Musgrave Makes a Moss Mustache

"Musgrave makes a moss mustache. Say that five times fast," was said with a chuckle by my friend Ken Maloney at ClaySpace. I wanted Ken's opinion on my moss mustache. He just kept laughing. He thinks the mustache is funny. My youngest son thinks it makes him a '70s Green Man. I just thought the mustache would make him more interesting. Your thoughts?

I had always wanted to add moss to my Green Man mask but couldn't figure out how to do it when suddenly the idea of making his mustache mossy came to mind. I had the perfect yarn to make it happen. Jon Pacheco, my sculpture teacher, pointed out the the eye brows should also be mossy. I am so thankful I made enough to add moss to them!

The moss was created using Sulky Solvy which is great fun. It's a stabilizer that dissolves in water. I put the yarn between two layers, stitched like crazy, dissolved the Solvy in warm water (a bit slimy) and let it dry. Presto! Moss! I am now sticking a fork in him and calling him done! I have to stop being in denial about the holidays.

Green Man

Maybe because as a child my dad made leprechauns real that the Green Man--the mystical spirit who stands for Nature in it most wild and untamed form, a man with leaves for hair, who dwells deep within the forest appeals so much to me. To date, he is also the largest clay mask I have made. He is nearly 24 inches tall by 20 inches wide. Whether he is completely done is uncertain. I need to live with him for a few days, but I did want to share. I know that tomorrow I see if I can tone down the shininess of the glazes that I used. And yes, each leaf is two layers fused together and stitched. Overall, I am happy. Much happier than my attempt many years ago at making a quilted one. That said, I still like my journal sized Green Man which hangs in my studio.