It's Been a Busy Weekend

And not just because of all the Easter festivities.

Saturday, I met a fellow Etsy jewelry maker - Rachel of Oak Moon Designs. We had a fun hour and some talking and bead shopping in downtown Hillsboro. We even hit an antique store and browsed the cases...and I found a vintage necklace I can't wait to repurpose! Great chance for us both to spend kidless time on a gorgeous Saturday - and I hope we can do it again soon.

This was also a weekend of finishing projects. I finally got the pearl toggle attached on my embroidered cuff. I won't be selling it- it's not quite perfect, but was a lot of fun to make. I can't decide if it's worth it to perfect my skills on this kind of cuff...it sure was a LOT of work! Still, I like it enough to keep for myself - it's kinda cute, if slightly imperfect!

I also completed a set of dangly earrings and a peridot pendant I've been thinking about for some time now. Pictures of both are posted here, and both are available for sale in my Etsy store.

Tomorrow will be busy in another way. I have several items to list in my ebay store (including some great Coach sunglasses), and I need to finish writing the Monday feature. Makes me tired just thinking about it - guess I'll head for bed!

Product Lust

Since I had to go shopping for ear wires online anyway (see the last post)...I did a little window browsing too. There are so many gorgeous pearls, gemstones, and findings I would love to use someday - hopefully someone will either commission a piece, or I'll sell enough on Etsy to just *make* one! Come lust with me - maybe I can inspire *you* to commission a piece! :-)

Tsavorite is my new favorite gemstone, since I heard about it from my brother (he's currently in Sri Lanka). It's a green garnet, in shades from khaki to near emerald. It's rather rare, and so lovely, and the price is high as you'd imagine too.

I love blue opals - my birthstone, but also a pretty gem on its own. Pink is ok, but tends to show dark veining that I don't like. But rich blues...oh my. Opals can be so versatile too - surround them in gleaming sterling silver and they are fancy....but string them with wood beads and make them everyday.

Staying in the gemstone theme...about 4 hours from our house is a national park where you can mine your own Sunstone. For free! I'm sure it takes some work, probably more than just walking around and looking. Still, the idea is intriguing, and has me wondering...could I find some? If so, could I rough-shape and polish it enough to work with it?

Gemstones aren't the only thing I'm lusting after! I enjoy working with pearls - I love the creamy luster of good pearls, and find them a good compliment to so many other beads (and beautiful on their own too). The cultured pearls I normally get are nice, and Swaorvski makes very pretty crystal pearls...but to me, these Akoya Golden pearls are just the epitome of PEARL.

Coming back to earth a bit more...I keep seeing gorgeous silver findings by Hill Tribe Silver. So far, the extra cost has kept me away, but the more I see, the more I want to incorporate some of these lovely pieces in my own work!

Did you watch the eclipse last night?

By some miracle, the clouds actually left our Oregon sky last night! We were able to take the kids out and watch the eclipse. Our eldest - 10 - was very impressed, and stay with me talking about what was happening and why. (Got to encourage science whenever I can!) The other three thought it was neat, but got rather cold quickly and lost interest in spurts. Then again - can you blame them? It's a rather slow process after all.

Once we were all warm, and the kids were tucked into bed, I settled into my latest project. Yesterday I made a "flower" - 7mm pearl with amethyst chips in a circle around it. My original idea was a pendant, but the result seemed a bit small for that. So last night I hung it on an earhook, and decided it would be a great earring - which meant I needed to make a second one!

This might sound like no big deal...but amethyst chips are difficult to get in uniform sizes, and can have some color variation too! I had to sort through 40 or so, to get 8 that were close enough to the original. Still, I think the result is worth it. The earrings are now done, and ready for pictures and listing.

I still want to do a pendant with this style, but I'm thinking I might need 2 rows of amethyst 'petals' to get it to the right size. Could be a challenge!

On to my next creation...but details are fuzzy!

I have some creamy pearls, peridot pieces, and really nice amethyst chips remaining...I have a few vague thoughts about what to make, but can't really decide!

One idea is a pearl bracelet, but put amethyst chips between the pearls. Maybe even amethyst AND peridot alternating. That would keep it very modern and unstuffy...yet classic too. Finish it with sterling silver findings.

Or, to get more funky, a 2 or 3 strand necklace with randomly spaced pearls, peridot, and amethyst - maybe even a few dangles? A very nebulous idea...I'm wondering if the gray pearls in my collection would work better, since I'd be using sterling chain for the necklace. Hmm....

Either way, both will be a bit higher priced ($50 to $90) - and since I've not sold on etsy yet, I'm just a wee bit nervous about adding higher priced items!

Announcing my latest creations

I was busy today! Made 2 pairs of earrings and a necklace. First up...

Vintage Flowers, Modern Twist

Vintage pressed glass flowers, with Swarovski crystal pearls. I love this petite little necklace. Earrings to match of course - and available from my etsy store.

www.texastesla.etsy.com

What to make tonight?

I have a large supply of material now - some gold, lots of silver. Amethyst stones, peridot, white pearls...lots of swarovski. Just trying to come up with a few ideas. It's been a while since I simply made something out of the blue - I've done enough custom work lately that entails at least SOME direction from the customer.

Oh, the choices!