Seeing the Deeper World of Stones

I just love the way Mother Nature makes her beauty.  Natural gemstones are one of those beautiful things she made.  With the help of my macro lens from Photojojo  I am able to really see into them.  Honestly, I'd love to be a fairy and fly into the scenes of some stones and have an adventure!

Here are some stones at seen by the normal eye. No close up. 

Here's a close up of  the always gorgeous Fire Agate. This stone is a bit smaller than a dime.

Here's a gorgeous Sugilite. The purple is intense!

This one you just want to jump in and swim around in! Forgive me for not knowing all of the stones off the top of my head. Some I do and some I have to go look it up in my paperwork!

This is a deep and wild Mah-sit-sit Jade from Cambodia (I"m pretty sure).  

This cool one is a Crazy Laced Agate. 

This stone is really small (less than a dime) and is a Chrysocolla. Deep and wonderful!

Pink for a Breast Cancer Cure!

From Now till the end of the year, any piece of jewelry with Pink in it that I sell, a part of the price will be donated to Breast Cancer research.
Come visit my Etsy Shop to see! 

💗

Breast Cancer Awareness Sterling Silver Ribbons

I recently made these for a very special friend who had breast cancer. I can say had, because she just had her mastectomy and is now cancer free!!! These earrings were my way of sending her love and positive energy throughout the whole ordeal.  I had request to make more of them and I did and they sold. Now I am offering them as a custom order and a part of the sale from each pair goes to breast cancer research.

Rose Quartz and Silver Ring

Here's soft and simple Rose Quartz ring on a shiny band of sterling silver.  All set and ready to go! It's a size 8.  Plus, from now till the end of the 2013 year, any jewelry that has pink in it, a part of the sale will go to breast cancer research. You can find this at My Etsy Shop.

Cold Mountain Jasper Pendant

Here's a beautiful pendant I made using a gorgeous Cold Mountain Jasper stone from Mexico. The colors in it are so good and full! I was able to take a close up picture of the stone using my macro lens from Photojojo.

 It's really a beauty! I ended up setting it in silver with a few granulated silver balls around it. It's a bit abstract just to keep it with the beauty of nature.

The name and the colors inspired me to saw a mountain shape out of the back of the pendant for an added touch.  I also did a patina on it to add to the old mountain natural look.

I really like how this one turned out. I'm sure whoever it goes home with will be very happy!

With a rustic patina on it with liver of sulfur, it looks well loved. And it is!

A Lovely Lumpy Turquoise Pendant ~ For Me!

Some pieces I work on I am finding I seriously fall in love with.  Like this piece.  I just felt I really understood this piece of lumpy turquoise. We connected.  It happens and when it does, you gotta run with it!

I was creating this turquoise pendant at the same time as a bracelet, ring and another pendant were being created too.

See what I mean? We were just meant to be together! Love!

Mothers On The Mountain Website

I just spent a few days updating my website for my Shop.
Come have a look!

Mothers On The Mountain Website

Hammered Silver Ring

Here's just a simple hammered ring band I made just to try it out.  Pretty cool and easy I say!
I can make these in any size and I love the way the hammered part catches the light!

Turns out a friend really liked it and so I made her one too.  Then she saw the little rings I had done and well, the little coral one looked so good next to the hammered ring band, I told her she needed to keep it. 

This ring in the picture is a bigger one and it looks good as a thumb ring too!

You can view this one on my Etsy site for purchase at My Etsy Shop.

Imperial Japser Pendant

Just as I was taking pictures of this cute little pendant, someone came by and bought it! So I will show it off here on my blog :) 
It's an Imperial Jasper from Mexico set in a fine silver scalloped bezel with a sterling silver back plate which I used my saw to make the designs around the edge.  The back is a free form shape, which my daughter thinks it's a lizard and I think it looks like a rare two foot gecko (no, I just made that up! ).  I think it turned out really nice! I know it's going to a birthday girl tonight and I hope that she likes it too!

 

Amethyst and Sterling Silver Ring with Fine Silver Balls

You know when you make something, whether it's jewelry or an amazing dinner and yourself is even really pleased?  Yep. That's how I feel about this ring.  I love the purple of this amethyst and the way it came out with the scalloped bezel and the "pretty darn near all the same size" silver balls.  Patting myself on the back!
You can find it in my Etsy shop for sale now too. Just click on the link in the right hand side bar of the blog. 
Enjoy!

