Amethyst medallion

Here's a new piece; hand-twisted filigree on sterling. The stone is pavilion set in fine silver with a small cut out through the back of the piece to allow light to slip in and give the stone extra flash. I also diamond etched the background for even more sparkle. I like the contrast in shapes, and my favorite part is the teardrop shaped bail.

Green amethyst ring

Here's the latest off my bench, in all different stages - pleased to enjoy!

~Jeni

New ring to see

Back on January 11th I posted a picture of a sapphire ring propped up with another ring to take the photo. Here is the process for that ring: a winding vine with hand hammered leaves and a labradorite cabochon. It's been worked off and on for the last couple of weeks in between other projects, and I started to polish it today.

Here are the leaves - hammered and in place next to the vine with solder bits ready for the torch. Next everything is wrapped around the mandrel to form a ring shape.

I like the way the vine undulates and seems to beg for something to

be added for ornamentation where the two ends meet. So, after a few minutes of thought and searching through gemstones, I added a bezel to hold a round labradorite cab, and then set the stone. The blue flash in the stone is a little hard to capture on camera, but I tried! Enjoy the pics. :)

Enough snow, ok!?

The winter wonderland was really magical... can we have summer now, please? Here's a view from my studio:

The newest thing on my bench is this beautiful sapphire ring with a vine pattern similar to the wedding rings. One picture shows an unusual way to solder the prongs on (I was experimenting). The other shows it fully put together with prongs cut and leveled. The ring is resting on another ring design I'm playing with to see if I can get a more open design.

Then there's the photo of the ring completed and waiting for a final polish. The stone is a unique cut of sapphire, cleaved along the chatoyance, I suspect. In other words, I think it's been cut alongside what would normally be a ray from a star sapphire. The end result is a deep, dark blue with a wonderful flash along the face of the stone that makes you look twice! I really like this one...

Going Green

You can tell that I'm busy by the lack of posts! Forgive me for not checking in for almost a month - the crazy schedule will lighten up in a little while, and then my fall routine can kick in. I keep telling myself there will be more time for updates then!

I've been whirling around ideas for a "Green Event" I'll be attending this weekend. I never really thought of myself as a green person, but it turns out some of my natural habits lend themselves well to earth-friendly practices. I use my old acid bath from metal working as a plant booster for the azaleas and rhododendrons in the yard, I melt down metal scraps to create interesting textures on pieces, and I'm a bit of a pack rat for certain things - trying to keep them for something other than obscurity, or worse, the landfill.

A glorified term might be... I'm a collector of nature's beauty, but let's call it what it is: I'm really more like a crow; collecting colorful, shapely, or shiny bits of things that catch my eye. I like my quirks, and lately I've harnessed that urge to save things with any hint of beauty or potential by creating something wearable out of it. Turns out that's a very "in" thing to do right now.

Here are a couple of artsy pendants I've made from beach glass around Lake Erie, and some sterling and gold scraps. I love how they turned out, and they'll be featured in my new "green line" this weekend. If you're near the flats this Saturday, I hope you'll stop by and say hello!

~Jeni

Mini Portraits

Lots of people have heard of cloisonne; this technique is a related one called champleve.   The difference is that the walls of each color section are formed differently.  In cloisonne the walls are built up or added in, for champleve I create the walls by etching into a solid piece of metal until each section is the proper depth.

I mix my own colors and add them in drop by drop using a toothpick, adding patina to create age and depth.  I love the vibrancy of the colors and especially the sense that I'm wearing a miniature portrait.

Enjoy!

~Jeni