The Celtic Wire Wrapped Necklace

I have this streak that runs through me...maybe because my Grandmother was Irish, but I LOVE anything Celtic! I love the music, the clothing, the accent, pretty much everything about it. If you will notice, I have a lot of Celtic music geared up on my playlist when you come here to read my blog posts. When I hear the music, I get this feeling that transports me to another time and I feel so 'at home'. I guess that is why some of this Celtic design gets transferred into my jewelry.
I made a new necklace a couple of nights ago. When I look at it, I see rolling grassy hills and mist blanketing the dark sky. I can almost hear bagpipes playing in the background. Loreena McKennitt sings to me from the shadows. Would you like to see what inspires me to think such thoughts? This is it, in all it's glory...

The copper wire swirling around the green glass makes for a true Irish feel. The weaved wire gives it even more of that Celtic look. I love this piece. It took about 2 hours to create and when it was done, I felt satisfied.
I always get such a feeling of accomplishment when I create something new. Jewelry creation completes me, heart, body and soul...
I want you to experience what I FEEL when I create a piece like this, so I give you today's Daily Wire Transfer. Enjoy!!

The Renaissance Wedding Collection

Wow! I have finally done it! I have been thinking about doing it for a long time, but I guess I really never trusted myself to do it right. I finally couldn't resist the urge any longer and I did it. I created a wedding collection. Better yet, I created my first ever tiara!

I have had an idea for a tiara rolling around in my head for quite some time. I have been trying to stave off The Fighter, but it finally got the best of me and I had to appease it once more.
Is anyone else out there afraid of failure? I am not sure if I am frightened of failure more, or the fact that I may lose precious metal if I mess up a design. As most of you know, I use a lot of Sterling Silver in my designs and the fear of wasting this precious, expensive wire grips every nerve ending in my body! I should know better than to fear the unknown so much though. I have been able to pull off most of my new challenges without a hitch so far. Of course, there is always that chance of messing something up, but maybe that is why The Fighter shows me the pictures in my minds' eye so vividly. Maybe The Fighter knows that I would beat myself up pretty hard if I failed miserably. I think I would be sickened, literally, if I ruined a large amount of Sterling Silver wire. The tiara I have created would definitely classify as A LOT of Sterling Silver wire.
Here is a picture of my sketch of the tiara design I had in my head...

 Thank gosh I am not trying to make a business out of drawing, eh? I definitely CANNOT put to paper what I see in my minds' eye, but I can usually pull it off when I transfer my visions into the wonderful world of wire work. You get the general idea, right?
Anyway, after I drew this out, I went home from my real job and went to work. I spent about 4 1/2 hours creating this...

 

Oh man! This thing makes me PROUD! I LOVE the way that it turned out. It is not exactly like the picture, but it is pretty close to it. I decided against the two wires extending over the top wire, as I thought it may look like antennae, so I opted not to do them. I designed the frame a little smaller, so I just went with the one S wire on either side of the Frosted Crystal Cabochon. I thought that this was enough. The sides are pretty much exactly how I pictured them. The crystals in the centers of the S wires put the perfect finishing touch to the entire design. I now find myself wanting to do another one really bad!
I had made the necklace earlier in the week. This is the design that I chose...

 I absolutely love the romance of the design elements! Just look at the yummy crystals and wire all intertwined to create this gorgeous piece. I started out by hanging the pendant on a ribbon choker, but I didn't think it was elegant enough. I then decided to weave a choker and hang the pendant from it. I wanted a crystal drop on the clasp and this is how it turned out...

 

Isn't it lovely?I love the way that the whole entire design flows with the weaving on the collar and the weaving on the pendant being the same weave pattern. I find it captivating!

These are the earrings that I had done earlier as well. I used the same drop crystal effect as I used on the pendant for the necklace. They are pleasing to the eye as well.

 I wanted to go a little off center with the wire wraps on the bracelet. I wanted to give the effect of a watch somehow, to mark the time. When you tip the bracelet on your wrist, the watch effect is there staring back at you, making the day stand still for a moment, a moment in time...

 So this is it, my Renaissance Wedding Collection. I don't have a buyer yet, it was not a special order, it was just a series of thoughts that I found myself dying to create and I am very happy that I did. Now I want to do a collection for a flower girl~What do you think? I am thinking rose quartz...

Red Leaf Tea

I have to tell you...it is COLD outside! Not that I am complaining, because I feel that is entirely hypocritical; as I do live in Wyoming and it is supposed to be cold here in the Winter time, but still, it is cold outside.
When it is cold outside, I like to drink tea. I am not a BIG coffee drinker, as I like it in the early morning with breakfast, a few cups, and then I am done for the rest of the day. My drink of choice is rather~TEA!
I can drink tea all day long. I love the aroma and the fruitiness of it. I love loose leaf tea with all of the colors and the smells. I like to try to guess what is in it, that is my favorite thing to do with loose leaf tea.
I think I have my boys addicted to tea as well. They are constantly looking for new kinds to try. When they come home from school, they pour water into the pot and "surprise" me with a cup and I have to guess what flavor it is. It has become quite the game. Yes tea, the flavor, the aroma, and the warmth of it. One of my truest passions!
Today I am featuring TEA in all its glory. I found this cool shop on Etsy that sells loose leaf tea like this...

