More KEYS!

 (Above:  The Key to Happiness.  Inventory # 3908. 8 1/2" x 6 1/2". $70.  Click on any image in this blog post to enlarge.)

I adore making framed, tagged keys.  My husband Steve loves turning scraps of discontinued and leftover picture frame moulding into little frames for me ... especially at the end of the year when "inventory" needs to be done.  He hasn't started counting this year but I still had a box of little frames cut during the summer.  It was high time I turned my attention to them ... before Steve make even more frames!

 
 (Above:  The Key to the Future.  Inventory # 3920. 9" x 7". $60.)

The timing for this was PERFECT!  I'm still waiting for my boxed sewing machine to return from the Oregon Outback.  Sure, I have a second Bernina ... but I don't have my thread stand for the cones of thread I generally use or the slide-on extension table.  Those things are in the box.  What I do have is my Babylock embellisher, a dry felting machine.  I use the embellisher to make all the unique backgrounds for the keys.  It is so much fun!

 
 (Above:  The Key to the Celebration.  Inventory # 3918. 12 1/2" x 10 1/2". $90.)

It is also fun to find creative ways of altering otherwise boring frames and ...

 
 (Above:  The Key to Safe Travels.  Inventory # 3924. 10 3/4" x 8 3/4". $70.)

... and ways of using some of the vintage ephemera I've collected like a piece of a National Geographic map dating to 1964.

 (Above:  The Key to Inspiration. Inventory # 3916. 10 1/2" x 8 1/2". $80.)

There are other challenges ... like utilizing the depth of this shadowbox moulding.  Below are the rest of the keys plus two more pieces for my Anonymous Ancestors exhibition.  I've spent two entire days researching museums in the southeastern United States ... sending dozens and dozens of unsolicited proposals.  It is hard work but I truly believe in this show.  It is worth the effort.  (I've tackled Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, and Virginia so far.  I plan on researching Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Louisiana soon!  If anyone reading has a suggestion, please let me know!)

 (Above:  The Key to A Better Life.  Inventory # 3913. 10 1/8" x 8 1/8". $70.)

By the way, these framed, tagged keys can be purchased by contacting me via email or phone: mouse_house@prodigy.net and (803) 254-0842.  Most will fit into a medium sized USPS flat rate shipping box for $13.45 domestically.  I can accept major credit cards and PayPal.

 
 (Above:  The Key to Love.  Inventory # 3905. 8 1/2" x 6 1/2". $60.)

Hopefully, I'll be making even more really soon.  Right now, I've got to count mat boards and foam-centered boards and other custom picture framing supplies.  It's "inventory time"!  Scroll down to see the rest of the new work!

 (Above:  The Key to a Sea of Dreams.  Inventory # 3915. 10 1/2" x 8 1/2". $70.)

 (Above:  The Key to Amen. Inventory # 3909. 9 1/2" x 7 1/2". $80.)

 (Above:  The Key to Art. Inventory # 3907. 11 1/8" x 9 1/8". $80.)

 (Above:  The Key to Dollars and Cents. Inventory # 3904. 9 1/2" x 7 1/4". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Focus.  Inventory # 3902. 8 1/4" x 6 1/4". $50.)

 (Above:  The Key to Good Friends.  Inventory # 3922. 9 5/8" x 7 5/8". $60.)

(Above:  The Key to Grammar.  Inventory # 3925. 8 5/8" x 6 5/8". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Love.  Inventory # 3906. 8 1/2" x 6 3/8". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to My Heart. Inventory # 3923. 10 1/2" x 8 1/2". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Peace.  Inventory # 3917. 9 1/2" x 7 1/2". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Respect.  Inventory # 3903. 10 1/4" x 8 1/4". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Simplicity.  Inventory # 3911. 9 1/4" x 7 1/4". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Super Powers. Inventory # 3914. 9" x 7". $40.)

 (Above:  The Key to the Genuine.  Inventory # 3910.  9 1/2" x 7 1/2". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to the Last Word.  Inventory # 3912.  10" x 8". $60.)

 (Above:  The Key to Time.  Inventory # 3919.  9 1/2" x 7". $60.)

(Above:  The Key to Zen.  Inventory # 3921.  9 1/4" x 6 3/4". $60.)


(Above:  When the World Was Young for The Wall of Ancestors.  24" x 17 1/2".  Antique frame, anonymous image, clipped letters.)


(Above:  When Family Was Everything for The Wall of Ancestors.  25 1/4" x 18 3/4".  Antique frame, anonymous images, clipped letters.)