Jewelry Report: Statement Earrings

In the last few years or so we've seen cocktail rings, bib necklaces, loaded, chunky charm bracelets, and thick bangles. Statement jewelry is always hot, and now it's the earrings' turn. Be it chandalier or shoulder duster, statement earrings are it It jewelry of summer, and are a fabulous compliment to strapless tops and tank shirts, a nice way to make your wardrobe pop if you just don't feel like wearing a necklace or loading up your arms with bracelets during the dog days of summer. :) 

Melody Earrings, AMARENOstyle, price upon request. Amareno-Style.com. 

Pulsar Earrings, $27 USD, Uniquely Chic. Etsy listing. 

Capacitor and LED Earrings, $55 USD, Techcycled. Etsy listing. 

Golden Sun Earrings, $32 USD, Kica Bijoux. Etsy listing. 

Diamond Elysia Earrings, $30 USD, Krystal Chains. Etsy listing. 

Art Nouveau Chandalier Earrings, $17 USD, Art of Adornment. Artofadornment.ca. 

Fashion Spotlight: Purple

I'm going to start writing a weekly fashion column over at deviantART, focusing on the latest trends/looks and whatnot, while showcasing all the amazing, talented artisans and designers dA has to offer.

I've kicked off my column this week with a focus on the color purple! I was inspired by Vogue UK's article.

See my post here.

See Vogue UK's article here.

New rings!

I've been experimenting a lot with rings and focusing on more metalwork. While my repertoire still needs a massive expansion I wanted to include what I knew, which is mainly hammering. XD

I also wanted to include more of my fused glass and try to mix metals and textures. This is what I came up with.



This is a mix of 14g sterling silver wire and 20g silver plated copper wire. The base/ring shank is sterling, and I hammered the ends flat and sort of shaped them around the glass. I used the plated wire to anchor it further. I really like the mix of wires. The glass itself is a small sliver of blue foil CBS 90COE dichroic glass, capped with 90coe green Bullseye and fired to a medium fuse.

Etsy listing: http://www.etsy.com/listing/89617835/fused-dichroic-glass-and-sterling-silver

 
This ring is has a base of 14g brass wire, hammered in the same way I did the sterling silver. I used gold-plated copper wire to wrap the glass in the same fashion. I was worried the brass and gold colors might clash, but in the end they went together beautifully. The glass is a base of yellow 90coe Bullseye, with a strip of CBS 90coe iridescent dichro, capped with a piece of orange scrap I had on hand and fired to a medium fuse.

Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/listing/91548091/solar-candy-dichroic-fused-glass

 

I know the last one doesn't have hammered ends but I wanted to include it anyway. I got the piece of glass from my former metalworking professor and I really like how it turned out. Sterling silver ring shank with silver plated copper wirework and anchoring.

Etsy:http://www.etsy.com/listing/91528377/evening-colors-fused-dichroic-glass

There will be more, when I can get more of the sterling wire. :)

The latest kiln firings...

Yikes, it's been awhile! Kicking things off with the latest to come out of the kiln. I did three firings over the holidays. I did two soft tack and one medium fuse. These will all be for sale in the Etsy shop.

 

  

  

Super happy with how these turned out! :D 

Second Firing...

The second batch came out of the kiln and I am so excited! These came out better than I thought they would, and they're going up in Etsy tonight. :) Or tomorrow morning. I'm kinda tired.

Here's a comparison of what went in to what came out:

In addition, this is one
from the first firing:

There's a few I didn't keep track of and can't find. I'm going to see if there's a lost and found and hope nobody made off with them. The moral of the story is to initial everything with that neat little pain pen. :)

I'm having a blast seeing how things fire and how the colors turn in the kiln. A few prefires I posted in the last entry aren't up here because they turned into lifeless blobs, and I have decided I dislike the looks of the hard-fused pieces intensely. I don't like how they lose their shape. So...I'm going to stick mainly to soft-tack firings.

I have some new colors and textures of glass I bought today, as well as another sheet of silver foil, so I'm going to include those in the next batch. :)

I've taken a bit of a different approach to new pieces and am starting to incorporate lace and ribbon into a new set of chokers. I will be posting my results later in the week. I'm steering towards a lolita look, which I've wanted to do for a long time. :) Stay tuned!

First Firing!

The first firing is finished! Five have been completed, two are still at school, and two need another firing. Here's what is done so far...

This...did not turn out well, hence the name. I didn't like it going in either. But my professor wanted me to fire it anyway because this is an art in which you just don't know.

A bunch more went into the kiln yesterday. We should be getting them back in a week.

This batch was a soft-tack:

This will be a medium fire:

And these will be a hard fuse:

I'm super excited about how this next batch will turn out. I'm experimenting with colored glass, seeing how things will fire and how things will layer, what floats and what doesn't, etc. I'm going to put the money I make selling these aside to get a kiln of my own and really step it up. :)