Friday, February 29, 2008

I'm having a Garden Party...

...and all of the Phala Orchids & Buds as well as their owners out there are invited.

I'm not sure what goes on in my head when I start designing one of my orchid pieces but when I see those little Phala's...it's like looking at little faces and they are all saying...don't forget me.

So it's definately a party.

Update at the ArtiGras Show: Don & I have a wonderful time meeting everyone who came to our booth including the supportive staff at the show, the learning experience was priceless. We left the show totally satisfied but not only that, we left with a clear path to what we needed to do for our next show which will be in Islamorada March 8th & 9th.

I loved hearing all of the comments about my jewelry including the comments that "they had never seen anything like it". That was exciting because I was able to explain that it was because of my method of sculpting the wax as if it was my porcelain, something that's not the norm when learning how to make jewelry.

All comments were extremely positive but both Don & I agreed...we feel the Phalaenopsis Orchid designs really stole the show leaving me wishing I had more designs to offer.

So we both agreed, I need to expand my Phala Collection but I also heard one other request...PEARLS! I heard this load and clear. So I am developing a collection by combining the two, Freshwater Pearls & my tiny Phala Orchids shown to the right.

I don't usually show my pieces right after the casting but they were so cute, only 3mm 4mm & 5mm wide (around 3/8th"). The long stem on each flower is called a "Sprue". This is where the silver is shot from the outside of the plaster mold into the void where the wax piece used to be before it was burned out.

We'll cut those off and start cleaning up the orchids and I'm pretty sure I'll sand blast each orchid creating a soft glow.

This is going to be a growing collection so please check back in a few days.



March 5th...I'M POPPING IN HERE FOR A MINUTE.

I am in the process of designing 3 new cluster "Phala" Orchid rings. The first one will have a 10mm x 8mm stone, a beautiful Green Quartz (light pastel green) stone which sets up high with a cluster of buds, orchids & leaves wrapping around the stone.

This design reminds me of the traditional "Cocktail Ring" in Bloom!

...more coming soon!

Don & I also have some exciting news for all those hi-risers living along the S. Florida coast in a few days, so again, please check back...this is very exciting and a complete surprise to me!

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Peeking through the leaves...

It's as if I'm standing next to a large tree trunk and looking between the leaves seeing the sun peek through the leaves.
I spent so much of my time walking through the woods next to Lake Norman back in the 70's.
It was so quiet there but if you looked close enough...it was so busy. Everywhere you looked something was blooming, leaves were getting larger and veins were searching for a place to land. I would sit by a tree and just look at the leaves while watching the birds and squirrels run from one tree to the other.
This one-of-a-kind hand sculpted pendant is cast in Argentium Silver 92.5 (see definition of Argentium below)
Pendant Height: 3/4" x 7/8" wide
10mm x 8mm Oval Citrine Cabochon Gem.
Citrine Color: Light to Med. Gold / Heat Treated
18"Rope Chain included.
When I sculpt each piece I lay out my stems around the stone that I've chosen and from there I hand sculpt each individual leaf curving them around each other as if they were blowing in the wind.
If you are interested in this piece or other pieces I have on my blog, you can e-mail, call or purchase this piece listed on Etsy by clicking on the title "Peeking through the leaves..."
Cost: $195.00
Argentium® Sterling Silver is a patented and trademarked alloy that is at least 92.5% pure silver, just like traditional sterling silver.What makes it different from traditional sterling silver is that a small amount of germanium replaces some of the copper that is usually the other 7.5% of sterling silver. There is two things I love most about Argentine Silver is that it's more tarnish-resistance. Although many say it's tarnish-resistant...that's incorrect. Argentine Silver will still tarnish, just slower than traditional Sterling Silver but the good news is that Argentine Silver is very white, almost giving a white gold look which is a good thing!

Monday, February 11, 2008

Busy, Busy, Busy...

It's been a month since we found out that we have been invited to participate as a "Homegrown Artist" in the upcoming ArtiGras Art Show Event coming up this weekend.

I have been working hard on at least 30 new designs and Don has put together a beautiful exhibit for us. Everything is coming along nicely and we are so excited!

As soon as pieces are photographed, I will add them to the blog.

Thanks to everyone for your support & wonderful comments!

New Double Leaf Pendant...Very Art Nouveau!

This 1 5/8" tall pendant caters a 10mm x 8mm Citrine Stone, two hand sculpted leaves and three small buds. (chain not included)

Cost: $139
Additional pictures are found on my Ruby Lane, you can click on the title "busy, busy, busy..."to see additional pictures or to purchase this piece.




One-of-a-Kind Hematite Orchid Necklace


This one of a kind necklace was designed by my husband, Don who has a vey good eye for
jewelry.

The necklace is a 18" Hematite Gem Necklace. Each necklace is intricately woven hematite beads with a sterling silver magnetic clasp beneath the Leaf Slide.

The Leaf Slide is a series of 15 of my hand sculpted leaves overlaping each other until they reach the Orchid below.

The Pendant is one of my hand sculpted Cattleya Orchids, which has amazingly acurate detail carved into each one.
The unique concept with this necklace is that you can wear this necklace three different ways as shown.
Cost: Sold
*Although this piece sold at my last show, I can create another one-of-a-kind piece. Please e-mail or call me.

Swiss Blue Topaz & Almandine Garnet Ring


I don't think I'll ever get tired of making rings...I love rings.
Once I added my first stone to my leafy rings I was hooked for life and now I've added little flowers and buds to make the design more interesting. I love a ring that can keep your attention for at least 5 minutes and this was does the trick. You have leaves that intertwine between each other. On one side you have a bud ready to open and on the other side you have an open flower with a 5mm Almandine Garnet.
On this particular ring I decided to braid the band which was perfect for sculpting my tiny leaves on each side as if they were little vines.
This ring is just beautiful all around and I'm so pleased to offer this ring on my blog as well as at the ArtiGras Show.
This ring has a 10mm x 8mm Swiss Blue Topaz plus a 5mm Almantine Garnet inside the flower. I have choosen stones such as Amythyst, Citrine, Almandine Garnet, Blue Topaz as well as Peridot...which is one of my favorite stones. I will always add a complimentary stone to go with the larger stones unless a client request their favorite stones to be added instead.
I have just finished making a matching one-of-a-kind pendant, as well as a beautiful bracelet with 4 large stones, 4 flowers and buds.
This Ring is a limited edition, only a small number will be made. Overall width of the ring is 20mm x 25mm
Ring can be re-sized.
Retail Cost $245