Turning My Process Upside Down: Starting with Wire

[@DianeLoDico]

Ariane, That perfectionism can be a monkey on my back. My mom hand sewed the most perfect buttonholes on the shirts she made for us. My great grandmother pulled out the quilting stitches of another quilter in a sewing bee after all the ladies left, and redid the quilting. (Can you imagine?) I spend some energy with self talk and remind myself that I am just getting in my own way when I strive to make things perfect. With practice, it gets easier, and the results are just that more enjoyable. I tell the critical voice to go hang out in the laundry room and that I’ll call her if I need her. It might sound a little weird, but it works for me. Thank you for the video!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

I'm so glad you shared that story! It's always wonderful to hear how people have learned to cope with perfectionism. ❤️

[@KateColors]

I love how organically your sculpting comes together. Jut beautiful. Thank you. ❤

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thx so much Kate. ❤️

[@SilverPennyArtisans]

Thank you for sharing your emotional journey!!!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Aw… thank you for saying that. I appreciate it. ❤️

[@marthamanigross]

Yes! Mixing up the process! Thinking outside the chicken wire, so to speak! Nice! I like the lightness of where that’s going. When you were showing the wonderful finds from the places you’ve visited, I could picture them on a larger (like really big), sturdier vessel. Something where possibly you could continue to add to it as you continue on your adventures. Wouldn’t that be fun! Another method that I could see happening is putting small parts together, then attaching them to wire. That way it could have all the layers and textures of the previous pieces, but be attached in smaller pieces. So many ways to think about doing a piece like that! Many hugs back to you. I love seeing all the growth and confidence you’ve found!! It’s a joy to watch and hear. (PS, I’m very envious of your time at Parsons. I watched Project Runway and always wanted to be able to buy the fabric I wanted and make clothes that fit ME! ) Happy New Year. May this year bring you new adventures in both travels and creativity. 🤗❤️Martha

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thx so much Martha! So many great ideas. I love the idea of a larger vessel that I could attach more finds from my travels. A kind of vessel journal! ❤️💕❤️

[@michieleelliott1619]

I love your bravery and enthusiasm. It encourages me to embrace creating for the joy of it!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thx so much Michiele. ❤️💕❤️

[@7WordsWorth]

So many ideas popped into my head and heart as I watched and listened to your beautiful art and words. Thank you. Definitely a “movable feast.” Remaining true to oneself is so powerful. I appreciate your transparency and advice. ❤ Your work with color is like swimming in the ocean.

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thank you so much. This is such a lovely comment. I really appreciate it. ❤💕❤

[@anitajansen5610]

Dear Ariane, what a good video. I admire your work and hope to try it myself. I've already collected some materials to get started. I think it's so good that you also listen to yourself and those videos about selflove are👍 2024 was a difficult year for me and I learned to take more care of myself in different situations. In my creativity I have now reached the point where I do things that I enjoy doing and that give me energy. What someone else thinks is no longer that important. Ariane I wish you and your loved ones a very good, healthy, pleasant and creative 2025. Enjoy the little things🤗🍀💐 Kind regards, Anita

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thx so much Anita. Really appreciate it. So happy to hear you’re doing what you enjoy (!) You must tell me how your vessel goes! I want to hear all about it.

[@Elizabeth-uz1mn]

And a huge hug to you also!! I was so excited to see your notification of a new video; this project is very intriguing. I absolutely love, love love the lime/orange palette. Hearing you speak of the self growth path and it’s effect on your creativity is very impactful, and thought provoking. What would a “finding your voice” workshop look like now?!?!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thanks so much Elizabeth! I actually think about that a lot. Not sure that what I learned and did can be taught in a 5 day workshop though! But I could try. ❤️

[@pattiehartmann1754]

Hugs to you too. Thank you for shaqring your creativity 🥂 cheers!!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

@@pattiehartmann1754 ❤️💕❤️

[@rankinstudios5342]

Something about it reminds me a Japanese Lanterns. Clever concept! ~Terri 😊

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Thx Terri. I love that!

[@heksedansd.2919]

A long, warm, silent hug back to you!❤ I love the healing effekt of watching and listening to you!❤

[@ArianeZurcher212]

What a lovely thing to read. Thank you so much. ❤️

[@diannejones4267]

Thank you for the hug Ariane. Watching you work your magic always feels like a hug, and I'm sending one back to you. From my heart to yours, happy new year ❤ and thank you x

[@judymarkel8029]

I don't think I've ever done last 1st. So its fun seeing your process. Hugs to you

[@ArianeZurcher212]

It’s been really interesting. I’m loving it!

[@cosmiccoyotedog-doreenb9605]

Ariane, I love your inspiring talk at the end. Could you maybe expel on the questions you asked yourself. I sometimes feel I make things to satisfy people and don't just do ME when I create. Any help would be appreciated. Also, I really like the vessel so far, and loved your other one too.

