Light Show!

I awoke feeling creative today! I had no use for yardwork or housework..I wanted to play in the craft box! When this fancy hits, I find it is best to go with the flow and whatever project comes to mind is what I should attempt. It will always turn out well if I just allow myself to be consumed by the idea. I experimented today with another style gourd. A while back, my son and daughter-in-law urged me to make some gourd lamps. I had no idea what in the world they were talking about until they explained. It seems as if they had seen some in art shops and were impressed by them. Well, I procrastinated. I procrastinated a lot! Until finally, today I was inspired to start "gourding" again! I have always said that when I pick a gourd for a project, the gourd itself tells me the design. This time, I picked two gourds..one did not "speak" to me..it remained silent. No matter how I pleaded, it refused to communicate. It just sat there like a bump on a log or in this case, a squash on the vine. (Hehe..a little gourd humor there!) I put the obstinate thing on the floor and picked up the other. If one doesn't feel the need to be beautified today, then perhaps the other would be more responsive. Gingerly, I cradled the gourd. I turned it over and over in my hands.."What would you like to be, my Dearie?" This one yelled loud and clear.."A lamp!" That settled it! If gourds could talk and tell us how they wanted to be decorated, an artist's life would be much more confusing than it already is! Most artists are already classified as eccentric and talking to inanimate objects would do nothing but clinch the title for us. Still, I relented to the pleas of the gourd and started a lamp. Since gourds are not transparent, I needed to either do cutwork or punchwork to allow for light to be emitted. I opted for punchwork this time. It is a little less intricate than cutwork and being as this is the first real lamp I have attempted, I was taking the easy way! Tomorrow will be soon enough to attempt the fine cutting. To make the holes I used an electric soldering tool. This is probably not the best tool for the job but it worked. I tend to use some rather unconventional tools and materials for all of my creations simply because I use whatever I have on hand. This time was no different. After the designs were punched (burned) into the gourd, I added a touches of paint to highlight the design, a bit of wax to seal it and a lot of buffing to finish out the lamp. Although the inner workings of the fixture still have to be installed, I did stick it on top of a LED light. I was delighted that it cast a light show on the walls! By far, this is one of the easiest gourds to create..not because it was labor free..quite the contrary..I just had lots of help behind the idea. Just a little encouragement can go a long way in making all of life a bit easier!