Inspirations and Oddities - Second Friday Post - August 10th

Hey everyone!

Welcome to August's Second Friday, Inspirations and Oddities post!

I've got a just one very exciting inspiration to share with you this month, so lets get right to it!

I am a huge fan of Kickstarter, as I've written about here before. Supporting projects that I fall in love with and seeing them come to fruition is so rewarding.

I had someone tell me recently that the part they didn't like about Kickstarter was the lag time between supporting a project and getting your rewards. Because the funding is often needed to produce a product, this can take months from the time the original project funds. There can be delays if printing, shipping or just life go awry.

I get that. . . but what I LOVE about that delay from funding to delivery is when something shows up in the mail that I had, not forgot about, but simply lost track of when it was going to be arriving.

So, when we went to the Post Office yesterday and found these had been delivered, all the way from Queensland Australia, it was the best of surprises!

Hathor and Thoth Enamel Pins from Mamath's "Tiny Pantheon" Kickstarter

Oh, oh, OHHHHH these are amazing! The illustration work, the quality of the Pins and the complete package of the presentation! All flawless!

The card each pin came on, front and back, simply BEAUTIFUL!
And the heart shaped rubber pin backs! (there are two on each pin, I removed one to show you the text of the card back.) 

One of my favorite things about Kickstarter is the possible rewards that are "unlocked" or added on as a bonus when a project passes the basic funding point. Some folks offer material upgrades on the finished products, post cards, bookmarks or stickers of art prints, extra playing pieces if the Kickstarter is for a tabletop game or deluxe covers / embossing for books.

In this case, over 2,200 backers supported the Kickstarter!!! Here again, Mamath went above and beyond. These are the adorable stickers that were added to EVERY supporter's package as the total funding climbed above the initial requested amount.

And a lovely thank you card in the middle of them as well! 

Of course I was drawn to these, given their Egyptian influences, but I could easily spend wayyyyy too much money on Kickstarter that I don't have. lol So I am selective, to say the least.

I'll be sharing more of the Kickstarter rewards I have received over the coming months.I am currently awaiting a few that should be due this fall! These include a wonderful hardbound Unicorn book of illustrations/paintings and a few "Spell Scrolls" from a very imaginative creator. While the scrolls are meant for D&D players, we have the first of them on our wall, framed as pure magical art, and eagerly await the second. :)

Kickstarter is a fantastic way to get your art out there. I LOVE being part of making it come true for others! :)

Mamath is on Etsy

And instagram where you can see images of more these amazing Pins ( I need more I think!)

instagram.com/mamathzilla

And that's all, next month I'll be sharing three new books I've read that have completely captured my imagination!

Have a great weekend everyone! Thank you for dropping by!

nicolas XO

New Work - June 2nd

June is here! for a lot of you it means school is out, kids are home, vacation is close at hand. Whatever your summer holds (or winter if you are down under) I hope it will be a magical season!

For me, if you aren't familiar with my own feelings, summer is my least favorite season. I do think I have a reverse SADS and, when it is sunny for too many days in a row, I get pretty cranky.

Now, this year we had more than our fill of rain so I think I will be ok even if it is sunny for the next three months. So far, fingers crossed, no day has been hotter than 74 and that was just once a few weeks ago.

Last month I tried a little different approach for my shoppes. I focused almost exclusively on Shadow of the Sphinx and tried to fit as many custom pieces in as I could. This was, of course, at the expense of Bewilder and Pine. This month I will reverse that and spend the majority of my time on the Fairy world. I may experiment with working this way, alternating focus months going forward, as it seemed to be a really productive month for me. Now, after almost four weeks with very little "fairy activity" , I am reallllly quite excited to make new fairy houses and little scenes again!

In other projects/news, work continues on my book, "The Ledgerkeepers".  As it's my first attempt at writing a full novel (yikes)  a lot of it has been experimenting with ways around and thru the process. Discovery writing seems to be the ticket for me. I am very adept at coming up with what some writers refer to as the "WOW! moments" but filling in all the spaces in between seemed impossible to figure out ahead of time. So I just pick a spot in the story and go! It twists and turns and opens new doors that lead to new characters, plot twists, little pieces of the world emerging etc. What I love is it's almost like I am discovering it all myself for the first time too. When I look at how the story has gown in scope and how much of that comes from just that sort of free writing without an outline, I am shocked.

I still sit down first thing each morning for between one and two hours and write or research or plot and plan. I'm hoping to be able to share a bit of it here before the summer is done.

The Bewildering Pine website is also coming along. Once I realized the Ledgerkeepers book was going to be a novel  (Or series) and not just a set of short stories and descriptions I knew I wanted a place for all of that to call home too. So the website will house little descriptions of each town, the points of interest and the dozen or so types of elven folk and outer-world traders that inhabit the Pine. There will be maps and charts as well as descriptions of shoppes and societal structures. The website is also on schedule for a late summer /early autumn launch. There will be a blog, a newsletter, a separate shop with perhaps a few exclusive offerings from the world of the Bewildering Pine and all the magic and whimsy I can manage to stuff into that tiny cyber-space!

And last, a Bewilder and Pine print newsletter that I likely will not kick off until the website is up and running but I have a template for it all ready to go. Printed once a quarter I think it will be crafted as if from a press within the world itself, articles and columns by regular elven writers with news from the world of the Bewildering Pine and other realms as well.

