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Thursday, November 20, 2014

We're All Ears :: November Reveal



So what did you think about that sweet little short animation?
 
I was completely enthralled by it. I watched it over and over and paused and pressed rewind so many times. I just wanted to zoom in and see it even closer! What I took away from that film were three things: the leaves and foliage on the mountainside and in the woods; the details on the outfit of the little girl; and the diaphanous wings of the creature. I sought to do something inspired by all three of these inspirations.


I loved this recent post that Miss Gloria just shared with us on how she approaches her task of making earrings for her reveal days. Since I really only get one reveal day a month, I like to make sure that I have more than one pair of earrings created for the challenge, and the way that Miss Gloria approaches her creative sessions is one that I quite like and decided to put into action: creating in your comfort zone and taking a risk. So for this first set of earrings, I focused on a tried and true design of mine: falling articulated color-filled leaves. Leaves are everywhere in this short...from the misty treetops on the hillside to the cool green vines snaking their way around the massive boulders. There seemed to be three different colors of the leaves: white and misty, rust and copper and fresh and green. I made a pair of earrings in all three colorways using at least 4 different metal patinas to hand paint each leaf before assembling.


Clearly, I love making these, as I have made them before in all the colors of the rainbow. I love that they are lightweight and dangly. I always sell out of them at $22 and my own personal favorite pair is periwinkle blue leaves. I must have eleventy-billion of these sweet little leaves, so I am sure that I could make you a pair if you like! ;-) Just ask!

 

The outfit of the little girl is intriguing... does it hint at a rustic peasant lifestyle? a bygone era? a faraway land? It has a decidedly ethnic quality to it, from the fur trim to the brocade to the beaded tassel (did you catch that?). I wanted to make something inspired by the beaded tassel, but found myself drawn to the ornate trim on the edge of her coat. I spied a little bag of some of my favorite Vintaj components in these sweet little flower designs and kept is quite simple. Long again, as that is how I like my earrings (could easily go shorter), with a faceted merlot pearl dangling. I employed a new-to-me trick I learned of making knotted head pins. I learned it in a little online tutorial and thought I would give it a shot. Pearls always have such small holes, and this solves my dilemma of how to string them in an elegant way.

And following along with Miss Gloria, I had to take a risk. The feathers of the mystical creature seemed like the perfect way to test that out. In my printer's cabinet pearl drawer I found a small compartment of small top-drilled stick pearls. I thought they looked a lot like feathers, so I set about trying to come up with a design that would mimic the look of the wings.


I played around with a little dark annealed steel wire to make a crescent shaped form. Then using a contrasting bronze colored wire (more out of necessity than esthetic), I wire wrapped the stick pearls to the form. At the bottom I dangled a crystal briolette, reminding me of the flash that the water made as it coursed through the creature. I even made my own ear wires, something I would like to do more, but rarely have the time. These were a risk for me in the unexpected shape and the complete handcraftiness.  I quite like the way they hang and hug the curves of my jaw line. I think I will explore this shape some more!

If you were inspired to create something based on the inspiration animation, please add your link below. And be sure to come back on Friday, December 5th for our next We're All Ears inspiration!
What inspired you about the animation Nebula? Do share!


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20 comments:

  1. Oh I love the crescent moon earrings. I actually Made a finger ring inspired by the video, but I think I'll make earrings to go it with and post them

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  2. Oh I really love "Nebula" what a beautiful art piece :)

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  3. Wow I love what you came up with, the Vintaj components in the trimmed in tapestry are just perfect and I love the pearls but wow those Nebula earrings really steal the show and they look amazing on!

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  4. This was my favorite inspiration so far. I loved the short film and wish they'd make a full-length version. Your long dangle earrings are just my style and I would think blue is the perfect color for a pair of the leaf earrings. The way you used the stick pearls as feathers to create winged earrings is spectacular.

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  5. Wonderful Challenge! Love the Nebula necklace...Thanks for finding this site for us...I am a new follower too! Can't wait til next month!

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  6. Fabulous designs, Erin! I think your wing earrings are just fantastic! Thanks for another fun challenge!

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  7. Love the Nebula earrings so very unique and stunning to boot. Thanks for the challenge with this beautiful film clip.

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  8. Absolutely awesome video and the inspirational gorgeous works of art jewellery. The winged earrings are absolutely inspired.

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  9. I love the video and the designs. NOW dear Erin, where and when can I purchase these lovely Nebula earrings??????

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  10. Erin, I love the way you approached this challenge with comfort and risk and how you made three earrings based on specific elements from the video - leaves, tunic, and wings. They are all so lovely. Your risk, the Nebulas, are some of the most intriguing earrings ever! The shape, the pearls, the way they frame your clearly-satisfied and proud face (as you should be) . . . so creative, totally unique, and lovely. Thank you for posting the headpin tutorial for those frustrating small-holed bead situations. Very helpful!

    Question: I love the patinas on your leaves. What product did you use and what colors, especially the white one?

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    1. Thanks for your sweet words, Miss Cindy! That is me in all my unvarnished glory at about 1am when I finally finished all of these and the post! I thought they deserved to be seen on a person to get the full effect.
      The patinas I use are the Vintaj metal patinas from Ranger. I like that they are blendable. On the light pair I actually used four colors, but it was hard to capture in that light: agate (a light yellow), marble (a creamy white), quartz (a soft pink) and antique silver metallic over the brass leaves. Glad you like them! I will post all these earrings in my webstore at www.tesoritrovati.com soon! Thanks! Enjoy the day. Erin

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    2. Thanks, Erin. I just started experimenting with the weathered copper set from Vintaj Ranger. Now I see a shopping trip in the very near future . . . like RIGHT NOW! I think I will need to buy ALL the sets.

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  11. Love your designs! The last pair is absolutely stunning! Thank you for the challenge! It really inspires me and makes me more organized :))

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  12. Beautiful earrings! They are all outstanding. Your choice of textures is amazing! I would have to say the Trimmed In Tapestry is my favorite. The rustic texture of the metal design and the softness of the pearls makes a beautiful pair of earrings.

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  13. Great designs for the different facets of this inspirational video! Love how everyone sees things a bit differently. My favs are the ones reflecting the girls tapestry trim. And gotta try out those sweet knotted head pins!! Thanks for this month's fun, Erin.

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  14. Erin I really enjoyed this challenge. There were so much inspiration in the film and it was hard to choose.
    Your earrings are gorgeous and I love the leaf earrings and the elegant Nebula is a fantastic design.
    I Can't wait to see what you choose for December.

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  15. Oops, came back to this post to respond to more folks who Linked Up and they've disappeared from view. Do you know what's up, Erin? Should we relink our posts?

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  16. As always, I absolutely adore everything you made - you have such a great way with color, texture, balance, everything. But the video really caught me. It was so wonderful on so many levels. I saw it as an allegory for self-discovery, for the joy of a teacher seeing his/her students soar with their new knowledge, for parents watching their children grow into adults...basically for the joy that comes from nurturing. Much like the joy you obviously get from creating. Thanks for sharing!

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  17. I love all the earrings you created! The leaves are really spectacular with their gilding! So pretty! I could see me wearing a pair! The tapestry ones are really elegant with their floral pattern and beautiful vibrant stones! Again, could totally see them on me. :-D And the wing earrings- wowzers! I love those and they look amazing on you! What a cute picture too! The design is so unique and flows so well to frame the cheek bones. Wonderful. Thanks so much for all the work you did on this challenge. Hope to join in again next time.

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