Easy Earrings #6-Pumpkin Party

I rarely attend grownup parties. Something about the hermit in me. But occasionally it's made clear that my presence is expected. I'm thrown into fits of finding. Finding a top that isn't stained, missing a button, or too big, too small or too ugly. The top I found wayyyyy in the back of my closet was an odd pumpkin color. OK, themey but not too dated. Not too shiny. Phew! Here are Easy Earrings #6. Dressier than #5. But just as quick.

Happy Halloween! and Earring #5

These are technically yesterday's earrings. You know...those I have to be at my son's school for a Halloween party in 35 minutes and look festive earrings. I thought about skulls, but they seemed a little Maudlin even for Halloween. Anyway, basic, verrry very basic. And yet, I got three compliments. (I really do consider 10 year old girls the pivotal judges of fashion!)

Have a wonderful and safe Halloween! And send me pictures!

First Challenge Response--Thanks, Susie!

It thrilled me when Susie emailed a picture of these earrings. Not only had someone seen the challenge, but she did a great job--I love how the tapered coil has a spiral at the end! The other day I mentioned my baby anvil. Easier than these mini anvils to use are bench blocks. Bench blocks are polished plates of steel used to flatten wire, hammer texture on metal, etc etc. In connecting with Susie today I found out she makes Sand filled bench block pads...great to keep a block from shifting, and muffle a bit of the BANGING noise. Check out her Etsy sight for more information. The.Antique.Pallete

Erin Dunn

Beware! Just when you thought you were a contented soap maker, the urge to play with little bits of sparkly glass will overcome you!

I met Erin years ago, shortly after I started selling on ebay. She was listing HUNDREDS of soap molds and soap making supplies and had started working with seed beads. She quickly developed a following with her new work as well and has never looked back. I love the variety of bead choices in this bookmark. She has the eye for mixing textures and materials that add up to a beautiful cohesive look. Here's a link to her ETSY store. LittleshopofErin

Violet Beauregarde Focal Set

I got my greedy little hands on a set of Steve Petree's rounds. Just finished listing them on ebay. (Hmm, at 3 41 am) I hope someone else is a night owl. ) I wrote an introduction on Steve's beads a couple of days ago, but wanted to give you another peek at his work. I really like the organic swirls in his beads! Steve's

Easy Earrings #4-No headpins-CHALLENGE

While these are neither the most successful earrings I've made, nor the most adventur-ous, there are two noteworthy factors involved.
The first is: You will always run out of headpins before you run out of wire. The second is: If you have wire it will rarely match your earring findings.

Solution 1: Make a spiral at the bottom of your wire to stop the bead.

Solution 2: Make a coil of wire (I used my tapered round nose pliers) to match your earring findings.

Challenge: Make a more interesting (better) pair of earrings using one or both of these solutions. Send me an email with a picture. I will probably photoshop it and crop it, but will then give you credit and be glad to connect a link to your selling sight of choice and/or email address.

Easy Earrings #3 Curly Swirlys

I used 20g brass wire for these earrings. I went thru the steps about 6 times before I found a reasonably matched pair. But brass wire is cheap and all the extras made the final earrings better than the first.

Step 1) Cut about 6 inches of 20g brass wire.

Step 2) About 2/3 of the way across make a wrapped loop.

Step 3) On the short end, make a curl.

Step 4) Curve the longer end around as shown in the picture.

Step 5) Add a bead. (in the picture, it's shown without.) The bead is an optional bit of flash.

Step 6) Then make another curl running back the other direction.

Step 7) You may notice how RUSTY my baby anvil is. Clearly NOT a good sign that it's been used much lately. I took a small chasing hammer and flattened the earring. You can leave the wire round, but when flattened it looks a bit more finished. Use small light taps and avoid the beads. (Glass and steel don't get along well.) If you don't have a baby anvil, It's possible an old cookie sheet might do the trick. Good chasing hammers are expensive...and any hammer will do. Just remember, light taps. A little goes a long way.

I think the pictures are better than the explanation this time. Feel free to email me with questions.

More with Mobius

It's been interesting to learn a process for writing instructions. It's certainly forced me to bone up on my picture taking! And these earrings may be perfectly self explanatory, but if not, here goes:

Step one: Make a Mobius circle. Take one jump ring and connect it to a second. Connect a third jump ring thru the center of both.

