Category Archives: Jewelry Making

Nov22

Jeweler’s Block

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Jeweler’s Block

I like writing. I’ve never really had a deadline, like someone who writes for a living might have. Unless you count Blog hops, or even further back in history-writing assignments for school. But those aren’t for a living. I have just always kind of written whenever I felt like it, whenever thoughts came to mind that I felt I needed to preserve, to reflect upon at a later date, or to share amongst family and friends. This is a very similar method I take in which to create jewelry. I get a feeling, a thought, an inspiration, and I run to my Craft Room to turn the thought into a tangible piece of evidence that I do have a creative mind. I browse through my inventory and supplies, pairing up and combining colors, until I have a plan formulated. And then, I freeze. What if nobody likes my idea? What if I “waste” these beads, pairing it with that focal, stringing it with that wire, matching them to those beads?!
Yes, I actually use the word “waste”. It’s a curious word to use, but I can’t think of a word that better describes how I view a piece of jewelry that is unappealing to the eye, or that has been created when there is obviously a much better use for those particular beads.

I freeze. And I sit there, staring at my little pile of supplies and I toy with them, moving them about my desk, laying them out, lining them up. And that goes on for what seems like hours, until my time in my Craft Room is up, and I must go attend to some day to day life chore. I have a small stock pile pf luscious, semi-precious, amazingly gorgeous beads and rocks and oh my! But lately, every time I sit down, my mind goes blank. Please tell me that I am not the only person on earth who gets Jeweler’s Block!

I currently have three pieces on my desk, and hopefully I will be satisfied with the results enough to share them and send them along to their rightful owners. I promise I will make sure I take the time to let my Creative Muse run wild and free for awhile just to see what She can come up with all on her own. To see if what She creates something my customers would love to own. And hopefully, She will stay for tea. =^..^=

Oct11

PDa With Shelley Graham Turner!!

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PDa With Shelley Graham Turner!!

What am I rambling about NOW?? I’m talking about a great idea that Shelley Graham Turner of Tori Sophia had, to help fill the downtime between other Blog Hops and Parties! Having seen the awesome hand made charms, focals and jewelry that Shelley has created, I knew I was in for a treat!

Shelley sent this nifty Bead Soup to play with, and she has an identical soup. The fun, we each create something with the same exact soup, and see what our Creative Muses come up with! It’s been really interesting so far reading Shelley’s blog and seeing the first two PDa’s she has already hosted, and seeing what strikingly different pieces are created using the same exact main components. I can’t wait to see what Shelley has made and hope I have done her fantastic beads justice with my creations!

Grinds My Gears.. I loved the gears Shelley incorporated into this sweet focal beads, and felt they needed to be joined in such a way that suggests they work together to serve a function. I created my pendant using the three gears and two little glass beads Shelley included in the mix. The chain is made with more beads from the Soup, and a few wavy copper disks I had on hand. I used a figure eight/infinity on either end of the bead clusters to add a little length and more pattern, repeating the motion gears usually take-around and around! The rest of the chain is made up of jump rings and S connectors, ending in a hand made crook clasp.

I wanted to use the rest of the soup that Shelley sent, but didn’t feel the necklace needed them. So I made a pair of earrings!

UnaLeaf.. Ever since I saw those little glass leaves, I knew I wanted to wrap them briolette style at the end of a long wire! I used the little unakite, shell and glass beads from Shelley, creating the pins they all hang on, put them on a jump ring and attached them to ear wires I made. I had a heck of a time photographing them (and the necklace, for some reason-I think my poor Nikon D40 may have been dropped one too many times) and feel the pictures do NOT do justice to either the necklace or the earrings! The earrings are ADORABLE! They have a nice movement to them, yet hang ever so nicely, the beads moving politely out of the way of each other while simultaneously highlighting themselves. I left the copper bare in both because I felt the color-the natural *pinkness* found copper- complimented and coordinated perfectly with the entire bead set.
I will take new pics over the weekend with the Muscle’s D7000 and change these pics-he takes that thing everywhere, or I’d have used it!!

