Whimsy Wednesday and Fini Friday!

Hello Everyone!!!
This is a one-size-fits-all post for this week as I'll be celebrating the 4th of July weekend at CONvergence
I've two creations to share with you today! Both are awesomely whimsical and a bit geeky and are finally done after swimming about in the primordial soup of creation for a while...
Both focals are 4GB" Flash drives that I have "artified" (my own word for it!) with hand-coloured resin, old watch parts and other nifty stuff!
Let me show you!!!
First, the Whimsy!!
Title: 21st Century Punk Fairy Accessory
Ingredients:4GB Flash drive, cloth flower and butterfly, Swarovski crystal, Vintage German glass, hand-coloured resin, Czech and other glass, recycled chain, aluminum, metal.


I even hung a little chain on the side so as to secure the cap in case it falls off!!! AND you can use that little clasp at the bottom of the cap to hook the cap to the chain up above when using the flash drive!! The cleverness abounds!!! *grin*


Title: FlashBack
Ingredients: 4GB flash drive, old watch parts, sterling silver, Swarovski crystal, hand-coloured resin, glass, recycled chain, metal.


Annnddd one more view.. again with the cleverness that is the security chain and clasp of secure-ness!


Fell in love with one or both of these? Know someone one or both of these would be perfect for?
These will be for adoption at the CONvergence Art Show starting Thursday!

Maybe I'll see you there!

Fini Friday!

It's Friday!!!!
And the weather is Beeeaaautiful today!! YAY!!! A day without rain and only somewhat cloudy here and there is most welcome!!!

I have a creation to share today that is whimsical, eco-friendly and has been a while in the making....
Inspiration struck as I was leafing through a catalog some time ago and saw a round sterling silver pebble that had the words "Good Witch" cast on one side and "Bad Witch" cast on the other side. It was strung through the center so that it could be rotated according the wearer's mood.
Outright copying something is boring as well as a Bad Idea for many reasons.. but I wanted to play with the amusing idea and perhaps figure out a way to put my own twist on it.
And I have!!!

Title: Good Witch, Bad Witch
Ingredients: recycled laptop keyboard keys, sterling silver, hand-finished brass(USA), aluminum, lead-free pewter.



The Tree of Life pendant is actually the clasp and the hook at the bottom right hooks into it, thus creating a never-ending circle! (You might have to click on the photo for a better view...)
Switching from one mood or statement to another is as easy as sliding the necklace part way 'round your neck!!!

Isn't that clever?
I think so!

I hope the rest of your weekend is as amusing and I'll see you next week!

P.S. This will be for adoption at the CONvergence Art Show next Thursday!! Just sayin'!

Whimsy Wednesday!! Ice Cream!!!

Hello Hello!!!
I have a treat to show you-all today!
I was fortunate enough to win a guest spot on the Earthenwood Design Team and have the opportunity to play with one of Melanie's Ice Cream Cone pendants and matching round link!
So now you know the part about the treat!!
With such an awesome set of beads to work with, I wanted to create something very special and very summery.

I naturally tend towards a vintage or earthy feel with much of Melanie's work and this creation is no exception. I found the vintage-inspired filigree pinwheel and Sun link and knew that the design was starting to take shape! I've never been good at leaving well-enough alone, so I decided I would paint hand-coloured resin on both the Sun link and the pinwheel.
The Sun link is painted a sunny yellow, naturally! Take a peek at it with the delicious Ice Cream Cone pendant suspended from a wonderfully fluid spiral connector!


I'm also not one to necessarily take the easy way out and besides, who ever saw a pinwheel that was all one colour?! I decided that I would paint 3 different colours on that pinwheel! That was a little tricky, but I think the end result turned out fabulously!!
Here! Let me show you!


I wanted to show the next step as the creation was growing into completion...

The marvelous Ice Cream Cone and coloured Sun link are in the center, accented by that nifty spiral. The matching ceramic link to the left. I decided to pair that with a hook and use it as the creation's clasp! The coloured pinwheel is on the right with some dainty glass drops that reminded me of melted ice cream drops.

