SEW it begins

It's Tuesday!! I love Tuesday and Friday as they are my days off. If I get the housework (sorry for swearing *grin*) done in good time I get to steal a little time for myself in my tiny art space located in my spare room. Today I wanted to get a start on some more steampunk heart necklaces...the universe heard me and I have three puffy hearts awaiting their(and mine) destiny LOL.



This one is copper that I have hand etched and then puffed. I'll keep this one aside for now as the first one I want to make I want it to be very similar to my original one here

This is the one I will work on today. I've filled a little brass keyhle that I got from Jen Crossley's shop with Ice Resin and tiny watch cogs and I think I may use this movable brass propeller? 

My first and only steampunk heart necklace took me  a week to nut out so I am hoping I can still remember the lessons I learnt doing that one so this one wont take as long! If and when I get it made I will gift it to someone special whom I know is a lover of steampunk like me. And so it begins...

While I was working at my desk I kept getting distracted by a gorgeous embossed metal egg that Grant got me from an antique shop in Adelaide. As I have said in the past getting anything antique, of good quality and good price in Darwin is impossible so I was a kid in a candy shop when we visited antique shops while I was away...the only problem was I had very little money to spend!! Grant wanted to buy me a few things with his money for me for Christmas and this was one item I chose.

The lady who sold it to me wasn't sure exactly what it was. This morning I Googled it and its a vintage thimble holder (hence my "sew" post title LOL) that was likely attached to a Chatelaine...a waist hanging Victorian keepsake holder...it would have things such as the pantry key, glasses holder, retractable pencil, stamp holder box, Etui(sewing kit) etc attached to the waste clasp with chains. I can't see any makers marks on mine and I am not sure what the silver colour metal is but I just love this treasure. You press the little spring button and it opens. The twisted vintage looking safety pin its hanging from is my own handmade faux vintage pin :o). In my research I also discovered this is worth ALLOT more then Grant paid for it... I had ideas to alter this and make it into a necklace but that idea is now scraped!!

The inside is polished silver looking

 and the outside has this gorgeous floral design on it.

A closer look at the brass detail from front and back.

Another thing that costs me an arm and a leg to get in Darwin is vintage pen nibs so I was very excited to be able to buy a whole box full of them from another antique shop using my Christmas money from Grant and at a great price too.

My last treasure was a beautiful piece of carnival glass in the form of a tray. The little porcelain bird I bought at an art shop on Kangaroo Island. I nearly forgot I also got an antique small shoe polish tin with shoe polish still in it as well....hhhmmm where have a I put that LOL?

I'm sure I'll find it sooner or later. Now I solved the mystery of the little metal egg and the washing is done I'm off to continue on the steampunk heart necklace journey.

hugs

Annette In Oz