Alchemic Artisan

Oh noes!

2010-02-09T19:04:00.003-07:00

I've been taken hostage by a heck of a headcold, thanks hubby and all the rest of you at the callcenter! While a cold or flu usually comes and goes in a matter of just 3 days, this one is lingering around and making it very difficult to get anything done without having to stop for a nap. Hopefully it will get over with soon so I can get back to work on all the lovelies I had been working on before.

Ideas Abound!

2010-01-31T18:16:00.002-07:00

From Ladies Lace gloves to Leather Lawnchairs, my brain has been working overtime while my poor drafting hand tries to keep up. There are several new sketches and patterns tacked up to the walls of my crafting room (dreadful, white on white place that it is,) and I have begun to sort out materials for each. In particular I have what I believe could be a revolutionary new idea for footwear that I can hardly wait to reveal (but will because otherwise someone else will steal it away before I can finish a prototype.)

Hopefully that means in the coming days I will begin to integrate the new stock into the etsy store. In other news, we are looking at purchasing a website that will allow us to later break off from etsy should popularity stick. We are also making tenative plans to attend the Phoenix Comicon event coming in May as this year there will be a steampunk fashion show. Not to mention that hubby and I have never been to comicon before and just cant wait to go rub elbows with the other geeks and nerds of the area.

Ah, but that may be looking too far ahead. For now it's back to the combination sewing/time machine. As it only ever seems to travel forward (in increments of hours at that) I'm sure I'll be back again soon.

A New Agenda, in a Romantic New World

2010-01-24T21:17:00.011-07:00

It has been pointed out to me numerous times that the name Alchemic Artisan brought to mind not the person selling brightly coloured yarns and fabric, but instead images of a dimly lit tinkering room full of copper and brass, where a person in neo-victorian dress squinted at tiny vials of this and that, fitting together bits to make something beautiful and useful. While I myself have always had a certain fondness for the romantic, imaginative world of Victorian europe and her grand sense of adventure and discovery, I thought it just a personal remnant of curiosity, not something that othe people cared about.

And then, one fateful trip to a thrift store showed me differently. It started with a red leather coat my husband simply had to have. It ended with me stitching up a vest in a dimly lit workspace and tailoring some pinstripe pants to fit him. Suddenly I realized that Steampunk could be more than a wish for adventure, it could be real, and I could make it so.

This sudden notion was further inspired by the varied interest and excitement we received as we strolled down the street in our new fare. Many grand complements were imparted to me on the magical transformation of my husband, the grunge-hippy, into this handsome adult that stirred the imagination. And I realized, this new world I had fallen into was much too grand Not to share.

So, the shop has been re-imaged, new business cards have been ordered, and the blog has recieved a facelift (from this point forward all my Non-Steampunk crafting, such as the T-Yarn and other random projects, will be on the new Fabricated Transmutations blog!) and soon enough, once the Arizona rain stops and I can begin to take pictures again, The Webstore will be full of leather, lace, ruffles, and pinstripes to delight any Neo-Victorian!

~Kirial

Speaking of AWOL...

2009-08-09T13:09:00.006-07:00

Well now, this is a bit awkward I must admit. To be truthful, the reason I have not blogged in so long is that I have been ill, and had forgotten my password. I'm still not sure I'm 100% recovered, but I was finally able to find the password reset feature. So then, since it has been literally months, I feel some updates are definitely in order.

I have become more comfortable with the T-Yarn production, particularly with my unique Tie-dye versions, despite having found myself in a sudden sea of other etsians that have taken up T-Yarn selling. I must admit it had me disheartened for a while, but I have decided to push forward and just continue to offer the same quality product, and focus mainly on my painted and patterned versions. (Shown at the top: Forest Sky Tie-Dyed T-yarn )

In other fields... Hubby was so kind as to surprise me with a sewing machine! It's nothing particularly fancy, in fact its only capable of forward and backward strait stitches, but it will definatly do for now. I have several project boxes with already cut apron pieces that were just sitting idle waiting for a sewing machine to come along, and so I should have holiday aprons available as they come into season. In addition, I am hoping this will mean I can try again to make a go of Pandemonium in due time.

