New Work, Sort Of...

This pendant has been kicking around for a while. I made it for Maine Team's winter challenge. It was ok...but lacked the grittiness I like in my work....you know, oxidation to the sterling, scraps, bumps, and bruises. And I really detested this chain. So, I updated the pendant and it feels more like a Quench piece.

Just a little coloration to the sterling, sanding of the rivets, and a modern sterling cable wire to replace the chain. A vast improvement, wouldn't you agree?

Front Page!

My little filigree ring made her way to Etsy's front page this morning! Melissa from Little Pink House curated this charming collection of handmade goodness! Two other pieces from Mainers, Swallowfield and Betsy Thompson Studio, accompanied my ring on her trip to the big page!

Contest Reminder, New Listings, and Thankings

Just a friendly reminder that tomorrow is the kick-off for the Etsy Metalsmiths in Action Team's "Seek, Find, and Win" Holiday Contest. Please check out rules here and prize photos here! If you happened to miss my first blog about the contest, you can find it here. Good luck and have fun!

A few new listings today in my shop.

hollow nickel silver and 18k ring with sapphire

sterling silver 'snowfall' rivet pendant

sterling silver 'snowman' pendant

I had a blast making this little silver stack. It's weight is impressive and could easily become a favorite pendant. To create one in gold would be a DREAM! I'm hoping that the gold price continues to fall...$400/ troy ounce would be excellent!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! With a belly full of turkey, squash, and stuffing (AND brussel sprouts AND mashed potatoes AND cranberry sauce AND monkey bread) I present to you the 5 things I'm thankful for this evening:

1. My good health and the good health of my loved ones.
2. My family and friends
3. Sunny, warm places to visit in February
4. My husband who did ALL the dishes and kitchen chores today...you rock, babe!
5. My loyal blog followers!

Happy Friday

A very happy Friday indeed. This little girl of ours is once again surrendering to the nap. Thank goodness! She also visited Mama's studio today and had a blast painting with big girl paints and very big paper. Mama got some work finished. AND, one of my pendants made the Etsy home page!!! Woo hoo!


My Etsy Maine Team mate, Jen, from Whimsidoodle (http://www.whimsidoodle.etsy.com/) selected my long, simple 3 button pendant as part of her treasury (unsure what this treasury thing is? Go to http://www.etsy.com/ and click treasury). In an email correspondence, she mentioned this, I checked it out, did a happy dance in the kitchen, and emailed everyone. BUT, it gets better...I logged in later in the day, and there's my pendant...home page of Etsy!!!!! No one has bought the pendant (grr), but it was viewed 299 times. Very exciting stuff !

My darling daughter, as I mentioned above, worked with me in my studio today. She was so well behaved and focused on her painting. I love kids' art. I taught k-5 art in Maine and was a teacher's assistant in college for youth art. I'm all for celebrating youth art. Below are some of our girl's drawings and paintings. These frames are from a large chain that begins with "W". I'm not proud that I shop there occasionally, but these frames are only $4.00!!! Deal.

Here's the pendant, fixed and finished. I found a vintage shell button that had off-center holes...perfect for this piece! I omitted the gold rivets as the sterling rivets worked with the brown button. I'm happy with the necklace. I'm listing this tonight on Etsy.

To end my happy day, my husband did the grocery shopping and I had a nice crisp walk with my sister. Happy Friday, everyone!

One Step Forward, Two Back

These last two days have been challenging. The little princess of the house decided that napping is wasteful and she would much rather play, or eat, or generally work on her early evening meltdown. So, mama's time in studio has been close to nil. ~sigh~ This week's 'to do' list remains intact...and has grown longer with NEXT week's projects.

However, I just finished this necklace 20 minutes ago, now that dinner is done, she's in bed, and all is quiet. I should be jumping for joy, right? If I had only waited until tomorrow: awake, freshly showered, and a mug of hot coffee for fuel. This lovely necklace's center piece button is unquestionably OFF center! I thought it looked centered (did I mention that I DID NOT have my glasses on? duh), marked the spots, and drilled. I even made 18k gold rivets! In the morning, I'll have to drill out the rivets, and fix this somehow. geez...

This bracelet above was a commission from this past summer. I thought this design would be a nice addition to the Vintage collection, so I have 3 ready to list next week on Etsy. I could try to work on them tonight, but with the above disaster (ok, not quite a 'disaster') looming over me like a dark cloud, I think that they can wait.

Now that I have finished boo-hooing my mistakes and time issues, here's 5 things I'm thankful for:
1. My family, awake or napping
2. My glasses on my face, not in the other room on the table
3. A warm home on a cold, rainy night
4. My friends
5. Memories

Sweet Dreams!

Deconstructing the Constructed

After denying myself the pleasure of bench working for several years (due to endless priorities), I plowed into the studio without a plan when my muse whispered to me "Start, NOW!". To make what could be a very long story somewhat short, I cherish the needlecraft arts and the many women in my family who practice or practiced these traditions. Seldom do I sew or embroider...I'm a metalsmith...dirty hands, calloused fingertips and palms, short nails..not the hands of a seamstress. What I can do, is celebrate needlecrafts through jewelry.

So with that renewed spirit and inspiration, I made this pendant. No plan, just a large sheet of metal. Using those buttons from my family's collection, fabric textured sterling sheet, and a dainty, doily-like edge, I thought that this was the coolest pendant EVER. For a little splash, I riveted the buttons on with pink gold. Then, I tried it on...then tried it on my sister...then a friend. Unfortunately, the darn thing looks clumsy around the neck. It kind of reminds me of one of the fancy liquor decanter plaques. NOT the look I was going for. I want my jewelry to enhance the female neck, not make her look like a jug of bourbon.



So, off to the bench we go. I will be deconstructing this piece into several smaller pieces and one large oval, empty center brooch. Once all is said and done, this pendant's vim will live through several other pieces. I'll post some pics when I am finish with the revamping!