Faring Better

     Wonder where I've been? 
     I've been on the couch, with a blanket over me, making pitiful sounds and eating crackers. I've been "under the weather" as they say.
     I finally got well enough this weekend to go to the studio for a while and work on a few things. Thank you to all the patient people who've been waiting for orders, for not being upset with me. 
     I had forgotten about the little polymer clay tags I made for a while. I need to make some more of them. And I have some ideas to test out with soldered glass charms.
     For now, I will finish the resin pieces that have been sitting, waiting for their final treatments. I hope to have those to show you soon.
     Nothing makes you appreciate a good appetite and a healthy stomach like the lack of them!

Sugar Princess Necklace

I've been making these keys, and finally I just had to stop and take the time to make a necklace design with one of them.

I don't know if the episode on Saturday with the optometrist made me choose the little lens, but it just seems to go well with the key and the glass drops on the necklace chain.

I like to make the length adjustable by putting the clasp in the front, and I did that this time. So it can be a neckline length necklace, or by hooking into the links of the chain it can be a choker.

I think I'm going to have to test wear this one. I like it. But I went ahead and listed it in the Etsy shop. I can only wear just so much jewelry, no matter how hard I try!

The hardest part is getting a decent photograph of it, that shows all the parts and isn't a mile long ...

Wearable Jewelry

Last week, I took time to create some finished jewelry from the pewter components and my hand dyed costume pearls.

It's been a while since I sat down with the beads and jewelry pliers and made finished jewelry.

These costume pearls were my attempt to create dark, blue-black colored costume pearls. There were some small diameter, some slightly larger, and one that's a teardrop shape. I dyed them a while back in the Missouri studio. I haven't set up the dyebaths in the new studio here yet. One more thing I need to get done.

The acrylic bicone beads I used for an accent were also dyed, right along with the costume pearls.

This necklace has found a home already, which makes me very happy. I often wonder whether, if I create wearable jewelry instead of components only, will they find someone who wants to wear them?

This necklace did! And that's a special excitement for me. 

Florals for Midsummer

I guess I'm influenced by all the color and the old houses nearby. I hand colored these two focals to look like something from a french piece of furniture, like the knobs and ornaments on feminine beds and cabinets.

One has a yellow background and the other is a pink-purple color, and both look very worn and old.

I found the polymer clay and most of the tools. The things I'm still missing are odd. Like toothpicks, I use them for stirring things.

I'm sure I've seen them, I just haven't been able to come up with the box yet. Maybe it's time for a new box. They're not expensive. I just have to remember to get them.

What else is missing? Some of my glass tools. I'm sure I put them in a safe place. And they'll show up eventually.

And some of my metalworking tools. Nothing big and important, just small ones that I use sometimes.

And the third leg for the soldering tripod. I took it off so it would fit in the box better. Now I have a two-legged tripod.

Send some "finding" vibes my way ...

This is one of the most annoying parts of moving.

And there are a lot of annoying things about moving!

Do you like the new little colors and shapes?

CALDER Then and Now - Creativity and Growth

I thought I'd feature again some of my LEGENDARY JEWELRYMAKER series from this timeframe a year or so ago, in case you might have missed them the first time.



Alexander Calder is probably best known for his large outdoor sculptural 'Stabiles' and his hanging 'Mobiles' - it's facinating to learn that he also made special jewelry using steel and wire.


There's a virtual tour of the standing Calder exhibit at the National Gallery of Art site, if you want to check it out, and here's an article with lots of fabulous photos of the jewelry. Keep in mind, he was working in the 1930's, 1940's and 1950's, but the jewelry looks so contemporary and modern! (photo credit - Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, Florida) The Miami Herald has a Gallery of the pieces on their site.


He made over 1800 pieces of jewelry, beginning in 1930, using only wire, string and what we now think of as found objects. NPR has photos of the pieces on their site, along with the Susan Stamberg story from this morning's radio show.


The pieces were on view at the Philadephia Museum of Art for the 110th anniversary of his birth, and New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

Have you switched or enlarged your creative areas of expression? If so, when, how and why?

First Few

I mentioned a few days ago that I'm taking molds and casts off the beautiful antique buttons that Deryn Mentock sent me, to see if I can give them a second life.

These are the first few I've gotten finished.

