Winter is here!!!!!

I love this time of year...my creative juices and the need to hibernate begin! I've been baking up a storm for Christmas in between painting. I'm finished in the metal studio until Spring but still have some bench work to do. Have a wonderful Christmas everyone and hopes for a Great NEW year.

The Otter and the Fox! Sounds like a Disney Movie!!!!

 Well, we're back to creating "nature pots" again...we did this in a series many years ago for a show and nearly sold out. I don't know why we didn't continue to make more but so go the minds of the creative!!! In any case we've come back around to it. I'm very happy with my otter face. The fox not so much. I think I made him look much to "stiff". Better results next time. So far we've made: owls, fishers, squirrel, chipmunk, frogs...lots of frogs!!! I think rabbits should be next!

Perfume bottles!!!!

 Turquoise, Carnelian, Black Onyx, Red Jasper

 Each bottle has its own hand made chain which connects the top to the bottom so there is no "misplacing" it!

If you are interested in buying a bottle, please contact me for details at forest@ntcnet.com.

Each bottle measure 2 1/2 inches high and 1 inch wide. They are oval and not round in form. Sterling Silver and silver solder were used in creating them and all but the stones are hand wrought by me. Each bottle is $300 unless you are purchasing all four. The total for all four is $1000. I will accept paypal or check.

Crazy Lace Agate Pendent......Finished Piece

 Well here's the finished product from the sketches of November 22nd's post. I'm very pleased with the way it turned out. I may go back and straighten up the bezel on the square carnelian but other than that I think its a good job.

The chain is commercial however the closure is handmade. it has sterling and black onyx bead on the hook.

Christmas necklace and matching earrings

Just finished this set. I'm in love with the RED. OK so I have this strange obsession with red this year...as I look out the window at our two red cars!!! I purchased these glass lampwork beads from "Beatle Baby Beads" over a year ago but knew I wanted them for the Christmas season....

 These beads are the most beautiful shade of red. Deep, dark and with the sterling dots on them, they are stunning.

 I used a soft (almost sand blasted look) sterling bead along with the mirror cut sterling beads for a contrast....

The byzantine pattern is my favorite and I used it between beads but wove the rest of the necklace in 2 and 1 pattern to keep it from getting too heavy. There's a lot of silver in this piece but I love the weight of it because it feels like I'm wearing something substantial.






Let me know what you think by clicking on comments below. I really enjoy feedback. Thanks.

My Creative Process unfolding

 This is the sketch I began with minus the bar at the top with the 3/4 jump rings attached at the ends.











The triangle bezel has been soldered to its own back plate and soldered to the large piece which encompasses the entire design.

The reason the image looks so white is because it's been in a "pickle" or acid bath. There have been several solderings in this design. Eight bezels, a square piece of wire and a few squiggles! Slow and steady and keeping each solder in its own place.












Here are the eight stones which will go into my design. The main stone being the inspiration for this design: a Mexican Crazy Lace Agate. I purchased this beauty from Gypsy Vic online. It has a small druzy to the left front and has the most amazing color....probably the most red I've ever seen in this type of stone. It tips just a bit into the orange spectrum which made me want to add Carnelian to the design and of course that wonderful black onyx that my fellow jewelry designers often pass over because of its commonality. I find the combination of these stones to be a wonderful expression of creativity and design and color.

 

 So...... since I'm still knee deep in the process here, I will leave you to continue and I will be back with the end results and hope that you will "tune in" for it and find the "comment" button just below this post to write your thoughts and comments to me. Some of you email me with them, which is also fine, either way I genuinely love knowing you're out there!!!

 

Fall Palette new painting 3x7 Oil on Wood SOLD

Fall is here and my palette is changing. I'm still working small but plan to switch to canvas very soon. I'm hoping the quick and fresh brush strokes will transfer to the canvas. I love the freshness. Its so lovely to not over think and over work a piece. Maybe it's the fact that I'm no longer answering to anyone (education) but myself. Well its about time! I can't believe its been 10 years since I've retired from teaching.

Celadon Bowl and Scorpion Covered Pot

 Altered Porcelain Bowl above has a hand cut rim and water etched design. The design is added after the piece is dry, in the greenware stage varnish is brushed on to make a design and when dry the unvarnished clay is washed and removed. The piece is then fired and glazed and re-fired to the finished state.

This covered piece has a solid cast bronze scorpion finial. It has a threaded piece soldered to its base so that it fits through a hole in the cover and attached with a small nut to keep it in place. The design
on the pot is created by a technique called chattering. The piece spins on the wheel while a metal tool
rests on the surface and bounces to create the texture.

Two new Oils

I am so loving my oils once more. I love the way they flow, the way they smell, but most of all the way the color speaks to me. I just never could get into landscapes and maybe I still won't but these just came from my head as fast as my brush could paint. The palette is very different than it used to be with acrylics. This is far from "in your face" color that I painted lipsticks, shoes, and red patent leather boots with!
  I'm hoping from these small formats that my canvases will transform back into the figures I once loved to paint. I guess we'll just have to take it one canvas at a time. Maybe I'll revisit the "friends and family" series I started a while back.

