Updates in Etsy Shop

http://www.etsy.com/shop/enolafrost

I have added some additional listings to my Etsy shop this afternoon!  Here's a preview:

In the Works

Usually, I post pictures of finished jewelry pieces.  Or something that looks really cool and holds a lot of promise.  Today, I am posting a picture of something that doesn't look really cool.  The picture is just as homely as the actual charms.

Still, I know in my heart of hearts that they will be adorable.  So this post is a record that I'm going to prove it!  Adorable!  I promise.

In the meantime, I'll tell you that the idea for these tinned charms came from the book Semiprecious Salvage.  They are constructed from copper pipe or copper wire and sheet metal.  After the shapes are prepared, they are coated with lead-free solder (the process called "tinning".) The solder serves to connect the pipe or wire to the sheet metal, but the rest of the tinning is largely decorative.

Inside the created bezels are images and/or text from a vintage gardening book.  So far, they have just been sealed with Mod Podge, but I have grander plans =)

The final step that I have accomplished as of this photograph is an attempt to apply a patina.  I used three colors of Gilder's Paste (Patina, Verdigris and Rust) and I will be the first to admit that I am clueless about using this highly touted, funky-smelling wax product.

Stay tuned for the next installment of... "Tinned Charms."  (The sequel is bound to be better!)

Patina Experiments

Recently, I got my hot little hands on this book:

http://www.interweavestore.com/Jewelry-Making/Books/Rustic-Wrappings.html

The initial attraction was the cute projects that I had previewed.  I mean, just look at that awesome wire-worked bird link on the cover!  Furthermore, I had purchased a few lampworked beads that were gorgeous, but I couldn't figure out how to adequately incorporate them into designs.  They need something special!

As I was able to dig deeper into the text (that is code for "I look at all the pictures, first!") Kerry Bogert played around with various home recipes to create the patinas that we jewelry-makers and junkers adore.  Since I just found my liver of sulfur in the depths of a messily packed box and found that the entire container had been neutralized (insane heat creating condensation?), I was very open to kitchen recipes.

The first set-up I tried uses ammonia and salt-water.  Bogert calls for using plastic mesh and a saltwater spritzer.  I did not have either.  The idea behind the set-up is for the ammonia fumes to work with the dappled salt to create a reaction on the metal.  So, I improvised.  I've been saving Crystal Light containers like a crazy hoarder lady, so I cut down one so that it was shallow enough to fit inside an airtight container that I had available.  In place of the mesh, I just poked holes in the lid with an awl.  I'm keeping my set-up small because, so far, I work in small batches in my small house =)  To create the dappling, I sprinkled water over the copper metal and added a couple shakes of salt.  I'm pleased as punch with the outcome!  I haven't completed the last step--sealing the pieces.  The patina is very crumbly and Bogert warns to seal with a product that is NOT water-based so the patina doesn't change color.

In case you are wondering, I did toss the clasps with the beads right into the fume chamber.  The top one is Czech glass and the bottom one is dyed magnesite (which did fade slightly.)

This Just In!!! Enamel on Copper

Wednesday, June 22, Sara Lukkonen of www.ckoopbeads.com taught a basic enameling class at Beadhive www.beadhivebeads.com in South Minneapolis. Wow! We fired up 10 torches and went at it...we were very eager. The beads on this piece are my very first enamel on copper! They are quite difficult to photograph and get an accurate color representation, so don't be surprised. For instance, there appears to be a lot of pink on these beads and...there is NONE. One has a little splash of dark red copper, but there is no pink. They are browns, light blues, greens and white.