Silver Findings

Ready made sterling silver findings are available in many online shops but I've always enjoyed the challenge, and satisfaction, of making my own. I've created many in the past, most of them long-attached to necklaces, bracelets and earrings and either sold or given away as gifts.

Here are some photos of a selection I've made this summer:

Earwires -





Catches, hooks and eyes - ideal for necklaces





Toggle clasps - ideal for bracelets



Little pieces of silver turned into pleasing shapes and designs and all with a strong purpose and goal in mind that informs the design - to hold things firm.

And, on a different note, I played around with the idea of making a silver key. It's only tiny, and quite simple, but I like it.

Green leaves . . .

I love fluorite gemstones (both green and purple) and these chips are some of many I've enjoyed using with silver.





Incorportaing these into this bracelet with the little silver leaves just seemed a perfect way to use the beads and I'm really pleased with the outcome (hence the devotion of an entire blog post to the bracelet).

Return to leaving

My mild addiction to leaves has resurfaced.

I've spent some considerable time this last week or so patiently soldering, filing, polishing, creating pieces of shining autumn.



Okay, autumn isn't quite here yet, or rather, parts of it are (the leaves are starting to fall, even if the changing colours aren't widespread), and different parts of the country experience the turn at different times. Plus, the sun has shone hotly a couple of times, prompting butterflies and bees to fly again. And I still saw swallows when I looked to the blue sky yesterday . . .

But the feel of autumn is in the air. And leaves, which it seems we can overlook with greater ease in summer and winter, are all the more apparent in spring, when they reemerge bright green, and now, in autumn, when they turn to jewel colours and fall around us.




I've experimented with different sizes of leaves, from smaller, and sometimes slightly more abstract forms, at just over 2 cm long . . .




to the longer length, at 4 cm, where creating the veins and texture is easier with a little more silver to work with.




Earrings are proving tricky as one of the things I've always liked about the leaves I create, their individuality, means forming a matching pair is, so far, a slightly frustrating task.



Hmm . . .

Finished articles coming very soon . . .

Green silver?

And I don't mean ecologically sound.

I've heard about jewellery turning your skin green, never meant to be an indicator of high quality metal, but I've not come across jewellery itself turning green before.

This is what's happened to a bracelet I made a couple of years ago.



I've given it a bit of a clean up with a silver-polish impregnated cloth but the greenish tinge still remains. Next I'm going to do some more heavy-duty cleaning which will at least clean up some of the oxidisation.

The core of the bracelet is silver wire, with finer silver wire wrapped around it, and the ends are 9ct gold hollow beads. All I can think is the solder used to fix the beads and the finer wire to the main bracelet was low quality and this has caused the green to appear.

Any other ideas anyone?

Saturday Folksy Listing Frenzy

Well, okay, it's only seven items but it seemed to take an age, as I sat in front of the computer with a tape measure and a clutch of necklaces and bracelets and a big, big mug of coffee.

Here's some photos (yes, taken on my old camera), but not of the big mug of coffee . . .











Click on the pic to go to the item in my shop if you fancy seeing more photos.

Midsummer finds . . .

Thought I'd reveal some gorgeous goodies that I've discovered on the pages of Folksy, with a very vaguely Midsummery naturey outside theme . . .


This wonderful vase, made by by Treecycle is a fantastic example of what nature can offer in terms of raw materials, and the beauty that can be enhanced by a skilled craftsperson.

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Dreamy nights by the sea are shown in this beautiful fine silver pendant, made by Original Silver.

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The truly beautiful works in Sascalia's shop include this evocative picture.

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A fantastic fox dressed like this should prowl every wood . . .but for now he's in Abigail Brown's shop.




All these items make me feel all mysterious and summery and, oooh, I need to go outside and feel the grass under my feet for a while . . .