Project 17: Follow Me

I'm two weeks late with this project. I don't have a great excuse, but since I'm accountable to myself, it will have to do. My cat, who we've had for 18 years, had to be put down last week. So between the emotional distress from the loss of my cat, the craziness of VBS and the beginning of day camp, I couldn't get it done on time. But I'm still hoping to keep to a weekly a project, so hopefully I'll be able to get back on track. I don't have any muse for this window. I just thought of it while hanging out with some friends the other week. I think you could make up some interesting symbolism for it if you were bored.

The Process:

I didn't take many pictures of the process, since it's a window and the process is fairly standard. 

To recap:

1. Cut out the pieces.

2. Foil the pieces.

3. Solder the window and add a binder to the edges.

To finish the window, I applied a patina. Then I acid etched tree shapes into the background to try to add to the mysterious forest feel (they don't really show up on camera). Finally, I painted faces on my people.

Final Product:

You can sort of see the outline of the etched tree on the left.

Unlit. You can see etching (and my arm) if you look closely.

I hope to be back on the band wagon next week!

Project 16: A Thin Place

So perhaps you noticed that I did not post a project last week and this is because I did not make a project. I spent last week in my favorite place in the world, Montreat NC, working at a youth conference. I got to meet some incredible people (shout out to my small group 26!) and be fully immersed in the beauty of the mountains. Montreat is often referred to as a 'Thin Place', a place where Heaven and earth are a little bit closer and God's presence can be more easily felt. Well if you believe that Heaven is located in the sky, then yes, clearly Heaven and earth are closer when you're on top of a mountain. For me, I find the other option to be true. I feel a connection with God when I'm there that I don't necessarily experience in my everyday life. Last week I was particularly inspired by a quote that I heard every night during evening devotional "The spirit sweeps over the earth and creation flourishes." I may not have quote quite right, but that's the basic gist. So I chose to make something inspired by that quote and Montreat itself. 

I decided to make a small keepsake. The yellow piece is heaven, the purple is the spirit sweeping, the pink is the thin space, the gray humps are mountains and the blue is meant to represent Lake Susan, which is a focal point at Montreat. Yes, I know, lakes do not float above mountains. So that should explain the scene, but I don't think it's necessary to know the symbols in order to enjoy the picture.

Assembly Inn and Lake Susan

The Process:

1) Cut pieces. This was pretty quick since the pieces are little.

 2) Foil and secure the pieces in position with nails.

3) Solder.

4) I added a lead channel around the outside to make it look nicer. I also patina-ed it (turned the solder lines black).

 Final Product: