When you make jewelry, you invariably end up with some scrap materials. In my case, I use a lot of sterling silver when making my jewelry. I had no idea what to do with it at first, but two options presented themselves to me. I could either sell it back to the large jewelry supply stores, or I could go to my local friendly neighborhood Gem and Mineral Society. To optimize the use of my silver, I went to the Yucaipa Valley Gem and Mineral Society. There are many things that a member can do at such a society. I have done rock polishing, and taken a few silversmithing classes as well as chain maille classes. With my scrap silver, I took a casting class. I finally got around to finishing one of the rings. I mounted a 12mm cubic zirconia on a 6 prong setting I cast – it’s massive, but fun to wear :-). I have a bunch of rings still waiting to be cleaned and finished. It’s a learning process – you can see the left most cast ring, a steel shot from tumbling was stuck to it, and when it went into the pickle pot, it gave the silver a coppery finish. I kind of like it actually:

It’s that time of the month again. The theme for this art show at the RAA is “Faces And Places”.  I made a beachy bracelet/earrings set using the bird a week bead from last week. I also made a Redlands Orange necklace/earrings set – I’m in the mood for oranges! The Washington Navels are ripe and delicious! the tangelos should follow soon. This is the best time of the year weather wise around here – the sun is shining, and the air is crisp and fresh.  I love living in a citrus grove. My children are not so enamored with eating oranges, etc. but I’ll never tire of it.  Anyway, here are some of the jewelry I will display for this month’s show:

I love making flowers, especially roses. The weather here has been sooo nice.  The bare root roses are already lining up along the walkways at the nurseries. One day I would love to have an English garden with roses of every color. But, for now, I’ll make do with creating lampwork glass roses:

Here are some Valentines themed jewelry – you can find them in my Etsy Store. I just love the combination of red on pink. The Digital community is sooo generous. You can find this template at MJ-AJ Designs, and the background paper at NeareStore:

The other day, I went to our local hardware store to get a refill on my propane tank in preparation for doing some torch work. On my way out, I took the scenic route through the garden center and had the pleasure of seeing some very nice flowers. It’s not spring yet, but this is Southern California after all, so I whipped out my iPhone and took some pictures. Well, my torch session was inspired by the flowers I saw. For some reason, I managed to burn/scum half the flowers I made, but some survived, and I made them into a bracelet and hair pin set. I listed them in my Etsy Store. I also really liked the Harvest moon and White Moon Kale, so I made some hair pins for my daughter out of felt. Also, I found this very nice template at JoeyLynn Designs:

Well, I already blogged today, but I wanted to share what I have at the RAA. The show theme is “Music”, but with the holidays and all, I wasn’t able to get on the torch to make anything musical. So, I opted for earrings – very pretty and quick to make. I also wanted to try out this wonderful template I found on one of my “browsing moments” on the web. You can find it at Angelica’s scrap blog. She is a talented and generous artist – Thank you Angelica! Also, from my new found obsession (digital scrapbooking), I surrounded the center cell with a pretty butterfly overlay from Vera Lim Design:

Here is a seed bead necklace and bracelet I made. I really like the look of seed bead jewelry, but the older I get the harder it is on my eyes. Nevertheless, it is still worth the effort:

As long as I have been playing with polymer clay, I decided to make some faux antique jewelry. I have a wonderful book in my collection called “Creating Your Own Antique Jewelry” by cRis Dupouy that I used for inspiration. Infact, I took photos of the pendant and brooch with the pages from the book as backdrop. They were fun to make:

I finally got the Lazertran transfer paper. Like any new technique, it’s a matter of practice practice practice –  I smeared a few before I was satisfied. I have always wanted to incorporate vintage family photos into my art. So, I made my daughter necklaces from found objects and photos of her great-grandmother Kiyono from the Asian side, and her great-grandmother Frederica from the European side. Her reaction? uhhh…  it’s gaudy and nice!  I think she likes them 🙂

This is such a busy time of the year. I haven’t been able to get on the torch, or be creative for that matter. I did purchase some neat gallery templates from Corina Nielsen. I am a bit Photoshop Elements challenged, so I bought a book, and am planning on teaching myself Elements. Meanwhile, my friend Evelyn of PhotoArtbyMarie gave me some pointers, and I was able to use my latest templates. I uploaded some photos of beads I have made in the past. Pretty cool huh? 🙂

The last time I made anything with polymer clay was almost 20 years ago. I made dolls from a pattern I found in an old McCall’s Needlework & Crafts magazine, circa 1976 – I still have the magazine! Well, I have been wanting to make something using old family photos and polymer clay. I have had a difficult time finding a medium to make transfers from. I initially tried liquid sculpy, then T-shirt transfer paper. I finally caved and ordered Lazertran Silk transfer paper. In the meanwhile, I experimented with ready made transfers. Here is a pair of angel earrings I made out of polymer clay, transfer, silver, copper, and amber. Not bad for a first go. And below is a doll who now resides at my sister’s home, and the vintage magazine I mentioned: