Handmade in PA post- Ryann Thompson's Photo Jewelry Keepsakes

Good morning, friends!  Be sure to hop on over to Handmade in PA for my most recent write up on the very talented Ryann Thomspon of Designs by Ryann.  I've featured her handmade Photo Jewelry which is really worth checking out.

Here are a few examples of her work with Photo Jewelry:

An assortment of Ryann's handmade photo pendants and bracelets.

Unique keepsakes featuring a loved one's handwriting or special message.

Photo Ornaments to trim the tree with this season!!

Allegory of Spring Jewelry

Over the past few weeks I've been busy stocking my shop with new items, mostly earrings.  A design that has received a lot of attention on Etsy are my Allegory of Spring earrings.  They feature raw brass stampings in a floral motif recalling the Art Nouveau movement of the late 1800-1900's. A trio of Czech glass fire polished beads are suspended from stamping.  I stocked them originally in the pale, opaline sage green shown below and also in a blue opal and milky blue and lavender.  They are delicate, feminine, and just lovely.

I was requested by a friend last week to fabricate a necklace that would match the Allegory of Spring earrings.  He was purchasing the earrings in blue opal for his wife as a birthday gift and wanted a matching earring and necklace set.  Luck was on our side as I had the perfect Picasso finish Czech Glass beads in my stash in the right shades of blue and green that would echo the Allegory of Spring's opal blue beads perfectly.

Faceted gold pyrite cubes and a 14 k gold fill chain finished the necklace.  I was rather happy with the way it turned out and how it complemented the earrings so nicely.  It is now one of my favorite designs and I plan to make it in an array of Czech glass and semi-precious stones in the near future.  Like the earrings, the necklace is feminine and subtle.  It will work with so many outfits and occasions, too.  

If you are interested in a custom version of this necklace, I can make it in any shade of the rainbow you can dream of!  Please email for details.  In the meantime, be on the look out for it in my shop.  

 

new work: focus on color

"Color is joy.  One does not think joy.  One is carried by it." -Ernest Haas

LE MER COLOR SHIFT NECKLACE: faceted blue agate + solid, raw brass beads + vintage brass chain + $45*

REIMS PENDANT: mystic purple drusy + hand wrapped in oxidized brass wire + vintage brass curb chain + $36*

*Necklaces will be linked to the shop in the coming weeks. Please stay tuned!

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Art Deco Inspired Wedding Jewelry

First off, allow me to apologize for what seems to be the abandonment of my blog!  I've been seriously slacking with my posting this summer.  I vow to change this.  Secondly, my apologizes for this photo heavy post.  Hopefully it will be worth it.

The following set of jewelry was created for a June wedding that took place on a farm in rural Pennsylvania.  The bride desired a romantic, vintage aesthetic but for the most part gave me full artistic reign (thanks Katie!).  The color palette of sapphire and lime green was chosen by the bride to reflect her bridal party colors.  I chose to work in brass to quietly emphasize the vintage aesthetic and designed the necklaces as multi-strand pieces to stand out against her bridesmaids' simple, sleeveless sapphire blue dresses.  

B.O.B. Robot Necklace

This funny little guy's name is B.O.B.  He starred in the cult film, The Black Hole (1979).  Though I have never seen the movie, there was no denying that this little bot needed to be made into a necklace.  I adorned the vintage charm with a double vintage brass chain, aqua candy jade, carnelian heishi, and a cobalt blue faceted crystal and packaged him up as a gift for a dear friend's birthday.  I'm not quite sure why, but every time I see a cartoon robot, I usually think of her.  So, here you have it: a B.O.B. (noble robot assistant to Dr. Hans Reinhardt of the USS Cygnus) Necklace.  From what I've read, this character has a southern drawl.  Excellent.

 

The stones are meant to hover below B.O.B. as if they were planets, stars, or his very own little galaxy. 

 

B.O.B.'s close up.

