Dinglehopper Candelabra

Remember the mermaid scene in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides?  That's where my head was at when, building on the Swamp Lamp idea, I added gadgets and gizmo's, whose-it's and what's-it's aplenty to a basic metal pillar candlestick picked up for a few dollars at the thrift store.  Granted the original sirens were half woman/half bird, through time the mermaid has come to embody the myth of the dangerous creature, luring sailors to their deaths with their enchanting songs.  How festive!!

I started by gathering metal objects that I could incorporate "organically," imagining myself a mermaid gathering flotsam and jetsam and elevating it's terrestrial purpose to art.  Seeing grace in the twists of a now bent dinglehopper (aka fork) rather than it's clear loss of original purpose.  The forks and bottle caps were treated with my usual rusting process and they responded fairly well but did not get the uniform reaction I was hoping for.  So I had to rely on Rust-Oleum Rust Color Spray Paint that in the end, I'm quite happy with.  Had I not done my process first, I wouldn't have all that lovely crust and crud so those couple of days trying to lemon/vinegar/salt rust the forks and bottle caps weren't at all a loss.

Weird, fun, crafty accidental science project tidbit:  The chemical reaction I started with my rusting agent seems to still be alive and working, under the paint. Throughout the day, depending on the weather, crystals will form and disappear.  You can see the crystals in some of the pics.

They keys I purchased off Etsy were already perfectly aged.  I would have loved to have gone on a thrift store hunt for these and other metal detritus but alas, COVID keeps us home.  

From here the process was pretty similar to the Swamp Lamps.  I hot glued my metal bits and shells in place and then used Celluclay to cover the glue and "lock" the pieces in place.  The hot glue simply won't hold this stuff in place permanently.  I skipped the newspaper mache step only because the areas I needed to address were so small I wanted to keep my materials to a minimum.  Using just enough Celluclay to cover the glue, I shaped it to look like rusted or coral growth - what I imagined would happen in an underwater grotto.

After 24 hours, I used a watered down, metallic paint stain the Celluclay.  It's critical to water the paint down otherwise it comes out looking, well, very painted.  I start with a very watered down, light version of my paint to ensure I don't go too dark, too fast.  I can always add more after it dries.  I wish this had come out darker, it would lighten as it dried and I didn't want to paint it much more as it was already taking on a "painted" feel.

Finally, I added a touch of flourish with Muscle Shell Coins and antique bronze jump rings.  I have visions of adorning it more with lockets, watch parts, an old broach... Ugh I want to go thrift store shopping!!!

And there you have it.  A bit of grotto decor for fit for any enchantress, earthly or otherwise.

151 days till Halloween...

(will there be a Halloween?!?!?)