Cabochon Destash!

Hey there!  I have been going through my cabs and even surprised myself how many I've accumulated.  As painful as it may be for me to turn loose of these beauties, it is not fair to them to keep them locked up in a box. *sniff*  They deserve to be put to good use!  I purchased these when we were doing all wire wrapping and our product line has taken a fun detour to Silver and Metalsmithing!  They are beveled rather than domed and work well for wire wrapping.


They have all been hand cut and cabbed by fellow wire wrapping lapidarist Marie Frazier of Superior Agates.  She does a great job with quality stones and achieves a nice high polish!  Lots of fun free-form shapes to let your muse run wild with!


$5 each plus $2 shipping (combined shipping allowed)


To claim, simply comment "Mine" on the pic in the folder and I will send you a PM with a total and PayPal information.


Feel free to share the link to all your wire wrapping friends.


Thanks for looking!


(click on images to be taken to the Facebook Folder to comment)

Coming Soon to a New Retail Location - near you?!

We are excited about our newest Retail location - Kind Kandles & Beach Kreations!  We appreciate Rob and Denise for inviting and welcoming us into their store!  If you are in the Erie, PA area, feel free to pop in and tell them Kat and Dave sent ya!

Kind Kandles & Beach Kreations 
Holiday Store Hours:

2818 W 8th St., Erie, PA 16505 (click here for detailed map)

Monday 10 am - 6 pm
Tuesday - Friday 10 am - 7 pm
Saturday 10 am - 6 pm
Sunday 10 am - 5 pm

Service Area:
Erie ~ Buffalo ~ Ohio
Pittsburgh~New York
Pennsylvania
THE WORLD

Silent Auction Donation

The other day I was poking around on Facebook and happened to notice a post of someone looking for donations for an upcoming silent auction. With a little digging I came to realize that it was for an organization a cousin of mine, who is an interpreter for the deaf, is involved with. It is an annual event called Souper Sunday sponsored by TSHA (Total Source for Hearing-loss and Access) in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

I was soon compelled to donate a piece to further the cause but wasn't sure where to start. Lo and behold, the typically elusive Muse stopped by for a visit to assist! Isn't it amazing how you can have coils of wire and a stash of beads and never hear any of them speak to you till the Muse pops by?! Well, it wasn't long till I there were whispers then shouts from my wire and bead corner. Before too long I was surrounded by tools, some chunky turquoise colored magnesite, big link copper chain and a couple of spools of copper wire and copper findings and was well on my way of working on a new adventure!

Magnesite & Copper chic rustic big link necklace and matching earrings.

Magnesite beads from Thunderbird Supply
Copper chain, wire and findings from Magpie Gemstones

Here it is, all boxed up with a Sunshine Polishing Cloth and Copper Jewelry Care Card, ready to ship!

My only regret is that I won't be able to be there to watch the bidding and hug the winner's neck!

Dave's adventures in wire...

The adventures in wire wrapping continues to the next level of wire SCULPTURE!

David has been having a blast with his tools, wire and beads! His continual quest for learning new techniques and coming up with different ways to use them.

Here are a few of his most recent creations.

Lapis Lazuli in Sterling Silver Cuff

Leopard Skin Jasper Sterling Bangle Bracelet

Carnelian Sculptured Sterling Silver Bangle Bracelet
with Invisible Clasp

Dragonfly Lapel Pin work in progress

I thought it would be neat to share the journey in progress in photo format of how the Dragonfly Lapel Pin came to be.
I hope you enjoy seeing the progress!

The pieces for the body and wings were measured and cut of sterling wire.

The wire ends of the body at the head were balled which will later become antenna...wings were soldered on.

Now that everything is assembled, pickled, finished out and polished, time to begin weaving!

The first wing took FORRRRRRRRREVERRRRRRRR...

First wing finished and moving on to the body...Antenna formed into shape.
The second wing went MUCH quicker...WHEW!
You probably wouldn't believe how much wire was actually used in this little guy!

Perched upon a shell rose...A lovely place to rest after all that work!

Sterling, Garnet and faceted fiery Labradorite Dragonfly

Front

Back

May I present to you -- the latest of my Muse's inspirations! A dragonfly made of 20ga, 28ga and 30ga sterling silver that has been cut, bent, balled, soldered and FINALLY woven...This was a fun exploration of new techniques and tools.

