Copper and Silver Riveted Heart Pin

Last winter (!) I attended an online workshop with Robert Dancik on making cold connections -- wire and tube rivets, among other techniques. It was great and I was fired up to try something new. I also bought a jewelers saw (finally) and sheet silver and copper to add to my stash. I worked away on a heart shaped pin and then completely lost my momentum. So it languished for 8 months, needing ONLY two rivets to finish it. I even saw it every day! Still, it sat there. Until today! I finished the rivets and polished it up (well, I want the scratchy matte finish, actually) and here it is with all it's imperfections.

I had originally envisioned the center portion as being more of a regular weave, but was having a hard time engineering the attachment, so I just put a bunch of bends in a long length of silver wire with round nose pliers. I cut both heart shapes with my new saw and did not break a single blade, so I guess my years of experience with a carpenter's coping saw paid off! The rivets were meant to be flush on both sides, but I did not do a good job of drilling through the silver without reaming out the hole, making it too big for the 16 ga. wire, so I balled the wire for the silver side instead. I think I like it better. The weakest part of the entire piece, in my mind, is the latch mechanism. I did this last January and right now I don't know what I was thinking! Fortunately, this piece is mine and I don't mind how the back appears, I just know it looks good on a sweater!

Sleeping Beauty as a Viking

I decided to splurge last week and buy a strand of very nice Sleeping Beauty turquoise nuggets from MagpieGemstones, along with a few other goodies. I had a particular design in mind, combining the turquoise with some red coral I had on hand for a Viking knit piece with a Southwest look, but when it came down to it, I just couldn't bring myself to combine the two stones. That look may appeal to some, but it just doesn't look "right" to me, so at the last second (seriously, I had to "back-out" a stitch and remove one chip of coral), I substituted baroque white pearls, which I find a better accompaniment to turquoise. Here is the result:

And how about some earrings to go with that?

Viking knit bracelets

Well, it certainly has been a while, hasn't it?!?  I began making these bracelets over a month ago and have only just now gotten around to posting them!  They are basically miniature versions of the necklaces I made earlier this year.  They look rigid and triangular, but actually sit comfortably on the wrist.  The Viking knit portion stays on top of your arm and the other segments are strung on flexible Accuflex wire that curves around the wrist.  They are easy to put on by yourself and stay put once on.   I am having a hard time deciding which one I want for myself!

Spring Mix of Pearls

I made this set last weekend and find, again, that I adore these pieces!  This is the first time I have done a nearly random mix of stones (three colors of freshwater pearls, in this case) in the Viking knit section.  I wish that I also had different sizes of each color so that I could have the piece larger in the center than at the sides.  I find it immensely difficult, however, to find pearls that are of the same dye lot that are in different sizes, and more specifically, in smaller sizes.  I need pearls that range from 2 mm to 5 mm.  I can find white pearls more easily so I am considering the possibility of dying my own pearls.  Has anyone done this?

The other new thing about this necklace is the hook and eye.  Well, the eye portion, really.  I needed to make sure the eye was truly secure, so I soldered it closed.  Nothing earth-shattering, to be sure, but a new addition for me!

I already know what the next two (TWO!) necklaces will be; I have had the pearls for months and now know that I was waiting for this design to emerge.  I also think I shall make matching bracelets.

More Heart Pins

I love my new photo studio so much I want to take new pictures of everything! Here are some wire heart pins, made with 16 and 20 gauge Argentium silver wire. One has been oxidized. The first pin I made like this was back in December. I feel like there are too many spirals, so I am going to try something new for the next one. I will post a photo, of course!

Amethyst Necklace and Earring Set

This Viking knit chain is four stitches, with the amethyst chips added during the weaving. I have recently begun making my chains bulkier (5 to 8 stitches), so this represents an example of "early" work. The tops of the earrings are finished in the same manner used to finish the necklace chain. I only started finishing the earrings this way last summer, and I like the clean look very much, so much so that I took all the earrings of this style that I had and added this end treatment. I also removed all the manufactured earwires and added ones that I made. I can truly say that my work is 100% handmade!

This necklace is available on my website!

Turquoise Set

I made this set last week and used my new photo studio set-up for the photography. I must admit that I am thrilled, THRILLED, with the result. I think I am getting close to figuring out how to configure my lights in order to get this look. I have two more photos of older work ready to post, but I think I will spread it out over the next few days, so come back to see the pretties!!

This necklace is 5-stitch Viking knitting with the turquoise chips worked into the weave. I didn't make it long enough, and so had to add the links on the ends. I thought the result would be awful, but I find that I like the effect.

