Wild Flowers

Every so often I like to step out of my comfort zone and try something new... expand on old ideas and see just how far I can reach. So after painting and working with subtle tones since the end of last year, I decided to change direction last week... for a little while. And here's what I came up with:

Brighter colors, (for me anyway!) in a bolder, chunkier design. The necklace is 18 inches long with a 4 inch extender. Each bead is about 20 mm across and 7-8 mm thick. The detail on the beads reminds me of flowers. Asters, I think. Some said they look more like sliced fruit!

Each of the beads were stamped front and back with a new texture stamp I created. I experimented with different ways of adding a patina to enhance the detail, but in the end I just went with the "natural" clay look with a little antique gold on one of the beads. My favorite part was doing the wire work. I like how it added a rustic look to the bold flower beads.

It ends up this set coordinates perfectly with one of my favorite tops... so it's definitely a keeper! But I'll certainly be making more of these in various other colors - both bright and subtle...

Jewelry Preview - Crystal Key Designs

Secrets in Cranberry Crystal necklace and earrings sets

Some of my very favorite elements linked together in one new design - keys, fire polished Czech crystal beads, antique brass, and my stacked polymer clay beads (love making those stacked beads!).

Jewelry Preview - Turquoise Horse Designs

These pieces were some of the last designs I did before Lazy Daze...and also some of my favorites. If you're a lover of southwestern jewelry, turquoise, and horses these are for you!

Rectangle Pendant Necklaces

Faux turquoise rectangles stamped with my own hand carved stamp (making mirror image stamps for earrings wasn't easy!) and hung on silver tone chain.

Another angle of the same necklaces.


Racing Round Necklace

Faux turquoise pendant stamped with horses and hung on a silver tone chain.

Running Horse Chokers

Stamped faux turquoise nuggets strung with antique silver beads on a coarse multi-strand cord.

Two Friends Turquoise Horse Necklace

This necklace is truly one-of-a-kind. It was one of those designs that just happens. While mixing a batch of turquoise clay those neat white streaks appeared and I just couldn't help but make a pendant! I haven't been able to get those results again - so when this necklace is gone - it's really gone! :-)

Turquoise Horse Charm Bracelets.
Charm bracelets to match the necklaces - in two different styles.


Stamped Nugget Earrings


Stamped Round Earrings

And one last look at my favorite necklace...I really need to make one of these for myself! ;-)

New Aztec Earrings

I'm having so much fun making earrings with these Aztec beads. My first pair in macaw green already sold last week! I've got several new designs in progress - I hope to have them finished and listed in my shop shortly. Here are my newest in golden-brown with little black drops on top.

See them on Etsy here.

New Bracelets and More Earrings

I finished these bracelets a couple weeks ago:


A sculpted dragon holding a fire agate combined with antiqued rings.

An exotic bloom bracelet. I really like the smoothness of the bloom contrasting with the coarseness of the knotted cord and beads.

A swirly black and white bracelet.

And a winged heart - this is a new design I started working with just before Christmas - there are so many possibilities!

A pair of winged heart earrings.

And a pair of exotic bloom earrings. I have just a few slices left of this cane and it'll be gone...time to start a new one!

Today I'm working on new stamps for earrings and pendants (like the ones I used for the tree earrings in yesterday's post)...I'll post photos of them tomorrow morning after baking and a few test runs.

New Earrings and Some Heart Magnets

Here are two pairs of my latest earrings...and 8 heart magnets done in the Hearts & Roses style.

I really like the way these trees turned out. I used a new technique, making two mirror image stamps and then stamping the baked stamp onto the earrings to get raised detail. And because I used stamps, I can repeat this design as many times as I want. I think I'll try out different colors and I'd also like to hang a small stone or bead in the hole.

These are my Aztec Gear earrings - a really simple swirly earring drop, spiced up with some Aztec gear looking beads.

And finally my new magnets.