WIP #2

here's the newest wip (work in progress) of the necklace i'm working on. it's coming along. i think some of the links, which are still rough and unfinished, will be flattened and darkened for contrast. still trying to decide if i will add any plain disks for additional contrast. your comments and opinions are most welcome. have a great weekend!

Work in Progress - The Very Beginning

in an effort to be better about posting, i thought i'd give you a work in progress shot. now, you're probably looking at this and thinking "what progress?!" its there, i promise! this is the very, very, very baby beginning of what will eventually be a one-of-a-kind necklace probably in my granulation style. not 100% sure of the direction it will take in the end, but i had a dream about it, so i figured i better get started. stay with me, it will progress...and hopefully the photo quality, though i don't make any promises on that point :) cheers!

PMC Guild Conference Report

well, i've actually been back for a couple of weeks now, but as usual, life gets in the way of life. or blogs in this case. i had an AMAZING time at the conference at Purdue University. i came back brimming with ideas and processes i wanted to try. unfortunately i am just getting back into the studio now and its back to work in a serious way since i'm hosting a group show in september and frankly have nothing to show! crunch time! as some of the conference ideas trickle into my show work, i'll post pix. for now here's a picture, just a smattering of the amazing people i met (including tim mccreight who was especially influential on my early metals education). and that's my roomie, nadine, 2nd from the right...thanks nadine! ciao and have a great week!

PMC Guild Conference

tomorrow i leave for indianapolis/purdue university and my first art conference in about 5 years! will no doubt come home with gobs of inspiration, instruction and ideas. the above pic is the pmc charms i made for the charm swap. they may make their way into some new pieces when i return. :) see you all next week and have a great weekend!

Summer is suppose to be slower

it has been a crazy, emotional, busy couple of weeks. who said summer is for slowing down? i spent 5 emotional, family-filled days in austin, texas last week. attending the funeral for my cousin, mike and spending time with his kids, girlfriend, sister and friends. if funerals are allowed to be amazing, his was. there were more than 400 people there who knew and loved him. the eulogies were lovely and moving. in addition to a military burial with flag-folding, the sheriff's department (where he worked for 20 years) shut down 2 freeways in austin to allow the procession to the cemetary. it was quite a sight, in fact i have never seen anything like it. i feel him smiling on us, as he always was in life. mike, we miss you so much.

it is so easy these days to get caught up in the day-to-day rush and forget what is really important in life. today i got slammed back in my chair. yesterday my friend and cousin, Michael Argall, was killed in a bike-meets-car accident in Texas. i think i am still in shock though tears are continuously shed. how does such a beautiful life disappear so suddenly? there are no answers only sorrow. hug your loved ones today and always....mike, we miss you so much already.

Michael Argall

(pictured here with his daughter Sydney in May 2007)

Dedicated, Wet Soccer Mom

just got back from soccer....picture me, sitting in my little collapsible chair in a hoodie, raincoat, 2 little fleece blankets, purse in my lap (along with the kids coats), grasping my cup of hot tea, huddling under a gargantuan umbrella. the kids had a great time, lets leave it at that. :)

Talent Database

woohoo! just found out i am being featured in the art portal over at talentdatabase! quite exciting, especially since i so rarely update my portfolio there. but this got me off my duff and i added 6 new photos. go check it out if you get the chance!

New Spring Works, Part 7

it has been so crazy busy here the last couple of weeks, i completely forgot to add more pix! and here it is june....oh well, time flies....

these necklaces are all from the talisman series. each one has a 3-4 charm assortment of various materials....from enamel, to glass, to antique keys and beads. most are darkened/oxidized using liver of sulphur. a couple of my clients have said they even added some pieces they picked up in their travels like a charm bracelet. love it! i'm thinking of doing some more and incorporating the pendants from the symbols line. will keep you posted, cheers!

New Spring Works, Part 6

another new set that was showcased at the spring show. i do this line in sterling too, but with gold being so popular this season....these are actually gold-filled, less costly, but just as purdy as full gold. gold-fill is 5% gold over a base metal core. unlike gold plate it won't rub off and like gold it is tarnish resistant. bring on the summer bling! this line comes in bracelets, necklaces and earrings of assorted lengths. cheers!

New Spring Works, Part 5

okay, i know, there are ALOT of pictures! but i did alot of new stuff in this line for spring so bear with me :) these are all from the tree series. a couple of the pendants you might have seen earlier this year, but they were crappy photos. the 2nd and 4th pix are bracelets. the sun is shining here, have a great day!

New Spring Works, Part 4

these were also new to the spring show and were a blast to make! they are an extension of my recycled credit and gift card line. the first picture is a pair of cufflinks (can you guess where the card is from?) and the rest are one-of-a-kind pendants. each card is cut to shape and filed then sandwiched between the pieces of metal and riveted together. if you are interested in any of these, contact me directly as about half of them sold at the show.

happy mother's day ladies!!!

New Spring Works, Part 3

this was a new line for the spring show as well, called distressed geometry.

New Spring Works, Part 2

i try to do some new ceramic pendants for each show depending on how much time i have. all but 2 sold, so i was really happy. they are fun to make and a nice departure from metal.

New Spring Works, Part 1

these are two new rings in the granulation series, one shiny and one distressed and oxidized. the disks measure 1.25" in diameter, so its a pretty good size ring. very striking on!

Show Success!

the show was great on saturday, thank you so much to all who came out!! and especially to my ladies that worked it with me, you gals rock! the ONLY down note on the day came the night before when we discovered a flood in the wine cellar, that then seeped into the t.v. room. talk about stress, but the insurance company has been great and it will all get sorted. should have some photos of the newer works up this week. took over 150 photos on the thursday before the show, just haven't had a chance to download them. this week, i promise :) cheers and happy may!

WoW!

has it really been a month since i last posted? where has the time gone? i've been literally chained to the studio desk working away, trying to get ready for my big spring show on may 3rd. there are never enough hours in the day! i do have some new designs ready, but they haven't been photographed yet. i promise to post them as soon as they are! for now, here is the show invite. if you are in the neighborhood, pop on by!

It's time for the 2008 Spring Show and Sale!

Saturday, May 3, 2008
10am - 5pm
2007 Ramsay Street SE
Calgary, Alberta

New designs, Mother's Day gifts, teacher gifts and more!
Light refreshments served.

Questions? 403-262-3795
maddocki@telus.net
http://www.smaddockdesigns.com/

Visa, Mastercard, cheques, cash accepted.

Oval Tree Series

this is the pendant i was suppose to post yesterday, but fell asleep at 8:30! must have needed it :)

New Tree Series

i've expanded the tree series, in anticipation of my spring show. thought this line was particularly fitting for spring :) above is a new pendant and two pairs of earrings all in the teardrop shape. i also did an horizontal oval, but that photo will have to wait for tomorrow. cheers and have a great day!

Motivation

well, back to the studio. time to start getting some stock together for my spring show on May 3rd. why is it i can't seem to get motivated? motivation, its so illusive at times, especially for the artist that works alone. there is something special about just working in the same proximity to another artist. there's an aura, a creative vibe that exists when you work in another artist's presence. not to mention the exchange of ideas and critique. its always a challenge to create that vibe on your own. how do some of you do it? i'd really like to know if you have a secret to keeping the creativity and motivation going. in the meantime, i'll start getting ready for the show :) hope everyone has a great weekend! go out and create something, even if its only mac n' cheese!

above is a collaboration i did with amy weber, an incredibly talented artist in just about any medium. her part is the wonderful crab and egg watercolor. i'm the dot chick. you can check out her blog at the right. cheers!