This was a fun Hop! Thank you for letting me participate, Shelley! I look forward to joining you in many future endeavors!  =^..^=

Check out what Shelley made, here:

 

 

Aug24

6th Bead Soup Blog Party-The Final Reveal!!!

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6th Bead Soup Blog Party-The Final Reveal!!!

It has finally arrived!!! Many weeks ago, I posted about a Bead Soup Blog Party, hosted by Lori Anderson. My partner in beading, Gretchen Nation of ArtFoodLodging and I swapped healthy, delicious servings of Bead Soup, and now we get to reveal what we did with it!! Gretchen was so kind as to send me an incredible array of beady goodness, as well as vintage laces, ribbon and buttons! Not to mention the vintage German dolls! I had so many ideas, and of course, I got frustrated because I couldn’t for the life of me decide which idea to go with. It happens often for me-too many options, and suddenly I freeze, because well, if I do *this*, then I can’t do *that*.. etc. Anyway, I finally overcame that, and am pretty happy with what I came up with:

I call this set Native Chic, and as you can see, it took me back to the basics, stringing beads and bringing them together into a harmonious, elegance. Though I love wire-wrapping and am moving forward into metal work, the gorgeous, strong turquoise focal demanded to be paired with silver and the vintage beads Gretchen sent. Just look at that hunka, hunka burning turquoise!

I paired the turquoise focal with some of the other Soup Gretchen sent: the vintage faceted glass teal beads with gold caps, shiny silver glass beads, and the nifty multi-strand connector that I used unconventionally here by incorporating into my focal piece. I added beads from my own old stock to the mix: faceted glass jet ovals and rondelles, the teal glass tulips, teal glass foil beads, as well as another bead mix I got for free from a de-stash (Thank you, Carolyn!!) that includes vintage looking glass silver beads, and sweet little faceted glass silver rounds! For the earrings, Gretchen had sent the awesome faceted briolettes in the bottom center, I added the bead caps from my own stock, glass teal tulips, two last faceted glass teal beads with gold caps from Gretchen, and topped it with faceted glass jet rondelles all hung on my own ear wires.  All together, the necklace with the gorgeous sterling silver clasp Gretchen sent and the earrings, I was getting a very Native American vibe from the set, and yet instead of rustic that is often seen, I felt the set was more Chic. I pictured someone wearing this with a white button down blouse, tucked into crisp jeans, tucked into intricately tools leather cowgirl boots. Or paired with a soft white, gauzy cotton sundress, tooled leather cowgirl boots, cowgirl hat…
Yes, I often picture ensembles when I’m creating jewelry!

With such a generous portion of Soup, my mind has been racing with what to do with some of the other goodies. I was drawn over and over to the sweet little white feathers and the bone beads from Alaska that Gretchen included. I had never worked with feathers before, so the idea enticed me and swirled around the back of my mind as the days went by. Then I won Magpie Gemstones Free Beads for Fans on Facebook. When I saw what they had sent, I knew right away I needed to make a pair of earrings:

To the Alaskan feathers and bone beads, I added red bamboo corral that I had, and the sweet turquoise disks I won, all entwined in copper, hung on my own made copper ear wires. I loved them when I finished making them, but felt they needed just a little more *something*. The copper was just a little too bright, too distracting. LOS was out of the question, as was Perma Blue, since I didn’t want the feathers to be damaged. Then I remember a technique I had seen used on the Jewelry and Bead Lovers Facebook group by one of the members. Ammonia! I dabbed salt water over the exposed copper, laying it on pretty thick-I could see salt grains in some spots. Then, using Fireline strung through the shaker holes of an old, large spice container on which I hung the earrings, I poured half an inch of ammonia in the bottom of the container and set it on the back patio. A few hours later, I was elated to find the beautiful blue patina-that matches the turquoise perfectly! It’s really interesting to see a blue tinge developed in some spots on a few of the white bone beads, and the feathers took on a slightly aged look. I rinsed the earrings in cold water, rubbing the copper areas clean, and used a blow dryer to dry the feathers. I call them Dancing Feather, because they make me think of Sherry of Sherry’s Jewels. I will let you conjure up your own ensembles for these. 🙂

