Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Day Two of Artist Showcase

First off I want to say that there must be something wrong with me.  I went to bed around 4am last night or morning, whichever you'd like to say.  It's not that I'm not tired because I am.  But I seem to find so much to do on the internet around that time.  Why?  Is that part of the day any better than the morning?  No so I should just make myself go to bed at like 11pm every day so I'm able to get up at 7am to get Lauren off to school without fussing at everyone.  So today I might be a little slow and grumpy so please excuse me if I am.  My cup of joy will hopefully soon wash all that grump away.  On to business!

We are at day two of these talented artists and their wonderful earring designs.  Please take a look!

We will start with the extremely sweet and talented LeAnn from Summer Studios.


"When I saw Lisa's name as the recipient of my pair of earings the simple design of these literally flew into my mind. You see I know a little about Lisa without even having to read what she liked in earrings. I already knew she has a fondness for dragonflies, blue, and silver. When I read that she also liked mixed metals, combining copper with sterling was an easy choice.

So what I've done is combine my porcelain beads and copper dragonfly charms with sterling silver heads pins and ear wires and copper bead caps. The copper charms and bead caps were given a patina to provide more contrast with the bright silver. They were all simply linked together to create a pair of earings that are a little over 2" from the top of the earwire to the bottom of the charm. Hope Lisa likes them!"


Our next artist is Shelby from Sundown Studios.  "Beautiful work, Shelby!"
  
"I designed earrings for Renate Starke-Krammer, she prefers copper and her favorite color is green or a green/blue mix. Right away I knew that I wanted to try a new technique that I have been trying to perfect for some time. Fusing copper...sometimes I have great success and others...well lets just say I fail miserably. As luck would have it...the day that wanted to create the rings for the earrings I had great success and not only twice but many times. So it seemed meant to be. 

These beautiful lampwork beads were the chosen focus because of the dominate green color with the subtle blue mixed in. Scrolled copper wire acts as bead caps on both the bottom and top of the lampwork bead. The fused copper rings are hammered for texture and two dangles were added to play on the colors in the lampwork beads. Then the earrings were oxidized and polished. These earrings are different than anything I have ever made because the lampwork dangle and the ring component are not attached, they each swing independent of one another on the earwire. Of course, had I been thinking at the time...I should have used a ball tipped ear wire so that the dangles could be removed easily, then Renate could have worn one or the other, or both together, as shown in the picture."


 

 Talented ceramic artist Erin Siegel is next and she is from  Every Heart Crafts

"When I received the information on my exchange friend and I read her list of favorites, I immediately thought of a colorful design with multiple gemstones. I took elements from her given info. and combined it with my own earthy style to create my earrings for her.

Wood & Stone Stack Earrings
These earrings are colorful, earthy and just a little funky! I started with red coral rounds, added some wooden bar beads, then I stacked on my own handmade Porcelain Pebble Beads and topped them off with some Lapis and Turquoise chip beads. I made custom sterling silver ear wires with wood bead accents." 



And our last artist of the day is the marvelous Jeanette from Fundametals.


"These earrings were created especially for Erin Siegel for the Thanksgiving Treasure Exchange.  I call these earrings, Pendulum Riveted Earrings.  I textured copper and sterling silver discs and then riveted them to 14 gauge copper wire that has been hammered. The earrings were attached to sterling silver earwires and then oxidized and tumbled to add contrast and shine."


Stick around for more artists tomorrow!  

16 comments:

  1. This is sweet how you are showcasing everyone's earring designs.
    I am up late on the computer also, as you may already know. The kids and husband are in bed, the house is quiet, and it's my time to my self to catch up on blogs, order supplies or to just have fun surfing.
    Thanks, Leslie. Still trying to nail down which classes I want to take! I will let you know.

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  2. I just love reading how everyone created their earrings!

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  3. Another great installment of the participants! Can't wait to see more!

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  4. Wow, they are all so wonderful! Great job showcasing everyone!

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  5. These are all so beautiful. So nice that you share not only your craft, but others as well.
    Now to to bed!!! :)

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  6. love this - each and every pair, each and every artist... fantastic!

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  7. My favorite part about all of these artists, and their creations, are the variety of tastes and techniques! It's so motivating! Thanks, Jen

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  8. Another super night owl here, like Fundametals said its when the house is still that keeps me on the PC way to late.

    My hubby though doesn't get it, he can't understand why I would stay up so late to be on my own but it is the only alone time I get at home and boy do I love a little alone time but family life can make that quite scarce.

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  9. I love reading about the creative process of each artist, and all the errings are so beautiful in their diverse styles.

    Not to be nosy, but what classes are you and Jeanette talking about??? Okay, I'm nosy!

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  10. You're too funny, Mrs. Sharon! We're talking about BeadFest Wire in April. Sign ups are this week.

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  11. Aahhh, yes, I have been looking at the BeadFest classes as well. I too am a night owl...but I do venture to bed before 4...wow that's late! But I also like to wake early so that I can have gather myself before the kiddies awake...I need all this.

    The earrings are great. I love reading everyones blurb...can't believe I guessed your wrong!

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  12. Hi Leslie, I found your blog today from another blog and just started reading through it... I have just taken up creating beaded jewelry and was interested in some of the pieces that you created. But I just have to say that I read a few of your slightly older articles, and I really enjoyed reading your blog. I read the one where your daughter was concerned that her stuffed animal's hair was getting matted down, and you told her that it meant that the she loved it a lot... that was so nice! And the one where you went to the cooking show that was completely retarded where they were passing around cookies to your kids, I thought that was hilarious because that's something I would have gotten annoyed at too! Anyway, I just wanted to say, thanks for keepin' it real on your blog, and you sound like a really nice person. I'm going through some medical problems right now and it just made me feel better to read through your posts. Thanks :)

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  13. Well, thanks, Marla! That was quite nice of you to say. :)

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  14. Thanks for the showcase, Leslie! It's been fun reading about the inspiration behind all of the earrings! :-)

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  15. Hi Leslie, the earrings are turning out so great! Look forward to seeing more, thanks for posting them. FYI, there's a great retreat coming up in March in Houston, if anyone is interested. it is Adorn Me, put on by the same folks that do the successful Art Unraveled. This retreat is ALL jewelry! Spread the word. And yes, I loved the stuffed animal story too!

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  16. Hi Leslie, It's hard to carve out time for yourself during the day, isn't it? We all do it from time to time.... it's a woman's world.

    Thank you for the care and time invested in the Earring Exchange project. Being a participant of such a fun activity makes me very grateful for you and your creativity and boundless energy...

    xo Julie

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