Permanent Romance (SOLD)

This reversible pendant was made with Valentine's Day in mind.

For Valentine's Day

What a perfect gift for Valentine's Day. This beautiful Rhodochrosite carved rose has been captured in a net of hand-woven copper. Both sides, equally beautiful. One side features the carved rose pattern with intricate wire weaving, the other features the smooth side with romantic swirls and a heart. The necklace is suspended on four strands of color coordinated leather cord. The end caps hand made, and S-Clasp and loop hand formed and hammered. This necklace measures 18" long from end to end. Unlike flowers, this rose will last forever.https://www.etsy.com/listing/121243901/valentines-day-wire-wrapped-rhodonite?ref=v1_other_2

Carved Rose Wrapped in Copper

More Challenging Sterling Silver Viking Knit Work

There is nothing easy about doing viking knit with 24 gauge sterling silver. It's quite a laborious process.  The wire is so brittle and stiff, it doesn't bend smoothly like copper. It has a mind of its own. The next time I order a spool of sterling for viking knit, I'm getting 26 gauge.

This is what I came up with. I'm very happy with the design, the shine is incredible. I didn't oxidize this piece  which is different for me. You can see more pictures here: Click me

Success!

 I made this pendant, and it sold the same day! 

I love it when this happens.

I Tumble For Ya!

Last month I bought a tumbler. After reading a lot about how tumblers improve the quality of wire work jewelry, I decided I wanted to see for myself. Being the miserly gal that I am, I bought the CHEAPEST tumbler I could find. I figured that it didn't really matter- a tumbler is a tumbler, even though there were a dozen different websites and fellow wire-artists who warned me that a tumbler is NOT a tumbler.  I bought some stainless steel shot, put it in the tumbler with a drop of Dawn, turned it on, and let it roll.  Five hours later, I retrieved my jewelry out of a black muddy slurry, each piece covered in a thin, rubber film.  What had I done? I tried again. Same result. I had to hand polish each piece of jewelry until it shined again.  What made matters worse is that within a few hours my "stainless steel" jeweler's shot had rusted!  I boxed up the tumbler, and took it back to the store.  I swore off tumbling. 'Who needs it? What a waste,' I thought.

So, when Christmas time arrived and I received a new tumbler from my husband, I had some mixed feelings. I was excited to try tumbling again with a top of the line, made in the USA tumbler, but I was uncertain if it was really going to make a difference.  I had heard great things about tumbling, but what if my jewelry turned black again?

Well, today I received my (actually) stainless steel jeweler's shot, I threw a few pieces in the tumbler along with some filtered water and Dawn, and...

The results are stunning.

My viking knit looks smoother, the spirals, the coils, the swirls, the patina is more even, the clasps are SO strong and sturdy, and they just GLEAM!
It smooths out any kind of tool mark, polishes the metal, strengthens it, and gives it a professional finish.

I'm glad I have a tumbler!

Alright, now just for anyone who wants to know, this is a Thumbler Tumbler. Made in the USA, model "T".  It is 3 lbs capacity, and I am using 2 lbs of stainless steel jeweler's shot.

Visit Thumbler's Tumbler website for more details.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all of my  readers, fans and customers. Cheers!