Garnet Gems and Hammered Silver Circles Earrings

I do enjoy making jewellery gifts for people I know. Matching colours and styles and preferences to the individual are some of the best joys of hand-crafting and when the choices you make as a designer work out well then that's a fantastic feeling.

These earrings were made for someone who only wears drop styles and whilst I looked at a few different colours of gemstone, I came back again and again to garnet. These small faceted ones are a deep but bright red and very rich in tone. When I saw them being worn I knew I'd made the right decision. The garnets were set with Wraptite settings, like I used on this necklace recently also.

The hammered circles were from a patch of time a while back when I made a lot of shapes and played around with textures and finishes on them. They looked just right in these earrings and the tiny silver beads, set on wire, finished things off nicely. The recipient seemed genuinely pleased with these - she's worn them nearly constantly since receiving them - so I feel content in feeling content...

Denim Lapis Lazuli - Casual Class

Denim Lapis Lazuli beads

A few years back I bought myself a few strands of small, round gemstone beads. You might have some yourself, stretches of thread or nylon strung with gems of wonderful colours. I bought some and used some and put the rest away for later. 'Later' having arrived at last, I delved into my work-box of beads and gems and found I fell back in love, and fast, with denim lapis lazuli.

Like tiny planets of sea & sky...

The beads are just stunning, aren't they. Each one is so unique, and so perfect. Denim seems such a casual word for such a beautiful stone. It's interesting to discover that this particular type of lapis lazuli is essentially a marketing success story. The white (which is calcite, a relation to humble chalk) component in the stone was originally considered to make it inferior to the deep blue shades, with touches of gold-coloured pyrite, that were preferred and sought after. Turning the supposed 'flaw' into an attribute was a clever idea.

Silver and denim lapis earrings, made by myself

Whilst wondering why I haven't used my bead stash more, and secretly being glad I haven't so I could discover it all over again, I've been adding beads to silver like a cook who has recently discovered Muscovado after only ever using white caster sugar before...

Celtic-style Curve earrings

Earlier in the year I was playing with curves in silver wire, mixed with some solder, and I ended up with these earrings. They were created as a gift, and I've now made three pairs as presents. I also have another pair in my shop.

I find them satisfying to make, especially the challenge of matching the curves as I'm forming them, and the finished loops as well as possible into pairs. The wire is pretty fine but a good amount of hardening the silver through planishing and polishing imparts a lot of strength; that and a fair bit of solder holding the curves together - each earring is soldered in six separate places.

The tiny pearls, used with even tinier silver beads, added a little weight and swing. Pearls can sometimes seem a little old-fashioned (or perhaps that's just me) but these ones are so sweet, and gently irregular in their shape which I love. I've used the same pearls before, when I made this necklace, and I'm pleased that I still have quite a few remaining.

Ahoy, Nautilus Earrings!

Okay, please forgive the truly awful title for this post... I have been to the sea today and I have finished some sea-inspired earrings and it all got too much for me... well, that's my excuse anyway...

While I don't have any photos of the sea (which is unfortunate as the waves were truly magnificent in the stormy winds, despite the gentle sunlight), I do have some images of nautilus shell earrings I've made and listed on Folksy today.


I really enjoyed making these, despite the difficulties of getting the curves just right (without using a jig), and making sure I created two that matched as well as possible.



I'm going to make a matching necklace and perhaps a bracelet too, and I have some very sweet little pearl beads that I think would look wonderful with this design.

Hope your weekend, whether filled with sea spray or not, is a good one.

Silver, citrine, topaz and toil... the finished jewellery

Recently I showed some photos of the cut gemstone beads I'd bought for a project. Here are some images of the finished jewellery items themselves.

The plan was a to make a necklace for a very special birthday, falling in November, so being able to incorporate birth stones was important. I also wanted to make something wearable so, while it may look delicate, the soldering and strengthening of the silver through hammering means it's pretty strong.







The earrings were less planned and came about as I didn't have enough citrines to use for both items, but this also allowed me to play with the varying sizes of the white topaz gems. I was also able to use one of the little soldered silver designs from the necklace, and echo it in the earrings.



It was a time-consuming and absorbing project, and took a lot of preparation, but the final piecing together of the necklace especially was surprisingly quick. Hope you enjoy seeing the results of the toil!

Earrings . . . for a friend

It's always nice to have a special occasion to make someone special something special for. A dear friend I hadn't seen in a while treated me to lunch last month and, as a little thank you, I made her a pair of earrings.

These are they, and another pair I've made in the same design:

Still around . . .

My far-off thoughts of having time to throw myself into making jewellery this year have failed to make their way into reality and, given it's nearly June, I'm resigned to another 'slow' year on the creation front.

But, thankfully, people still insist on having birthdays and the like and so I've found myself piecing together bits of workshop and silver in various rooms (and houses) and finding time and room for these few items.


The ring was left unsoldered to allow it to fit any finger, or thumb, without needing measurements - asking always gives the game away.



The simplest of the three to make and rather fun allowing the curve of the silver wire to dictate the curve of the letter.



I enjoyed making the letters although getting them the same length was surprisingly challenging - I think rushing to a deadline doesn't help . . . But the posts were handmade and hand-soldered, which was tricky and not particularly fun work that proved rather satisfying once it was done. I chickened out of making the butterflies myself though. Time was far too pressing for that kind of commitment.

It's only May (just). Time still for this year to be abundant and productive. Here's hoping . . .

50 Followers! And a giveaway . . .

To celebrate having reached the magic number of fifty loyal and trusty followers, I've decided to do a Giveaway.

So if you quite like the look of this pair of heart earrings, carefully crafted by me, wrapped in tissue paper and a organza bag and sent though the post to the lucky winner . . . then here's what to do . . .

To enter the giveaway please leave me a comment, letting me know which of the photos of the earrings you think best shows them, and why. And if you fancy a look at my shop and telling me which your favourite item is (and why, if you like), then I'd love to know.

Closing date is - 14th September 2009

I'll chose the winner randomly from all the entrants.

Many thanks for looking, and reading, and good luck!

Listing . . .

I've listed some more items in my shop on Folksy. Always seems to take forever and is always a bit frustrating being away from making, but the finished pages do look quite nice, if I say so myself!

I'm lovely and now a winner . . .

I'm rather pleased to say I've won this beautiful pair of earrings.





Rather than wait til the postie delivers them (soon, I hope!) and then taking my own photo, I've decided to use Kristin's because her pictures are always stunning.

Okay, off to wait by the front door now . . .