Whew!

OK, that's about it for now. . . Welcome June!

So, here are a few of the new items that I finished in May. It's heavy on the statuary and amulets this month since I spent so much of the month working in that world. The one thing I really was able to step back and appreciate this month was how I have developed a very distinct style working with ancient statues. They still resemble their ancient inspirations but I think there is a very distinct style I've forged thru the years with the creating of some 1000 statues and amulets now. That's the beauty of giving something time and effort to develop. Having faith in the processes and just following it along the path willingly. :)

Thank you, as always, for dropping by!

xo
nicolas

Custom Sekhmet Lioness Statue

Mini Wadjet Cobra Statue just 2 1/2" ( 6.25cm) tall

Esma, the second Mouse Market of Muridae Figurine

A very Narrow Fairy Tower from an area of the Bewildering Pine called the Narrows!

One of my Favorite Egyptian Deities to make, no-one is completely sure what animals inspired it but the Anteater is definitely one of the likely suspects!

A very simple Rising Sun amulet

Etsy featured these not too long ago and I have been unable to keep them in the shoppe!. I'll be making a handful in June!

Anubis the jackal and Nekhbet the Vulture. They make a nice couple! :) 

Bes, a multifaceted, multicultural Protective Deity who was well represented by the ancient Egyptians.
 I LOVE the fancy headdress and the tongue sticking out!

September 1st - New Work

So much going on this month. . . it was an exceptionally busy month. I received a LOT of practice in saying no to custom work I did not wish to take on and I laid the groundwork for several 2017 ideas.

I will get into those more as the new year draws closer but, at the top of the list, I have been toying with one idea in particular for a combination of a limited edition figurine, chapter based story and interactive experience. So a certain character set (say 100 total figurines made over time) that would come with several accessories (scrolls, old spell books, coins, map, staffs, glowing orbs etc etc) and also each would come with the first chapter of a story which revolves around the whole group of figurines, their reason for their journey to our world and their quest while here.  Then, perhaps every two months the next "chapter" of the story would be sent to anyone who purchased a figurine. Each might include a "mission" for the owners of the figurines to be a part of (photographing their figurine in a certain type of location or sending field reports back to the "base" here at Bewilder and Pine either of which may become included in future chapters!) The goal being writing the story in 12 chapters over 2 years and letting it evolve naturally over that time too.

 Each chapter would arrive via mail and include another little "something special" for the buyer/figurine. Anyway, more on that to come as it is just in the early stages of planning. . . so much to figure out such as pricing for mailing 11 successive chapters to people all over the world but I think the shop has the credibility and longevity now to pull it off.

Most of this comes from the reaction I get to the little stories, scrolls etc that I often include with almost everything that comes out of Bewilder and Pine. Customers write and say that on one hand I should "advertise" those little extras in the listings and photos but, on the other hand, they are so happy to open the box and receive little fairy messages, booklets/stories etc when they are unexpected "extras".  When all is said and done, the figurines might be all sold out at some point but I'd have another short, 12 chapter book to offer, hand-bound in it's complete form, as well.

They're small and just a little added touch but it got me to thinking that I could offer something so much larger and actually more immersive, for those who truly get into that experience.

For this month I have little actual new work to show but here are a few of the things I enjoyed/enjoy making most this past month!

An original design - Auset/Isis Altar Statue, I had not made on in a year or more and of course, when it is done, I ask myself "Why is that?"  lol

I've said it before but I NEVER tire of making this guy, Bes, a multifaceted protector deity. I am surprised how many different reasons people buy this form for. Everything from new house protection to baby/birth/pregnancy protection to a desire to ward off bad dreams.  

On the Fairy side of things, I never tire of making these Mossy Lane Fairy houses. It's interesting to look back and see how they change and evolve in little ways over the last 5 years.

And it's always the least expected things that I get repeat requests for. The fact that these little houses sit on their own little wooden platform, above the landscape and with the tiny stairs, seems to appeal to SO many people! I never could have guessed that.

Always a favorite too is Sekhmet. A fiercely protective, but loving, lioness companion deity. 

And lastly, I am trying to get these stocked for the holiday rush to come (and that's all too soon!)  they seem to find homes so quickly though. . . I'd love to be able to have them available in maybe eight pearl colors in the shop all at once. :) 

So that's the scoop for now. Hoping everyone is ready for the autumn season ahead (or spring if you are down under) It's my favorite season, always, and I could not be more ready for the autumn chill and the end of the tourist season around here. All the little woodland paths and hideaways as well as the beaches. . . will all be deserted again. : )

Thank you, as always, for dropping by!

Until the next. . .
xo
nicolas

New Work from Shadow of the Sphinx

Just time this evening for a few images of four pieces just finished for some of my delightful customers. Enjoy!!

Small 5" Statue of Seshat the Goddess of Writing, Arithmetic and Architecture

Serqet or Selket - 7.5" tall - Scorpion Goddess - Protective Deity - The form I chose borrows from the famous gold statue of Her that guarded Tut's burial sarcophagus/shrine.

The Sutekh on the right I posted yesterday but he goes with this second Seshat as a pair. Aren't they a formidable duo?