Butterflies and Darkness

 I love coming up with new tiara designs, and finding new things to make tiaras out of. Melinda from the Etsy shop BeesOnPie did an item exchange with me, and one of the things she sent me were these life-sized feather monarch butterflies. I've also been experimenting with real leaves. I've been making tiaras since I was about 16, and most of the ones I made back then were made with dried ivy leaves and dried roses, which I would coat in varnish, paint a pretty color, and then I'd have an interesting tiara. Back then I think I used mostly dried leaves and flowers because I didn't have many other supplies at my disposal, but now I realize it's a new medium from which to make interesting tiaras.

A top view of the tiara. It fits on the head more like a headband. Because the ivy leaves are coated in a flexible varnish, they are are not crunchy and easily breakable, but they are slightly flexible. From my own experience with real dried leaves, the permanence of this piece is at least 5 years, probably more, as long as it is handled with care.

The ivy leaves and butterfly are coated in a sparkling clear glitter, which is coated again in high-gloss varnish to prevent the glitter from falling off.

I quite like this piece, and it reminds me of morning frost on leaves, or even sugar coated confections.

My "steampunk" style crab claw tiara! These are real crab claws, which I found on a beach in Seattle. They are all from the same crab, too, I found his remains in the sand, where I also found a piece of his shell.

A cool Halloween accessory!

This tiara reminds me of the one Maleficent wears in that Disney movie, was it Snow White or Sleeping Beauty? Well, whatever, it is a Dark Empress tiara nonetheless!

The large sequin charms shine brilliantly in the sunlight.