TFT - WsIP

Thats WorkS in Progress today. :)

I had a GREAT time at the bench last night - even though it was one of those exploratory kind of nights. I can NEVER seem to just leave well enough alone and do what I know, or repeat what is 'safe'. So lat night I got into a struggle with a 12 ga piece of sterling wire. I haven't really worked with any large gauge wire for a while, I tend to forget what a bear it can be.

But, out of my struggle - came this WIP

This is 12 gauge sterling with an 8mm lab sapphire....and a smaller gauge wire for the top part.

I plan on adding chain to each side to complete the piece (after I clean it up some more, polish it, and set the stone!)

I made 3 ring shanks - like this one - got them all soldered and now need to make just the right settings for them!

That's the fun part - looking at all my yummy stones!

I like the shank - its simple, lightweight, but different...makes a statement (almost) without really trying. Ya know?

I re-took some photos last night - am going to be adding a new photo with each online listing for a ring - it will show the ring on a mandrel - for sizing purposes. This one has a split view because the shank is a stirrup shape and I wanted to show how it sits up a bit making sizing difficult.

The next one is just a repolished ring - love the polisher!

This ring looks SO much better with a higher polish.

What else - ohhhhhhhhh, I have two little sterling pendants - warty little things - I totally forgot about them. I had made something similar in copper to enamel on and then thought - why not silver? They are different, quirky, organic...fun. I need to oxidize them and polish or tumble - but I'll snap photos tonight, even if I don't work on them.

I guess that's all.

My LG fell today and wacked his elbow but good. Got a call from camp - he wanted to stay even though it was a good knock. Got another call from camp - increased swelling, numbness....they put him in a sling. My Dad was good enough to go get him - took him to the doc for me - they just called on their way home - no x-ray, just rest and ibuprofen and see how it is tomorrow. Poor LG.

I guess he wont' be going to swim practice tonight. hmmmmmmmmm, that means I might have a bit of extra time tonight.....

oh.

Is that my bench calling? ;-)

Janice

TFT - 04.07.09

I heart Tuesdays. :) I start getting excited in the morning - longing for work to end so I can dash home.


Last night my little guy had an invite to sleep over at a friends house, so I got home from work, threw together some dinner (yummm, homemade terriyaki chicken, roasted potatoes, and fresh spinach - lightly sauteed), then helped him pack and off we went to his friend's house. After some light chit chat I dashed back home, ran upstairs, threw on some old work clothes and down into the basement - guess it was pushing 7:30. So it wasn't a real early start - but it was definitely uninterrupted. Well, almost. My daughter, affectionately known as 'the tall one' called and since she's in a REALLY bad place in her life right now (in more ways than one) I needed to take the call.

All in all though it was a productive night. :)

No, I did NOT totally make all of these last night. In fact, the lower left one I began when I went to VA to Christy's a few weeks ago (has it been that long??) and I futzed with it a few times after I got back and the more I futzed, the less I liked it until I tossed it aside.

I decided I needed to pull it out and finish it, even if it only stayed with me for the rest of its pathetic little life. Its not horrible, but its still not feelin' the love at this point in time. The next one up, on the left, started two YEARS ago. Seriously. The setting lost a little ball, the bezel was filed down too low, yadd yadda yadda. So it sat. I pulled it out last night -put a replacement ball on it and man-handled that bezel into submission. The stone is in there, it hardly rattles, but the bezel is chewed up (stay tuned for 'what not to do', a new feature on the blog where you learn from my mistakes - this one will be the first example). The rest I began a few days ago and have done little bits each night. Seems like all of them gave me some aggravation and I'm not in like with any of them, much less in love. The earrings are kinda cool but I could NOT get the bezels burnished over - each time I pushed one area it popped out on the other side...weird. I think it has something to do with the shape of them and the stone. They were REALLY awkward to hold on to while trying to set them. (anyone have tips for this kind of setting - PLEASE, I am all ears!) The three rings are just 'eh' ho-hum. The bracelet just about sent me over the edge with the clasp part. I guess I don't have a clue about the proper proportions for that. But at least this one made it - the last one I did like this has NO clasp, its a solid bangle now and is a bear to get on and off. (so its mine, and I really do like it, but I had wanted a clasp!). The little pendant......just icky. Up close it looks very 'romper room' or flintstone-ish (thanks for that analogy Christy - I find I am using it a lot these days - especially when I look at my stuff after looking at Barrie's. oy)

So there you have it.

