Online · Gallery · for · Paddy · Litvak · Jewelry

the_paddy

John suggested I make Kristin a pair of earrings, something "watery" to remind her of Newport. Well, why not? I guess it could be a way of thanking her for 1994's Hips & Makers ;)

Well, here's the result (although not a very good picture of it):

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh and watery is probably a good description of my favourite colour scheme :)))) That's a nice fat green fluorite rondel wire-wrapped by fine gauge sterling silver, dropping down to a cluster of iolite (also called "water sapphire") coins attached to a length of cable chain which ends with a teardrop-shaped peacock pearl. I ended up using the design (with varying colours and stones) a few times in production since.

I ended up meeting Kristin and her band but John didn't (this time). She was surprised that I had made her a pair of earrings and seemed delighted. I hope she wears them in good health :)

I am feeling:	pleased
Listening to:	50 Foot Wave - Your Ghost

seacraftmafia

It was interesting for a first show as it wasn't all that busy for anyone but it was still a good place for a humble first time. I got to get to know the people around me, people I will be seeing at future shows, esp UCU and IHR events. Cassandra and spitkittenhad a bit of a pickle in the morning because there weren't the amount of tents the festival organisers had promised. Cassandra called in a few favours (because she's a respected member of the community) and VOILA we almost had more than we needed :) spitkittenand Cassandra really work well together (and everyone else) and I'm glad they're co-running IHR :) They actually gave up vending that day to help out everyone else :)

(I did not get to fully document all of my inventory before the show so I just made sure I took pictures of everything so I'd know what I was talking about when I'd look at the books later. I did written inventory of what I had on the table. I plan on doing the rest soonish, before IHR in October. Anyhoo, so the following pictures are not of the best quality but they're not necessarily supposed to be.)

Here are the items I sold:

These earrings are pretty simple. It's good to have simple and elegant items because not everyone wants to wear complex pieces everyday. I know my mood switches. So that's a Bali silver earwire that has kind of a three-leaf clover design on it with a small white round pearl hanging off it and a montana blue swarovski crystal bicone beneath. $15.

This bracelet features these neat Bali Silver beads that I want to call "basketweave" but they're more like a patterned vase shape. I've got red garnet heishe (disk) beads and rustic green garnet rondels sandwiched by evergreen coloured button pearls. Strung on soft-flex wire and finished off with sterling silver (of course!) components. $20.

This one was such a charmer that I have since remade it adding antiqued bali silver cornerless cubes. I need to show my Litvak by featuring more amber. This bracelet is made of cognac amber, dark green pearls and faceted green tourmaline. $25.

My next show is IHR (aka I Heart Rummage) on Sunday, October 1st. Seattle Craft Mafia is actually the special guest and we're representin' at a table near the front door. The promise of the Crocodile's Sunday Brunch may even bring the_paddyout to Belltown! Ging!

I need to post more often - I plan on it. I have lost the password to paddylitvakso I'm going to have to buy the name back (as there's been no activity so it's pretty much a dead account). I will re-create it as a selling journal with links to this one (whose name I will change, not sure to what as of yet) as an online gallery/blog, which is what it already is. I tried to make a nice website and even found some free tools but it was too much of a pain and Comcast doesn't like my etsy store link (it forwards the customer to the Etsy storefront instead). So LJ it is for now. Or for soon ;)

These are the first beauties I made and, as I do once in a blue moon, I actually ANTIQUED the fine silver wire! *shock horror*

These are made with faceted aquamarine marquises for the blossom, tiny pink tourmaline for the berries, and green tourmaline ovals for the leaves. Note the little tendril :)

( Here are some more blossoms I've made )

Of course, to challenge, the instructor also taught how to do the multiple blossom dangles. The ones above are rainbow moonstone faceted briolettes with garnet berries and peridot coin leaves. I found these to be difficult to do and although they were supposedly easier with pear briolettes I have so far found that they don't look as nice and, actually, I had a harder time with the pear ones. I may post a picture of an ill-fated necklace that utilised a trio of peruvian opal pear briolettes as a blossom with the rest of the necklace but I may not because I think I'm going to modify the pendant as it's too.... busy. In short, the triple blossoms made with the briolettes are a pain but turn out much nicer than the triple blossoms made with pear briolettes.

We also learned how to make vine components (for necklaces, bracelets, even earrings). The one above is made from faceted oval aquamarine leaves with tiny green tourmaline berries and pink pearl buds. This is a technique I haven't been doing ad nauseaum but I'd like to because the result would be STUNNING on a chain-and-bead necklace. (Hmmm, another project for the near future)

I have since made a dangle bracelet with aquamarine teardrop blossoms topped with peacock pearl berries (yeah, I had to go back and get three more strands of those sweet little peacock pearls) and I do like it (although have yet to upload the pictures - DOH!) but I'm thinking I should antique it. I did finally obtain some nice smelly liver of sulphur and recently got a nice big order of silver wire from Rio Grande so I think some antiquing is in the near future :) I am off work through the end of the month so I believe I'll be able to get on with my crafty self to my heart's content :)

I am feeling:

pleased

In the class I took a few weeks ago I learned how to basket weave wire around focus beads, briolettes, teardrops, and top-drilled beads. Again, in the above picture, you can see the basket weave work Tara does. Here's an example of the basket weaving I've done so far:
</p>

</p>
Three amazonite briolettes, a green fluorite briolette that was used to complete a pendant of a sodalite and aventurine necklace, and a set of sapphire-coloured swarovski crystal teardrops. I did the crystal teardrops first and realised that 26 gauge wasn't going to work quite so well for the weaving so I started using 28 gauge which made the weaving tighter.
</p>

</p>

</p>
I have a lot of practicing to do. I am far from perfecting this method but I plan on using it a lot in the future.
</p>

I am feeling:

chipper