This is called The Sugar Destroyer Matcha Tea. Pretty huh?
What about this?

The Immortalitea. I can smell this blend right now, can you?
Here is another one... the Acai Berry Matcha Tea. WOW!

Here is one with big chunks of strawberry in it. I bet this is a full flavored tea to tantalize the taste buds! Strawberry Tea, sure to be a favorite...

Here is another one called Gold Rush. Just look at those colors! I am sure this is another full bodied tea.

Or how about this... Chocolate Matcha Tea. Doesn't it look great? Look at that COLOR!

With all of this, there is still the Citrus Earl Grey for those that just LOVE a cup of Earl Grey Tea.

 SPEAKING OF LOVE...look at this...The LOVE GIFT. I would have to say that I would feel pretty special if I got a Valentine's Gift like this. How cool is this, right?

Oh, there are a couple gift ideas that you could give at other times too, like this...the Blooming Tea Gift Set

or this... the Elegant Trio

or this...my favorite! The White Angel Blooming Tea

Isn't this the coolest thing ever? I LOVE IT!!
So now, you know a little more about me than you did a few minutes ago. I am an avid tea drinker and I am not ashamed to say it! Who would be? Just look at these great photos of this wonderfully beautiful drink!
Do you want to see more of what this great shop has to offer? Well, here is your DAILY WIRE TRANSFER go and check it out for yourself. I am sure you will find something delicious!

A Mechanical Mind

Today I am posting another Steampunk artist that I find truly fascinating. The artists name is JM Gershenson-Gates from Chicago, IL, and I believe this to be some tremendous work. I think that the gears in the designs are quite intriguing. They remind me of some spare part to a futuristic air ship. I feel as if this jewelry belongs in the movies like Hugo and The Golden Compass. My mind is always traveling to the mystical, fantasy realm and this kind of art just makes it all real somehow. I love the artistic talent in my favorite shops on Etsy. It is commendable to say the least.
Would you like to see some wearable art that you could actually own by this artist? I really want to show you, so here are some cool pictures...

Aren't these pieces great? They are all for sale and here is your Daily Wire Transfer so I think you should go and have a look around.
If you would like to check out A Mechanical Mind's Facebook page, click Here. Be sure to hit the 'LIKE' button, it is important.
I hope that you all have a wonderful Friday the 13th!
Janet

Twisted Sister Arts

I have decided that I really enjoy featuring other artists on my blog. I have fallen in love with some amazing things and what better place to feature some of them and the artists that create them than here, right?
Today, I am featuring some jewelry that I really LOVE to look at! It is in the line of Steampunk and I have to tell you, there is this streak in me that really embraces the concept of this art. It is fascinating to me to know this about myself as I have always thought of myself as...shall we say...rather conservative and straight laced. I love loud colors and bling, but I usually embrace them quietly for the most part, sticking to the traditional ways for my personality to be loud. I never really tapped into the really wild side of my personality with jewelry and bling...until I found some of the Steampunk designs I am going to show you in the next few blog posts.
Today's featured artist is Jill Lawrence from Oregon. She runs the Twisted Sister Arts shop on Etsy. She uses wire wrapping techniques that are absolutely AWESOME! Do you want to see some of her incredible creations? Take a look...

I find her creations fascinating and fun. Can you feel these eyes staring at you? I find myself going to her shop often just to see the amazing eyes staring back at me. Totally cool, wouldn't you say? I believe so...
I think you know where the Daily Wire Transfer is taking you today, so go...take a look at all of the amazing eyes. They want to look at you!
Here is the LINK to her blog.

Samantha Braund Jewellery

As all of you well know, I am a total Etsy enthusiast. I preach Etsy all of the time, to whomever will listen to me. I love to look at the pages of items that are posted on my homepage that are there because of my personality and the information that Etsy has gathered to place items there that would appeal specifically to me. I love to check in and see what is new and see the wonderful art that people are creating. There are some incredible things in the world and there are some incredibly talented people providing these things for us to feast our eyes upon and, when it comes to Etsy, you even have an opportunity to OWN some of these items. How great is that?
There are some artists on Etsy that I believe have talent that is second to none. I am going to feature one of those artists here today. This talented persons name is Samantha Braund and I think that her wire work is absolutely INCREDIBLE! Would you like to see some of it? I am really dying to show you, so here are some pieces that I find truly fascinating.

 Every one of these pieces were created by hand and aren't they simply AMAZING? I believe these pieces to be some of the most gorgeous pieces I have ever seen. Truly awe inspiring for me, how about you?
The detail in the wire and the choice of stones is so beautiful! This is a very talented artist!
I only find it fitting to let you experience more of this wonderful artists talents, so here is the Daily WIre Transfer. Go and check it out, I promise you won't be disappointed! Here is her Facebook page as well, take a look and be sure to hit the "LIKE" button!