Years ago I got a bag of these cute dog house charms in a variety of colors. I had no idea what I was going to do with them but they were just too cute to resist. Recently one of my jewelry students gave me this wonderful antique brass dog head. It's original function is a mystery, perhaps the end of a cane? The antique brass dog actually looked a bit like the dad of the puppy in the dog house, so I knew they were destined to be together!
I gave the 20 gauge wire a heat patina with a small butane torch and attached the leather neck cord with tiny eyelets. I always get a kick out of making and wearing jewelry that has a expresses my quirky sense of humor.
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A friend gave me a vintage wooden ruler with a metal strip on the edge and challenged me to make something with it. I used the metal strip as a base for this pendant. Here's how I did it:
1) I removed the metal strip, created a teardrop shape then wrapped the top with wire. 2) Traced & cut the shape from a vintage dictionary page, then filled it with Ice Resin. 3) Used Glue 6000 to glue vintage rhinestones around the edge. 4) Attached the pendant to a vintage rosary. What can you do with a big jar of vintage belt buckles from a yard sale? Other than make a lot of belts (very cool but lots of work). I figured I could use them as bezels and make pendants. A pair of wire cutters made quick work of the center strip and then I just filed it down a bit. I used my metal punch to make the holes and it worked perfectly without breaking a single one. So much easier and faster than drilling. Because this was an experiment (don't you love experiments?) I grabbed some little things that were closest to me.
A word on resin: I used EnviroTex Lite, but I think that IceResin would be a better choice for embedding "floating" items like the watch face because it is more clear. Ice Resin comes in a great little two part dispenser like epoxy now so its easy to mix up just a small amount. The EnviroTex has a slight vintage/yellow cast which can actually be useful in certain projects because it gives a more "antique" look. When I don't need a really sturdy resin I "cheat" and use Diamond Glaze because there is no mixing and its water based. Its great for a shiny topcoat/sealer or bottle cap/scrabble pendants, and safe for older kids to use. I'm always looking for cool vintage images to add to my mixed media art & jewelry. I have a huge collection/archive. Huge. Really huge. But sometimes when I'm making jewelry I need a really small detailed image and Luna Girl has a great selection. I'm challenging myself in a new way by joining the Luna Girl Design Team. I'll be creating mixed media jewelry and art that will be featured on their blog. The theme for October is "gothic". I know I'm going to have fun with this one! To make this necklace I: 1) Found a photo I liked, glued it on cardboard and copped it off with ice resin. 2) Cut a rectangle slightly longer than my photo from a sheet of 24 gauge copper and wrapped it around the photo, overlapping the top and the bottom. 3) Punched two holes in the bottom and the top of the metal wrapped photo. I used tiny screw and nuts to attach the bottom. I used 16 gauge wire to attach the top. 4) Used Glue 6000 to glue on a the vintage rhinestones. 5) Attached the pendant to the necklace using a piece of 16 gauge copper wire. I've been teaching jewelry making classes for about 10 years. During my last class one of my students asked me why I never wore any of the jewelry I made to class. I was a little embarrassed and finally answered very honestly "The jewelry I make to sell doesn't express who I am. Next week I'll make something that does and wear it here". Because I am a mixed media artist it was clear that I needed to make some really quirky mixed media jewelry. I found these books really helpful in my journey to make unique pieces:
Semiprecious Salvage by Stephanie Lee Resin Alchemy by Susan Lenart Kazmer The Jewelry Maker's Design Book by Deryn Mentock Making Metal Jewelry by Jen Cushman |
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