Ice Resin Blog Hop-Meet the Sprite!

Hello! I'm glad you're here! I wanted to take a moment on this first day of the Ice Resin Blog Hop to introduce myself and my creations to you-all. I've been beading for over 20 years. It started with disassembling and reassembling store-bought jewelry to suit my wardrobe and taste and grew from there! I learn mostly by doing as I create most often from an idea and bringing into the material world. The materials bring their own influences into play as the creation grows.
I love working all manner of materials and particularly those that can be recycled, repurposed or are beyond the realm of what most would expect to find in jewelry or art.

Here is the first photo of what I wanted to share with you today:


I was already intrigued with Ice Resin when I picked these Doorways up at a bead show last year. The doorways sparked my imagination, reminding me of entrances in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Ring series. Doorways that materialize under full moon-light, doorways into places of mystery and adventure!
Though the materials I used are simple,(Ice Resin and glitter)I wanted the effect to be as three-dimensional as possible. I mixed and poured two separate batches of resin as well as applying two layers of glitter.

The second photo is a prototype of of a Steampunk bangle bracelet.

This is my first attempt with this type of mold and I learned a lot about both the resin and the mold.
Those are old watch parts scattered throughout the mold. I think this will be fun to play with in the future with other effects such as pigments. perhaps sanding the resin to create contrasting matte and clear surfaces and so forth.

And the last few photos I wanted to share are part of my Popcap Pendant series.
This is an ongoing series that merges my interest in recycling, upcycling and using unusual materials with whimsical and quality jewelry art. The popcaps come from beverages that myself and my friends drink, so this is another peek into my studio life!


I cleaned the popcap, filled it with green glitter and two tiny pinecones that I brought home from my journey this summer in Montana and Ice Resin. I was amazed by the tiny details of these diminutive pinecones! They reminded me that there is great beauty in even the smallest parts of nature.


The second Popcap Pendant is filled with gold glitter surrounding a hand-carved bone Moon face. This face has been with me for quite some time, waiting for the perfect setting and I'm pleased with how this turned out! You may notice the piece of glitter in the center of the forehead. This was a happy accident when the resin was first poured, and reminded me of some of the Bali masks and costumes I'd seen pictures of. However, the glitter moved away as the resin followed the curve of the face! So, I hovered over this as the resin settled and periodically moved a piece of glitter back to that spot as well as arranging the glitter surrounding the face. I also applied a second coat of resin after the first had settled to make certain that the face was entirely encased.

All of the Popcap Pendants were then drilled by my hand after the resin cured and the jumprings added.
Both of these Popcap Pendants will be in my Artfire studio shortly.

I hope this was a intriguing and interesting visit and I hope to see you again tomorrow!
Don't forget to keep check out the other fabulous artists on the Hop!!
Their links are below for easy clicking!

Molly Alexander http://beautifullybrokenme.blogspot.com/

Ro Bhrun http://robruhn.blogspot.com/

Karen Burns http://web.me.com/vintagefindings/Vintage_Findings/Blog/Blog.html


Keecia Frazee Deveney http://www.lemoncholys.blogspot.com/

Mary Jane Dodd http://mairedodd.blogspot.com/

Melanie Earthenwood http://earthenwood-beads.blogspot.com

Shea Fragoso http://www.whathappensnext.typepad.com/

Kerin Gale http://remnantsofolde.com/posts/

Vickie Hallmark http://fiberartglass.blogspot.com/

Jess Italia Lincoln http://www.vintaj.com/wpblog/

Jill Liles http://livngoodjewelry.blogspot.com/

Heather Powers http://www.humblebeads.blogspot.com/" and http://www.artbeadscene.blogspot.com/"

Jenny Barnett Rohrs http://www.crafttestdummies.com/

Stephanie Rubiano http://www.soigathered.typepad.com/

Lisa Sommerville http://www.lisasomerville.com/2010/02/kitchen-sink-stamps-altered-jewelry.html

Kim Taylor http://sassycrafter.blogspot.com/


And the fine folks at Objects and Elements (Design Team) and Ice Resin's creator: Susan Lenart Kazmer!

Jen Cshman http://www.objectsandelements.typepad.com/jencushman/

Deryn Mentock http://somethingsublime.typepad.com/

Kristen Robinson http://kristenrobinson.typepad.com/

Barbe Saint John http://barbesaintjohn.blogspot.com/

Susan Lenart Kazmer http://susan-lenart-kazmer.blogspot.com/