Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all.

Years ago when the kids were younger we got a few little cacti and popped them in a terracotta bowl. It was something for the kids to grow. They lost interest in their little 'garden' about a week later but the cacti have continued to grow over the years, surviving on the water I give them sporadically but mostly thriving on neglect. I've often thought to rehouse them in a bigger pot but if I get too close they warn me off with their spikes. That and the redback spiders that reside there ensure I  keep my distance- they don't seem to mind the prickles.

 The biggest cactus thanked me for the rations of water I've provided by coming out in this beautiful white flower on the last day of 2010 - it wasn't over thankful though because by the end of the first day of 2011 the flower had drooped and wilted and no amount of talking, attention or water was going to bring it back!

What great timing -  that it's short 24 hour lifespan saw the old year out and welcomed the New Year in!

Pin It

A time for reflection - where the heck did 2010 go??

As 2010 comes to an end and I reflect on the year - all I can think of is - heck - that went fast!   It may have dragged for others but I'll bet they are young - Pretty much  for anyone my age ( I'll be coy!) I expect that it flew by!
Creatively 2010 has been a 'so so' year for me.  I've had many great ideas for designs but in reality many pieces have bombed - Firescale - how I hate thee! I've unintentionally melted a few great ideas and I somehow wonder how I managed to solder anything successfully sometimes.  My enameling has been a bit hit and miss but I loved the class I took earlier this year and am looking forward to experimenting more with powdered glass!

On a positive note, I redid my button pendant in 2 sizes. It's evolved very subtlety - but I think they work as well as the original which is currently with my daughter on her backpacking adventures around Europe and the UK and is apparently collecting the occasional compliment when she wears it. .

I was chuffed when, after sending some work to my retail stockist the other week  that  these pieces and another piece sold immediately :)  So, all in all maybe 2010 wasn't too bad after all :)

Anyway, I've decided that for 2011 that I'm going back to basics. I'm going to revisit the techniques I learned as a beginner - piercing, hammering, riveting and yes even soldering, maybe re do a few pieces that were successful, maybe reinvent them a little, but generally hone in on technique. I might even do a few step by step projects from the magazines I subscribe to consolidate the re learning process.

And to finish off the year creatively I made these two pendants. The simple clean lines that I love - no soldering just simple metal forming. I was playing around  to see if I could make a mobius ring  inspired by my friend Annie's love of all things mobius. The ring bit didn't work for me but I loved twisting the metal and these were the happy result.

I'm feeling very positive about it all.........Roll on 2011 ...Happy New Year to you all........ Pin It

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Pin It

I should be so Lucky - Lucky , Lucky, Lucky!

Yep, not Kylie Minogue but me! (Aussie reference for my US readers!)
 Today the postie delivered a package - I won a prize on a blog giveaway and today it arrived! Thanks so much Jacquie :)

Jacquie makes the most wonderfully luscious Body Products. My prize was the 'Energy' Body Butter from her Empire of Delight collection. And receiving this was a delight. First, the cool Art work on the Post Pak - I'll bet that made the postie smile, then the wrapping which made me smile, then the product packaging which was so classy and stylish and finally the Body Butter which smelt divine. I put some on my hands right away and now several hours later I'm in awe of how soft & smooth my usually wrinkled housewife hands feel.

Jacquie has an Etsy Shop and a web site which she is currently revamping, so check out her blog for updates.
Empire Of Delight sell at selected markets around Perth too so make sure you keep an eye out for her - she has a huge following locally for her awesome bath bombs too. Pin It

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree............

Each year when I unpack the tree,  I look at the box and silently wonder why my tree looks nothing like the picture on the box. The photo on the box is a lush Canadian faux Pine with dense branches full of greenery. On my tree the branches are not dense or lush and I can see the wall behind through all the gaps.

 

I muse on which family got the got the lovely Canadian Pine that was supposed to be packed in my box ;)

I was thinking about getting a real tree this year instead and found this article online about real versus fake trees. Real trees come out way in front despite the longevity of a fake tree - apparently fake trees are replaced every 6 to 9 years. Using that logic then, if I keep my tree out of landfill  for longer than the average 9 years then I'm reducing it's carbon footprint a bit more to try and even up the score.
So for the sake of the planet it's here to oversee many more Christmases with us. It's already done it's 9 years of duty as I have photos of the kids sitting in front of it in 2001 when we got our first digital camera.

Besides it brushes up pretty well when it's all dressed up.....and it doesn't drop pine needles either...

 

Pin It

Pickle Break out!

The other day I made up some pickle with a mix of vinegar & salt in a little container. I had a copper piece to pickle and I didn't want to use the same solution that I use for my silver jewellery.

I used the satay stick to stir the solution and the plastic forks to get my jewellery piece in and out and when I'd finished I just rested them across the container and walked away. Today I walked past and noticed this rather disturbing but none the less pretty scene.

