Earring Revival

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I’ve largely spent this week reviving my earring batch which was pretty pitiful after the holidays. I’m sorry for my family and friends who have been inundated with my requests to “try on” a pair so I could see how they look. Even though I’ve had pieced ears twice, I still can’t wear earrings; so I have to look for models. I guess I’m going to have to create some type of fake ears here in the studio so I can quit bugging people. Hmm . . . I wonder if I could make a model out of clay . . . ?

You can see from the photo that the bulk of these are hearts which were requested by one of the stores. I also made something in copper that’s supposed to resemble calla lilies and there’s another unknown shape in sterling silver at the bottom left. I thought the latter shape was a trisket, but it seems I’m wrong and must have invented that name since I’m not finding it on the internet. Do any of you know what this is called?

The above picture shows earrings that look better on that laying flat. I thought I’d call them “dancing feet”, but I’ve yet to figure out how to explain the pair on the right. I guess those have two left feet!

I often feel that I either have two left hands when I’m working or that I don’t have enough hands to hold everything I need. Some days I wish for a real human who would willingly lend a skilled hand and work in tandem beside me at the bench. Alas, I’d probably talk to the person too much and neither of us would get anything done. I guess I’ll have to stick with my own two hands and do the best I can.

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Gifting

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I’ve been busily adding inventory to my etsy shop this week. I don’t usually have much in this since I mainly sell to boutiques, but I’m currently at the end of that season, finished with all the shows and thought I would do a bit more with etsy. You can see the listings at the side of this site.

I’ve had a couple of neat challenges this week from people who saw my work at a local San Marcos, TX gift store, Paper Bear. One person requested some earrings similar to a pendant in my display at the store. These were a challenge, but I enjoyed trying to make her idea come to life.

It’s hard to get a sense of them from the photo, but they are copper ovals that have copper stars soldered to them. I set small denim lapis stones in a premade bezel in the middle of the star. There are small silver balls at the side of each star. The challenge, as always, was trying to get the earrings to match. I hope the person likes these.

Another person asked me to wrap some rocks from her family vacation. I thought that was a really neat gift idea and hope her family members will appreciate her idea. I’m not showing those since I don’t want to spoil any surprises.

I think it is interesting to brainstorm with customers regarding what they want made. Often, they can’t quite put into words what they want, but a wave of the hand and a few drawings often brings their ideas to light. The fun part is seeing the pleasure when their own ideas comes to fruition. I’m sure they will have a story to tell when the gift is presented.

Gifting . . . isn’t it fun?

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Forming with Folds

Filed under: Bracelets, Color, Creativity, Earrings, Metal Work, Pendants, Techniques, Torch Work | Back to: Homepage

Those of us who love to learn new things sometimes move to new avenues for this too soon. Either the initial fun wears off, something new calls our name, or time for the learning simply runs out. Often for me, I move on to something new before completely exploring the myriad of possibilities for creative development in the existing arena. This may have been the case with fold forming, a technique  developed by Charles Lewton-Brain. “Mr. Fold Form’s” book, Foldforming, contains a wealth of information on how to construct various shapes from metal; yet, it doesn’t show as many completed pieces of jewelry as I would like to see.

Frequent and long time readers may recall that fold forming was the new technique I chose to develop last December and January during the winter lull between completion of the Fall products and the development of the Spring designs. Unfortunately, I may have moved too quickly from fold forming last year and back into rapid production for my customers. Also, I “closed” on the technique partly because I couldn’t figure out new things to do with it. I chose not to face the somewhat discouraging struggle that forces one into creative generation. I currently have renewed interest in fold forming due to a couple of happenings. Two of my lucky friends took a recent workshop with Kim St. Jean at the Texas Beadfest and their discussion of the class helped add to my refinement of the technique. Also, I gave a demonstration on the technique at a recent gathering of wire workers. Therefore, I had to practice.

The trick for me with fold forming has been trying to make something besides a leaf that would comfortably work as a piece of jewelry. First, I practiced some different ways to hammer on a few leaves and learned how to better ruffle the edges. Then I created a couple of copper cuff bracelets. I like using a long diagonal fold to start the bracelet design and following this with appropriate texture. I quickly learned that it’s important to begin with a longer and wider piece of metal than the size of the anticipated product. I folded the metal first and then cut the final bracelet shape. When I annealed the metal bracelets with a torch during the fold forming process, beautiful colors appeared on the pieces.

I’ve also been experimenting with a star shape shown in Newton-Brain’s book. First I made several pairs of earrings and then I created a larger star and used it as a pendant on a strand of coral. I gave the pendant a liver of suphur bath, tumbled it and then used the torch on it again. It adopted a very rich color.