I have also noticed myself taking a keen interest in childrens playthings, baby shoes, and wig making. Only time will tell if I attempt to make a real go of these new interests, but for now it is at least nice to have the variety in the workshop. And speaking of the workshop, this weekend I am finishing up the last of the sorting and catagorizing from the big summer destash! So of course, it is a fantastic time to order a Mystery box! Since I wasnt able to procure the shelving I liked, and as hubby has mentioned we will probably only stay in the Phoenix area another year, I opted to construct myself some sturdy Cardboard shelving. Its almost odd how handy this has proven, as instead of walking back and forth between areas, I can now take the whole supply of something with me and piece it all together on my cot! I'll try to get some pictures of the quarkyness up soon enough, several friends have found it good for a laugh.

A Bountiful Summer Crop

2009-05-25T07:53:00.002-07:00

Summer Silk & Vintage Lace

2009-04-11T10:05:00.013-07:00

Well, the illness that kept me from working has been stabilized for now, although not cured. Being stuck waiting around is quite stressful, so I have returned to my studio for now to work, making this as good an opportunity as any to reveal some of the designs for the upcoming Grand Opening of my new clothing store, Pandemonium Fashion.

The theme for the line is "Summer Silk & Vintage Lace" and most of the designs prominently feature one or both of those materials. The real challenge here was to capture the airy, lightweight look of summer and make something other than the typical pretty little sun dresses, though I did make several of those too. Since I strive to provide pretty, punky, goth, and even fantasy/dance wear items I had a real challenge (particularly with the Poe line) to keep the nature of the season and not drown it in a sea of heavy black fabrics like everyone is used to. Even I am surprised and impressed with the results, and I think you will be too.

Since I still haven't found a decent sewing machine in my budget, most of the items listed at first will be hand sewn accessories such as purses and hairpieces, as well as some unusual jewelry. Hopefully after a few sales I will be able to fill the gap in my savings and then be able to list the clothing. I have already hand stitched prototypes of each garment, but because of the time involved in such effort it just isn't reasonable to offer the items for sale until they can be produced faster.

As for my other Etsy store, Fabricated Transmutations (linked on the side, purple button with rabbit) I have returned to taking orders there, and with all the new fashion work my Mystery Boxes have even more great little bits and pieces than before. The design and production work has kept me busy, so while I will add new yarns over time I don't yet have any new kinds of things to list. Later this summer I do plan to sell my art there as well, both prints and originals, and possibly even cards and such featuring my artwork. We'll see where we take it when we get there.

As always I encourage you to visit my stores and comment on what you see, and feel free to ask me anything you are wondering about on here or over at Etsy.

Distractions, Distractions!

2009-03-14T11:59:00.009-07:00

I'm fairly certain that this blog must feel completely abandoned by now. I suppose bi-monthly postings are a more reasonable goal for someone who seems to stay as busy as myself. As my appology gift, here is a taste of Summer a little early!

I have been trying to stay afloat in a sea of inspiration, and it has been a real chore to see everything through to the end before jumping to my latest neat new idea. All in all, I feel the effort was well worth it. This week I should be finishing up the last of the Easter items for the shop, and hope to have them posted as soon as can be managed so that your orders will arrive on time.

Several delays and issues with my current package pickup people has had packages ordered on Tuesdays not going out until the following Monday, which is simply not going to work if i manage to get my order volume up like I had been hoping for. I am switching to a different office to see if that will help speed up delivery of your new items.

Once I get the shop filled up with all my easter goodies I will be moving on to the Production phase of my new Pandemonium Fashion lines. With an added bonus that I myself didnt expect, Custom Order Swimwear! You pick what you like and give me your measurements. And if you have one of those awkward bodies like I do, I am more than happy to help you find which one is perfect for you, even going so far as to add more flattering modifications to an exsisting style you love but simply couldnt wear.

I'm hoping these will be a big splash, (forgive me) with the summer season coming up fast. Here in Tempe it has been warm enough for some time now. I am also planning on having women from the area nearby model the swimsuits for the store (yours will be brand new and made to order, so dont worry about Sharing germs) who will in exchange get to keep the swimsuit they model (approximatly a $50 value), so if you are in the area and would like participate start working on your summer tone and let me know you are interested!