The initial intent was for it to be a necklace pendant but I believe this one will be more suited as a pin and one of heavier gauge wire for the body be fashioned as a pendant. This is nice and lightweight and would work perfectly as a pin...How to attach the pin finding (without glue of course!) will be the next challenge. :) *see update below!*

Dimensions: 2" from top to bottom x 3" wingspan

Click here to see more information on this piece.

Oh! By the way, I also made the flower the dragonfly is sitting on. It is made from shells I collected from our beach. :) If you would like one of your own, I have them for sale in my mom's store in Claremore, OK. It comes complete with a poem I wrote -- the roses symbolizing our walk with Christ and our lives as broken shells.

UPDATE! I am very pleased to say that the dragonfly is now a PIN! I sat down this evening with wire and tools and was able to fashion a pin back and successfully wrap it onto the back side of the body. Nice and tidy! PERFECTO!!!

More goodies!

Kambaba Jasper

I tell you what, I don't know when I have been so pleased with a bead order as I have with the last order I received from Magpie Gemstones! I have had the most fun just going through the beads over and over and riding the resulting wave of inspiration! I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my next order!

I have added a couple of new bracelets to the website. This design is proving to be quite comfortable as well as attractive. My husband, David, says that the Kambaba Jasper bracelet is his favorite! The patterns in the Kambaba Jasper is absolutely breathtaking. It's a shame that I can't seem to capture the patterns effectively with the camera. I am in constant awe that these beads originated from the earth! What amazing and precious gifts they are to us. And to be able to adorn our bodies with them is all the more exciting!

I hope you enjoy the fruits of my favorite past-time...gazing deep into a tray of beads!

Silver Needle Agate
Apricot, rich taupe and white

Silver Needle Agate Sterling Wire Wrapped Bracelet

This bracelet is the latest creation of my newest bead shipment...I just LOVE this stone - Silver Needle Agate. It has so many beautiful colors and patterns in the same strand. The two different size barrels gave inspiration for this bracelet. It is so beautiful on! And coordinating a ring with it - soooooooo pretty! Even if I do say so myself! LOL If you work in an office, this bracelet with a coordinating ring would brighten your day just getting to look at them all day while you type!

If you are interested in purchasing this bracelet it can be found on my website (click here) as well as the coordinating ring selection (click here).

Rings, rings and more rings!

Rust Web and Brecciated Jasper
I have been making product detail pages for the new rings the past few days! Some of the rings shown on the New Rings gallery page are sneak preview photos but about half of them have their product detail pages set up. I have also added a few more rings! I still can't believe how beautiful these are turning out! I am going to be making multiple configurations to accommodate a wider range of ring sizes (which is why some of the detail pages are not finished, YET...) this weekend. It is like I've found a hidden treasure and my imagination is just going wild with ideas for it all! I just seem to be stuck in ring mode right now...Which is perfectly alright with me! I needed some fresh new styles! :)

Seems like any time I get close enough to the tray of beads, wire and my tools I am cutting more wire to wrap up more rings! TOOOOOOO FUN!!!!

Botswana Agate Rondelles

Oh boy, oh boy, OH BOY!

Can you tell that I am sooooooooooooooooo excited?! I received another yummy bag of goodies from Magpie Gemstones today! I do believe my muse is rolling around giggling in a pile of beads tonight!!! I am in full on ring mode!

Brown Opal

Silver Leaf Jasper

Rust Web jasper

Kambaba Jasper

Mica

Brown Opal

African Turquoise Jasper

Silver Needle Agate

Fun little afternoon project...

OK...so I've been eyeballing a bin of what was labeled at the bead shop as"Crab Fire Agate" (some call it "Spiderweb Carnelian") for a while now...Trying to conjure up a design for them. I spotted a herringbone focal bead bracelet yesterday and thought -- THAT'S IT! The beads are a smooth nugget but none of them are uniform or drilled in a fashion that would lend itself to how I normally construct a piece...so these made me have to think a little deeper than I normally would...It is a good thing!

The photos below are the outcome of my contemplation. I showed it to some ladies I meet with at the beach on Tuesday evenings and they all loved it! What do you think??


