2017 #7 Lost and Found Jewellery {by Dounia Large}

2017 Topic 7: Found Objects

Every year Dounia helps us at Version Scrap with our make and takes. And every year, she swoops like a magpie on my experimental bits and bobs that I am keen to throw away and rescues them so she can re-purpose and recycle! I cannot think of a better person to blog on this topic as she often sees things in a new way that so she can re-create something interesting out of something run of the mill.

Bonjour everyone Dounia from France here.

So great to be back on the PA blog tonight, after a whole PA week-end in Paris! I've chosen to share with you some ideas to turn little everyday objects into beautiful substrates for unique projects (again).

This fortnight is all about found objects and I must confess the concept baffled me when I first encountered it. Indeed the direct French translation of "found object", "objet trouvé", is our expression for the English "lost and found". I was therefore quite surprised by all the beautiful things people, in my mind, found on the street! I soon realised my mistake but it got me into the habit of looking... To honor that I combined my magpie habit with my love for Crackle glaze to make Spring jewellery.

I was inspired the little city garden of my complex. Weather has been very sunny and hot so everything is green and the rosebushes are already flowering!

For such a project, I begin by emptying my coat pockets and exploring my "weird and cool things that could be useful" to kickstart my inspiration. I try to end up with an eclectic mix, from broken glass to electronic parts, including lots of packaging materials (soda cans, water bottles, etc) as they make cheap and sturdy substrates. Then it's time for Fresco paints!

I alway begin with a layer of glaze to keep the look of the material, then a round of the amazing Crackle glaze. I make a lot of samples at the same time so I can play with colors, opacity and shine. On metal (from soda cans) you can go from bold to subtle. I especially love metallic paint on metal!

On plastic sheets, I like to explore transparency and to build layers, as the background can dramaticcaly change the look of a piece. Again love the metallic colors!

The result is even more interesting if the material is patterned, like this piece of keyboard.  I enjoyed contrasting the electronic design with bright, happy colors!

Cutting those beautiful backgrounds gives pieces with lots of character! Not much more to do to, just a little bit of mixing and matching to achieve a finished embellishment, broach or earing.

I really love this technique, it is very versatile and as the base material are industrial, the results are quite sturdy. Also they're basically free you don't have to worry about wasting, allowing you to play, try new combinations, step out of your comfort zone! Other examples of jewelry made with this technique and found objects are on my blog.

Doudoulina

So great to use bits of plastic and stuff to re-create something totally different! I love your jewellery pieces and how you have cut, shaped and layered them so successfully!! Lovely to see you in Paris again!! I hope you have an easy week this week!! ~ Leandra

We always hope that you  learn something interesting from our blog. Our bloggers deeply appreciate your comments so much, so please take time to let them know you've been inspired! Why not join our challenge by blogging your interpretation of the current topic and link it here?

The current topic link (Found Objects) will close 17:00 (London Time) Sunday, May 7th 2017, and the winner will be announced 2 hours later at 19:00.

All links go in the draw to win a £50 voucher to spend on products of your choice from the PaperArtsy online store.