Category Archives: Wire Work

Metal Work, Pendants, soldering, Wire Work

Flora NOT Fauna

July 8, 2011 Karen

I’m making a real effort to focus on flora today and stay away from fauna. If you read the entry titled “Black and White” you know I encountered a skunk on a previous walk. Yesterday, it happened AGAIN! I was watching very closely as I went up the last hill and detected movement in the grass. Yep, there was black and white again. Yes, I did run down the hill AGAIN!

Also, Bruno the dog just brought me the last of a snake that he or some other heeler consumed in the back yard. There was enough skin left to determine it was a coral. So, with raccoon footprints on my front wooden door, a skunk in my walking path and snakes in the back yard, I’m thinking about moving to town! You’d think I live in the boonies, but you can watch the video on the opening page of the website and see that is not the case (www.dreamcatcherranch.net) .

At any rate, all I can control “habitat wise” is the work in the studio and I hereby proclaim that it will be FLORA! (did I mention the ant and mouse traps I just set?) Flora doesn’t sneak up on you. Flora is graceful. I like flora! Yet, it has to have a little metal twist to it.

While I usually work until a piece is completed, this one spread over two days. Late yesterday, thinking I had all the soldering complete, I pulled this piece out of the pickle and a leaf fell off. With hungry fauna (dogs and spouse) waiting, I set this aside and started again this morning. It has now been resoldered, given a patina and run through the tumbler. I think it’s perfectly secure this time. Now I just need to figure out what type strand to hang this pendant from. Alas, the fun part is over. Yet, there’s more flora on the table . . .

I’m wishing you a good weekend free of black and white fauna and full of beautiful flora.

Cold Connections, Creativity, Metal Work, Necklaces, Pendants, Wire Work

Black and White

July 6, 2011 Karen

Well, it happened again. Another morning walk affected my jewelry designs. Everything was perfectly fine until that last hill at the back of the property behind the house. By this point in the walk, I’m pretty weary and my legs are tired. Who knew that they could still help me run so fast. Trudging up that hill, I often meet the calico cat and this day’s encounter was also furry and just about her size, but it was black and white. If you were ever in the marching band or military, your body remembers how to do that about face where you place one foot out and turn completely around so you are facing the direction from which you came. It went something like this . . . black and white . . . skunk . . . about face . . . R U N !!!!! That black and white certainly turned me in a new direction.

Wondering if that was some sort of sign (probably just bad luck), I chose to try an about face (well almost) on the jewelry designs and momentarily attempt to focus on something other than wire armatures. I’ve made so many lately that I’m beginning to have nightmares about them! I think I could make handmade chains in my sleep.

If it’s not wire, then the designs around here must be metal. I’ve had components of the pieces shown here laying around on the work bench for a couple of weeks, but with this new direction, they had to be used.

You’ll recognize those same old bottle caps. I have a love-hate relationship going on with them right now. This bottle cap is riveted to the back piece of copper that has been run through a ringer provided by a nice friend. It hangs from a leather chord. (yes, the back is supposed to hang slightly ajar)

The second piece is more complicated and I kept telling myself that simple is better as I added more and more components. The telling didn’t work. I hope I didn’t overdo it. My home constructive critic wasn’t fond of it and had to be told to “pretend you like it” as I queried about the length of the piece.

The copper V was foldformed and hangs from jump rings on a hammered piece of wire. It’s really not crooked, but the picture is. I wire wrapped the hammered wire and made a loop in the center of each wrap for attaching the leather chord. You can see that it is asymmetrical with leather dangles on one side and black and copper beads on the other. This one hangs down pretty long.

Taking a slightly different direction isn’t too painful and is often needed to free the mind for whatever comes next. Sometimes making those wire armatures becomes too comfortable and I have to move out of that zone. Last night I purposely made a very intricate wire wrapped pendant that took about three hours to complete. It required a techniques that I’m not very good at. As I grumbled about it, my critic asked why I was doing it. I replied that I thought it was important to do something uncomfortable part of the time in preparation for whatever comes next. What do you think?

