Sunshine And Flowers

I made a bracelet last week, about which my husband said, "It's pretty, but aren't those kind of Autumn colors?". Well, yes. So today I decided to go for sunshine and flowers. No mistaking which season these are for!

I started with two of my handmade ceramic ovals which I combined with some new brass ovals. My first design had a large flower above the brass ring, but the earrings ended up measuring 3.25 inches long! Back to the drawing board.

In this version, I used smaller orange glass flowers which I topped with brass filigree bead caps. I dangled the flowers in front of the brass and the ceramic ovals. You can find these earrings in my shop now.

There's a lot of upheaval and unknowns in our world right now, which can make earrings seem almost frivolous. But the creative heart finds balance in the act of making. I hope you are doing ok, as we each seek to make the world a safer and more loving place. I'm sending out big hugs. 💕

Linda Landig Jewelry

Summer Swing!

Hello!

Some very summery earrings for you today. The little polymer clay charms (so sorry to not remember the artist) started off life as part of another pair of earrings. But  I was never quite sure of them, so they sat in my box of half finished things (it's a big box). But something drew me to them again. Probably the colours. And the fact that I had some very pretty purple beaded beads by Sarah of Beadecked by Beads. They were a perfect match!

 And both components have beautiful textures as well as colours.
The little beaded beads sit on some simple copper headpins and the earrings have a certain amount of swing to them.

They'll be available in my showcase over on The Earrings Show in Facebook Land on 23rd August.

See you in a couple of weeks and thanks for visiting :-)

Sue x
Utterly Lovely Stuff

Summer Trees

Hello Earring Folk!

I treated myself to some enamelled charms by Carole Pons of Brum de Terre recently. They really are the prettiest things.

Love the bright sky blue colour, as well as the pretty tree design. Perfect for summer, don't you think?

When I have components that are this pretty, I'm always tempted to just pop them on some earwires and leave them as they are! I resisted this urge!

However, I didn't want to over-complicate things, so i added some very lovely chrysocolla rondelles, some brass hoops to sit just behind the enamels and some little leaves -to echo the the tree theme.

Hope you like them! They'll be available over on my Facebook page

See you in a couple of weeks :-)

Sue x

Utterly Lovely Stuff

Summer colour!

So we have had a taste of summer over here in the UK. And it has inspired me to create some earrings with bright summer colours.

My starting point was Petra Carpreau's ceramic sticks. Love the vibrant reds yellows and oranges in these two pairs. They scream hot summer sun. 

In this first pair they are accompanied by some large juicy cherry red agate barrels. Just luscious...

The second pair have some delicious carnelian and pyrite rondelles. Love the sunset colours in these. And of course, both pairs have oxidised brass hoops to frame the ceramic sticks, for that extra bit of drama :-)

All of the semi-precious gems are from Sylvia Stungo's shop -a treasure trove of pretty things. These earrings will be available in my show this week over in Facebook Land -look for The Earrings Show.

See you in a couple of weeks

Sue

Spring Blossoms

It's been a lovely sunny few days up here in the north of England  (if still a trifle chilly) and that's reflected in my choice of colours for this weeks post. I have a bowl of double red tulips just coming out - so sunshine and tulips!

The enamel rings with flower burst murrini are by Kaz Baildon; the enamelled red beadcaps by Anne Gardanne. Rustic yellow Czech glass forms the inner bud and also the drops on the end of the chain. 

Something to cheer up your days!

                    Hope you are all keeping well and enjoying the spring sunshine - if you have some!

                                                                 See you in two weeks.

                                                                           Lindsay x

                                                                    MyEtsy shop
                                                             
                                                                 My Facebook page

Best laid plans

Oh boy, I had it all planned perfectly. 

Last Sunday hubby and I drove to a rented holiday home to finally have a proper holiday for two weeks. The holiday home is only a 1 hour drive from the campsite where we live, but it is a world of difference. Located in the mountains (much cooler, which is sooooooo wonderful) and somewhat isolated. Meaning.....quiet, no waiting lines for the shower or the washing machine, there is actually warm water left to take a shower and equipped with a very large fridge and freezer all for ourselves. Heaven! Please, don't get me wrong, I love our life, living in our mobile home on a campsite. That is, for 11 months of the year. In August it is a different story. Holiday season, so every inch of the camping is packed with people.

 

So, I packed a small selection of my beads to finally sit down and create. Hubby looked a bit worried as the "small" selection was at least 20 kg of beads (one crate succumbed to the weight) but we arrived safely in once piece.

So far so good, the plan worked. But that was it. In short: work interfered, meaning, I am still "playing" with my laptop instead of my beads. But hey...I have a spectacular view:

You get the idea...no new earrings for me to show. But I have these earrings I made back in 2014 I like to share with you. A simple design, made with beautiful fun and colorful ceramic charms made by my friends from Golem design studio. Just by looking at them I feel happy.

I still have some of there charms in my stash, so I am definitely planning to make more of these summery earrings.That's it for me today. I wish you all a wonderful day, full of sunshine, laughter and flowers.

See you next month. 

Thanks for looking and you know I love to read your comments so don't be shy and leave some words. 

Janine

Tropical Tassels

My husband and I are looking into the possibility of tropical getaway, later this summer. The past 2 years have presented many challenges - and not the good kind. We're thinking that some R & R might be just what we need most at this point.

My earrings, today, reflect these dreams of escape.  The turquoise echoes the beautiful Caribbean waters.

And although the shape of the flower is different, the color of the flower beads was close enough to make me think of Bird of Paradise flowers -- I know that is a bit of a leap of the imagination, but I *really* want to escape to paradise!

These earrings are really fun to wear, even if you wear them to the grocery store, rather than while walking on a tropical beach.  The tassels have a fun swishing movement that makes me happy!

R & R can be found in your own backyard or at a neighborhood barbeque! What are your plans for the summer?  

The Tropical Tassel Earrings are available in my shop. 

Linda Landig Jewelry

Ethereal Jewelry Designs

My earring designs usually are in strong colors, more in the jewel tone color vibe, but it is always wonderful to challenge one’s self with something new, such as components from Emma Wilson, from the United Kingdom. When I first saw Emma Wilson’s porcelain ceramic components I was blown away by the intricate markings and patterns on each piece. They were so delicate and detailed looking, but having an art degree in ceramics, I knew they would be very sturdy for jewelry components.

Emma’s porcelain components exude a sense of history, like they have been part of something else, maybe having been worn by someone in a gentler time or possibly that they have been places and have a story to tell and now they were just found and repurposed into these ornate bits and bobs. Emma’s pieces are frequently in tones of pale peach, blue and white, with gold ‘gilding’ in key areas. They are a delight to design with as I get to work with my smaller glass pieces and ornate headpins to enhance the story Emma has started.

Emma’s pieces can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/TheNatureofPorcelain , https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop//TheNatureofPorcelain, and on Facebook selling groups such as https://www.facebook.com/groups/LBAGalleriaDesignersShowcase/

Each porcelain piece in these photos range from 1.5 to 2.5 cms in length or about ½ to one inch. When  other artisan materials are added they are 2-3 inches long and are extremely light in weight on your ear.

The round medallion type earrings with dangling Swarovski crystals also feature Rose toned beadcaps and rustic lampwork glass by Jody Brimhall of Inspire Glass Studio at https://www.etsy.com/shop/InspireGlassStudio as well as on Facebook selling group pages such as: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lampworkbeadmarket

The pale blue bell shaped earrings feature lampwork glass beads from Patricia Ritchie of Australia, more Swarovski crystals and Silver Tinned Headpins by Sasha Crow.  Patricia’s work can be found on Facebook selling social media pages such as https://www.facebook.com/groups/lampworkbeadsfs/

Sasha Crow’s artisan pieces can be found at https://www.etsy.com/shop/crowscachesupplies

The smaller round components with small round impressions in the clay feature Terry Turner of Silverfish Designs at https://www.etsy.com/shop/Silverfishdesigns and Sasha Crow’s headpins.

For more information I can be found at: https:www.facebook.com/ChristineKaitlyn.3  and

https://www.Etsy.com/shop/ChrisKaitlynJewelry  or  http://ChrisKaitlynJewelry.IndieMade.com/

and on Instagram and Pinterest.

Chris Kaitlyn

 

Easy Breezy Summer

When I sat down yesterday to make something for today's post I gave myself guidelines, not at all what I usually do. But the requirements were, only a Few Components (Easy), Lots of Movement (Breezy), Colorful (Summer), and Lightweight (back to Easy ;). Lightweight to me is anything under 0.22 oz, 6 grams and under. Once the earring gets up to around 0.20, it is definitely still lightweight, but the older I get, the less tolerant my ears are for weight. Something we've talked about here before. So I'm really happy when I can keep them around 0.18, all of which these are. But it does really limit what I can do.

