Steampunk jewellery-Before Jewellery Class Play

I've woken up today feeling totally exhausted  and my head buzzing at the same time. I have just been a student in Mary Hettmansperger jewellery surface treatment workshop for the past three days and OMG OMG OMG it was sssooo awesome. Mary was freakin fantastic and all the ladies in the class were really nice. I think I only blushed once LOL. I now feel even more comfortable with lighting gas to the point I went to the hardware store and got a large butane torch. I've only been using a small creme brulee torch till now. I didn't get to practice all the techniques Mary showed us but I wrote allot of notes and I can always buy her books too. Even though we made modern looking jewellery in class I did manage to get some of my cogs on there LOL. Before classes started I made some more jewellery to wear. I'll put them up now and then tomorrow do a post with what we made in class.

This first one is a handmade "house 6" bezel necklace I've used a long eyelet as a chimney. After I had soldered the roof on and trimmed it I realized the roof was not on straight so I added a chimney to even out the look a bit. Inside the bezel is an old pen nib, vintage lady tin type photo and Ice Resin.

 Next is a vintage brass toned round bezel with wings, cogs, a tiny light bulb and Ice Resin.

My friend  (the awesome lamp work bead maker from Tasmania) Gail Hart was here a few weeks back and she gave me some shotgun shells to play with. I had wanted some of these for ages but couldn't get any. It takes a bit of fiddling to get the hard plastic or rubber from the inner base but once you do you are left with a brass bezel!!!. I used one to make this adjustable ring. I put the word "love" in there as I wanted to make something nice from something that I see as rather sinister. Ice Resin on top of course. I also made another nest ring but I have put images of them up before so wont do so now.

 Along with necklaces and rings I wanted to make some new etched metal cuffs. This one is etched nickel silver and has a large brass back nut bezel, vintage male image, silver toned wings, small cogs and Ice Resin.

 An etched brass large back nut bezel with bird, nest, "eggs" and Ice Resin

 Then I recreated the captured faerie "specimen number one" necklace I had made before. I still need to straighten a few wires and trim closer to wire ends but my prescription glasses broke and although I can sort of manage with just magnifying glasses I am struggling with close up stuff.

Mo and Jo thankyou for your visit and please stay awhile longer now I am armed with even more arty jewellery goodness from my classes with Mary :o)

hugs

Annette In Oz xxxx

Modern Relics

I'm excited to be doing three days of jewellery surface treatments classes with Mary Hettsmansperger from tomorrow. She is a well known jewellery artist from the USA and amazingly for me the classes are being held in the Virgen's studio which is only one suburb from me yeah. Hard part....groan...what to bring???
I'll let you all know how me and my stupid shoulder go. I've packed a note book in case the shoulder starts giving me too much trouble then I can just watch and take notes.
On my last few days off I have begun to make some more jewellery for myself. There are all sorts of stuff all over my desk as usual. I had bought two gorgeous hand caste bronze items from ubber talented Christin Atkins . I had my two grils in mind in getting these. I did try a few vintage bits and pieces in them but they just didn't look right...maybe too modern I think sssooo I decided to go with something a bit more shiny and modern. The first is a gold tone bronze tree with a tiny bezel at the base that I filled with glittery, glassy stuff, an opalized heart and Ice Resin.

The other was a spiky heart in silver tone bronze. Made in a similar way but the glittery glass stuff is red and blue.

Sorry the photos are not the best but these are shiny shiny shiny and my little old digital couldn't handle it too well. Thinking its time to go for a bigger and better camera. Off to try a sort out what to bring tomorrow!!
hugs
Annette In Oz xxx

Steampunk Mixed Media Cards

Ive managed to steal a little time for some mixed media play between my never ending choirs and work. here are another four cards. First was Grant's Fathers day card.

 Next was a birthday card for my Aunty Margaret. This and the Father's day card were VERY shimmery IRL and had intense colour from the Dylusions spray inks and Perfect pearls mists

 The next two I have used Radiant Rain Daubers so very shimmery again.

