Better Photos and New Pieces

A month or so ago, my son Adam wanted to help me make a charm bracelet. He had to pick the beads and he said I had to put them in a "pattern". He is 5 so I thought that was pretty cute. Well, this is the bracelet. Not something I would have thought of on my own, but I think it turned out pretty well! I did add a little to it with the antiqued brass spacers, but other than that he picked everything himself including the chain.

Brass chain and toggle, nut beads and some small glass beads. All in shades of Turquoise. Not bad kiddo!

I am happier with the first photo. I am trying some new techniques. A girlfriend of mine has a husband that is a professional photographer. I was over there on Monday for my monthly Scrapbooking club and he gave me some tips after looking at my photos on my website and blog. He mostly said to use lots of light from lamps etc and to turn off my flash. He said to take the photos from further away and to zoom in as close as I can. Well, I know I need more light, because everything looks a little yellow and I need to work on the focus, but all in all it did improve some.

After selling all my Picasso Jasper pieces at the last show I made a couple new ones for my next show on Saturday. Because of lack of time {and materials} I did not do as much wire wrapping as I might have done otherwise. I extended with a long piece of chain from Vintaj and added a toggle at the back. I love the large pendant, It is quite stunning. I wanted this one to be quite long because of the size of the pendant.

You can see all the wonderful colours and all the texture in the stone. Nothing quite compares.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

Marie

Colours of the Sea

From the first time I saw this stone I was mesmerized. The colours and the marbling were a combination I could not resist. I purchased a few different strands in a couple of different shades and tried out this long wire wrapped necklace.

There are a few different names for this stone, but I figured the easiest to remember was "Sea Sediment Jasper". I use quite a few different kinds of Jaspers, I love the variety you can find. I think this is most likely my favorite. I even found an orange version of this one on Etsy, so keep popping in to see what I end up making with them.

I wire wrapped with Vintaj 24 gauge wire, alternating different sizes, shapes and colours. It is one of my favorite necklaces and I have had wonderful comments on it when I have worn it.

Thanks for stopping by

Marie

Stones with Character!

These red spot stones from Fire Mountain Gems never cease to amaze me. I thought when I first saw them that they looked interesting and different. I figured, Ok, get a couple of strands in different shapes and see what happens. I have loved everything that I have made with them. They just seem to work so well with Copper, which is one of my favorite metals to work with that I can not stop myself from putting the two together.

You can see here that I used 4 different sizes and shapes. They make a very elegant necklace that sites well on the skin because of the flatness of the stones.

I found this lovely clasp on Etsy {Olay} and thought it was the perfect finishing touch to this piece.

I have a multitude of things I am working on, including stuff for Publication, more pieces for my show this Saturday and more things to replenish my website and Etsy shop.

Keep coming back for more eye candy

Marie

Hand Made Ear Wires and Pins

So I made the Long pins by hand and the ear wires and added on these fun Dragon's Vein Agate Beads.

They are free form and hammered.I also made these the same way but with the ear wire loops curling inwards instead of outwards. I like the effect, it certainly seems more original. I find hammering very soothing. I am sure those of you who have tried it agree that you can certainly take out some frustrations with a little hammering.

Short post again, Hubby said I could get away and go to the movies if I wanted. I think it is time for a couple of chick flicks!!

Have a good night

Marie

New Earrings

I have wanted to make something like this for awhile. Long dangling earrings with my own ear wires and some pretty little flowers at the ends. These are my two favorites.

I really enjoy making my own ear wires. They can be in so many different shapes and lengths. I want to try wrapping some wire on them next.

Short post tonight I am on my way out to do my show.

Marie

Yummy Watches!!

Cool, that's new, I can set my pictures on Extra Large now too!! This is most likely one of my better pictures, it is not blurry or too bright or too dark :)

So the lovely ladies who bought the bracelets on my website a few days ago, just purchased a watch each! This makes me really happy {Big Grin} I feel like a kid, lol

I was wondering how my watches would sell. It seems that I need to make more.

That's more like it, a little blurriness ;)

This is the other watch that sold. She saw it and could not stop thinking about it all day and night, so I guess she decided she had to have it. I really hope she enjoys it.

Here it is again. I used heart harms, pink fresh water pearls, rose quartz and pink crazy lace jasper.

The top watch was made using the same charms, rings strung with beads and coral nuggets.

Thanks for stopping in

Marie

Sterling Silver Earrings...

Ok, Let's not enlarge the blurry picture too much. Kelly Morgan and I seem to have the same problem, lack of photography skills. Lucky for her she is not as bad as I am. lol

I have recently started investing in the basics in Sterling Silver. We are talking ear wires, pearl head pins, eye pins, a few different gauges of SS wire and soon to come {I hope} three sizes of jump rings. I want the quality of my jewelry to improve and go from basic metal to high quality silver and gold or even platinum.

So these are my first two pairs of earrings with the new sterling I just purchased.

I made these with Genuine emeralds {chips} I just wire wrapped them directly onto the ear wires. Very simple but elegant. {I hate indoor photography}

These are made with Aquamarines, SS ear wires, pearl head pins, Bali style SS beads from my LBS and eye pins. I love aquamarines and silver. I would like to make a few more of these before my show Friday night but I am not sure I will have enough time.

Another lovely picture...

I have really great props, I need a better camera and some classes. Maybe if my pictures were better I could get some sales in my Etsy shop. lol

Next on my list is some Sterling accent beads. If any of you are willing to share your sources for great pricing, I would be eternally grateful.

Marie

Bracelets and Bead Goodies

For lack of anything better to post right now, I am posting some bracelets I made this summer. I have not had the time or the lighting to take pics of any of my new stuff, but I will have to this week, before my first show for the season on Friday. This is a Jasper oval bracelet. I love how this feels on, smooth and lightweight. I also love the Elegance of the stones and the richness of the deep colours.

This bracelet is a mix of blue crazy lace Agate, copper flower beads and Apatite chips. I love these colours. I always tend to gravitate to greens but on this occasion I fell in love with these teally blues.

I got some fun new pieces to work with this last week. These Filigree rings are from Olay on Etsy. I think they are so pretty, but I will have to experiment since at this moment I have no idea what to do with them. I know I will try a dangle or two, and I will also try some wire wrapping. I will post the results when I figure it out. Feel free to leave some ideas and suggestions.

These little toggles are my favorite to use with a fun lightweight or dainty bracelet. I tried to get copper and bronze but the copper sold right before I put through my cart on Etsy. {sound familiar Kelly??}

Like Lorelei I have just invested in some expensive sterling silver wire. I ordered it two weeks ago and got it on Friday. I am working on earrings and a few other things. We will see how it turns out :)

Marie