Woven Wonders

So, I am seeing more and more wire woven designs out there. Here's a little weaving in a set of copper earrings. I'm really digging the style and I'm sure you can expect more weaving from me in the future :-) Don't forget to check me out on Facebook and a few things in the store at Etsy http://www.etsy.com/shop/SashaSweet

Sterling Puzzle Pendants for Autism Fundraiser

I've been staying pretty busy since the first of the year on these puzzle piece pendants that I'm doing for a fundraiser to support Autism Speaks. It's the first time I've repeated the same pattern this many times! But that is a good thing, since it supports a good cause:-) Each piece has been cut from a sheet of silver, then filed, textured and a bail soldered onto the back. After this, just polish up.  Most are with 18" Sterling silver chains, but a few in silk cording as well.  

So that's what I've been up to lately. Special orders are staying steady and not much time lately to just make what I feel like.  I will have a Turquoise color peace necklace coming out this week. Stay tuned.

Sterling Silver Chakra Balance necklace

Here are all the colors of the chakras with the purple or third eye Chakra hand-wrapped in Sterling Silver and used as a focal piece.

My week at William Holland School of Lapidary Arts

What a wonderful week I had at William Holland School of Lapidary Arts! As always, a lot of rock hounds and some fabulous jewelry and stones to admire throughout the week.  This year, I took a wire wrapping class. I've dabbled a bit, but really wanted to learn the right way rather than just figuring things out bit by bit, and possibly develop "bad habits" in my wire work, as my teacher called them.  The photo above was from the show at the end of the week. All students from all classes present what they have done for the week, and every year I am amazed at some of the work I see.  


Now, you must understand, the average age of participants (teachers and students) at the school is probably in the 70's (yes, 70 years old).  I was amazed that the photography teacher that week was apparently in his 90's based on his participation in WWII and his business ventures in Cuba. Needless to say, I always meet lots of new friends with interesting stories from their lives. At first glance, some would look right over these people of other generations, but wow! I love soaking in the gems of wisdom I get when I am there. This includes jewelry information of course, but just the wisdom and life experiences are worth the trip alone. The instructors donate their time to the school and I can't say enough thank you's to this group for their dedication to teaching others and passing on their crafts.


The week had the usual events, including the auction on Tuesday. Everyone is encouraged to donate items for this auction each week, and the proceeds go to buy new equipment such as rock saws, torches, and other jeweler's equipment.  I donated a bottle of my home made wine, and purchased several items including some home bottled honey from a new friend who lives near Nashville. Good ol' Tennessee clover honey. Seems like a fair trade, since I used half of the honey to sweeten my current batch of honey wine :-)


As far as the class, I learned to wrap regular cabochons (flat back, rounded stones) as well as some odd-shaped items, three new bracelet designs, a wrapped ring, and some great earrings as well.   Even better, the teacher gave us plenty of ideas and inspiration to take the designs and change them up to make them our own.  Her motto  is simple but inspirational: there are no mistakes, only new designs (or something to that effect anyway).  It gives you a little hope when you think you've messed up on something.


If you ever want a little getaway with mountains and no blaring TV's (there are about 2 TV's in the place) plus the chance to try a new skill, William Holland is the place. Are you a beginner? That's ok, they will take you under their wings and help you work your way through it!

This glass pendant was made by my friend Roscoe.  I just particularly liked it, and traded him for some adult beverages :-) He calls this pendant "Fang", so in keeping with that spirit, I have named the necklace "Fang and friends".  I've got to say, this is a fantastic mix of glass and stone beads.  Every time I look at it, I see something new and different. It also has  nice heavy weight and feels "substantial".  Total length is 24 inches, so it is not a short necklace. It can easily be worn on top of a collared shirt, for example.  It has a handmade clasp made from Sterling Silver. 

Buy something nice and help the Ronald McDonald House!

One of my recent items has just been added to the Ronald McDonald House auctions page.  This is a great cause and I hope you will support it if possible.  This necklace is 36 inches in length and is made of a mix of gemstones and glass beads. It has a machine made sterling clasp.  I had never worn long necklaces much until I started making my own, and now I really enjoy wearing them. I have found them great for dressy occasions and fun occasions on the weekends as well.  Some of these beads weren't labeled when I got them, but I can recognize the zebra jasper (the brown ones with the designs in them.  The focal beads are made of canyon marble. Quite an interesting mix.  I hope you like it. 

