Catchup Post...

I keep meaning to circle back and do a really nice fancy write-up like post about my Bookhead series. Really pull together the sketches and ideas and construction process... and I keep not. There's also the fantastic Intercon Q to review and reflect upon and that's over a month past... It's now almost April of 2017 and my last post was September 2016... Better something than nothing at some point...

I remain very crafty. I've switched most my posting to Tumblr though where I feel I can just drop a cellphone photo and little description. This blog is what I make it, I could totally switch to doing that here... but I have hopes of a bit more long-form content here. My Tumblr is just the snapshots of progress... So what progress?

October. There was a lot of time and effort spent on/at work. I had the initial idea of the Bookheads and quickly made the first and second. Knew what I wanted for the third but it took several months to finally wrap that up. Also participated in a Dali themed cooking event and worked on but never finished a Halloween costume idea.

November. I turned 33. I started on the 3rd Bookhead before getting distracted with life. Family reunion in Mexico, lots of tabletop gaming, first time hosting Thanksgiving. Being happy and social.

December. OMG, so flipping over-booked! Completed class 3 of 4 in the bookbinding series with the Center for the Book. Became obsessed with The Expanse series (book and tv show). Social life and games of the tabletop and board variety.

January. So much crafting. Started the month with a couple more tiny books and then spent the rest of it working on a series of glow-in-the-dark cyberpunk masks for Intercon Q. The masks consumed a lot of time. There was also the Edwardian Ball and being social. I love my friends.

February. Intercon Q! It was awesome! It was so much! I'm still processing/thinking about it. And then to celebrate being done with that and returning to SF and having free time Adam and I went on a hike... and I promptly got poison oak. Real bad. Real bad. I've mentally blocked out the 2nd half of the month, it was so bad. But I also finished the third Bookhead when I wasn't suffering too much. But so much suffering.

March. I've become obsessed with OpenGL ES for some reason. I'm really, really bad at it. I bound a book for the spec and am trying to read it but that's not improving anything. I'm attempting to improve my Android skills outside of work. I'm less happy at work. I'm really happy with my bookbinding and recreational Android programming. I started taking an Improve class with friends.

Soon it will be April.

I think the major take aways here are that I still really enjoy my bookbinding activities. I'm attempting to flex it as an art form and incorporate it into more things. I'm on a programming uptick but on a sketching downturn. Gaming (board/tabletop) remains important to me (I've started winning Race for the Galaxy finally! After yeeeears of playing) but I play less. My social circle has become predominantly female and I think this makes me happier. I'm feeling older these days but I'm also feeling more productive/focused in my crafts.

My Bookheads, silly and simple and only three as they are, represent a major milestone to me in that they're my first "set" or "series" of something creative I've actually seen through. Something "artistic vision"-y. I had an initial concept that I executed on and they came out approximately as planned. My set of 5 masks are also important to me for the same reason- though my satisfaction with them is not as strong.

While I don't exactly have another specific series planned, I do have several one-off projects in mind that I'm hopeful for. The short term goals are a book bug, some sort of graphical Android multiplayer game over Bluetooth, and maybe a circular story that crosses itself and is specific to is printing/binding.

Hopefully I'll post again before another 6 months pass...

A Quite Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving this year was a medium sized gathering in the South Bay with friends. No family, mine being scattered about this year and all the girls lacking the freedom/time to travel. Alas. Looks like Christmas will also be Steckerless for the most part.

My contribution to this year's meal was potatoes and pie. My much anticipated (by me) purple potatoes and coconut cream (aka vegan mashed potatoes) was an absolute dud this year. I blame the potatoes. The pie however went well. Earlier this year I had a pie crust near-fiasco... which is ridiculous now that I look back at it because I have/had a food processor. Used it for the first time to make pie crust and am never going back.

Adam made Pumpkin Pie to ensure a reasonable dessert was available. I couldn't top the Venn Diagram Pie of years previous but thought hard to come up with something fun. Wound up with Indecision Pie. I used scrap aluminum (from a project waaaay back when) to create structural supports for some concentric circles. Blind baked the crust with only the inner circle for the first 12 min since that has the foil & pie weights portion. Removed foil & weights and added super-thin outer circle and cooked another 15 min. When it came out of the over I removed the inner support right away (no problem) but the outer support I left in place until I filled the apple section because it was likely to topple if left alone. Middle portion was left-over pumpkin pie and some raspberry filling ended up in the center.

In hind-sight go apple, raspberry, pumpkin next time. Apple & pumpkin: that's a no.

After dinner there was some tarot reading for some folks and one of the dogs. Amusing and silly. Sadly no one in attendance actually knows much about the cards so every step of the way required flipping back and forth through a book. There was also an I Ching reading/toss(?). There was also a walk. A fine tradition, that. I love the post-Thanksgiving meal walk, wherever it may be or go.