The rest of the creation grew together around the central idea of SUMMER! and what that means to me...
To evoke the light and airy feeling of summer, I used a vibrant green Fairy ribbon as the neck cord.
To add whimsy and yet more sweetness, a Venetian glass heart and green ladybug (for luck!) became linky-connectors.
And to sweetly top the creation off, I added Swarovski crystal danglies suspended in front of the pinwheel as well as a hand-distressed brass star.
And so here we are at the finished creation!
Title: The Sweetness of Summer
Ingredients: Earthenwood Ice Cream Cone Pendant and matching Link, hand-coloured links (with non-toxic resin), Venetian glass, Swarovski crystal, hand-finished brass and brass filigree, Fairy ribbon, Czech Glass, thread.


Now, click on over and feast on the rest of delectable creations by the Earthenwood Design Team and those nummy ice cream cones!

Andrew Thornton
Gaea Cannaday
Denise Yezbak Moore
Erin Prais-Hintz
Heather Powers
Lorelei Eurto
Lori Anderson
Jean Yates
Marie Dodd
Erin Siegal
Guest Designer:
Michelle Mach

See you Friday!

Hot Off the Press - ArtBeads Blog Challenge!!

Hello Everyone!!!
I thought I'd interrupt your regularly scheduled Monday programming to show you what I just created for the ArtBeads Blog Challenge - What's Old Is New Again!
As part of the challenge, we were to use vintage or old materials and combine them with new elements, either with modern lines or vintage-inspired components.


Let's start with that focal, 'cause that's pretty awesome!


The oval shaped pendant with the blue-white center is a vintage pendant given to me by a good friend. It was his mothers and he wanted me to have it as he knew I would "do something special with it". Indeed, I believe I have! I brushed on a light coating of the hand-coloured resin mentioned above, just to give that luscious dark patina of the pendant's metal a little sparkle!

The dangles twinkling from the pendant are vintage glass crystal and rhinestones set in a rondelle as well as one little Swarovski crystal winking at us from the sidelines!

All of this is suspended from a fabulous vintage-inspired Elegance Link! That very same hand-coloured resin was carefully brushed onto the link, making it a lovely match to the pendant draped below and matching the 'old' feel of the creation and the Challenge theme!

As we delve further into this creation, we see more vintage rhinestones!! This time they flash out from filigree beads that cascade from Antique Brass Y Shaped Vine With Leaves Link. I wanted to play with textures as much as possible while still maintaining a antique look and feel so these, too, received a light dusting of the coloured resin!

Here is a little better view of both those rhinestone beads and the Y Leaf Connectors...


Continuing our journey upwards towards the clasp, we encounter more sparklies!!! We discover vintage glass 'crystals' (repurposed from old glass pearl necklaces from my husband's mother!) and a few more vintage rhinestone rondelles flanked by Swarovski crystals!


Onwards and upwards, we spy some fascinating Czech-pressed glass window beads and leaves.

And last, but certainly not least, we trace our the path of the chain to the filigree Leaf clasp.

This sturdy yet delicate clasp deserves just as much attention as the rest of the creation and was also adorned with the coloured resin for added allure! Dainty details such as the little Swarovski crystal in a vintage blue peeking out near the clasp help finish this creation with flair.

I was impressed with the quality, look and feel of the antiqued brass components I played with as well as how wonderful they all work with the coloured resin! And it is always a pleasure to dally with Czech glass!

So, there you have it!!! A complete creation using some things old and some things new, nothing really borrowed (unless you could the inspiration from the past!) and definitely things blue!

See you on Whimsy Wednesday!!

Legalese: I have received the following products free of charge from ArtBeads.com and I am honestly reviewing them. I have not been paid for my endorsement as it pertains to the products received: Kabela Design Antique Brass Filigree Leaf Hook and Eye Clasp, Kabela Design Antique Brass Elegance Link, JBB Antique Brass Y Shaped Vine with Leaves and 3 Loops Link, Antique Brass Plated 3+1 Medium Round and Oval Link Chain, Czech Glass Bead Maple Leaf in Blue/Beige and Czech Glass Bead Light Blue/Amber Mix Diamond w/Picasso Rectangle .

Fini Friday! On Sunday!

Hello Everyone!!!
Thanks for checking back with me on the weekend!

So! I have three beautiful necklace creations to show you today!!!
All of these use focals that have been with me for a while and the first two creations you see were already mostly designed when I purchased all the materials.. they were just wanting the final fiddly-bits and the proper time/my confidence to finish!

And here we go!
Title: Elegance is Never Simple
Ingredients: Swarovski crystal, metal


Title: CrossRoads
Ingredients: Swarovski crystals, copper, metal.


