Rough Around the Edges

I'll be the first to admit that I'm rough around the edges. I like things that may be considered ugly or junky or taboo.  I like being a black sheep. I like my jewelry to have some bite.

I'm big on re-purposing elements in my jewelry---not from a tree-hugging recycle-hound standpoint (not that there's anything wrong with that), but from a "I really love the look of this old bead/rock/found object" standpoint. Stuff may be busted or have a crust on it---a patina of time, if you will. I like that.

Along these lines, one of the things I love playing with are vintage industrial metal bits.  They're old, they're beaten up, they're rusty, they may be broken and unusable in any other application. I like the challenge of looking at an object and then figuring out how to bring it back to life in unexpected ways.

Like this pair of earrings that I made for myself that feature some old industrial metal rings. What they were used for at one time, I have no idea. But they're pitted and corroded and covered with a layer of dark green verdigris patina...and I love them. I kept it simple by hanging them with two unusual lightweight vintage German wood beads. Each bead sports a little filigree bead cap to add some verve, plus my own headpins, ear wires, and soldering. Blackened metal because YES, please.

These are the kind of earrings that I wear everyday. They make a confident statement without clubbing you over the head. Some people may call it an "industrial chic" trend, but I just call it ME.

Happy Wednesday!
Nikki 
LoveRoot on Etsy

Repurposed

I was recently at an outdoor antique show and bought a brooch with the sole purpose of taking it apart and reusing the silver and gold dangles (bottom of the earrings pictured). The brooch had about 5 of these and I knew I wanted to use a couple of them for earrings. Really happy with the way these turned out. I sold them back in June at an art festival.

Antique and thrift stores are filled with treasures that you can repurpose. Do you have a favorite store that you frequent in hopes of finding items to repurpose and use in your jewelry designs? I have several and one of my favorites is the Burlington Antique Show. It's an outdoor show that happens only once a month, April thru October. It was on the PBS show, Market Warriors and also voted "The Country's 10 Best Flea Markets for the Coolest Finds!" by Yahoo.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a fabulous weekend,

Kristy Abner

Kristy's Kreations