Little did I know the pickle had aspirations to be a science experiment and would use these implements to transform and attempt an escape  :)

PS: for non  jewellery makers -  I'm not talking about the yummy crunchy green things we eat  but a solution to remove fire scale after soldering! Pin It

Quirky Earring Displays

The tardy blogger is back to show how I've been spending some of my time lately :)

I made a couple of pairs of Stud earrings and it occurred to me how hard it is to display such tiny pieces of jewellery so they aren't overlooked.
I accidentally came across The Graphics Fairy and loved all the vintage images there, I'm a big fan of the old fashioned black and white line drawings and lucked out to find this Phrenology head Image.

After playing with it  in Photoshop and Publisher, this is the result. I'm no expert in photoshop, but luckily my son was at hand to help me when I got "stuck".

The cards are two layers so one earring goes on the front and the other on the reverse side. The second photo shows the cards at an angle so you can see the mechanics of it all. They're about 8cm tall.
 

And just for fun, on the reverse side of the card, I substituted my own  words. (Click on the first pic to enlarge.)

Not actually sure if I'll ever use these, maybe one day at an indoor craft show (they're not windproof!) Either way they were fun to make and I learnt a few new Photoshop skills.

Pin It

Button It Up!

I've had rather a constructive Sunday Morning today. I got up early with the intention of wasting it reading the Sunday Papers. But alas, it was not to be. The delivery people had thrown the paper under my son's car and there was no way I could reach it without getting on my hands and knees and crawling under the car. Given that I've got a dodgy knee  at the moment that wasn't going to happen, so I retreated back into the house for a sulk and a cuppa.
Instead of sulking though, after my cuppa, I got started on an idea I had been toying with for a jewellery piece. A few hours later this was the result - A Sterling Silver Faux Button Pendant! Hand fabricated and Hand sewn!

Of course, now i have lots of  other ideas for haberdashery related jewellery items, but they'll have to wait as Murray retrieved the paper and I've been catching up on all the non news instead.
Don't know about any one else, but in our house we spend a couple of hours reading the Sunday Paper and when we're finished we announce "There's nothing in this Paper - I don't know why we get it!!  Pin It

All Fired Up!

Happy to finally put up a blog post to show something I've made. Creatively this year has been a bit of a non event for me, so it's great to be back into it again.
This term I enrolled at an enamelling class down at my favourite place of learning The Fremantle Arts Centre.
I've done 3 classes so far and I'm just loving it. Great teacher (Jacquie Sprogoe), great classmates and a relaxed, informative and enjoyable class.
I've nothing to show off from the class just yet - I'm doing a cloisonne piece at the moment and it's a work in progress but today, inspired by my lessons,  I fired up my kiln at home, (yes that poor neglected piece of equipment I purchased last year!) and had a play.
Just did a couple of simple sifted pieces but it gave me a bit of a feel for the firing times, how thick to put the layers on etc,  so all in all a good afternoons work and I realized I don't have to be scared of my kiln - it's actually quite user friendly! Using the kiln in class has given me a bit of confidence I think.

Here's the results - first one opaque white over copper and the second one was an unintentional but pleasant surprise with opaque white over opaque black. I've oxidised the edges of the copper too as I love the look of the blackish border around the pieces.

Pin It

Bali

In July we had the pleasure of a week's holiday in Bali.
Aussies, particularly those of us from the West are very spoiled in that it's a mere 3.5 hours flying time to Bali. We can be in a tropical paradise in the same travel time that that it would take to drive down to our State's beautiful South West Wine Region.  That and the fact that there are in excess of 60 Perth/Bali flights per week make it a popular international travel destination when we're not travelling locally.

Jewellery making readers of this blog know Bali as the place that those intricate Granulated and Filigree Sterling Silver Beads come from. And while Bali is the home to many talented Silversmiths it is so much more.

 

It's a place of contrasts - it's a place where you can trip over the uneven pavements and jump over the open drainage holes while making your way into the latest designer stores, or you can find yourself bargaining vigorously for a pair of "faux" designer sunglasses that end up costing a mere $3 in the markets.

Left: Gridlock Bali Style   Right: Kuta Roadside Temple

It's a place where you can pay $10 for a glass of wine in the hotel or opt for a cool Bintang Beer straight from an Esky for under $2 from a local beach bar while sitting under the shade of a tree on Kuta beach.

Left: Under the Shade At Kuta Beach   Right: Legian Beach

I looked out from my 4th floor balcony of the hotel and looked over thatched rooftops of people's homes. But it's not all shopping, eating and drinking. Away from the shops, and the motor bikes and scooters, Bali has beautiful countryside and culture to explore - Kintamani & Ubud and lots more.

View from our 4th Floor Hotel Balcony - The Haven, Seminyak

We took a day trip to the Ubud Area, renowned for it's Art Markets. I bought this beaded Wicker Basket. The bead weaving is done in 2 drop peyote stitch. This was a stitch I enjoyed in my Bead weaving days.Having bought this,  I was thrilled and horrified at the same time. Thrilled to own a piece of this work (I got it as a pressie for my daughter) but sad at the low price we paid for the hours of work that this would have taken. We paid 100,000 rupiahs which is about $12AUD.  Having said that, our driver said we paid an OK price (as in weren't ripped off) but 80,000  rups would have been better!

 

Bali's a great holiday with lots to see & do and lovely countryside and culture to explore but by far, the greatest asset Bali has is the Balinese people :) Pin It