By the way, if you are wondering about that black and white, my downward hill run was successful and I did not get sprayed. Whew!

Bracelets, Creativity, Earrings, Necklaces, Pendants, Wire Work

Loopy Loo

July 2, 2011 Karen

Notice that the title does NOT include any person’s name. I would not want to be accused of calling anyone “loopy” nor would I choose to be called that although those of you who know me might say it occasionally fits my personality.

I finally wrote the tutorial for the Loopy Loo Bracelet design. You see this pictured in sterling silver below and I’ve been making this bracelet a while. At the insistence of a good friend I finally decided to share it and offer the tutorial on my etsy shop as you see in the listings on the right.

clip_image002 While writing the tutorial, I realized that I had not fully explored the potential of this design. I used the SCAMPER creative thinking tool previously mentioned in another entry and tried new things with the loops. I “minified” the design using lighter gauge wire and a smaller cylinder for the loops. This resulted in both a smaller more delicate bracelet plus a new necklace armature. Although the one in the photo is medium sized, I also like the tiny loops I put in an earlier necklace in the second picture. Hmm . . . I seem to be stuck on purple!

Thinking again about SCAMPER induced possibilities, I “modified” the shape of the loops a couple of different ways. The first turned out to be a pendant where I flattened the circle of loops to frame a bead.

I also turned them a bit differently and made earrings.

I made these from 20 gauge wire and feel they would be better in a heavier gauge. They aren’t holding their shape as securely as I would like. I do, however, think they are a good design and I’m going to redo them.

Who knows what this Loopy Loo design will bring next? I’m pleased to be working with it again and hope to exhaust its possibilities before moving on. Any ideas????

Earrings, Techniques, Wire Work

Earrings Galore

June 24, 2011 Karen

When a customer told me this week that she was out of earrings, I realized that I was too. That started my earring frenzy and allowed me to help my customers stock up.

eardiscs

The first photo shows new disc earrings with turquoise and hammered copper wire dangles. I also made this design with coral dangles and think lapis will adorn the next pair.

The leaves on the second pair were made using foldforming discussed in a previous blog entry.

I think I’ve shown bottle cap earrings previously, but all of a sudden this week I needed 8 more pair. I’m lucky to have a good supply of bottle caps provided by by son. These came all the way from California.

The ‘S” earrings are self explanatory. I also make a big “S” necklace that hangs from a leather chord.

s earrings

I think the design for the pair below, made entirely from wire has possibilities for many other designs. I put a three leaf clover in one pair and hung dangles in another. These are made from 18 gauge wire.

I made several other pairs and found that the assembly line approach worked best in churning them out. I made 10 discs, then 20 bead dangles and 10 wire dangles before assembling the first pair. The same approach worked for making numerous copies of the other styles. Finally, I made about 20 plus sets of ear wires shown on some of the pictured pairs. When I made the ear wires I tried to pick up one tool and use it on all the wires before going on to the next step. For example, I turned a loop on each of the wires before going to the next step. It seemed to expedite things, but I surely did get sick of making ear wires! When I finished those ear wire I wondered why in the world I don’t just buy them at the store.

Now I know what I can sit around and do when I’m bored – make ear wires! I just need to find out how to get bored.

Bracelets, Necklaces, Philosophy, Wire Work

Which Came First. . .

June 12, 2011 Karen

. . . the design or the beads? I’ll bet you thought I was asking about the chicken and the egg.

Something initiates most new ideas, inventions, problem solutions and designs. Artists who say they’ve lost their muse might benefit from the examination of how their art begins. With musicians, the question is often “do you start with words or with melody?” The fiber artist might query whether the fiber drives the design idea or the idea hatches and initiates the search for the right fiber. Does the author select a setting or environment to write about and then create characters or vice versa?

Jewelry designers might well consider the above question “do my better pieces start when I’ve become fascinated by the possibilities for designing with a particular bead OR do I develop a design and then search for what gemstones would compliment it?”

