Tuesday, March 31, 2009

New Enamel pieces







I am trying to finish things from last Fridays's enameling class. Of course I have every gauge wire but the one I need to make earwires!!



The one pair of earrings turned out to have a bright red. Usually I get a brown so I was happy. The counter enamel is the prettiest blue! I domed the squares and then put them on the diagonal. If no one buys them I will wear them to the UA ball games.



The other thing is a pendant with flux and then the color "water" on top. Swirls of copper are in the enamel along with three millefiori beads.



The other pair of earrings are the prettiest shimmery blue. I need to get some silver wire to finish them.



All in all, I am very happy with the colors.



Tomorrow I go to jewelry construction class. I must get projects ready to work on.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Working on projects

Today I am going to work on finishing projects that I started in jewelry classes this week.
The first is a two pair of earrings that are enameled. Earwires need to be attached. The enameled colors are very nice. (You never know what the colors will end up being.) The first pair is a beautiful shimmering blue. The other pair is red (finally a decent red) and blue. These might be used to go to the UA games, red and blue.

A bezel set lapiz on silver pendant needs to be polished. A pair of smoky topaz earrings need to be polished (the setting) and then set. When all of this is finished I need to clean and organize tools and materials. This is a never ending project.

Hope all have a wonderful weekend.

If you have time please visit my etsy shop. www.beadlesandstones.etsy.com

Thanks for reading.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

So Much Information

I am totally amazed and thankful for the amount of information fellow jewelry makers are willing to share. I have looked at other crafts and it seems to me that there isn't as much sharing.
The jewelry making forums are a favorite haunt. The tips, techniques, and ideas are plentiful.

Today is the day before my jewelry class. This is the day that I get my thoughts and projects organized so I make the best of my time in class. The teacher and students are so supportive.
Tomorrow we are going to learn about soldering strategies and bezels. Many of us have seen the demonstrations before but always seem to pick up new hints.

Hope all of you have a wonderful day.

Debbie

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Hello to All

This is my very first blog.

I am from sunny Tucson, Arizona. We have had very warm days this week. Tomorrow it is supposed to be very cool, 79 degrees for the high. Our nice weather affords me the opportunity to walk every morning in comfort.
I am a retired school teacher who taught for 26 years. I was fortunate to be able to have experiences in most grades.
Since retirement, I have been taking jewelry construction classes. What a wonderful teacher I have!!! My teacher is now trying to educate me in the art of enameling. I now have an inventory built up and have started an etsy shop.
I am a proud member of SATeam on etsy. Talk about a nice bunch of people. Their willingness to share experiences is amazing.
Jewelry is calling me. Hopefully there will be some successes that can be listed on etsy.