LavenderLizard

I am a children's librarian who lives to make things. I have enjoyed being a Jack of all trades, but would like to see more artistic progress. I tend to dive into a variety of things as the mood strikes, so focus is...well, not always focused.

I came down with pneumonia over Easter break. Several of my swaps were sent out a few days late as a result of my illness. I kept my partners updated, and everyone has been quite understanding and patient with me! Thanks so much!

I will be mostly off of Swap-bot until after my honeymoon - I will check regularly again after May 26th.

If I am not creating and sharing what I create, my life feels flat. I wanted to call myself an artist for a long time.

I am learning paper cutting and related arts, though I will continue a lot of other things too. I am practicing papercutting using both scissors and razor blades, and am starting to focus more on my own designs. I also use paper cuts as stencils or patterns for carved rubber stamps, and in fabric design (I dye and print cotton and silk). I also enjoy incorporating book pages and recycled papers into my work, as well as blackout poetry and found items. When I send you blackout poetry, it will usually be original and not photocopied. I use book pages from items that are headed to the trash can or recycling bin.

I first became interested in creating scherenschnitte a few years ago when I began researching Hans Christian Andersen's storytelling and artwork. He is a fascinating and talented man, and despite his flaws, one of my creative heroes. I have completed two grant projects on the subject now, attended the National Storytelling Festival, taken a class from Beatrice Coron, and attended the Guild of American Papercutters' conference. It really feels like I have found my main artistic focus and passion at last...with all that said, I am a beginner level artist.

I love using unusual, high quality papers in my cuts. I also love using vintage images and old book pages, despite acid content, in certain situations.

Things I like to make or can do, but am not focusing on as much right now:

Shuttle and needle tatting (mostly flowers and butterflies that can be used in other crafts, as jewelry, or as bookmarks). I do have a small collection of tatting shuttles started now, and I love handcrafted ones.

Crochet (not often now - it makes my wrists hurt, which is quite sad)

Sewing bags and simple clothing(often with reclaimed materials)

I am making and using fabric yoyos - my only current long-term project is a yoyo quilt, so I have a few hundred of them in a bag! I wonder how many years this project will take me? I could always use smallish pieces of fabric about 4x4 inches up to fat quarter size, and I love using pieces from used clothing to make that sort of thing.

Stuffies

Printmaking and stamp carving

Textile design on a small scale (one to two yards or so at a time, all hand-done with printing blocks I make myself)

Paper beads

Mixed media jewelry

Beading and wire wrapping

Finger puppets

Herbal cosmetics and dream pillows

Cold process and glycerin soaps

Suminagashi

Low-tech photography

Cyanotype

Haiku and blackout poetry

Zines

Starting out with a quick wishlist to make things easy for partners!

Here are some ideas for supplies:

Fabric pieces between 4x4 inches and fat quarter size for my yoyo quilt and fabric flowers

Watercolor, washi, rice, handmade paper

Origami paper, especially patterns - even a single piece of the fancy, hard-to-find paper makes me happy!

Back issues of craft magazines, or even just a torn out article...I love new inspiration! I adore the Somerset publications, and am rapidly becoming fascinated with British publications like Mollie Makes and the various crochet, sewing, embroidery ones. Quite cool.

And here are some ideas for handcrafted or vintage items:

Zines (by you or others - especially crafty themes - I love love love seeing things that are outside of mainstream publishing, even though I love those too!)

Anything related to Hans Christian Andersen - especially the Steadfast Tin Soldier, the Princess and the Pea, the Ugly Duckling.

Silhouettes and paper cuts from any culture, yours or other people's

Spinning tops! I have started a collection - a lot of my art plays with the concepts of presence vs. absence, and I find a spinning top is quite symbolic.

I collect vintage wooden fabric stamps with a vengeance as well. Sometimes they turn up at yard sales or on Etsy for low prices.

An old Viewmaster!

For those of you in the Pacific Northwest (or other places lavender grows), I would LOVE some dried lavender from your area.

Vintage lace

And especially, HANDMADE BY YOU! I love incorporating handmade into my everyday life. From dish cloths to napkins to pillowcases to toys to bags to pincushions to wall art...the everyday is more special if someone's heart and hands have influenced my surroundings. Even if it seems outside of my usual likes, I do enjoy seeing what others see as their specialty.

Other ideas:

In general, I love whimsy, delicacy, occasionally some darkness, and old-fashioned fairy-tale themes, but am not overly sentimental. For example, I love Brian Froud but not so thrilled with Ann Geddes, and I love classic fairy tales like Grimm and Andersen but usually not Disney-style ones. I have an Etsy list up top for aesthetic inspiration.

I love woodland themes (owls, trees, hedgehogs, deer, flowers, etc.), Asian themes, cottage style, daffodils, the moon, the colors red, blue, green and purple (though I'm fond of any color that seems appropriate to its use, so am not particularly picky there). I adore butterflies. I love tea (except chamomile) and chocolate. I also love vintage, and have a special place in my heart for old hand-embroidery, even if damaged and worn.