One interesting little group of beads Gretchen sent were what, in my mind, were “orphan beads”. I don’t know why they made me think of them that way, but they seemed so happy together, similar, and yet each so different… I put half of them aside-they seemed to have developed their own little clique, and therefore didn’t quite fit in with the little group I was focusing on at the time and they will be dealt with later-and I drew my attention to the four remaining stones. I identified two as magnesite, I believe, and the other two, perhaps some type of banded jasper? They were on the largish side, and I loved how they looked together brought together in a line. It seems they were meant to be focal beads. As a group, not individually. And it seems they were going to demand all the attention in anything they were made into, and so I opted to not add any beads from my own stash at all with this necklace-Boho Coils:

Wound in copper with coils, each bead received special attention, and stands out on its own. They are brought together with heavy 14 gauge jump rings. I chose to use two strands of chain-an antiqued copper and an antiqued brass, which are joined to the beads by means of figure eights I also fashioned. The piece ends in a heavy duty, hand forged clasp. I added a light patina and buffed. I didn’t realize at the time that my pictures of this piece weren’t clear. I’m not sure what happened there, so I apologize. I think this is my favorite of the two necklaces I made, and I have a feeling it will get tons of wear! I see it dressing up my usually slovenly appearance of jeans, faded teeshirt and running shoes by adding a touch of bohemian class.

Thus concludes my Big Reveal. I still have plenty of goodies to horde  play with all in good time, and will share here the things I make. Many, many thanks again to my wonderful Soup partner, Gretchen Nation and to our wonderful hostess, Lori Anderson. It has been a great pleasure to be a part of such a huge Blog Party, and I am very glad to have new-found friends and comrades in beads.  May we all go forth and create! =^..^=

Please be sure you check out the rest of the participants’ Reveals, and especially Gretchen’s blog!
I cannot wait to see what she’s whipped up with the soup I sent her!

Hostess, Lori Anderson, Pretty Things
Agi Kiss, Moonsafari Beads
Alice Peterson, Alice Dreaming
Alison Sachs, Beads by Earthtones
Amanda Dittloff, Passion Smashin’
Andra Marasteanu, Bijoux de Monanage
Angie Szlovak, SweetBeads
Anitra Gordy, Leelu Creations
Ann Sherwood, Ann’s Blog
Arlene Dean, A Glass Bash
Audrey Belanger, Dreams of an Absolution

Barb Solem, Vivi Magoo Presents
Barbara Blaszczyk, laboratorim Flory
Becky Pancake, Becky Pancake Bead Designs
Bianca Odenthal, Zydies Glasperlen
Birgit Klughardt, GitesBeads
Bobbie Rafferty, Beadsong Jewelry
Bonnie Coursolle,  Jasper Gems

Cece Cormier, The Beading Yogini
Charlene Jacka, Clay Space
Cherrie Fick, En La Lumie’re
Cheryl Foiles, Get Your Bead On
Christie Murrow, Charis Designs Jewelry
Christina Miles, Wings n Scales
Christina Stofmeel, Feng Beads
Christine Stonefield, Sweet Girl Design
Cindy Cima Edwards, Live to Design
CJ Bauschka, 4 His Glory Creations
Claire Smith, Embergrass Jewelry
Cynthia Riggs, Cynth’s Blog

Dana Fowler, Trunk Full of Treasure
Dawn Pierro, Turtle Moon Designs
Dee Elgie, Cherry Obsidia
Donetta Farrington, Simply Gorgeous
Dot Lewallwn, Speedie Beadie

Elizabeth Bunn, Elizabeth Beads
Eva Kovacs, Ewa gyongyos vilaga!
Evelyn Duberry, Sheba Makeda