The buttons themselves are a little worn, with some signs of age and having been in water. When I cast them in pewter, all their delicate details come back to life.

It's very exciting! I sent these to Deryn so she can see them, and figure out how she would like to use them.

These are truly little bits of sculpture, with scenes of windmills and lovely stately homes in the trees. I hope to have some available on Etsy soon. You can see on some I put one hole at the top, like a charm or pendant, and on others I put two holes, for a bracelet maybe, or to add a dangle.

They look like they might have been someone's speccial button collection, that were lost during the Galveston hurricane, and found their way to Deryn and now to me.

To give them another use, another possibility for ornamenting special things in the future.

I took one button with a very distinctive face on it, and put it together with one of my cast bezels, to create this pendant.

At first I thought it had an art nouveau look, but with the dark coppery-bronze patina it started to hve a southwestern look to it, like a New Mexico square cross, with the round sun in the front. Do you see it?

So I'll keep playing with these designs, enjoying the feeling of restoring them to be loved and used again, in a new and different way.

You Tell Me

Sometimes I'm really lucky and friends send me old charms or lovely metal finds, to see if I can take a mold off them to cast some new pieces in pewter from the old ones. I love it when that happens, I can help out a friend who has a special object they want to save but make it possible for them to use the pretty pattern in their designs, too.

When I have the originals I like to think about how to add to them or enhance them, sometimes with a little place for setting some rhinestone BLING and sometimes by combining two things together, to make a pewter charm collage.

This pretty little basket of flowers charm was sent to me by Deryn Mentock, along with some special buttons saved from Galveston. She's written about them on her blog, and I'm thrilled she is letting me see if I can save and restore their designs.

I wanted to make something special with this basket of flowers charm, so I combined it with a decorative medallion I had already cast and it came out as this three-cornered charm, I think it has a real Victorian look to it. It's surprisingly very lightweight!

Sometimes I take the charms and add loops to make them into connectors, or centerpieces for rosary strands. To add my own touch to them, and help make them useable - and unique.

I also made this little charm that I think of as a gazing ball, like the Victorian gardens have for seeing reflections out in nature, except this one is clear and has a loop at the top to be a charm or dangle.

I made this one in clear and I will make some also that are dark black solid in color, through a glass darkly.

I think the two of them would look good together in a design, very antique!

Thank you, Deryn! I will work hard to save and enhance these little button sculptures ...

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Take the poll to the left on the sidebar, if you have a moment to spare and a preference in how you like to see things offered in the Etsy shop. Sometimes I have things all made up before I list them, and sometimes I list and make them up special order just when you buy.

I'd love to know what you think about both ... THANKS!

Will You Be A Winner

I made this little bracelet using some of my cast pewter buttons. I was inspired by the button jewelry of Lorelei Eurto, and I wanted to play with the ideas using some of the pewter I've cast.

Someone asked me recently whether there's any lead in the pewter I use, and there absolutely is no lead. I make sure when I'm mixing the metals to make the alloy - no lead allowed.




The bracelet is fun to wear, it jingles a little when you move. This bracelet is the object of the giveaway from yesterday's post - so if you answer the question there you might win this bracelet.




I used wire wrapping to connect the links, then I patinaed it all and used the buffer to polish it. It has a very ancient look, like it might have been part of a treasure trove found in an archeological dig somewhere exotic.


Does this giveaway bracelet inspire you to post a reply to yesterday's question and enter the running to win it?

I hope so, I really need your answers.

Hearts and Flowers

I've been promising myself for some time now that I would make more bezels, especially ones that I can combine with my polymer clay faux-tique beads and cabochons.

So last weekend I made myself take out time and create some.

This heart shaped pendant is one of the results.

I created the interior of the heart bezel to fit some of the heart shapes I've already been making.


The back is a brushed metal, and I put on a dark coppery-bronze patina and aged it really well, like an attic antique.

The front reminds me of carved bone or ivory, but with a hint of yellow and green color.


Like daffodils, from faded flowers long ago. It's my new favorite.

And I can't wait to make up some more. I have an oval one in the works, and a rounded circle, I just haven't finished off the castings quite yet.

Fun!

What Does It Say - What You Want Said

A few weeks back I made a round piece that looked very medieval, very ancient, out of polymer clay.

