Silver & Snow

The theme for the December holiday show at the Artists' Gallery in Westerly this year is "Silver & Snow".  Some of the artists are not really able to  make their art fit a particular month's theme, but I can usually do something with polymer that falls within the theme parameters.  This month, I had a lot of fun making pieces that were reflective of silver or snow - or both!  This posting is filled with photos of some of those pieces.

The pendant to the left is rather obvious.  The mica shift shimmers silver behind a white dimensional snowflake.

The top silver bangle above, the earrings to the left , and the pendant and earring set below right are all based in the labradorite process.  



















The pendant above left has a center design created through a new bargello embellishment technique I've been playing with recently.

These last 2 photos are the opposite sides of a reversible necklace.  There are silver and Swarovski crystal rondelle spacers and is finished with a chain of silver Swarovski glass pearls.

Some Things Look Best in Red

These pieces don't have anything in common except for the color:  red.  Since it's the holiday season, I figured things in red fit well.  So here's a pendant and earrings in the bargello embellishment mode (which I'll explain more in a future post), and a pendant made using the labradorite technique.  Just some pieces that were fun to make.

Bargello Earrings & a Textured Cuff

I was working on some more bargello earrings.  The first two photos here show the pieces I was working on first.
 

Then I started experimenting, making shorter lines of clay, cutting my slices thinner and changing the shape slightly.

These two pair on the left were my first sets made this way.

Next I made the earrings below in gray and black.  The super thin slices give these an airy somehow elegant appearance.

Finally, I took one of the short striped sets I had, and decided to see how the slices would look in a channel cuff.  The texture on this piece is really amazing.   

You'll see more of this thinner cut used in some new ways soon!  

More Reversible Necklaces

These necklaces are really fun to make, and they give the wearer some great options.  Here are a couple of my latest "editions."

Reversible Bracelet

Once I tried making reversible necklaces, it was a logical step to try the same thing with a bracelet. Here are two elastic bracelets, one with each piece double-sided, and one with a plain black backing. The elastic makes these quite easy to turn "inside out".  The different sides present separate color tone, though they don't clash. I plan to work on more "reversible" pieces since they give people more wearing options.

 I left the reversible bracelet in a "satin" finish - smooth, with rounded edges, but no high gloss or polish.


The third photo here shows a different bracelet, wider than any I've made before.  This bracelet has plain black interior backing, but the outside surface has a nice, shiny finish.

Bargello Fun ala Jana

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending a workshop with Jana Roberts Benzon.  I am a long-time fan of Jana's work.  She is incredibly creative and imaginative.  Jana always seems to be inventing new ways of approaching polymer, and her pieces are amazing.






While at the workshop, one of the processes she had us working on reminded me of one of her bargello techniques.  So I had to give it a try.  Here are some of the pieces I've made.