Fay Wolfenden, Torch Fairy
Fen Li, Bead Flora Jewels

Gail Zwang, Angel Moose Enterprises
Geneva Collins, Torque Story
Grace Dorsey, Fan of the Flame
Gretchen Nation,  Art Food Lodging

Hannah Annear, Squintessential
Hajer Waheed, My Beaded World
Heather Goldsmith, As I Bead It
You are here—>Heather Otto, The Craft Hopper
Heidi Kingman, My Bead Therapy
Hope Smitherman, Crafty Hope

Isolina Perez, Isolina Perez

Jacqueline Keller, CreARTelier
Jane Haag, Did You Make Something Today?
Janeen Sorensen, Wild Vanilla Designs
Jean Peter, Jean P. Designs
Jennifer Judd, Jen Judd Rocks
Jennifer L Justman, Soul’s Fire Designs
Joanna Matuszczyk, Bizuteria z filcu
Joanne Brown, Jo’s Jewels
Joanne Lockwood, Jo Bunkum
Joyce Becker, Joyce’s Joyful Gems
Judy Riley, Three Red Beads

Karen Mitchell, Over the Moon Design
Karen Williams, Baublicious
Karin von Hoeren, Creative Ideen
Karla Morgan, Texas Pepper Jams
Kashmira Patel, Sadafule .. always in bloom!
Kate Richbourg, We Can Make That at Home
Katrin Lembke, AllesPerle
Kathy Combs, Torched in Texas
Kathy Lindemer, Bay Moon Design
Kay Thomerson, Kayz Kreationz
Kelley Fogle, My Life, One Bead at at Time
Kelly Hosford Patterson, Traveling Side Show
Klaudette Koon, Only Road

Lara Lutrick, Lampwork Beads by Lara
Laura Guenther, Blue Antiquities
Laurie Lalonde, Simply Mod Jewelry
Lilik Kristiani, Soul of My Embodiment
Linda Younkman, Lindy’s Designs
Lisa Chapman, Beach Cat Beads
Lisa Lodge, Pine Ridge Treasures
Loretta Carstensen, Designs by Loretta
Lori Bergmann, Lori Bergmann Design
Lori Dorrington, Lori’s Adventures in Etsy Land
Lupe Meter, Gem’s PC Corner
Lynn Davis, LLYYNN

Malin de Koning, Beading by Malin
Mandi Effron, Craft-o-licious
Mandy Williamson, Mimi’s Beading
Margot Potter, The Impatient Crafter
Maria Rosa Sharrow, Willow Street Shops
Marianne Baxter, Simply Seablime Jewelry
Marina Dobrynina, Savon Feutre
Marjolein Trewavas, Room for Change
Marelene Cupo, Amazing Designs
Marsha Neal, Marsha Neal Studio
Marta Kaczerowska, uhuhu
Mary Govaars, MLH Jewelry Designs
Melissa Trudinger, Bead Recipes
Menka Gupta, Menka’s Jewelry Blog
Michelle Burnett, Reverie and Revival
Michelle Escano-Caballero, The Cabby Crafter
Miko Wiropati, Uniquely Yunikua
Milla Hope,  LB Creative Arts and Crafts
Mimi Gardner, Other Curiosities
Miranda Ackerley, MirandackArts

Natalie McKenna, grubbi
Noemi Baena, fuego, metal, y color

Pam Ferrari, Ferrari Originals
Pam Sears, Crazy Creative Corner
Penny Neville, Copper Penny

Rachel Baron, R. Baron Designs
Rachel Myers, Rockabead Jewelry
Rana Wilson, Definitive Designs by R. Wilson
Rebecca Anderson, Song Beads
Rebecca Sirevaag, Becca’s Place
Riki Schumacher, Riki Jewelry
Rose Binoya, Ahtee’s Blog
Rossana De Gaspari, Rdegas Blog

