I’ve always been one to push boundaries, (hence six children) but never more than in my artwork. I am a huge fan of mixed media projects and have done my fair share of experimenting to see how different materials and products can be used together in ways not initially intended.
I remember my first year of bear making; I was working on a competition piece, a little mohair bear in a hand crafted bathtub. The bear and the tub alone had taken days of intricate work and I was determined to create a realistic water effect in the bath.
I purchased a two part epoxy clear resin but had never tested it out. In hindsight I probably should have ran a tolerance test with the mohair and clay involved but, as patience has never been one of my strong points, fingers crossed hey?
The resin was mixed, bear bottom in correct place and ready for the bath water. I poured in the slightly warm resin with the greatest care. So far so good. I was gleefully rubbing my hands together silently congratulating myself on my successful risk taking and artistic brilliance. As I watched though the resin seemed to get hotter - and - hotter.
To this day, I swear I saw my little bear give a disgruntled grimace and then the acid burning smell hit me. Bubbles and hot froth were popping up from the bottom of the bath, the smell became overpowering and it occurred to me the fumes might be toxic.
I sprung from observation perch, grabbed the nearest baby and toddler, called to the other three children and shepherded them all out the door and down the stairs to safety. I did however have the presence of mind to throw the tiny hand sculpted polymer rubber ducky I had made into the boiling heaving waves as I fled.
We were all sat on the grass at the bottom of the front stairway, eyes trained upwards when Mr. T arrived home from work. ‘You can’t go up there’ I cautioned him ‘There’s a bear in a boiling bath and it’s giving off toxic fumes, it could make you sick!’
Such a warning would frighten most men, but not my man. He purposely marched straight up to assess the damage. Laughter floated down to us, ‘Its ok’ he called ‘come and see.’ My little bear had somehow survived the ordeal, the resin had cooled rapidly and the bubbles had set perfectly and permanently creating a gorgeous bubble bath effect. ‘Cool’, said Mr. T checking out the little rubber duck. ‘Yes’ I said nonchalantly ‘it’s just as I planned.’
Amazingly enough, the bear went on to win a 1st place at the show. One of the judges wrote in her critique, ‘a delightful piece, I am especially impressed by the bubble effect in the water, marvelous attention to detail.’
I still feel guilty about the accolades, but not enough to stop experimenting! I have created some polymer/Sculpey resin cookies for you all to make, the mixed media is tested and safe! Have a look at my video tutorial and join me in making a whole tempting plate full.
View my channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/FabricJunkies to find all of my workshops. Watch from youtube if you would like to big screen it in HD
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