For example, the bracelet on the left started with the square bead. Although you can’t see it in the photo, it is not perfectly flat and I wanted to show off its character. This bead led to the adaptation of my previous dimensional design and required the development of a square, as opposed to oval, face. You may recall the former, shown below, from past blog entries. The tutorial for this one is in my etsy store.

The bead has come before the design several times when customers have brought me rocks or gemstones collected during their travels. It’s often a challenge to make the right design to show off their treasure.

Other times, the design comes first. You’ve previously seen the double wire necklace series. These copper armatures require just the right size and shape beads for elaboration. Since each armature is a bit different, the bead requirements vary from piece to piece. The necklace below, found in my etsy shop, features heishi shaped moonstones and garnet rounds. I played with other beads before finding the right ones for this design.

Of course the bead and the design may come together at one time. Is this the perfect marriage? Do your exciting pieces begin this way?

At this point you may be saying “who cares?” Art just happens. If your art flows freely, you don’t need this analysis, but what if it doesn’t. I think we all go through periods, whether long or short, of inactive inspiration. These are times when we wait for a great idea and it doesn’t come. Wouldn’t it be nice to know that a little analysis of previous work could prove helpful? It doesn’t work for everyone, but it might work for some. During those “dead idea” times, I’d try almost anything!

A careful analysis of my own work reveals that the design usually comes first. I spend a good deal of time playing with wire and that’s how most things hatch. The problem often occurs in the search for the perfect complimentary beads. Sometimes my impatience during this search causes me to use the wrong beads and then the design falls flat. I hope to become a little more patient during upcoming searches.

I’d like to believe that the artist’s muse doesn’t really run away, she just needs a little time to rest now and then. Yet, it wouldn’t hurt for us to give her a little nudge through analysis.

Necklaces, Philosophy, Wire Work

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

May 28, 2011 Karen

No, I’m not practicing a witch chant; I’m just continuing my work on the double wire series. You may recall seeing some of these necklaces in a post several entries back. I continue to be fascinated by the myriad of possibilities that exist with this basic design. That’s the “Double, Double” part.

Then there is the toil. Each time I pull out a long piece of wire and double it back, I get excited about what may develop; yet, I toil over how to get just the right balance in the wire armature and the beads. The necklace on the right looks a bit off, but I turned it too much in the photo and it is actually OK in person. I would have taken another photo, but this one found a home yesterday. Part of the toil comes as a result of needing to think of both sides at once. I’ve learned I can’t just do whatever I want with one side of the wire and hope I’ll be able to do something appropriately balanced with the other. It just hasn’t worked that way. Yes, I know I should probably draw the design before I start, but I’m a hands-on designer, not a pencil artist.

A significant part of the toil is determining how many beads to use. Originally, I planned to use many more beads on these armatures. I had an unfinished double wire necklace with me one day while visiting a boutique and wanted to get the owner’s take on the armature shape. She liked it, but didn’t want any more beads on it. She appreciated the simplicity. In other words, she helped me see that less can be more.

Finally, as the title suggests, there’s the trouble part. This occurs when the boutique client calls to request another double wire necklace “just like” the one I sold her last week. “Sure,” I say while wondering what in the world I sold her last week. I often feel like quite the dim wit as a client carefully describes the pieces she wants replicated and I have no recollection of what she’s talking about. Obviously, I must do a better job of taking photos of EVERYTHING. I just haven’t been that disciplined. Yesterday, I went to a gift shop that sells my work and took a photo of the display. It should help me remember a number of the pieces that found a home there. By the way, this store, called Paper Bear, is in San Marcos, Texas. Visit this unique place if you have a chance.

I apologize for the poor photo on the left, but wanted you to see just how different these double wire pieces can be. This one seems to resemble a cat.

I guess my conclusion from all this “double, double, toil and trouble” is that it will continue for me. In the sports arena, that would probably be stated as “no pain, no gain.” Maybe for designers we could say “no play, no pay.” If we don’t play around with our designs (or toil), they will be the same old thing and may not sell. I, for one, am going to continue to play, take lots of pictures and hope for the best.

