Every Girl Should Have A Tiara

This after noon I treated myself to viewing Young Victoria and it was indeed a treat especially for the eyes and the story of Victoria and Albert's love filled partnership was heartwarming.  I have been a huge fan of Emily Blunt since I first saw her in The Devil Wears Prada.

What especially stunned me were the wonderful tiara's Emily wore in this movie as Princess Victoria and later Queen Victoria.  They were beautiful...which got me to thinking about tiaras and that all girls should own a tiara...

Made on a base of sterling silver wire this beaded tiara features a silver filigree butterfly as the focal point with loads of lampwork glass beads and genuine pearls.

 

Sweet blue ladybugs, butterflies, flowers, leaves, and faceted vintage beads all blend to make a statement in hues of blue and green.

The first installment, I had so much fun making this tiara that I can't wait to make another...

I can imagine them being worn for weddings, dances, christenings, balls, with a cowgirl hat at the rodeo...a special tiara for the bride to be, the birthday girl, any occassion is more glamorous with a tiara.

Close detail of the beading and wirework of the tiara.

I don't have anyone in my house to model the tiara so I chose my favorite piece of vintage statuary...isn't she a dear?

Blessings and a Hug - Julie

Sterling Silver Wire Jewelry Explorations

Sterling silver labradorite earrings: sterling silver wire is one of my favorite materials for jewelry here paired with large labradorite drops with handcrafted earrings and thinner silver wire wrapped around the top of the drop is stunning.

Simple organic hoops that are shaped and hammered to hold their shape feel weightless when worn - the most comfortable earrings I own and make.

A vintage Catholic charm paired with a silver bird from Hill Tribes and creamy pearls.

Another heart charm from Hill Tribe and more pearls.

The backside of the Catholic charm.

The finished bracelet of natural pearls that are wired together and another strand of the tiniest pearls and dangles of pearls and charms.

Sterling silver wire loop upon loop with faceted jasper drops.


Gold wire, pearls, labradorites and freeform sterling silver closure.

Sterling silver totem with dragonfly charm, turquoise and a single pearl on sterling silver chain that is ready for more charms to be collected and added.

Wirework Earrings and White Goblin Pumpkins

Wisdom tells me I am nothing;
Love tells me I am everything.
Between the two, my life flows.
- Buddha
White Chrysallis Earrings

I begin every morning the same way, a cup of green tea, and pen in hand as I make my "to do" list for the day. I put everything that I want to do down no matter how insignificant and then prioritize the items on the list starting with the must do and usually stop after 8 items have been listed in order or importance.

I have learned that if I don't prioritize my day - it's gets away from me. How did we get so many things to do in any given day? Like finish jewelry for orders, doctor's appointments, kid duties, household chores, errands, watering plants, taking care of pets, returning phone calls to my friends, exercise, blog, etc. Stop the madness! But, we can't - can we?

So, it's back to the list... After I make my list I then place a time allotment on each item to see if I can get all of these things completed in just one day. If not, something has to go back on the list for the next day. It's hard to find the time to create in all of these responsibilities, but I must create or I get grouchy... I must create or I get bummed out. I must create or I loose touch with who I am...

Organic Earwires

Somehow, I manage to squeeze in studio time and share the photos of my work with you. Time spent doing what I love - learning new techniques and experimenting with sterling silver wire is me time - it's reminds me of who I am deep inside.

Earth Goddess Earrings

I long to spend one solid week in the studio, but I have been dreaming of that for a couple of years... Someday. Someday. Someday. Until then, I squeeze in studio time at least three times each week. I am trying to get inventory ready for a Holiday show and another show in early 2010. Will I have enough inventory? It's a good motivator to stay productive when I am in the studio. I organize my drawings in order of production so that when I sit at the bench I crank out alot of work. Every moment counts... This usually helps me stay focused, but there are days when I just struggle through and feel like I didn't accomplish much at the end of the day.

Labradorite Bliss

I take my creations to the farm with me and photograph them there in an environment that always brings out my creative side - it's quiet, peaceful and very relaxing. Exactly what every artist needs to allow the mind to play. I usually do my best design work there as well.

Angelic Totem Necklace

The light is always better in the country - why is that? My best photographic efforts happen there and when I come home after a long weekend I am ready to edit and post the photos of my work for this blog, and online stores.

Here is our beloved farm that we cannot imagine life without. How did we ever unload our stress before we could escape to the country? The double windows are the windows to my future studio that I will occupy when we retire someday.... I can't wait. We are still in the rennovation stage and I will share some photos in a future blog of what we have finished so far... The house was in really bad shape when we purchased it - it had been empty for a long time...
We planted white goblin pumpkins at the farm and this is the tiny beginnings of a tiny white pumpkin on the vine with the blossom still attached.
Another little pumpkin on the vine is so sweet.
Another pumpkin that I picked while we were there so I could bring it home with me.


See how sweet the pumpkins are in floral arrangements for your Fall table? Perfectly perfect.
If you don't have the room to grow your own you can recycle sweaters, sweatshirts, towels, etc. into fabric pumpkins that you can use year after year. Form into a ball tie string around the ends for a stem and then wrap the string around the ball to imitate the sections - it's that simple. Now go dig in your closets for cast offs in creamy white.

xo - Julie

Wirework Lampshade

Okay - stay with me......  I purchased a victorian style floor lamp without the original glass shade.  The floor lamp has wonderful jade and chartreuse glass combined with the gold toned ornate metal filigree.  I loved it, but I've had the lamp for almost a year and still had no solution for a lampshade that I thought would work with the style of the lamp.  I had considered a custom stained glass shade, a jadite bowl with a hole drilled in the bottom to allow for the wiring, but none of these solutions seemed just right. 

I have been mulling over the idea of soldered glass charms that I want to make and how or where I would hang them and it occurred to me that I could sculpt a botanical flower shape that would allow me to hang the charms that would sparkle nicely at night.

I shaped the flower shape - I was going for a fuschia shape - around two mixing bowls taped together.  This gave me the rounded shape I was after and then I started adding the additional wires vertically and horizontally.

This is the simple shape I started with before wiring more support wires around the top and the sides.

This is the bottom of the lampshade with petals of shaped metal that I hammered flat for extra strength.

This is the finished flower shape lampshade ready for soldered charms.  I added petals around the top and I think once the charms and faceted glass beads are added it will be sensational.