Cut Day!

well this saturday was the big day...cut day! we ventured down to catalyst hair group to see cherie and it was a fabulous day! i couldn't have hoped for a better experience for bronwyn. she and i had washed our hair that morning and let it dry in anticipation of the cut. the hair has to be clean and dry before donating. when we got to the salon, the lady before bronwyn was so impressed that she gave bronwyn $20 and told her how proud of her she was. after she left cherie told us she is a survivor and was having reconstructive surgery the following week. don't start crying....then came the big moment. she said later she was a little nervous, but we sure couldn't tell! cherie made 2 pony tails and then snip, snip and it was done! she ended up donating 11" of her beautiful hair. then bronwyn got to go for a 'real' wash and head massage! as you can see from the pictures, her new haircut is adorable! we are so proud of bronwyn, we are busting :) to date she has raised $1450 which will almost pay for the manufacture of 2 wigs (her goal was 1). congratulations bronwyn, you are our hero!!

happy, happy birthday to my not-so baby :)

Beyond Savage

okay, today exceeded all expectations and went from savage, directly to HEINOUS! weather like this is frankly inhumane, how did the first settlers do it? i have central heat and i'm freezing! today was a balmy -31C, -49C/F with the windchill. kinda makes ya question why a demented soul would choose to reside here.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

it is freakishly cold here today and tomorrow is going to be worse! high of -15C/5F and that doesn't include the windchill. and its very windy and blizzardy, yuck! tomorrow is going to be unreal; high of -27C/-16.6F without windchill! today is HARSH; tomorrow we venture into SAVAGE! good day for being creative if nothing else :) stay warm and think of us popsicles living in the frozen north!

Angel Hair for Kids

my (almost) 8 year old daughter, bronwyn, has been growing her hair out for over year so she will have 10" to donate to angel hair for kids. angel hair takes hair donations, makes them into wigs and then gives them to children who come from disadvantaged families and have lost their hair from either alopecia, burns or cancer treatments. it cost $800 dollars to manufacture one wig and bronwyn wanted to collect some money to send in with her hair. angel hair doesn't get any government funding, so every dollar donated helps. she wrote a letter for her school and started collecting donations there, as well as from friends and family. she is cutting her hair on february 2nd and to date we already have $700!! thank you to everyone that has donated! i'll be sure to post some post-haircut pictures.

signed, bursting with mama-bear pride, stacey

Discovery

well, i was surfing the net a bit ago. not because i have alot of time on my hands, because i don't, but well, because the computer was there and i was rather comfy resting on my tush and loathe to get up. can you relate? anyway...somehow i came across the blog of maggie steifvater (http://www.portraitswithcharacter.com/). her work is amazing which i was immediately drawn to, but more than that, she is freakin' hilarious! i actually laughed out loud reading her blog! i love that and immediately subscribed. once upon a time i was funnier in my writing. i won't go so far as to say i was 'freakin' hilarious', but mildly funny would be fine. what happened to that humor? something to do with having kids and only 24 hours in the day too few of which are spent on sleeping. that coma-like state that requires a post it note on the computer to remind me of my name. ha! okay mildly funny. i'll work on it after my 15 minute nap....:)-

2008

well, its 2008, happy new year! hope everyone had a lovely holiday! i spent mine in california, a significant temperature difference from canada, let me tell you :) 5 kids under the age of 8, 4 theme parks, 1 zoo, 14 times on the grizzly water adventure ride. crazy you say? nah, we had a blast!

since getting back i haven't been in the studio much, just trying to get organized. all those things i kept putting off to get ready for the show and fill orders are now on a list and slowly getting crossed off. hang in there, i'll post some new stuff soon. can't stay away from the metal for long!

cheers, s

Holidays

hope everyone has a lovely winter solstice, hanukkah, christmas, kwanzaa and new year!

cheers all!

Mooooooooo!

i am in love with my new mini business cards by MOO! check out all the customized goodies at moo.com. the quality is great too!