jujyfruit necklace

my favorite candy and now my new favorite necklace!  i love the saturated hues of these tumbled glass pebbles but couldn’t quite figure out what to do with them until recently.  i’m pretty proud of the finishing touches, too, like the knot in the tangerine silk cord:

and the funky button closure:

love it!  just wanted to share.

happy mother’s day!

how are you celebrating this special day?  my mom lives far away, so i had to send my love through the mail.  when i saw this cool message box tutorial by cathe of just something i made on the living locurto website, i knew i had my gift: inexpensive, handmade, personalized, and thoughtful.

for my version, i printed out cathe’s plain template on the back of single-sided printed cardstock.  the box is made to fit business card sized notes (2 x 3.5 inches), sooooo, here’s a hint: use a 12×12 sheet of cardstock and cut it down so it fits in your printer.  the 3.5 inch strip that you cut off the edge will give you 6 cards to use inside.  matchy-matchy and scrap-busting!

i took some pictures of how i put it together because it’s easier than it looks, just confusing at first.  okay, it was confusing to me, and i thought…hoped that i’m not the only one.  i promise it’s really easy, no mensa membership required.  hint: if you plan to add eyelets and brads for closures, you may find it easier to do *before* you glue the sides and bottom together.  it’s really hard to wield an eyelet setter inside a tiny box, let me just tell you.

as this was concocted during april, stash busting month, and, as i had foolishly promised not to purchase any craft supplies for the whole of april, i whipped up a few sentimental cards with stickers and stuff from the stash.  (don’t cry too hard: i used to work at a scrapbooking store and i’ve never had less take home pay in my life.  so the stash is extensive *and* in need of a little busting.)

i played off the pretty colors on the cardstock i used for the box and added orange for an accent.  (in the other box, shown in the first photo, i used turquoise as my accent color, both on the outside and inside.)  i pulled stickers and rub-ons in the same color scheme.  you could also embellish with buttons, ribbon, sewing on the cards…sky’s the limit!  then i wrote down a mix of sweet thoughts and memories with snarkier things like, “thanks for not selling me to the gypsies”.  yep, that’s how we roll in our family.  a few idle threats during the developmental years…

i closed the one for my mom with a piece of elastic (saved from a clothing tag) that i inserted through an eyelet and looped around a brad.  i helped my husband make one for his mom, too, which is actually the one i took pictures of here, and on hers we used embroidery floss and two button brads to make an old school office closure.  we embellished the outside of our boxes, as well. then sent our love via priority mail!

these great message boxes could also be made manly for father’s day or even used to hold a small gift.  they’re really just precious and tons of fun to make.  if you make one, let me (and cathe at just something i made!) know!  i’d love to see it.

corral your crap

dear sir or madam,

ever wondered what to do with all that crap that’s just lying around?  may i humbly suggest these trays for all your storage needs.  the fancy crap tray would look wonderful on your wardrobe with your perfumes arranged just so.  your mancrap would look ever so manly in the pewter mancrap container; perhaps for the study or the mancave?  and of course, whose office is complete without a snarky comment graciously provided by the ‘you say it’s my crap like it’s a bad thing’ tray.  while these one of a kind, upcycled trays won’t solve your problems with crap, they will give you a place to put it all.  well, at least some of it.

each tray has been rescued by yours truly from one of the fine riverside, ca thrift store establishments and revived with just the right touches.  lovingly cleaned and stamped or decoupaged to bring out the individual features of each lovely piece.  then sealed so that you can wipe them down, should they ever need it.  they will develop a light patina over time to add to their uniqueness.

send no money now!  simply go to my etsy store and choose one of these instant heirlooms for yourself or as a gift for that special someone who deserves something this fabulous.

sadly, you will have to provide your own crap, as i do not provide my crap with these items, whatever the pictures may imply.

sincerely,

the sultana of the inland empire

viola gets dressed

for those of you who don’t know, my husband got me a swanky dress form for christmas.  i named her viola and thought it was high time i honored this great gift with a special outfit.  i pieced it together without a pattern, which was easier than i thought.  i wanted to give myself a challenge (like just finishing isn’t enough of a challenge!) so i thought i’d try to match a bold pattern.  easier said than done, let’s just say.  i don’t think viola and i will be winning project runway anytime soon, but i like how it’s shaping up so far.  not sure about the cummerbund-y wasitband.  it’s not done yet, but i’ll keep you posted!

