Busy, Busier, Busiest

I have actually gotten into the Craft Room to play with creating earrings. I love earrings, I believe that's a well established fact by now. So, preferences aside, here are some pics of what's been happening lately. (as you can see, I was having some serious fun ~snork!~) (I believe it's also been established I love Halloween!?)

 

Creative Spark E-Zine & Spring Challenge

A few weeks ago, I mentioned there was a surprise coming up. I may have mentioned beads and Znet Shows (I don't remember at this point) but there were (obviously) beads involved and they were from Znet as a part of a blind Spring Challenge (blind, as in I didn't know what beads I'd be working with until I opened the box they sent). Boy, what a box! It was crammed! It was packed! I got the box and giggled for at least twenty minutes.



A beautiful mix of Spring colors to work with



More....



More....



There were actually a lot more beads than this, and I made a whole bunch'a earrings, but only so many could be entered in the challenge. You see, they were going to be published in their E-Zine, Creative Spark. YES! ME! WOO HOO!! First time I've ever been published for my hobby. I love beads and I love getting free beads to create with. Znet Shows has some awesome beads to play/work with. Please, take a moment to go here to check out their 'zine (I'm featured starting on page 83) and feel free to enjoy the beautiful work of my teammate designers.

What I Did & Didn't Do This Weekend

You know how you lay plans for your day (or weekend, as the case may be) and have every intention of sticking to that plan? Come High Water or Unexpected Guests!!  Well... there comes a time (or three or a dozen) in every creative persons crafty life when they sit down in their studio and all intentions and plans go right out the window and they end up doing something entirely different.

This weekend was one of those times for me. I had every intent of getting to know my new Jewelers Saw (and probably several blades) over the holiday weekend (which, pause... Thank You, again, to all our Service members, past present and future. I truly, deeply appreciate all of you...) but, when I was sitting, doodling in my notebook a day or so before the weekend, an idea for a bracelet I'd been trying to figure out popped into my head. Along with a necklace. I doodled and played and, yes! the idea would definitely work! So, instead of sawing metal, I was clipping wire.

I started by practicing with my 18g steel wire (because, honestly, that's SO much less expensive than my copper wire!) in order to figure out length for each piece and the size of the loops I would need.  The rough wire practice actually worked, so I pulled out the copper in 12 & 14g and went to work. And here are the results of that work:


The bracelet... recycle sari ribbon, yellow crystal rondelles,
and 18g copper wire to hold the ribbon. It's bangle-style.

 

The "front" of the bangle. This was taken with my iPhone
and Instaframe would not let me put both fish in the picture.
Rest assured, the right side is a mirror image of the left. I
went with bangle instead of cuff or even a catch so that
the wire wouldn't catch on anything.  Curling the tales of
the fish was a epiphany I had while doodling and made it
easy to attach the fish to the bangle but not get in the way.

 

The necklace! OOOOHHH! I about giggled when this idea
doodled itself out. It has the look of an old-fashioned
fishing net (such as would have been used in Bible times)
and just make the necklace really work. 

 

Of course, if you follow my blog, you know I can't make
other jewelry without making earrings. I can always make
earrings and stop, but I can never make anything else and
not make earrings. Never have figured out why. Except that
I'm just weird that way ;)


As you can see from both the bracelet & necklace, curling the fish tails in makes attachment to anything else (or each other) relatively simple. I'm keeping this set but I can now make more. I also think the steel wire might look good as the necklace and may try that next.  I'm really liking this so the poor saw may just have to wait a little longer ;)

After Being Gibbs-Slapped By My Alter Ego....

In my previous post (here) I showed pictures of several pairs of earrings and asked what you thought about which should be worn by my Alter Ego, Zarqa Habiba, to the So-Cal Renaissance Faire.  This is the necklace that she was going to be wearing:

Full view: ended up wearing it without the carnelian
pendent there. It was too long for my neckline and
I'm of a fairly modest persuasion. Still, love the look.
Yellow rondelles are rough, yellow fire agates. Awesome!

