Colours in Stack

Hi there,
hope you are all well. Here's todays earrings. Something colourful and hopefully spring-like for this wonderful season. 


Ingredients (from bottom to top):
Handmade enameled copper headpins - Barbara Lewis of PaintingWithFire
6/0 Orange duracoat metallic seed beads
Purple opal czech glass flowers
6/0 Lilac gold luster seed beads
Aqua green greek ceramic beads
Lime green opal spacer glass beads
Bronze czech glass spacer rondelles
Purple opal czech glass druks
Handmade copper earring hooks

All my best,

Malin
www.beadingbymalindekoning.blogspot.com

Jingle (Poly)Bells

It's that time of year again---when we're lucky if we can find five spare minutes to rub together in the studio. I don't even need to say it cuz I know you already know---December is a crazy month.

So instead of scrambling to put together a new pair of earrings for you today, I'm going to give myself a break and revisit a pair of my beloved polybells. 

It seems like I always end up using the adjective "beloved" whenever I talk about my polybells. I think it's because I feel so motherly to them---each is its own unique little species made completely by me. No two are alike, so once they're gone, they're gone. I form them out of polymer clay, cure them, hand paint them, seal them, sweet-talk and coo over them...yep, I'm a freakin' weirdo.

This particular pair always reminded me of frilled wood mushrooms or maybe rock lichen. Subtle piney green dappled with bark brown and oyster gray. I balled my own copper headpins using a torch, gave them a simple wire wrap up top, and hung them from my signature long ear wires.

I've had a sincere intention to make more polybells for the past, oh, year or so. At the rate I'm going, maybe I'll get to it by next June?! I mean, hey, flowers don't bloom until the weather warms up, anyways, right?

Happy Wednesday and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Nikki
LoveRoot on Etsy

The Light of the World

Those of you who know me already know that I love using evocative (sometime provocative) quotes to complement my jewelry. I'm an avid bookworm and am infamous for peppering conversations with arcane underused words. My husband always gives me the eye-roll when I pull some old-timey phrase out of my hat. There are so many nuanced words out there - why stick to the same boring limited lexicon?

When I'm reading and come across a passage or phrase that haunts me, I dog-ear the page so I can come back to it and pull the quote. Sometimes they're humorous, sometimes beautiful, sometimes they hurt.

My bread and butter is 20th century fiction---pre-1980s, if I can help it---and I've been on a huge William Kennedy kick lately. His Ironweed series mixes darkness, humor, beauty, and verve in a really delicious way:

" 'Four hundred dollars there, boy,' he said. 'Feast your eyes. The sky's the limit on this trip.'

I took the money into my own hand, counted it (fifties and twenties), tapped it on my knee to even its edges as I would a pack of cards, folded it, felt its thickness and heft.

'It's nice,' I said. 'What are you going to buy with it?'

'I'm going to buy the light of the world and bring it home,' Peter said.

'Where's the light of the world?' I asked.

'I'm not sure,' Peter said, 'we'll have to go shopping.' "

When I was creating these polybells, the little radiant textured suns never really struck me until they were already formed. Earthy warm hues, abstract glyphic textures, ragged organic forms. I formed these from polymer clay, textured, cured, painted, and sealed them. They're deliciously lightweight. Once I looked on the finished bells, I knew I needed to give them a name that dealt with light. The above quote was just perfect.

Art inspires art - a wonderfully endless circle!

Happy Wednesday :) 
Nikki
LoveRoot on Etsy

Tropical Hibiscus

"Tropical Hibiscus" earrings featuring artisan lampwork beads by Sue Kennedy

These colorful earrings feature flower beads and headpins by the wonderfully talented Sue Kennedy of SueBeads.

I added little copper caps to the flower beads and embellished the earwires with some teal seeds.

They totally make me want to go to a sunny beach on an exotic tropical island.  I can imagine wearing a bright sarong with a big hibiscus flower in my hair and of course, a big fruity drink!

Gorgeous Rainbow Sherbet Hibiscus  via Pinterest

Melissa Meman

Feeling Bulb-ous

I may jinx us all by saying this, but I think Spring is here. Yes, we may have more freezing nights, maybe even a stray dusting of snow, but for the most part, I think the "great thaw" and the sunshine are here to stay for the next 7-8 months.

 
On Monday it was 70F here in Ohio, so I was out hopping around in the yard clearing out dead plant material from last year and making way for the all the wee spring bulbs poking through the mess. Snowdrops, crocus, wild iris, species tulips, allium - all beautiful hues of purple and green. 

crocus from my yard

 

So when trying to decide on which earrings to post about today, my eye went straight to this bulby springy pair. The beautiful crocus purple of NuminosityBead's lampwork glass beads just pops against the crusty crubbly muted background of dark verdigris and soft moss. I reversed the direction of the stack and threw in some ancient Roman glass, ratty old metal, wood, and artful wire wrapping. 

 





I hope you've had some sunshine and balmy weather in your neck of the woods this week. It does the soul good :)


Happy Wednesday!

Nikki
LoveRoot on Esty

Buttoned Up

Very deconstructed Sari Silk in vivid Turquoise blue,

 pulled through one of the holes in this Copper Flower Button.

I added a touch of Red Coral on the earwires.

Handmade Earrings to go with this beautiful Hand Crocheted Sari Silk Purse!!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/63131608/crocheted-silk-sari-ribbon-purse

Kristi

KristiBowmanDesign.com

KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy

Kimono

I love these beautiful Mint Criffles from Kimberly Rogers and I paired them with some of my new Colored Copper components. When I put them together they immediately reminded me of a Kimono.

Source

And check out these Handmade Shoes!