Both of these paintings are sold.

Sterling bottles....you decide how to use them!!

Perfume Samples, Medicine, Treasure Keepers ,

These measure 15mm x 60mm and tops fit tightly to prevent spilling. Hand made chain keeps tops from getting misplaced.

 Each one is hand wrought with different stones set on top. From left to right-Turquoise/Carnelian/Hematite/Red Jasper

$300 each. If you're interested please email me at forest@ntcnet.com.

Turquoise and Silver Spiral Bracelet

 October is almost here and I love the warmth of the colors of Fall. The oranges and browns and yellows are such a contrast to the brisk temps. The turquoise stone in this piece just seemed to beg to be next to this orange pumpkin!!
  This bracelet has a small hook that ensure the wearer of security. It's kind of a bangle but can be unhooked to remove. I hammered a pattern in the round wire to add a sparkle when the light hits it.
  I think its kind of a fun piece...what do you think?

Another Pendent

Sterling Leaf made from the bowl of a silver serving spoon. The stone is actually a Moonstone that I set with a colored piece of plastic beneath it to give it color and hopefully make it look more like a rain drop.

Reticulated silver with a little "happy accident" leaving a "ruffle" which makes this piece look even more authentic! I sawed edges to look more leaf like.

Bottle Green Lampwork bead and chainmaille necklace and earrings

More Chainmaille

 I long for my torch and the smell of Al's studio but I haven't been able to get there so I'm soothing my nerves and emotions with a little more chainmaille. I don't make very many patterns nor do I try but I do enjoy the focus it takes to make the patterns I do make. The byzantine (top two pics) are made with 18 gauge sterling wire, both round and twisted. I placed a dime next to the unfinished work and added a couple of rings so you can see the size I'm working with. The 1x3 pattern in the bottom pic, which by the way I apologize for the bad photos, is made with 22 and 20 gauge sterling wire. These rings are much smaller and take more time and concentration to complete. Again I used a dime to
see the compared size of the rings and the chain.

16 gauge sterling Byzantine Mens Bracelet

 This is a very hefty bracelet and as you can see it weighs 48.1 grams of sterling silver. It's about one and three quarters oz. of silver.

 I made it big enough to fit a man's wrist, however it can be reduced if need be. The hand made jump rings are both plain and twisted. If you look closely you'll see the twisted rings are in threes and form a square rope.

 This is a close up of the closure. I enjoy making the S hook closures because I think its important to be able to put it on your own wrist and this style of closure allows you to do that. I even made Bruce put it on and he had no problem hooking it himself.

I took this photo with the #2 pencil just to give you some idea of the width.

Chain Maille Bracelet

 This bracelet is the result of my need to focus on
something structured, repetitious, and tedious! Sometimes in life there are sad or stressful things going on that we can't control so my way of dealing with my emotions is to find a way that I can remove myself mentally and produce something at the same time. Viola.

Oh look where those branches ended up!!

This pendent is 3 inches long from bail to the point of the hanging stone. I cut the bear from heavy
gauge sterling and soldered it to a larger back plate. I blackened the edges, as well as the
bear to accent the top and balance out the whole piece. I soldered the branches to either side
of the tube bail. I should note here that I tried placing the branches reversely, however they looked
more like antlers! I guess that would have been ok if the cut out was a deer. Moving on; I used one
of my favorite techniques to hang the Mookaite cabachon from the bear. Although it's not technically
a hinge, it works like one and allows the bottom weight to move with your body. Thanks Ed for helping me figure that out. So the Mookaite, which is a lovely stone mined in Australia, and is said to
strengthen the immune system, was cut and cabbed by a fellow jewelry maker. I set it in sterling and left an outer edge which I blackened to relate to the bear above.
  I'm not in love with the commercial Omega chain I hung this piece from. I'm now beginning to think I will use brown leather cord with sterling closures instead. Once again, I would love to hear what you think. Go to the comments icon here or email me. Thanks for looking!
  This piece will be for sale this summer. I may place it on Etsy...not sure.

The creative process includes many changes

 Here are the major changes I juggled around for weeks. The top two images here are what I thought I wanted and working from my sketches, I can see they too have alterations. My original sketches show a fish above the branches rather than the straight tube.

 The cut out of the Heron on the back has stayed relatively the same. The only change as you might be able to see below are the hand etched grasses near the bottom.















I just took these images to show the differences from the original piece. The center silver bead moves between the two small posts. I'm making the chain and including black onyx beads for accent. I believe the new design is simple enough to allow this type of chain. I had planned to use a commercial chain which would run though the tube (above), however with the design changes, I once more find myself creating my own chain.

I'm happy with the results. What do you think?