Stone in Love

Ah!  I have so much going on, I barely have time to catch up. Lately I've been a jewelry makin' fool. I just love it. If I could add 10 hours to the day and dedicate it solely to making jewelry, I'd be in heaven.

First of all, I'd like to share with you a revision to the Sonora Sunrise pendant I made. I'm SO happy with this change. I wasn't quite happy with the slide that I made for the bale, it just wouldn't stay put. So, I sat on my hands (not really) for a couple of weeks, and had one of those Oprah "AHA! Moments™."

Here is the before and after.

The piece has sold.

I'm also having a great time working with all of the amazing stones I have recently invested in. Here are a couple more pieces that have sold recently.

This first one is a purple rainbow labradorite:

Here is a moonstone pendant that I sold to the same lovely lady:

I also made a simple rose pendant with a rose quartz. This one is still available for sale (39.00). If you're interested, please send me a message.

Finally, I'd like to share my newest piece, a flash glowing labradorite heart/crest. This was one of those pendants that went right with every twist and turn. It's actually pretty symmetrical which is pretty hard to do. I admire the artist Heidi Mandato of Mandato Jewelry Design for her symmetrical pieces. This sort of reminds me of one of hers (although that was completely unintentional.)

 I actually made most of it sitting upstairs in my chair rather than downstairs at my bench. I always wondered how people wove wire without a vise. Well, when you're using hair thin 30 gauge wire it's not that difficult. (Usually I weave with 24 gauge.)

(I'm a little disappointed in these pictures, the necklace is a lot better in person.)

Here I am modeling the necklace:

Rose Jade

I'm on a roll, or should I say, a donut!

As with any of the pieces I post on my blog, if you're interested in purchasing please send me a message.

Sonora Sunrise

When I saw this stone (along with a couple of her sisters) I just knew I had to have her. When I saw how much Sonora Sunrise costs, I decided it was WAY out of my league. The blue part is called "Chrysocolla" and the red is called "Cuprite". The black is actually iron. I've even heard of there being flecks of real gold in in some varieties. What is rare is the combination of the three. I got two very high quality Sonora Sunrise stones from a cab cutter that I found in a lapidary group on Facebook. She offered me the stones at a price I could (sort of) afford, and I just couldn't pass it up.

When I received the stones they were much more beautiful in person. The problem though was that they were a bit softer than what I'm used to working with. I knew I wouldn't be able to use the methods I usually use, I would have to have a light touch. The first attempt went no where. In fact, it was such a mess I posted a photo on Instagram.

I tried again today. I think I did it. It was a little more difficult and more challenging, but the process went a little quicker. I usually hammer around the stone, I usually tumble finish every piece. I wasn't able to do that. I had to harden the wire by meticulously polishing the wire, and it was soft because I annealed the heck out of it to get it to shape around the stone. I like how it turned out though. But I really think it's the stone that's the star here, and that's important with a stone like this. I hope you like it.

A Labradorite to Remember...

I am SO in love with this piece. It sold before it was even finished, and as an artist that is such a huge compliment.

I am going to share some pictures.

Back

I hope that it enjoys its new home in Canada...

Fool's Gold UPDATED

I have really been plugging away at the whole jewelry thing!  I have the Wire Wrappin' Fever and there is NO cure!

I also bought a TON of new stones!  Sonora Sunrise, Labradorite, Dendritic Jasper, Rhyolite, and I'm so excited to get to work.

I have a new piece, a Fool's Gold (Pyrite) Donut wrapped in copper, and I just love it. I must confess, I've been wearing it everyday even though it's for sale.  59.00 plus shipping...

If you're interested shoot me an email. I have made some minor adjustments since taking these pictures. Notice the end caps? Those are probably my favorite part of the piece. You see, my husband's uncle passed away recently. He was an avid trapper and had tons of copper tags in which he would use to label the animal pelts. I happen to have inherited quite a few of these tags and I just love working with them. The caps are pieces of copper tag that I rolled up, and then soldered the wire spiral across the tube. I thought they were way too cool to hide in the back, so I brought them up to the front.

Here are some UPDATED pictures (of the new configuration):




My next piece (currently in progress) is a high quality Labradorite!  It's very, very nice.
There's much more to come, so stay tuned.

Also, if you don't already, follow me on Instagram!  My handle is "LeahHoffmanJewelry".

A Quick Start, and a Slow Finish

Last week I finished what turned out to be one of my most favorite creations to date. I tend to hold on to stones for a long time. I finally got around to wrapping up an intarsia obsidian/labradorite I bought a couple of years ago. I thought that some new jewelry might pique the interest of some customers and they might just want to take a look at some of the older jewelry I still have for sale. My strategy worked. In the past week I've sold 4 items, which for me is pretty exciting.

The wrap started off quickly, I mean, the Wire Gods must have been on my side that day because I finished that puppy in less than two days. I have two kids, my studio is downstairs, it takes me a while because I have a lot of interruptions. After the pendant was complete it was time for me to fabricate some kind of chain, or cord to suspend it on. That didn't go as smoothly.

pendant

So, I had this awesome idea to VIKING KNIT some fine leather cord. 

It took forever, but I knew it was going to be the perfect cord. 

Viking Knit with the Tool I Made

But, pulling it through the draw plate I couldn't get the weave to pull tight enough, and ultimately BROKE the leather, right down the middle. It wasn't even long enough to salvage a bracelet from.

I ended up making a hanger with some really thick wire, and some end caps, and fitting it to a raw copper chain, which worked out rather well.

And, it sold before it was even finished. I love that kind of pressure.