My Little Spitfires

Ever since I got these hot little spike headpins from Claire Lockwood (a while ago now) my mind has been doodling.  You know how it is with art bead headpins - once you start wrapping, the commitment is REAL- no turning back!  So they sat on my work table for quite a while until I was sure of the design.

The small bone skulls are primitive and in perfect proportion to the spikes.

I wire wrapped some itty-bitty Charlotte Beads onto a wire form by Joan Moritz Langmo, turning her pretty sweet flowers into flames of love....Muahahahaha!

Happy Valentine's Day 
to my 
spitfire beady peeps!
♡
Loralee Kolton

www.loraleekolton.etsy.com
https://www.facebook.com/loraleekolton.jewelry/

Firey Carnelian Gemstone. Rusitic Silver Hoops.

Happy Halloween! 
So much going on today. 
Thank you for joining me!

In my last post I shared a leaf photo that had inspired me. And I never tire of looking at leaves in Autumn. I walk often and take a lot of photos. I took this one last week... 

The color of the leaves absolutely captivated me and still does. The rich hues of the reddish brown are stunning. Maybe that's why I've been wearing Carnelian all week. 

Carnelian gemstones have always been a go-to favorite of mine. The translucent colors can range from orange to reddish brown. These odd little nugget shapes often remind me of apples. 

According to my book the illustrated book of Healing Crystals, Carnelian is a very positive energy stone. "Carnelian is above all a crystal of personal happiness and fulfillment; if you believe in your unique talents and follow your personal goals rather than those set by others, you can achieve anything." Which I think goes for anything in life whether or not you wear gemstones! However, I do get a real sense of positive energy from this stone. 

Look for this set to be available with my next Art & Soul Jewelry shop update in about 2 weeks. TBA. 

Peace & Love, 

We're All Ears :: August Reveal

Sorry for the delay! This show that I am mounting (opening on August 30th!) is busting my behind with all the work that needs to be done! And while I didn't manage to get even one fire pit in over the last two weeks, I did manage to eke out a few pairs of earrings for the challenge (double duty as they will go into my exhibit! Woot!)

When I see flames dancing and chasing the sky, I think of copper. It perfectly embodies the molten core of fire. And I also thought of glass, particularly lampwork, that would be created in a flame. Lucky for me, my hoarding tendencies are well known and I came across this little stash of copper pieces from our friend Kristi Bowman. As luck would have it, they were right next to lampwork glass swirl discs from Melissa Rediger. Sweet serendipity! Since both components are flat, I didn't want to miss out on showing off their incredible detail so I did a little bit of simple wirework to show them off. I call these Flame Dancer. (I think I may be tempted to keep these for myself! So light and glowy!)

I came across some polymer clay headpins that I made at the Inspired by Nature retreat in 2015. They look so much like the lumps of molten heat in the center of the flame. There is always a lot more color in fire than just red and orange and these have a touch of purple shades and tiny white flecks. Wrapped in rings that simulate the tangled branches of the fire pit, I call these little wonders Hot Spots.

At the end of the night, the grey ash mixed with the charred remains and the tiny spots of dying flame are as fascinating to watch as when the flames are shooting sparklers into the night sky. These are another pair of headpins I created last year with a perfectly weathered look. The headpins are on blackened annealed steel wire which I made into a frame. I wrapped a copper colored wire around that ending in random twists of wire. I call these Embers & Ash.

I really need to get my flame on and enjoy that fire pit (maybe as a reward for getting this show, "Beauty in the Broken Places" off the ground!). I think a cold beverage and some s'mores would make a great way to celebrate!

Let's see what you did. Share your blog links below.

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We're All Ears :: August Challenge

I am the exact opposite of outdoorsy.

So, yeah, there is no camping in my life. Sleeping on the hard ground, battling bugs, no facilities. Not for me.

But I do enjoy nature. And I love a good campfire. That is about the only thing that I would be able to get behind with the whole camping thing.

My new fire pit....Isn't she a beauty?!

This spring, in anticipation of my son's graduation party in my backyard, I decided that we needed to retire the old rusty fire pit and upgrade. So I made my largest Amazon purchase ever and bought a beautiful extruded aluminum fire pit table. I also purchased 25# of glowing golden fire pit glass (made with real gold!) for an exceptionally beautiful look. Of course, I haven't used it as much as I would like (often the night I want to use it, I will find my son out there with his friends), but this fall I am hoping to really fire it up (he will be leaving for college soon so it will be all mine!). Oh, and did I mention it is propane powered? Just flip a switch and you are ready to go! (See...even with a fire pit I am not so "camp-y"!).

[Photo credit :: Tirza van Dijk :: Unsplash]

The one thing that I miss from our old rusty crusty fire pit is the way it would light up my senses.

[Photo credit :: Luke Porter :: Unsplash]

Yes, I get the beautiful dancing fire and the heat, but that smoky woody haze that hangs in the air and lingers in your nose, or the crackle of the flames, and the way it looks in all its many stages from the hottest leaping tongues of fire to the slowly deepening dying embers.

[Photo Credit :: Alex Holt :: Unsplash]

I do miss some of those things. But I still get my s'mores...with my retractable telescoping marshmallow forks! (And, hey! Flip of the switch! No clean up! I do love my firepit!)

[Photo credit :: Autumn Mott :: Unsplash]

So for August, as the summer winds down and the stars are shining, our theme is campfires. The wood, the fire, the colors, the s'mores....whatever you think of as evoking this summertime tradition.

[Photo credit :: Wil Stewart :: Unsplash]

Join me back here on Friday, August 19th to get your campfire on!

Fire and Rain

This week I created 2 pair of earrings using the same Rustic Drop beads by Outwest.

They were so cool on their own
I wanted to create very simple designs that let the wonderful beads shine through.



FIRE

I did really crazy messy wire wrapping on these beautiful red rustic drops.





RAIN



And super simple chain strung through these lovely blue beads.

 

Kristi

KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy