Friday
Girl with Pearls Cameo Needle Minder
Made with love on Grizzly Mountain!
We made this "Girl with Pearls" cameo needle minder from a gorgeous vintage inspired resin cameo. We inlayed a rare earth magnet with clear resin on the back. We set the cameo in a gold toned setting to give this needle minder a finished look. Dave encased another rare earth magnet into a piece of faux ivory (resin) that he turned on the lathe. Together, these beauties will "mind" your needle conveniently on your project! Separated, the cameo needle minder and faux ivory back would also make two handy refrigerator magnets!
This cameo needle minder can be found in our Grizzly Mountain Arts Etsy shop :)
Wednesday
Hand Carved Bone Fish Sewing Thread Winder
Dave has hand carved this little 2 5/8 inch fish thread winder from buffalo bone. This piece has been initialed by Dave, and is currently up for auction on Ebay.
Monday
The Druid's Egg Ceramic Pendant
This "Druid's Egg" earthenware pendant is another collaborative effort between Grizzly Mountain Arts and Good Dirt Jewelry, aka Jo. Dave carved the original Druid's Egg, then made a wonderful mold from that piece. This earthenware pendant, which has been glazed with an earthy "Blue Grotto" glaze can be found in both the Good Dirt Jewelry Etsy shop and 1000markets.com collection (there are two pendants, one in each shop).
*What Are Druid's Eggs?*
The Druid's Egg (also “glain,” “serpent's egg,” or “snake stone”) was a talismanic object sacred to the Druids. Tales about it resemble those of the Philosopher's Stone sought by the alchemists. Its myths may also be related to those of the Omphalos, a meteoritic stone which was kept at Delphi and was thought to be the egg of the serpent-monster Python. In legends, the Druid’s Egg is credited with endowing its possessor with the ability to obtain almost all he might desire. The Druid's Egg was also believed to create a favorable outcome in courts of law, so much that the Romans outlawed carrying one into any courtroom.
In truth, the Druid’s Egg was an egg-shaped talisman made of stone. This consecrated object served as a tool for meditation and magickal focus, and symbolized the promise of renewal and rebirth. They could be made from any stone, and were generally small enough to fit in the palm of one's hand (about the size of a chicken's egg).
In lore, the Druid's Egg was a magickal egg produced by serpents. It could be obtained only on St. Johns Eve, when snakes were supposed to gather in a ball and form an egg from their spittle. As the snakes twisted and writhed, the egg emerged from the mass of vipers and would then float upward into the air.
Many species of snake do form such a ball in the cold months, but the few species of snake native to Britain are not egg-layers. A snake which does lay eggs is the python, not found in Britain, but which was kept in the goddess temples of the Aegean; this may be taken as further evidence of an association between the Druids (or their predecessors) and the Delphic cult which kept the sacred Omphalos stone.
In legends, the Druid who caught the Druid’s Egg after its creation was advised to take instant measures to prevent being robbed of it: as soon as the egg had been obtained he was to throw himself upon a horse that was kept waiting for him, as he would be pursued by the snakes; he was further instructed not to halt until he had gotten to the other side of the first running water to which his flight brought him, across which the serpents would be unable to follow.
The Druid’s Egg appears to have been an object of interest to the ancients, some of whom describe having actually seen and handled it. Among those who have specially described it is the Roman historian Pliny, who claimed he was shown one of these by a Druid from Gaul and called it an "anguinum."
"There is also another kind of egg, of much renown in the Gallic provinces, but ignored by the Greeks. In the summer, numberless snakes entwine themselves into a ball, held together by a secretion from their bodies and by their spittle. this is called anguinum. The Druids say that hissing serpents throw this up into the air, and that it must be caught in a cloak, and not allowed to touch the ground; and that one must instantly take flight on horse-back, as the serpents will pursue until some stream cuts them out. It may be tested, they say, by seeing if it floats against the current of a river, even though it be set in gold. But as it is the way of magicians to cast a cunning veil about their frauds, they pretend that these eggs can only be taken on a certain day of the moon, as though it rested with mankind to make the moon and the serpents accord as to the moment of the operation. I myself, however, have seen one of these eggs; it was round, and about as large as a smallish apple; the shell was cartalaginous, and pocked like the arms of a polypus."
Of all the historic sources who have testified to seeing this legendary egg, none claim to have witnessed its creation.
While the Druid's Egg is not a widespread tool in modern Druidism, it is used by some as a ritual implement for grounding and to protect its owner from manipulative magick or other harmful intents by acting as a magickal “shell,” absorbing and transforming any destructive energy.
In Wales, there is still some belief in the objects; they call them mân macal ("snare stones") and glain y nidir ("the snake's jewel").