 The last one is Tim's 17th birthday card which I made last evening for his birthday today. He said "that's cool Mum" so I must have done something right LOL. Wow I still can't believe my baby boy is 17 now :o).

Today I have cleared my desk and got my metal working tools and Ice Resin out. I have to work the next two days and then I have another two days off to get a play in and make some more jewellery. I miss wearing my jewellery but all I had went to Damsal In This Dress shop so its about time I got in and made some more for myself. I have another metal  puffy heart to steam punk on my desk too. I think I'll make the next one similar to the first one as I have promised one for Finnabair. looking forward to doing Mary Hettmansperger's jewellery class next week right here in Darwin and a week after that Grant will be home again for four days...I'm missing him ALOT!!!

hugs

Annette In Oz

Ice Resin-Featured My Necklace Again!!

OMG OMG I get such a surprise when they do this but Iceresin.com have featured another one of my necklaces again. It's here:- http://iceresin.com/icequeen/ . I'm half way thru making that particular one again which is rather a co-incidence LOL. I've also been making glass beads with Gail Harts help...man that woman is so talented in glass making. My so far attempts look just WRONG LOL but I will persist this time and conquer my gas lighting fear one flame at a time. Glass is so tactile and some of the colours amaze me. HHHmmm there is also a half made puffy steam punk heart on my desk and a few other projects. I need more hours in my day :o)
hugs
Annette In Oz

"Dream" card

Here is another card made last week. I made this for Celeste and this time I used Radiant Rain daubers, Distress Stain black dauber, Dylusions spray on gauze and Perfect Pearls Mist on the gauze. The leaves or my "Wings" and the metal vine are coloured with Gilders paste. Man I love that image!!

 From the side.

I have two days off from tomorrow so hope to get playing some more :o)

hugs

Annette In Oz

Creative Cards

My jewellery making is taking a forced break. I have 10 friends and relos birthdays over August and September so while I await stash to arrive to make more puffy hearts I've been paper crafting. Both cards have Dylusions colour sprays and then Perfect Pearls Mists on top and are VERY shimmery IRL. Below is my daughter Melissa's 21st birthday card. That's her as a baby. First image is taken with flash on so you can see a bit of how it shimmers in certain light

 Now with flash off

 Its in the details baby LOL

 There is even a tiny wooden peg in there

 Next is a card I made for Teresa Crouch. I love vintage images and this is one of my favs. There is a rather BIG mistake on this but I didn't pick it up till I had completed it. Can you guess what it is?





There is one more card to show you but I wont load that one till the person gets it. Just loving all the cool chipboard that you can get. Tonight I'll take a break from cards and try to get some non puffy heart jewellery completed that I have had partly done on my desk for a few weeks. Hope I have got sprays all over it LOL.

hugs

Annette In Oz

Steampunk puffy Heart Necklace

Well its taken a week or more but I finally got the puffy metal heart necklace done. It had to evolve slowly as I had to problem solve many times during its journey. I have never made something like this before and as newbie in the jewellery making area I still have limited supplies. It began with a simple puffy brass heart...

 Then it started to take on its own life as I added bits and pieces

 I hit a few days delay when I completely ran out of mini screws and nuts....Jen Crossley to the rescue and more arrived in the mail a few days later YEH.

 Soldering with limited tools means thinking outside the square LOL...Like my "Annette clamp?...alias cable ties and a plier :o). It was then I realized my rubber thingo was singed and the LED had started to go grey so just after this shot I took them all off again. The wire on the rubber thingo snapped off as I did so and I could not repair it so I then made a faux one.

 A pickle and a trim here and there and added some wings and at last I had my puffy metal heart necklace!!

I then added a tiny key dangle and cleaned up the solder over hang on the wings a bit more.

I am so chuffed to have got this far at all. The heart is 5cm wide and 4cm long (dip at top to point at bottom) brass soldered to copper base. I shall keep this one as my prototype for others.
hugs
Annette In Oz