Bunny Rabbit Necklaces

Here are a few photos of some Easter themed necklaces I made for Dan's three nieces.  I had a hand full of adorable little vintage bunny rabbit charms in my stash so I decided to put them to good use.  I adorned the wee bunnies with wasabi hued Czech glass flowers, fuchsia candy jade faceted rounds, and ivory seed pearls.  I love them and secretly want one for myself...  good thing I have one more bunny charm! :)

Freshwater Pearl and Turquoise Necklace and Earrings

I've been wanting to share this creation with you for quite sometime now but I had to wait until the recipient received it, as it was a birthday gift and I didn't want to ruin the surprise.  Dan's mom commissioned this necklace and earring set as a gift for her daughter-in-law's 40th birthday.  As she described her desired palette to me, it became evident that the colors of the sea were her true inspiration. 

The result is a set that I am very, very happy with.  It's quite different than anything I've done before, especially because it incorporates so many pearls.  I am not one to wear pearls but I think this necklace has changed my mind.  I hope to make more, in different color schemes and media- perhaps incorporating brass, gold vermeil, or wood. 

 

This multi-strand necklace features a mélange of colorful pearls and semi-precious stones echoing the warmth of the sea. Freshwater pearls, Amazonite, Rutilated Quartz, and Turqouise are suspended from a pair of silver cones handmade by the Karen Hill Tribe of northern Thailand.

     

Labradorite and Gold Vermeil Necklace

Hello readers.  I haven't had a chance to work on new work for my etsy shop (hopefully to open in the near future *fingers crossed*) but I have been busy with a few custom orders which I am very fortunate for. 

This necklace was commissioned for my boyfriend's sister for her birthday.  I'm not sure why, but when I thought of what I wanted to do her for her, I could not get Labradorite out of my head.

 

A bracelet of Snowflake Obsidian

I've completed another custom order and I must admit, I really love custom orders!  I whipped this bracelet up this week after a friend of mine requested that I make a bracelet for the "team mother" of her sons' football team.

I didn't have much time to work on it, as she needed it by Saturday, so polymer clay beads were out of the question.  When discussing the style, my friend explained to me that it would be great if I could create the bracelet in the team colors- red and black.  (The most excellent of ideas in celebration of a great season.)

Jewelry for an autumn wedding

I recently had the opportunity to create custom jewelry for a friend's bridal party to be worn in her autumn wedding.  Aside from the bride wanting a pendant style, gold-toned necklace with matching earrings I was free to create what ever I wanted.  I gathered up images of a broad range of styles and materials and showed them to the bride to gauge the aesthetic that she was going for.  She ended up really loving the idea of using chocolate and ivory fresh water pearls to match her ladies' chocolate, ivory and mango colors. 

Resin and Polymer Clay Pendants

Well, I am delighted to write that I survived my very first craft fair.  I plan to post a nice recap for you, but I think I'll save that for Saturday morning when I am sitting on my couch all cozied up to a giant cup of coffee and a blanket.

Today, I thought I'd share a few photos of the pendants that I made.  If you remember from this post, they were constructed using the Klimt cane.  The cane slice was then set in an antique copper bezel and encapsulated under resin, which domes above the cane, magnifying and slightly distorting the design.  I just love them and am happy to report that they were a huge success at the Celticfest this past Saturday.  I wish I had made more, but they were, initially, an experiment.  Since they were such a success, I have plans to make a slew in antique brass as well as copper and sterling silver.  I can't wait to get started.

New earrings, fresh off the work bench

(And by "work bench" I mean to say "coffee table". :)  Dear proper work space, we shall be together one day.  I promise.)

Here is a little peak into what I've been working on these past few days.  Lovely, dangly earrings.

Gustav and the Klimt Cane

It's funny- the inspiration for the color scheme of the Klimt cane I posted about was the image below- a dessert dish from Anthropologie depicting colorful Koi frolicking amongst the seaweed.  Now, I am being honest with myself by admitting that I did not nail the color likeness.  At all.