I finished it over the last weekend, sanding, buffing and polishing to a sheen.

It looked like carved ivory or mother of pearl to me. So I wanted to do something special with it.


I etched some copper, wasn't really sure how I would put the two of them together.

But here's the result, a pendant focal or bracelet, if you like things rustic.


With the words "HOPE" and "LOVE" stamped into the sides.

It has pairs of holes on each side. I wanted it to look very handmade, with the maker's marks visible.

It reminds me of something that might have been on the cover of an old hymnal book long ago, with an obvious patina of age and wear.

It's my attempt to keep using what I learned at Artfest, in etching and forming copper, put things to use, combining metals and faux bone, reproducing that ancient artifact look I like.

Peace, Sanctuary

I'm reading a series of mystery books by the gent who wrote the Father Dowling series, I may read those also, these are set on the campus of Notre Dame University. There's a lot of history, some great vocabulary expanding words, and good characters showing lots of human nature.

Maybe that's influencing me, reading these books, or maybe it's the time of year with Easter coming right up.

But lately, here are the icons that are popping out of my head and into my fingertips, things that look very ancient and spiritual.


One with the word "PEACE" and a very old fashioned spiritual iconic image in the resin, set in the pewter frame.

And another in an ornate, winged frame with the word "SANCTUARY" in it.


They're translucent, the light shines through when you hold them up to a lamp or window.

It reminds me of the old fashioned stained glass you see, with the hand painted images on the glass.

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If you posted to the "Waiting for Something" post, and then wondered why you were posting and what you were waiting for ... if you posted there you will get 10% off any purchase in either Etsy shop in the month of March, and FREE SHIPPING.

Now you know what you were waiting for! and thanks for playing along, it's fun sometimes to link the blog and Etsy, just to see what will happen.

Looky What A Beauty

I'm always so happy when I get to see what a designer has done with some of the components, creating with them and combining with other things.

Isn't this necklace gorgeous? It was created by Jacqui O'Donoghue from Connecticut, using some of my connectors and clasps with pearls, chains and mixed metal colors.


I personally like mixing the pewter, brass and copper myself, so this piece really speaks to me.

I have so many ideas for clasps, I'm working on one with a skeleton key as the toggle part right now, it's fun to make them and see them go out and combine with other things to become a wearable, finished piece.

So thank you, Jacqui, for sending me the photos. I love the necklace, wish it was around my neck right now!

Watching a Movie and the Results

On Thanksgiving Thursday my hubby and I watched all the special features to the Indiana Jones movie.

We intended to watch the movie "Raiders of the Lost Ark" after that, but after three hours of special features, we ran out of time for the movie itself. Isn't that funny?

Anyway, never let it be doubted that what I watch and read has a direct impact on what I make in the studio.

It's always interesting to me what my eyes and hands decide to combine.


But when I saw a large cross-like script textured emblem with a setting in the center, and a scarab beetle, it wasn't hard to tell where that imagery was sparked. Remember the knight templar in the last movie about the holy grail? And the egyptian features in the first movie?


The large ornate portrait of a very proper little gentleman with the word "DARE" inside was just one of those joking play on words. Double dare you to mess up that fancy suit!



And the nichos with the milagros that Pattie sent me - don't they look intriging together?


Overall it was a very productive studio session. It didn't hurt anything that the weather was pleasant and I wasn't bundled up like an eskimo yet, to keep from freezing. It gets really COLD in the basement!

So - I wonder what movie I should watch next! and then wait to see how it affect the creativity in the studio.

Does this happen to you? Or am I the only one who seems to be just a conduit from my unconscious mind to my fingertips ...

Charmed Wings

Deryn Mentock is another of those folks I admire, her designs strike some sort of a chord with me. They have an elegant but worn look that I like and seek to get into the beads and components I make.


She recently made this necklace, for a show in Houston, where I once lived before the gypsy caravan of my life brought me to the midwest. Maybe the road will curve one day and I'll find myself back in the south again...

See the little wing, there in the dangle? And I have the milagros that Pattie sent me, hmmmm....

Someday I hope to meet Deryn in person, if our paths cross somewhere in common.

In the meantime, I'm always thrilled when I see one of my pewter pieces in one of her designs.

