October 2009 – Ornamento

Twenty Five Years of Mural Art in Philadelphia

Happy Birthday to the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program which is 25 years old this month and still going strong. I feel lucky to live in a city where I can see beautiful paintings on the sides of buildings where ever I go. I get to walk past two of my favorite murals on my way to work.

The mural at Hahnemann Hospital on North Broad Street is near my workplace.

The mural of former mayor Frank Rizzo is near my home in the heart of South Philadelphia. Some people loved him and some people hated him, but he was always larger than life. And so is his mural.

Here’s to the next 25 years!

But wait, there’s more!

Wall Watching is an invitational photography exhibit of showing the murals as part of the city landscape instead big paintings. The exhibit is free to the public and runs to November 13 in the West portal hallway of City Hall in Philadelphia. You can even follow the mural program on Twitter! And check out Art in City Hall to get information about the many other interesting art exhibits scheduled there.

Shades of Blue Earrings

You can read my newest project article on how to make these cool drop earrings in the November/December issue of Step By Step Beads. You probably know that SBS Beads will cease publication with the January/February 2010 issue, The good news from the Interweave site is that it is being merged into Beadwork Magazine, and that Step By Step Wire is still going strong. I had a clasp making article published there earlier this year.

What’s Your Favorite Color?

By: ornamento.blog October 15, 2009October 20, 2009

Art, Lindly Haunani, Maggie Maggio, Materials, Polymer Clay, Polymer Clay tutorials, problem solvingArt, crafts, creativity, inspiration, Kato Polyclay, Polymer ClayLeave a Comment

Adobe has a neat, free on line tool called Kuhler (pronounced cooler) that lets you play with color. After you open a free account, you can even upload pictures and pull palettes from them. See my picture below.

Here’s a good tutorial on how to use Kuhler.

What got me on this Kuhler/color obsession? Lindly Haunani and Maggie Maggio’s magnificent new book, Polymer Clay Inspirations: Techniques and Jewelry Projects for Creating Successful Palettes. This winter, a friend and I plan to work our way from one end of the book to the other. When we come up for air, maybe I’ll have something new to show you.

Bargain Tool Discoveries

By: ornamento.blog October 8, 2009October 9, 2009

Art, Harbor Freight, ToolsArt, creativity, ToolsLeave a Comment

Harbor Freight sells a steel shot filled leather pouch used to repair dents in cars. It makes a great noise-deadening surface for your bench block and the price is right at $2.59. They also sell a flint striker for $1.79 which is great for lighting torches. This cheap model works better than the “high quality” one I bought elsewhere. I also got a small bolt cutter that I use to cut cable and heavy wire, a bargain at $3.99. I plan to use their digital pocket scale for weighing resin and hardener. That way I won’t mix more than I need and I can pour out equal amounts more easily.

I confess, weighing resin is not my idea; I read the tip in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. But it makes sense. Serious bakers weigh their ingredients because the measurements are more accurate.