Old Irish Pictish Love Ogham Ceramic Pendant
This "Pictish Ogham Stone" earthenware pendant is another collaborative effort between Grizzly Mountain Arts and Good Dirt Jewelry, aka Jo. I am so lucky to have a master carver with a studio right next to mine! Dave carved the original Pictish standing stone ogham, then made me a wonderful mold from that piece.
This pendant which can be found in our "Good Dirt Jewelry" Etsy shop, spells out the word "Love" in ogham writing, measures about 2 inches in length and about 1 1/2 inches in width. It has been glazed with an earthy bluish-brown glaze and hangs from a sturdy cotton cord with copper clasp. The cord could easily be removed if you have a favorite chain or cord you prefer. A gift box is included with your purchase!
**What are Pictish Ogham Stones?**
Ogham, is an Early Medieval alphabet used primarily to represent the Old Irish language (and, occasionally, the Brythonic ancestor of Welsh). Ogham is sometimes referred to as the "Celtic Tree Alphabet", based on a High Medieval Bríatharogam tradition ascribing names of trees to the individual letters.
There are roughly 400 surviving ogham inscriptions on stone monuments throughout Ireland and Britain, the bulk of them stretching in arc from County Kerry in the south of Ireland across to Dyfed in south Wales. The remainder are mostly in south-eastern Ireland, western Scotland, the Isle of Man, and England around the Devon/Cornwall border. The vast majority of the inscriptions consist of personal names.
Monumental ogham inscriptions are found in Ireland and Wales, with a few additional specimens found in England, the Isle of Man, Scotland and Shetland. They were mainly employed as territorial markers and memorials (grave stones). The stone commemorating Vortiporius, a 6th century king of Dyfed (originally located in Clynderwen), is the only ogham stone inscription that bears the name of an identifiable individual. The language of the inscriptions is predominantly Primitive Irish and Old Irish, apart from the few examples in Scotland, such as the Lunnasting stone, which record fragments of what is probably the Pictish language.
The more ancient examples are standing stones, where the script was carved into the edge (droim or faobhar) of the stone, which formed the stemline against which individual characters are cut. The text of these "Orthodox Ogham" inscriptions is read beginning from the bottom left-hand side of a stone, continuing upward along the edge, across the top and down the right-hand side (in the case of long inscriptions). Roughly 380 inscriptions are known in total (a number, incidentally, very close to the number of known inscriptions in the contemporary Elder Futhark), of which the highest concentration by far is found in the southwestern Irish province of Munster. One third of the total are found in Co Kerry alone.
Sunday
What's Dave Been Up to Lately?
You may have noticed that Dave hasn't had many items up for auction on Ebay lately, but that's not because he's not working. He has been creating up a storm in his studio! I keep trying to get him to let me take a photo of his workspace, but he gets a panicked look on his face and says "Nooooo"! LOLOne of the projects he's been working on is the beautiful set shown above that was commissioned by one of our wonderful patrons. The ruler is scrimshaw on bone and the scissor fob features scrimshaw on fossil mammoth ivory. The focal bead on the fob is fossil walrus which has been accented with small bone beads and amethysts. East Indian Rosewood was used for the tatting shuttle, which also has the teddy bear scrim'd on fossil mammoth ivory.
Dave is nearly finished with his last commission, which was a large order from a tatting shuttle collector, so you should be seeing some new auctions soon! I'll be sure and post them here when he has them ready :)
Monday
Candy Apple Red Celluloid Lace Tatting Shuttle
I have been so behind on everything since my laptop died AGAIN! The Ebay auction for this beautiful shuttle is nearly over and I'm just now getting it blogged! For those of you shopping around for a laptop, buy a MacBook, not a Dell! In Dell's defense, they are replacing my lemon with a hopefully new one (I suspect they will send me a refurb from what I've heard from other owners). I have had it with trying to work with their tech support!
Now, for more pleasant things :)
Dave handcrafted this 2 ½ inch tatting shuttle out of colorful "Apple Red" celluloid. It has been initialed and dated by Dave.
Tuesday
Vegan Ivory Hedgehog Sewing Needle Pin Cushion
This is “Little Tag” the hedgehog, that Dave carved out of a Tagua Nut (South American Palm). Tagua Nut is commonly called “vegetable ivory”(Vegan) because it can be carved and scrimshawed like regular ivory. Dave has inset a small but powerful earth magnet inside him, and he would just love to hold your pins and needles for you and be your favorite pet. He is only about 1 5/8 inches long and you can tuck him safely in his valour pouch. "Little Tag" has been initialed and dated on the bottom by Dave, the artist
If you would like to view more photos of "Little TAg" please visit my Ebay auction.
Saturday
Embroidery Buffalo Bone and Rosewood Laying Tool Stiletto or Hair Stick
Friday
We've Been Featured!
