Where does the time go?

Standard cliche - but I truly cannot believe that December has snuck up on me yet again. Sigh. Since I have not kept up with my blog, I decided to write a sort of rambling post today and just sprinkle some pictures of recent designs I have made here and there. Some have sold, and others are still available.

Copper Flower Post Earrings

Sterling and Copper Flower Post Earrings 

I had a fantastic Thanksgiving this year! We hosted my sister and her family, and it was truly enjoyable! Although, anytime you add a child to the mix (Gavin is 2 years and 3 months old), it always increases the fun. The past year has held so much negativity, politically speaking, that it was simply refreshing. I look forward to Christmas when my house will hold even more little ones!

Fold Formed Sterling Leaf and Lapis Lazuli Necklace

 

I opened up my own website a while ago, through Indiemade. In the meantime, I have kept my Etsy shop, which basically has the same items. I opened my own website when Etsy first allowed manufactured items, versus handmade. It was hard choice for me, as I am not all that computer literate and starting a brand new site was so time consuming. While there were lots of negatives to Etsy, there were also lots of positives. 

Heavy Gauge Twisted Sterling Silver Bangle

I recently read in a Facebook forum where a woman had an item from her shop "yanked" by the legal team of Etsy, stating the title of her necklace was subjected to copyright infringement.  She has been making this same necklace for years and has sold many. The fact that Etsy can pull an item/suspend it from your shop with no feedback from you really irritates me to no end.

Set of 3 Stacking Bracelets, with Turquoise (sold)

Etsy also has two payment methods for Seller's to offer to their customers - PayPal or Direct Checkout.  With Direct Checkout, the customer simply uses a credit card without going through PayPal. The Seller, however, does not actually receive the funds for a minimum of 3 days. Example: Customer purchases through Direct Checkout on Monday. On Tuesday, IF I REMEMBER, I have to instruct Etsy to deposit the funds immediately. I would receive the funds in my chosen bank account by close of business Wednesday (available to me on Thursday).  If the seller forgets to instruct Etsy to deposit the funds immediately, they are deposited to the seller's account in 7 days. This irritates me! Why should Etsy have use of the seller's funds for ANY amount of time? 

Rainbow Fluorite Bracelet (sold)

Lapis Lazuli and Cloissione Bracelet (sold)

When an item is listed for sale in Etsy, there is a $0.20 listing fee, plus a nominal fee is kept by Etsy if the item is sold. Items are listed for 90 days...they then expire, and the seller has to pay an additional $0.20 to relist the item. It does not sound like a lot of fees...but it adds up!

Sapphire and Sterling Silver Ring

I have had only a few sales on Etsy this past year. So, I have decided not to relist any items that expire. By March, my Etsy shop will be empty.

Onward!

For the past few months, I have gone crazy using Pattern Sterling Silver wire. I am a lover of texture, and this wire is amazing,

Patterned Sterling Silver Bangle

  

Patterned Sterling Silver Earrings

Patterned Sterling Silver Earrings

Some of the wire available is square - this is some thick wire! Not always easy to manipulate, but I was determined!

Pattern Sterling Silver Earrings - Square Wire (sold)

Pattered Sterling Silver Earrings - Square Wire (sold)

Pattern Sterling Silver Hoops (sold)

Triple Hoop Earrings with Pattern Sterling Silver Wire

I have also enjoyed playing with stamps. I do not have a proper anvil, but I did recently purchase a 12" piece of railroad track that has significantly improved my stamping.  That long, flat surface of hardened steel is so much better than my little 3" x 3" bench block.

Tiger's Eye and Garnet Stamped Sterling Silver Necklace

Artisan Glass Cabochon and Stamped Sterling Silver Necklace

I have not participated in a craft show for several years now - my chronic spine and neck issues just cannot handle all that stress.  So, I have relied solely on online sales.  My sincere gratitude to my online customers.  I had the best November sales EVER - and Miracle Horse Rescue received every last dollar! This warms my heart --- the support of handmade and ultimately, the equines of MHR!

Justice!

Stephanie (R), Me,and Dusty!

Luna and Millie

One last plea...if you are so inclined!  Here are the residents of Miracle Horse Rescue under the wonderful care of Stephanie and Rob Pierce.  The horse of your choice would love to receive a Christmas Card to decorate their barn this season!

If you are still with me here ... THANK YOU! And as always, thank you so much for stopping by! I wish you all Peace during this most special Holiday Season!

XO

Patti

Labor Day!

by Patti Vanderbloemen

I cannot wait for this Summer to be over.  Yesterday I read that it was the hottest (or second hottest) Summer on record for the Washington DC area.  Yuck.

So....I am celebrating!

Have a wonderful --- and safe --- Labor Day Holiday weekend!

xo
Patti

New for August

by Patti Vanderbloemen

What a boring blog title....

Another day...another sweltering heat. Perfect temperature to drive me down to my basement. I have managed to make a few newbies.

First up is the Stone-on-Stone pendant.  The Labradorite cabochon I received a long time ago - completely devoid of any iridescent flash that Labradorite is supposed to be known for...one of the pitfalls of buying online! But the color and veining is truly beautiful --- wish I could capture that in my photos. But, I did add my own flash to this stone.

This is a brand new-to-me technique. The scariest part was drilling a hole in the stone, but again, it was lacking something anyway. I topped it with my latest craze of using tube settings - this is a pretty faceted 6mm CZ. I think the contrast in color and the sparkle from the faceted CZ bring back the flash I was looking for in the Labradorite. In the end, it worked, and I could not be more pleased!

