Busy Creating

Here's what I've been creating lately as gifts for the girls at work and for the women in my family for Christmas. The pearls are larger than what I wanted them to be...it gives the pendant more of a peekaboo effect with the initial stamping. I had a great time oxidizing them then using steel wool to give them a slight patina.



I'll try to post more about the oxidation technique later...super easy and I'm sure for those of you that read the how to's it's not going to be anything new, but I created a little trick that I'd like to share with you in a later post.



This will probably be my last post until after the holidays so I wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas and a Safe and Happy New Year!!

Handmade Gifts for Christmas

I have a lot of people to buy for so these last few years I've been making gifts for my family, friends and co-workers. I always make some type of jewelry gift for all of the women, but for the men...well they don't really do jewelry (at least not the ones in my little circle) so they tend to get bought gifts. Though I am making polar fleece throw blankets for my boys...they've been wanting them for awhile now after I made one for one of their girlfriends. It's really easy, just buy the polar fleece fabric in whatever length you want them in. Buy 2, one can have a pattern and the other can be a solid color. Pin the fabric together right side facing out. Cut strips along the outside edge of the entire blanket, 2" wide by 4" in length, and tie each set of 2 strips (front and back together) in a double knot. Voila...super easy! If I didn't explain myself well, just post a comment and I'll help you out.

This year for the women, I'm making hand stamped Initial Pendants with Pearls and Birthstones. I just purchased my stamps and sterling silver tags and can't wait to get started on them. In a sense it's a 2for1 deal, I bought the items to make for gifts BUT I'll be able to use them for my jewelry business. I'm looking forward to start listing some of these pendants in my store.