Earrings, Emily...and experimenting with eggs

Isn't it great when you come across an artist who inspires you in a whole new way? A few weeks ago I first laid my eyes upon the gorgeous wirework creations of Emily Gray.

Sure, I'd seen plenty of wirework and wire wrapped creations before. But something about Emily's work struck a chord in me instantly, and my usual thought pattern of 'That's cool, I must learn how to do that some day' stepped up a notch to 'Wow, I MUST learn how to do that TODAY!'.

So I found a tute online about how to wire-wrap a briolette (the 'messy on purpose' look...clearly I nailed the 'messy' part! LOL), and flicked through an old copy of Step-by-Step Wire, and off I set on my new journey of discovery.

Whilst I'm a long way off using AAA quality gemstones and sterling silver/gold-filled wire a la Emily, my glass beads and copper wire offer an economical medium whilst I'm learning the ropes. Champagne taste on a beer budget, you know ;-)

I love the look of patinated metal, particularly the antique effect that liver of sulphur has on sterling silver. That deep, buttery gunmetal effect is a great contrast to bright beads and gems. Not having any liver of sulphur just lying around, I resorted to something from my pantry...eggs! I'd read about using a boiled egg to patinate sterling silver, and had heard it could be used on copper also. So I decided to dive in head-first, as always, and try my luck. I boiled a couple of eggs, smashed them up, threw them into a clear zip-lock bag with my newly made wire-wrapped earrings...and stuck the stinky, gooey mess outside in the sun for half a day.

Smelly? Yes! But look at the results:

Before patination:

After patination:

Quite a difference, eh! I was surprised at the result. I really just wanted to create highlights and lowlights, and I think I've achieved that. The earrings were quite dark when I eventually rescued them from the egg bag, so I scuffed them with a kitchen scourer to expose some of the shiny copper beneath.

Not a bad way of using a couple of old eggs which would have been thrown in the bin anyway. Reduce, reuse, recycle...right!

Thanks for looking and be well!

An award or two

Sunshine is something that we are never short of here in glorious Western Australia. Having said that, I don't think you can ever get enough! Nothing lifts the spirits and gives us a feeling of wellbeing more than a good dose of vitamin D, I say ;-)

So I was delighted to receive the Sunshine Award from two of favourite blogging friends, Sharon of Mana Moon Studios and Nicole Campanella of Beadwright. Thank you ladies! You are both so special, thanks for adding a dash of sunshine to my life!

Here are the rules:

The rules for accepting the Sunshine Award are:

- Put the logo on your blog or within your post.

- Pass the award onto six bloggers

(it was initially 12 bloggers, but I'm going to follow Nicole's lead and split the difference!)

- Link the nominees within your post.

- Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

- Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award.

Here are some of my beading friends to whom I would love to send a little sunshine ;)

Andrea of Andrea's Beads & Fancywork

Anna of Il Mondo di Redanny

Joanna of Joanna's Blog

Margie of Marlier Designs

Nikoletta of Piky73

Karyn of Releases by Rufydoof

Speaking of awards, I was also fortunate to win the Czarina challenge on the Beading Forum with my 'Alexandra' necklace. Here's my pretty new badge:

I will have some more beadwork to show soon. And a pair of wire wrapped earrings! I've had fun playing with boiled egg as a patina on copper wire. A little bit smelly, a little bit hmmm...but interesting nonetheless.

In the meantime, have a great day and be well!

Alexandra

The weekly challenge on the Beading Forum this week is 'Czarina'. Naturally, I had to enter! The word immediately conjured images of Russian royalty, decked out in glorious gold and regal purple.

Here is my interpretation...I have named her 'Alexandra', after the last Tsaritsa of Russia:

The curved components are created with herringbone and peyote stitch, and they are strung between glass pearls and glass teardrops:

I have always been a fan of wire wrapping, but have never ventured into that arena myself...until now! I am determined that 2010 is the year to learn, so I dug out my copy of Rachel Nelson-Smith's 'Seed Bead Fusion' (great book, cool chick) and made my first wire wrapped clasp using her easy-to-follow instructions. And here is the result:

The clasp is made with 20 gauge wire and wrapped with 32 gauge wire. I even made all of my own jumprings! (Funny how you start seeing everything as a possible mandrel when you begin wireworking... LOL) Here is a closer look (don't laugh, it was my first attempt at wire wrapping!):

Thanks for looking, and be well!

Sea Star necklace

When I first began beading (exactly two years ago!), I promised a good friend of mine that if I ever became any good at it, I would make her something. Two years is long enough, don't you think? I think I'm finally ready :)

She loves turquoise and she loves the sea, so I set about reinventing and revamping a starfish design from my Garland of Galatea necklace using delicas and size 15 seed beads.

Here is my offering to her, a Sea Star necklace in turquoise and copper (which, by the way, is my latest colourway obsession...):

I have recently learnt that an extender chain comes in very handy when you don't know a person's exact neck measurement! LOL

Detail of the starfish pendant:

And detail of the twisted herringbone rope...just because it looks pretty :)

I'm hoping to offer a free tutorial for my starfish design sometime this year...if I can convince my wonderful husband to buy me a Macbook and Photoshop *grin* Should I start a petition? *wink*

Thanks for looking and be well!

Earrings galore

I just can't get enough of earrings at the moment. There is something so satisfying in weaving together a handful of beads and creating something wearable within an hour or two. Now that's what I call instant gratification!

I thought these creole hoops were interesting as soon as I saw them. I had lots of fun bringing them to life by weaving my tiny beads around them.

These 'starfish' were supposed to be part of a necklace, but I changed my mind about including them. Too cute to throw in my box of 'naughty bits', I whipped them up into a pair of earrings. Voila!

And finally, some very simple right angle weave and netted earrings in yummy shades of chocolate and cream. Good enough to eat! ;)

Idylle

Idylle, which is French for 'romance', is my latest beadwoven creation. A romantic, lacy, Olde Worlde necklace in shades of lilac and cream.

This is a great example of how one idea can lead to another. The beaded beads and pendant in my "Vintage Rose" necklace inspired me to push those ideas further to see what I could create. And this is the result, variations on the same theme but a completely different outcome:

Detail of the floral motifs (they are identical front and back, so the reverse side of my necklace is just as pretty as the front):

Detail of the floral clasp. As usual, I wanted it to blend in with the rest of the design:

I hope you explore some variations in your own work. We all need a good dose of 'What if...?' occasionally. You never know what it will lead to! ;)

Happy New Year!

More beading, more blogging, more learning...and, of course, more fun!

And perhaps some competitions, some selling, and some tutorials.

That about sums up my new years bead-o-lutions. What are your aspirations for the new year?

I wish all of my readers and blogging friends a prosperous, creative and wonderful 2010. Thank you for your comments and encouragement in 2009, your support has made my heart swell and my smile broaden :) I hope that 2010 is everything that you hope and more!

A nice way to start the new year is with an accolade:

I was fortunate to win the 'Angels & Demons' challenge on the Beading Forum with my Angelus necklace. I love my pretty new badge!

My mind is swirling with new ideas. My first necklace of the new year will be posted shortly...stay tuned :)