French Expression of Love Steampunk Coin Necklace

"L'amor che move il sole e l'altre stelle."

A love that moves the sun and the stars...

Our earthly dream of finding our split apart soul mate and once united together we would possess a love that could move the sun and the stars...oh, it's so deliciously romantic, don't you think?

A watch part was used to create a bezel for the beautiful coin (I brought home from Europe) with a cute little gear symbolizing the mechanics needed by fair maiden to find her one true love.

The blue carved gem symbolizes devotion, the red garnet drop symbolizes passion and the golden chain reflects the sweet bondage of union.

The watch part was riveted in place and I hand stamped a signature on the back.  In hindsight a year would have been a nice addition.

Summer is On here.  It's blazing hot at 102 degrees with a nice breeze and the humidity is relatively low today so it reminds me a bit of Arizona in the Summer.  Which is practically in the desert, so it's hot.  I have been busy in the studio this morning and this afternoon errands have kept me out and about in the heat.  Everyone seems to be moving a bit slow today.

We have a big weekend planned for the celebration of the Fourth of July which will include a huge family dinner and grilling for 15 campers that will set up tents in the West pasture.  We will watch fireworks on the fourth and cheer and applaud loudly for our favorites as they explode in the sky.  It's so much fun, you can hear the sound of car horns tooting away for those that are watching from the air conditioned comfort of their cars.  It's one of our favorite holidays.

We'll all say, "Happy Birthday, Grandma" as we remember my grandmother saying that it was so nice of everyone to celebrate her birthday with her by having a fireworks show in honor of her birthday every year.

I hope you have something wonderful planned for the weekend whether you are in America or elsewhere and may you find a

the love that moves the sun and the stars...

Blessings my Friends - Julie

Steampunk Frozen Charlotte Doll Leather Purse

Once I had this vintage leather pouch in my hands with the awesome hardware and aged brown leather with great  texture I knew it would be a great foundation for something extraordinary.  I have had the pouch for several years in a wooden Black Walnut box that my Dad made for me...waiting to be repurposed into art.

This frozen Charlotte doll with one of her tiny hands missing was very interesting to me and I knew she would be an interesting element so she was added to the leather pouch as a focal point.  As an expression of the feminine and as a way to counter balance the leather and metal of the piece.

I added the vintage text...1801 to satisfy my fascination with vintage paper and numbers.  I then added a tiny rhinestone button as a bracelet for her wrist.  Charlotte was then given wings to fly.  Her wings were riveted in place on the leather pouch.  A heavy brass chain was also added to the pouch so I could carry it as a purse.  It's the perfect size for keys, credit cards and lip gloss.

This is my favorite Catholic charm from Italy of the Holy Mother and Child that I added to the heavy chain along with the Saint Patrick charm my dear gal pal, Marcy carried home to me from a trip to Ireland.

Two vegetable gardens and a flower garden expansion have been so much fun to plant over the past few weeks.  I just found passion flower seeds that I brought home from Italy that I have to plant tomorrow...yippee.

I hope you are enjoying the growing season.

Blessings - Julie

Copper Cuffs and Bracelets

These something mystical about horses - their grace, elegance, and power seem to enchant us. I often rode when I was younger, even riding in our annual parades in the small town where I grew up. But, my driver's license, High School sports (I played volleyball and ran track), my first job and boys put an end to my riding days. Why didn't I date a cowboy instead of that football player?

I have often felt like an ODD DUCK in my life. Living in the city after growing up on a farm can be difficult at times when it comes to relating to my girlfriends that grew up in the city. They haven't worked cattle, rode a horse, swam in a creek, hauled hay in the Summer, or gone on hayrides in the Fall. Being somewhat of a tomboy doesn't help either, they certainly didn't spend an entire day pretending to be on an archeological dig. I don't think digging a large hole in the lawn would have been tolerated, but when you live in the country there's plenty of room to dig outside of the yard around the house. They think my country upbringing sounds pretty awful - like a lot of hard work. It was hard work, but I can't imagine growing up any other way...

One of my favorite things about the Midwest is the wheat on the prairie, miles and miles of it swishing back and forth in the breeze always takes my breath away. I am always sad when I hear that wheat prices are down because that means farmers will be planting more soy beans and corn. No swishing wheat.....sigh.

One of the leather cuff bracelets with a little bird on a branch that is riveted in place that I really loved making with etched copper. I think it has a tuff feminine quality to it that I love. Women aren't all lace and pearls, you know....


Nickel silver buckle gives the bracelet a cowgirl feel that I like and is functional allowing for adjustment to smaller or larger wrist sizes.
I love to hammer and shape metal. Why is that? Is it the physical effort, the sound of the hammer hitting metal or the end result? Whenever you bend metal to your will, you put a bit of yourself into the cuff - forcing the metal into the shape you desire. You take an ordinary copper rod and create a fun piece of jewelry - I love that!

Gears are fun to work with representing the industrial age when gears were used in factories, cars, clocks, tools, and endless other ways. Refining of the wheel into a working gear...human ingenuity. Add the brass micro bolts and nuts and the brass gears are connected to the copper cuff.

This bracelet has good heft to it and feels substantial on the wrist without being too heavy. My love of solid jewelry with a little heft says something about me and my nature. The gears actually turn together on this piece making it a mechanical art piece. My resourceful husband is a CPA by trade, but can handle any project around the farm from roof repairs, to plumbing, repairing the lawn mower, or building a piece of furniture. The kids are always included in the projects around the house and farm. It's a Midwestern thing. Ryan is different from his friends in the city, he uses power tools, builds small furniture pieces, and makes his own skateboard ramps. A chip off the ole block...

Another cuff this time in tooled leather with pink rhinestones to add that little touch of feminity to soften the stamped metal plate and rivets. "There's more here than meets the eye." is stamped onto the copper plate on the front. The woman's mantra...

Here's sweet Molly and Angus, my terriers riding with me in the country with the windows down and noses in the breeze as we crunch along the gravel road to the farm. My little buddies that I can't imagine life without.

It's beginning to feel like Fall with cooler temperatures and the leaves are just beginning to fall to the ground and make a wonderful crunch under my feet....xo Julie