Sunday, October 30, 2011

A Sunday Walk In Autumn

I was inspired to create this necklace by the crisp, cool Fall weather I woke up to this morning in the South Carolina Lowcountry.  No snow, but it is plenty cold enough for me.   The leaves are gorgeous, and I took a stroll through the neighborhood.  I found a beautiful leaf that has a riot of colors in it, even a bit of plummy aubergine, and I brought it back to the studio for inspiration. 

The pendant is one of my faux red jade floral pieces. I added faceted orange carnelian beads, Czech glass flowers and Cathedral beads, and lots of Vintaj brass. 

Working with these flower sprays from Vintaj is not the easiest thing to do, as I am sure many of you can attest.  I can never figure out what to do with them, so I'm a little proud of myself for successfully incorporating them into this design.  Of course, it doesn't mean anything if the piece doesn't wear well, so I took it for a test spin.  I'm happy to report it drapes beautifully and is very comfortable to wear.  Hmm, this one might not make it to the shop... 


Happy Autumn, everyone. If you got snow, I hope it was a welcomed snow, if not, it will surely be gone soon. Wonder if my buddy M.E. in Baltimore got any...M.E., are you snowed under today?

8 comments:

Roberta Warshaw said...

Hey there Lynda. Lovely necklace! I am curious though. Do you sand those pieces with the floral bouquets? I can't imagine how you would but they have such a lovely sheen.

I see now where the faux jade comes out of the oven very dull and really needs sanding and buffing.

We had a small amount of snow here in Boston but the suburbs around us were slammed. Many without power.

Diva Designs Jewelry said...

Hey, Roberta. Thank you! I did sand and buff this one, but I didn't use all the grits I normally use. I used 400, 1000, 1500 and 3000. I also use Renaissance Wax on some of the more detailed pieces, but I am out at the moment and had to sand. You can see the result is that this piece is not as translucent as my faux jade is normally; and you're right, you do need to sand and buff it a lot. :)

Thanks again!
Lynda

m.e. said...

LOL! Yes ,we got Snow in October!!!
CRAZY!!!
Today it's almost all melted.
Luck for the little trick or treaters going out tonight!
I hated when my mom made me wear a coat over my costume!!!
Lynda that necklace is STUNNING!!!
WOW !!!WOW !!!WOW !!!
m.e. :)

Gaina said...

That's beautiful :).

I'm glad you mentioned the not-so-small matter of 'wear ability'. I recently made a lovely necklace that I was really pleased with, only to find it was horribly uncomfortable. I had to dismantle it and make something else completely. Gutting!

Diva Designs Jewelry said...

Thanks, M.E., my friend. Glad to hear you've defrosted. :)

Gaina, the function is as important to me as the form, believe me. I've purchased necklaces I couldn't live without, only to find out they were completely unwearable. It's an awful feeling.

Gaina said...

The thing that surprised me most was that this design was in a jewellery making magazine so you'd have thought they would check designs for ease of wear before they went in!

handmadebynancy said...

I just love this necklace! Would you mind sharing your source for molds? The detail in your work with them is wonderful! Thanks!

nancy

handmadebynancy@hotmail.com

Diva Designs Jewelry said...

Thank you, Nancy. The mold is from a seller at Etsy called ShopSakura. I just went there to make sure I had the name right, and I couldn't find it! I hope it hasn't closed up. Let me check through my purchases at Etsy and find the URL for you. I'll email you with it.