Many things to be thankful for this year. A year of changes for myself and many around me, most (all?) of them for the better. Lots and lots of new jobs, I gained a brother-in-law, there was another Dr. Stecker in the family (for about 2 weeks before she went and got married and took his name- ARRRrrrggg!) and if things All Go Well there will soon be another one (who will keep her title/name pairing). I am thankful that these job changes have been for the better. That I've been gaining family and not losing it. Relationships starting and deepening rather than fraying or ending. I retain my health and others appear to be doing well (except perhaps for the dear Grandmothers). In fact my health along several different axes is in a much better state now than it was this time a year ago. The world at large seems to be becoming more hostile and dark (though perhaps that's just my age tinting my world view) but I am thankful that my life appears to be trending the opposite direction. I'm meeting more people who I find enjoyable. I'm continuing to add to the "things I can do" pallet of possibilities.

Life is good.

Winding down

So I'm fast approaching the 3 month mark of being unemployed and things are winding down here. I've already begun the process of finding new work- have applied to a number of places already. Am targeting Nov. 9th for a start date. Fingers crossed that I can a company that both interests me and wants to hire me. Am never able to escape that Woody Allen joke "I'd never join a club that would allow a person like me to become a member" in terms of work though...

In terms of the things winding down: I'm excited that most my projects/goals/objectives of this hiatus have been met or are very near the finish line. Other than claiming I was going to do TWO quilts rather than just one (because I'm an idiot), I feel I've done an excellent job of scaling my ambitions to my expected available time. The quilt is essentially done, just needs some more superfluous stitching and a wash. The books are going to be finished come hell or high water. I've learned to cook chicken a number of ways (some of them even fast and easy!) and feel rather confident I could prepare a "meal" on the fly now after work without excessive stress or research. I've got 3 branch libraries to hit and then I'll have tackled 'em all. I had an excellent run of 5+ mile a' days there and don't feel guilty or bad that I've slipped back down to a steady 3 miles a day because I want to, you know, DO THINGS during the day and walking takes a hella' lot more time than initially anticipated.

(I dehydrated a hard boiled egg. I DO NOT ADVISE IT)

I guess the main let-down of this whole extended vacation was I failed to advance my drawing skills. I had hoped to tackle landscapes and I've made not a pinch of progress on that these 3 months (or past 10 even- it was one of my few resolutions this year). I also failed to attend any sort of fitness bootcamp nonsense thing, which I never really seriously considered but had always faintly hoped I'd do given sufficient free time. Maybe three months just wasn't "sufficient" enough, 6+ months off and I'm sure I'd get around to it...

In terms of other, just general awesome things:

Saw the whole blood moon eclipse thing. Happiness.

Went to the SF Super Hero Street Fair with company. Had a drink even! Danced with Santa. Was swept off my feet by random silver spandex man and made very happy. Good times.

Finally took another stab at hard crack sugar. It went better this time. I am emboldened.

Suko and I have not yet abandoned archery. This makes me proud of us.

I got a calligraphic letter from Katie in the mail, and it wasn't even a reply to something I'd sent. Just outa' the blue. So nice!

Enjoyed opening weekend at the Petaluma corn maze. Highly recommend it.

Things Things Things in June

The month has slipped by and I'd kick myself if I didn't post *something* to record the passage of time.

First half of the month

The youngest Stecker got married. Who knows, she may be the only one of us to do so.

That's Dr. Bride, to you!
It was nice to have the family rallied up in Washington. The turnout wasn't as good as our cousin's wedding, alas, but that's what you get when marrying on short notice and later in life. We were in Wenatchee, WA (currently on fire) and endured some serious heat wave-ness. I also endured some wine tasting, for the sake of the bride. We also endured each other. In our advanced years we managed to get through a multi-day event without fighting. How adult of us. Mother spent a lot of effort wrangling a photo booth for the event, making it clear to me where I get my craftiness from. Other than the blistering heat, the venue was lovely. We got to stay the night before and after there on site in a ridiculous room. (For some reason, while I was not in attendance, it was decided that Adam and I would get the Bridal Suite)

Second half of the month

Another 4th Terminus session finally happened again. And it was breathtaking. Like... I couldn't breath. Because I was laughing so hard. So so so good. But how can I not delight in a session dedicated entirely to my character?