New T-Yarns Coming Soon!

2009-02-25T21:21:00.002-07:00

Alrighty, in light of the upcoming holiday I decided it was time to break out the pastel dyes. I also thought it would be a fun time to experiment with my tye-dye yarns! Unfortunatly my camera is being a pain in the tushy again so I managed to get some great pics, but cant seem to get the camera to connect to the computer. Hopefully the hubby will return and fix it after work today.

As soon as I get my pictures ready I'll upload one as a preview for those of you who check the Etsy Shop. In addition to making new T-Yarns I have been working on Egg crafts and basket weaving lately, And have been busy working up sketches and selecting fabrics for my new Summer clothing line and planning the Etsy Debut of Pandemonion Fashions! (More about that next week)

Expect the yarns finished and added to my etsy store this weekend. I may just have some special hand-painted fabric yardage available too! Dont forget, there are plenty of Mystery Boxes to be made still, and my collection of supplies is only growing larger so be sure to visit the store and give them a read, you may just find you dont know how you got along without it!

~Kirial

The New "Laboratory"

2009-02-12T19:50:00.003-07:00

No Picture for now, as the new Artistic Alchemy Laboratory is under construction. As you may or may not know, my "office" was given up as a bedroom for a house guest we had for a while, thus why so little has been achieved artistically in the past few months. No space to preform my Magic in, as well as no space to store any supplies, meant very little output of items and a complete reliance on my random challenge bags and the household recycling bin.

Since the house guest has moved away, I am now able to return to my office. However, the previous setup as a mostly bland, very cluttered, business environment was not, shall we say, "Magical" enough. So I will be taking this clean start oppertunity to set up a very juicy and well organized Lab area with a designated design and construction area for each different medium, and plenty of extra space for the insanely large or very diverse occurances.

In addition, this new room will be completely bunny friendly where the last one was not. This mostly means keeping any small bits in bunny proof bins or drawers, and including some secret tunnel networks. It also means anyone with bunny allergies will need to conduct their meetings with me in the Clubhouse by the pool or bring some kleenexes.

It will take some time to get my multitude of supplies up to it's previous (rediculous) amount, and I need to re-purchase most of my machinery and tools since most are still stranded in Missouri, but hopefully it will build back up quickly. In the meantime you will probably see a slow increase in my Output, and I'll be sure to put up some "Before, During, After" shots in an album once the room is in shop-shape.

See you then!

~Kirial

New Products and Photos

2009-02-04T19:34:00.009-07:00

Another beautiful, sunshine filled day here in the desert was just begging me to go outside. Since the grounds crew had just finished up re-setting all the plants and putting the new flowers in I decided to grab the camera and all my T-Shirt yarn, old and new alike, and head out for some better product photos.

Just another example of how things can be so tiring and difficult one day and flow right through another. The only painful thing about this shoot was having to pick only one or two photos of each to keep. I also gained quite a few curious looks from passers by as I placed, as one woman said, "what looked like giant, bright easter eggs" into various planters and started snapping away. I of course had thought ahead enough to bring a small stack of business cards along in the basket and eagerly handed them out to pretty much anyone who stopped to see what was going on.

With a little help from the Lab's new assistant and mascot, Cuniculus, I managed to find and finish the last of the t-shirt yarn, and was able to photograph the two spools of purple and add them to the etsy store (linked to the right) along with a whole new item based on the Random Challenge Bags I recieve from friends and family. For those of you who dont know or remember, a random challenge bag is a sack, (usually of the wal-mart variety) with as many random and interesting things as can be found. The point of which is to one day finally hand me something I Can't make into something beautiful or useful. The items are usually things that most people would throw away, rather than expensive crafting supplies.

These challenge bags could have anything in them, and I seldom know what I will be working with until it's on my doorstep. In fact, one of my christmas ones was just a sack full of sacks. From which I made my own christmas garland. I have since been saving my white and red sacks as well as thecute little pink one my sunday paper comes in and have been making a garland for valentines day too, though I doubt I am done by the 14th, and certainly doubt it makes it to the store. Dont expect a St. Pat one though, since I used up most of my dollar tree bags in the christmas garland and wont be traveling quite as far in the future as I had been with the Jeep gone.

