Matthew Shields

I love how you let the memories sit in the mix while you wrestle with the materials. I’ve found that rough little color swatches on scrap paper help me catch the light mood before I commit to the real surface. It takes the pressure off and sometimes points me toward combos I wouldn’t have tried. Your back and forth with the piece feels honest in a good way.

Kinda feels like the safest bet these days is building skills that actually keep your lights on and your fridge cold. I’ve been mixing some hands-on work with smaller tech gigs, and the combo weirdly keeps me less stressed. Also, getting good with money habits early saved me a ton of headaches. Community stuff helps too, since having folks to trade with can stretch your budget way farther.

If the paste keeps turning runny on you, I’ve had good luck warming it a little as I mix so the starch swells evenly. I also let each layer get bone dry before adding the next, even if it means leaving it overnight. Balloons are fine for quick shapes, but I poke a tiny hole in the knot so the shrinking air doesn’t warp the piece as it dries.