Shrine to the goddess of mascara, Tammy Faye Bakker Messner by Aisling D'Art
(click on image to see it larger)
Tammy Faye Bakker Messner has been a goddess for many years. Many people don't realize it, but her continuing optimism is a beacon for all of us. Her sincerity is almost as remarkable as her mascara--or are those false eyelashes...or both?
I've known for months that I had to make at least one shrine to her. And, when I had reason to create sample "pocket shrines," it was clear that one had to be to Tammy Faye. Few women have achieved such distinction in modern society. Yes, she's a legend in her own time, and success has not spoiled her.
Inside the shrine, I've posted one of my favorite quotes from Tammy: "I'm just a small-town girl at heart." *sigh* Gotta love that girl!
How-to:
The box is a simple matchbox. I buy these in groups of ten (I think) at Absolutely Everything, a shop near me in Georgetown, MA.
I lined the matchbox with a glitzy, irridescent pink fabric that I bought at the local JoAnn Fabrics. The beads which spell dear Tammy's name came from crafts shops, and the little star bead from the bead shop in Harvard Square (Cambridge, MA).
The photos of Tammy are from several websites, all featuring the readily-available images of our goddess.
The outside of the matchbox is covered with a thin foil, which Gayle Page-Robak sells online. I cut out a photo of Tammy to feature her remarkable blue eyes. The eyelashes are false, bought for $2.74 at WalMart. They're the closest that I could find, to the "official" false eyelashes given to lucky members of the audience at the premiere of "The Eyes of Tammy Faye."
I glued the eyelashes, beads and fabric in place with Perfect Paper Adhesive. Everything else was glued with Rollataq.
And, I'm enormously flattered by the many requests, but this piece is not for sale.
I do teach this style of shrine as a "pocket shrines" workshop, about three hours long. If you have a shop or gallery, ask me about my classes!