Odd bits and pieces about me:
I collect cast iron trivets, cut paper art, and carved, wooden fabric stamps. I obsess over art and craft books and magazines, especially ones from overseas. I have a Yorkie who's the light of my life (aside from my guy), and even my friends who normally dislike little dogs love her. I love art in general, and when I travel I love to see unique handicrafts and regional creations. I have been to Senegal (in the Peace Corps), England, and Bolivia, so I got a start, at least. I live in a very cute, cottage-ish little blue house that needs some serious cosmetic work inside, but I love it. I can twist balloon animals!

I’ve listed lots of likes so that partners have guidance, but please don’t feel constrained by any specifics! Surprises are thrilling, too. One of the reasons I like swapping so much is that I find I am introduced to so many new ideas and aesthetic styles. Some of the most special swaps I have received contained lovely items I would never have thought to ask for. And just so you know, extras are always lovely and appreciated, but you don’t have to include them to get a heart from me. I give those for the actual swap items, so there’s no pressure to add more if you don’t want to.

I love private swaps. I will rate everyone when I receive your package. If I somehow forget, I won’t be offended if you remind me. I post up top if I am going to leave town, so I won't disappear unexpectedly barring some awful disaster.

My goal is to make people's day. Life is hard sometimes, and nothing makes me feel better than making people feel good. I want your swap packages to be special to you. As such, I always try for a heart in my swaps but will never bully you for one. I will rate a "1" for flaked swaps, but if you have an emergency, I will work with you - given a choice, I will always choose kindness. That said, my biggest pet peeve - bigger than non-rating or flaking - is receiving a swap that had obviously no care put into it whatsoever. Very depressing!

Three of my swaps mailed in April/May 2012 did not arrive at their destinations. If you do not receive your swap, I will always resend it, and I will never use that PO branch again! (Recipe cards swap, redwork square #2, Beaded butterfly ATC - all resent - the resend of the ATC didn't make it either, so I sent a third, certified mail.) I am going to be sending my packages which qualify, starting 6/21/12, with delivery confirmation and only visiting the branch of the PO that I trust most in the hopes that I will not have this sort of problem again. If something ever vanishes in transit, I will re-make the swap.

I recently deleted a good portion of my profile by accident and lost my list of flaked-on swaps, but I don't plan to reconstruct that...too much trouble.

Wonderful angels!! @percl8r angeled a LOVELY Redwork Square for me! @latentsmile angeled a Blackout poem for me - you are great!

I most often read books intended for children and teenagers - hence my career choice of youth services librarian. I absolutely adore art and craft how-to books (to the point of obsession!) I am also a poetry fan, and sometimes devour romances when I am stressed. I am a children's librarian, so obviously love storybooks.

I love reading about how to live more sustainably, so any recommendations of books or online resources are welcome.

I'm a movie freak! I love to watch movies over and over while I make crafts. My favorite movies of all time are Labyrinth, Amelie, Suspiria, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Analyze that, if you dare! An origami documentary I saw recently, Between the Folds, is amazing - I recommend it to anyone with artsy interests. I adore Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. I'm addicted to Dario Argento flicks, as they are incredibly inspiring artistically and a great dark fairy tales and giallo(s?), and I can just close my eyes during the scarier death scenes. I tend to prefer the ones from the 70s and 80s, when the bloody stuff is a little less realistic by modern standards (I do NOT enjoy things like Saw - way too realistic gore and torture for me). I also love the original three Star Wars (the newer ones do not exist in my world), Bull Durham, Stardust, the Witches of Eastwick, Pride and Prejudice (the one with Colin Firth, naturally), Mirrormask, Howl's Moving Castle (the book is excellent too), Juno, Lord of the Rings, Torso (what awesome camera work!). Another huge obsession of mine is older, black-and-white horror movies. Vincent Price and Barbara Steele are awesome! I've been watching the Crawling Eye, House of Wax, Terror Creatures from the Grave, etc.

I am joining groups and swaps now that relate a lot to fairy tales and children's literature, so will flutter on about those for a while. I love folk tales and fairy tales in general, as well as mythology. Some of my favorite children's books and authors are Hans Christian Andersen, the Little House series, Susan Cooper's Dark is Rising sequence, Gaiman's books for kids, Shannon Hale's Safe Keeper trilogy, Betsy Tacy, Wise Child by Monica Furlong, Anne of Green Gables, Coraline, Alice in Wonderland, and I will keep adding here as I go. I am very fond of classics like Beatrix Potter, Andersen, Grimm, Margaret Wise Brown, etc. Picture book favorites include Corduroy, Where the Wild Things Are, The Duchess of Whimsey, The Wishing of Biddy Malone, Fancy Nancy, Goodnight Moon, the Little Island, I Ain't Gonna Paint No More, and again, I will keep going! As for favorite fairy tales, I made everyone call me Cinderella for over a year when I was a child...delusions of grandeur much?

I'm currently obsessed with Hans Christian Andersen's Princess and the Pea and the Steadfast Tin Soldier. I want to illustrate a version of each!