Boise RAWards-Wish me Luck!

The Semi-Finals show is tomorrow night this evening; yikes; it's after midnight by a long-stretch...  I've been working on my display, slide-show, & a few new pieces today: I'm nervous for the show, to be quite honest....I'm up against 5 other very talented visual artists & I know that my style/work is a bit out of the box...   We'll see: I think I have a shot of winning & going on to compete nationally, but it's all soooo very subjective...wish me luck :)

Now, off to try & get some sleep...

Hope to see you at the show.

Amber

Duck Eggs :)

Aaaand; on a different note....

I have duck eggs for sale :)

 

 

At the moment, I have 2 duckies & 7 chickens that free-range the property; eating bugs & attempting to eat all my kale... the duck eggs are starting to stack up: I prefer the chicken eggs for breakfast & don't do much baking (not surprising, as I have no oven ;)

 

 

Duck eggs are very comparable to chicken eggs--but they are larger & definitely less runny; & the shells are much harder :)  Lots of people swear by duck eggs for baking & some prefer the taste over chicken eggs.

Here is a link to a good article comparing duck to chicken eggs:

Duck Eggs Vs Chicken Eggs

These are my duckies; begging for treats at the front door; they're so cute!!  Right now, I have a male runner-duck (the taller) & a female of unknown variety...  She is slightly crippled; walks with quite the gimp, but gets around just fine: & she lays an egg almost every day--big bluish green eggs.  

I want to add in at least 3 more runners in the spring; all hens--so I'm really going to have lots of eggs next fall, lol : )

I love having the ducks around; they're so funny!  And less destructive in the garden than the chickens; they eat bugs & weeds & don't dig things up: although they did like to nibble on my baby sunflower plants...

They spend their days wandering about our property, & visiting the neighbor's horse pasture next door; splashing in their little pool & tapping on the glass door : )  They get rations of organic feed & treats of seeds & berries & grapes.

 

If you are interested in trying out duck eggs; let me know: I'm offering them for $4 per half dozen.  I would be happy to meet up with you to deliver them in the Boise area--or if you are in S. Boise, you can come pick them up :)  Call or txt me at 861-7515 or email me at refinerii@yahoo.com.  My cell coverage is really spotty out here; so leave a message & I'll get back to you :)  

 

Amber

Idaho Botanical Garden; a visit to some of my creatons...

This week, on the last warm & sunny day this fall, we took a walk through the Idaho Botanical Garden to visit some of my creations...  The fall colors were beautiful, & it was warm & sunny: perfectly beautiful for a walk through the garden....    

The Machine is looking great; the grasses have grown up around the base & look amazing! At 15 feet tall; this sculpture stands watch at the upper end of the garden :)

 Plates & Shadows keeps watch below; located near the garden cottage & herb garden.

And Suspended Gear is looking happy among the fall colors ; )

I decided to donate all three pieces to the Garden in 2011 & I'm so happy with how they look--it's so nice to know that lot's of people get to see & enjoy them :)

As we walked through the Garden, we had to stop & visit the fish in the childeren's garden...

They are so huge! & colorful & pretty!

And, we checked out the progress on the Tree House; just being built now.  OMG: it's going to be such a fun addition to the garden & I love the concept sketch---I'm thinking I need to get involved with this one ; )

I could see doing the railings; with some colorful copper, stainless, etc & maybe the flag-poles on the roof; oooh: would love to see the top as a kinetic wind-spinner!
So much fun!

I'm so glad we spent the afternoon enjoying the sunshine; today it snowed & I think winter has arrived...although, I am looking forward to seeing the Garden all lit up for the Holidays :)


Amber

PS: I am doing another project out at the Garden that I'm really excited about, but I'll save that announcement for another post....stay tuned :)

World Trade Center Memorial project: it begins...

Today, I picked up the beam that came from ground zero; a piece of history that will become part of Boise's World Trade Center Memorial.

It's a bit surreal to have it on my truck; just outside my window right now.  The beam was part of the structure of the World Trade Center & was recovered from the wreckage.  I'll be taking it out to the fabrication shop in the next few days.  It will become the centerpiece for a new courtyard/park that will be built near the Fallen Firefighter's Memorial--located along the greenbelt on Riverside Drive.

The beam will be captured in rings of polished stainless steel & left the way it is now; damaged & broken & dented.  The rings represent ripples in water; & that theme is carried out in the design of the courtyard.

I am working with Jensen-Belts Landscape Architecture, & Lochsa Engineering on this project.  I am grateful to be working with such a passionate & talented team.  I feel very honored to have been chosen for this project--it truly is a piece of history...

