San Francisco Here I Come-- Again!

 

I can hardly believe it’s time for the fantastic ACC Craft Show in San Francisco, and that it’s been a year since my debut there last summer.   It’s on the water at the venerable Fort Mason Center, and the caliber of artists participating is inspiring!  I’ve packed and shipped 8 cartons of wire basketry and booth supplies to the show, and have a very creatively packed suitcase filled with all of the paraphernalia it takes to support a retail store—from credit card processor to scotch tape, tissue paper to the indispensable duck tape.  My wonderful husband, Brad, will be at my side keeping me company and laughing the entire time.  His title is Chief Technology Master-- he keeps images of my artwork rotating on a laptop, with a steady stream of music to groove with all weekend long. 

 

I’ve been working what seems like 24/7 for months for this show.  To tease you, new work includes baskets within baskets, and baskets made out of monofilament (a fancy term for fishing line!).  I’ve literally expanded my Candy Basket line, now making them in medium and large sizes.  New images will be posted once I’m back from the show.

 

I love being an artist!

Pliers 


I use some more than others. My favorite pair has mint green plastic coated handles and really long and narrow metal grippers, with little indentations inside the grippers to hold wire without it slipping through.  I’ve used them so much that they are wearing out.  That means the grippers don’t grip as well—the metal indentations have softened and smoothed over time, like rocks in a river.  And they don’t meet perfectly at the very end, called the nose, when they get old and tired. I don’t particularly like spring-loaded pliers. The springs usually break. Some handles have cushy, hard foam-type padding that is actually not that soft on the fingers. Well, nothing is that soft on the fingers if you use it 8 hours a day. Which leads to calluses. That won’t be my next blog.  But the best thing about pliers is that they are like uber-fingers. They can get places and hold things that my own digits can’t. They can pull wire tight, loop it through very small openings, reach wire that is beyond my own grasp. Kind of like Edward Scissorhands. Only I can put my pliers down when I leave my studio.

My fingers are developing calluses again. That's always a good indication of my work load. January is, historically, a quieter month on the production front for me. That's when I get to catch my breath after a crazy autumn of fulfilling gallery orders and holiday shows. 

This past January, I spent a lot of time checking out books from the local library, on everything from contemporary graphic design to tips from interior designers. Costume jewelry. 60's design. Paul Klee. I look for highly visual, iconic elements of our vast world to inspire me. I read, take it all in with my eyes, and trust that the food processor in my mind will whirl it all together and at some future point, something new and different will spew forth.

Ahhh, the creative process. Such a welcomed mystery in my life.

Welcome to my new site! It is still in development, but we're so close! In the next couple of days you'll be able to check out the different categories above to see a sampling of my work and then bookmark this page and read blog posts revealing insight into my work and recent projects.

An open studio event in Sally’s studio on Bainbridge Island for holiday shopping!

Presenting the sparkling artwork of two artists who work in metal.

Sally Prangley - Elegant and unusual wire baskets and wire jewelry.  Colorful and eccentric mixed media clocks and mirrors.

Suzanne Arkless - Precious metals and gems combined in colorful and flirty jewelry designs.
 
 Friday/Saturday December 4/5  11am-5pm  
 Sunday December 6  noon-5pm.

 Sally Prangley Studio  
 5244 Lynwood Center Road NE, Bainbridge Island

Directions:  Heading south on Lynwood Center Road, the closest cross street is Emerald.  The entrance to my paved driveway is about 200’ past Emerald, on the left hand side of the street.  There is a brown & white watershed sign about 10’ before my driveway.  There will be a sign for “Sparkle” at the bottom of the driveway.  Turn left into the driveway; it winds left past two homes and up a small hill.  My studio/home is the second home at the top of this small hill, where there is lots of room for parking.

206.842.5151