Emilee Williams Art

Though I haven't been painting much lately, my life hasn't been completely void of creativity. My mom and I took a pottery class through a local community education program. It was about ten weeks long and ended this past week. It was really fun and frustrating at the same time. Here are a few of my pieces...the ones I am not too ashamed to share: This is a pinch pot-- the first thing I made I did this one with coils-- by far the most frustrating project I really love this mug and it was super easy to make. This red square bowl is my favorite. I stamped a design into the sides, but it didn't show up very well after it was glazed. This is the piece I am most proud of. It is the only thing I made on the wheel that actually turned out.  My favorite part of the class had to be learning the wheel. It was really hard and frustrating-- centering the clay on the wheel is nearly impossible-- but once you get it, it is so much fun. I can't lie, I...

I've noticed that I go through phases. I'll either be really into painting or really into reading or really into something else and whatever I was doing kind of falls to the wayside. I hadn't been feeling creative or inspired, but I think I'm transitioning back into painting mode. A while back, my friend asked me to paint something for him. He said he wanted it to be geometric and asked specifically for rectangles. So, I did a few trial runs in my art journal to test my idea: This was my first try. I wanted to try layering colors using masking tape to block off rectangles. During this trial run, I learned that if I do one big wash over the paper, the paint tends to bleed under the tape. I still like to look and colors though. Take 2: The second time around, I made more of an effort to paint each individual square. There was a lot less paint bleeding under the tape when I didn't do one big wash over the paper. So, this is the method I decided t...

It has been way too long since I last wrote to my brother, Thomas, who is in Brazil. So today, I finally sat down and wrote to him-- just a short little note. I wish that I would have made the card bigger so I could have said more... I didn't have a plan when I started. I just went crazy with the masking fluid and colors. I quite like the result. I hope Tom does, too. I love quotes. I feel that for everything that I want to say, someone has already said it much more eloquently than I ever could. So, as usual, I wrote one of my favorite quotes that I thought Tom might find applicable to his life in Brazil: "Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying 'I will try again tomorrow.'" -Mary Anne Radmacher

Fun with colors and layers.

My mom and I created an Etsy shop to sell the pendants we have been making. The name of our shop is Pink Poppy Pendants (we both like poppies and alliteration). You can get to the shop by clicking HERE , or through the link on the left. So please, check it out! Here are some pictures from our Etsy shop: These two pendants were in a previous post, but they didn't have their matching beaded charms yet.

I recently graduated college and I was fortunate enough to get a job in my field of study: aviation. One unfortunate thing that goes along with starting a new job is having to leave a current job, which is what I had to do today. I had worked at my current job for four and a half years. They were good to me, especially with working around my school schedule. I made good friends along the way, too. It was comfortable to go to work there every day. So, it wasn't easy to leave, which is why I kept telling myself this all day: I did this while I was at work today, between calls. It was comforting to read this while people kept coming to my desk to say goodbye.

I really think I am getting the hang of this soldering stuff. The beveled glass is still tough though. The darn thing just won't hold still. The soldering kit my mom bought came with little 0.5x1 inch tiles and we weren't sure what to do with them. My idea was to put letters in them because who doesn't like wearing their first initial around their neck? I made one for myself and one for my mom. The first one turned out pretty bad...good thing I made it for myself! The second one turned out much better. And on the back, I just soldered the whole thing: The monarch butterfly wing pendant (my new favorite): with the charms These are some my mom made using some of my doodles. I really like how they turned out; she has a good eye: The soldering on these could use some fixin'. I was out of patience when I was finishing them. I'll touch them up on another day, when my soldering skills are fresh.

More finished pendants: I am really having fun making these. And the ideas just keep flowing... you'll see! The charms my mama made to go with each: There aren't really two lines down the center of the feather. I used beveled glass on this one and it made the feather look funky. Beveled glass is harder to use than flat glass, when it comes to soldering at least. It doesn't stay in place. It spins in circles as you are trying to move the solder around the piece-- which makes for some tough soldering. I really think I am getting the hand of the whole soldering thing though! My mom? She's another story...

So far, I have made three pendants: The flower pendant. I fixed the solder and it looks much better now Front and back. The feather pendant, front and back. This one is my favorite.  My mom made some beaded charms to go with each pendant: Now they are ready to be hung on any chain. I love new adventures! I'm like addicted to soldering now... I could do it all day!

My mom loves both wearing and making jewelry. Her favorite necklace is a chain with removable charms and beads. She started making the beaded charms for herself and had a lot of fun doing it. She wanted to make glass charms to go with them and recruited my help. I've been doing a bunch of little doodles to go between the tiny glass panes. Here are a couple: We got a soldering iron and all the tools to make the glass charms. I did some soldering when I was in high school, so I had some idea of how to do it. We made our first charm tonight (when I say we, I mean my dad and I; Mom was too scared). It didn't turn out half bad, if I do say so myself: Front   Back There are a few kinks that we will need to work out for next time. It turns out you learn a lot about how to do something if you read the directions before you start... imagine that? After I got past how scary the hot soldering iron is, it was actually a lot of fun. And it is rather relaxing to me...

This post has nothing to do with painting of any kind, but something much more important, to me at least. It is my biggest accomplishment thus far and I wanted to write down my thoughts and feelings, while I still have them. I graduated from college yesterday. I spent the last five years attending Westminster College and yesterday was a day that I wasn't sure would ever come. I majored in Aviation: Flight Operations and spent much of my time at the airport, flying airplanes. I haven't flown in a while but I think I ended up with about 350 hours. I earned my private, instrument, commercial, and multi-engine ratings. Toward the end of my education, I decided that flying probably isn't for me. This change of heart was a result of many things, but most of all because my eyes were opened to all the other opportunities in the aviation industry. There is a place for me out there, somewhere. I just need to find it. I was originally pursuing an art minor, which is why it took me...

I wanted to do chevrons again, but try different widths. I like the pattern, but still haven't found a color pallet that I like: