Year of Jewelry: Diamond Chain Earrings

I LOVE these earrings.  Perfect for summer - they have amazonite hexagon shaped beads surrounded by labradorite.  All wires and chain is sterling silver.  The blue flash of the labradorite really shows off the milky blue of the amazonite.

And just for a little variation, I also made a similar pair using gold filled wire and chain and gorgeous aqua blue chalcedony coins in the center.  These earrings feel more dressed up, but still have that summer vibe.  Let the beach parties and backyard BBQ's begin.  I'm ready!

Year of Jewelry Week 11: Silver Spiral Earrings

More earrings! I thought these earrings would be perfect for everyday wear.  They are a little heavy for my old ears - but still very comfortable.  Made from sterling silver filled wire, they are about 2 inches long.  The frames of last weeks earrings were originally made for these spirals - but they didn't fit right.    It's nice that I was able to still use the components and make some great earrings!

Year of Jewelry (YOJ) Week 10: Silver Waterfall Earrings

These earrings are incredibly glamorous, but they are very comfortable to wear.  They are over 2 inches long, but very lightweight.  To make them, sterling silver frames are hand wrapped with coated labradorite faceted rondelles on thin sterling silver wire.  The coating on the labradorite makes them reflect the light like crazy - and they still have that beautiful blue flash that labradorite is know for.

YOJ 9: Leaf Shape Earrings with Gemstones

This week's Year of Jewelry (YOJ) project is a pair of leaf shaped earrings with citrine (pale yellow) and carnelian (amber colored) beads.  They are on handmade ear wires and about 3 inches long.  Very stunning!

YOJ 8: Chunky Turquoise Necklace

I love this necklace!  It is chunky and heavy and looks fabulous on!  There is so much turquoise, it looks like it cost a fortune (but it didn't!).  It is about 18 inches long with a 2 inch extender chain and a pretty piece of red coral on the extender.  There are also small sterling silver spacers between the turquoise slices and a silver hook clasp.  

     

         

YOJ 7: Ombre Amethyst Earrings

This week's pair of earrings is very special.  I made them for a jewelry maker in Rochester NY as part of a Spring Earring Swap.  I haven't received my earrings yet, but I'm looking forward to it.  It's always nice to meet a new jewelry maker and share your passion.
These earrings are GF wire and shaded amethyst with small round pearls.  They are about 2 inches long.  I really love the way they came out and will definitely make a pair of these for myself.  They are delicate and dressy, but also will look great with jeans.  A little bollywood, but not over the top (if I do say so myself!).  Please check out my new friend Kim's website at  www.pandajewels.com and her etsy store at http://www.PandaWear.etsy.com  and tell Kim that I say hi!

YOJ6: Gemstone Flower Earrings

These earrings are so sweet and sparkly.  The flower petals are made with labradorite with a special coating that makes them extra reflective.  The center of the flower is a bright aqua apatite.  I have never seen a stone this bright color before.  There are also some nice purple amethyst - all wrapped on sterling silver wire and swaying from secure sterling silver lever backs.

YOJ 5: Gemstone Bouquet Earrings

Gorgeous earrings made with 14K gold filled wire and an assortment of gemstones.  The gemstones include labradorite with a pretty blue flash, deep aqua apatite, deep purple amethyst and two different sizes of light green peridot.  These earrings swing gracefully from french hooks and are about 2 inches long.  The flower stems can be re-positioned to your liking (within reason - too much bending will break them).  These will dress up any outfit for spring or summer.

YOJ4:Gemstone Vine Earrings

I love these earrings!  They are very showy at almost 3 inches long.  They have gorgeous lt blue chalcedony faceted rondelles and dazzling rainbow moonstone briolettes with lots of blue flash.  They are light as a feather to wear.  They hang from handmade french wires.  All of the wire is sterling silver.

YOJ3: Gemstone Flower Pendant

I love it when a plan comes together.  One that note, this week's project would have been amazing if this was really what I planned!  To be fair, I did plan a gemstone flower.  I had hoped for a pair of earrings, though.  By the time I finally made a gemstone flower that I was satisfied with, I decided a pendant would be just fine for this week.  From a technique perspective, I learned a lot from my mistakes.  The pendant is very pretty - so I guess everything worked out just fine in the end.  It has a green jasper faceted round surrounded by rainbow moonstone briolettes.

