Another resin focal

I worked on another piece with a resin focal yesterday - this time I turned it into a bracelet.


This is a pale grey mother of pearl resin focal, combined with freshwater pearls in pale grey, rhinestone rondelles, crackled rock crystal beads and copper.

Now I have to get ready for another weekend of Advent exhibition. I wonder if anyone is going to come? The newspaper printed last week's advertisement again, instead of the new one I sent; meaning the dates are wrong. Do you think there is a chance nobody will notice that detail???

Finished necklace and some earrings

Finished the necklace early this morning!!! I am pretty happy with this piece - serendipity had her fingers in on this one!

Woodland Necklace detail

Woodland Necklace
Freshwater pearls, agate teardrops, mother of pearl focal with resin, copper, metal, rhinestone rondelle, silk ribbon.

Woodland Earrings
I was having so much fun, I made some matching earrings too!

Drops of Honey
I am so in love with the colour of these chalcedony briolettes!

Firefly Briolettes
The glow of these chalcedony briolettes is just amazing - it really reminds me of fireflies... combined with jade and fused copper rings.

New necklace!

Remember those feathers I acquired last week at the not so wonderful hat show? Well, they inspired me to make a necklace. A piece that is a bit raw amd primitive and colourful; something maybe a shamaness might wear. Made of brass, copper, glass beads, with an etched image and dangles that sport a brass bird, a tiny bird's nest with tiny fresh water pearls, carnelian beads, glass beads and one of my beach pebbles from Tuscany.

Birds of a Feather


click on the image to enlarge

New work

I have been itching to do some painting again and this week I couldn't put it off any longer.

Believing in magic
An 8"x8" mixed media piece on canvas; including decorative paper, acrylics, ink, charcoal pencil, metal foil.
I need to invest in some new paints.

This week, I pushed my boundaries - I made my first ring! Soldered silber with a riveted copper poppy. I definitely need to practice these skills more, but I am very elated that it worked!

Some more earrings

My cold snuck up behind me and jumped me again! Nasty thing! I'm going to go somewhere where I can feel miserable and just leave you some earrings to look at!

Silver Poppy Earrings

Moth's Bellflower Earrings

Have a great Sunday!

Just two finished pieces

Silver Poppy Necklace

A silver poppy flower combined with peridot beads. A simple sort of necklace for everyday wear.

Moth - A Midsummer Nights Dream inspired Necklace

The centerpiece for this necklace is a flea market found treasure, which seemed predestined to depict Moth. I am not sure what material it is, but I think silver is a fair guess. I picked up several pieces from one dealer that looked like they came from a goldsmith's workshop, including silver solder; so I think I am guessing on the safe side. Someone put a lot of work into sawing out this intricate pattern! I have filled the spaces with amethyst coloured resin and just a bit of sparkle, to create the look of plique-à-jour enamel, which was very popular during the Art Nouveau period.

Moth Necklace Detail

I wire wrapped some leaflike antenna to the top, similar in shape to the antennae of moths and completed it with amethyst beads and vintage freshwater pearls, including an amethyst and pearl dangle.

Sunday, flea market and work in progress

flea market finds
Yesterday I finally made it to the flea market again. And I was lucky to find anything!! This was the big flea market and I can't remember when I last had such a "bad catch"! Just a couple of brass filigree buttons and some old lace...

Captain and Socks
Two of my kitties relaxing Sunday afternoon...


sketches
This is what my sketches for work in progress look like - if I actually sketch something. But this is just the original idea and not fully thought out. I just let the process take over. These are for Moth and Cobweb.

work in progress: Moth
As I mentioned, I am working on more necklaces inspired by A Midsummer Nights Dream. This will be Moth.

work in progress: Cobweb
This is a version of Cobweb, another Midsummer Nights Dream inspired piece. Cobweb is going to end up with more than one necklace, it seems.

work in progress: Poppy
A poppy flower that will turn into a necklace. I made a few of these in copper last year and I just really like them. I have some in progress in copper too.