Oh, wait. Not so fast. I might have mentioned before that I am pulling out old pieces and trying to either finish them off or re-do them. Last night I worked on at least one piece like that - no photo -- its a pair of earrings....lemme see if I have an old pic, yep, I do.


So these have been sitting, like this, since ohhhhhh September 2007. Anyway, the posts weren't placed exactly right so they've been sitting. I decided to remove the posts, solder on new ones, and then hang dangles. Last night I soldered on new posts (which turned into a mild fiasco) and they now need to be tumbled and re-patinated and then have dangles put on. I may have worked on another old piece I just can't recall.

Then I took some photos, the pic above with the batch of items and also a pic of my low-tech photo set up for Barrie.

I use a rubbermaid box, flipped on its side, covered with tissue paper. My new background is a plate from Target. I also often cove the light with tissue paper. And thats it. I also use a tiny tripod. (you can see if off to the side, folded up).

I have been using this set up for years - just tweaking a little her and there, trying new backgrounds, different lights and different light positions. I think I'm pretty satisfied with the set up the way it is now but wull probably continue tiny tweaks as you can never be too perfect!


One last thing - didn't know this was going to be so long - sorry! About those push-ups. My shoulder healed fine, but now I have a wrist thing which has my fairly concerned because I'm not sure what I did to it - its my right wrist and could be from computer use or from some other small repetitive hand movement - could be the sanding and LOSing and steel-woolin-ing off of the LOS when I did a big batch a couple of days ago....the pain started right after that - but it also was right after I was entering 1400 safety reports into a computer system (which took me a good 2.5 days of work)....anyway, I was going to do pushups last night but was to timid to put weight on that wrist. I may try tonight.....we'll see how it feels.

~Janice

So sore

Wow, I am so sore.

I have begun the 100 pushups challenge. OY.

So sore.

Hmmm, did I already say that? I think its going to be my mantra today.

I first saw the challenge some months ago and thought it was neat. I've been slowly trying to get back in shape, eat healthier, lose some weight etc. Due to our ongoing family issues, I have not been consistent - about 2 years ago we made some great changes and then when things went to hell in a handbasket again we sort of fell off the fitness wagon. Now tha Candace reminded me of the 100 pushups, and she is doing it, I thought I'd give it another go. So, the other day I did my 'initial test'. I got on the floor, on my toes, lowered myself down - and thats where I stayed. When I finally finished laughing, I got on my knees and tried again. Better, but not by too much. I did 4. Lame. But it is what it is. The one thing I hadn't yet done was to go back to the 100 push-ups challenge website and re-read and print out the material. Sooooooooo, last night I did more push-ups. SEVEN! this time. (yay)

But oh.

my.

word.

I am feeling it today. I'm actually not sure its solely the push-ups, I may have slept funny too because its not just my arms that are sore, its my right shoulder too. I finally went back on the website today, printed everything off, noted the 'rest a day in between', took some tylenol, and am now hard at work. Well, ok, I'm on a breakfast break. But I will be hard at work again in a few moments.

On to jewelry ---- After moving furniture etc in my studio the other day, I have found that I was able to ferret out a small area to leave my photo set up, well, set up. :) It required I move my Sparkie, which I RARELY use anyway, and now my set up is sitting right there ready at any time.

I have had some decent luck with photos lately, but was still not 100% satisfied, so I have been trying various backgrounds. I think I finally have one I am happy with. Here are some photos of some of my older stuff, redone with the new background. I thought the green might thow things off, but I think it actually sets off the silver nicely.

And old sterling and carnelian pendant. Thrown on leather for a photo opp.

Wirewrap earrings from hmmmm, around 2006 I think. They are simple but really really easy to wear, they are casual and go with SO much!

OK, these earrings are fairly new - they were done a few months ago to go with my 'lines' series. :)

This pendant was done at least 6 mos ago and I was so unhappy with it I threw it into a box. There it has stayed ever since. My biggest remaining issue with it is the bezel on the carnelian -- it was way too high and I had futzed with this darn thing long enough so I left it and tossed it aside. I may go back and shave the top of the bezel off and re-burnish it over the stone. We shall see.

I guess thats it for right now.

I have a huge workload right now - truly unreal, so bfast is over - yogurt with Go Lean Crunch sprinkled in...mmmmm, so good. And so good for me I think!

Janice