I learned this technique through a video course I purchased from Jeff Fulkerson, who is extremely well-known in the jewelry industry. I do love to take video courses - and this one had no time limit for viewing...another plus!

Next up is a re-do of a design that was just not working.  I had this pretty fossil-looking artisan ceramic cab made by Jenny Davies Reazor.  I know it was years ago that I purchased this cab at Art Bliss. The corners are "wonky" - not perfectly round...which is what drew me to the cabochon in the first place. So, I used a prong setting - kept it simple.

Not my best work! :)  So, I released that tiny cab out of its setting, and decided to try a traditional bezel setting. There is a star motif on that cab - and I wanted to accent that feature.  So, I made 3 little star beads from my shot plate, and this is how the necklace looks now.

Very organic, which I think matches the nature of the cab itself.

It felt like forever since I made earrings.  So, I mosied on over to one of my favorite component-maker shops - Inviciti - and picked up a few of their charms.  These charms feature one of their newest patina's - slightly antiqued, but also polished to a high shine.  They do like sterling silver - love this look! And, the components are so lightweight - absolutely perfect for earrings.

First up is this simple pair of earrings - made special by adding some antique brass beads with a glorious little design. I just love the :X" in these charms - they look "wrapped", you know?! And, I think silver and gold are a classic combination.

Searching for a bead to add to the other Inviciti Charms, I happened upon these beads that I purchased from polymer clay artist Selena Anne Wells...in 2012!  The age of my bead stash is shameful! :) But, the intricate flower impression, along with the deep magenta color highlighted with gold drew me to her beads.

Photo by Selena Anne Wells

I thought these lovely, lightweight beads would go perfect with the leaves on these Inviciti charms. I continued the silver and gold theme, as well.

These components made earrings that are lighter than air!

My affinity with the Cross symbol continues in this next pair of earrings. And yes...tube set CZ's once again!  This time, the earrings are post-style.  This makes for a smaller earring - but you cannot deny the flash from the Swarovski CZ's...and the charms dangle - I love to have movement when I wear earrings.

Last April, I experimented in making hollow beads..from tubing. I made what -- for me -- was the smallest beads I could handle in my hand while forming and filing! The ends were textured and I was quite pleased with how they turned out.

See...tiny!

I had no idea what to do with these little beads, so that sat on my bench for nearly 5 months waiting for the right design. 

These charms are perfect, I think, and the touch of gold once again -- to me --  symbolizes a classic combination.

Every single pair of earrings is incredibly lightweight - a feat for me!

I am once again truly grateful for the artists who share their creativity with us!

Thanks so very much for stopping by today - enjoy!

xo

Patti

Hammer on....

by Patti Vanderbloemen

Lately, I feel more comfortable using the term "metalsmith" in describing myself.  In my last post, I referenced purchasing a new-to-me-tool (the shot plate - I wrote a quick tutorial on the Love My Art Jewelry blog spot here).  Well, I found a few new ways to use this end result, known as decorative shot beads.

First up are these very cool mixed metals earrings which almost killed me in photographing.  For some reason, I could not get the angle/lighting to mesh...it is what it is!

I took at least 25 pictures, all horrible!  Anyway, I twisted two lengths of square copper wire, then balled up both ends in the flame.  To the bottom, I cut some teeny tiny sterling silver discs, and soldered on those tiny decorative beads.  These look so much better in person - they swing beautifully from one's ear!

For the next pair of earrings, I cut two sterling silver discs, sawed and filed out the petals, textured the petals, and dapped them  - sort of like a bead cap - but I turned the petal "outward" just a bit.  I then soldered two of the decorative beads to the centers, making little flowers.  The ear wires have also been soldered to the back of the earrings.

I call these "quasi poppies" - poppies would actually have 3 tiny balls in the center, and they would also have 5 petals.  So, "flowers" fit the bill better than poppy, I suppose.

I took a short break from the decorative shot and whipped up a set of 5 copper stacking bangles. These are hand riveted with sterling silver, and textured on the top and both sides.  

LOVE this texture!

I have wanted to try "air chasing" for-ever.  There are plenty of You-Tube videos out there with great instructions.  The easiest way to make this style cuff is to use wide copper tubing - straight from the hardware store.  Well, my tubing is only 1/4" wide - and I have a ton of it.  Not easy to do....I truly believe a wider cuff would have been easier on me - but boy, I had a blast!  Just look at the craters and pits in the cuff! Texture, baby!!!!

And since my shot plate was just sitting there waiting to be used....I made two little flowers and soldered them to the ends of the cuff.

I do not want to state that the technique is difficult - a better word would be challenging, or even cumbersome!  You tape the ends of the tube to your steel bench block and, using various hammers and dapping tools, you hammer the SIDES of the tubing - not straight down the center.  Well, that metal moves with every blow of the hammer - usually right out from under the mounds of tape!  I used a lot of tape, and I had to anneal the cuff many times to make the copper soft.  

Though I actually like the slim style cuff, the next time I am out and about, I am definitely making a pit stop at the hardware store in search of wider tubing! :)

I have been on this jewelry-making-journey for a long time now, trying to find my niche.  I truly feel comfortable with calling myself a metalsmith, and it feels good!

Thank you so much for stopping by today!  Have a lovely week!

XO

Patti