adulting with whimsy
Owner of Marie Young Creative: I create devilishly sweet handcrafted art, home goods, jewelry and accessories in my rural Pennsylvania studio.
I wasn’t going to make a New Year’s resolution this year, but as I searched through my stash today looking for some earring hooks, inspiration hit. I have TOO many craft supplies. While I’m not to the hoarding level of my mother, my collection of “things that may be useful someday” is piling up. So for […]
Creating in 50 Shades of Grey It’s December and I’m writing about 50 Shades of Grey and showing you Valentine’s Day dragon. Weird, I know. Those of us who sell our work are always working a few seasons ahead 🙂 Normally I wouldn’t be posting about it this early, but I entered this piece in […]
A 2-inch sculpture can hold an incredible amount of detail. Take for example this polymer clay miniature dragon baby that I tucked into an real chicken egg shell. He fits in the palm of my hand and yet his story is big.The sleepy dragon’s eyelids droop as he drifts off to sleep. His tale of […]
Malcolm Gladwell wrote in the Outliers that it takes 10,000 hours to master a field. While I’m a long way from dedicating my 10,000 hours to sculpting, I do know that I improve every day that I’m in the studio. Working Toward 10,000 Hours Meet Emily, my entry in the PCAGOE Re-Do Challenge. What people […]
There used to be a simpler time before Pinterest when a butter cookie in the shape of a star was fancy enough. My Great-Grandma, true to her old-world German roots, didn’t add any glitz in her baking. I think her most decorative cookie was the “rudolph” sporting a cinnamon candy on his nose. While I […]
Eggs crack. Sometimes that is a good thing. I was smoothing the green clay on what was supposed to be a bird when I heard a sudden cracking noise. My thumb had just plunged into the hollow egg shell that I was covering. Sometimes when this happens the egg is a lost cause. Sometimes it […]
My mom pulled out one of her craft magazines to show me a DIY article on making decorative planter stake gnomes. She asked if could make her a set. (My sister-in-law was charged recreating with the wooden planter). I snapped a photo of the page (bottom shot) so I could remember what they looked like when […]
Creating with texture plates is one of those “go-to” things for many of us who work with polymer, yet I’ve never tried to design one of my own. Since “Texture Plates” was the theme for this month’s Polymer Clay Artists Guild of Etsy challenge I figured I would give it a whirl. I used the tops […]
Some of my favorite childhood memories include walking over an open foot bridge and peering down at the swirling koi beneath my feet. Such grace! And the colors were breathtaking. “Gone Fishing” Cat & Fish Egg Art Ornament I imagine that the little gray kitty staring down at this koi is experiencing that same giddy sense […]
The Making of a Monkey Astronaut This monkey astronaut’s shuttle pod is actually a small brown chicken egg. Hollow eggs make awesome frames for creative critter ornaments. The photo below shows an “in progress” shot of the monkey’s head as well as some additional views. The idea for this piece came from the theme for the June Challenge […]
