I love blooming azaleas. They're in full swing in my front yard right now and I wanted to share some pictures. I put fertilizer on them twice year and prune them back, but that's it. I have actually decided that I do less harm to plants in general if I just leave them alone. 
Yes, I'm a little too old to go the prom, but I came across a neat article from the Denver post the other day Prom Fashion: The long and short of Spring Formals. Neat article, mostly because I love that when you're young, you can wear whatever you want without judgment! (Case in point, the prom dress example shown here which is mentioned in the article.)
I find a nice place to set up outside to get a good photograph. I always try to take pictures as close to 12 noon as possible in order to minimize shadows. My setup is a Fuji FinePix S7000 camera attached to a Benbo mini-trekker tripod. My backgrounds vary, depending on what I'm photographing. Today, I used a piece of ceramic tile.
So apparently, no jewelry work would be complete without help from my cat Karma. I hadn't seen her for hours and wouldn't you know it, here she comes to help.
No one ever buys a piece of jewelry with the intent of destroying it, but sometimes, that's exactly what happens. Unfortunately, I have had to repair jewelry pieces due to neglect or because ladies thought they were actually doing the right thing.
I got to spend several hours in my studio yesterday. It was absolutely wonderful feeling humid-free, sunny weather drift through the room. I rely on a lot of natural ventilation and love those few months when I'm not sweating or shivering.
lass attendees can expect to make in the class I'm teaching April 12. Believe it or not, you need NO metalsmithing experience to take this class. You will be able to have a pendant like this by the end of the two hour class. I always give class notes for people to take home and I'm available by email for follow up questions.
I love making jewelry. It's a great outlet for me. I also love visiting with my collectors. It's how I get to know what everyone likes and doesn't like. It also gives me valuable feedback on what and where to go next with my art. That leads me to a few announcements:
For those of you who are not local to Gainesville, not much should change for you. You will continue to receive top quality jewelry in a timely fashion upon purchase. I have more jewelry to photograph and post, so be looking for new work over the next couple of weeks.
It's spring here and we've been enjoying oranges off the tree for about a week or so. Since it was a rough winter on the tree (I blogged about this in January), I thought I would let everyone know the tree survived, albeit barely.
The oranges were able to finish ripening, but the tree looks rough. About half the leaves fell off and if you look at the picture above closely, the branches that extend up (from about 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock) are completely bare. These are the ones that were shoved into the top of the tent and apparently got too cold anyway.
My next class is Monday, March 29 from 6 to 8 PM. The class is "How to Make Stamped and Embellished earrings." Attendees will learn how to make earrings (like those shown here) with a few simple tools. No experience is necessary and everyone will have a new pair of earrings in two hours or less! If you're interested in taking the class, please contact Gifts of Avalon. The classes are filled on a first come, first served basis. 
I tell you this here because sometimes ideas pop into my head and I have to work on them right away. I had an idea of combine acrylic and handmade papers. I had the idea in mind that it would be similar to a line of sterling silver jewelry I did a few years back, but this time it would be with paper. (The point of all this is coming, I promise.) Anyway, I made the prototype and I didn't like it (brown one on the far left). I decided I didn't like the width, so I improved on the next version (pair in the middle). This time, I didn't like the second pair either, but I couldn't decide what I didn't like. Was it the paper, the texture, the size?? I set them aside, thinking they would end up in the prototype file. I really didn't want to hate them, but I certainly didn't like them. (The pair on the end is the finished "likable" pair.)
I sometimes charge my sub conscious mind with the duty of "fixing a few things" while I'm sleeping, and this design was one of them. I was lucky enough to wake up the next morning with the design improvement I was looking for! I just needed to round the edges a bit. It still gives the same shape, but just "softens" them up a bit. I felt better and love the look. (These are the same two earrings from above, just a closer shot.) At least for me, the earrings don't have that rigid, "geometric" feeling.
So onto the next pour of the custom order! The picture shows after I poured the orange. I let the resin cure for 36 hours in between pours. That assures me the pour before is solid so that way if I accidentally get resin where it shouldn't be, I can soak it up with a Q-tip, although sometimes accidents happen. See the pendant in the top row just to the right of center? It spilled after I let it cure so I will have some sanding to do later.
