What would you like to see?

What would you like to see?

(EDIT: As you can see, I figured out how to add a poll inside my post. Please vote, and leave a comment with more information and ideas!)

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I'm wondering what sorts of things you would like to see on this blog.

Any specific crafts you would like me to try my hand at?

Would you like to see more artwork?

Tutorials? I can make step-by-step tutorials for almost any item on this blog. I can also make video tutorials, since my video camera finally functions! Say the word and I'll see what I can do!

Also-- would you like to see giveaways on here? I've noticed that many blogs do giveaways and it seems a good way to get the word out and make a reader quite happy. :)
(Also a good thing to do with some of the items that get made and promptly thrown in my "crafts box.")

Would you like the ability to purchase some of my crafts/artwork (prints or some originals) on Etsy or Artfire? They would, of course, be priced decently. I would consider taking commissions on small projects. (I already have a few items for sale to help The Shadow of the Bear Movie.)

Please leave a comment! If I make an item from your inspiration, I'll include your name and website/blog in the post I feature it in. :)

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Now for some updates:

• I am BACK! You may remember that I was moving. I had a bajillion posts that I set to automatically schedule. Well, we have settled into the new house. I'm going to be pretty busy, so I will not be posting every couple of days. (You were spoiled, you know, getting a scheduled post every two days!) Yes, the new house is amazing. And I'm having fun with a homeschool co-op here-- I got a good role in the play for drama class!
• Because I scheduled the posts, I was not able to put in all the links between them. As a result, there are some 30 posts with broken links! Please tell me if you find any broken links. (Leave a comment on that post).
• I'm working on a new logo! It will be up for votes later!
• Some of my items are up for sale! I donated them to help out my friend Elena get editing software for her film The Shadow of the Bear. Check it out HERE. See my post on it HERE.
• I have built my first website, www.inkandfairydust.com! Please check it out!
•  I am busy illustrating Pen in the Clouds, a collection of short stories by my forum friends. Check it out at www.penintheclouds.webs.com
•  I have several new projects to post! ^_^

Byzantine Cross

Here it is, in all its finished glory!

This cross is by far the most complicated chainmaille project I have ever done-- especially because I had absolutely no instructions. I'd seen someone on Etsy make a chainmaille cross, but it was in a Persian weave, which I have not yet learned. So I winged it!

I got the jumprings from UnkamenGifts-- the colors are spectacular. As soon as I opened the bag, I knew that I had to make something in a rainbow fade...

I'm calling this the Byzantine Cross because, not only is it made in a Byzantine weave, but because the colors are typical of the artwork of the Church's Byzantine rite.

First try

The first attempt turned out rather well, except for one problem:

FLOPPINESS!

(Note how small the cross is-- it is just over two thumbnails in length. )

So I pulled apart the connecting rings and experimented with various sizes and numbers of rings.

Pulling it apart

Putting it back together.

The back of the revised edition.

I wound up using a brown mobius (3 interlocked rings) in the center and small green rings for structure. 

The bottom part was still floppy-- I couldn't get the three supporting rings in the middle of the weave--, so I attached an eyepin to the back. (It's bent in this picture, oops!)

Here it is-- the product of several hours of experimentation! It's quite sturdy now, don'tcha think?

It's hard to believe that I first heard of chainmaille jewelry this summer! I love it so, sooo much. ^_^

Simple and Red

Necklace, earrings, bracelet, and ring!

I made this jewelry set for my Mom, who loves simplicity and elegance. I keep borrowing bits of the set when she isn't wearing it. ^_^ We both love deep reds.

The "floating" look is achieved with beading wire (available at most craft stores) and crimp beads. I don't have real crimping pliers, so I used my needle-nose pliers and was able to make it work!

The beads are quite special-- the diamond shaped ones are garnet! (A semi-precious stone!) I found them on sale at Brightling Beads at the same time that I bought the supplies for my Pink Jewelry Set back in November. I still have almost half the strand left. :D

The round beads are actually from Walmart, believe it or not.

You might recognize the earrings as the Christmas ones I posted last year.

I love the way the garnet sparkles like pomegranate seeds. ^_^  Depending on the light, it looks deep red or magenta.

Chainmaille-ish Necklace

I made this necklace for a friend. The bits of chainmaille are the Byzantine weave. I loved using some of my pretty charms. ^_^

Ink and Fairydust Website

Hello, everyone! I have exciting news! I have designed my very first website!

www.InkAndFairydust.com

Ink and Fairydust is the free online magazine that I work for (monthly comic and column, some articles, and some graphic design-- and now website design!).

I made the website from scratch using Adobe Dreamweaver, which I have been using for a whole five days. I love teaching myself new software...

It is still very basic and I haven't added any extra content yet. I still have alot to learn on Dreamweaver. . I'll be updating the website over time!

Please bookmark the site! We have a new issue coming out on October 1st!

Items for sale for SotB!

I have exciting news, dear blog readers! For the first time ever, some of my jewelries and crafts are available for sale! 

See them here!

They are being sold as a fundraiser for The Shadow of the Bear-- The Movie. 

As many of you know, I am part of a wonderful forum ( http://www.fairytalenovels.proboards.com/ ), the fan-forum of Regina Doman, who writes the Fairy Tale Retold series.

