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...