Adam and I went back up for Mt Tam Pancakes, which alas remains a car-based hike. For the first time we tackled the Beach to Inn and Back Again loop, hitting up a new portion of the trail this time. Highly recommend it- too bad it's nameless. We literal came out of the trees, left the (main) trail, and stomped straight up to the peek. An intense ascent- would not have been possible if I hadn't gifted Adam some hiking sticks that morning. Everything was made better by the rolling high fog of the morning. Pancakes were tasty as ever. Adam always regrets not bringing real syrup but personally I was raised on the artificial stuff and it brings back fond memories. After a 5 mile hike, who cares about the quality of sugar you're putting atop your pancakes? Another 5 miles later and we were back at the beach.




And now June is (almost) over. I am certain July will be even better, but more on that later...

January is taking forever

How are we not yet in February? Ugh. I'm feeling pretty done with this month already...

It wasn't all bad though. Adam and I caught the Cirque show Kurious, which was delightful. I was distrustful when someone told me it had great clowning, but really, it has great clowning! Mesmerizing! Would recommend the show.

This was followed up by the Edwardian Ball. I swore last year I wouldn't go but there I was again, all dressed up two nights in a row, hauling my sketching supplies. This year's new reveal: LED tea lights! Solves the "can't see my sketch" problem! Would be nice if they were a pinch brighter, but the grip, size, and slightly fluctuating luminosity are great.

There was a sketch artist there, officially set up in the VIP balcony. I spent the entire second half of Saturday night camped out behind him, enjoying lovely dressed folks standing still for long periods of time with excellent lighting for them and my page. (Friday sketches posted over here) The artist was Ben Walker and his ability to knock out full body sketches of two people in such a brief period of time was impressive.

Most people ignored me sketching off to the side but there was one couple who made a point to come over before their pose, say hi, and request a sketch. Very nice, very friendly, pretty drunk people. I took a cell phone photo afterwards, comparing Mr. Walker's style to my own. It's a shocking reminder that I need to learn to draw FASTER. At the end of the night I tore the sketch out of my book and happily handed it over the the couple and-- I swear, for the first time ever-- someone tried to tip me. True, he was pretty drunk, but hey! It made me happy! I politely declined, but it's the thought that counts. Later he came back around again with a tarot deck he had purchased and was randomly handing out cards to folks he had talked with. Was a cute idea, I still have my Temperance that I drew propped up on the desk.

Body casting & Halloween

Goodness gracious, casting with alginate is super fun and super easy (which I guess just adds to the fun-ness). I wanted to build a face prosthetic for Halloween this year but wound up pivoting midway through. In the end I won the "scary" contest at work and caused several children to gasp in fear upon my doorstep so I'd say this whole thing can be written down as a success.

Highlights of it all?

• A small frightened princess on my doorstep placed a hand to shield her eyes as she turned away from my visage.
• Suko standing above me and happily saying "It's like frosting a strange cake!" as she poured cold alginate over me. This caused my smirk to be captured, I believe, which Adam claims adds to the creepyness.
• At least three little ones silently shaking their head and attempting to back up as I descended the front steps.

Casting with alginate

To stress how easy this was, let me run through the process really quick.

Step 1. Acquire supplies, both of which are available on Amazon (Prime eligible). 1lb (454g) Alginate Molding Powder ($15) & Plaster Gauze (4"x15') ($7). The other ingredient is just plain old water. It helped that I had a food scale, but they include directions for mixing by volume as well.

I learned the phrase mise en place!

Step 2. Cut out a shield. Exacto knife + cardboard-- though technically this isn't required, it made things a lot easier. Use packing tape to create a lip/guard around the edge in case your alginate is runny.

Step 3. Mix. The package tells you 3.75 (water) : 1 (alginate) by weight and that works. (also says 1:1 by volume) Error perhaps for a pinch more water, I liked runnier over thicker mix.

Step 4. Pour! Don't wait till it's totally white (I did and that's why Suko's nose got screwed up). Mix till smooth and then pour even if still pink. Sets in about 3.5 minutes!

Step 5. Support! Dip the cut bandages in the water briefly and then apply to face. Takes 5-8 minutes, only needs about 2 layers (can be applied at the same time). Be aware the bandages will NEVER dry all the way. The alginate is too moist. Just let them set 8 minutes and be done. The whole thing will always be a bit delicate, so be careful.

YOU'RE DONE!

Bonus Round. Buy some plaster of pairs and pour into the molds (as soon as they come off your face). Be mindful, the plaster HEATS UP as it sets. Never pour plaster directly onto your hands to cast. People have lost fingers doing this.

Suko did a shallow cast of her face and I did a deep one (I wanted a lot of chin) and to fill them it took two full containers of PerfectCast ($10) which luckily is exactly what I had ordered.

Be aware that the alginate picked up lots of details but still had a couple air bubbles in it, which lead to bumpy casts. I think if we had worked in the thinner mixture, spreading it around with fingers or a brush rather than just pouring it on we could have worked out a number of the bubbles. Also, the thinner mixture had more but smaller bubbles.

