IsabeauxStudio

Once I realized that not having feeling in your hands was not a good idea when working with power tools, I stopped working on the ferry boat.  I had to stop working in wood for a time and look for different materials to continue my chair series.

Trying new materials, I  began to dabble in paper mache.  It was almost nothing in cost and made great use of the Women's Wear Daily newspapers that I could never seem to read fast enough.  I felt guilty that I paid the expensive subscription price and never really read them except for the Wednesday classifieds.  They proved to be perfect for my paper mache work, and quite useful when I moved, for wrapping my china.

 This piece titled "Blue Slide" was a fun, quick piece to do.   Since I liked things to match and be balanced (and still do) I paid special attention to the color placement of the material. 

This very different piece, titled "Seal," feels more hodge-podge than the Blue Slide above.  It has more of a recycled feeling.

While working in paper mache I broke from my chair series briefly to try and do something with the figure.  I started this winged figure below with the hopes that it would be a gift for a pregnant friend of mine.  I never ended up finishing it,  but I like it very much as is.  Almost 7 years later, and a trip across country, it has weathered nicely with age, and  has quite the vintage look to it.

Shortly after working on these paper mache pieces I decided that I wanted to make a special outfit for a Valentines Day date.  I bought a black feather boa in order to trim the garment I was making.  I used the leftover feathers,  and made 2 chair pieces in addition to the garment.  Talk about excellent utilization!   The smaller feather chair is roughly 5 inches tall, and the larger "Dr. Suess Chair" is about 3 feet tall. You can see the 2 chairs, and the garment in the photos below, and no, the gal in the picture is not me.    The garment/chair picture was taken by photographer & friend Spencer Gordon.  He was always looking for new and unusual things to shoot to help develop his commercial portfolio.  It was a great opportunity for me, as I got great images out of the collaboration.