What I Made Tuesday

First, sorry for the delay in posting. I seem to say that a lot...

Moving on. This week, I finally finished a necklace I have been working on FOREVER!!!! Ok, for like 3 weeks, but it seemed like forever. It is my first foray into an all wire wrapped piece. Much, much wrapping.



Things I learned from this necklace: 1) who ever came up with the tip to use crimping pliers to tuck in the wraps is BRILLIANT! 2) when there are this many wrapped loops, and they are all different sizes it looks like you did it on purpose. 3) sometimes, you get an accidental picture that is your favorite ever. (I was actually entending to crop the pic so I had a close up of the focal {ammonite} but loved the way the picture came out - so artsy!). 4) despite much evidence to the contrary, I CAN make a hook from wire!

Oh, and I think the beads are catseye, but I'm not positive.

New Ring Pattern: Musical Notes

Do you ever get a song stuck in your head? Yeah, me too.

Quote: The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, 'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.'

----Aaron Copland (1900 - 1990)

What I made Monday

So, I worked on more resin this weekend, but I am still not ready to show any of it. Instead, you get to see some silliness I made for my niece.



You may have seen the Alien Abduction lamp, or this DIY for making your own. This weekend I decided to make a nightlight version.

The green base is a pearler bead peg board. The spaceship is a bead container painted silver (the kind that screw together in a stack, I used the top one with the lid). The beam is a plastic shot glass picked up at the Dollar Store. I lit it with an electric tea light. It has a nice flickery effect. And finally the cow... a pencil topper my niece already had.



I carefully drilled holes in the bead container and the shot glass big enough for the "flame" on the tealight to fit through. I then glued them together and painted the bead container. The tea light fits inside the bead container, with the "flame" going down through the hole. I did not connect the ship and beam to the base because I wanted my niece to be able to take the cow in and out of the beam. Night light and play scene (she keeps abducting the cow but leaving his tiny shampoo behind... no idea why, but this amuses her greatly). All in all, I am very happy with how this project turned out! The Aliens are coming! And they are stealing our cows!!!!

New Pattern: Coptic Cross

Today's ring pattern features what is known as a coptic cross. This is a cross where all the legs are equal. I originally made it in black and white, but it felt too stark. I tried again in black and silver, but still lacking. I think I may give it one more go - this time do the band in silver and the cross in black. I will let you know how it turns out.

Quote: Don't be afraid to take a big step if one is indicated. You can't cross a chasm in two small jumps.
-----David Lloyd George (1863 - 1945)

What I Made Monday

I am really happy that I completed an entry for the Etsy Beadweaver's Challenge this month - the theme was Mystery. For my entry, I was inspired by the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo. I made a ring (duh!) in the colors from that classic van with a fun orange flower on it.



I am very happy with the result. It can be found in my Etsy shop here.

I also did some stack rings, one gold and one silver. I am testing out the durability of the finish on the Toho Galvanized gold. I made the gold ring first, and I love it, but when I wore it alone I decided it looked too much like a wedding ring, so I made a silver one to wear with it.



I also took some time to work on resin, but none of it is done yet. Resin takes days... blah.



I will take individual pics of the resin when it is all done. So, not a bad week in all. Not bad.