Another Treasury :)

Yay, I'm excited to be included in another treasury! Love the soft honey colors in this one!

I can't believe June has come and gone already! We've only had a few days of nice weather so it really hasn't felt much like summer. I've got so many things going on right now I think I need to make a list so I can keep track of it all. I have 9 jewelry commissions, sewing clothes for the FaerieWorlds Festival at the end of this month, making hair accessories, painting, replacing carpet, reupholstering furniture, repairing some drywall caused by a rather large piano getting stuck in my stairwell...and it feels like the list goes on and on. Hmm...funny...I didn't feel overwhelmed until I typed all of that down..LOL...well I guess that means I should start working on knocking some things off my list. I'm off off and away :)

Day 5

I think I have a sinus infection and it's getting the better of me...my mind can't function enough to come up with a witty title for this post, nor could I concentrate enough to edit photos for a new necklace so I decided to relist a bracelet that I used to carry in my shop for the April Challenge. See you tomorrow...hopefully I'll be feeling a bit better :)

Organic - Sterling Silver Cuff Bracelet

 

My Birthday Necklace

I waited with abated breath for this stone to come in the mail and I finally got it!! I couldn't wait to make my birthday necklace, I added a lavender chalcedony and a labradorite with blue flash (purple and blue are my favorite colors)....I think I may still oxidize it...but again I just couldn't wait :D

Survived the Last High School Prom

And yes I cried! As soon as I stepped back from putting on their cuff links, and straightening their ties...my eyes started welling up. High school is almost over for them....I hope that they've enjoyed it as much as I did when I was in school. Don't get me wrong...it wasn't always roses...but my friends were the best and I walked away from school with some great memories!

I'm still working on some gifts and was only able to list a new pair of earrings in my shop:

Raindrops - Topaz and Sterling Silver Earrings

Mother's Day is coming up this weekend! Not only is it a day that I get to honor my wonderful mom but it's a day that I get to call the shots LOL! My wish is their command...*evil grin*...what type of things should I have my kids do?? Just kidding...actually...our tradition is spending it with our family...eating some great food and just enjoying each others company...what more could a girl ask for??

Just in case I don't get the chance....Happy Mother's Day to all of you fabulous mom's out there!

A little info

Here's some information that I've gathered on torch firing gemstones or lab-grown gemstone in pmc. You'll see where some stones survived and some were damaged. I'm thankful that someone else has tested this before I went on to suffer more losses. Even some stones that have a Moh's hardness of 7 or higher still aren't safe to fire unless they're gem quality of A or better. One lab-created stone that I was shocked about was Moissanite...I definitely would've thought this stone could've withstood the heat.

Also, I was surprised to really find only one site that mentioned allowing the piece to cool rather than quenching it in water to keep from damaging the stone. This was definitely a rookie mistake on my part, which I hope to never happen again.....though I happily wore my pendant with the cracked cz's today to work and even received compliments on it :)

I've hyperlinked the pictures to the sources where I found the information. By clicking on the pictures it'll take you to the sites that offer kiln firing information as well.

Hope this info helps!

One of the Pendants

Well here's one of the pendants, and I'm just not happy with the results of either one of them. At least not happy enough to sell them. I think I figured out what I did that ruined the stones, I quenched them, when I should've let them cool down slowly :( I haven't researched this to know for a fact, but it seems logical.

Though it was a loss as far as being able to list something totally new in my shop...I've got 2 new pendants that I will be happy to wear!

Working with Art Clay

So I set out to make some pendants today using Art Clay 650 low fire, slow dry. Let me just tell you, I have a new appreciation for those who work with this medium on a daily basis. It was no easy task for me, and apparently will need a lot more work on my part to perfect it in any way. I have also discovered that working with pmc will have to be my weekend project as I don't have a lot of time during the week.

So here is a picture of them after being fired. I meant to take a picture of them prior to firing but my batteries for my camera were dead and needed charging. The impatient person that I am couldn't wait for the batteries to be done charging before I fired the pieces.


