Hi, I'm Torrey. Welcome to Left Field, where creativity runs amok and imagination is ALWAYS more important than knowledge. Shoes are not allowed but ties are optional. This is a repository of snippets from my life out here in Left Field. One never knows what shiny bits of creativity will be found here... cards, scrapbook layouts, photography, poetry, recipes, ponderings, rantings and musings. It could be anything! Life in Left Field is always changing, always real, always ...interesting.

April 24, 2015

Masquerade


Hidy Ho, crafty peeps!

I have been hard at work here in the labora-Torrey.

REALLY hard at work.

A dear family friend (Bob) hired me a few days ago to craft for him a masquerade mask for an upcoming Soiree he's attending. This isn't your ordinary run-of-the-mill costume party. No siree Bob. It's a Hoity-Toity, high-falutin', Cinderella-esque masquerade ball. You know the kind you see in James Bond movies? Where the men wear tuxedos and the ladies dress in fancy gowns...and the "Who's Who" of the city are all there, dressed to the nines.

I've never attended such a lavish affair. I've only seen them in movies.

Well, Bob is going. And he commissioned me to create a mask...in whatever style I choose! My only restriction was that it had to be a black mask. Apparently, the men are all wearing black masks, and the women are wearing white.

I immediately knew I had to make a Steampunk mask...and it had to be a half-face Phantom of the Opera-type mask. That's the only idea that came to me. But, one idea is all you need if it's the right one!

For the past 2 days I've been cutting and gluing and painting and creating up a storm.

Here is the result.

It TOTALLY looks like leather and metal, doesn't it??? Well, it's not. It's SUPER light weight because most of it is made from....craft foam.

Here is the top part:
 
And, here is the bottom of it:


Here are the main materials I used.
(plus a few hardware odds and ends)
Hard to believe it's mainly constructed out of craft foam and other household objects.



The parts above the eye and on the right edge of the forehead are the silver pieces from the plastic toy motorcycles in the picture above. The tubes on the left side of the mask are made from a USB cable. The goggles are el-cheapo swimming goggles I got at the dollar store. The mask I got from the party store. It was the most expensive thing at $3 (well, actually the black matte spray paint was more expensive).

  • I free-hand cut the base pieces from craft foam. That's right folks. I didn't use any patterns. I just made it up as I went. 
  • I used several manufacturers gear dies (Sizzix, Spellbinders, Cheery Lynn, QuicKutz) to cut the multitude of gears. FYI, craft foam (the thin stuff) cuts GREAT in the Big Shot...even with the wafer dies.
  • Then I used a few sticks of hot glue to glue it all down.
  • I took it outside and spray painted the whole shebang with matte black paint (Not an easy task when it's raining and the humidity is at 100%).
  • I then took silver Rub 'n Buff and highlighted what needed to be.

And, here is Bob in his new mask!!
 I told him not to smile...that it wasn't a smiling type of mask.

It's hard to imagine that this mask started out as a plain, white plastic mask. Now that I really look at it...it's more Sci-Fi than Steampunk. If it were made of a base of brown with copper or brass highlights, then it would be totally Steampunk. As is, it looks a lot like a Borg headpiece from Star Trek. I have no doubt his mask is going to be completely unique and over-the-top by comparison. I have a feeling he'll be the beau of the ball. 

And as for it being "over-the-top"? Well, that's how I roll...but y'all know that already.

Resistance is futile.


April 20, 2015

My Oh My It's Dusty in Here

Hidy Ho crafty peeps!

Yeah, yeah, yeah...I know it's been F O R E V E R since I've posted in here. I won't go into the "why", but suffice it to say, I just haven't been able to be crafty for way too long.

The amount of dust that has accumulated in my poor, neglected studio is...impressive. I'm still trying to figure out what creative thing I can do with all these dust bunnies. Surely there is something. Perhaps, if I mix it with Elmer's Glue and some glitter, I can come up with some new medium to play with. Or, perhaps, maybe I can use it like embossing powder.

Perhaps not.

At any rate, I did manage to clear off a section of my worktable and I actually created something this week.

Don't faint.

I really did.

My dear friend Fran commissioned me to make her 2 birthday cards. One is for her niece who is an artistic person, and one for her nephew--the hunter. That's all the direction she gave me.

So, this is what I came up with.

For her niece's card, I employed one of my favorite paper-piecing techniques--paper quilting. I recreated a version of the Cathedral Window pattern. I dug through my paper scraps and chose some fun colors/patterns that go together (sort of). I used one-sided patterned paper for this because I think the white edges are striking. I suppose you could use double-sided paper...that would be an interesting effect. I used a black background to really make the colors pop. Then, I added hand-stitching pen marks all over the place.

And, sorry Jodi, I left my buttons un-flossed.

Oh, the horror!


For her nephew's card I broke out my new Shadowbox die set from DoCrafts. OMG I love these things. I couldn't decide which one to get, so I ended up getting 3 of them--the Forest, the Woodlands, and the Fairgrounds. For this card, I used the Forest set.

It is UBER dimensional. So much so, that the top layer is almost half an inch above the background. I made the hat, noisemaker, banner, and balloon by hand. Yeah, I made them bright. The rest of the card was soooo....monochromatic. I thought about doing it all in camouflage pattern, but decided it needed some pops of color. I thought about adding more to it...it still seems plain to me. But I sort of ran out of time. And yes, I had to make special custom envelopes for both of these.

Thank goodness for the We R Memory Keepers Envelope Punch Board. I love that thing. I mean...like I'd marry it if I weren't already married.

Seriously.


No supply list today. I'm too lazy. If you want to know about any specific product...just say so in the comments and I'll respond.

As always, thank you for coming out to Left Field!