moon drops earrings

here’s a sample of what i’ve been up to the past two days.  i spent almost the entire time (with a break for a delicious afghani meal last night in rancho cucamonga) in the garage studio, soldering and hammering to my heart’s content.  yesterday, my husband went domestic: he mowed the lawn, washed and vacuumed the car, and washed the dog.  and all i did was work!  how’s that for a (much appreciated) switch?!  okay, i did cut his hair–don’t worry, he likes it.

i’m happy to report the results of all my torchwork, all made entirely from scratch: a soldered and hammered bracelet, a simple triple ring hammered pendant, and these beautiful moonstone earrings with hand forged and hammered hoops.  even the earwires are handmade!

i love the added ability to create my own sterling silver findings that my butane torch affords me.  it’s been an uphill battle teaching myself how to solder these little guys, but i think i’ve finally figured out the proper balance of solder, flux and heat that makes for a successful joint.  and i love hammered sterling, so that was just a natural!

look for these pieces and others like them soon at my etsy store!

now onto the next challenge: getting good photos of hammered sterling.  capturing all those little facets makes for a challenging photo shoot!

i heart resin!

i love the look of resin–it’s fun and fresh– so i’ve incorporated these pendants into one of a kind necklaces.  each necklace is a little bit different: some of the pendants are enhanced with charms and beads, some hang from gunmetal chains, some from leather, and one includes grosgrain ribbon and silk.  they’re all available at my etsy store.

she sells sea shells

say that 5 times fast!  sure, i live in the inland empire of california, miles from the ocean and far from the east coast, where i collected these shells myself at okracoke island off the coast of north carolina.  i polished them, drilled holes in the top, and strengthened them with resin.  then i strung them all together with a freshwater pearl on a copper chain that i had antiqued.  i think they look great all together: neutral and nautical!

this necklace is available at my etsy store for $32 USD.

i also recently made another shell necklace, this time with capiz shells in aqua blue and spring green with a tiny mother of pearl bead, all strung on a sterling silver chain.  it’s available at my etsy store for $28 USD.

flattery will get you everywhere

when i first put my jewelry on the interweb, i was unsure how it would be received.  sure, family and friends loved it and encouraged me to get out there, but it was still scary to ask total strangers if they liked my work.

just the act of putting myself out there has made me more confident about my jewelry, but compliments from strangers never hurt!  the other day someone said to me that they like my jewelry because they rarely wear any jewelry.  although it may not sound like a compliment to others, i thought it was a great because i strive to create everyday, not-too-fussy pieces. so i was really flattered!

then today, my upcycled red and aqua jewelry storage board was featured in the top picks on cosa verde‘s website!  so cool.  thanks everybody.

more branches!

when i saw this cast sterling silver branch, i knew i had to have it.  when it arrived in the mail, i spent a long time thinking about how to do it justice.  i wanted to highlight it’s delicate nature and organic form but i didn’t want to overwhelm it’s simple elegance.

so i decided to hang some wire-wrapped gemstones from the branch: a single rock crystal and three  peridot drops.  to bring out the beautiful green of the peridot, i added more wire-wrapped peridot to the sterling silver chain all the way around and i finished it with a sterling silver lobster clasp.

it’s available at my etsy store for $42 USD.

wow! who knew?!

march is colorectal cancer awareness month.  american red cross month.  women’s history month (celebrate international women’s day on march 8th) .

it’s got the first day of spring, national reading day (celebrating dr. seuss‘s birthday on march 2nd), and texas independence day (yeehaw! get the day off in texas on march 2nd).  new mexico celebrates pluto planet (?!) day on march 13th, we all celebrate the assassination of julius cesar during the ides of march (march 15th), and–pinch me!  kiss me!–who could forget saint patrick’s day, another excuse for hallmark to make green, on march 17th.  and of course, there’s the annual christian rite of biting the heads off chocolate bunnies.  i mean, easter.

march has its own flower: the narcissus, a pretty little plant that forces it’s way up through the earth around this time of year as it insists that it is, finally, spring.  if you’re in macon, georgia, celebrate the cherry blossom festival march 19-28.  if you’re in japan, watch for “blossom forecasts” and go out and and have a picnic as you engage in hanami, the custom for enjoying the beauty of flowers (also usually cherry blossoms).

and then there’s the beautiful birthstone of march: aquamarine, pictured above in a wire-wrapped pendant with rock crystal, apatite, and a deep blue swarovski crystal.  look for it soon at my etsy store!

and don’t forget to save a spider on march 14th and drink up for world water day on march 22nd.