I should make it clear that there are no cats in this post, despite the cover image – it came up when I searched for ‘cast concrete’. Cats are nice, though, as Terry Pratchett’s Death memorably said. It was the anniversary of his passing this week, so it feels right to reference him here, as one of the only public figures whose death has made me cry.
Last Sunday I finally got round to trying one of the craft kits I’d bought with the Obby voucher my lovely Young V&A colleagues gave me as a leaving gift last year. I had great fun choosing some things I’d never tried before – a wet felting pebble kit inspired by one of the artworks at Kettle’s Yard, which I’d fallen in love with on my team outing last August, and a jesmonite casting kit from Creators Cabinet which was the one I tried out. I’d hoped to do a live and in-person workshop but there weren’t any available or scheduled when I was looking, sadly.
Jesmonite is a environmentally friendly resiny concretey stuff (probably) that one of my ex-colleagues Haidee Drew uses to make beautiful jewellery, and which can be used for HUGE and small things. The kit I bought was for making three small pots – a bronze nugget pot, a marbled pot and a split pour. The kit came in a lovely box which made it feel like a present (I like presents), and an email accompanies them with a link to a video workshop.
In the kit you get a bottle of the jesmonite liquid, a mixing stick and paper cup, the silicone mould, three pre-weighed packets of the jesmonite powder, tiny pots of bronze powder and black ink, and a pair of gloves. It all feels a bit like a science experiment, measuring and mixing and stirring and adding things and swirling!
The video, presented by a nice pair of people in aprons, shows you how to do all three pots step by step. I could have done with a few more close-ups on the pouring process and when the man said ‘leave this to cure’ it would have been helpful for him to have added ‘for 30 – 40 minutes’ but otherwise the process was straightforward and Google had the answer. The paper mixing cup provided started leaking by the fourth and final mix so I had to quickly transfer it to a plastic pot, but otherwise I liked the principle of ensuring all the packaging is biodegradable. The silicone mould is reusable, and their bottles are made from sugarcane.
It wasn’t too messy, and I enjoyed the mixing process and mucking around with bronze and black pigment. The bronze nugget one (the first one I made) isn’t perfect as I think I used too much bronze but I still love them and would happily have another go, They feel lovely, heavy and smooth like stone, and I’ve put tealights in them for now.
Other things making me happy this week
- Getting to see a bit more of Islington on my way to and from a network meeting (with hot cross buns)
- Making everybody squish the new scarf I’m making out of the lovely Drops Alpaca yarn that was a birthday present a couple of years ago. Sorry team but it’s JUST SO FLUFFY.
- Cinnamon buns made by Thing 2 – she’s a handy child to have around
- Joining a ‘visioning day’ with the Pollocks Toy Museum team at Holy Trinity Dalston – the church where they hold the clown service. There was excellent home made cake and I made a new friend – it’s lovely when you hit it off with someone!
- Canneloni for dinner on Saturday – such a faff but so worth it
- A sensible thought process: I need to go for a walk and I need to buy something for dinner, therefore I shall walk to Tesco. It was sunny and warm, for a change.
- Good progress on the latest cross stitch – I’m using an app called Pattern Keeper which is SO much better than paper charts. I have a unfinished paper chart piece so I might try scanning the pages in for the rest of it and see if that works, as there’s lots of ‘confetti’ (single scattered stitches) in the piece and PK makes this easier.
- Coffee and a catch-up with Heather
- The water at the lake breaking double figures again – spring has sprung!
This week I am off to Pallant House Gallery in Chichester for a conference – a new place and a train journey! I do love a train.
See you next Sunday then,
Kirsty x
What I’ve been reading
A Boy of Chaotic Making – Charlie N Holmberg
Killing the Shadows – Val McDermid
The Cat and the City – Nick Bradley
At Home – Bill Bryson (Audible)
Sweets: A History of Temptation – Tim Richardson
What Kirsty did next 