A Post Of No Interest

...to anyone but myself. At least that's what I'm assuming. This post is not one to entertain the masses. In fact, I can't imagine why anyone but those who have to love me (because they've made a promise before God, or because they think they owe me some indulgence after I listened to them go on for hours about their goldfish having babies or something) would keep reading at this point. You have my complete understanding for bailing right now. Honest. No, really, I mean it. . . Okay, but any boredom you experience falls on your own head.

You might recall that I got sucked into a new hobby after giving my niece some wire-and-bead jewelry making supplies for Christmas. I liked the hands on design process, and found myself making the shiny baubles, despite how very rarely I have ever put jewelry on my generally unadorned person in the past. I honestly have no need for jewelry in my life, if my past behavior is to be used as any indicator of future wants, but somehow the need to make the stuff has grown, not diminished over the last few months. I don't want to wear jewelry for jewelry's sake any more than I ever have. It's not the wearing, but the making that has me hooked.

In an effort to find some justifiable reason to make more sparklies, I started picking the odd item out of my closet to have something to match. This can only go on for so long. I've already started coming to church far more elaborately decorated than I ever have in my life before, and once you get past the Sunday-going-to-church attire, it gets more difficult. I don't have a job outside my home (which explains why I have the time to waste on a jewelry-making hobby), and even an addicted-to-making-pretties Kat such as myself cannot justify making earrings to go with the very casual clothes that I wear on the average weekday. T-shirts and elaborate earrings or bracelets just don't mix in my world.

I've managed to pawn a few of my pieces off on a good friend, who indulges me by letting me design coordinating baubles to match some of her clothes, but I'm starting to think that I'm going to have to find another outlet--selling them maybe, or making the rounds of hospitals and passing out bling to cheer up despondent patients. I've been toying with the idea of selling it to raise money for the musical based on The Screwtape Letters which my co-writers and I recently got permission from C.S. Lewis' estate to produce. We will definitely need a lot of money for this--we do not want a second-rate "churchy" production on our hands, so finding ways to raise substantial cash is important. We'll see whether that includes my new hobby. I need to continue to improve in technique--not scratching the silver and gold as I form it, for example, and getting consistently perfect shapes in the wire. I also need to continue to develop a sense of what makes a good design work, and get more original in what I produce. At this point I would not feel entirely comfortable charging money for my creations, although I am steadily improving. As I said, we'll see what happens. I sure am having fun, though, even if I never come up with a better reason to create jewelry than, "Gee, I love to do this."

Anyway, here are some pictures of pieces I've made recently that I like. (If you've made it this far, you must not be so easily bored that I need to be afraid of scaring you off now.) Ked and I had fun tonight, playing design photographers. We dug out a black velvet dress from the back of my closet to drape bits of jewelry over, and tried to get my magnifying lamp to work as photographic lighting. We did okay, considering we are total amateurs, but please overlook the seams, color variations and other visual distractions. We had a hard time getting the crystals to sparkle without the whole piece washing out, and the colors are not entirely accurate. I had read that it's difficult to photograph silver wire well, and we found this to be true, but decided to cut ourselves some slack. After all, this is just for fun.

These rose and gold beads are so full of beauty and "life" that I couldn't resist making a whole matched set. (I wish you could click on the picture to get the larger image. I have no idea why, but sometimes Blogger lets that happen and sometimes it doesn't. This time it's being uncooperative. Wah.)

It's hard to tell in this picture that these amethyst Swarovski crystal beads and gold wire sparkle like Mirror Lake on a clear day, but they really do gleam somethin' fierce.

This was my first project using a jig to help shape the wire. I never could have made all those little loops with just a pair of pliers and my own steady grip. Even I don't have that much free time.

I'm not sure how well you can see it in the picture, but these beads are so pretty. They are a swirl of pink and gold suspended in a clear ball. Altogether the bead and silver filigree make a much larger earring than I've ever been comfortable wearing, but what the heck. In for a penny, in for a pound.

This very simple design was fun to make. I don't have much blue in my wardrobe, but I'll make do. One thing I simply refuse to do is go out shopping for clothes to match whatever jewelry I've put together. I have to draw the line somewhere!

I got the jig out again for this one. Turns out that copper wire is pretty easy to work with, and a less expensive option as well. The ear wires have to be something hypo-allergenic, but that's not hard to swing, and colored wire adds a decidedly less formal feel to some pieces. Hey, maybe I can make jewelry to go with my sweats and t-shirts after all!!

These light amethyst Swarovski crystal cubes are absolutely stunning in the real world. In Photography World (at least the one inhabited by Ked and me) it's a little harder to see how much they let the light dance through them. Oh well. Use a little imagination, please, to make up for our photographic deficiencies.

This last one I just love because of the color. Green is a big player in my wardrobe, and this very clear peridot is a personal favorite. I really like the Flemish spiral design in the wire, too. It looks solid without looking too heavy.

Well, there you have it. If you stayed this long without being one of the people who love me, thanks for the indulgence. If you stayed this long, and are one of the people who love me, thanks for the love. Watch out, though, I may be trying to make you take some jewelry soon. I'm running out of places to store it all!!