Midsummer Nights Dream

Peaseblossom's Necklace
Just finished this necklace, which began with a piece of silk rod in green and a copper filigree. And then whimsy took over, must be because of midsummer. Must have faeries in my head... Peaseblossom is one of the faeries serving Titania in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream.

Peaseblossom's Necklace, Detail
I think this necklace would be something Peaseblossom might wear, with all those little flower shaped jade dangles and copper spirals.
Finished with a copper hook I forged myself and fused copper rings.
Thank you to Deryn Mentock, whose work was the original inspiration for this necklace.

another new necklace

Love's Lace
A little necklace with an etched copper heart, forged copper links and clasp, wire wrapped copper links, freshwater pearls and glass beads.


The etching reminds me of old lace. Next in line is a bracelet - I think.

More dramatic sky, and what's in a name

More dramatic thunder clouds on Thursday
About 5 minutes after taking this picture, we had a torrential downpour, hail and extreme winds. It was over in about 10 minutes, but this repeated itself several times during the day. On the weekend, we are supposed to be getting something like summer weather, the temperatures might even go above 25°C!!

New Necklace - from the Elements - Air
Just finished this today. This has been in the works for some time. It just didn't seem to want to come together. Today, it finally did.


This is for the element air. There is a print of faeries in the copper frame, underneath resin. I matched it with lots of sky blue glass beads and some very vintage copper finished steel chain links and some forged copper links.


Rear view - etched copper
I am not at all used to using this bright sky blue. But it really pops, not just on the photos, so I guess this is just right for summer.

Another new necklace, finished today.
A colour enhanced carved sponge coral rose, combined with brass, vintage faux pearls and vintage black lucite beads. Very dramatic (must be the influence of the weather).


For some reason, I can't seem to come up with names for these two necklaces. Anyone have any ideas?

What has been going on

Dramatic sky on Sunday evening, just before the thunder storm

new earrings - Rose Garden

Mystic Peach Earrings

Southern Belle Earrings

Folk Art Earrings

New Earrings

Secret Garden Earrings

I finally made some new earrings! This last pair complements the Secret Garden Necklace. I still have to create some new designs, but this was great as a warm up.
(Available in my Etsy and DaWanda shops)

Sunday Secret Garden

I have been working on another Secret Garden, inspired by my painting.


I wanted to incorporate a lock and key theme. I etched copper sheet and a brass keyhole escutcheon and riveted the two together and finished it up with green glass beads, a tiny, very old key and brass flower.


I was playing around with props, trying to capture the idea of the secret garden in my photos.


I do like the way this turned out.


Iris

I was at a smaller flea market this morning, but I didn't find any treasures today. Well, that is just the way it is sometimes. So instead of vintage and antique buttons and things, some more garden pics; for those of you that haven't tired of them yet.

wild strawberry

These grow everywhere in my garden - all through the flower beds and even in some of the flower pots. I brought them with me when we moved in and they have just taken over. These are real wild strawberries, the tiny little ones that have that intensive taste. I also have wild raspberries, but they were already growing here.

Front garden

This is a view of the front garden. I really need to get out there and do some weeding.

BTW, Casanova is fine. He had one of his bottom fangs pulled, because it was loose. Thankfully, he could keep the rest of his teeth, they did need some cleaning, but that was all.

Such a lovely colour!

A little while ago, I purchased two lovely porcelain connectors from LeAnn at SummersStudio (she also has lovely buttons!) and I just love the colour. It is so close to tourmaline bluegreen; my favorite colour of tourmaline. Then I found these beautiful glass beads - in Sabine's shop BeadBead (my favourite bead shop!) which have that exact colour of tourmaline! I knew right away that I was going to combine these prizes with some tiny seed pearls I have had in my stash for quite some time. But how to tie it all together?
It seems my vintage mother of pearl buttons insisted on being included. I made several components for the necklace - some of which didn't make me happy in this piece, so they were laid aside for other inspirations. This is the outcome:

I really love this necklace! Freshwater pearls, seed pearls, Czech glass beads, mother of pearl buttons all come together with the connector for a very special piece. Now, what am I going to do with the other connector??