 

Ring Week

This week I decided to try my hand at small stone set rings. It was defiantly an adventure in trying to make everything line up.  Simple and cute :)

         

Deming Agate Pendant

Talk about a beautiful stone!  That is what I thought when I saw this beauty nestled away on a shelf with incense and sage sticks in a little hippie shop I went to this summer. It was one of two cabochons there and that was it.  Well, they needed to be brought home and made into something wonderful! I just finished it and listed the pendant in my Etsy shop.

Deming Agate

 I did a bit of free sawing on the back and this is what I got. A bit "crazy" too!

 This was the other cabochon I got with this Deming Agate. They were just both calling to me!

Rhodochrosite

Designing and Creating

Here's some items I'm working on.
Or trying to! 
I've got a few rings in mind here. The bezels I did up and now are just waiting for designs and back plates. Oh and time. You can see the swirl earrings almost done here and I also had some fun sawing out little flowers. 

Step by step! They will be done one day!

Here's a start to this one.  This little cutie is an Imperial Jasper.  The back plate you see is a 1964 silver dime that I rolled through the rolling mill. She's destined to be a ring.

Imperial Jasper

I also got these two beautiful cabochons that are just amazing! So now I'm working on designs for these beauties.

Chrysocolla and Blue Opal. Just gorgeous!

Hmmm....decisions, decisions. A bit of turquoise here and there..

Turquoise Twin Rings

Here are those two turquoise stones I posted earlier all done and shiny! One is a bit on the rough side and one is smooth and cool.  I twisted up some wire and wrapped it around the bezel too.  All in all, two beautiful turquoise rings.  Size 8 and size 9.

You can view these rings and others on my Etsy Shop.

With a bit of love to go with you. :)

 

Rohodochrosite Pendant

I found this beautiful stone this summer! I am not usually a pink person, but this is amazing! I added some little hearts on the back with love and a bit of twisted wire around the bezel.  

Rhodochrosite and Sterling Silver.  See it in my Etsy Shop.

A bit of love on the back to keep you going :)

 

New Pretties for you Ears!

You'd think with the kids back in school that I'd have more time to work on the things I'd like to do! Ha!
Nope.
Not even.
Oh well, I can only keep trying to steal away and create! 

That is what I did today. I photographed a pair that I had forgotten was done and got it listed on Etsy. That was the first priority of the studio day.

Swirls of Love! See them in my Etsy Shop.

Then I was able to create two new pairs of earrings, both of them having clusters on them. I like the way they turned out.  One is a long pair of dangle earrings:

Opalite, Blue Pearl & Water Sapphire. See them here in my Etsy Shop.

The second pair are just right for the lovers of short earrings! I had run out of ear wires so I had to make my own too. That's good practice! 

Blue Pearl and Sea Green dyed Pearls on a Silver diamond. See them here in my Etsy Shop.

 

Happenings at my bench.

Another successful day at being productive. I got lots of soldering in today with most of them working the first time!

Slowly my muffin tin of projects is getting finished. 

Today I almost completed 3 rings. That's pretty cool. I'm almost done with a pendant I started weeks ago and I am doing a small ring in a whim. 

            

After putting the rings and pendant in the patina, I was able to set at least one stone before I had to call it quits for the night. 

                 

Finished Amber Earrings

Here they are finished! They turned out so pretty! I had other plans for them, but this is how they wanted to look so I listened!

                  

                

All Amber pieces. The smallest ones are Baltic Amber from Poland. You can view them for sale on my Etsy Shop.

I love the way they hang!

And a sun design in the back. :)

   

Happenings at my bench

I finally got the chance to claim most of the day working in my studio today. I'm determined to finish already started projects. I even organized them in a muffin tin :)

           

So today I am determined to finish these Amber earrings I started too long ago! 

            

So far so good, with a bit of re-soldering  here and there. 

They've started to take shape too :) 

         

You'll have to tune in next time to see the end result! Don't hold your breath for tonight :) I still have to stop and make dinner!