The third necklace creation is inspired in part by the chain-maille diamond "net" you'll see below. This portion was created by a retired chain-maille artist friend and came to me with the remainder of her work when she decided to truly hang up her pliers. I nestled the Swarovski diamond into that chain-maille piece and wove it all with some basic chain-link connections. A little bit of softness and an organic feel was added by threading hand-dyed fiber through chocolate-coloured wire mesh ribbon. A perfect ending to an unusual creation was found in the diamond-shaped silver clasp!
Title: Cast Wide Your Net...
Ingredients: hand-crafted chain-maille (USA), Swarovski crystal, hand-dyed fiber (USA), lead-free pewter(USA), Sterling Silver, wire mesh ribbon, metal.


I'm so pleased with how lovely these are and that they are now completed and ready to be adopted!
It feels so good to be able to reclaim that energy and move on to other creations!

So now... go out and enjoy the rest of your weekend!!
See you Wednesday!

Fini Friday!

Hello Everyone!!!
Well, today was a busy, busy day and though I have creations and even photos of them to show you (!), I'm going to call it quits with this here Friday and start heading towards zzzzzzs! I've an early start tomorrow and a full day.
So!!! Fini Friday will happen on Sunday!
Same Bat time, same Bat channel!!

See you then!

Whimsy Wednesday!!

Hellooooo!!!!
In preparation for the Art Show at CONvergence , I've been ripping keys off of keyboards and drilling and so forth so as to create jewelry!!!
I think we can see the obvious correlation with whimsy right now, can't we? *grin*

So! Without further ado, here are three pairs of earring creations for your perusing enjoyment!

Title: Destruction!
Ingredients: repurposed laptop keyboard keys, blue goldstone stars, anodized aluminum, copper, sterling silver earwires.


Title: Old School
Ingredients: repurposed IBM Keyboard Keys, anodized aluminum, sterling silver earwires.


Title: Rebooting the Space Age
Ingredients: repurposed Laptop keyboard keys, anodized aluminum, surgical steel earwires.


Stay Tuned for Fini Friday as I have much more to show you!!!
Ciao!!!

Fini Friday!

Hello Hello!!!
I hope this Fini Friday post finds all of you well!! I have had a day of disappointments and good stuff, so I guess I've run the gamut today!! I'm learning a few new bits of software for Sprite Creations and I'm definitely encountering the learning curve!! Not to worry, I'll get it all figured out!!!

In the meantime, I have a Fini Friday post for you!!!

This is the last necklace in the series of three using the glass focals that I mentioned last week .

Title: Faerie Art & Science in Space

Ingredients: Dichroic glass, hand-dyed fiber (USA), hand-finished brass filigree(USA), Czech glass, permanently-coated copper wire (USA), thread, metal.

And here is a close-up of that fabulous focal and intriguing clasp!

I love how pairing such an interesting focal with an unusual clasp can make a story practically leap into a person's mind with this necklace! There is definitely something here waiting to be written!

Hmmm... I'll have to ponder that!

I hope this weekend is full of joy and love and I'll see you next week!

Whimsy Wednesday!!

Hello!!!
I can't believe we are at Wednesday already!!! I am happy to say that our mini-heat wave is over and we are back down to mid-70 degrees (fahrenheit) for our high temperatures! Whew!!! I'm a fan of open windows and fresh air much more than air-conditioned air!

I've gathered materials and am busy on several creations that will be shown at CONvergence Art Show! I'm really excited about these projects they give me an opportunity to stretch my creativity!
I have the first of the creations to show you today!!!
I think the whimsy will become obvious when you see it!

Title: Rebel With A Cause
Ingredients: Repurposed Die Cast Metal Millenium Falcon, thrust needle bearing, roller bearing, repurposed clock part, repurposed chain, permanently coated copper wire (USA), anodized aluminum, lead-free pewter.


And a close-up on that fabulous ship!!
Top:

Underside:


The ship is copyrighted 1996 and, of course, all rights are reserved by LucasFilm Ltd. and Galoob Micro Machines.

Is this not made of Awesome and Win?
Yes!! The antenna dish and laser cannon on the top of the ship and the laser cannon on the underside of the ship are moveable!! The ship rests on it's permanently engaged landing claws, which are coated with rubber and actually quite stable and comfortable.

