oop, its been awhile again. The past few months have been an absolute blur of shows and making jewelry. I always look forward to January and a break. The first few weeks are down time so that my brain remembers how to function. Well, I am rebooted, and starting to climb out of my rabbit hole.

I have been cutting ammonites in preparation for when the ideas start zinging in. The above shot is my basic styles for 2011. It is VERY hard to make simple when I have lots of colored stones hanging around ... but I did it. Someone always wants just a plain, simple earring and there they are. These have solid backs and are still lightweight enough to wear all day. I like 'em.

Have a great day out there everybody, and I am off to do that exercise thing and practice a couple of new fiddle tunes. See ya,

traveling to jewelry shows

I was traveling to Marin Art Festival last weekend and had to drive by Lake Tahoe on my way there from my house. Wow, every time I see that water it blows my mind at how truly BLUE it is. Driving to these shows really helps to blow the cobwebs out of my mind and relax my show jitters somewhat. All the preparation of making bunches of jewelry pieces, the packing of the truck hassels, grabbing paperwork for sales tax, etc... just melts away looking at scenery like this. Thank goodness for my sanity!! This week I am only driving 30 minutes away to the local downtown farmer's market in Carson City, NV. I just love it there under my oak tree. Tomato vendor on one side and a glass artist on the other. Well, that is another day and another post. Bye now,

Rings and re-sizing

Rings. I have been having an absolute blast making them lately. Used to shy away from them because of resizing. I asked an opinion of other jewelers on Flickr about resizing and rings and received helpful advice. Everyone on Flickr is just so nice. So, the helpful advice I shall pass on was as follows:

1.Set the stone AFTER the ring is sold, and photograph the stone just sitting in the mounting. No resizing necessary.

2. Hammer up to the size needed. Make sure the ring shank is thick enough to accomodate hammering.

3. Leave one end of the shank open in the design. This makes the ring multi-sized.

These were the best three. All in all there was much to consider for the next few rings on my bench.

flux of the brain, not the bench

Well, I did it. I mailed off applications to shows in California that I have never attended before as a vendor or as a show--goer. I cannot decide if I am of a mood to be hoping yes or no to the jury verdicts. The venues sound like places I would just love to visit, BUT are they profitable?? Dunno.

This season is all about exploration, and pushing that envelope. It has been years since I did retail, and my brain is all aflutter about new concepts to create. My calender is in a constant state of change, taking on new shows in new places. So, everything old is new again or is it just confusing? There. Bezeling up some opals now seems rather comforting compared to actually sorting out my head this day....thank goodness everyone else in my household has concrete schedules to hang onto!

Petoskey

Lookee!!!! My new consigment store sent me some Petoskey Stones to work with and said "just be creative with them" and I was. It always feels good to make something with a stone I have never worked with before. The challenge was to work with the texture and not overpower the neutral tone of these stones with bolder colored accent gems.... I love bright color and neutrals are hard for me. Hey, I think I might like them now!

Question:
How does color come in to play in your work? Is it a side thought or a formal element or not a consideration? There, brain food or at least an appetizer. Have a good time at you bench today--metaldreamer