Weighing the components in the top pair, I knew it wouldn't work if I used wire, so I wrapped them with teal waxed Irish linen. They still swing because the linen is wrapped onto soldered jumprings, so they move a lot. The other two pairs I used wire, using the X wrap that always adds a bit more of a rustic/edgy feel to me, and I was able to kept them all within the lightweight limits.

I also planned to make lovely, light and airy pictures to go along with the Easy Breezy vibe, but by the time I had them ready to photograph, it was 8:30 last night and we were in the middle of a thunderstorm. So quick-on-slate pictures is what I ended up with, and gratefor for them I was! :) I hope you can use a little imagination.

See what I mean about the imagination? The pics just don't do the summery, colorful earrings justice.

Top left: Bird Wing Manified Ceramic Slices by Petra Carpreau of ScorchedEarthOnEtsy - Lampwork Glass by Terry Turner of SilverFishDesigns - Raspberry Enamel Copper Beads by Alison Page of AlisonPageStudios

Center: Enameled Copper by Alison Page of AlisonPageStudios - Lampwork Glass by Julie Burgard of Outwest

Bottom Right: Summer Sunrise Ceramics by Jana Bliznakova of HappyFishThings. The other pieces are vintage acrylic and Indonesian glass.

I do hope you are all having a wonderful Spring. . . . . it's been Summer Weather here for a while now. Weather we used to have in July, maybe, for a few days, seems to have become the norm, and months earlier. 95 in May, in Michigan, is just weird! lol Lots of people love it, so for all of you I am very happy. :) I wish everyone the Best Summer Ever!

Thank you for stopping in and letting me share my stuff with you.

norbel
SheFliesAgain

Bloom And Sparkle

I adore this time of year.  The rhododendrons are in their full glory.

Lilacs are filling the air with their intoxicating perfume.  I have a big bouquet of bright yellow day lilies on the fireplace mantle.  And pink tinged dogwoods fill me with joy. Everywhere you look right now is glorious.

With this bounty of blooms, I can't help but make flower themed jewelry. Today's earrings are brought to you by the colors magenta and green, with inspiration from the large camellia bushes in our back yard.

The shiny dark green leaves with the raspberry pink of the bloom got translated into these earrings.

Unfortunately I no longer remember the name of the artist who make the magenta and green lampwork flowers, but they were the launching point for these earrings.

I had some magenta beads that were a perfect match to the flowers.  I added some rhinestone discs and Czech glass bell flower accents to complete the design.

The Bloom and Sparkle earrings are available in my shop.

Linda Landig Jewelry

Finally Spring

Hello. I do hope this finds all of you well. 

With sunny days and temps reaching aaaaaallllll the way to 55F -- yeah, I know, but it's all we have!! -- Spring has finally come to Southeastern Lower Michigan. Spring is such a rejuvenating time of year. Truth be told, Fall is my favorite, but I'd never turn my back on a lovely Spring day. It seems to be all about renewal. That's a good feeling.

I have two pairs of earrings to show you today, both made when Spring was still an abstract thought, with snow on the ground in April. 🙂 All just a memory now. 

Flower Bobble Earrings

The first started with Petra Carpreau's Bobble Flower Drops in an "Oriential Princess" glaze. I paired them with columns cut from rusted tin tiles and given a bit of a "whitewash" with hints of pink. Green translucent glass beads and oxidized brass accents are strung on waxed Irish linen and hang from soldered brass metal rings. The backs of the tin are felted to give them a bit more substance and a nice finish. 

The second pair includes ceramics by Andrea Salkowe of JosephineBeads. Floral decals with a retro feel are paired with Natural Stones of Peach Moonstone, Rustic Blue Watermelon Tourmaline and rondelles of "Nephrite Jade." Small blue glass beads accompany the semi-precious stones, all wrapped with handmade oxidized copper ball-tip headpins. Simple but not. . . . they're really beautiful. 

As an aside, I think ball-tip headpins were one of the things I learned to make that really changed things when I first started making jewelry. Very easy, cost effective, and great design elements. 😉

Flowers & Stones

Thank you all so much for popping in today to give us a read. I hope you are all enjoying the best Spring ever, and that your Summer will be much of the same, filled with Creativity and Joy!

