New Work

New recent work...a preview!

Long Time No See

It's been a while since I have properly blogged, other than posting the occasional photo of something I was recently working on in the studio. I hope that 2013 has started out well for everyone, and it's hard to believe that we are almost 1/4 of the way through the new year. It's still winter here and we had snow today, which pleases me as I love the colder weather, even if I have to put up with colds the way I have since December and my trip to....

......London, closing down my shops at the peak of holiday time, but it was well worth it! I hadn't been overseas since 2003 and 10 years was long enough, and I will share some of my travels with you.

Costume/Wig Emporium in the West End (look at the clock)

First, though, after almost a year of classes in metalsmithing and now wax carving, I am able to dream of making pieces that I hope to realize - complicated pieces that are a bit out of reach just now. I finally found a way to use the many cabochons and buttons that I've collected over the years that don't involve wrapping them in filigree, which I have been tiring of. I've been thinking about the work I've done over the last seven years and am re-imagining what it is I want to say with my pieces. Right now I'm keeping things simple, but I won't be satisfied with that for long, although the learning process takes time, and I don't have a studio for serious metalwork at home. I try to design and prepare components ahead of my work time at the studio where I take class, which is a great place to work, if noisy.

This is a piece that I struggled with - an ambitious (for me) multi-bezel bracelet. I made the 10 mm bezels to fit some lovely labradorite and olivine stones. The links and every component had to be soldered together before the stones were set in, and I ruined a clasp by overheating the first time. It took so much time that I decided to keep it after all. Olivine is a harder stone than labradorite, and one labradorite cab was destroyed when its natural occlusions couldn't take the setting process. I polished and oxidized the bracelet afterward, to the dismay of my teacher, who prefers the shiny silver finish.

Just because I love the blue flash, here's a closer pic of one of the labradorite stones!

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Here's a sterling silver ring that I recently finished: A large serpentine scarab, nicely detailed and chunky in a pretty, fresh green. 

You can see the ring base just out of the pickle, before polishing.

I really like the very wide, solid ring wire that was needed to accommodate the size of the scarab.

I originally thought of making an irregular setting with hammered lines, but in the end decided to keep the setting simple.

Here's the finished ring, waiting to be listed in my Etsy shop. 

More later! Have a great weekend. :)

Adventures in Sterling Silver

Since Spring of 2012 I've been taking metalsmithing classes, which has opened up a whole new world of expression for me. My first efforts have been rather modest - pieces in copper and brass and simple skills such as soldering, sawing, and more sawing. I don't have most of the equipment in my home studio; I use my school's studio for torch and other work, so it takes a little time to fabricate pieces for my shop. Here's a gallery of my pieces so far.

Antique chandelier crystal wire-wrapped to a handmade oxidized and brushed sterling silver component and handmade earwires.

Pyrite coin pill beads on handmade hammered ball head pin sterling silver earwires with a satin finish that contrasts the shiny beads. 

I purchased this lemon yellow Art Deco stylized heart-shaped glass cabochon and couldn't wait to make a bezel setting for it. Here's the result, on a novelty sterling chain.

I cut these leaf shapes from sterling silver sheet, filed the edges, punched with the smallest dapper and oxidized them. Then I brushed the raised bumps with fine sandpaper to clean them off and polished the edges for some contrast. I also made a pair in shiny copper and sterling, which I will post when I've finished them.

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These copper earrings were made in the same manner as the sterling earrings, and a sterling silver jump ring was soldered around the hole. I also made the earwires. I have never been much of a fan of copper, as it turns dark so quickly, but I lacquer the surface to keep it from tarnishing. 

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This organic pendant was made from sterling silver sheet, silver balls and a labradorite cabochon. 

Back view with texture and scratches added for interest. 

I love circles, and have been experimenting with wire of different gauges that I cut into jump rings, then soldered, hammered and textured. I completed a 36-inch sterling silver chain necklace using 14 gauge wire, that involved plenty of torch time, hammering and filing. I wore it for the first time this summer and while I still see places to file smooth, want to preserve a sense of primitive roughness.

Each ring is roughly an inch wide, but I varied the sizes here and there and hammered some into ovals for variation.

 The earrings began as wire, and was soldered, hammered and filed for a matte finish. I even made my own earwires for these, of heavier 19 gauge wire - comfortable and sturdy. These are quite long - 4.5 inches from top to bottom. I made another pair for myself and have been most gratified to receive compliments on them the first time I wore them. I don't have a long neck and am not tall, so you'd think that these would be too large for me, but they're very flattering.

Here's another pair: shaped hammered wire with freshwater pearls in mauve and peach. The texture of the shaped wire is matte, which I find more interesting than shiny silver.

I made this bracelet for a male friend for his birthday - 12 gauge sterling wire annealed and wrestled into an oval, then rubbed with a polishing pad for a matte look on the outside, shiny on the inside. The chain is a somewhat manly vintage brass novelty chain, oxidized and brushed, and closes with a lobster clasp. It could also work for a woman, and next time I think I'll make the oval a bit smaller.

 I made these lightweight rings, hammered, textured and oxidized them, and added dyed freshwater pearls.

This necklace has one of my round shaped rings at the center, holding together the various chains and drops. I used a textured sterling chain that I bought last year for myself, but I couldn't decide what to use it for and had a little too much of it, so I sacrificed it for this piece. 

I wire-wrapped (a ton of sterling silver wire!) some clear chandelier crystals and rutilated clear-quartz briolettes for some nice contrast to the oxidized silver. I like the industrial feel of this necklace and the texture...oh, the texture!

Matching earrings, for the matchy-matchy who walk among us. :)

I revised a bracelet that expired, using green rutilated quartz and a pillow cut green chalcedony bead, plus another textured ring and handmade hook and eye clasp, and oxidized and brushed all of the hardware.

This bracelet is a little late for the season - it's really more of a summer piece, or feels that way to me because of the turquoise, but I'd forgotten about the brilliant striped agate beads that I purchased at the Bead Show in 2010 and never used. I had some more rings left and added two textured ones for variety. The beads shown are some fun turquoise nuggets, striped agate ad one last labradorite beauty from a certain stash.

The first pieces I made...these copper earrings with a verdigris patina over stamped circles (natch)

Brass rings bracelet and clasp, which I may have gold plated to keep the shine.

                     First sterling piece - fine silver chain and hammered silver rings and clasp.
                                                                      I wear this daily. :)

New Sterling Silver Pieces

Most of my customers come to my shop looking for color, but I do also make pieces that are more restrained and even minimalist. I made a few new pieces using sterling silver and some lovely labradorite gemstone beads and sterling charms one rainy afternoon.

I own a few labradorite baubles and just love angling the pieces every which way in order to see how the colors vary from gray to blue to green. It's a stone that was first discovered on St. Paul Island, Labrador, Canada, in 1770. Its mystical properties supposedly provide relief from anxiety, hopelessness and depression and will dispel negativity. Valuable in times of change, it helps encourage clarity of thought and compatibility with others.

There's lots to read about the Metaphysical properties of labradorite on the internet, if you're curious. I feel more settled when I am wearing one of my pieces, and think it's enhanced by oxidized sterling silver, which provides a nice contrast to the shimmering colors.