Necklaces, Pendants, Philosophy, Techniques, Wire Work

It’s a Wrap

May 23, 2011 Karen 2 Comments

An expert friend kindly helped me learn a few variations on the wire wraps I use for cabochons. Below are a few that I’ve completed. The first shows a nice moonstone cabachon purchased from Magpie Gemstones (www.magpiegemstones.com) You might like to know that this great online bead vendor is offering a $200 shopping spree to some lucky person. You can get the details at the following link: http://www.magpiegemstones.com/spree.html Check it out.

Below is what I believe is a jasper cabachon. I’ve had it a long time and am debating what it is. You can see the wrap better in the second photo. This piece is in my etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/listing/74560684/copper-wire-wrapped-cabachon?ref=pr_shop

I also got this great turquoise cab shown below from the aforementioned vendor. I looked at it on the workbench for several months before deciding what to do with it. Then I wrapped it several different times. This piece is currently in my etsy shop. ( http://www.etsy.com/listing/74554455/turquoise-cabachon-necklace)

The piece below features a titanium plated drusy agate, also from Magpie Gemstones. I wrapped it with sterling silver since it was designed as an anniversary pendant. I’m happy to report that the recipient thought her husband made a good selection.

I completed numerous other wraps, but they were not fit for viewing. As with any new skill, they require practice, practice, practice. I’ve been doing a wrap or two every day before initiating the day’s design production work. I find that when one of my skills is lacking, I lose a great deal of technique if I don’t work on it a bit each day. My other skills that are more refined don’t require this. Here’s hoping I can get cab wrapping to that stage fairly soon.

I’ve done some design research on wraps by looking at the work of others online. I see many beautiful pieces wrapped intricately with tiny wire. Although I like these, they’re not my style. I want to keep a more organic look. I think we each have to find and stick to our own niche.

I find that it’s a big conundrum to determine what to do with a wrapped cab when it’s finished. Should I put it on a neck wire, handmade chain, leather cord or something else? I’m beginning to wonder if I should plan that final look before starting the wrapping. That bears consideration. Let’s just hope that as my wraps improve, that last decision will become easier to make.

Articles, Creativity, Metal Work, Necklaces, Wire Work

Double Wire Series

May 1, 2011 Karen 2 Comments

Have you ever noticed how some design ideas are addictive? Working with double wire necklaces has become that way for me lately. The chaos necklaces let to other double wire designs and one piece seems to lead to the next. Double wire refers to the manner in which these designs initiate. I use one long piece of wire and double it over at each end to form the portion that either goes around as a neck wire or attaches to a chain. You can observe this at the top right and left of the piece below.

The joyous part of the design comes in deciding what to do with the extra wire. Should it curve up or down? Where should it cross? I’m trying to do something different on each one. Once the armature is complete, it has been challenging to figure out where the beads should be placed. I wore the piece in the first picture to a bead show yesterday and asked several other artists what they would change on the piece. A synthesis of their comments with my own opinion yielded several changes to the piece last night. One of the reasons I enjoy working with wire is that you can make changes to a piece without having to completely start over. Another challenge is that since the armature starts the same way each time, I have to be diligent enough to take the wire in a different direction and create something new. You wouldn’t want me to get in a rut, would you?

The piece above initiated a giggle when I turned it upside down and a bow legged something or other appeared. Dr. Torrance, educational creativity giant, encouraged us to look at things from different perspectives before deciding on a problem solution. I also try to remember and turn my wire designs various directions before making a final design selection. My other challenge remains the need to look at these armatures and NOT see something other than a design. The second piece does, of course, bear some resemblance to a flying creature, but I was determined to resist turning it into a butterfly. Although replicas of nature can be quite nice, they can also be limiting. I’ll continue with this double wire series and need to see what might hatch with it in terms of earrings. Now that could be a real conundrum! By the way, I just finished another article for Magpie Gemstones. This one pertains to ways to add a patina to copper. If you have interest, you can find it at www.magpiegemstones.com/copper_patina.html