Luckily an exacto knife proved perfect for cleaning up some of the bumps. The faces remained warm for quite some time, making it feel extra creepy under the finger tips as I worked my blade.

On a whim I thought it'd be interesting to try and make a latex mask with the face negative. I'd picked up some liquid latex ($20) a while ago from my local Tap Plastic and hadn't really successfully used it yet. In between building up the jaw device (which was eventually abandoned) I applied a coat. After 8 coats and a day of work I figured "what the hell" and pealed it off (I only let it sit 12 hours as opposed to the suggested 24).

The results really surprised me and I immediately re-thought my entire costume. And started laying down layers for a second mask. And then later cast both my left and right hand the following day (by myself!)

Notes about making a liquid latex mask

• For a mold the container says you need 8 - 20 layers. I found my mask to be great and it was (I think) only 10 layers? The hands were less, 8? which was reasonable but the left was only 6? and that I think was getting too thin. Somehow I failed to keep a reliable count for each of my 4 masks.
• It doesn't tell you how long it takes to dry, only that you need to let it dry fully between each layer. Online I saw a range listed as 15 min and 2 hrs. I found 15 min early on if it's thin enough, but later I was waiting up to 40 min or an hour. I'd test dryness by tapping the latex with my finger. If I left a finger print or I got some on my finger, then I needed to wait longer.
• If you wash the brush off right away with warm water you can get most the latex off but little gummies will build up over time no matter what. I managed to need only 2 cheap brushes for all 4 masks (both brushes winding up in the trash by the end)
• Dabbing the brush with a bit of water really helped. Thinning the latex with a little water (or just by using a damp brush) helped.
• I have the pint sized container of liquid latex. All four masks put a dent in it but I'd say it took less than half of what I had. (I'm apparently really bad at estimating volume)

• The alginate will start shrinking the moment it's cast. This meant that my second mask (started ~25+ hours after the initial casting) was noticeably (when worn) smaller! If you want a permanent mold, just invest in a latex one (but that sounds more complex and expensive)
• Using a pair of good scissors I could easily snip the latex for threading & ring addition. For the hands I used an upholstery needle. You can't just push the needle through, I had to use a pad of sticky notes and press the needle tip into that to puncture the mask (otherwise it just stretched). The thinner glove seemed to be harder to puncture for some reason (it just stretched and then some times tore open next to where I was trying to stitch)

So... yeah.... Good times. Multiple people informed me that I looked scary. At least three people tried on my second face mask. Learned a new craft. Won a prize. Have a face cast to build on for future projects. Am happy.

Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive

My Oculus Rift arrived yesterday and I have no Windows machine to run it with (and they've still not released the Mac SDK). So rather than fall into a pit of despair, let's focus on some recent positives.

Visited my parents in Vancouver two weekends ago. Lounged in my verdant childhood backyard and gobbled a number of fruits and veggies right off the vine. Saw The Book of Mormon. Did a lot of reading.

Our head of Engineering keeps bringing in veggies from his garden, a most kind and appreciated gesture. On a Friday my posse & I made squash/everything/anything cookies. Too much egg resulted in them being more like mini muffins than cookies... but still good! The whole squash that was grated and tossed in did no harm!

Visited Seattle last weekend for a wedding. The planets aligned and my sisters were both in town as well (for their own Washington based weddings to attend). Always disturbing to see which parts of you come from your family, visible in the looks and behaviors of siblings. Weddings that prominently feature Jesus and preach about marriage belonging only to men and women are aaaaaawkward.

I've been carefully grooming a playlist themed on my character Jaya from the 4th Terminus game. Good times, been listening to it a lot. A lot. Have found myself doodling while sitting on airplanes (a disturbingly common occurrence lately) and I've been running through my list of tabletop characters but frequently finding myself back to drawing Jaya.

I've been pushing numbers around at work lately. Wringing my hands frantically wishing load times to be faster. Pulling at my hair trying to extract meaningful information from a pile of logged data. I appreciate the diversity of work for my current team- writing SQL statements, poking at iOS code, still battling JavaScript, and possibly getting better at python (I still hate python)

I saw Snowpiercer in theaters. Twice. Damn fine film. Most excellent. Best thing I've seen in a long while. I felt good while watching it, like someone hitting a hard to reach itch. Have finally escaped my horror shlump of reading material and am back on a good kick of distopian material. Am on book 3 of the Silo series (which starts with Wool). The author, Hugh Howey seems like a cool guy. Finally read Starship Troopers. Am looking forward to the new Mad Max movie coming out in 2015.

My old art blog just passed 10k views.