Sketching Clusters

I have a long list of to do's, get done's, and remember to call's. Occasionally, running this studio, this self-contained little business of mine, is an overwhelming job for this CEO (I hate to admit this, but it is true...I'm not Wonder Woman after all).

Unfortunately, the part I love the very most gets pushed away and forgotten from time to time.

To remedy this troubling situation, I have been forfeiting sleep to get some much needed designing accomplished.

After the house has settled, I retreat to the studio, close the door, and bury myself in creation. Here's some photos of my latest assemblages.

This lovely collar neckpiece in the works will be heading to a funky new boutique, Salty Teacup, in Portland, Oregon.

The good news is I have 5 new cluster brooches and necklaces in the works. The bad news is that I'm really, really tired after a few sessions of late night design work.

G'Night!

ps...if you have not entered my giveaway, click here!

The Brew at the Bench

Somehow between all the motherly duties, dog fiascos, and tax forms, I produced at the bench this past week. An amazing feat, I know. I'm lovin' my Dot Collection. The addition of high karat bezels and precious gemstones provided a much needed kick in the butt to these lumps of recycled sterling. Yup, I'm happy, however my eyes could use some snazzy new 10x magnifiers! Sorry for the poor photo quality.....BAD lighting in my new digs.

Ah yes. Another button cluster creation. Gosh, I love making these pieces. The next direction will be cluster brooches. Wait for it....

New earrings (well, designs are not new, but it is new stock). Strangely enough, I am applying to summer craft shows already! I'm so not ready to think about swelting temps and my craft show checklist, but to avoid that last minute crunch, I am building my inventory.

Finished cluster piece. I listed this yesterday. It is absolutely smashing on the neck. I need to wrangle up my model from her nursing duties to supply you all with proof positive that this is perhaps the loveliest necklace ever made! :)

Bench Views

W.I.P

W.I.P = Works in Progress. And there are many, far too many, works in progress cluttering up the Quench's bench. Maybe 'cluttering' is the wrong word. Let's rephrase: there are many works in progress loitering....nah, still not correct. However, I experienced a creative explosion this past week...new ideas, mock ups, revisiting old designs, mapping out new ones. So, the bench looks a bit like a mad scientist's laboratory.

Several years ago, I made amulet/ talisman pendants that were outrageously over worked and priced. I handmade the chains and all the findings from 18k gold, set stones in 22k gold handmade pendant settings, hung glass, pearl, and stone beads from 18k gold jump rings and created little oval nickel silver pillows. Then I attached it all together. Very medicine man meets Paris Hilton. Not surprisingly, the pieces didn't sell. However, I am still flirting with this whole amulet idea, so I have downsized my original designs to a mini amulet. I am working on a series of 6 to debut in early November.

Then, I have earring designs scattered about. I get lost in the repetitive motion of sawing these earrings out of 18 gauge sterling sheet. Besides this design, I have 4 more in various states of finish. The earrings should be listed next week in my Etsy shop.

Work in Progress

Welcome to my latest project....a button cluster neckpiece that will look gorgeous on a winter bride. All the buttons are all vintage or antique white mother of pearl with various hues of peach, ivory, cream, and mink.

This is how I work out designs. I like to map all the components (in this case, buttons) onto some sketch paper and label each button's location.

Next step, many, many, many fine silver bezels! Did I mention bezels?

I love to solder....really, I do. If I did not, this piece would still be a mere sketch.

After soldering, I just had to take a picture of the piece on my chest (my plus sized chest, that is...on an average woman, this necklace will look bigger and more grand...my fleshiness dwarfs its actual size). Also, the finished piece will actually sit a tad bit higher.

Ah! Daylight photos!

I wish I had documented the process of tapering this 12 gauge sterling silver wire, but alas, I was too deeply engaged in the process to think of the camera.

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The home stretch! To give this piece a bit of richness, I added some 18k gold loops and balls in three spots. After adjusting the neckwire's curvature, I'll bring up the finish and set the buttons. Check back mid week for the "reveal"!

Coming Up for Air

Phew! I'm buried in work, making many lovelies for my summer shows and stock for the upcoming holiday. With almost 70 pieces approaching the finish line and a box of castings schedule for delivery tomorrow, the next week promises to be a flurry of filing, hammering, soldering, and oxidizing. A quick glimpse of my works in progress and my cluttered bench.

button bracelet

the mess that I call my bench

bracelet with boot buttons from the 1930's

Pendant, almost complete and my new favorite

pendant with sweet carved button

Where does the time go?

Oh, shame on me! I have neglected my blog...I apologize and promise to post more often! You see, spring is here and there is much to be done in the way of gardening...mostly, weeding. And when the sun shines, my girl and I take to the outside to play, plant, and frolic about. When not outside, I have been furiously working at the bench preparing work for two retail opportunities and two craft shows. Busy, busy, busy!

More rings for the Candy Dish Collection were made this past week. These rings along with lots of earrings will find their way to a new multi-purpose space in Belfast, Maine. Meg of Love Light Studio and her musician husband are converting a great old retail spot into a gallery/ shop/ performance space. Cool things like a stage that doubles as dressing rooms and collapsible display case to make space for the evening shows are just a few excellent ideas at Roots and Tendrils. Their opening is June 5 th!

Self portrait...that's as much as you will see of my face today!

Sunday, As I See It

I guess you would say that I'm not your average girl. I would take a hosta nursery over a department store any day; comfortable Dansko shoes over strappy, glitter encrusted heels; a nice, smoky bourbon over a fruity cocktail (well, in a pinch, a Cosmo would do). Perhaps it was my upbringing...my parents encouraged my sister and I to play outside (a far better choice when the family TV only had 4 viewable channels and not a video game within a 10 mile radius). We had dolls, but, usually, you would find us hauling the Barbies into the wilds, building cabins for them until the sun went down. So, in a nutshell, I'm not your average girly girl.

One of my all time favorite places in Maine is also not girly, and I thought what a fun way to spend a Sunday with my daughter...who is leaning towards the girly side of things. Examples: screaming when she spies a bug (gets this trait from her father...and, all of you who know him are snickering right now...), favors pink, wears a tiara around the house, and her pajama top and bottoms must match or she won't go to bed. So, bedecked in her funky little pink and pewter hat from my friend Dory at Worthy Goods, her pink, glitter sneaks, and her purse in hand, Annabelle experienced the Liberty Tool Company for her very first time. A success, you may ask? If repeating "Mama, can we go now, please?" thirty times is success, then yes, it was tremendously successful.

Since I had not visited the Liberty Tool Company in many years (and this is a pity, because it is a mere 20 minutes down the road), I had the best time rummaging through the hundreds of bins full of old tools, searching for just the right old file or hammer. In the past, I walked away with a crate full of mini-vises, hammers, awls, files, letter stamps, printing press typefaces, and engravers. Today, I managed to buy 3 files each with lovely worn handles, perfect props for photographing jewelry! Other delightful finds, but not purchased, were oodles of old photographs and dozens of figurines from "Grandma's Attic" upstairs. If and when in Mid-coast Maine, by all means make a pilgrimage to the Liberty Tool Company. You'll walk away happy with assorted old tools, dirt on your hands, a smile on your face, and, perhaps, a little less girly :)

Works in Progress

I arranged this small sampling of items on my steel block to summarize my design direction...completely scattered! I'm having tons of fun creating pieces that have been bouncing around in my mind. They all relate to my 3 different collections, and, maybe in some way, relate to each other as well.

I just listed this pair of earrings in my Etsy shop the other day. I'm in LOVE with these pearls I picked up while in Florida. Lots of pearl items with oxidized sterling and 18k gold on the way!!