A Bit of Wire Wrapping

I don't normally do this type of wire-wrapping. Anyone who does it regularly must be a bit insane. It's time consuming and the wire is persnickety. I use fine silver wire to keep the persnickety-ness to a minimum. It doesn't work harden the way the sterling silver does.

This first pair of earrings is super long. They look like twigs to me. I wrapped them with a series of  seed pearls and tiny faceted garnets.

For my next pair, I did a more daring color combination: apatite and golden tourmaline. These are shorter, but just a little more elaborate.

I don't have plans to list these in my etsy shop. I have 4 (ack, what was I thinking?!?) craft shows coming up and I need these earrings to keep my selections varied. You may see them on etsy later in the season, f they don't sell. But I hope they do!

Wire Wrapped Necklaces

I used to dread making necklaces like these. It was boring and tedious ... just keep repeating the same motions over and over. Now, I think of it as therapeutic. And of course, I'm a lot quicker at it, which helps a great deal.

Having said all that, it felt like forever until this necklace was long enough to go around the neck twice without using a clasp. I can envision wearing it with a linen colored silk sheath style dress.

It was worth the time it took. I alternated champagne colored pearls and smoky quartz rondelles for a earthy, warm look. Here's a close-up:

I've worked on several necklaces in this same style. Here's my favorite. The beads are fluorite and vary in color but are mostly shades of purple and seafoam, traditional fluorite colors. The shape is also quite enticing: faceted stylized cubes.

These pieces are too tricky to photograph for me to list them in my etsy shop, so I'll probably reserve them for local sales at craft shows.

A New Earring Design!!

I've been plugging away, building earring and necklace inventory for our busy Alaskan summer tourist season, relying on tried and true designs.  Then, just 2 days ago, a new idea popped into my head.  It's actually a variation on a design I did a few years ago and allowed to fizzle out.  I love when this happens -- just when you think you'll never come up with something new, there it is!

I started with one of my sterling silver tornado elements and wrapped size 15 seed beads all around it.  Yes, I have done this part before.  The new variation is the dangle on the bottom.

I will probably list a few pairs in my etsy shop eventually and the rest will be for my booth at the Alaska State Fair and my fall craft shows.

Whiskey Quartz cubes with gold seed beads

Garnet Briolettes with rosy seed beads

Amethyst Briolettes with purple seed beads

And yes, there are plenty more pairs completed and several more in the planning stages!