Jack in the Green

Today is the traditional Jack in the Green celebrations here in Hastings. We are off to watch all the goings on and have a fun day. We also have an annual influx of motorbikes into town, normally around 20,000!

I have gotten into the mood by making these Art Clay silver and enamel earrings and pendant.

Let the greening begin!

Don't forget my blog giveaway ends today. If you haven't left a comment under the competition post HERE you are not entered!!

Textured Heart Tutorial

I have decided to try to do an occassional tutorial on my blog. So here we go with the first one. If like me you end up with quite a bit of less than perfect paste from the odd scraps then this is an ideal project to use it up. Above are two examples of pendants made using this technique. here are the instructions for the heart.

Make a shape using cork clay and put in a cocktail stick into it while still wet so the shape is easy to handle. Dry thoroughly. Cork is best left to dry naturally for at least 48 hours. For this project I have made a heart shape.

Use Art Clay Silver paste. Paint on the first coat thickly making sure you leave a hole at the top and bottom of the bead. Dry. If you use a hairdryer for about 5 minutes and then finish drying over a hot plate you can get a reticulated style effect on the surface as the top skin dries faster than the paste underneath. Try varying the times to see what different effect you can get.

Repeat for 4 or 5 thick coats until you have at least 1mm thickness and dry thoroughly.

Roll out Art Clay Silver to .75mm thick (3 cards). Cut two shapes to go over the bead holes and another shape for decoration if you want.

Cut a smaller hole with a straw or a hole cutter out of the centre of the bead hole covers. You could texture the shapes when you roll the clay out or use something to add texure afterwards.

Add the first bead cover using a little water on the surface of the bead where you are going to place the circle and also some syringe to attach it, then remove the cocktail stick and repeat on the other side of the bead for the second one. I have used a ball point burnisher on the circles while still wet to decorate them.

Add the decorative shape if using. I have used a cocktail stick to add lines to the heart decoration and made a small depression with the ball burnisher to add a stone later. Dry thoroughly.

To set a fireable stone (I used a 3mm ruby CZ) extrude a small amount of syringe into the recess made earlier and gently press the stone into it to create a bezel. Dry.

Refine your piece making sure you have no sharp edges anywhere and make sure you are completely happy with it before firing.

Fire your piece and polish up. Use Liver of Sulphur to patinate to bring up the texture on the surface and then polish up to a nice shine.

Ball up a piece of fine silver wire (I used 1.5mm diameter wire) to make a headpin or use a commercial headpin and wire wrap your pendant to make a loop to hang it from.

Add a chain and sit back and admire your work.

I hope you enjoy having a play with this.

DON'T FORGET my blog giveaway. You need to leave a coment under the blog post all about it here to be in with a chance of winning!

Super Duper Bloggy Giveaway

It here at long last! My Super Duper Bloggy Giveaway. I know - silly name, but whatever.

The prize consists of a two items that I brought back from Japan with me plus a pendant. There is a lovely postcard of cherry blossom to give you a bit of design inspiration, a set of Japanese stickers which can be used on a mobile phone or anywhere you fancy sticking them (so to speak!) and a solid silver pendant made by me with a nice contasting textured effect. I chose this pendant especially as I think it is quite unisex.

Here are a couple of close ups.

This is the pendant - it measures approx 20mm x 20mm ...

and these are the stickers. I expect you are going to ask me what does it say? The answer - no idea!

So if I have any Japanese speaking readers PLEASE leave me the answer below in the comments section (preferably in English!). It would be much appreciated :) I really hope it says something nice!

To enter all you have to do is leave me a comment below this article in my blog and if you do not already follow my blog it would be really nice if you added yourself in to the followers on the right hand side.

In case you are stuck for something to say I would like you to suggest a name for my hamster. I think of my hamster as a boy by the way.

The winner will be drawn totally at random so if you want to say something else in your comment that is fine too, but if I decide I really like one of the hamster names I will give that person a little surprise gift so there is an incentive.

Only one comment per person please and I will post this prize to the winner no matter where is the world you are.

The giveaway will close on 7pm on Monday May 3rd which is a holiday here in the UK and I will draw one lucky winner.  Please feel free to tell anyone you want about it.

What a Busy Time

I'm back!

Oh.. ok you don't even know where I have been. I spent the last weekend at the Guild of Enamellers conference in Nottingham and we had a great time. My good friend Lynne Glazzard was Chairman and she did a grand job. Thanks Lynne.

We had Dice and Mr Ueeda over from Japan, thanks to Aida Chemicals who make Art Clay Silver, doing a workshop and the Masterclass, I had an Art Clay stand, I met up with loads of wonderful people that I only see once a year and all in all it was fab!! I just wish these happy times would last longer :) Phew - I needed a day or two to recover.

I made a great piece on the workshop and once I have photographed it I will post it here.

Back to reality now. The piece above is one that I made on the first week of the Hot Houses in Hastings. I was just sitting playing really. It is a pendant with a bail on the back and I had fun adding all the different textures and then the stones which are 2mm CZs set in syringe. It is nice to make something interesting when you are demonstrating.

The GOOD NEWS - watch this space in the next couple of days as I am about to start a giveaway!!

And the winner is.....

CHERYL!!!

Congratulations Cheryl, please email your details and I will get the Purple Heart pendant off in the post to you.

Well that was fun. I'll do another sometime.

Hopefully this week I will start to get back to normal a bit as it has been so hectic for the last few weeks. More pictures of new work coming soon I promise.

My First Blog Giveaway

At the recent Art Clay conference in Jersey I taught my Enamelled Accents workshop. I really enjoyed it and hopefully so did everyone who took it. I had people from all over Europe, South Africa and of course the UK on it. As it was only a 3 hour workshop it was a bit of a rush (to say the least!) but we got there in the end and everyone made really good pieces. I could not have managed without my good friend Lynne grinding enamels and overseeing the enamelling in the kilns. Thanks Lynne.

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Anyway to celebrate the workshop going well and as I am in happy mood after my wins at the conference I thought I would have my first blog giveaway.

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This Purple Heart pendant was a piece I made as an example of the technique of Enamelled Accents. It measures 23mm across is hanging on a dainty 16" sterling silver snake chain. The photo above shows you the front and the back of it and you can wear it either way round.

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All you have to do is leave me a comment on this blog post. On Sunday 1st November I'll put the names in a hat and get hubby to draw one out and this lovely little pendant will be winging its way to the winner.

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Everyone is welcome to enter no matter where you are in the world so tell your friends. Only one entry each though :)