Viking Knit Necklace with Woven Links

I am using my new photography studio to take photos of some work I did in January. This piece is definitely one of my favorites, so much so that I may need to keep it for myself. The center piece is 5-stitch Viking knitting with faceted rounds and rondelles of Spinel and Onyx. I made the two side links by fusing Argentium sterling silver into oval shapes that formed the frame for the weaving. The chains at the top are 4-stitch Viking knitting in the same mesh pattern that I use for the centerpiece. The one thing I would do differently next time is to make the center section a bit shorter, so that the links are more visible, and to weave the spinel rounds onto both sides of the the links so that there is no "right" side or "wrong" side. I just love this piece!!

Tornado Hoops with Turquoise

These are my version of a pair of earrings I admired on JewelryLessons.com. The artist's version is full of color and utterly delicious; I love them. I don't have many small gemstone rounds or rondelles right now, however, so I used some of the smallest turquoise chips that I have. The silver was oxidized then buffed. This is also the first time I have made closed hoops. I have no idea why it has taken me so long!

Project Three-Shelf Earrings

I didn't care much for the Shelf Pendant in Wrap, Stitch, Fold & Rivet, but I could see earrings quite clearly, so that is what I did. I love how these turned out! I did a strange thing when applying a heat patina to the copper: I applied the butane torch flame horizontally to the copper sheet (as opposed to perpendicular) and then I quenched the metal in the nearest source of water, my cat's water dish. I suspect the organic material in the water caused the interesting green flashes of color. I don't really know if that is true, but I do know that the coloring on this pair of earrings is more interesting than for Project Two! I could actually read about applying a heat patina, but so far just playing with it is kind of fun!

The silver is Argentium, so no fire scale or need for flux when balling the ends of the wire. The twisted wires at the top are scraps from other projects which I pulled out of the refining bin.

Working through the projects in this book is distracting me from getting ready for my Oct-Nov show schedule! Must pace myself.....but it is so fun to explore new techniques!!!

Crazy about the spirals

Last week I was crazy about spirals, coiling, and weaving. The pair with the woven wire frames and a drop (beautiful AAA grade Amethyst marquise briolettes) has been floating around in my sketchbook for about a year. I thought the brios would sway when the earring is on, but they don't and I'm not entirely sure why; they can move freely but seem to largely stay put. This is good as they are less likely to become caught in hair. I leave some of these bright, but all the ones shown here have been oxidized and then polished to highlight the texture. These are lightweight and fun to wear and fun to make!

Bulky Viking knit necklace

Earlier this spring I finally made a piece I had been thinking of for quite a while. I have made Viking knit chains in which I strung a strand of seed beads, so that the color of the beads comes through in a subtle fashion. I had a strand of large faceted rondelles of amethyst, citrine, and ametrine which needed just the right project, and I had been wanting to put them into a Viking knit chain, but as I said, the rondelles were LARGE. Up to 1.5cm for the largest. I realized one day that the perfect mandrel for this project was a cut up pool cue that I use for making Turk's head rings (learned from Loren Damewood). First I had to choose the size I wanted to make the chain on the graduated pool cue. As you can see, this meant starting the chain in the middle of one of my pieces of pool cue. Very tricky!! The other photos show the work as it progresses, and the final necklace. I have to say that after all that work I am somewhat disappointed in the result. It did not occur to me (why not??) that the gemstones were not dark enough to show through the way I envisioned. The result is interesting, but a little TOO subtle. I am not sure what I am going to do with this piece yet.

FYI: The Viking knit chain is woven with 60 feet of 26 gauge Argentium silver, and took an elapsed time of 4.5 hours spread out over 5 days. The gemstones are strung on Accu-flex beading wire.

Actually, now that I am looking a bit more impassively at the photo, the colors come through just fine and I like the effect. Just goes to show that your expectations can affect your perceptions!

Announcing the "Sale of the Fortnight"

I have been thinking about this for a while, and have finally decided to try having a "Sale of the Fortnight" on my website. I will choose something new every two weeks (that's a fortnight) to place "on sale" at the lowest price I'll ever offer. I already have the next several offerings planned and photographed. I will announce the newest offering here, but you could always go directly to the website to see what's on sale. Some items will be "one of a kind" while others can be duplicated.

I got the idea for this from my days in the Geology Department at Carleton College. One of the display cases held a "Map of the Fortnight," which changed about every two weeks (people get busy, you know). I always thought it was cool to check out the new map, plus the whole phrase has a neat rhythm to it.

The first item I am offering are a pair of my Viking knit bead cap earrings, made with Argentium silver and AAA faceted Amethyst pear-shaped briolettes. You can purchase these dainty beauties for $30, including shipping!

Be sure to check back regularly to find out what is being offered!