Not just any ring

I make wire wrapped rings....but I wanted to learn how to make the prong style...and had no clue how to go about it. Well one night while browsing through Etsy...I stumbled upon MyWiredImagination. A wonderful artist who's wire wrapped jewelry is impeccable... and sells prong ring tutorials and kits. These kits come with everything you need including the stone, she also has upgrades available if you fancy a different size, color or type of stone. I awaited anxiously for my kit to arrive (I received the tutorial by pdf format in an email and the supplies were sent to me). Well I received my supplies yesterday...and decided I would make my ring this morning. The picture above is the result!!! I just love how it turned out...her tutorial is awesome and very easy to follow. The lavender stone is large and gorgeous! I couldn't be happier with the results and I'm so very thankful for sellers like her who don't mind sharing their wire wrapping designs!

Thank you Bobbi....I enjoyed everything about the step by step tutorial, the pictures you included and will cherish my ring for many years to come!

Latest Project

This is what I've been busy working on this weekend. I purchased this stone from Stones In Motion on Etsy. He cuts all of the gems himself and is a wonderful person to chat with. The stone is a Koroit Boulder Opal Matrix.


First I did a rough draft of what I wanted the pendant to look like. Then draw the frame and put it on a soft piece of wood and place nails along the inside of the outline. I then wrap wire around the nails...along the outside of the right side of the moon, and the inside of the left side. I then spent a very long time cutting the swirls making sure they looked uniform not only in size, but design as well.


This is how far I've gotten, it's not finished yet. I'm still trying to figure out how I want to wire wrap the stone to keep it in place...and especially making it so that it doesn't take away from the beauty and flash of the stone. So there in lies my dilemma, but I'm sure I'll figure it out. I'll be adding a few other very small faceted rondelles of Labradorite, and Smoky Quartz within or around the swirls. I'll be sure to make a post when I've finished the piece. Thank goodness it's for myself, so I can take all the time that I need without any pressure.

Wow!

I can't believe it's been nearly a month since I've posted in my blog. I knew it had been awhile...but not that long! Man how time flies....when you're having fun. It's been a busy month on Etsy, and outside of it. My boys made it to the state baseball quarter finals, but got beat out. Next is summer ball, and in a few weeks they're off to an MLB scouting camp....should be interesting. I'm not sure how they feel, but I'm sure in the heck nervous for them. I'll be lucky if I have any nails left after it!

I start part time next month, long story short, car accident, back injury and haven't been able to return to work full time since (I've been temporarily part time). I'm truly thankful for my employers though...they've stuck with me through these last 4 years and have created a position so I can stay there. With the economy the way it is...still having a job has lifted a huge burden off of my shoulders.








I've created some new pieces which I've scattered around in this post, feel free to click on the picture for further information on the jewelry. You'll notice that one of the bracelets is almost exactly like the "Grow" bracelet in my previous post, I decided to make a couple more. Soon I'll be selling a copy of the spiral link bracelet with the labradorite briolette (also in the previous post). I've revamped the photos of the Beauty Within Chakra pendant, so that listing is also included here. I was a Fashion Spotlight feature at Talentdatabase.com....wow, I couldn't believe the requests and feedback from just that one feature...woohoo!



Anyways, I'll try to keep posting often, but life tends to go at it's own flow and sometimes it doesn't allow me to be on the computer as much as I'd like...darnit anyways!

Fabulous Finds in the World of Etsy

I've been pretty fortunate with my experiences on Etsy, and the contacts and friends that I have made. Recently I had been searching for silver pieces to use as focals in some bracelets. I found some, saved them in my favorites, but just couldn't commit to buying them, not because they weren't beautiful, but they just weren't exactly what I had envisioned in my mind. Then one night while reading the forums I came across a fairly new seller Beadin By The Sea, so I took a quick look at Debora's shop. She makes wonderful jewelry, but also made the links that I had been looking for in fine silver no less! She pays particular attention to detail in her work and everything is done by hand...amazing! Her customer service is the best around, hands down. You should check her out if you get a chance.

The pictures you see here are the bracelets that I made using her fabulous links. The one I kept for myself is the one with swirls and a wire wrapped Labradorite briolette. The other is an organic leaf design that I've added a wire wrapped carved leaf Watermelon Tourmaline to. On the back of the link it says "Grow". I had just listed it this evening, and it's sold already!!

I normally don't shop on Etsy for my jewelry findings, because I have a tax id and can purchase items wholesale. That's all fine and dandy for commercial supplies, but when your wanting something that has that little extra touch...or something that was created from the heart...shopping at Etsy is where you'll find it. Like I said earlier, I've been very fortunate with the contacts and friends that I've made on Etsy. It's filled with so many talented artist's of all mediums, and Debora of beadinbythesea is definitely one of them.

Mini's

I had a custom request last week for some tiny hoops similar to the one's I already carry just alot smaller. I wasn't really sure if she would like them because they were so small, but she was extremely happy and she thought how great they would be for her second hole piercings. She ran to the bathroom and put them on...ohh how I wish I had my camera...she already had my larger hoops in her first holes then put the Mini's in the second...ooo so cute! Really they turned out to be the perfect size for that second hole. So I decided to go ahead and make some for my store. I've also added small gemstones to them. I've made myself a few of them, and she was right they are perfect for those upper piercings...I don't have to worry about a clasp or anything...and they're so comfortable. My customer also pointed out how great they would be for a younger child.

