It's been too long since I made any new entries in here. LiveJournal is really my thing, to be honest. But still...no reason why I can't cross-post, right? Aside from the fact that it's lazy! ;-)
Oh boy, did I ever keep myself busy over the weekend. Here is my newest Steampunk mask...I called this one "Full Steam" 'cause it has a face completely made of gears & cogs & stuff. I destroyed a cheap watch & then went online for more reference images, & created a mask that blended all those elements.
I figured out something; Steampunk isn't just about looking mechanical. It has to be mechanical AND old-looking. Vintage machinery...almost Victorian-era. That's why I added the scrollwork...one of my reference photos was gearwork on an old German clock & those scroll elements were there. I loved the look of the big mask but it's pretty pricey because of all the carving, so I designed two masks that encorporated half of the gear/cog design on a basic brown half mask. Frankly, I almost like them better. You can see them here on my Etsy site: Merimask's Etsy Shop. Aren't those fun? I really love the mechanical & yet organic qualities of the designs. When I looked at the watch works, the gears already looked almost like a face with eyes & teeth...it was too easy to turn them into a mask design that flowed.
I bought several new paints too...really great new line of Liquitex irridescent acrylics that lent themselves perfectly to that burnished copper & brass look that I wanted for these masks. Colorfast & waterproof too! Awesome paints.I did another of my simpler cog masks with the new paints & brown color scheme. Heh...I was so pleased with that design last week but my new ones kind of blow it away by comparison. Still, it's affordable so I bet it'll do well.
All these masks are on Etsy right now...I'm curious to see what people think about them. I was so happy with "Full Steam" that I put it up there with my featured designs. My line looks pretty versatile right now, except I'm all out of dragon masks.
Etsy is getting downright huge and things are a little crazy in there. Last week I stayed online to wait for the main showcase slots to open up, so I could purchase a couple spaces. Advertising, basically. At the stroke of 12 noon the slots went up for sale & I was ready; already logged it...all I had to do was click "refresh" & I was in the showcase buying screen. But it took a few seconds to load & it those few seconds, the first three available days had already sold out! Can you imagine that? I had to scramble to get two spots (two is the maximum amount a seller can buy). By the time I was done, all the slots were gone & only five minutes had passed since they opened up for sale. That's two weeks-worth of spaces...50 slots per day. I used to be able to buy them a few days after they went up for sale...it was no big deal. Now though...forget it! You have to hover like a vulture and pounce, and you better have something faster than a dial-up connection or I bet you're out of luck. I'm glad Etsy is so popular, but it makes me nervous. I remember when E-bay was small & quaint & easy to use. Not anymore! I hope Etsy doesn't go that way, but I expect it will.
Snow all around me! Two feet of snow just 13 miles south of here! More snow up north, coming off of Lake Ontario. Right here...the sun shines and my grass is green. Weird! It's awfully cold though, so if those lake bands swing a tad north I'll surely get some snow. I almost wish I would...I hate looking at cold dormant stuff. Bring on a pretty blanket of white, I say! If I'm going to have to be cold, at least give me something to ski in, nature!