Hee!! I had a lot of fun imagining how I would suspend the ship and what I would do with it and now it is finished!!!!
YAY!
See you on Friday!!!

Fini Friday!

Hey There!
We're at Friday!! This was a short week for many due to Memorial Day and so it was with me! I crammed a lot into this week, but I still feel like I could use one more day for creating!

I've some very simple yet beautiful necklaces to show you today!
I hand-picked the glass focal pendants at a trade show some years ago and so they have languished, waiting for me to complete creations with them. There were a total of three pendants that came home with me that trip and I've two finished necklaces to show you. The third is still in the works and I'll show you that next week!

I wanted to keep these necklaces spare and the design clean so as to show off the pendants, yet still have enough detail to satisfy my criteria as a one-of-a-kind Sprite Creation.

Title: Woodland Treasure
Ingredients: Glass pendant, hand-dyed fiber (USA), hand-finished brass filigree, copper-plated, lead-free pewter (USA), thread.
First, a shot of that lovely focal, with special attention to the sparkly!!!!

And then the entire creation!

It's the little details like the beautiful twisting pattern to the bigger jumprings to which the clasp fastens, the hand-finished brass filigree wrapped around that fabulously vibrant hand-dyed fiber and the patterned clasp that accents the pattern of the glittery gold bits in the pendant that make all the difference to me as I create.

Title: Water As Gold
Ingredients: Glass pendant, aluminum chain, recycled metal chain, lead-free pewter.
The Pendant - which is two-sided!
Side 1:

Side 2:

The clasp:

And all together now!

I really wanted to keep the option for this necklace to be reversible, since the focal pendant is wonderfully textured and lovely on both sides. Keeping the modern, clean lines while playing with textures were a priority for me with this creation and I was happy to use the anodized aluminum chain you see here as that, too, has been languorously biding it's time in my studio for some years!

There you have it! Another Fini Friday...well.. Fini!!!
See you next week!!

Whimsy Wednesday!

Bonjour!
Summer feels like it has finally arrived, just in time for the first day of June! YAYAY!
To celebrate the season of warmth, fun and sun I've two new creations to show off!
You might recall when I won the Rings & Things drawing for brushed copper beads... and I've been busy creating more with them!!

A water theme flows through both of these creations, so let's ease into the pool of creativity gently, eh?
First, a pair of earrings....
Title: Waterfall
Ingredients: brushed copper beads, Czech glass, permanently-coated copper wire, niobium earwires.



I loved playing with the wire to create a "messy" or perhaps "organic" feel throughout the creation!

The second creation requires a little explanation as we wade deeper into our pool. While the brushed copper was left alone to shine in all of their natural glory in the creation above, I again painted the copper with hand-coloured resin.



Below you'll see the copper "spool" with the three other items that were enlivened with the sparkly resin.



Let's take the final plunge and see what the big splash is all about, shall we?
I was determined to use the spool-like copper bead as a clasp and what matches brushed copper better than ... more copper? I shaped 16 gauge copper wire and then work-hardened it by mashing it between my hammer and anvil! (That was fun! Heehehehehee!) and then set about stringing, wire-wrapping and so forth to create what you see below...
Title: A Mermaid's Tale (Do you see the pun?!)
Ingredients: hand-painted with hand-coloured resin brushed copper and metal mermaid and starfish, amber, Czech glass, vintage shell boot button, metal, acrylic, hand-wrought copper clasp, lead-free pewter, yarn, aluminum, hand-finished brass filigree, thread.



Actually, there are a few puns here.. there is the play-on-words with the Mermaid's Tail/Tale and there is the pun of a tale also known as a yarn...which is one of the main ingredients of this creation! And! by tying the yarn to the hand-coloured copper bead, the creation reminds us yet more of yarn being unwound from a skein or spool!

The idea of this creation is to follow the journey of the mermaid via the little trinkets and charms that we see on the necklace... where has she been and what has she seen that involved a cat, a fairy, a bit of amber, a roller skate!?, a mysterious Carnival mask and more? !

So, there we have it!! I'm hoping for a wave of appreciation on this creation and this post..perhaps enough to be swamped, but hopefully not cape-sized!
(Hee!)
Ok.. I'll tie this up for now and wish you-all calm seas and fair winds!


Legalese: I have received the following products free of charge from rings-things.com and I am honestly reviewing them. I have not been paid for my endorsement as it pertains to the products received: all brushed copper beads pictured above.