Rockport Sunrise On A Cloudy Day

Rockport is a great little town on the Texas Gulf Coast. We took a little vacation there with family this past week. It was nice to get away for awhile and I think we needed a change of scenery! Nothing better than waking up and throwing open the curtains to a waterfront view of the sunrise over Aransas Bay!

Our trip included BBQ's and a crab boil at the picnic spot right off the water, fishing on the 1000 foot long pier, crabbing and eating the freshest seafood, including the best oysters on the half shell I've ever had plus lots of walks down the bay front road with our two dogs and family.

We also visited The Big Tree at Goose Island State Park, the Lamar Cemetery, Rockport Beach Park, and a beautiful place named Schoenstatt!

Here's a photo I took while we road the Ferry Boat to Port Aransas:

I have a lot more pictures to share plus suggestions on what to do if you ever find yourself in the charming Rockport-Fulton area. More to come!

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Cherry Blossoms

I love cherry blossoms.

I recently learned several polymer clay techniques and I immediately fell in love with doing "appliqué" to make a miniature work of art on a bead. First and foremost, pink cherry blossoms!

Here, I share with you my sketches and a few of my new designs in the making. I love the look and style of Chinese disc beads. The soft, flat circles are pleasing to the eye and feel good to the touch. Add a chocolate brown branch of beautiful pink cherry blossoms and I'm hooked!

By definition, appliqué is a decoration or ornament, as in needlework, made by cutting pieces of one material and applying them to the surface of another. In my case, I've made a stone-effect disc bead and instead of cutting out a branch or flowers I hand-sculpted a branch of miniature cherry blossoms and applied it to the bead.

I make the pendants out of white or gray polymer clay with inclusions of art sand to mimic a stone disc bead. I began the design using a gray stone-effect, however, subsequent experiments lead me to prefer white because I think it's a better background to show off the pinks and browns.

I had no idea of the time and tedious effort it took to use an applique technique on polymer clay but I'm in love with the results. I certainly have a higher respect for sculptors and other artists who work in fine detail than I ever have before in my life! In addition to working with this new medium, I am now learning the art of Chinese knots so I can showcase my precious pendants from a pretty satin cord.

Next up, dogwood?