Step 2: Using your round nose pliers, make a large loop at the end of of of a piece of 20 g wire. On my pliers I use the very end of the tapered nose...right where they connect. Then add the sun charm and wrap your loop. (Here's a great tutorial for wrapped loops.) wrapped Snip the ends with your flush cut pliers. (I used Joyce Chen shears.****) Use your flat nose pliers and force any little tag of leftover cut wired into the wrap.

Step 3: String on a copper washer, the large amber Czech glass rondelle, the Mobius circle you made earlier, and a 4mm firepolished round. Then make a second smaller wrapped loop. (I use almost the very end of my round nose pliers to do this.) Snip the excess and again, make sure it's flush with your flat nose pliers.

Step 4: Add the earring wires and make sure their loop is closed tight.

****Joyce Chen Shears are used by LOTS of metalsmiths. They cut wire and metal sheet with ease...much better than many "for metal" shears I've owned. They're actually kitchen poultry shears and I know gardeners who use them. Oddly, they're not sold in any metalsmithing supply catalogues. Go figure.

Easy Earrings #2-Mobius Mayhem

Well, I cheated! I made multiple pairs of earrings. (Some were quite horrible.) But they all had a nifty Mobius ball used as a component. Basically, a jump ring, connected to a jump ring, with more jump rings connected to all the proceeding jump rings. Really, it's simple. Maille Artisans (A great site with everything you ever wanted to know about chain mail) has a tutorial.
http://www.mailleartisans.org/articles/articledisplay.cgi?key=8588 What I found is that even 3 linked rings have a fun look and it's a great way to add some complementary metal when you can't find the right bead in your stash.

If you start going chain mail gonzo (CMG) you'll be linking them together in bracelets. Bigger links? Key chains. Goth nephew? REALLY big links.

I'll add the components for these autumnal Mobius earrings to the ebay store tomorrow. (I love the sun charms!)

Those Who Can't, Teach!

I take great personal satisfaction in knowing I taught Steve Petree how to make glass beads. Granted, he surpassed my abilities in a matter of hours, but that's ok. I was still the (cough) catalyst for his genius.

Steve's hails from a small town in Oklahoma where everyone wears orange. You may have heard of it, I hadn't. Stillwater! A place I miss. Low cost of living. Low Crime. A place where doors are always held open and Ma'am applies to any female between the ages of 25 and 125.

He lists on ebay, infrequently. Far too infrequently.

http://myworld.ebay.com/beadmanofalcatraz/ He can also be harassed directly for beads, a method I tend to be more likely to employ. Steve.Petree@sbcglobal.net. His prices are reasonable. In fact, they're cheap. And if you're anywhere near Stillwater, he's also a pretty good teacher. (Of course, well, I'd like to believe I'm better.)

Easy Earrings #1

Once again in a slightly grand gesture towards the commitment to create, I've decided to make 30 pairs of easy earrings in 30 days.

Materials:

--2 24 gauge sterling silver headpins (24g fits easily thru the freshwater pearls. Any bigger and you may have to re drill them.)

--2 Freshwater Pearls (I chose silver potato shaped pearls.) 2 Czech glass beads. (I chose rectangles in Milky Pink.)

--2 Pieces of sterling silver wire in 24 gauge. I chose 24g, I liked the delicate look. But 20g would probably be studier.

--2 Sterling silver ear wires.

--1 Pair of Round nose pliers. 1 Pair of flush cutters. (Handy tip, fingernail clippers work great to flush cut/clip 24g wire.)

Step 1: String two pearls on to the headpins. Make a loop on the ends and wrap the excess wire. Here's a link with GREAT instructions for this: http://www.how-to-make-beaded-jewelry.com/wrapped-headpin.html

Step 2: Make another wrapped loop (this will connect to the ear wire.) String on the Czech glass bead. Then make a second wrapped loop, before closing it, add the pearl dangle.

Step 3: Add the ear wires.

Bake at 375 for 10 minutes. Actually ten minutes is about right. These are quick!

I really encourage using non sterling practice wire if you've not been making wrapped loops lately.

Just in case anyone is interested, I'll go ahead and list kits with the materials for these earrings, and the 29 more to follow, on ebay. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270292494800. If you're one of the 12 people I know who refuses to shop on ebay now, send an email and I'll invoice you a different way.

This of course assumes that someone has actually looked at my blog. Cheers!

Good Things Come in Small Packages?

I was always told this, and I've never believed it. After all, why buy 100 beads when you can get them soooooooo much cheaper when you buy 10,000? Resultingly, even after "going out of business" about 3 months ago, I still have 40 gazillion beads.

