I thought I'd give a bit of a back story to some of the current work I'm doing. Two elements figure prominently in my work--copper and spirals. I've worked with copper wire since I was a child, and my love for the metal has only increased over time. Its warmth and soft nature make it easy to work with, and it glows, no matter what you make from it.
As for spirals, they crept into my life many years ago--I don't even know how. I just know that one day, there they were--in my collages, my gourds, my jewelry and my mixed media work. I love the form, which is both timeless and mysterious to me.
So here's a piece of jewelry that combines both of these elements. This piece started out with a small "test" in wrapping some new Rivoli crystals I bought. This was just supposed to be a prototype for the necklace that I was going to make out of sterling silver. I was so in love with the way the copper combined with these crystals, that I couldn't stop working on it. Before I knew it, here's what I had...
I was absolutely astonished at how this piece turned out and was glad that I'd made it out of copper instead of silver, because the fire in the "volcano" crystals really bursts!
I've discovered that my creative muse lives in a mysterious place deep inside of me, and if I quiet the chatter in my head that is constantly directing me, I can hear her...and oh! does she have wonderful things to say!
Ciao for now,
Deborah
Sorry for the lapse in entries here...I was happily lost in action in the studio this past week, working to finish some jewelry pieces that had been on the work table for far too long. Combine that with my Internet connection going down, and it just seemed to make sense to do something creative instead of giving in to frustration with the computer.
I finished the pendant and earrings that I made out of one of my latest adventures in the embossed and painted metal. I had the hardest time figuring out what I wanted to do for the necklace portion of the pendant and had a few false starts before deciding on what to make.
Here's how the set turned out...
Years ago I scored several kinds of copper and silver beads at a bead show. They've been sitting patiently in my bead box, waiting to make their debut. This set seemed like the ideal place to add a few of those beads. The tiny silver spirals on the copper beads mirror the spirals in the necklace. Here they are in the pendant...
and there they are in the earrings...
I wore this set out to dinner with friends last night and really enjoyed the colors and textures!
Now on to my next adventure,
Deborah
Yes, it's true--I have a one-track mind these days and am completely hooked on making stuff with embossed and painted metal. It's just like magic when I emboss the metal and then mix colors of paint to create wonderful swirls and rainbows. It's way too much fun to stop!
So I've got two earring and pendant sets in process--different shapes and different color palettes. The first has my favorites--the blues/greens/purples...
I love the look of the colors against the background of the copper, which also gives the pieces strength. Here's a closeup of the pendant...
I got more adventurous with shapes in the next set I made...
This set has luscious greens and reminds me of the range of colors on a walk in the woods. Here's a closeup of this pendant...
I'll most likely finish these sets with handmade fine silver chains...but then again, I might just add some beads to be different! Who knows? So stay tuned for the finished products!
Oh! by the way...I've had inquiries from lots of people wanting to know if these pieces are for sale...of course they are! I can also make brooches for those who like to make a statement on a lapel. I'm selling these pieces direct, so if you're interested, give me a holler, and we'll talk.
Ciao!
Deborah
Sunday was my monthly meeting of the art group to which I belong, and once again, it was time to turn in the altered books that we're exchanging. The friend's book I had this past month was designed around the theme, "doodles"--right up my alley with all my Zentangling! I immediately got an image for the artwork I wanted to add to this beautiful book.
My friend is a bird watcher and loves hearts, so those were 2 elements I definitely wanted to include in the pages I did. She's also the person who introduced me to making exquisite artwork using art napkins (paper napkins with beautiful graphics on them).
So here's how I started...
A painted background with a bird from a paper napkin standing on a heart I made from embossed and painted metal (my current favorite thing to play with!).
Next, I wrote a saying in doodle letters...."May the blue bird of happiness dance in your heart"....
Now for the REALLY fun part....all the doodling...
I really had fun working on this book and was pretty thrilled with the results...and my friend like the pages I did, too!
Cheers till next time,
Deborah
I'm getting a hankering to do some more gourds...it's been awhile. All my artist friends have had me happily preoccupied with mixed media pieces in between making jewelry. If I leave my gourds for too long, they start calling to me and are feeling neglected.
I'm getting visions of combining embossed and painted metal and wire with a gourd. One of the last crazy pieces I did was a wired gourd is called "Wild Red". The piece actually made itself--my hands seemed to be on auto pilot, and I was delighted with the results.
Here's Wild Red...
I painted the gourd and then used copper wire, artistic wire and beads for the embellishment...
Red is such a wonderful color, don't you think??
More to come,
Deborah
I had a happy day on Sunday working on another necklace and earring set--no pictures yet, But I will take some shots when they're done. This is another set with the embossed and painted metal set on copper--a combination I'm really liking a lot! So the challenge is what kind of chain to put with this new style that I'm making. Beads? Nah...to jumbled. Plain links....hmm...humdrum. So I'm stuck with this conundrum, as the chain is all that's left to make.
I'm so used to working with freeform pieces and making crazy necklaces, that this new stuff is a challenge. Here's the kind of thing I usually like to do...
So, I guess I'll just keep thinking of some new ideas...I'll post pictures when the new pieces are done.
Ciao for now,
Deborah
