Wednesday, September 21, 2011

New Briolette Necklaces and Cute Owl Pendants!

Honey Drop
I finally got to use some gemstone briolettes I purchased what seems like forever ago.  I don't know why I just stuck these little sparkly gems away in my beading box to never again see the sunlight for several months, especially since I knew what I wanted to do when I bought them.  However late is better than never right?

Nightfall
I have a few more briolettes in misty green chalcedony, icy blue quartz, and some chalk turquoise waiting to made into necklaces but I wanted to test the waters if you will with the first four I have available in my shop now.  Each briolette has been wire warpped in copper wire with a little swirl design and oxidized, shined and sealed with Renaissance Wax to preserve the finish.  Along with the briolette are pretty Czech glass beaded charms for added detail.  The sparkly pendants are each on 22" brass plated chains with lobster clasp closures.

Olivine
Almond Coffee
I have Honey Drop, a warm honey yellow citrine briolette perfect for showing off nature's fiery autumn colors.  Next up is my personal favorite, Olivine, a gorgeous earthy olive colored quartz briolette that reminds me of long walks in the mossy woods as a kid.  Almond Coffee is a coffee quartz briolette with swirls of mocha just like your favorite coffee house latte on a brisk morning.  Nightfall is a jet black onyx briolette just as dark as a moonless night for an ultra chic look for just about any occasion!

Boy Meets Girl
Hoot at the Moon
Whoo
Last but not least are the four new owl pendants in my shop!  I'm pretty excited about these little guys and they're just so darn cute!   My favorite of the four is Boy Meets Girl, it was love at first sight when little green boy owl met pretty in purple girl owl!  Adorable for Halloween is Hoot at the Moon with a little brown owl with golden eyes looking up at the moon in a star filled sky.  Whoo is up close and personal with a sweet little owl in a warm sienna color peeking at you with a sliver of retro teal behind him.  Lastly, he may be a little nerdy but he's oh so loveable as Smarty Owl with his little glasses on sitting on a branch with a red background.  Who can say no to that?  :)

Smarty Owl
 Coming soon I'll be offering a great new gift option for my jewelry with the holidays coming up right around the corner!  I'll be making custom hand stamped jewelry kraft boxes tied with natural twine cord!  They're eco-freindly, sturdy, inexpensive, reusable, time saving and did I mention that they're CUTE?  I'm keeping my general theme of "nature inspired" just like most of my jewelry using flowers, leaves, birds, dragonflies, etc for stamping options.  I should have the listings up and ready soon, keep an eye out and I'll also announce them on my blog and my Facebook Page!

Hand stamped kraft boxes, will be available in 3 sizes!


Thursday, September 8, 2011

New Copper Wire Wrapped Designs

Enchanted Dragonfly Necklace
Fall is right around the corner with lots of warm color, cool breezes and time to harvest the season's bounty in the garden.  As much as I hate to see sweet summer fade away I do appreciate the cooler weather and the inspiration it gives me for new designs!  I recently listed a few new pieces that I wanted to share with you all as well!

Copper Leaf Earrings
Copper Leaf Necklace
I promised to get some new autumn designs and here's two just in time!  Copper Leaf Necklace and Copper Leaf  Earrings are just as pretty as the falling leaves that inspire them.  I shaped and wire wrapped each leaf and coil by hand to perfection.  I wanted to try something different in addition to the oxidation and since I sometimes use a patina solution on my copper leafing in my artwork I thought I'd try it on copper wire and look how lovely it turned out!  I gave each piece a light verdigris patina and then shined them up a little before sealing them with a special preservative wax to protect the finish.  The green patina is a genuine finish and not painted on using a special procedure that speeds up the natural chemical process.  The necklace is 22" long on a beautiful copper mother and son chain and the earrings hang from my very own hand forged copper French hooks.

Enchanted Dragonfly
Dragonfly Wing
Next up are my Enchanted Dragonfly Necklace and Dragonfly Wing Earrings.  I must admit  they aren't exactly "fall designs", but I am very pleased with how these turned out!  I designed the entire dragonfly pendant with solid copper wire and recreated the delicate webbing in the wings with a smaller gauge copper.  I added little swirls on the head and body for extra detail and it turned out just wonderful!  The entire idea started from a little damselfly, a smaller cousin to the dragonfly, that liked to hang around my water garden over the summer.  One day I did a quick sketch of the dainty little creature and thought it would be wonderful to turn into a full sized project!  I recreated the delicate structure of the wings in teh wings using a small gauge copper wire and hammered the tear drop frames for extra rigidity.  Little coil charms hang with the wings from my own hand forged copper French hooks.  I oxidized and shined up each piece to create stunning right-from-nature designs!

That's it for right now, but I have many more ideas for the upcoming autumn season!  I have some gorgeous honey colored citrine briolettes and goldstone beads that are calling my name!  Also, take a peek at the sale section in my shop, I have lots of new items I've recently put in there at awesome discounts to make room for new items!