Cold Connections, Metal Work, Necklaces, Ranching, Wire Work

More Chaos and Cattle

April 27, 2011 Karen 2 Comments

If you read the blog entry for March 29th, you will recall that we experienced considerable consternation here at the ranch when another person’s bull was hit by a car in the middle of the night. You may remember that I wrote about how we always get the call and it’s never our animals. Last night, it happened again. Luckily, this time there wasn’t an accident, but some cattle were out so the Sherriff’s department called us at 12:30 AM. We always go to check and see if the culprits belong to us, but anyone can see that our cows live in a fortress and it would be hard for these inmates to escape. Of course last night when we went out to check, by the time we arrived, no cows or deputies were in sight. The dispatcher phoned the deputy who reported that the animals went back to where they came from; so he went on. Now why that warranted a call to wake us up, I do not know, but UP I was. It was just another chaotic night at Dreamcatcher.

Since I’ve experienced these calls so often and know that I can’t normally get back to sleep, I started in on several unfinished pieces of jewelry. It seemed fitting to finish the “chaos” necklaces that I had on the workbench. I wrote about this style on February 24 and have since made several other chaos necklaces. The first one shown has a riveted charm.

A second chaos necklace is a bit larger and the middle charm has a soldered flower on it. This one has sponge coral and jasper beads.

One of my customers called and ordered a couple of these the other day. I had previously told her I could make them with “less chaos” if she wanted. She called and ordered two confusion necklaces and one with less confusion. Hmmm – I had to think about what she meant for a bit. The “less confusion” pieces are pictured below.

An article with chaos in the title caught my eye today and a read enough to learn that in time of chaos, we are supposed to rely on our creativity in order to be innovative and work our way through a tough period. It looks to me like I’ve certainly found the chaos and it’s time to be creative. Taking this to heart, I’m playing with new designs based on the double wire structure of these chaos necklaces. I hope the new pieces hatch and pull me forward. Yet . . . I rather like this decorative chaos – what do you think?

Bracelets, Creativity, Necklaces, Philosophy, Tutorials, Wire Work

Royalties

April 19, 2011 Karen 2 Comments

Do you turn the television off these days when you hear a segment about the “royal” couple? Are you tired of seeing hats with big brims and feathers that blow in the wind? Will this all end after the young British couple is finally wed? At the very least, surely the stories will slow down. . . but I may be hoping for too much.

Even though I’ve avoided the opportunity to wonder about the bride’s dressmaker or whether she will wear flowers in her hair, I have conjured greatest if I could just design a few of the jewelry pieces for the wedding. Hmm . . . I wonder how the queen would look in a funky metal piece like the one below?

Alas, I guess we’ll never know. (I think a little metal something would be quite charming on one of those hats!)

I did think of that royal couple this week when I opened the mail and found a royalty check from one of my books on creativity. I’m still amazed that people buy something I wrote in 1994 that was published in 1996. It just goes to show that I’d better watch what I say that is published since those words hang on and on.

After receiving that check, I wondered how to perpetuate a jewelry design such that it paid off for as many years as that book. The closest I could think of would be the payoff from tutorials. As you probably know, I have two bracelet cuff tutorials in my etsy shop and, like the books, they bring me some cash from time to time.

I considered whether a design that lives several seasons or even years is a type of royalty. A boutique customer requested a freeform peyote cuff last week. This is something I haven’t made in years, but it still has life.

Now, if I can just remember how I gave it that life!

I can’t say this example is a good analogy to the book royalties since I do have to do the work again. The books and tutorials don’t require anything further.

There is, of course, that option of writing a book about designing jewelry. Yet, I remember how long it takes to put a book together, the pain of dealing with a grouchy editor, the long wait before it goes to press and the tiny percentage an author receives from each book sale. It seems to me that the next time I think I want “royalty”, I’ll just put a floppy hat on my head and go out for a stroll.

Dreamcatcher Designs