Diamonds In The Rough Jewelry Challenge ~ ACCEPTED!

So, as I've mentioned briefly in previous posts, Bill @ ZnetShows asked me to join Round Two of their jewelry design challenge and they called it Diamonds In The Rough.  Don't know if that's aimed at me or not... (kidding!)  Of course, he sent pictures of the Adorable Abby to lure us all in. I mean, really, who could say "no" to that face!?  Not me!  Not to mention the chance to play with more free beads! So, of COURSE, I said "yes" to Round Two. They will be voting on their FB Page so check them out there and vote for your favs (of which I hope I'm one). 
ZnetShows is a wholesale bead-porium and you can click on the link to go take a look at their plethora of gorgeous beads. But, check out their FB page 1st because, I promise, you'll be in bead-porn heaven if you go to their wholesale site first and you'll sit there forEVer before moving on. Not to mention the buying that will happen!
Anyway, here are my entries:




The Beads I started with... aren't they
just SCRUM-dilly-UMPTIOUS!?

    


Tribal Necklace - coins and chime dangles are from my stash
beads and focal bead are from ZnetShows...

 
The beads used from ZNetShows for this necklace are:
Freeform, heat treated carnelian pendent (I've lost the item code for this one, I apologize)
Fire agate rondelles in dyed yellow/green color - item code (BDS1593-09)
Tiger's Eye round beads - item code (BDG58-08)


used the tiger's eye and dyed fire agate from ZnetShows
and the chime charms from my own stash



Hidden Tiger

I cut out and filed/sanded the metal forms and used ZnetShows Tiger's Eye beads for the bracelet.

Morrocan Adventure

For these, the chime dangles are from my stash and the squares are from Znet - red square aventurine and their item code is (BDG44-13A)

What can I say? I'm into the tribal style right now.

For these, I hammered out copper pennies and used Znet's red aventurine squares and tiger's eye rounds, then added a touch of radiance by adding in their opalescent glass quartz oval puffed beads and their item code is (BDG46-55)



Jangling Jade

The metal donuts are washers I beat the b'jabbers out of, colored with black permanent marker, sanded to bring out the high points and sealed. The gorgeous olive jade donuts are from Znet and their item code is (BDG118-17D)


Autumn Desire (I know, it's Spring going into Summer,
but I happen to love Autumn!)

The pendent is a washer I treated the same way as the earrings I described above, the light colored rounds are composite marble from Michael's and the heat treated carnelian pendent is from Znet (sorry, as I said, lost the item code for the carnelian *sigh*). The red aventurine squares are also from ZnetShows. The clasp I found/bought at Joanne's from the sewing/button section. Awesome!


Gypsy Fire

Again, hammered the b'jabbers out of copper pennies and the chime dangles are from my stash. The red rectangles are rectangular, aventurine puff beads from Znet - item code (BDG43-13)

As I said, go vote on Znet's FB page and, then, go explore their wholesale bead site. They've got some YUMMY beads that will keep you drooling and checking your pocketbook for spare change!

Done!

Okay, so I finished the necklace last night and I learned a few things:
1) Just because someone says "use fixative spray to set" does NOT mean it works for everything (or else I just have a very heavy hand and don't know it)
2) I will, from now on, let "permanent" marker ink cure/set for 24 hours, then rub it with Renaissance Wax to "fix" it in place.

Honestly, I followed directions on the can for the fixative. I even let it dry for 20 minutes instead of the 15 required. Then, I do what I always do to be sure, I rubbed my thumb (rather hard) over the surface and the "permanent" marker that had just been "fixed" by the spray came off on my thumb.

~DRAMATIC SIGH~

Out comes the Renaissance Wax and to (careful) work I go. In a short time, not only is the whole thing coated, but none of the marker ink came off during the process or after a few hard rubs of the thumb. Since it has in the past, I attribute this to letting the ink set overnight (NOT the "fixative").  As a test, I inked up four more hammered washers and left them overnight.  I plan to test them by waxing one (carefully) and seeing if the ink stays put. If so, yay. If not, then it's a combo of the "fixative" and the wax. Fun.

