My Blog

Just a Thought About Light

06/18/2011 08:56:00

A thought for the day

Adding some bright white, some lightness to the darker shades, of a day is something all of us can do. Brighten your day, and you can bring the light to someone else who may not know how to do it for themselves.

How Does A Design for a Fine Silver Pendant Develop?

06/15/2011 10:59:00

ShareOften I am asked how a handcrafted design is born in my Silver Pendants. I suppose my answer is similar to the response of other Artisan Jewelry Makers- the muse speaks to me, the design just appears to me, or I have seen a pattern I would like to duplicate.

For me, I am not certain of the Muse, but I can say that Nature speaks to me in the natural lines that are available from flowers, insects, and other facets of our external world.

Sometimes I must admit that the internal world where the Muse resides prompts me through a sudden thought, then directs me to start a project and lets the design form itself. Emotions can truly be exposed in the process of creating. I see myself making forms and textures led only my joy or confusion of a day. I then recognize the release of emotion and thought in the piece that I have made. This is a very good reason to create, in any form!

Jewelry Making can be an expression, or a combination of internal input. Happiness, sadness and joy can all participate. There is always a component of personal preference is form and color but I do find that somewhere in the process, I return to Nature to make the connections needed for the right expression of the moment.

Sometimes the process fails, and when it does, I then have the opportunity to recreate from the starting point of a terrible bit of fired silver. That is when a different challenge evolves. That is also where another road is taken in the creative process which is altogether too confusing to explain!

In the saying, I will include some photos that might provide insight

that words can not relate.

Have a look, I hope you see something that speaks to you.

A Little Bit About Ancient Glass Beads

02/04/2011 11:20:00

The glass seed beads, referred to as trade beads, played an important in the early colonies North America. Columbus' first trade with the people of the Americas was done with the use of trade beads to gain the confidence and admiration of the native people. October 12, 1492, Columbus recorded in his logbook that the natives of San Salvador Island were given red caps and glass beads. This is the earliest written record of glass beads in the Americas. I believe a promise was made on a previous blog regarding a discussion about ancient glass beads. Now, since it is January of a new year, I thought I should follow up on my broken promises. So here it is!

Among other nice shots, you will see what happens to an Ancient Majapahit Jatim Eye Bead from the 10th century after it hits a tile floor........it becomes broken.

Jatim is East Java, in Indonesia where these beads were produced from 700 AD to 1400 AD. My ancient bead that is now shattered as well as the reproduction bead also shown, show the influence of Roman and Middle Eastern beadmaking.

My particular bead, was made of concentric colors of glass in a cane and applied to a core of a basic glass, which I will explain a little in a following paragraph.

Needless to say, these precious beads and even their replica counterparts should not be dropped on a hard surface. The glass is old and fragile. The only good thing I can say about this is that you are able to examine the insides of a very old bead to see what it looks like, and this also gives you an idea of how it was made.

The beads I am showing here were created with a technique called "trailing and layering" with the use of glass cane similar to millefiore for those who have seen that in Venetian glass. The canes are created by melting a glass core as the center, then layering different colors of glass one at a time around this core to result in the patterns and "eyes" that you can see on the bead itself. Then a core is made onto a mandrel, (which usually a steel rod in modern lampwork beadmaking), then adding short bits of caned glass to the core, heating in a flame and shaping with something called a marver (which is still used in modern day beadmaking). The marver is a paddle that can withstand the heat of molten glass, and on which the molten glass can be shaped into a cylinder or be coaxed into a round shape.

Amazingly, the techniques used then were in popular use in glass bead making until the rise of Venetian glassmaking in the 15th century.

That may be more then you would like to know, but there is more, which I will spare you in this writing.

In another blog I will tell you a few things of interest about trade beads! Keep an eye open the next time you visit my site.

Buying a beautiful ancient glass bead is an investment, some more then others

The Beauty of Handmade Artisan Jewelry

08/24/2010 13:26:00

Handmade Jewelry has always appealed to me. I have always admired the craftsmanship of the art jewelry that I sought out in galleries as I traveled around the United States. From the South West to the North East you can find some very unique designs in silver and gold along with some very traditional silver work of the Indians who were indeed the first Americans.

Beautiful Beadwork also abounds in artisan jewelry. Handmade Lampwork beads, tiny beads woven with stitches, and again, with the influence of the American Indians.

I am also an Jewelry Artisan, working with many media around us

and also as a constant student of metalwork.

There are so many forms of bead making and bead weaving from ancient times through now. We are still using the Peyote stitch to create beautiful traditional and new designs.(this from our Indian heritage).

Gemstone beading combined with fine silver work with silver metal clay is my current favorite artisan outlet, Oh joy! As I continue to blog, I hope to introduce you to the old and the new of it! Beginning with Ancient Trade Beads through what is going on now.

A sample of trade beads, beautiful!