I've sold a couple of the wire wrapped stones on my other blog, and I've received some custom requests for the same style just different stones. So I've been pleased with the results from having that page.

Other than that I haven't been up to much. I need to post the astrological signs that I posted about earlier, but I haven't had the time yet. I'll be sure to get that done as soon as I can though.

Things will be changing soon with my job so I'm not sure what my schedule is going to be like. Right now I feel like I'm a yo-yo, I'm being switched back and forth from day shift to late shift and it's oh so messing with my sleep. Though I'm a night owl at heart, when I work the late shift I tend to go to bed at 3am and I'm up by 10am. Then the next day I'll work a day shift so I need to be to bed by 12:30 and I have to be up by 7am...though it's close to the same amount of sleep....going to sleep at 12:30 is nearly impossible *sigh* With my new job duties I'm wondering if I'll be able to pick my own schedule....I can only hope!

Calypso

This is my newest addition to my Etsy store. Faceted briolette's of Peruvian Opal and Amethyst nestle together on this Sterling Silver necklace. I’ve also added an Amethyst charm at the end of the chain for that finishing touch.

Opal is one of the most powerful stones for the soul. It mends broken hearts and restores inner harmony.

Amethyst is extremely beneficial to the mind, calming or stimulating as appropriate. When you meditate, it turns thoughts away from the mundane into tranquility and deeper understanding.

For those of you who know me or who often read my Etsy listings...have noticed that I always include the metaphysical properties of the stones that I use. For me, these meanings are extremely beneficial, though I only list the emotional healings these stones can provide...they can also be used for ailments. I often wear jewelry based on how I'm feeling...more than what I'm wearing. I love it when I get a request for jewelry to help assist one's feelings, or emotional state. The emotional properties of the stones are my specialty, though I have created items for medical ailments...it is a much deeper study and understanding of the stones. All of this intrigues me, though I can't guarantee that these stones will cure one's ailments, in my own personal experience it has definitely helped.

Another thing I like to do is divinations. I love palm and tarot readings, numerology and astrology. I haven't by any means mastered these, but they are quite interesting to learn. My latest focus has been astrology and love signs...and I have been blown away by what I've learned when two signs get together, whether it be friendship, love or just a business partnership. I actually have people that I've done readings for, or who just have questions about their own Sun sign and another sign of someone they're interested in....I'm always amazed at the results...and they too are often amazed.

I'll have to do some posts of combination signs of myself and the relationships that I've had...no names of course...but just to share what I've found to be true and what I've found to be not so true.

If anyone out there wants me to do a combination of signs for your own comparison, leave me a post and I'll put it up for you.

I Survived....

prom weekend! The girls were gorgeous and the guys were handsome of course. For those of you who have teenage kids, you can understand the weekend I had.....I know I have a few more grey hairs after this one. I think mostly because we had a lot of rain, hail and intermittent snow, and my kids who don't have a lot of highway miles under their belts were having to drive quite a ways to their dance location, and even further for dinner with their friends.

I've tried my hand at oxidizing...and I'm not sure how well I really like it. The process or actually the solution that is used is quite toxic and being acid it's sure to burn the skin with the smallest drop. I know that I in no means have mastered it, and don't know if I will because I'm so uncomfortable working with it. I think what I may resort to doing is oxidizing the natural way using eggs, I just can't seem to keep eggs in my house though with the kids.

I've also recently been working with briolette stones. The wire wrapping can drive a person nuts. I tried it a long time ago and after only having one pair turn out after many feet of wasted silver, I gave up. Well I think I've finally gotten the hang of it, and really enjoy doing it. I've been amazed that I haven't had more than the usual silver left over. It's funny how you can write off something because it simply does not work for you then all of a sudden you try it again and voila, you've done it! Hmm...I'm just noticing that I must really like this paper, I've used it with all of these earrings..hehe

Technology....Then and Now

So tonight was coffee night with the girls...and we got on this subject of how far we've come technology wise. I don't know about you, but I don't often think about the changes...I just go with the flow and try to keep up with the latest. By keeping up with the latest I mean that I don't want to be the Grandma who's calling her granddaughter or grandson asking them to come over to help me figure out my remote control so I can turn my tv on.

Okay so this is really going to show my age....but while walking down memory lane I am truly amazed at how just within the last 20 years things have changed so much. For instance do you remember the rotary phones?? Holy crow how I hated those...if you messed up half way through dialing a number you were screwed and the noise they made!!! Then I remember the touch tone phones...those were so awesome, remember how twisted and tangled the phone cords would get though...where you'd take a step and the whole flippin' phone would fly towards you like you just snapped a rubber band and it would take out everything off the end table when it did that?? Next came the cordless phones....at first they were huge but now they're the size of some cell phones. You can take them outside and talk while you're gardening or while your relaxing on your lawn furniture, but if you're truly relaxing...why do you have you're phone with you??

