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poly clay goldfish (low maintenance!)

poly clay mermaid

It is 1 degree out there today.  Back to work tomorrow after a 4-day weekend.  The best thing about when the temperatures hit the arctic zone is the great excuse to stay home and power-lounge.  My day is going like this: make stuff out of polymer clay.  Rest.  Take down the tree.  Rest.  Check Facebook and pester all my friends.  Rest. Talk on the phone.  Rest.  Make some more stuff.  Rest.  Read seed catalogs and view frozen garden site from indoors.  Rest.  Feed the horse some apples and hay.  Rest.  It’s all good.

I wonder if a good business to have would be to take down other people’s Christmas stuff, box it up carefully and carry it to basement/shed/attic for them.  It might certainly be worth a try, NOBODY likes to do that. Same idea which makes garbage and sewer maintenance businesses thrive- just a random thought.

Everybody in Salmon appears to be staying home today, and calling each other to chat them up by phone.  Of course, on Sundays nothing is open, anyway.  Can’t go to the grocery store- closed Sundays.  The downtown coffee shop stays open for the church crowd and the old men.  No stores.  Main Street uninhabited.  The movie theater might be open tonight… last few times I have been there were no more than a half-dozen intrepid souls there.  I hope it can stay in operation this Winter.  I may bundle up and walk the dogs along the river this afternoon, if it warms up any.

This is a great time to haul out the art supplies and have at it.  I ferociously make all manner of things, papier mache and polymer clay sculptures, drawing, painting, jewelry, photography, needle- arts, knitting, spinning wool… the possibilities are endless.  I learned a long time ago to market my stuff elsewhere.  We do have one small art gallery/ artist’s co-op here which I am considering.  Folks here and tourists often favor the western-themed, cowboy-and-indian, moose and elk business.  Handmade rustic lodgepole and blue pine furniture is very popular here.  Chandeliers and lamps made from antlers, elk-ivory jewelry, small carvings, and fish-art are also quite popular.  Though I can draw horses, trout, and other wildlife with the best of ‘em, I favor the whimsical, and caterwampus effects of clay, beads, and paper.  Mermaids, magic wands, frog princes and other whimsical creatures capture my imagination more than moose.  Natural materials like rocks, gourds, wood and stone also attract my creative spirit. Along with my artsy and talented cousins,  a web site is underway to display our wares. 

I leave you with a few photos of my work.  Here’s hoping you are warm, safe, and relaxing this Sunday-after.  Kudos.

jewels and blings

Gus and his papier-mache counterpart

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