Ok I’m going to talk about glue now…(Note: I use a non-electric camping dehumidifier in my studio…It runs on crystals that absorb water in the air…This is useful if you live near to a Great Lake)…I use bottled water for my water that I mix with glue, it is cleaner…

(for the Grass)Circa 1850 powdered resin glue: comes in a can, you special order it from Canadian Lumber centre, pre-pay, & they bring it in for you within a week…Costs around 25 dollars here or there…You take the powder & you can mix it with a little water & it works…For the “grass” (dyed hair), I cut a plastic water bottle in half & mixed the glue in that, so that I could just grab the grass with my fingers & dip the ends into the shallow plastic to get the glue on…Then quickly stick it into the holes in the Spring sculpture…(The holes have chicken wire inside, which the glue can adhere to)…This worked great & this glue is mighty strong…Note: You must wear a respirator when working with glue…Not a dust mask a respirator…The kind with the two canisters…Get the one for FUMES…You also need to wear some kind of safety glasses…I used Oakley Dartboard frameless clear lens sunglasses…Watch for noseclips that impede your vision, less is more in the nose area of safety glasses…Buy the best-your eyes are your tools here in visual art…Don’t neglect them…(respirator, glasses,fan blowing…))Also: I used a painting knife to poke the grass deep into the crevices-not my fingers which aren’t thin enough…Keep a painting knife handy…You will need it if you are working with grasses & glue & crevices…)

(for the Moss)The Moss is dyed sponge, a natural material that comes from the oceans…I used Gorilla glue, the yellow version for the moss…I wear gloves for this…Dish gloves are great…
In a small tupperware dish, square & flat you put your moss…Brush water onto the areas of the sculpture where you want your moss…Pour some water into the moss filled dish to get it pretty wet…Drip some of your Gorilla glue onto the patches of the sculpture where you want your moss…Stick those moss batches onto your glue drips…DO NOT skip the water step…This yellow gorilla glue needs water to activate it…It will swell up when activated…Expect that to happen…If you don’t want thick swollen glue use another type of glue for the moss…I recommend the Circa 1850 powdered resin glue mixed with water for the moss if you do NOT want thick raised moss…I did use this technique on one side of the Spring sculpture where I did not want the moss to stick out too far…Mix the Circa 1850 glue in a square flat dish with water, drop your moss into that, let it sit to absorb, then drop those bunches onto your spots on the sculpture…It will be less strong because the glue has less of a mechanical hold because it is thinner than the Gorilla glue…Which means you will most certainly need to spray a layer of clear coat after all is well dried to hold your moss in…(Canadian Tire has the yellow Gorilla glue)…(respirator needed, gloves & glasses, as well as fan blowing…)

Weldbond Glue:The Weldbond glue looks white but dries clear…I used this for the satin flowers…199 flowers to be exact…You pour some glue into a pile on your worktable, then one by one with your fingers pick up a flower, run it through the glue gathering alot, then choose & apply it to the place on your sculpture…This will take a very long time to do…I use a chair on wheels for this type of work…My table moves too so I can rotate it around depending on what part I am gluing flowers to…I got my satin flowers on ebay.ca …They cost under 10 dollars for the whole bag…truth is I thought they were going to be much bigger…I always forget that things on the internet appear larger than they are…But it turns out, the tiny flowers are better…I gave one pink one away to a little girl, 4 years old, also named Sari (after me, no not one of mine…)Actually I gave it to her mother because though the child is 4 I thought it might still be a choking hazard…But it was the thought that counted…This is where I got the word “Spring” which I am now using as a title for the sculpture…Yesterday, March 8, 2013 looked like Spring already & sure smelled like it too…That damp musky earthy smell…

Note: Thanks to Jerry & the folks at Canadian Tire next door for helping me choose my glues & other artist materials…They have coca-cola now in the tiny glass bottles in the case form in the cardboard like in the old days for $4.99 right now…In case anyone is listening & is thirsty…I sure am…Gotta get some tea now, Bye, Sari Grove

p.s. I will apply Clear Coat in a week or so…But I took pictures before I apply Clear Coat because shine can impede getting a correct photograph…

Words of advice: A turpentine or varnish headache is in the pancreas & can be treated fine with garlic…A GLUE headache is different, it resides in the liver & needs fresh air, Oxygen , milk thistle, Goji berries, things that all contain oxygen…

Thoughts: A curator is like a Feng Shui master in that they are concerned with FLOW…Flow in your own studio is important too…Is there enough fresh air? Is the humidity level kept low? Is the lighting bright enough? I wash my floors with Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Oil shampoo with a sham wow mop & a bucket & alot of warm water…This makes the room smell nicer…