretty swamped at Christmas, so the more delivery time the better.

Below is a small selection of items from my store. To view the full range of my products, visit me here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/DeeDeeDeesigns

New Stone Jewellery

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ November 8, 2012 ⋅ 4 Comments

I love stones! As a kid I spent most of my holidays staying at the beach, and I think this is where all my love for organic form, texture and colour stems from. Over the years i have collected lots of beach stones, mostly in Australia, but some from France and South Korea. Unfortunately I have lost track of which stones are which. In future I think I will file them in labelled buckets!

What to do with all these stones? Apart from using them for inspiration…

Recently I have begun experimenting with making some into pendants by wire wrapping them and threading them on leather thong, and then use the same wire to make fasteners. I think the leather thong compliments the stones : organic and natural.

Eventually these will make it to my Etsy store, but if anybody would like a unique Christmas gift feel free to contact me by leaving a comment

Wire Wrapped Stone Pendents

Nature Drawings…

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ October 29, 2012 ⋅ 6 Comments

I have been getting into some drawing of natural objects recently – I don’t quite know why, but I have been enjoying it for something different. I am enjoying the loose fluidity of drawing with a black fine liner, and adding a bit of random water colour. I think the two mediums compliment each other.

I have also drawn some of these images on some blank gift cards, and listed them in my Etsy shop – they would make great gift cards, are original art pieces, and are suitable for framing .

Here are some examples:

Macro Photography – capturing details of the ceramic surface.

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ October 24, 2012 ⋅ 2 Comments

While giving the computer a clean up today I came across some old images of ceramics and macro shots of the ceramic surface I had taken back in 2004 during my University Honours year, and thought I would share them.

The images are not great quality as I did not have a very good camera back then, and I didn’t know that much about photography – but you get the general idea.

Having rediscovered these images has rekindled my interest in the underlying concept of capturing the surface of ceramic in a macro image. Ceramic surfaces can be so amazingly textural, so when I go to Italy at the end of November I am planning to buy a macro lens duty free, so as to begin a new exploration into the ceramic surface. Mind you, I think I will find lots of textured archaeological surfaces to photograph in Italy as well!

The following slideshow showcases images of some ceramic works I made in 2004, they are wheelthrown pieces made of two clays marbled together. I then took some close up images, trying to capture the detail of the surface. As mentioned earlier, they are not great quality, but it a direction I will now explore further, now that I have a better knowledge of photography AND a better camera!

So, look forward to some interesting macro photography posts during December while I am in Italy!

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Christmas is Fast Approaching!

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ October 18, 2012 ⋅ Leave a Comment

As the post title says “Christmas is fast approaching” and time always seems to get away from me quicker than I would like!

From a business pointy end perspective that means I have been listing new items in my Etsy shop and relisting expired listings that I had let lapse (coz of that time getting away from me thing…). These listings include jewelry, tableware, gift cards and buttons.

At the end of this post is a slideshow of some of the items I have listed and relisted recently… BUT WAIT READ THIS FIRST!

Specially for WordPress readers i have created a discount coupon code which gives you 10% off any purchase in my Etsy shop. Just enter WORDPRESS10 at checkout…woohoo!

BUT the catch is that if you want to give a handmade and unique gift this Christmas you will need to order it within the next month for two reasons:

1. To ensure pre-Christmas delivery, especially if you are international (that would be not in Australia)
2. Because I am off to Italy on the 28th November because I have been “invited” to exhibit in Florence in December.

Number 2. is very exciting and if you would like to read more about that venture and how you can support me you can read this post.

So, apart from the business pointy end, I will be spending Christmas and New Years in Italy! Am I excited? Just a bit…

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Artwear: a Fashion Exhibition

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ October 10, 2012 ⋅ Leave a Comment

Recently I was curated into an exhibition at Brunswick Street Gallery called Artwear. It was great exhibition with lots of different wearable art exhibits and many more abstract and not so wearable art examples.

Unfortunately I was not able to get enough photos to do the show justice. On the day of installation there was too much chaos and opening night was jam packed, so impossible to take photos of artworks.

I thought I’d get back there before the show closed, but life just gets in the way and I ran out of time. So my only photo opportunity was at pack up. When I got there though, some works had already been collected. I managed to take a few snaps, but missed some great artworks such as foil wall works, shredded paper dresses and moulded body wall works, to name a few.

My wearable artworks are the ceramic jewelry in the glass case. Most of these are now listed on my Etsy site, and would make great Christmas pressies if you are looking for gifts that are different and unique. I also take custom orders, so message me your wearable art ideas

Following is a slideshow of the artworks I managed to get images of… enjoy!

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Jewellery Exhibition

Posted by Dawn Whitehand ⋅ September 19, 2012 ⋅ 2 Comments

As some followers may know I have been making jewelley since December last year (2011) after having an accident – for a while I couldn’t make the larger scale sculpture I usually produce within my art practice. Jewellery was a managable option: I could still be creative – it was like making mini wearable sculptures.

While I have exhibited my sculpture both within Australia and overseas, the only exposure I have given my jewellery was amongst friends, via social media and on my Etsy shop. I have not formally exhibited the jewellery pieces – until now!

I have several jewellery pieces in an exhibition called Artwear at Brunswick Street Gallery in Fitzroy which opens this Friday at 6pm. This is the first time my jewellery creations will be shown in a gallery setting. It will be very interesting – and nerve racking – to observe the reactions! The exhibition features several artists exhibiting a range of wearable art.

The exhibition runs till 4th October, so if you happen to find yourself having a browse and a glass of wine in Brunswick Street make sure you drop in for a look