NEW EARRINGS IN MY ETSY SHOP!

Some new earrings for sale in my Etsy Shop ... I offer 20% OFF to the first 10 CUSTOMERS on finished items!! Click on the pictures to go directly to the corresponding Etsy Shop page.

You will find the REIGN EARRINGS from my previous post:

 

Graceful Earrings with Watermelon Tourmaline rondelle beads and tiny Frosty Sunstone beads wrapped with silver filled copper wire (10%).These earrings are 4.1 cm long (1.6").


In the same sort of pink hues, long and delicate RENAISSANCE EARRINGS:

 Delicate combination of pink hues: beautiful pink Chalcedony drops - 1.3cm wide x 1.5 cm long (0.5" wide x 0.6" long) and faceted watermelon Tourmaline beads cascade together, wrapped with silver filled copper wire (10%).These earrings are 8 cm long (3.1").

I like long that frame the face with refined elegance, as do the QUARTZ DROP EARRINGS:

 

 Smoky Quartz faceted Teardrops dangling off rope chain give some refinement to these Dragon's Vein and Black Agate Earrings.These earrings are 7.1 cm long (2.8").

The DROP EARRINGS can come in almost any colour you choose, just select yours and I will make them just for you:

Other colours are available. Please choose one among those offered or request a custom order (may take longer and / or be more expensive).
Here are the gemstones corresponding to each colour available (rondel bead / small round bead):
> BLACK = black Agate / Lava
> BLUE = Lapis Lazuli / Lapis Lazuli
> BROWN = Tiger's Eye / Tiger's Eye
> GREY = black Agate / vein Agate
> ORANGE = dyed Jade / frosty Sunstone
> PINK = Watermelon Tourmaline / Cherry Quartz
> PURPLE = Russican Amethyst / Russican Amethyst
These earrings are 8 cm long (3.1").

Finally be charmed by the complexity and beauty of Dragon's Veins beads dangling on the FAITH EARRINGS:

Discreet yet elegant diamond-shaped earrings combined with exquisite orange Dragon's Vein beads, wrapped with silver filled copper wire (10%).These earrings are 6 cm long (2.4").

"REIGN" INSPIRED NECKLACE AND MATCHING EARRINGS

"Reign" is quite a find for me because as an English teacher I love anything to do with Anglo-Saxon History; I'm a girl and I like nice dresses and jewellery ... in the CW's "Reign", you've got it all plus some love triangles, rectangles ... it's a bit complicated but who cares? It's nice to watch after a long day!

Anyhow the inspiration for this set also comes from the work by Illyrian Treasure

and I really liked the unusual look of the necklace: see for yourself below.

Rondelles made of WATERMELON TOURMALINE, small pink CHERRY QUARTZ bead, one tiny FROST SUNSTONE bead and three oval MOONSTONE drops.

Focal piece: two CHERRY QUARTZ beads and a small FROST SUNSTONE  attached to a cross connector with silver plated wire ended with an oblong MOONSTONE pendant.

Could also use it as a headpiece (tried it and my younger son said that I was BEAUTIFUL with it! LOL)

The earrings are made with the same components but used a bit differently.

Here's the link if you're interested (trailer):

Watch Season 1 Trailer

MY NEW ETSY SHOP ...!

OK ... I DID it! (as a famous adventurer would say ...) I opened a "shop" with Etsy at last!

I thank my craftmate Guna Andersone who told me to do so a couple of years ago ...

You can check her shop here: "GUNA DESIGN"

 

The shop offers finished products as well as tutorials (the ones that were available on www.jewelrylessons.com) and I try to add new items on a regular basis!

So what's available at the moment?

 

Click on the picture above, it wil take you directly to my Etsy page. You can also click on the  icon on the right.

Thank you for reading!

SOUTACHE is in the place ...

