This past week has been one that is both bittersweet and emotional. I rode high on a cloud of excitement and inspiration upon returning home from a three-day jewelry-making workshop. I was fired up with energy and new ideas...ready to jump into creating new mixed-media works! But on Wednesday, just two days before my birthday, our sweet seventeen year-old kitty, Peekaboo, took a turn for the worse and had to be put down. Her health had been declining over the past few months so it was no surprise. Still parting with a beloved pet is absolutely devastating and the accompanying sorrow clouds one's thoughts and zaps energy like nothing else. It will understandably take some time to recover emotionally and to feel creative again. So I will leave you with this new photo of the piece I made in Susan Lenart Kazmer's class at Shakerag Alley in Mineral Point, WI. I had finished the pendant in class, but upon returning home I took time to make a neckring. The nailhead embellishment is an interesting alternative to decorative balled wire ends and integrates well with the nailhead theme used in the caged wire bezel surrounding the 40mm x 30mm red jasper cabochon. One of the highlights of the class was experimenting with torch-fired enamels and lusters on copper. I felt that an enameled accent focal to coordinate with the cabochon would be a great addition to the pendant. I fabricated from copper sheet a cone-shape that folds in on itself. Then I just had to decide what color(s) of enamel to use! Unlike hard, medium and soft enamels, liquid enamels can be mixed to form new colors and they can be painted on rather than sifted. After several firings using a mixture of opaque orange and red over areas of white and black, I was able to achieve colors that work very well with the jasper cab! Forged wrapped wire and rings were used for attachment and the entire piece was dipped into a bath in liver of sulfur until all silver surfaces darkened to a rich black. The finishing touch was a brisk polish of the sterling silver with a steel brush. Measuring 8" (20cm) in length, I've titled this pendant "Relique".
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