So Many Earrings - So Little Time

I forgot to photograph these before I put them on their stinking cards.
So, their glamor shots are not all that glamorous, sigh.

All of these earring will be in the More Fire Glass Holiday Sale.

The Joys of Jello

In the midst of all the holiday jewelry making spasms - I took the time to do a big birthday necklace.

Of course she loved it.
She loves everything about Jello, except eating it.

It was a grand party.

Balls Out

Giant pendants.
 

Made with big, round glass beads - some are hollow, some solid.

Last week I bought a dapping block, helicopter punch and some metal blanks and started making my own bead caps. Plink, plink, plink with my big brass hammer.

Making bead caps is lotsa fun. My 'old roadie' husband is nearly deaf so the incessant hammering is not bothering him. Alas, the dogs, who usually sleep at my feet when I am making jewelry abandon me while I am hammering my little heart out. The old one just glares at me as he shuffles upstairs to find a quiet place to continue has seventh, essential, nap of the day.

These pendants turned out exactly the way I had envisioned them - which rarely happens.

I've been wearing this one (above) all week. It's on a nice, long cord so it's fun to fidget with.

What's now at the top of my tool wish list?
A disc cutter.

Blossom Earrings

I don't want my earrings to look machine made, I don't even want them to look handmade. I want them to look like they just fell off a plant.

The finished earrings are starting to pile up!

Lots of brightly colored pearls mixed with my glass.

All the hand hammered ear wires are sterling but I am experimenting with some colored wire in the parts that do not touch your skin.

I love the spring green wire in this pair used as the stem of the blossom.

Some tiny, flashy gem stones in the mix too. This pair has little faceted labradorite dangles.

Weird Blossoms

I have been making so much jewelry.
Being over tired and feeling overly decorative at the same time can lead to some pretty fanciful earrings.

These are completely over the top.

Red and black glass flower beads dangle on the end of hammered copper stems. These stems are wrapped with tiny yellow rice pearls and bronze wire. At the top a pair of off mandrel green leaf charms and hammered sterling ear wires.

I haven't decided yet if I will make more of these.
Are they just too big for mere mortal lobes?

Frazzled

It's a terrible picture but I thought I would share it anyway.
Look at the cool 'frazzled' thing that Double Helix Psyche did on top of Cim's Atlantis.
It looks like milky blue ice crystals.

Is there anything more fun than a cool color reaction?

Cherry Berries

One of my favorite beads to make.
They're a little bit tricky.
Make the leaves first and set them aside, then make the round base beads. Carefully, carefully re-heat the leaf and press it into the berry part. Be sure to spot heat the berry where you want to attach the leaf. Spot heating the round and re-heating the leaf at the same time is a bit like rubbing your tummy and patting your head at the same time. A little practice and you'll get it.

O Rochester

The colors of the drive home from my studio seems to be influencing my beads.

A big hole bead.  The core is Cim's Atlantis with threads of silvered glass that is encased in clear.

A heart pendant of transparent Ink Blue with silver leaf and Double Helix 'Psyche' dots.

A pair of really large, hand faceted, nuggets.

Doin' the Bumps

Sets of tiny little bumpy spacers, not much bigger than seed beads.

In Opalino Carnelian on the right and Cim's Larkspur on the right.

More fun to make than plain old spacers.

Swatches

I have been making so, so many beads.
Just thinking it would be nice to share a few of my new favorite color combinations.

Cim's Ghee with a Double Helix Clio stripe (above)

Cim's Crocus with Double Helix Aurae twists (above)

Double Helix Clio under an encasing of pale blue transparent (above)

Cim's Poison Apple with Double Helix Clio (above)

Appetite for Destruction

Miss Kiki says "I ate your favorite chair and I don't care."

If someone can tell me what would make an eight year old miniature poodle destroy an innocent armchair please leave me a comment.

Luxury Item

One of my favorite glass combinations - Cim's "Mink" and dark Ivory with a little bit of fine silver foil.