Jewelry Tips on My New ArtFire Blog

Recently I started up my ArtFire blog again.  It had not gotten much use since the day ArtFire decided to change the blog and archive all our posts.  That's ok, because I was mainly using this one by then anyway.  I wanted to find a special use for my second blog.  

A lot of people who read this blog are other artists, especially jewelry designers.  Because of that, I plan to have more behind the scenes stuff on this blog.  I wanted to offer something on my Artfire blog that was of particular interest to my customers.  So I have started a series of tips on buying jewelry, especially handmade jewelry.  

A piece of a bracelet that had less than sturdy
construction

They say "you get what you pay for", and a lot of times that is true.  But how do you know you are getting a quality piece?  Is it going to fall apart?  Is it going to rust or tarnish?  What kind of stones are harder and which ones are softer?  How do you take care of your gemstones?  These are questions I intend to address in upcoming installments of my blog.

If you are interested in becoming a more savvy jewelry buyer, you might want to check out the first installment:   Eye Pins and Wrapped Loops or "Why Did That Bracelet Fall Apart?"   You can find it here:

Eye Pins and Wrapped Loops - What Are They?

and you can subscribe to the blog here:

Newsletter sign up link

Cold Connections

This was originally posted in June 2011 on my Artfire blog, but since all those posts were unpublished a while back, I decided to move it over here: Well, I finally married off my daughter last weekend (in an outdoor ceremony in 101F heat!) So now I can get back to making some jewelry for my studio. Last night I went to a workshop on cold connections taught by Candie Cooper, who lives in Wabash now, but like me, she also used to live in China.

The first one (left) was done with a wire rivet. Actually it was a wire rivet on one side only, the other side was a nail head. The nail head is in the front, but unfortunately it's covered by the bead and I'm too lazy to take another picture! Anyway, you get the idea. 

The one on the right is done with a tube rivet. It's pink, and actually a rivet that's made for scrapbookers. The blue around the rivet is a disk that I cut out of a decorative tin. The other pieces I believe are components from Vintaj that I hammered and textured. 

 This last one is my favorite because I like the bright blue color. It looks like annodized aluminum (or niobium) but it's actually colored with alcohol ink. (I still have ink under my fingernails!) This one is held together with a little tiny bolt that you can see in the center. There is a nut in the back to hold it tight. 







Anyway, I have had instructions for quite awhile on how to do these rivets, but had never actually done it. Now I will have to see if I can incorporate some of these techniques into some new pieces. I already have some ideas......

Winter Wonderland Blog Hop

Wrap It Up!

This month for my Jewelry Creators Unite In Numbers (JCUIN) guild collection, the theme was Wrap It Up.  It featured wire-wrapped jewelry from JCUIN members.  There are so many talented wire wrap artists, I thought I would share a few more pieces here that weren't in the collection.

At the right is Copper and Blue Lace Glass Barrette by Wagoner Wire Works.  I think a wire-wrapped barette is fairly unusual.  This is a great color combination.  The blue beads are made of glass, but are supposed to look like blue lace agate.   They sure fooled me, because in the picture I was sure that it was blue lace agate.  Click here to sree other pieces by Wagoner Wire Works













At left is a wire-wrapped gemstone ring by Pink Sunset Jewelry Designs.  Tammi has used a red howlite bead and silver plated wire to make this eye catching ring.  The ring shown here is a size 7 1/4, but if that's not your size, she can custom make one for you in the size you need.  To see more of Tammi's work at Pink Sunset Jewelry, click here.

These wire wrapped earrings shown on the right were made by Sally of Crystal Bazaar.  These earrings are also a unique design.  She has wrapped bronze colored Swarovski pearls with fine silver wire to make elegant stud earrings.  (Fine silver is .999 silver, which is a higher silver content than sterling, which is .925 silver.)  To see more designs by Crystal Bazaar, click here.







At left is a wire wrapped pendant by Dianes Dangles.  When it comes to wire-wrapping, I think pendants are the most popular thing to do.  Maybe because it's such a creative way to capture a stone or cabochon that doesn't have a hole drilled through it.  In this case Diane has wrapped a citrine nugget with brass wire for a very elegant look.  Click here to see more from Diane's Dangles.





Here is a pair of very unusual earrings by Catherine's     Jewelry.  Although it's not normally what we think of when we think of wire-wrapped jewelry. they are made ot of wire.  They have open loops instead of closed loops.  They are so unique I thought they deserved to be included here.  Catherine has made these of gold-colored copper wire with lapis lazuli dangles.  These may have been inspired by The Vampire Diaries TV show because she has sent them to the show for possible use in the show.  To see  more designs from Catherine's Jewelry, click here.







