First things first...the winner of my first giveaway, a marbled calendar, is Bridget! I'm thrilled the calender will be replacing the freebie Fleet Farm calendar she currently has up in her house (only those from Minnesota will understand what I'm talking about). But everyone is a winner when they read my blog so all who left a comment will be getting a little surprise in the mail as well. What can I say...I'm a giver.
The above pattern is called a Chevron. It is an easy one to make: a Getgel and then two straight-forward passes of a rake. Any marbler with even an ounce of experience at the bath can do it. But sometimes even executing an easy pattern can make you feel like you just unlocked the secret of marbling.
I have made countless Chevrons, but this one, when I lifted it from the bath, really made an impression on me. It looked like no other Chevron I had ever done before. There are two reasons for this. First, this was done during one of my pattern practice sessions so I was incredibly conscious of my strokes, the position of my body relative to the tank, and even my breathing. There are times when I marble just for the fun of marbling and I'm less focused on execution and more focused on playing and experimenting. I'm not necessarily being "sloppy," but I'm not as concerned about precision like I was when I made this Chevron.
Secondly, the bath was at the absolute perfect depth to produce just the right amount of drag to create those long, pointy arrow tops. And that's why I love this piece so much. LOOK AT THOSE POINTY TOPS!! They seem to go on forever. You'll notice the ones on the bottom are a little shorter than than ones in the middle and top. That's usually what my Chevrons look like. But not this time...they are long, long, long!! Check this one out:
Every pattern has a "sweet spot" on the bath. Putting aside variables such as temperature, humidity, etc., the depth of size in the bath plays a key role. Deeper baths are wonderful for Getgels, Chevrons, and Nonpariels whereas shallower baths are more suitable for Bouquet or Peacock.
So when I made these two pieces, one right after the other, the depth of the bath was perfect, my concentration was solid, and the temp and humidity level were on my side. Everything was aligned just right, a rarity in the marbling world. And I'm thrilled to have experienced it!