I found that colored CZ's also tend to change color during firing. The daisy with the single stone was fired face up. The other pendant was fired face down...but the stones were still affected by the heat. Also as you may or may not be able to tell, I could've done a better job at sanding the pieces prior to firing them. The bezel settings definitely could've used more attention, but yet again the impatient part of me didn't want to wait....I really need to start listening to the more patient side of me :)

Right now as I type this, these pieces are being oxidized. I'll try to touch them up a bit more after their done, and I'm really hoping the flaws or imperfections are less noticeable when I'm finished. If not, then I guess I have a couple of new pendants for myself, or I guess I could list them in my shop as "Oops" pieces...we'll see!

I'll post more pictures of them after they're done oxidizing...see you soon!

Treasury Feature and New Additions

I was so excited to be included in this treasury on Etsy...it's made of my favorite shade of blue!


Here are a couple more additions to the Soledad Collection in my Etsy shop:

Ametrine Gemstone and Sterling Silver Necklace

Cushion Cut Citrine Gemstone and Sterling Silver Necklace

The Dear Little Shamrock

by Andrew Cherry

There's a dear little plant that grows in Ireland.
'Twas Saint Patrick himself sure that set it.
And the sun on his labor with pleasure did smile.
And a tear from his eyes oft-times wet it.
It grows thro' the bog, thro' the brake, and the mireland,
And it's called the dear little Shamrock of Ireland.

That dear little plant still grows in our land,
Fresh and fair as the daughters of Erin,
Whose smiles can bewitch, and whose eyes can command,
In each climate they ever appear in:
For they shine thro' the bog, thro' the brake, and the mireland,
Just like their own dear little Shamrock of Ireland.

That dear little plant that springs from our soil,
When its three little leaves are extended,
Denotes from the stalk we together should toil,
And ourselves by ourselves be befriended.
And still thro' the bog, thro' the brake, and the mireland,
From one root should branch, like the Shamrock of Ireland.

With this little poem in mind, I set out last night to make some shamrocks/clovers out of fine silver. At first I made one out of sterling silver with a wire wrapped stem, but it wasn't exactly what I was aiming for....so I'll be keeping that one for myself :) That's just another perk of making jewelry! Below is what the final product looks like, and I've paired it with a faceted green Opal heart briolette.

Well I just received my PMC books in the mail...so I'm off to lose myself in the creativity found in those many pages :)

Rings and Ritual

Here's another fine silver ring! I really struggled with a name to call them. I've made one for my friend, so a Friendship Knot. I've made 2 for my son to give to his girlfriend as both Forget Me Knot and Love Me Knot rings. So as of right now in light of Valentine's Day they are called Love Me Knot rings, but the title may change as I don't want them to be perceived as just a holiday gift.




Imbolc is upon us, and I haven't decided how I will celebrate this Sabbat. I had planned on making some candles (in honor of Brighid) but I'm finding that my time is very limited to do so between my day job, and my personal business. I think I'll make some bread with seeds to symbolize growth, it'll have to be in my breadmaker as my time is restricted but the intent is the same and I have plenty of cheese to enjoy with the bread :) I may plant some little seedlings to represent my hopes and dreams for the coming summer months. Hmm...I think I've just decided on how I will celebrate Imbolc....Yay!

Ohh and another celebration........Mercury is direct......FINALLY!! *Happy Dance*

New Fine Silver Creations

This one is going to be a quickie because I'm off to have coffee with the girls! I just wanted to show you the latest pieces that I've made and listed on Etsy.


"Unity" necklace - Fine and Sterling Silver

"Coiled" ring - 12g Fine Silver

"Coiled" ring - 16g Fine Silver

As you can tell I've been having a bit of fun creating using this method! ~Enjoy

Treasury's

I was cruising the treasury's tonight before I went to bed and found that I was included in 2 of them. I love looking at these...I can't make them for the life of me (I can't figure out the whole screenshot thingy I always end up cutting a row off), but I sure like looking at them!

My "Linear" necklace is in the center of the bottom row.


My "Midnight" bracelet is in the center of the bottom row on this one too.
Thank you to the lovely Etsians for including my pieces!

