Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Bead Table Wednesday, June 20, 2012


A quick photo of what is on my bead table this Wednesday. You will see that I have been busy working the metals, applying some of the metal working techniques I have been learning. 

The 2 blue discs, to the left, are going to become a pair of earrings. 

The verdigris discs to the right are going to be worked into a long necklace using the turquoise(ish) seed beads.

The heart in the middle....oh I love this heart!! ...is going to become the focal of a necklace. I cut out  two copper hearts and a plate, which I stamped "love" on. I added patina to the base heart, used colored pencil on the red heart and added patina to the love plate. I sealed all the pieces with a metal sealant and then applied a cold connect technique to hold all the pieces together.


Thanks for joining me on this adventure.




Friday, June 15, 2012

I WON!!!

I can't believe it, I actually won! I am so happy. I visited Jean's blog and found she was having a giveaway. Jean Yates has a wonderful blog which I have been following for a while, Snap Out of it Jean, There's Beading to be done. Jean, together with Lark Crafts, offered the book Heat, Color, Set & Fire by Mary Hettmansperger. Jean did a thorough review of the book and I knew instantly that this book would be perfect for me. All the information in this book fits perfectly with all the information I have been learning lately. I entered, and much to my surprise I WON!


I don't exactly know where this will lead me but I do know that all these wonderful pieces of information will be working their way into my work and joining forces into gorgeous, one of a kind, art jewelry.

Thank you Jean and Lark Craft for this gift.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Bead Table Wednesday June 13, 2012

I haven't taken a bead table photo in a while so today I thought I would share.


Here is a shot of the pieces on my bead table today.

Stamped or etched copper, patina added and drying.

Etched copper...waiting for the patina inks to dry....

Some pieces I have cut into jewelry blanks and some squares waiting to be cut up.

One of my favorites gets a close up.

Another favorite deserves a close up too.

Enjoy. You can check out the other Bead Table posts here.

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Well Hello

It has been quite some time since I have written. Sometimes I get carried away on a magic carpet ride otherwise known as my life. There is so much fun work (is that an oxymorone?) taking place in studios of Ema K Designs. I feel like I have been on a steep learning curve these past couple of months and it is an amazing feeling to be learning so much.

I have taken a class with Trey Cornette. Trey is a master glass artist and I have admired his work for many years. It was wonderful to meet him in person. He is a truly kind and down to earth man. It makes me happy when a person I have come to "know" through the magic of the internet, lives up to the person I believe them to be in real life. And he is a really great teacher! I spent a weekend in April learning from Trey and hanging out with other lampworkers from my local International Society of Glass Beadmakers, SGB-Boston Chapter. It is always a treat for me to spend time with other glass workers. This is not something that I get to do very often and I treasure the moments. After all we speak the same language, quite literally.

Trey Cornette and me


The stash of beads I created during class. 

I learned some great techniques for controlling stringers (stringers are fine, thin, pulls of glass). We used silvered glass as stringers to boot. Silver glasses have eluded for some time. I finally feel I have the ability to use them and produce beautiful results. I thank Trey for that!

I have also been devouring books. I like to take classes but that is not in the financial cards right now. Most of my income is earned from my participation in fairs or festivals and due to all the crazy medical issues in my family the past couple of years I haven't been able to participate. So I opt for books. Some I have purchased, many I have found at my library. I get so much inspiration from material I have found at my library and tutorials I have found or purchased over the internet. I then take this inspiration to my work bench and apply what I have been reading. 

Recently I have learned how to etch metals from an internet friend, Payton Jett. She sells metal etching tutorials in her Etsy shop. 

A sample of the work I have created using Payton's metal etching tutorial.

Now I had these beautifully etched pieces and I needed to do something with them. For a few years now I have wanted to learn how to use my jewelers saw. I took a metal working class years ago but we didn't we really cover jewelers saws. We worked on soldering. I have tried to teach myself how to use my jewelers saw without any formal instruction but I wasn't very good at it. I would constantly break the saw and I would give up in frustration. Only to pull out the metals and saw a few months later and try again. Again unsuccessfully. I stumbled on this book at my library and next thing you know I was sawing away! Metal Artist's Workbench, Demistifying the Jeweler's Saw. I love this book so much I might have to add it to my permanent collection of books. 

I hope you are learning something new everyday. Perhaps you will tap into one of the links I have provided and  jump in to teach yourself a new skill. Stay tuned because I am very excited about all these new skills I am learning. I see all the individual pieces coming together to create beautiful, artisan jewelry. I don't know exactly how it will all come together but I do know it will. I am very excited to see.

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