Now the struggle is to try to develop some ideas of my own for fold formed shapes. Hopefully, I’ll have the time this year to stick with fold forming until I’ve either developed some new ideas or convinced myself that I CAN’T come up with anything new. Wish me luck.

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Suddenly, It Was Quiet

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My husband and I have enjoyed two weeks here with our daughter’s family, including a two year old, and five days with my son and his fiancé plus Daisy Mae, their dog. For those of you with a large family, this probably doesn’t seem like many people, but for us, it was a very pleasant house full. We are fortunate that we all get along so well and enjoy many of the same things. I looked in the den one evening and saw five adults on either computers or IPads and the two year old on an IPad also. I was the lone non-tech person since I was working with wire on a bracelet.

At other times, it wasn’t so quiet with either Daisy Mae, the Blue Tick Beagle, baying at something outdoors or my grandson working on his high pitched scream. Thankfully, it was a happy scream, albeit shrill.

Then, by ten o’clock Saturday morning, it was suddenly quiet again. Today, things are back to normal with the only loud sounds coming from my hammer on the bench block. I’ve completed a good deal of whacking and am hurrying as I prepare for a show tomorrow evening. Here some new earrings that just hatched. These are made from small squares of copper sheet that I annealed and thin rolled, starting at one corner. I used a hole punch on the bottom and now they remind me of faralitoes. These little lanterns are the focus of one of my favorite children’s books, The Farolitoes of Christmas, by Anaya. You might visualize these as little tin lights wherein a candle can shine through the holes.

I made a similar pair a couple of weeks ago and they left home before I took a picture. That pair didn’t have the holes, but were wrapped in half round sterling wire.

I was hoping to show you the texture on this second pair of earrings, but it’s difficult to see in the photo below. My friend gave me a new little hammer which I happily used to tap dents all over these discs which I then domed.

Today, I finished the cascade of beads and mixed metals shown below. I’ve made this necklace before and have always said I wouldn’t make another one. Alas . . . I gave in. It’s quite time consuming with all hand made chain and jump rings. Then, as you can see, each bead is attached with an individual head pin and wrapped loop. I thought I was finished with this twice, but then kept going back and adding more beads. Today, I’ve promised myself that I WILL NOT add any more beads! It’s going in the traveling display case right now! I hope this blog entry finds you relaxed after a quiet (or noisy) Thanksgiving weekend and that when the real world calls you back Monday morning, you’ll be ready for it.

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A Touch of Silver

Filed under: Creativity, Earrings, Necklaces, Rings, soldering, Techniques, Wire Work | Back to: Homepage

I’m trying to get braver about the wire and metals I’m using. While copper is my mainstay, a few of my artist friends seem to be pulling me more into silver. I’m not easy to pull! In fact, if you asked them, I feel certain the word “stubborn” would be used to describe my lack of action. Lately, however, a few of the boutiques I serve have asked “can you do that in silver?” My quick response to the owners is usually, “I can try.” The silver has turned out to be a reasonably easy alternative for the designs and the pain of what I paid for the wire and sheet metal is eased when the silver jewelry sells relatively quickly.

I’ve tried to approach the use of silver as I learned to do in my Creative Problem Solving workshops by first stating a question. In what ways might I use sterling silver wire and sheet metal to create pleasing designs that are still affordable? There are a number of criteria inherent in that question including using as little material as possible while still producing a good design. The criteria create nice parameters within which to work. If I develop an idea that doesn’t fit the criteria, then I stop and revise it or throw it out. So far things are working reasonably well within this plan.

The pieces in the photos below show several new silver pieces that all required a little soldering. All of these were small enough that the cost was low and they stayed within the parameters for my problem solving. The earrings might have stayed in place without solder, but I wanted the waves in each direction to remain touching. They were bit tricky to solder.

Rings seemed an appropriate project since they don’t require much wire. The original ring with the heart was designed by my friend at Sherry’s Jewels http://Sherrys-Jewels.com. I made a variation that is adjustable and added a little solder to connect the loose end of the heart to the band.

The next ring design, shown with two variations is composed of four wires, each of which I soldered into a circle before placing them together. Each wire is about 1/2 inch shorter in length than the wire outside it. I then fitted each circle of wire inside the other and soldered in appropriate places. This one is adjustable as well. The one on the right is an overlapping version while both ends of the rings are meant to show on the left one.

I used some left over wire to make the wire ring for the leaf necklace. The ring was soldered and then shaped and textured. The leaf is made from the foldforming technique mentioned in a previous post.

I consider this type necklace a collage since the dangles are an eclectic collection or things. This one also features a copper wire dragonfly and hangs from leather.