Thank you!
Norbel Marolla
She Flies Again

Can't decide? I've got you covered!

Do you sometimes feel like you have multiple personalities when it comes to accessorizing?

I do..... some days I feel bohemian and I'd love to wear long colorful dangly funky earrings and colorful flowy clothes, and other days I'm more 'subtle' minded and want something that can showcase my love of happy colors in a much more compact design.

If you feel this way too, then I've got you covered with this 'dual' offering today!

Still different, but with similar elements that can give you this particular vibe, no matter if you go long or go short :) Have you tried making a matching long and short pair of earrings too?

I've made these 3" long earrings starting with a pair of my handmade polymer clay headpins, and some fun sparkling Czech glass beads in various fresh summery colors:

And I loved the drop section on these long earrings so much, I decided to make an almost matching mini pair for those days where we want to carry that same boho feel, but in a much more subtle way:

Sparkling colorful Czech Glass beads, Copper and Gold-tone accents and findings, finished with Niobium Ear wires.

So, are you in the mood for "long" boho, or "mini" boho today? What's your general preference when it comes to earrings?

You can find my handmade jewelry making components and some of my finished jewelry listed in my Etsy shop HERE.

Enjoy the weekend!
Cheers,
Nathalie
Visit My Garden Of Love on Etsy HERE.
Visit The Crafty Tribe on Etsy HERE.

Beach Walk

Me, about 1966, on the Washington coast

Do you walk the beach with one eye on the waves and the other eye scanning the sand for sea treasures? These earrings look like I had emptied my pockets after a day at the ocean and had gathered together my best finds.

Spiral sea shells, tiny stars reminiscent of starfish and vintage coral (I never buy new coral, because coral reefs are dying in much of the world).

It's almost as if you could hear the roar of the surf while wearing these earrings - the next best thing to being there.

Me, backpacking on the Washington coast, about 1974.

Linda Landig Jewelry

Garden Friends

We've had so much rain this Spring, that it seems now, we have much more little creepy crawlies and all sorts of 'friends' popping over in the garden... One of my favorite garden friends are beautiful  dragonflies!

I wanted to make some jewelry components that featured these cuties, and so I've created a handful of handmade dragonflies earring drops, and decided to use a pair to make these fun lightweight earrings:

The great part about making my own polymer clay colors is that I can pretty much 'match' any other component that I plan on using. In this case, I had this gorgeous green hemp cord that I wanted to use in some fun summery designs. It was perfect to use with the design I wanted to create:

A pair of my handmade green/blue dragonfly earring drops, Greek ceramic beads in dark blue, tiny seed beads in blue, and small TierraCast gold-tone rustic spacer beads, on fabulous green hemp cord.

The light flurry of beads/cords at the bottom represents that flutter effect that I feel/see when they fly around in the garden, like a light trail of happiness that they spread around.

Oh happy happy Summer Days....

What are your favorite garden critters?

You can find these earrings and more of my jewelry components HERE in my Etsy shop.

Thank you for stopping by! Enjoy the weekend!
Cheers,
Nathalie Lesage

Visit my Handmade Jewelry & Components shop here: My Garden Of Love
Visit my Digi shop here: The Crafty Tribe

Pinky Love Knots

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I get giddy just thinking of certain color combos, well this one is another one of my favorites: Pink and gold. It's sunny, happy, and makes my girlie heart sing :)

Being that my health hasn't been the best for quite some time, being able to work with polymer clay and create with happy fun colors and components is such a joy, and such a healing process. I highly recommend it. Just do it for yourself, if nothing else.

So today, I wanted to share these happy earrings with you:

Small polymer clay oval earring drops, handmade by me - these are water-colored in and I added some glitter (because life is happier with glitter, and because I can LOL), sealed with a glaze. I used some pretty Gold-tone Tierra Cast rings to create the two Love Knots.

Throw in a little natural hemp cord and Swarovskis for some lighthearted sparkling fun, and my gosh, we're ready for a fun Summer party! Wanna join me? We'll get the BBQ going :)

Have you added some fun accessories to your Summer wardrobe this year? What kind of accessories do you gravitate towards the most?

If you're looking for one of a kind handmade jewelry components and finished jewelry, hop on over to my Etsy shop HERE.

Cheers,
Nathalie

Visit my Etsy Jewelry/Components shop here: My Garden Of Love
Visit my Etsy Digi shop here: The Crafty Tribe