The Mystery Box that I sell based on this concept are a little less chaotic, and will contain 1lb of assorted crafting supplies. They come in themes that they buyer can pick from, such as "pink" or "wood" or "Fire" and the contents can include pretty much any kind of crafting supply, new or vintage, that fits in with that theme. Why pay for something when you dont know exactly whats in it? Well, for one, lots of people play the lottery every day, and B) this is a great tool for those who feel they are stuck in a rut and want to make something that requires a more "out of the box" line of thinking. Since you dont know for sure what you are getting, by dumping the box out onto your desk and gathering all the items together, you are sure to get ideas that you may never have considered before.

Because they are randomly assembled, and most of the selecting is actually done by Cuniculus, each box is sure to be unique even if you order two of the same theme at the same time. This will keep your projects fun and fresh each time! You may even get supplies you would never have ordered yourself or even known about, such as pressed flowers, Real butterflies (expired of course) Silk cacoons, horse hair, or even some very expensive or valuable pieces such as buttons from the 1920s, ribbon from the 1960s, or pieces of quilts that are over 100 years old! The only thing limiting the contents of your box is how deep we feel like digging, and several of the neatest pieces (such as the butterflies) contribute hardly anything at all to the 1lb wheight limit!

So be sure to head over to the shop and check out all the new photos and see more details about the new Mystery Boxes, and as always, thanks for checking in!

Some History

2009-01-26T06:27:00.003-07:00

Sorry for the long leave of absense, been in quite an artist funk lately, and short on both funding and random challenge bags. So to pass the time, I'm going to cop-out and toss up some Artist History for reading material until I get something finished to show off. This is taken from one of my long lost artist profiles.

"Hello, My name is Kirial. I would first like to thank you for stopping by to see my... well, whatever it was that brought you here! There is usually a good bit of diversity in my projects, so I cant possibly at this point anticipate just what you will be seeing even a couple weeks from now.

While I do consider myself both an artist and a crafter, I lack the dicipline to maintain only one area of expertise. Therefor I am always experimenting with a new field of art or working to make new mediums for talents I already possess.

As of late, one of my biggest passions has been for teaching others how to both create the mediums and use them. I was fortunate enough to recieve an invitation to work with Special Needs children (ranging in age from 4-17) to teach them the joys of art. My students came with several different diagnosis, from severe adhd to low functioning autism.

When I accepted this challenge I took it upon myself to look up the list of banned art supplies, as you cant always count on a special needs person being able to read and obey label directions. I was shocked to see so many harmful, or just simply dangerous to the uneducated, mediums on that list. Thus, I was given no moral choice but to Make all of the supplies for the course myself, to ensure that they contained no sneaky unlabeled chemicals or harmful additives or fumes. I used commonly available household items, many of them straight from the pantry, to create several different supplies that would suit the grasping abilities of the different disabilities, and ensure no harm on the accidental ingestion of the item.

The program was a raving success, with even the autistic children enjoying themselves, (one little boy went so far as to refuse to turn over his giant crayon and break into tears when the assistant took it from him.) The remaining supplies were then donated to the department for future use.

Many of their parents called me after they recieved the pictures drawn by their children and requested that I make them some of the supplies for use at home. I have since that time been happy to supply both individual families and the local school's Special Needs Department with art supplies. "

A quick follow up note! Because of the recent legislation regarding lead testing, and after consulting a local branch of the better business bureu, I feel I am no longer able to provide you with either to the supplies, or the plans to make them with. Despite all my formulas using only food grade materials, they would still have to be tested, and I simply cant afford to do so, nor could I afford the lawsuits that could occur following the the recipes.

So sorry to have to drop all the planning work and time spent experimenting, especially when the reward is so great. Perhaps the laws will see more exceptions after a few months in effect.

Well, thanks for stopping in! Hopefully I'll have something worth a read later this week or so.

~Kirial

Store is Stocked!

2009-01-01T23:23:00.010-07:00

After a few hours of threatening my camera with all sorts of horrid electrical tortures, it finally gave in and decided to cooperate with me, though it seems in all the chaos it lost the ability to lighting colour properties correctly.