YOJ2: Multi-Gemstone Woven Bracelet

This is my project for Week 13 of the Year of Jewelry Project (week 2 for me).  I wanted to play with C-Lon string a little more, so I used the same technique as last week's necklace.  I found an assortment of flat gemstones in my
'lonely bead jar' and used them on a light colored cord.  I used a shell button with a woven loop as a closure for my bracelet.  One thing I figured out right away was that it would be almost impossible to put this bracelet on by myself without something to grab the loop by.  I found a small sun charm that I purchased from Tierra Cast to weigh the loop down and give myself something to hold on to when I put on the bracelet.  It works, well, like a charm!

The stones in this bracelet are all high grade gemstones and include: aquamarine, amethyst, carnelian, citrine, green garnet, moonstone, pearl, peridot, smoky quartz, black spinel, and tourmaline.  This bracelet is fabulous to wear.  It is very comfortable and I barely notice it all (which is especially nice when I am typing on the computer or writing).

Yikes... Feeling the Pressure

Must finish my Year of Jewelry project!!

YOJ 1: Woven Gemstone Necklace

My first Year of Jewelry (YOJ) project is a long woven gemstone necklace with aqua blue apatite and smoky quartz beads.  I love it!! I have never made anything like it before, but it was relatively quick and easy to do.  It did take some planning though.  If you're interested in tips on how to make one, see my other blog Lisa Yang Jewelry for more pictures and information. I'll be wearing this for the next few weeks to make sure the design is sound and it will wear 'happily ever after'.  There's nothing worse than jewelry that doesn't withstand the stress of every day living.

Year of Jewelry: Week 1 (for me)

I'm excited and nervous all at once.  The first week of the Year of Jewerly 2012 has started for me.  For everyone else who joined up at the beginning of the year - it's the beginning of the second quarter.  I've decided that I'll be making a woven necklace with gemstones.  I've tried a few different things, but I'm still not quite satisfied, although I do feel like I understand the technique that I'll use and the materials (at least the C-Lon size that is appropriate!).

One of the things I have the most difficulty with is convincing myself that I don't need to buy any supplies to complete a project.  I have 10 different spools of C-Lon thread in different colors, but I've convinced myself of two things:  first, a color other than the ones I have would be better and second, that there is a weight of cord that is heaver than the thread and lighter than the C-Lon cord that I have (another 10 spools of different colors) that would really be better.  However, I am going to complete this week's project without buying anything!  It's almost inconceivable, but I know I can do it.

My goal is to complete my project tonight, so I can have the next couple of days to get my photography area worked out.  I have a light cube and a great camera, but that doesn't mean I know how to take great photos.  I'm sure two days should be enough to get at least decent photos - and then I can improve from there.  I'll be posting my project this weekend.  Yay!

Year of Jewelry Preparation

The next quarter of the Year of Jewelry project is going to be starting soon and I need to get ready!! Tonight, I started by making a list of techniques or styles that I would like to explore. I'm sure this will come in handy when I find my creative juices lacking. So, here's the list:
- Necklaces or bracelets using beads and C-Lon thread or cord
- Framed gemstone beads for pendants or earrings
- Multi-tier necklaces
- Chunky jewelry
- Gem embellished hoops
- gem charms/charm bracelet
- fringe earrings or pendant
- mixed metals
- handmade clasps
- mosaic pendants or earrings
- wire weaving
Well, I'd say that's a good start and may keep me moving even when I'm not 'feeling it'. My goal joining this time is to really work on defining my personal style and improving my techniques.

There's still one more major hurdle that I now I will need to take care of in order to meet my goal. I need to set up a photo 'studio'. We have a great camera, I have a light box, a tripod, lights, etc. I've just never taken the time to set it up and play with it for any length of time. I've got to admit, the ideal solution would be to take the pictures with my i-pad. How easy is that for uploading?! Well, if you've got any guidance on the easiest way to do the pictures, please send them my way, since I know that will be an obstacle to my timely posting.

Year Of Jewelry 2012: Here We Go Again!!

Well, from the look of this blog, I obviously took a bit of time off.  The good news is that I'm back and trying to get focused on the things that matter to me in life.  The problem is that there's soooo many things!!  Well, the best you can do is try and I will try again to commit to the Year of Jewelry.  I missed the sign ups for the first quarter, so I'm on my own until March 18th when I can be an 'official' member.  Until then, it is a personal commitment to make one piece of jewelry per week and post it here.  It's on!
If you are not familiar with the Year of Jewelry project - I highly suggest you check it out.  It's a great source of inspiration and interesting to follow and see how artists mature over the course of a year.  You can find it here:  Year of Jewelry 2012