I have found that silver wire handles a little differently than copper and due to its lower melting point I have to be more careful with the torch. Yet, I think practice will work these things out and soon I’ll be braver about the size and cost of what I’m making.

Speaking of silver . . . I regret to inform you that I found a tiny bit in my hair the other day. I’m fortunate to not yet have to color away any gray and found that little silver on the side snipped right away with the scissors. If you see me out and about one day and note a small bald spot on my head, you’ll understand what happened.

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Loopy Loo

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Notice that the title does NOT include any person’s name. I would not want to be accused of calling anyone “loopy” nor would I choose to be called that although those of you who know me might say it occasionally fits my personality.

I finally wrote the tutorial for the Loopy Loo Bracelet design. You see this pictured in sterling silver below and I’ve been making this bracelet a while. At the insistence of a good friend I finally decided to share it and offer the tutorial on my etsy shop as you see in the listings on the right.

  While writing the tutorial, I realized that I had not fully explored the potential of this design. I used the SCAMPER creative thinking tool previously mentioned in another entry and tried new things with the loops. I “minified” the design using lighter gauge wire and a smaller cylinder for the loops. This resulted in both a smaller more delicate bracelet plus a new necklace armature. Although the one in the photo is medium sized, I also like the tiny loops I put in an earlier necklace in the second picture. Hmm . . . I seem to be stuck on purple!

Thinking again about SCAMPER induced possibilities, I “modified” the shape of the loops a couple of different ways. The first turned out to be a pendant where I flattened the circle of loops to frame a bead.

  I also turned them a bit differently and made earrings.

I made these from 20 gauge wire and feel they would be better in a heavier gauge. They aren’t holding their shape as securely as I would like. I do, however, think they are a good design and I’m going to redo them.

Who knows what this Loopy Loo design will bring next? I’m pleased to be working with it again and hope to exhaust its possibilities before moving on. Any ideas????

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Heavy Metal

Filed under: Creativity, Diversions, Earrings, Metal Work, Necklaces, Pendants, Philosophy | Back to: Homepage

The creative mind is a funny thing (not funny “ha, ha”, but funny “unexpected”). My day started with an early morning walk. Early for this artist is 9 AM when it’s already good and hot in South Texas. The moment I went out the front door, I spied my mother’s cat, Callie, who has lived with us for ten years. She’s a beautiful little calico who was lounging, full body, in the bird bath which was empty due to our drought. Can you picture her beautiful black, white and yellow body against the white concrete of the bath?

As I started down the hill, I was accosted by the loud sound of one of the hawks that is homing here at the ranch this summer. We’re not talking about a sweet little bird chirp here. We’re talking about a loud “caw, caw, caw” in a screeching tone as the hawk circled my head. I wasn’t sure whether I should run back to the house or hide under a tree. Eventually the hawk went on and I proceeded down the hill.

At the bottom of the hill and on down the road between pastures the wind brought a cool mist from the irrigation machine that was watering the land. It had that marvelous clean smell to it and reminded me of fresh rain. It was cooling for a while, but soon thereafter, my own mist was dripping off my brow as I trudged on in the heat.

The sights and sounds of the ranch engulfed me as I continued walking, encountering little birds, startled calves and lizards swishing through the grass. Just as I was thinking how pleasant it all was, I got to the top of the hill and there stood four of the bulls. They really are beauties in this own right, but the final sound I heard on my walk was the splat, splat as the business of those guys hit the ground. What a bummer!

Long ago, Dr. Sidney Parnes, taught me that one of the best ways to get creative ideas is to engage the senses. From him, I learned to bring fragrant tea or other natural aromas into the creative thinking process. I remember a tactile experience I provided for graduate students who, with eyes tightly shut, gently held a large strawberry in the very middle of one palm while touching it with one finger of the other hand. It sounds crazy, but they did some great descriptive writing following this experience.

With this in mind, I sat at the workbench and let the results of the morning walk wash over me. I thought I might produce something organic and natural looking, but I did not! I ended up with heavy metal jewelry. The pieces below started as foldformed metal and ended with chain. Even though I tried to put pretty beads on the pieces, they just didn’t work. How could the sights and sounds of nature drive me to this?

The piece on the left is a pendant hanging from leather. It started as a rectangular piece of metal and just kept changing. I used a ceramic bead on the leather.

The earrings below were planned as leaves, but that chain just kept getting on them and I finally gave in. They have a nice little swish to them and I’m pleased that they aren’t noisy little fellows.