With music we've definitely come a long way. I remember having a plastic orange record player...the kind that looked like a suitcase....I can still here ABBA playing...I used to love them! Let's not forget the lovely 8 track players...haha...then of course the cassette players or boomboxes that either had Judas Priest or Billy Squire in it...well at least in mine. Now it's CD's or MP3's....even better you can command your car to play the song or artist that you want! I mean really who would've thought that you could tell your car what to do or play?? It was not even something that I would've even conceived in this weee little brain of mine.

Another form of entertainment that came out when I was a kid was of course Atari....remember pong?? A two player game...I think you could play it alone though, but it was just a simple video game. Now you've got kids playing life like games like Halo on Xbox live, talking and playing with kids or adults from all over the world. I often hear kids come over the speaker from downstairs with varying accents....I remember hearing this for the first time....I thought what in the world...who is that...my son just said, "Oh it's a team that we play from China!" I remember just thinking wow....it was seriously like having those kids in my family room. Now you also have varying handheld video games, often used to keep kids busy on those long drives, I even see kids in the waiting rooms of doctors offices or in the carts at a grocery store. They are today's baby sitters.

Speaking of baby sitters, for me it used to be Barney. My kids were entranced by that purple dinosaur. It was Barney, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Blues Clues....they asked for those tapes to be played over and over again. There's another thing that's changed....vcr's to dvd's to recordable dvd's. I won't even get into how much tv's have changed, let alone the size of satellite dishes!

What about the first Cell phones...you know the one's that all the wealthy people had in their convertible cars....LOL...now to look at them it looks like they had a big ol' brick held up to their ears. Now we have cell phones that can access the internet with a touch of a screen and a quick flick of a finger. Have you noticed that with each device whether phones, music players, or cell phones they all started out enormous in size and are mostly all capable of fitting in one's palm.

After this quick trip down memory lane, it leaves me wondering where will it (technology) be when I do have grandchildren. If technology can advance that quickly in 20 years...who's to say that we won't be flying like the Jetson's or that we won't have Holodecks found on Star Trek?? When someone calls us will we see a miniature hologram of the caller like on Star Wars?

Another question is.....what has all of this technology created? Are we moving to fast? With all of this technology that's made to keep us connected...is it really disconnecting us in some way? Can someone really go on a relaxing vacation without their cell phone, pda, or laptop? Do people really miss the days of old? Now with the home phone ringing, cell phones buzzing and the glare of my computer....I can say there are times that I do miss those days.

I've been bad....

bad about posting to my blog! It's been busy with prom on Saturday, baseball, and my work schedule being all wonky! So I thought while I've got a few minutes before I need to package up some orders that I would post a little somethin'.

I made and posted this pair of Blue Chalcedony earrings today...left to make the Lemon Drops necklace and when I checked back in...those earrings were sold. Then while I was taking photos of the necklace my Chakra pendant sold. Wooohooo...so it was a good day on Etsy.

This week hasn't been so good for my back though. I've had sciatica flare ups in both legs and muscle spasms to no end....uuugghhh! I can't sleep on my back...it's either one side or another, but I "trout" alot which is basically flip-flopping from one side to another. Well when I woke up, I was on my back and that was the beginning of a rough 2 days. It's almost been 4 years since my auto accident...you'd think I'd be used to it by now....but that's not the case.

On to brighter things....I finally bought a Blackberry Curve (red)...love it. At first though, I was really bummed because I could access my Etsy store but I couldn't log in to renew or respond to convos. So I posted a help in the Etsy Fora...and low and behold there were so many of us that couldn't login. But some sweet Etsian posted a link to Operamini...what a life saver! After I downloaded that application and made a few tweaks to my phone...voila...I can login, renew and reply! So to pay it forward in a sense, I posted a step by step "how-to" in the fora for those having troubles and it seems to have helped. I love that while I'm on my lunch break I can check in to see how things are going in my store...and I'm also lovin' how easy it was to link all of my emails to my phone! Pretty much...besides the back pain...life is good!

Look what I got in the mail!!

I just got this necklace in the mail today! It's beautiful...the picture of this lovely corvid is so crisp and clear. I purchased this from Amandajo on Etsy and will definitely be purchasing more from her. I'm actually going to change it up a bit, and use the corvid charm as a charm on a bracelet. I'm making one for myself and will buy another one soon to make for my friend Kelly who's the lead singer of the band Woodland. We are both avid corvid lovers and I think she'll get a kick out of the bracelet. I just have to get a hold of her husband Lio to find out what size her wrist is. I'll give it to her at the FaerieWorlds Festival. I thought about mailing it to her, but I'd rather give her this one in person!

I also purchased this picture for Kelly, not only because of the Raven's pictured in it, but this has an amazing resemblance to her, and if you look closely, in the back ground you will see the Stonehenge (a truly magical place). This beautiful print was purchase from MeredithDillman, she's an amazing artist and I've purchased other prints by her.

Anyways, I just wanted to share with everyone some of the wonderfully talented artists and jewelry designers that can be found on Etsy.