Here is some wire-wrapping that is probably a little more traditional.  This is a wire wrapped necklace (or belt) by Roxanne (me) of Shanghai Tai.  It is 54" long and made of faceted glass beads and Swarovski crystals in various sea tones wrapped with sterling silver wire.  To see more of Shanghai Tai's designs, click here.

I hope you enjoyed this little foray into wire-wrapped jewelry.  Maybe it will inspire you to keep your eyes open for some new and unusual wire-wrapped pieces.  If you would like to see the Wrap It Up collection, you can find it here:

Wrap It Up collection on Artfire

Countdown to Christmas Blog Hop

Celebrate With Red & Gold!

I love the color combination of red & gold.  The truth is, it reminds me of China and Chinese New Years.  But it also reminds me of Christmas.  So, I decided to make this month's JCUIN (Jewelry Creators United In Numbers) guild collection red & gold.

Handmade Garnet Gemstone & Freshwater Pearl Cluster Gold-Filled Earrings by Crystal Bazaar

These sparkly gold crystal heart and pearl earrings are by Pretty Gonzo.

Do you see the rose?  This necklace is called Abstract Rose in Lime Green, Red and Black, but it sure looks lik a mixture of red and gold to me.  It's by Jewelry Art By Dawn

I love the texture of this bracelet by Zoomgraphik.  It is made of aluminum, miracle beads and pearls.

These golden rays of sun are hand painted on to the red fused glass pendant by M2BC Jewelry.

This red fused glass pendant with gold dichroic dots is wire wrapped in 14K gold filled wire. You can find it at Shanghai Tai

If you would like to see the rest of the Celebrate With Red and Gold collection, you can find it here:http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=collections&op=details&cid=39537

Gifts For Him (Blog Hop Hosted By It's A Handmade World)

Julie & Blu's Countdown to Christmas Week 10

Blog Hop - Gifts For Teens and Tweens!

Positively Posh Pastels

This post is a little late.  I went out of town and had my laptop with me.  Unfortunately, I couldn't remember how to sign in to my blog.  (Sad, but true!)  Now that I am home, I have my password saved on my desktop, so time to blog away!

Recently I got tired of all the fall color collections and decided to mix it up a little with some pastels instead.  Here are a few more pieces that should have been in my Positively Posh Pastels Collection if I only had a little more room.  Oh, by the way, I should add here that I took the liberty of enhancing a few of these photos.  Hope no one minds. ;)  These pieces are all by members of the Jewelry Creators Unite In Numbers Guild on Artfire:

I love the flash of color in this one.  You normally think of pastels for summer, but doesn't this one look Christmas-y?

This is one earring of a pair, with tiny lavender roses inside the large crystal.  These earrings are by Crescent Moon Creations.

What great texture this bracelet has:

This is a citrine and cultured freshwater pearl nugget bracelet by Diane's Dangles.

For those of you who make your own jewelry, here is a handmade polymer clay cane from Blue Morning Expressions.   This can be made into beads, pendants, earrings.... You are only limited by your imagination!

The angle on this next shot is so awesome I just want to reach out and touch these big fat beads, don't you?

This is called "Three Gemstone Bracelet" on memory wire, and you can find it at Jewelry by BeaJae.  The three gemstones are Ching Hai jade, rose quartz and lavender beads.

This next one I like because it is very unusual:

This is Freshwater Pearl and Feldspar Necklace by Tammy of Unique Designs by Tammy.  I love the color combination, and I also like how the contrast between the delicate groupings of pearls and Swarovski crystals and the long feldspar beads.  

Finally, my blog wouldn't be complete without a little bit of shameless self promotion!  The following bracelet I actually made for a previous blog a few months ago about color schemes:

This Cotton Candy bracelet is all pastel and, with the exception of the little yellow accent beads, all translucent.  

If you'd like to see the "Positively Posh Pastels" collection you can find it here:

http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=collections&op=details&cid=38978

Hopes And Dreams Blog Hop

Shanghai Tai - On Fire For Handmade Featured Artist

Shanghai Tai - Featured Artisan

Quick Blurb

Roxanne is an award-winning artist who creates quality,

one-of-a-kind wearable art. Jewelry to fall in love with.

Interests

Pearls, Precious metal clay, fused glass (especially dichroic), wire-wrapping, semi-precious stones

Skills and Techniques

Glass fusing, wire-wrapping, certified in Precious Metal Clay,

the usual beading stuff

Grab the code for your blog HERE

Are you On Fire for Handmade?