What is Soutache?
"A soutache is braided trim used to decorate clothing, fabric upholstery or drapery. When worn on a military uniform, it often signifies the wearer's rank. It is also a bookbinder's term for the thin braid applied to the top and bottom of the inside of a book's spine to secure its pages.
A soutache is most commonly braided in a herringbone pattern. Two threads are placed on opposite sides of a cord and, starting with the left thread, it is placed over the middle cord and right thread.
Soutache is a French word thought to have been first used in the mid 1800's. It comes from the Hungarian word sujtas, which means braid used for trimming."(source: www.wisegeek.com)
And it's also used to make jewellery ... A couple months ago while surfing on Pinterest, I noticed a few nice items and I decided to give it a try ...
Please be lenient, the following are my first tries ... not perfect (I hate invisible thread with a vengeance!) but I'm really pleased with the results and many people complimented me on both earrings and necklace!

 ACRYLIC STONES (yeah I know ...), BLUE AGATE AND LAVA BEADS; HAEMATITE PENDANT.

 CROSS PENDANT NECKLACE: ACRYLIC BEADS FOR THE CROSS; BLUE AGATE BEADS AND TIGER'S EYE RONDELS FOR THE NECKLACE.

2011: MAKING JEWELLERY SETS ...

As I explained on my last post, I like matching earrings and necklaces because to me it's like wearing socks from the same pair ...
Gemstone chips became interesting first because they were quite cheap, abundant and giving your piece an instant ethnic / tribal look. However it's not always easy to make NICE creations with chips and I have tons of them at home but still not quite sure how to use them to their fullest potential ... but one day I will!

 Turquoise Chips and Svarowski pendant and bracelet set (Christmas gift).

Carnelian Chips and Svarowski pearls Bracelet and Necklace set for my mother, Christmas 2011.

2011 REVIEW ... NECKLACES ARE FOREVER!

Sill walking in memory lane ...

2011 and I started to diversify ... Still I made lots and lots of necklaces but I ventured into the making of earrings and bracelets (see the following post).
I also felt more confident as I stepped into the world of Chain Mail with a Byzantine Weave (very humble though) Necklace.
One of the other reasons why I started making jewellery was because I wanted my earrings and necklaces to match. I have trouble not wearing clothes, shoes and jewellery that do not match, especially as I am a teacher. I think it is important to offer a tidy image to your students as you are their focal point (or so you think ...) for an hour or so!
2011 was the year when I discovered the importance of marketing the image of your creations. I bought my first necklace busts and I used Photofiltre to edit all my photos.
So here we go:

 A Lariat Necklace made with Glass beads and Silver spacers. I have a soft spot for Lariats as they were the topic of my first ever tutorial on Jewelrylessons.com (recycled).

5-LARIAT MAKING TUTORIAL ON ETSY

 For this piece, I used the elements of an old metal belt and bits from here and there, plus a few Turquoise drop beads (recycled)

 Pearls and Unakite Necklace Custom order (sold). I love Unakite but it is a stone I find difficult to associate with ... but pearls. Pearls are definitely timeless!

 Turquoise tubes and Silver beads Necklace Custom Order (sold). Turquoise always reminds me of the pair of small earrings I bought for my grandma while I was living in the States. I absolutely adore Dakota-Lakota crafts!

Byzantine Weave and Ceramic Beads Necklace made for Christmas and a gift for one of my aunts. Chain Mail is interesting but so time-consuming! I quickly get bored with it ...

2010 REVIEW ... BACK TO THE BEGINNING!

Creating this blog takes me back to when I started making jewellery seriously, first for myself and then for other people. I even had a few orders at the time!
The finish was not perfect, the photographing was awful - I didn't have my fantastic camera at the time ... Thank you Hubby Dearest ;)!
Many necklaces didn't last long as I am often unsatisfied with the result, so I start all over again!
Anyhow a quick look at some of the "best" necklaces I made that year:

 BLACK AND PEARL NECKLACE - didn't last long and was recycled into a pendant ...

 BROWN HARMONY NECKLACE (recycled)

 CARIBBEAN SEAS NECKLACE (gift)

 

LEAVES NECKLACE (recycled)

 

 

ORIENT NECKLACE (sold)

 

 TURQUOISE AND ARROW NECKLACE (recycled)

GARNET CASCADE NECKLACE (custom order - sold)

TURQUOISE CASCADE NECKLACE (custom order - sold)