Anyway, here's the finished necklace:

Full view - haven't decided on a title, yet.
Free form carnelian pendent & heat treated red aventurine
squares are from ZNetshows.com.  Marble composite circles
are from Michael's, donut focal is a (former) washer from Lowe's
and the clasp is from the button aisle at Joanne's Craft Store.

 

Closer look at the beads

 

Closer look at the focal....

 

...and at the clasp.

I had no real design in mind when I started this. I just hammered away at the washer to start with. When it was done, and I recalled I need to finish some designs for ZNet Shows, I just felt drawn to the ruddy red-ish, orange-ish color in the carnelian and aventurine. It didn't seem like enough, though, so I dug through my stash until I found the marble composite beads. They're a pink-ish white/cream color with the ruddy red-ish, orange-ish color of the ZNet beads.  It was perfect, and their shape echoed the chain and washer.  I'll be sending a photo of the design to Bill Zhang shortly.  I have more designs to work on, but I don't want him to think I'm not working with the gorgeous beads he's sent me.


Now, moving on slightly, I also tried my hand at turning my Fishes & Loaves earring series into a bracelet. It worked, and it didn't. Here's the (mostly) finished product:

I got the five beads on for the loaves, four wired to the bracelet and one as a dangle by the fish's tail but I was only able to get one fish (the clasp).  I need to find a way to add the second fish or it won't be right.  I'm also a little worried that there are "snag" trap areas so I think it requires a bit more tweaking. I plan to wear it a few times with various outfits to see if it does snag.  Any suggestion will be gratefully received and, likely, tested out.  All in all, not completely disappointed in this for a first attempt. Will be checking the tutes I've pinned and bookmarked for bracelet making to see what I can tweak.

And now, off to email Bill.

Playing Around - Mixed Metals

So, I mentioned (either in a previous post or an update on FB... I don't remember.... I'm getting old.... what?)

So, I mentioned (hehe) that I had pounded the b'jabbers out of a washer over the weekend. Very therapeutic.  But, I think I may invest in some of those ear plugs swimmers use. In a small space like my craft room (which also echos amazingly) pounding on metal can bother the ears. I think I actually felt my eardrums twitching! 0_o*  Anyway, after annealing, hammering and drilling holes, I colored the whole darn thing with black permanent marker and sanded off the hi-lights. I really do like it!  See?

See? SEE!?  Doesn't that look AWESOME!?

I have plans to spray fixitive over it, but I couldn't the other night because it was windy like I was about to visit Oz!  Not really a time when you want to go outside and spray anything!  So, I'll take it out in the next day or two and spray the surface to set the color then finish the necklace.  Which will look something like this:


Using beads from ZNet shows, again. I actually was invited
to join "Level (round?) 2"... shoot, I didn't know there was
more than one level/round! I was thrilled! And I got to pick
more beads to play with! Woo HOO!

Little more of a peek. The
marbled beads were already
in my stash and I'm mixing
them in with the ZNet beads

And this is the clasp.  This is actually something I bought at
Joanne's in the sewing section. I thought it would make an
excellent clasp for a necklace! I'm not wrong :)

But, you know me, I couldn't make the necklace and not make earrings.  These actually lean a little to the "tribal" side of things because I already had the moonstone-looking dangles and the little bells on the ends. I just thought they would go so great together and, again, I wasn't wrong ;)


Heat Treated Aventurine pillow squares from ZNet; dangles from
my stash. I even used 22g steel wire and managed NOT to
stab myself in the thumb! SO proud! (heee)

I have plans to expand slightly on this earring design for my Ren-Faire alter ego. I really do like them and Zarqa wants a pair of her own. She likes the gentle chime from the bells.

So, I have more ZNet beads to put together (have another "tribal" style necklace in the works but I'm keeping that one under wraps for the moment as Zarqa is also drooling to add it to her collection... it involves beaten coins as well as ZNet beads)

What have you managed to turn out recently?