After all the resin has hardended, I can begin sanding. If you look closely at the pieces, you can see I have "overpoured". This is intentional, as I need to sand until the pieces are flush.
The center pieces of silver are also a little taller than the outer piece to make sure that any spills go to the outside, versus the inside (easier cleanup). The next step in the process is to completely sand it down with 8 different grits of sandpaper. I then use a buff to give it a soft, satin finish. The last step that I do is to coat it with a museum quality microcrystalline wax. That makes the pieces just a smidge on the satin side and makes them moderately tarnish resistant.
As I was writing this blog post, I realized that I didn't get a picture of the set before my customer picked it up. Whoops! The pendant at left is the same as the one from the first picture in this post (bottom row, middle pendant) and the center pendant in the second picture in this post. This pendant is available for $50 on a 16 inch rubber neoprene cord. Sterling silver chains are an option for an additional charge. 
One of my favorite local businesses is Thornebrook Chocolates, in Thornebrook Village, which is in the 2000 block of NW 43rd Street in Gainesville. They are my go to place for chocolate for any special occasion. I'm in there at Christmas, Easter, and yes, Valentine's Day. They have a great selection of chocolates and items to fit any budget or need. So should I support them because they are a local business? I suppose, but I like to support them because they always have a great selection darned good chocolate! They have many items for me to choose from whether it be a personal gift to a loved one (see pink candy box above), a polite way of saying thank you to a colleague, or a last minute gift for a hostess. Could I find these on the internet, maybe, possibly, but these people are also pretty nice. I can call ahead if I'm running late and my order is ready. They realize at times they are super busy and they do everything they can to keep items in stock and get people checked out in a timely fashion. Thornebrook Chocolates knows confections and customer service.
I was in the grocery store on what was pretty much an ordinary day. I walked by the candy display and it came to me: those candy hearts would make great jewelry!
After picking the best ones, I got my game plan together. I had to use a different resin this time for two reasons. One, the resin I was using last fall has to be done in a well ventilated, warm area. My studio isn't climate controlled and I couldn't bring it in my house. Secondly, I wanted something that was a bit more "stable" that would work with a food product. (Resin sometimes reacts with the pieces put in it and causes bubbles. You end up with something that looks like a glass of Alka Seltzer.)
When I heard this was going to be the supposed last night launch, I just had to get up a 4 AM and watch it. I took a few pictures, although I realize most everyone is going to have to use some imagination to see what's going on. The shuttle is the dot almost in the center of the picture. The dot to the right and just slightly above is the (crescent) moon. (This view is from my backyard.) I was able to watch the tail of the shuttle go from right to left across my view. I could see the tail until the booster rockets came off, then it disappeared into the left side of the sky. The really cool thing is that this shuttle was almost 3 hours away in drive time. I've always wondered how far away people can see the launch. 
While I was working in the studio yesterday, I was jammin' to my latest favorite music artist, Lady Gaga. I have an ipod shuffle, which is the perfect size for me. I don't usually need the video and pictures and all that and I can clip the shuffle right to my apron. In addition to listening to music, I love that I can download podcasts from other artists in the business and get a "mini-education" while I'm working on my jewelry.
I'm pretty excited to get to pair new colors together. My customer picked square earrings with a round center (blue outside, orange inside) and a square pendant with a square center (blue outside and orange inside there too).
So as I'm surfing the net, I find art related articles and websites that I've rather enjoyed. I have bookmarked so many, that I thought it might be fun to share some of the best from time to time with blog readers. One of my favorites is Art History Resources on the Web, a website developed and maintained by an art history professor at Sweet Briar College (Virginia). The site was selected by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for inclusion on EDSITEment as "one of the best online resources for education in the humanities." The website chronicles art history and links to other webpages for additional information about art periods and their respective artists. It also categorizes the art by geographical location. I love that it gives art history lessons with no test at the end (haha!).
So I thought I would also share another use for art show tents and canopies. With the cold this week, I couldn't take the chance of my orange tree freezing, so I've covered it with the tent and have a light inside to generate some heat. I'm not a horticulturist by any means, but this tree and I have a nice little relationship. He provides me with orange juice once a year, so the least I can do is help to keep him warm on the really cold Florida nights.