Sally Anderson, Wild Sally Road
Sandi James, Do Be Do Bead Do
Sandi Volpe, Sandi Volpe
Sandra Wollberg, City of Brass Stories
Sarah Goode, Pookledo
Sarah Small, blog by salla
Shai Williams, Shaiha’s Ramblings
Shawn Mills, Shawn Marie Designs with Bent Wire
Sheila Davis, Stone Designs by Sheila
Sheryl Stephens, Babble Bead
Shiraz Biggie, Secret Song Designs
Solange Collin,  Ahowin Handcrafted Jewelry
Sonya Stille, Dreamin’ of Beads
Stephanie Dixon, The Dixon Chick
Susan Kennedy, Sue Beads
Susan Sheehan, Strands of Thought
Suzann Sladcik Wilson, Beadphoria
Sweet Freedom, Sweet Freedom Designs

Tabatha Dinger, Modernly Created
Tania Hagen, Pelima Jewellery Design
Tanya Boden, Fusion Muse
Terri Gauthier, Blooming Ideas
Terry Carter, Tapping Flamingo
Tracy Stillman, Tracy Stillman Designs

 

Aug22

Oktober Fest!!

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Oktober Fest!!

Ok, it isn’t even September yet, so what am I rambling about *nao*??  Well, Toltec Jewels of Jewel School Friends is having a Blog Hop in celebration of October, and all its Autumny delights, to be revealed October 28th, Toltec Jewels’ birthday!! Being that October is my favorite month, since it contains my favorite holiday-Halloween- and is the kick off of my favorite season-Autumn, I signed right up, and cannot wait to get started on the items and goodies I will be whipping up for the occasion! So check back, October 28th, or any other day leading up to it, as I am sure I will be whipping many yummy, gorgeous delights the entire month!

 

Aug6

Pottery

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Pottery

As promised, I have pottery pictures! I didn’t like my platter much when I first finished. I hate feeling hurried, but we ran late getting there, and had a few *ahem* unco-operative people with us. So I didn’t get to focus as much as I would have otherwise. I need to try and figure out a way to make it more enjoyable for everyone, and yet still get to add the kids’ touches to the things I paint there. L snuck her tile away before I could get a picture of it, but it has a super sweet owl on it.

It was hard to get a picture without glare from the glossy surface! But I am absolutely in love with the results!! It’s amazing how different a piece looks after firing.
I tried to make sure you can see each hand print as the “leaves” of the tree.  Adler’s, then Weise reaching up towards the top of the tree, and Valerie’s on the right. A little heart on each of them..
Five stars in the sky.. One, with a tiny heart, for my Selma. Sometimes, I get it just right. Symbolism.. I don’t always mean it. And I’ve always known I could express myself in writing. But I’m learning, lately, that I can also express through art. Maybe not everyone knows the background story to anything or everything I make.. but I do. And when I look a finished piece that has emotions, feelings and thoughts tied to it, it makes me happy, almost maybe relieved, to see my feelings put into something tangible.

Moving on.

I am getting more and more excited as several Big Events loom ever closer this month!! The biggest of course, is our drive to Oregon for the wedding!! Also on the calendar this month is the Hot Stuff class (yes!! Look out world, Mama’s playing with FIRE!) that I am taking with Karen Meador, Ph.D., of Dreamcatcher Designs TX,  and *insert drum roll here* The Big Reveal!! August 25th is my reveal date for Lori Anderson’s Bead Soup Blog Party and I have been playing around with the items my fantastic Bead Soup partner, Gretchen Nation of ArtFoodLodging and here at her Etsy Shop, sent me way back in the beginning of July! I am so excited to see what she cooks up as well. I totally didn’t think to take a picture of the Soup I sent her, but Gretchen was on the ball and posted a great one over on her blog. Check it out if you have time!

Meanwhile, deep in the heart of the country, I am fast at work crocheting sweet flower girl dresses, making other wedding essentials, and dreaming up great wire-work ideas that I jot down in my sketchbook. I have a few new items that I will hopefully be posting in the next few days, and I hope you all love them as much as I do!  =^..^=