Source

Kristi

KristiBowmanDesign.com

KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy

Flower Drop Earrings with Kyanite Gemstones

These little flower charms were created from fine silver wire. Hammered out and then stamped with the flower images. I love these Kyanite stones for their pale blue, kind of rustic color with that little bit of shimmer. A really pretty stone. I think this shade of blue can match with so many other colors too. Which makes it nice... The hammered head-pins are also fine silver. Originally little balls, I decided to hammer them out for a little added character. Ear wires are sterling silver, handcrafted.

These earrings, along with a matching necklace are available at Art and Soul Jewelry. 

Thanks for stopping by!
Cindy

Bloomin

These gorgeous Red Crusty Flowers made by HavanaBeads have inspired me more than once. I've used them numerous times in my earrings designs and I always love the end result!

This time I've attached them to really wonderful Bone Beads with Tribal Patterns running around them.

http://www.kristibowmandesign.com/product/bloomin-earrings-handmade-lampwork-glass-and-bone

They are kind of mismatched but look so fine when put together, and I resisted the urge to put a little bit of Sari Silk on them, I like them just as they are!

I'm opening a new shop on Indimade!

Not much listed there yet but please check back, I'll be trying to add new items every day.

KristiBowmanDesign.com

Kristi

KristiBowmanDesign.com

KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy

Spring Has Sprung!

Well, officially anyway. I am choosing to believe! Today I heard three different birdsong, simultaneously, through the window. To me that says Spring. I actually had hoped to have these earrings ready for the Beatrix Potter challenge, but I didn't make it. There is always room for flowers, however, so here they are! (Please disregard the somewhat incongruous story line on my book pages--"Prairie Guns"--I chose the pages for their delicious yellowed color and only belatedly noticed cowboys and some shooting. I'm so avant garde!)

These wonderful lampwork blooms are "fairy flowers" by Mermaid Glass on Etsy; the rustic green and ice blue tulips are from Happy Mango Beads; and the little Czech glass flower bells inside the green tulips are from Stinky Dog Beads.

Spring on the Prairie. With some cowboys.

A Little Rosiness

For my first post here on Earrings Everday and for the week of Valentine's Day, I thought it would be appropriate if I showcased a little rosiness. Those of you who know me, however, know that I'm not really a conventional "hearts and flowers" kind of chick. I'm all about the organic, the weathered, and the primitive. 
  

I've been playing lately with making textured handpainted "polybells". I take polymer clay and fashion it into raggedy bell flower shapes and then hand paint each one for a layered, antiqued look. A little whimsy, romance, and nostalgia, all mixed with a dash of curiosity - especially in this pair. I like to think of each bell as its own species, made unique by my two little hands. 

This pair features a wine-colored base that has been layered with honey brown and beige. A quick wire wrap at the top plus some of my hand hammered oxidized copper ear wires, and that's all you need. 

My favorite part of this pair are the frilled wilted ends. And the great thing about polymer is that it's strong enough to be pulled thin. It creates an extremely fragile look while remaining quite strong. Quite the durable material, light as air, and they won't break if you drop them!  

And let's not forget that pop of wineberry inside of each bell...a little surprise that's enough to make you squeal.

I'm tickled pink (pardon the pun) to be a part of the Earrings Everyday blog and look forward to sharing some drool-worthy pairs with you all in the months to come. If you like what you see here, check out my Etsy shop for more ear candy: 

LoveRoot

https://www.etsy.com/shop/LoveRoot

Happy Tuesday!
Nikki

Hippie Chic

To continue with my latest obsession of Sari Silk, I found this amazing Sari Silk Yarn that I've been playing with lately. Here's the first pair of earrings I made with it.

Hippie Chic

I made hoops and wrapped the yarn around them then attached one of my Copper Buttons.

Hippie Chic

Here are the 4 skeins I purchased before I took them apart,

it was not easy to do because they are so pretty all coiled up like this.

I purchased this beautiful Yarn from

SwallowtailFiberArts on Etsy

Kristi

KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy

KristiBowmanDesign on Artfire

It's Summer Somewhere

It's summer somewhere. Like in Australia. I'm going to cling to that today as I trudge through the deep snow in my winter boots, looking forward to the coming and going of the shortest day of the year.

These carved golden agate flowers remind me of cosmos:

Seeds available from Urban Farmer!!!

If I were in Australia, wearing these earrings, I would probably be wearing this comfy number with them (although cosmos are not native to Australia, but rather the southern United States, Mexico, South and Central America, and even now South Africa, so I sort failed with the conceptual symmetry here):

Cosmos by lunebijoux featuring Nine West

The fabulous little blue flowers are recycled glass beads from Africa, available at Happy Mango Beads. The robin's egg blue seed beads on the earwires are also from Happy Mango.

You can see more at my Etsy shop HERE.

Plum Poppies

Plum Poppies

These "fairy flower" lampwork beads from Mermaid Glass are a delicious, pale plum color. They make me think of poppies! And plum jelly. I love the burst of amber in the center. I've wired them onto sturdy 18-gauge copper earwires, and accented them with little square glass beads in iridescent butterscotch and lilac glass rounds.

As usual, I picture them with jeans! And some wild shoes.

Purple poppies by lunebijoux featuring lace up boots

You can see more at my Etsy shop HERE.

Secret Garden



Secret Garden



Secret Garden by kristibowmandesign featuring knitted scarves

Acne slim fit jeans / Western cowgirl boots, $56 / rag & bone knitted scarve / Handmade Secret Garden Ceramic and Copper by KristiBowmanDesign

Kristi
KristiBowmanDesign.Etsy.com