I got this nice glass cabochon from a friend of mine, Paul Bailey. I just love this pattern with it's organic look and thought I'd do this one as a ring.  Funny thing, lots of inquiries about rings lately.  I have had some inconsistent results with a few rings lately, and I guess I needed some time away from them. I am planning to do some in the near future and "get back on the horse" so to speak. The big rings are really in fashion now, and if any of them don't come out just right, I will get a few pretties to wear for myself. I guess you could say I sometimes get the "second" quality pieces. Funny though, people don't see the mistakes like I do. Some of the second quality items could probably be sold, but I just keep them for myself or give them away to friends:=) Are you wearing big rings? 

Sasha

Emmaus Cross

I finished the Emmaus cross I had been working on and then got orders for three more :-) I will repost the Emmaus concept :

The Walk to Emmaus is a spiritual renewal program intended to strengthen the local church through the development of Christian disciples and leaders. The program's approach seriously considers the model of Christ's servanthood and encourages Christ's disciples to act in ways appropriate to being "a servant of all."

The Walk to Emmaus experience begins with a 72-hour short course in Christianity, comprised of fifteen talks by lay and clergy on the themes of God's grace, disciplines of Christian discipleship, and what it means to be the church. The course is wrapped in prayer and meditation, special times of worship and daily celebration of Holy Communion. The "Emmaus community," made up of those who have attended an Emmaus weekend, support the 72-hour experience with a prayer vigil, by preparing and serving meals, and other acts of love and self-giving. The Emmaus Walk typically begins Thursday evening and concludes Sunday evening. Men and women attend separate weekends.

During and after the three days, Emmaus leaders encourage participants to meet regularly in small groups. The members of the small groups challenge and support one another in faithful living. Participants seek to Christianize their environments of family, job, and community through the ministry of their congregations. The three-day Emmaus experience and follow-up groups strengthen and renew Christian people as disciples of Jesus Christ and as active members of the body of Christ in mission to the world.

I often design pieces for my customers based on things they have seen elsewhere. This necklace is based on a piece in a recent Athleta catalog. The original, at $159, was made of amazonite. My version is designed with some beautiful turquoise beads that I found especially for this project. Don't you love how the bunch just "flows"? It is made with an adjustable cord to let the wearer adjust the length and choose just the right spot for the beads to hang. 

The Name is the Game

Wow, Christmas was busy with lots of metal piercing to make personalized name pendants for people far and wide! I'm beginning to recover and creative juices are beginning to flow again.  Obviously the pic above wasn't a real name, but I heard "Mom" liked it.  So many options when something is hand made, and I truly feel I put a little love directed to that person while I am drawing and making their piece.  I have orders to fill and will be getting started with those, but always glad to take more orders. It really makes me happy to make special things for special people.  One new order is for a pierced "Emmaus" cross. For those who have never heard of this:

The Walk to Emmaus is a spiritual renewal program intended to strengthen the local church through the development of Christian disciples and leaders. The program's approach seriously considers the model of Christ's servanthood and encourages Christ's disciples to act in ways appropriate to being "a servant of all."

The Walk to Emmaus experience begins with a 72-hour short course in Christianity, comprised of fifteen talks by lay and clergy on the themes of God's grace, disciplines of Christian discipleship, and what it means to be the church. The course is wrapped in prayer and meditation, special times of worship and daily celebration of Holy Communion. The "Emmaus community," made up of those who have attended an Emmaus weekend, support the 72-hour experience with a prayer vigil, by preparing and serving meals, and other acts of love and self-giving. The Emmaus Walk typically begins Thursday evening and concludes Sunday evening. Men and women attend separate weekends.

During and after the three days, Emmaus leaders encourage participants to meet regularly in small groups. The members of the small groups challenge and support one another in faithful living. Participants seek to Christianize their environments of family, job, and community through the ministry of their congregations. The three-day Emmaus experience and follow-up groups strengthen and renew Christian people as disciples of Jesus Christ and as active members of the body of Christ in mission to the world.

I know this piece will be special to the person who has asked for it, making it special to me as I make it as well. Wish me luck as I work on it.

Sasha