Finally got things back up in the store. With all my tools and supplies still back in missouri I'm moving more slowly than I would like to be at the moment, but I will add things as I am able. For now, I'm offering up a lovely stock of T-Shirt yarn in classic colours while I build up some funds to start producing my special colourway blends yarn again, which is what I'm really looking forward to. Of course, the faster I sell what's there, the sooner I can get the new stuff up for you!

Most of my general colour yarns are 4 wpi, but I can make smaller guages on request too (seems like 8 wpi is the lowest I can really get it) so if you have any special size or colour requests be sure to send them in!

Remember, if you need to visit the webstore you can use the link on the right, or to visit a specific item listing that you saw here check the link in the bottom of the specific blog entry. Thanks for stopping in!

~picture shown is the Yellows Set, currently listed seperatly at http://AlchemicArtisan.etsy.com

Cutting Into the New Year

2008-12-30T18:21:00.003-07:00

Well, a few days of crafter constipation have finally eased up. I find that I am missing very much the vast supply of random parts and pieces associated with every known catagory of arts and crafts that I left back in Missouri. At first I subdued to creation drive by picking through my stash of junk mail to find all those glossy ad fliers that are somewhere between paper and cardstock, and folding myself quite the collection of bins and boxes. I ended up with many more than I needed, and only later realized that I had nothing small enough to use the boxes for. Hindsight is 20/20 after all. Despite my stir crazy ambitions and ideas, I had depleted my supply of recyleables and even the pantry was too empty to preform a little culinary magic. With no materials to utelize I had retired to bed to pout as if I were 5.

Three days and a trip to the thrift store later, I have been saved from my downward spiral! With all my conviction, I finally picked Rug Making as my first comeback craft for my new life here, mostly because it only required the purchase of the material, a pair of scissors, and a hula hoop, rather than an expensive set of tools and specialty supplies that would cost a ton and take days to arrive. Little did I know, Wal Mart here has no idea what a hula hoop is. So my rug making has been hung out to dry until I can find a toy store that knows what I'm talking about. Until then, it would seem I have plenty of time to get my Rugging Yarn ready!

Millinery - The adventure begins

2008-12-26T02:52:00.003-07:00

So what does one do with a rainy afternoon, a new Random Bag full of odd large pieces of potpurri like wicker coils, fans, and skeletal leaves, and some leftover snippets of ribbon, glimmer wire, and pearl chains?

What do you mean that doesnt automatically make you think of a hat? How odd. I was almost certain that was the only logical use for potpurri, ribbon trimmings, and silk flowers? Hehehe.

So after scavenging the house for a simple white hat to use as the base and a silk flower with similar tone, I was set to go. Other tools needed: hot glue gun, wooden popsicle stick to flatten and precision apply the bead of glue, allowing for more professional looking seams and lines.

And lo, a simple hour later, my Random Bag challenge is met, and I have a spiffy new hat in case I ever decide to join the ranks of the fancy hat wearing debutants and take up watching Polo and drinking champagne.

Having trouble seeing the hat? Try this picture instead!

New Blog

2008-12-25T10:49:00.003-07:00

So, as unusual as it may be to hear in this day and age, especially from someone in my age group... I'm new to this Blogging thing. As that is the case, lets please bear with me as I learn how to do it properly.

My name is Kirial Daly, age early 20s, Female, Married, Childless, Artist in every sense and manifestation of the word. Think of Martha Stuart, but younger, sexier, no man-voice, and fun! Now that you have a basic idea of the person behind the keyboard, On to the purpose!

I felt it was high time that all these random and seemingly unrelated posts, threads, replies, and how-to pages and forum postings I was making about my art got a single consolidated home. Thusly, the blog is born. This way when I want to tell people about something I did, or share a recipe, I have only to toss out a link. It also allows me to go into as much detail as I like or feel is pertinent without the worry of word limits that some of the other formats have.

I also have an etsy page (linked at the bottom of each blog) where I sell the items you get to see here. To avoid excessive reading by people who could care less, I try to keep the descriptions of the items to a basic yet informative minimum, and if you should ever want more details as to the what, why, and how of an item you have only to see the link there that will bring you back here. If that is how you ended up here in the first place, you already know all this I guess.

Thanks for the visit everyone, and happy holidays!