I remember that morning vividly; I was a Flight Attendant for Horizon Air, at the time; based in Seattle.
I was scheduled to check in at 9am at the airport; woke up early, as usual; & turned on the TV; & caught a few initial reports of what was happening...called Crew Scheduling; just got a busy signal, so decided to just go to the airport anyway---it was walking distance, & I figured that I could get a better report of what was happening there...   As I walked up to the lower check-in stations of the airport: it was obvious things were chaotic---there was a long line of cars waiting, way too many people milling about, & the atmosphere was very tense; frightened & desperate; no one was talking; everyone was watching the TV monitors--I was scared...   I made my way through Security & then down to the Crew check-in/break rooms; it was the same; everyone was watching the TV's & I did the same; we watched in horror as the 2nd building was hit, & tried to make sense of all the reports coming in....   It was still unclear at this point, but the airport was shut down, & we were all told to evacuate...  I spent the next few days with a very generous friend who happened to live in Seattle (at the time, I lived in Lewiston, ID, & just commuted in for flight assignments) We watched in horror as planes crashed into buildings, & the Pentagon: & waited to hear if anyone we knew was on those flights---my Best Friends & my Mother were working for the major airlines at that time & I was so scared!!

It turned out that everyone I knew was OK: all stuck in some city, as I was: waiting for flights to be opened up again. 

The friend I stayed with for 5 days had a lovely home & family---we put up a tall flagpole together; set it in concrete in the front yard: it was just a small way of showing our support for our country & those who were lost or suffering as a result of the  9/11 attacks.  I still remember the emotions of that day & that week--& I will never forget....
 

I'll post more photos as the project moves forward---installation will be sometime in the spring.

Amber

RAWards Boise: next Thursday

Thanks so much to all who voted for me: I am competing against 5 other amazing visual artists for a chance at the national RAW competition. (OMG)

The Boise RAWards show is next Thursday at the Revolution Concert House in Garden City; tickets are $15 online or $20 at the door; purchase online at:

http://www.rawartists.org/boise/rawards2012

Everyone who comes to the show will be able to vote for their favorites in Fashion, Make Up, Hair, Accessories, Film, Music, & Visual Arts.  Public votes will count towards 50% of the total score for each artist; the other 50% will be based on the professional judges. 

Eek!  I am so nervous & excited about this!

Working on my display; it will be sculptural & will hold my I-pad for a slide-show, business cards, lights & my stats sheets; we only get a 4x4' space; so I have to get really creative to display my best work :)

I hope you can make it to the show; there will be food, drinks, art, fashion shows, live music, performance art, & lots more.  All the winners in each category will be announced live that night; each vote counts!!

Hope to see you there :)

Thanks so much again to all who voted for me & got me this far; crossing my fingers to make it to the next level; would love to represent Boise at the national level--omg; I feel so weird saying that; not sure I'm good enough, but will do my best!

Amber

Idaho Botanical Garden Fundraiser: 3 of my Creations up for Bid

Can you think of a better way to shop for the holidays?  All proceeds will benefit a local non-profit that provides community events, education, an amazing venue, & the amazing Garden itself...

This year, I have 3 items up for bid:

A lovely steampunk inspired necklace; with a glass lense, fuse, old key, old rhinestone & pearl charm, & a silver teapot charm: a princess length chain--a nice size for anyone...

A steel BioHazard sign; 17 inches in diameter & cut from heavy 10 gauge steel.  The perfect apocalypse gift... ; )

 And; a set of 3 recycled aluminum bangle bracelets; as seen at Boise Fashion Week. Made from aluminum canisters; cut, cleaned, & polished; they are very lightweight & easy to wear.  Will fit an average sized woman's wrist.

Check out all the items up for bid at:

https://botanicalgarden.afrogs.org/

Items are available to bid on through the 21st of December; just in time for Christmas.

Happy Holiday shopping :)

Amber

New Work now Available on my Etsy shop :)

A few new offerings in the shop...

I'll be adding in more in the coming weeks; all can be customized & shipped anywhere :)

The Bio-Hazard; all bling-ed out with copper & polished aluminum.  17 inches in diameter & constructed with nuts, bolts, & spacers for a 3 dimensional effect.

The perfect apocalypse accent for your decor; hang inside or out; looks great in the shop, on a fence, on a building, etc: I have one on the chicken coup :)  One of my fav. recent creations ; )

"Twilight" (mini edition)  This one is only about 13 inches tall; very tiny for me! But, so cute; I love it; it's hanging in my tiny living room at the moment.  Steel, copper, & polished aluminum

"Meteor" (mini)   Another small version of a larger original design--this one is about 20" at the widest point.  Steel, copper, brass, & polished aluminum.

And, the Nuclear with bling :)  Also 17 inches in diameter made from steel, copper, & polished aluminum.

More to come; I have a stack of little pieces out in the shop to put together :)

These are all available on my Etsy shop at 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/REFINERII

Happy Friday!

Amber