So here’s the question. How can a morning walk end up as heavy metal jewelry? The answer lies in the nature of creative thought which often erupts from experiences. In this case the experiences were sensory. Those sensory experiences can open the artist to possibilities that were previously blocked. The idea/art produced may have no seeming relation to the experience; yet they are connected. I think it’s important to remember that when ideas cease to flow or your muse has gone home, there are many things you can do to find your way back home. The trick is to be open when creativity knocks on your noggin. A closed mind bears no art! 

You see . . . creativity really is a funny thing!

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Earrings Galore

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When a customer told me this week that she was out of earrings, I realized that I was too. That started my earring frenzy and allowed me to help my customers stock up.

The first photo shows new disc earrings with turquoise and hammered copper wire dangles. I also made this design with coral dangles and think lapis will adorn the next pair.

The leaves on the second pair were made using foldforming discussed in a previous blog entry.

I think I’ve shown bottle cap earrings previously, but all of a sudden this week I needed 8 more pair. I’m lucky to have a good supply of bottle caps provided by by son. These came all the way from California.

The ‘S” earrings are self explanatory.  I also make a big “S” necklace that hangs from a leather chord.   

I think the design for the pair below, made entirely from wire has possibilities for many other designs. I put a three leaf clover in one pair and hung dangles in another. These are made from 18 gauge wire.    

I made several other pairs and found that the assembly line approach worked best in churning them out. I made 10 discs, then 20 bead dangles and 10 wire dangles before assembling the first pair. The same approach worked for making numerous copies of the other styles. Finally, I made about 20 plus sets of ear wires shown on some of the pictured pairs. When I made the ear wires I tried to pick up one tool and use it on all the wires before going on to the next step. For example, I turned a loop on each of the wires before going to the next step. It seemed to expedite things, but I surely did get sick of making ear wires! When I finished those ear wire I wondered why in the world I don’t just buy them at the store.

Now I know what I can sit around and do when I’m bored – make ear wires! I just need to find out how to get bored.

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Upcycled Cans

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Designing with cans, reminds me of my childhood. In my small town neighborhood in Medford, Oklahoma,  there were no fences; so the backyards sprawled from one to the next without interruption. All ages and sizes of children often played “kick the can” at dusk and I remember that it was great fun. Have you ever played? We actually did not use drink cans, but usually had something larger. I learned quickly that you really should pay attention to the condition of the can. Since I played barefoot, if I kicked a rusted can on a rough point, I came home with a bleeding foot. Yet, this did not deter me from playing again and again. I don’t remember the rules of the game, but it had something to do with running and hiding while someone else counted. Then as the person looked for the hiders, one of us could sneak up and kick the can. Then it all started again. Occasionally, I hid so well that when I finally came out everyone else had gone home. Bummer!

The earrings pictured here are made from Coke, Sprite and V-8 cans.   I appreciate that these are lightweight enough to be cut with paper cutters designed for scrapbooking. I’ve found that it is important to use the flattest parts of the can in order to get them into the cutter. Thus far, I’ve been riveting the can pieces onto copper discs, but feel there are many other possibilities.

The earrings on the left seem appropriate for Memorial Day weekend or the Fourth of July. Although the beads appear purple in the photo they are actually blue.

The colors on the V-8 can are more subdued and don’t show up as well on copper discs as shown below.  If I wasn’t so cheap, I would try them on sterling silver. But, I AM SO cheap!

I haven’t yet put the earwires in the pair on the right. I think they might also make interesting necklace charms or small pendants.

I’ll continue to play with cans a bit more and especially want to layer several flowers on one disc. I think there are numerous possibilities for some fun summer pieces.

As for any other “play” with these, I’m afraid my days of “kick the can” are over. Now, the freedom I found playing this game is slower paced, but comes from creative expression.

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The Wheels on the Bike Go Round and Round. . .

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. . .round and round, round and round, the wheels on the b . . . oops, I guess that song was really about a bus! Well, today, it’s about bikes! I’ve been playing with little wire bikes that some friends and I accidentally created while manipulating wire one day. Each bike is made from a single piece of wire.

The earrings were easy to do since the three dimensional shape (the handle bars) doesn’t create any problems on them. These are really free swingers and hang pretty long. I’m thinking of doing them in colored artistic wire as a “fun” summer look.

The bike links caused considerable consternation at the design table. You can see that they do not want to lie flat and one of them prefers to be in the “ready to go round and round” position.

Finally, no bike series would be complete without the bike that E.T. rode. After all, didn’t it help save him and get him home? This little riveted charm above was planned to show his upward flight when the bike left the ground in the movie. This will either be a small pendant or a charm on a chaos necklace. I’ll try to post the finished piece when it is complete.

I’m still playing with the bike shape; so stay tuned for an update and other ways to use the bikes. Please add your own suggestions in the comments section. I’d enjoy hearing your ideas.

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