 

A detail look.
Beads from ZnetShows.com, dangles and coins from
my stash. Bells were reused from a pair of Middle
Eastern chiming anklets.

 

Another detail shot.


 I was still contemplating which set of aforementioned earrings would work with this necklace when Zarqa gave me a disgusted look and Gibbs-slapped me!  Of COURSE!  Earrings should always match the necklace. DUH! (sigh)  So, I made these (and Zarqa was pleased):

They, and the necklace, chimed sweetly at the Faire and many people liked them.  And, since I was in an earring making mood, I threw in one more pair Because I Could!


Not sure what type, but the stone is agate (I think)
The metal was bought from Michael's pre-stamped
and I just cut out the shape. Bronze 1/2 circles and
copper wire. Warm, dangling goodness.

There will be another post later this week for ZnetShows and the beady goodness they've been letting me play with.  Check back, I'll have pics and links for you to check out. They've got AWEsome stuff!

Busy Weekend

 I had a busy weekend with the camera.  Here are a few new items (and a couple of old) going into the store on Etsy. 

Skies over Jupiter



Dream!

Rustic Berries

Rustic Teal

Teal Swirls

Red Daisy Dangles

Blue Daisy Dangles

Hot Spring - Lanyard

Lanyards and Upcoming Photos

I'm really getting into designing lanyards recently.  My pal, Witchi-poo, is selling them at her office and I'm making a "plan of attack" to go after business at our local Kaiser offices, too.  I mean, what woman wouldn't prefer to wear a lanyard that looks more like jewelry than most on the market?  If you wear the ones normally sold, they're just industrial nylon and they tangle with your necklace if you try to wear one.  Let's start wearing lanyards that ARE necklaces!  And, buying more than one means you have style choices for the whole week! Not a bad idea, eh!? 

Anyway, at Witchi-poo's office, they've been going so fast, they're more commission than pre-made right now. I've got two on order (I need to buy some beads in the right color) and I just finished one last night (that's the only pic I have right now... sorry it's not better quality, but iPhones only do so much, y'know?).  I'm hoping to get ahead of the curve so I can make a larger number for selling, both in person and on Etsy.



Black, hot pink and purple by request.  I used a
hammered and inked disc I bought from Melinda Orr
to cover the tag holder so it would look more
like a necklace. Thanks, Melinda!

 Man, the ideas are a-poppin' right now!

Have a great one!


Aqua and yellow on silver chain.
It's hanging out at Witchi-poo's office,
waiting for it's Forever Home.
If you want it, it's just $20...
email me and we'll work it out!



EARRING MADNESS!

Well, I went back to Pier 1 Imports last night and bought out all the daisy wine glass tags I could find. THEN, sadly, I found some cute little butterfly tags.  I say "sadly" because there were only two sets so, six pairs of butterfly earrings.  I also found some great lampwork flowers that I'm turning into earrings, too, and I have plans to go back and buy up the glass bead tags as well.  On the negative side, it cost me a little over $80 to buy all those (about 14 boxes of tags).  On the plus side, almost all of them were on sale so it only cost me a little over $80 to buy all of them.  On the plus-plus side, half of the ones on sale were on a better sale than the red tag led me to believe!  I just LOVE saving money! (if I only don't go broke saving it ~HA!~)
Anyway, here are three more pairs I made from last nights' haul, but they're not daisies this time.
Enjoy! (and, as always, feel free to share this link with anyone! *wink*)

Blue Swirl

Flowering Hope
~for my Spina Bifida line~

Hope Floats
~also for my SB line~

To paraphrase my Etsy description, those with SB aren't really that different from the rest of us.  They're no less fun-loving or any more serious than we are.  I want some of my SB line to reflect more than "serious" jewelry, I want fun and funky as well.  Hope Floats and Flowering Hope start that portion of my line.  Enjoy them, too. There will be more!