Fusing - Take Two

Okay so today was much more successful than yesterday. I'm still having troubles with fusing larger sized rings not gauge but actual size. I've posted some pictures here to show you the results.

I've got my rings laid out on my ceramic tile ready to be fused.

The results after fusing 4 different sized rings, the larger ring on the far left did not fuse.

After hammering them for texture, I put them in my tumbler and here's the result:

I just made a few more so when I'm done here I will actually hammer them flat to be used in necklaces and earrings. I really am pleased at how they turned out and I can't wait to see what fun things I can create using this technique!

Working with different metals

My favorite metal to work with is Sterling, but I have a lot of 14kt gold filled wire that I bought to make wire wrapped rings that I no longer carry in my store, and I've been wondering what I'm going to do with it. So for the heck of it I wanted to make a pair of hoops. The metal is a lot more pliable and softer than sterling but after some hammering to give it texture and strength, I have to say that I'm was pretty pleased with the way they turned out.


I listed this pair in my shop today and sent a pair to a return customer as a thank you gift. I'm hoping that I'll have time this week to make more in varying sizes like I carry in my Rustic Hoops line. I'm really excited at the prospect of incorporating this metal into some of my jewelry designs.

On a side note, I should be receiving my very large order of fine silver so I can try my hand at fusing. I'll be sure to post my creations...I can't wait!!

Buzz, Buzz, Buzz

I have got a major creative bug right now! I'm buzzing back and forth from my jewelers bench, to my computer, outside to take the photos, back to my bench...just a buzz, buzz, buzzing around. I have so many more new things that I want to make and list. I figure I better take advantage of this now, I can't tell you how many times I have sat at my bench just blankly staring at all the metal and stones, trying to figure out what I was going to make next. I would assume it's quite similar to writer's block...I hate it when that happens.

So here's a new bracelet that I listed today, and hopefully I'll be able to get some meditation/prayer beads made by this weekend. Sales have been a bit slow on Etsy, but I'm definitely keeping busy. I'm off to make some earrings now!

Mirror, Mirror

This is just a simply sweet necklace, that is dainty and absolutely feminine. I had a dream about it last night so I had to make it today when I got off of work. It's made using a 5mm mirrored sterling silver ball and an 18" sterling silver ball chain.

Another Quickie

Just wanted to share a couple more items newly added to my store today! I've been busy creating, and hopefully will keep this rush of creativity alive for awhile :)

Finished!

The necklace is made with fancy cut Garnets and faceted Labradorite. The reason that I made this is because while we were at the FaerieWorlds Festival this summer, my best friend saw a necklace similar to this, it was beautiful and she fell in love with it. She wanted it so badly, but refused to buy it out of guilt or something because I make jewelry. Though I told her over and over again to purchase it, that I would never make something like that (I didn't have the stones on hand, and the style isn't something that I do or make)...she still wouldn't budge. So out of my love for her, for her friendship and obvious loyalty I decided a couple of months ago that I would try to make something similar to the necklace that she fell in love with. I really struggled with my memory of it....it's not what it used to be that's for sure, but I think it's close and I hope she likes it.

This will be one of her Yule/Christmas gifts along with a matching pair of earrings. We're meeting tonight to enjoy some coffee and other such goodies. With the holiday's being so hectic we didn't have time to get together. Her basket is going to be packed full...I can't wait :)

Quick One

Just a quick post of a couple more new pieces that I've added today. I've got some more that I'll list tomorrow but I have a custom necklace to finish first!

Who Knew???

I've been on Etsy for a little over a year...and 2 coveted spots on Etsy are being in a treasury that makes it on the front page and being a featured seller. I always look at the front page and I've never seen any of my pieces on there :( That's okay though....until tonight!

While browsing through the forums on Etsy there's a link to Flikr that is strictly for front page treasury's and you can search to see if you were included....so I decided what the heck...did a search...got ready to close the tab when voila...there I was....OMG! Yes I screeched with joy...LOL I made it on 12/12/08 and I missed it...darnit, but I'm just so excited that I made it! Here's a picture of the necklace, it's titled "Snowflake" and it's on the left, second one down from the top.

~Happy Dance