Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Sugar Skulls

A recent theme I have been enjoying in my creations is Day of the Dead style art.  This all started with one little charm swap that I recently participated in.  While researching, I learned a lot about this holiday and found tons of inspiration in the theme.  It also reminds me to celebrate my ancestors, who have passed and I don't think I do that enough. 

While shopping one day at a big box store I noticed some paper mache skulls that were on sale in the Halloween section.  I did not purchase them at that moment.  Upon going home, I could not get the idea out of my head to create my own "sugar skull" with one of these.  I went back the next day and bought two skulls all for the bargain price of three dollars.  I knew I wanted to incorporate some flowers for dimension, so I also bought a few stems that were on sale.  Here is what I created.



I started by simply coating the skulls with a very heavy duty gesso.  I then aged the skulls with a "magical potion" that was given to me by a colleague at work.  I have no idea what it is, I only know that it is a homemade concoction that she uses in her Mexican folk art.  It provides the perfect aged look to any piece. 




I then planned out my use of flowers and glued them on.  Very simple really.  




Then came the stickels, and I mean a lot of stickels.  I wanted these pieces to have a lot of texture and a bit of shine, so this is the medium I decided to try.  This took some time and some patience.  Stickels take a long time to dry, so I could only add a little "doodling" at a time, for fear of messing it up.  I did not plan the whole design out, just added my different line patters bit by bit.  





I hope this entry inspires you to try something new with stickels or skulls.  I am truly amazed that my perception of skulls has changed so much due to learning more about Day of the Dead and by creating beauty from something I would not normally gravitate too.  Because of this project, I am also using stickels in a few more works in progress and I am really happy with the results.  What do you think???

Cheers,

Rhea 

28 comments:

  1. These are incredible, Rhea! You've done a fantastic job of altering them - they are truly works of art.

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  2. Rhea, I love the "Sugar Skulls". They are marvelous.

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  3. The skulls are wonderful, Rhea. I love Day of the Dead and this time of year I make lots of cards for Dia de los Muertos. You have inspired me to try my hand at some "sugar" skulls. I have a paper mache skull that should work wonderfully.

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  4. So cool and scary at the same time! Love your creativity!!!

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  5. Wow!@ They are amazing - and for skulls, they are beautiful!!!

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  6. My sister-in-law passed away this past summer and for that reason I've been steering away from skeletons this Halloween. Thanks for the more reverent way of looking at these. They are great!

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  7. VERY cool! Love all the Stickles :)

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  8. love, love love em.. can't wait to see them in person.. ;p

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  9. love your skulls...crangrats...stickles is purrrrrrrrfect idea to use them for!!!

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  10. Your sugar skulls are delightful - full of spirit and energy.

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  11. Your skulls are great! Love the flower additions!

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  12. just saw these in the "big box store" yesterday and now you have me wanting to go back and get a few! awesome work!!!

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  13. Wow, it's so fun to discover something new! Great job!

    CArol

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  14. My daughter took me to a small art/gift shop in Silver Lake (LA) and I got hooked on this tradition. That was also where I discovered Frida. Your sugar skulls are just fantastic. I love coming to your blog.

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  15. I had seen some on a visit to San Antonio. You did a great job on these Rhea!

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  16. These are just amazing... I love the tops of the skulls especially and loved hearing about the process a bit. I have never seen anything like them xx

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  17. These are just amazing and so creative. Fabulous!

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  18. Amazing sugar skulls! Really love all the detail and the sparkle. :)

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  19. Love the creative way you took on skulls as well as hearing about your process. I've never heard of stickles before but will be keeping an eye out for them now. And the 'magical potion' -- too funny... I'm dying to know what it is now! LOL

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  20. These are lovely! Come by for some puddin n pie!
    http://georgie-hornpuddinnpie.blogspot.com/2011/10/your-chance-to-win-dont-miss-this.html

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  21. I love your sugar skulls, Rhea! What a great idea. Stickles are the only glitter I seem to have any luck with...and your results with them are wonderful.
    xo
    Debbie
    ===^..^===

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  22. Awesome pieces...love the unique design work you've done! And Glitter...yeah, that rocks! POP ART MINIS

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  23. At first when I read sugar skulls I was thinking they were coated with sugar and were edible. Ha. These are great.

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  24. These are really cool.

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All the comments and feedback you leave affirms my creative spirit on a very deep level. I am grateful for your time and readership!