I've noticed that Stuff has taken over. I sort of emptied a storage building in Tennessee recently---only to borrow a friend's bedroom to store about 20 boxes, a pachinko machine, and a dozen paintings.

I'm trying slowly to downscale. Has anyone been successful at this?

Jackdaws

But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve for daws to peck at....Shakespeare

After a week of wearing my heart on my sleeve, I truly do feel pecked by Jackdaws. I'll spare you the details--but this journey of self...of genuine self....is just plain inconvenient at times.

There's a belief that a Jackdaw on the roof with protect the home's inhabitants. I haven't heard the crows lately. One semi psycho cat, but no crows. Drat it.

A Bit Further Along

Just paint.

In a painting class in college:

"Oh, Doctor Vandemeer, I just want to be a painter so much. It's all I've ever wanted to be. How can I make sure it happens?"

To which Joss Vandemeer screamed:

"IF YOU VANT TO BE A PAINTER, JUST PAINT."

Inertia is lethal. I've watched friends, friends who I believed had far more talent and brains, spend a decade doing nothing. Sure, it all seemed so simple to me. Why don't you just__________. Then you could _________________. And don't forget about ________________.

I'm trying to fill in those blanks for myself. Today I sawed and filed. I stacked layers of metal of plexiglass. And cut out sharp teeth. Later I'll post a picture.

JUST MAKE. So I'm making.

Going in Circles

When nothing else works: Connect a few hundred rings. Tedious, but clear signs of progress.

Scattered, Smothered, and Covered.

It's cold here in Reno. I've been spoiled by a long, easy summer. This recent onslaught of snow, sleet, and wind is draining my ambition. I finally said, "#$&&#&,#," threw on a fleece and went walking. I still didn't get anything finished today, or really even started. Oh-- yes I did. I went for a walk. Baby steps.

Work in Progress

"We must pray literally without ceasing—without ceasing—in every occurrence and employment of our lives . . . that prayer of the heart which is independent of place or situation, or which is rather a habit of lifting up the heart to God as in a constant communication with Him." Elizabeth Ann Seton

Elizabeth Ann Seton was the first canonized saint born in America. I remember going with my grandmother to her shrine as a young girl--and being utterly mesmerized. In the gift shop you could purchase tiny threads of her clothing. That somehow these scraps would protect or benefit you. And how appalled I was that no one with me had the forethought to purchase any.

Latin words--Reliquus (to remain) and Relinquere (to leave behind.) It seems like my 40's have been all about the burden (joy) of choosing what will remain, and what will be relinquished. It never seems to become clear until I'm working--with my hands, and not with my head. While I still wish sometimes I could be an 8 year old with a fresh wonder of the saints--lately I'm grateful that my working hands lead me to peace. A clear head. Reason. I don't know if Mother Ann Seaton would agree--but that's what I think prayer is.

Cleaning House

Today I went thru one storage tote. One. Not Seventeen. It had been closed for over 5 years. I found over a pound of sterling silver wire and bezel wire--never used---and promptly listed it on ebay. Hermitagebeads

I also found dozens of UFOs--unfinished objects. I can't decide if I'm uplifted by this process or just mortified.

Wednesday, Woden's Day, Odin's Way

In Norse Mythology, Odin had two crows: Huginn (Thought) and Muninn (Memory). Each morning at dawn he would send them out to gather news and information. When they returned at dusk, they would perch on his shoulders and whisper everything they had seen and heard.

The whole world wide, every day,
fly Huginn and Muninn;
I worry lest Huginn should fall in flight,
yet more I fear for Muninn. From Grímnismál:

Why does Odin fear more for Munnin?

I started a little reliquary pendant yesterday. Tiny bits of metal--Copper and Brass--to hold snatches of memory that still make me wince. I like the symbolic--placing away. Making the memory concrete--storing it outside myself. 3 broken saw blades, one broken drill bit, and one very minor flesh wound, progress is being made.

Tuesday and Tenacity

Persistent, Stubborn, and obstinate. 3 synonyms for tenacious. And I'm quite sure I like none of them. I want to claim my tenacity BOLDLY. Magnet it to the fridge. Print it on a t-shirt.

I am back selling beads on ebay. A part of me relishes the familiarity. Another part of me chimes: "Aren't you supposed to be making things?" "Aren't you an artist, Kristen?" So here goes. I aim to tenaciously, persistently, and stubbornly make things. Please hold me accountable.