(It is through this forum that I am involved in the Ink and Fairydust magazine and the Pen in the Clouds publication. The amazing people on the forum are soley responsible for my head-first dive into writing and are wonderful friends!)

Mrs. Doman gave the founder of our forum, Elenatintil, permission to make a student film of her first Fairy Tale book-- The Shadow of the Bear.

 

However, all films cost money, and unfortunately the definition of "all" necessarily includes The Shadow of the Bear. 

This Artfire shop features items made by myself and other forum members. 100% of the profit goes towards editing software and other expenses of the film!

I would really like you to check out the Artfire shop. (Artfire is just like Etsy.) If you are shopping specifially for things that I have made, my items say "Created by Shaylynn." Even though this is a fundraiser, everything is priced at the same price that similar items are listed.

Here are some of the items I have for sale. Some of them have been featured on my blog, but some are brand new.

Rose Red earrings, silver plated jump rings.

Stardrop earrings

Bauble earrings

Steampunk necklace

Washer necklaces. I will be making tutorials for these soon!

And much more!

And don't forget to check out the crafts that other people have made for The Shadow of the Bear-- the Movie.

Timeless Tale

This is my entry for the "Belle Fashion Event." It is not fashion... I'm entering the Art category!

I made it on Adobe Illustrator, while trying out a new technique.

It's not as finished as I would like-- I might go back and fix it up after I've finished the illustrations for Pen in the Clouds.

EDIT: I won! O.o Thank you to Hannah for hosting this event!

Flower Circlet

This flower fairy circlet is my third wire-braiding project! It took a TON of wire...

 And Adelynn loves it. I think it turned out rather well-- the braiding was a bit off and the circlet is a tad cricked, but oh well!

Here it is, before we added the "exploding leaves with butterflies going up to dance on them." (I love 6 year old's descriptions).

Wire Crochet

Some more wire crochet! [LINK]

Fairy Crown

I actually made this circlet last fall. Way to take forever posting... :)

 Roses for my sister, Princess Rose... She loved dressing up for these pictures!

The roses are actually Sculpey clay. The two little rosettes in the back were actually pressed into the wire, and I then baked the entire back piece of the circlet. (The circlet has two parts-- a front and a back-- which I attached to each other.)

I baked the pretty "purpled" roses separately. I attached them to the front peice by twisting the wire (see the picture above). I followed AlleyCatScratch's how-to-make-a-clay-rosette examples.

By the way, the purple circles are inspired by Arwen's Hair Jewel she wore with her Bridge Dress in The Lord of the Rings. Can you tell I am a LotR geek? I mean, AlleyCatScratch has the absolute best LotR costume research and make-it-yourself ideas on the Web... but no one in their right mind would call their site easy to navigate!

Adelynn's hair is so beautiful and long. It gets in her way in gymnastics but is so princess-y.

She loves her circlet. ^_^

Celtic Circlet

The Celtic Circlet. This is my fourth project with the Wire Braiding [link] technique! It matches my Braided Cuff [link].

Shaping it to fit my head

Bent into a circlet!

Lots of pictures! Addie was just too cute. Besides, she is a much better model. :)

Adelynn told me she wanted to be 

a "praying Princess" because real Princesses love God. Isn't that sweet? So I let her wear Grandma's mantilla from Spain, and pose with my rosary I got for my First Communion.

   The Celtic circlet works equally well as a men's crown. Here William is wearing his Aragorn costume [link] with it.

Floating Book Shelf

 

A stack of books is suspended on my wall! That or else the bookshelf turned invisible. I think its just too cool.

I made this spur-of-the-moment after browsing "instructables". They give instructions for building an invisible book shelf that requires one bracket, glue, and drilling holes in a book. You can see their instructions HERE.

My first thoughts? 1) One bracket is not very sturdy. 2) Why ruin a perfectly good book? 

So I created my own reusable-book floating bookshelf. 

How to make it:

 Supplies:

2 "L" brackets

2 screws and a screwdriver

A few books

Masking tape OR a rubber band

  I did not want to screw new holes in m bedroom wall (that is, Dad didn't want me to), so I took down this tiny little shelf between my bedroom door and my closet door. My mom had a collection of little foreign dolls, and this particular shelf was the "leftover" that I was not super fond of. So step one for me: take down the shelf and use those holes for the L brackets.

Step One:

Screw two L brackets into the wall.

Step Two:

Set a hardboard book on the brackets.

Step Three:

Either use masking tape inside the book or a rubberband outside of it to hold the back cover shut. (I didn't think of masking tape until afterwards-- it would be less easy to remove the book but would also be an "invisible" way of keeping it shut.)

Step Four:

 

 Stack some books ontop so that you can't see the L brackets. 

 (See the green book? You might recognize that as my Hollow Book Box)

You are finished! If you want, you can add some books standing vertically and other things.

Some More Stuff!

Here are several new things-- all in one post because I didn't feel like making separate posts for each one.

 Another Evenstar ( <--- check out my tutorial!) The top leaf flipped over, and I didn't notice it until it was too late. Oh well.

Another Helm Weave chainmaille bracelet.

Small fantasy-ish wrapped aquarium rock.

A pretty pendant from Walmart; I've yet to do anything with it but take a picture. :)