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Big news, that some of you may know already. Deryn and I collaborated on an article for Belle Armoire Jewelry magazine, it's the Winter issue that's coming out soon.

This will be the fifth article for me in BAJ, and I have another one coming in the spring issue, with pewter and resin. Writing for the magazine is what got me started on this whole adventure.

Deryn has had numerous articles published in BAJ and other places, she's a versatile and creative person who works in many media.

For this project I made pewter components and sent them to her and she created the jewelry designs with them. The article is beautiful, based on the preview version I looked at early last month, and it should be reaching you soon if you want to take a look. (I don't have my preview copy yet, although I have been haunting the post office)

Deryn's designs have always intrigued me, her use of vintage and found objects inspires me. It occurred to me that she might find usefulness in some of my faux-tique components, too.


I greatly appreciate her work, and the collaboration. At one time I interviewed Deryn for the Art Bead Scene blog, and we have now had the chance to work together on this collaboration project, I'm very proud of it.

Thanks, DERYN, for the idea of the article and for the beautiful use of the pewter. Looking ahead, I'd love to work together again... soon!

Something New, Something Different

I've been wanting for some time to combine the resin with the polymer clay. I made up this pendant focal bead.

The lettering at the top says "THE ENGLISH" and in the triangular opening there's a playing card image of the King of Hearts.

Can you see him inside there?

Then I covered it with resin. To make a little window inside.

The pendant focal has stringing holes from top to bottom, on both sides. I can picture it with coral beads or beautiful square pearls.

I have some more ideas like this that I want to try.

The back of the square bead has medieval lettering, in an english country color of red. I picture chintz chairs with roses in the print. Fresh and fun.

What do you think about the resin with the polymer clay?

I have another batch of resin curing overnight. In the morning I'll get up and check on them.

Special Necklace of Spirit

It takes me a while to put finished jewelry together. I feel it's a little of a luxury for me to spend time that way, instead of making components.

On Sunday I spent a few hours putting this necklace together. I had made three pewter components and I wanted to put them together.

Once I got started, I thought it would be fun to make a really special necklace.


The icon medallion is used at the clasp, with glass beads and a dangle. To make the closure kind of fun.



I had some silver chain with a dark patina, to use in combination with the main focal.

The beads in the dangle from the main focal use several beads of carved bone that were brought to me by someone I knew years ago. I haven't used them, they felt too special. But this piece called for them.


One is a carved elephant design. The other looks like a floral, or a crossed circle.

The dangle bead is a crown with fleur de lys, with a picasso finished bright red glass heart bead for the dangle.



I wanted it to feel like something from an ancient culture, maybe Tibetan or ancient Egyptian Coptic.

There are dark and light, red and coppertoned elements.

It hangs in a sort of diamond shape, with the center dangle being the longest of the three.



I really like how it turned out. I am thinking of putting a word or phrase on the top pewter piece, if something comes to me that tells the whole story of the necklace. It has a lot of movement and interesting areas to fiddle with fingers, texture for the eye and feeling for the skin.

And it has a tiny bit of a gothic, romantic feeling to it also. As though it was found in a castle in Transylvania.

Fun to make, fun to wear. I won't let myself feel guilty for spending the time making it - otherwise it wouldn't exist as it does now. And that's something special.

From my thoughts, through my hands, to reality.

Nice Goodies from Ornamentea

With the crazy week and all, this is the first chance I've had to sit down and do some photography to show a goodie box I got from Ornamentea. It was sent to me as one of the editors on the Art Bead Scene blog, and it's a treasure trove!

They are located in Raleigh, North Carolina. And they have classes, too. If you're nearby you could check them out, for fun. There's a pretty blog, too, I love the ephemera and the antique typeface. My kind of thing for sure.



Luscious chain - such gorgeous texture! And round, square and ovals, what more could I need? I will NOT hoard this, I will use it. So others can see how lovely this chain is. And a fun brass box to put a collage inside, hmmm. Looks intriguing.


And some interesting clasps, a seven loop closure in antique brass color. And a snake for a hook. I'm thinking Cleopatra or a beautiful seven strand of pearls - I love lots of pearls!



Pearls and crystals, with something fauxtique as the focal. I've got to give these a lot of thought and put them to use right away!

Thanks, Ornamentea! Wish I was closer - but then, you're as close as a mouse click aren't you?