                               

Though many things were off, I think the greens were the main culprit.  Not only did I not mix them to the appropriate shade, but they took over the entire palette.  The result, I think, resembles more of the palette of a Klimt painting. (Ever. so. slightly.  Klimt's palette is absolutely genius. My beads are more of a reference to his work.)

                                          

   Gustav Klimt. Portrait of Emilie Flöge. 1902. Oil on canvas. Historical Museum of the City of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

Gustav Klimt (July 14, 1862 - February 6, 1918) was an Austrian Symbolist painter and prominent member of the Vienna Secessionist Movement and is this polymer clay cane's name's sake.  The pattern of ovals, squares and rectangles echoes the decorative motifs the artist utilized in so much of his work.

            Gustave Klimt. Hope II. 1907-1908. Oil and gold on canvas. Museum of Modern Arts, New York, NY

This observation, paired with my recent beautiful vintage raw brass findings acquisition, has given me the idea to do a series based on Klimt paintings and their palettes.  I think it will be a suitable homage to one of my favorite artists.

Gustav Klimt. The Beethoven Frieze: The Longing. Right wall. 1902. The Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna, Austria.

Klimt cane and a day of pendant experiments

[First off, allow me to apologize for the mediocre photos.  I have to take them in the daylight, using my actual camera instead of my phone's camera.  The lighting here is pretty poor and the camera's flash was blowing out all of the colors so I used my phone's camera instead.]

This past Sunday I was finally able to devote some serious time to working on my polymer clay beads.  I thought I'd share a sampling of what I came up with. 

These lovelies were made using a Klimt, or retro, cane design.  I'm very happy with the end result and I am very excited about the plans I have for them.  However, they still have a lot of prep work ahead of them before they are ready to be strung and donned around the neck.  The final steps of sanding and the varnishing can be rather tedious but I believe that the time put in pays off in the end.

The image above shows two of the six pendants I designed.  This was an experiment that I had been thinking about for quite some time now.  It again utilized the Klimt Cane- at left, before reduction and at fight, after the cane was further reduced and then quartered.  Again, the clay will be sanded to a smooth, level surface and then encapsulated in a pool of resin that will be poured into the bezel settings, atop the baked polymer clay.  I can't wait to get started on this. 

I also ordered some lovely raw brass vintage findings today.  They make me swoon.  I can't wait until they are sitting at my doorstep.  My (soon to be) pretties: a simple solid brass chain that I plan to use with the Klimt beads, raw brass head pins, and stunning vintage brass leaves on stem branch findings that I will use for wrapped filigree.  So inspiring, they've already given me ideas for future polymer clay jewelery designs.

I'll be sure to photograph them (in better lighting) as soon as they arrive!

A New Necklace

I thought I'd share the necklace that I made Saturday.  Literally 45 minutes before I was to head out the door for my friend's birthday evening.  

I'm fairly certain Dan was less than pleased when he realized what I was doing, after witnessing me furiously stringing bead after bead.  

Dan: "You plan on wearing that tonight?"  

Me: "Yup."  

Dan: "You realize we are leaving here in 30 minutes." 

Me: "Yup"  

Dan: "You're nuts"  

Me: "I realize this."

It was at this point in the conversation that I pointed out to him that if he helped me string the beads on I could finish getting ready and we could pop out the door on time.  And you know what?  He obliged.  He's good like that.  

See all those tiny black seed beads?  Yup, that's Dan's good work.  He usually helps me string my necklaces together and I love him for that.  It's been a while since I've made a new piece of jewelry so he could have been a little rusty but I think he did just fine.

 

The necklace is composed of dyed Green Quartz round beads, faceted Red Jasper briolettes and Miyuki Delica matte black seed beads.  I used an old clasp that I had in my supplies but I plan on making a new one for this out of hammered sterling silver or copper wire.