It's always so exciting to find out one of your items has been featured in a treasury on Etsy! Today, we found our "Graceful Beauty" cameo needle minder included in one!Campo di Fiore, who makes beautiful cold processed handmade soaps in the Castile region of Spain, curated this gorgeous collection of some of their favorite items found on Etsy.
Here We Go Again!!!
This is getting ridiculous!
We've been slammed yet again by a fraudulent telecommunications company through Qwest. this time, it is from "ESBI ETS" who charged our telephone bill $14.95 for a residential email service we do not use (Last time, it was "Orbit Telecom" that tried to charge the same amount for an voice mail service we do not use). The last time Qwest allowed this to happen, we spent nearly two hours on the phone trying to get this remedied. At the time, we were allowing Qwest to auto-debit our bank account, which we immediately stopped. Since this is the third time we have had this happen, we can only come to the conclusion that this deceptive practice is accepted by Qwest.
After doing a Google search for this company, I found that many other people are experiencing the same thing on their phone bills. I also found a great link where you can report these types of fraudulent companies online via the FCC.
Double check your latest phone bill and look for a charge from "Orbit Telecom" or "ESBI ETS"! Ours was listed under "Enhanced Telecommunications Services".
Oh, and if the Qwest corporate office happens to have a Google alert set for any online occurances of it's name being mentioned and is reading this, here's a little heads-up for you--We are reporting you to the FCC.....again! We expect a higher level of professionalism from our utility providers than this!
Use this link to reach the online complaint form for the FCC:
http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm
We've been slammed yet again by a fraudulent telecommunications company through Qwest. this time, it is from "ESBI ETS" who charged our telephone bill $14.95 for a residential email service we do not use (Last time, it was "Orbit Telecom" that tried to charge the same amount for an voice mail service we do not use). The last time Qwest allowed this to happen, we spent nearly two hours on the phone trying to get this remedied. At the time, we were allowing Qwest to auto-debit our bank account, which we immediately stopped. Since this is the third time we have had this happen, we can only come to the conclusion that this deceptive practice is accepted by Qwest.
After doing a Google search for this company, I found that many other people are experiencing the same thing on their phone bills. I also found a great link where you can report these types of fraudulent companies online via the FCC.
Double check your latest phone bill and look for a charge from "Orbit Telecom" or "ESBI ETS"! Ours was listed under "Enhanced Telecommunications Services".
Oh, and if the Qwest corporate office happens to have a Google alert set for any online occurances of it's name being mentioned and is reading this, here's a little heads-up for you--We are reporting you to the FCC.....again! We expect a higher level of professionalism from our utility providers than this!
Use this link to reach the online complaint form for the FCC:
http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm
Wednesday
Pyro-Art Figured Maple Lace Tatting Shuttle
Dave has hand crafted this 2 ½ inch tatting shuttle out of Figured Maple wood. He has also burn etched a butterfly motif by hand on one side. This tatting shuttle has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.
Friday
Personalized Scrimshaw Lace Tatting Shuttle
Monday
Oregon Myrtlewood and Pine Needle Work Basket Set
Dave has made a very unique tatting shuttle and basket set! The 2 5/8 shuttle is made from Oregon Myrtlewood and he has hand stitched the basket using Oregon ponderosa pine needles, both depicting a Cascade Mountain motif. The work basket is 5 x 6 inch oval and 3 inches high. It has an oak oval in the bottom and a walnut lid center piece. Each has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.
If you would like to see more of Dave's baskets, please visit his new shop on 1000markets!
Friday
GMA Now on 1000Markets.com!
Grizzly Mountain Arts Now On 1000Markets.com!
I have finally convinced Dave to open a shop on 1000markets.com! I have had one there for a while now for my ceramic jewelry, but knew Dave's coiled pine needle baskets would be perfect for the site.
While I love making the coiled baskets, my hands won't cooperate these days and boy, has Dave ever taken up the slack! He has put our large stash of Ponderosa pine needles to good use, creating some outstanding pieces.
Dave's baskets incorporate some of my ceramic centerpieces, pyrography on wood and fossil ivory with scrimshaw.
Wednesday
"Antiqued Golden" Celluloid Lace Bobbin Tatting Shuttle
Dave has hand crafted this 2 ½ inch lace bobbin tatting shuttle out of "Antiqued Golden" celluloid. It has a #14 steel crochet hook inset in the nose. The removable bobbin is a Singer Class 66 plastic bobbin available in a 4 pack at Walmart or other sewing supply store. The tension on the bobbin is adjustable with the axel screw to prevent it from free wheeling. This bobbin shuttle has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.Please click here to view more photos of this shuttle.
Buffalo Bone and Celluloid Crochet Hook Size E 3.50
Dave made this hook from Buffalo bone and red/black swirl celluloid. It is a US size E (3.50 mm) and is 6 ½ inches long. This hook has been initialed by Dave, the maker. Please click here to view another photo of this shuttle.
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