Faces

I was recently inspired by an article in Belle Armoire Jewelry magazine to create this little house necklace. I chose a Paper Whimsy face to look back out at the world from inside the little house and the word "secret" from an old child's reader.

After finishing that, I spied this little spoon on my work table and having the faces close at hand, was inspired to make this pendant. It would also be possible for me to do custom pieces for people with their ancestors or children and make them look vintage as these photos do.
The necklace above was the first thing that Steph gave to me as we waited for her luggage at the baggage claim at the Nashville airport. It is a cowgirl in resin with ribbons and lace. It always is a conversation starter when I wear it.When we got home, she opened her box of goodies that she brought and out came this gorgeous necklace that I had seen on her blog, but had no idea that it was intended for me. I love the colors and that I can wear it with just about anything.

She and I are planning a necklace round robin for the new year with a couple of other artists. I can't wait to see the results!

Go Green

These are my newest creations. The green I am referring to is not only the color, but the fact that other than the stones, this jewelry was made from recycled materials. The copper sheet is leftover roofing copper given to me by a friend who does construction and the wire is stripped electrical wire leftover from wiring a house that we built. Take the basic raw materials and transform them. I love to make a sketch and watch that concept become reality.

A Little Whimsy

I had a blast making these necklaces for Studio Thursday this month. The crowd there is mostly animal lovers so I chose these collages that I made for a swap a couple of years ago to use for the pendants. The sale was a great success! I feel blessed to get to sell my jewelry despite the slow economy. Thanks always to Shawn for including me in her fun and unique sale. The next Studio Thursday will be in February.

The next necklace is made from beads that Steph showed me how to make when she was visiting. They are polymer clay faux turquoise and cane beads. It looks like chunky, substantial stone beads, but it is very light and comfortable.All of my spare time lately is spent in the studio creating new work to take to Cliques and Heart and Hands. More to come...

Debut

Photo Credit: Frederick Breedon/Getty Images

Tuesday I had an interesting phone call. I person named Joey wanted a copper and turquoise bracelet to wear to an awards ceremony. I was surprised to learn that it was Joey Feek, the female half of Joey and Rory. Needless to say, I set aside my house cleaning and went straight to my studio. I had a delicious piece of turquoise that needed just the right person to wear it. I made this bracelet and earrings specifically with her in mind.

I met her and Rory yesterday and they are very friendly, down to earth people. She seemed to be delighted with her piece. It was just the dramatic accent that she was looking for to go with her buckskin dress that she was wearing to the CMA Award Ceremony. The top picture was snagged from the CMT.com website. If you zoom in, you can kind of see the bracelet.

Check out their songs on their website. I know a couple of new songs that will be going on my Ipod now. Living near Nashville is always interesting. You never know who you will meet.

Finally Face to Face

After two years of corresponding by email and trading jewelry by mail, I finally got to meet my friend Steph (aka Vladthebat) face to face. On the Thursday before last I picked her up in Nashville at the airport and with sadness dropped her off this past Friday morning. We spent a week of creating in the studio and exploring Middle Tennessee. The weather was on its best behavior, as we had a whole week of sunshine and warm temperatures.
She brought goodies along with her... a wealth of interesting raw materials for creating, two really cool necklaces (I'll post the necklace pictures next time), and enough Belgian chocolate that should have last me for months. The supply of chocolate is now dwindled to a handful of pieces. I shared a little, but it should be declared a controlled substance. I can't stop eating it. One morning she even made Belgian waffles for us.
In the studio, it was so interesting to see someone take the same materials that I have been looking at for months and take them in a totally different direction. I had a bowl of flat stones that I picked up while kayaking and and she picked one up and immediately started carving a design in it. So then we both started carving stones. That night I got the idea that we should etch some of the copper to match the stones so the next day we spent several hours experimenting with etching. Here is a bracelet in which I combined Steph's stone and my copper etching.
And another piece where I stamped a face and etched it. I have to experiment more with my etching solution recipe to keep from getting it too strong.
Throughout the week my creativity got a much needed boost that hopefully will last a while. I needed it to get ready for Studio Thursday coming up this week. It will actually be 3 days this month for the holiday sale. Check it out at Silo Studio's website.

Our lives are so much richer now that we have a new friend and I am planning a visit to Belgium in the not too distant future.