Crab Fire Agate (Spiderweb Carnelian) nuggets wire wrapped with a herringbone weave in sterling silver
Handcrafted double linked chain made of handcrafted sterling silver jump rings
Handcrafted clasp to complete the design

Measures approximately 9" (chunky nuggets call for longer length) but can be adjusted to fit

If you wish to purchase this item, please click here to be taken to the listing.

This afternoon's muse visit...

The muse popped her head in this afternoon...She's been hiding out lately, but today's visit was quite fun! I never know what she has in store for me! It seems she was standing on her head when she came up with this one...I tell ya, she is a twisted soul! LOL

Focal bead is wire wrapped with a wire wrapped pendant below.
What is normally used as a wire wrapped pendant's bale is used as the pendants bale below.
I told ya she was twisted!
:)

Focal bead is wire wrapped with a wire wrapped pendant below.
What is normally used as a wire wrapped pendant's bale is used as the pendants bale below.
I told ya she was twisted!
:)

33mm Scene Jasper focal bead wire wrapped in 20ga dead soft square Sterling Silver
Freshwater Pearl Pendant wire wrapped in Sterling Silver.

Necklace strand:
Sterling Silver spacer beads
Scene Jasper puff coins
6mm Swarovski Crystal Pearls strung on SoftFlex Premium Flex Wire

Handcrafted Sterling clasp

Necklace measures 20" from clasp to catch.

If you are interested in purchasing this necklace, please click here.

Look what my twisted Muse came up with this time! Double Bail Lace Agate Pendant...

I just LOVE Lace Agate! Don't you?? We picked up several a couple of weeks ago. We are having fun wrapping them!
This is something I dreamed up yesterday...It was quite an adventure trying to figure out how to make the design in my head become reality. LOL It took a couple of tries but I finally got it. I hadn't ever seen a double bail wrapped pendant before -- till now! Whew! I will come up with a necklace for it...I'm thinking something strung. hmmmmmmmm :)

Lace Jasper Pendant, Yellow Jade, Aquamarine and Wood Jasper

My latest necklace showcasing one of the pendants I wire wrapped last weekend.

Freeform 28mmx19mm Lace Jasper wire wrapped in Sterling Silver wire
Sterling Silver chain
Wood Jasper twist and heishi beads with Sterling spacer beads
Picture Jasper puff disks

Yellow Jade and Aquamarine chips
Sterling lobster clasp and .925 tag

Overall dimensions:
Pendant 1 7/8"h x 7/8"w on an 18" long chain

Interested in purchasing this one of a kind necklace?
Lace Jasper Pendant, Yellow Jade, Aquamarine and Wood Jasper

Midnight oil...Freeform Brecciated Jasper Pendant

Well, it seems my muse is a night owl!
This is my latest attempt at wire wrapping a freeform cab.




Freeform 42mmx18mm Brecciated Jasper wire wrapped in 20ga dead soft square Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver chain
Tiger Eye Rondelles with Sterling spacer beads
Picture Jasper puff rectangles
Yellow Jade and Picture Jasper chips
Sterling lobster clasp and .925 tag

Overall dimensions:
Pendant 2 3/8"h x 1 1/4"w on a 20" long chain

Interested in purchasing this one of a kind necklace?
Brecciated Jasper Pendant, Tiger Eye, Yellow Jade and Picture Jasper

Netting...Bending wire and my patience! LOL

Well, I have been seeing some beautiful netted pendants lately and thought I'd give it a whirl...I managed to finish this one without throwing it out the window. HA! I don't think it turned out too bad considering I was figuring it out as I went and the 4' of easily coiled and kinked 30ga dead soft sterling was testing my patience. I have determined that 30ga is entirely too fine and have some 28ga ds on order (as of this morning!). I think I'll keep it to see how much I improve. =)

Some of David's Creativity!

Well, I must say, for a man who says he has no eye for style, my husband has outdone himself with wire wrapping! Here is a pendant he made over the weekend - isn't it stunning?!

My first wire wrap attempt...

OK...So, tonight I took the plunge - I asked my husband, David, to instruct me on how to wire wrap a stone. All I had was half hard 20ga so I had a bit of trouble with the bail but I think once the soft square I ordered comes in that will no longer be an issue! I think for a first attempt it turned out quite nicely! What a great teacher he is!

The stone is 25mm x 35mm Red Fossil Coral that I picked up at a shop in Winter Haven, FL when my mom, sister and I went to Orlando last month. I wrapped it in Sterling Silver.