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Love this comment and question! There are so many questions, and really it was a process that began a couple years ago after losing my mom and then my favorite cousin, who was a father figure to me, and then our beloved kitty, who was my art studio buddy. I was devastated and very, very lost. I began asking myself questions such as: what types of materials do I love? If I could create anything what would it be? But before I even could get to those questions I had to learn about myself, so I embarked on a pretty lengthy journey, which began with questions like the following: What do I love about myself? If I could love myself unconditionally, what would that look like? What is one thing I don't love about myself and why? What is something you really want someone to say to you? Can you say that to yourself? If not, why? The list is far too long to write here, but it was the beginning of a massive shift in how I spoke to myself and how I perceived myself to be. I was in the midst of an identity crisis and this work was what changed everything for me and specifically my art practice. But it didn't happen over night. It was a process that took a little while, though looking back it was surprisingly quick given that I'd been living in abject fear for most of my life. ❤️

[@Hayleythecraftybiker-wj2vt]

Hugs to you and I wish you an exciting new year. I love your use of wire and will be trying it in the coming weeks. I got an awsome carrying box for my motorcycle and I want to take some materials on my travels around England to be able to create outside, the trick will be what to take, what to limit myself to or maybe free myself from to much choice at home??? It's going to be interesting. A new way to create can fire up new neuro transmitters in the brain, your experiment with starting differently will do that. Have fun darling lady. 😊

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Ohhh!!! An exciting new adventure!! Love that. Have fun and I want a full report. Also curious to know what you end up taking. ❤️

[@robynreid3027]

Happy new year, Ariane. I was so interested to see how you flipped your process, because I thought of it after I saw your second vessel. So I played with pieces of paper to use as patterns before sewing but I ended up with (sort of) strips that did not invite me to stitch! But you made the frame and then attached items - much more workable! Thank you also for your suggestions of starting points to identify our own likes, what inspires us because, although I knew them, I needed to remember them now. It has intensified my confidence and doing here! Love and best wishes to you.

[@ArianeZurcher212]

@@robynreid3027 oh Robyn - this makes me so happy to hear!! That’s wonderful. ❤️💕❤️

[@TheresaREAberilla]

Hi Ariane, let's celebrate this " Vessel " with wire, process!!! Oh, by the way, my Steph Francis order is not doing well; it got stuck at the Douane, since the EU and Britain are suddenly "best friends" nowadays.....lol!!! I got tempted by Pinterest's some kind of "woolen" - vessels, and tried to make one with the "stiching machine", which, by lack of materials, it went Ugly, haha, and then, I went to TEMU to buy wool there, of course, they aren't as authentic as those from Steph Francis, but, I suffer a bit....just to get artistically busy, and by the way, 'YOU got me into it, and I'm glad I found you, and this "hobby"! - TFS, love, Cleo

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Haha! Oh no, that's too bad about your Steph Francis order. And I imagine Temu is not a great source of wool, but sometimes you can find wool clothing in thrift shops, if you're willing to go through the process of dyeing it yourself or if you're lucky enough to find some in the colors you wanted. I once found a pair of black wool pants which rendered a huge amount of black wool that I still use! But I don't use much wool, very little in fact, so you might try finding things that are more easily accessible - like cheesecloth (gauze, is what I think I've heard people in Europe call it) muslin, broadcloth, even canvas, but also things like rice paper which you can then back with a fusible to make it less likely to rip when you sew into it. And then of course there's linen and my favorite - burlap! Love using that stuff. I take full responsibility for your descent into this madness we call Mixed Media! I can't wait to hear the full report once your Stef Francis order has finally arrived safely into your hands. ❤️💕❤️

[@TheresaREAberilla]

@@ArianeZurcher212 Wow, what a surrogate artist friend, giving me all the informations I need!!! I am so thankful to KZbin and perhaps, God, who brought me to your chanel! I'm really at "awe".... of all the best things in life, like, knowing "fabrics" and threads, wool, and even the "styles" of stiching!!! It's a book of knowledge....and YOU Goddess Ariane luckily owns all of them!!! I can't thank YOU enough!!! Speaking of Europe's flea markets ; they're shutting them down in Belgium, they governamentalized them into "boring" bigger houses, or buildings, with nothing in them, how much more for "old clothings"....hehe! Luckily, I have a fabrics store just 5 minutes far from me, walking!!! Where I stash all my so call "stich projects", howdy! lol, I mean, my "stash"!haha...Speaking of temu, you're right, there's not much of a quality in there, and that sucks, I'm really looling for my order from Steph Francis....my hands are burning already, not just iching! lol....good day to you, and may you be blessed with lots of ideas! Thanks for responding, My Goddess ARIANE!

[@char3474]

I like that chunk of fabric that you created holes in…could it be used like a window into maybe part of the inside of your structure? Maybe something inside you could catch a glimpse of from the outside? Somewhere in my past i have seen mirror type discs, button sized, with something stitched around them…just now i forget how they were made or attached to fabric. Hmm…you got me thinking! Thank you for taking us along on your adventure here! It takes a lot of time alone i think, to come to a conclusion of what i want. And time alone is hard to carve out. Sometimes in my life it has felt like everybody wanted a piece of me. And sometimes, they truly needed me. So i have always been torn. That said, when the time was right, and i took what i needed for myself, and slipped away, i noticed when i returned, my people had changed…because they had actually been freed of me too. So, it got a bit easier to let go of each other. Still working though on what i want. My mother and i used to always create our New Year’s Resolutions together, even when i was very young. I realize now we were setting goals, dreaming, re-imagining ourselves. Not so much making resolutions, more just taking time to think about what we wanted, what we liked and what we needed. I love this quiet and almost sacred time, for me, between Christmas and New Year. It takes time to sort things out! Happy New Year! Thank you for your videos. ❤

[@ArianeZurcher212]

I just loved reading all of this. Thank you for sharing it. I too love this time between Xmas and new years. It’s like a void that can be filled with anything or nothing at all and it’s all okay. Your idea of having something inside, like a mirror has me thinking. Such a great idea and could be really interesting. I’m thinking. I’m thinking!!🤔

[@char3474]

@@ArianeZurcher212 “…like a void that can be filled with anything or nothing at all…”❤️🙂

[@DianeLoDico]

Happy New Year to you!

[@ArianeZurcher212]

Happy New Year Diane!

[@rankinstudios5342]

Happy New Year🎉😊

[@ArianeZurcher212]

❤️🎉❤️