Bronze clay. In the beginning...

You have to start somewhere.

I have tentatively dabbled in silver clay twice. Once in a private class in San Diego over 10 years ago. The instructor was Jonna Faulkner; I was working at the Shepherdess. Then here in Delaware; my good friend Sara Teixido is a metal clay goddess, and I have used the medium under her guidance. But that's as far as I went...

Why? Price? Fear that I would love it SO there would be no turning back? My magpie-like love of all things shiny silver? Then there is the bronze, and the copper. I have had so many gorgeous pieces from my colleagues and AJE team mates. Still I hesitated. Carbon? Firing? Learning curve? Sintering?

Whee! Free rein to test out Karen's stamps! 

This Labor Day weekend a few of us from the blog gathered together for a mini "Art Camp".  With both Karen and Lesley there - Jennifer & I had masterful support to dive into bronze. This post is in no means a how-to! Just my excitement at trying... and succeeding... in a medium that I had longed to try for years.

One picture of me at work where my hands weren't a blur... LOL

First let me say - the stuff is HEAVY. you take a pinch of bronze clay, compared to a similar pinch of polymer or stoneware. Wow. Its dense and feels substantial. Working with it was as expected: lube up your hands and molds as needed. Don't dilly dally as it dried out rather quickly.

Layer after layer. Spacing things in the carbon/ 

Karen made loading the ceramic firing box make SO much sense. Totally demystified the process for me. And while things fired, we went to work with seed beads. ( I introduced them all to peyote stitch beaded bezels and bead embroidery. They may or may not be hooked! )

Cannot wait to see! 

I'M SO EXCITED. Doing a Snoopy dance in my head right now.

Freshly washed: Karen's, Jennifer's and mine all mixed together... 

Post firing? Lesley and great advice on sintering, how it sounds, how to test it...  Its worth it to try to break a piece to see if the clay sintered properly. And the metallic "ring" of your newly fired piece on the sink is music to one's ears! Again I was struck with the heft of the pieces. Sure, mine were a bit "sturdy" and could be thinner, but they feel "real". The image above shows the natural patina resulting in the firing. These were washed off, that's all!

At home now - brush and tumble... 

To tumble or not to tumble? To sand to a satin finish? To burnish high points to a high shine? How do you decide!? The goddess ( top left, below) was burnished with an agate burnisher. The group on the right was tumbled - I loved the subtle satin sheen they have now. The last two ( bottom left) were scrubbed with a brass brush. I think this batch is complete - reminding me of different finishes and possibilities.

The specifics... details and finishes. 

A perfect partnership. 

And this one? Its mine! A wee bronze charm stamped with a eucalyptus pod from San Diego - and my thumbprint apparently! This stunning cab was from Lesley, and the bead work was completed after a great weekend of friends, creativity, techniques... and wine. 

All in all, I think I love bronze. Now to try copper. I was lucky - I know one doesn't get every piece fired perfectly every time. But until next time... 

What new technique or medium are you eager to try? 

A few loose coins...

Happy New Year! My first AJE post of 2015 - and I have a few more thoughts on coins. Spare change so to speak, from my Boxing Day post. (And a shout out to the Canadian readers I may have neglected on the 26th...). 

Greco- Roman coins, Medieval coins... 

I wanted to take the coin idea into the studio - and show you a few pictures, a few ways that your local art jewelry designers have integrated coins... 

Lindsay sent me this - WOW! Tooled leather cab by her spouse, her beadwork, and coins! As fringe, as elements incorporated into the chain...

Lindsay again - she claims this is the limits of her metal skills. Coins drilled and domed as buttons. 

Earrings from Sue  - she is addicted to these beaded beads and I love them! What better way to use coins than as a personal, inexpensive, yet meaningful souvenir?! 

Barbara Bechtel of Second Surf makes these cheeky Penny charms. I love that Gandhi's quote ("Be the change you wish to see in the world.") meets Lincoln's visage. And I am a fan of word play as well. She recently posted a great video documenting her process - you can find it here. 

This one is mine - a relic from another life, its at least 20 years old. I enameled a British penny (unadulterated penny shown at right). It was a reminder of my college time spend living in London, and yes, it includes a sixpence as well. The myth/symbolist in me loves the sixpence: it bears the 4 plants representing the 4 nations in the UK. ( Tudor rose - England. Leek - Wales. Thistle - Scotland. Shamrock - N. Ireland) 

Since Boxing day - I have amassed a pile of coins on my work table. One made it into a finished piece - seen below. Its a franc, stamped for my friend Betsy. She lived in France, and had chosen "Balance" as her word for 2015! ( She hasn't seen it yet, so please don't tell her...LOL)

Do YOU have any spare change on your work table? How are you planning on incorporating coins into your work? Inquiring minds... 

Steampunk + Art Beads = Fun!

This weekend I will be attending The Steampunk World's Fair in Piscataway, NJ.  I went last year for the first time and had a blast.  One of the ways I met more people was by hosting a trinket swap.  Since everyone seemed to enjoy it, I am hosting it again this year.  Participants create wearable, steampunk-themed trinkets that we then swap with each other (full details are here).  It was a fun way to encourage people to get crafty, make new friends AND introduce people to art beads.

Last year I created porcelain gears that had clasps attached to them.  For this years swap, I went with stoneware keyhole charms.  They are in the greenware stage in the photo above.  Once they dried, I sponged them and bisque-fired them.

After the bisque firing, I stained each with an oxide and loaded them in to the kiln.  You can see them in the photo on the left at the bottom of the kiln.

And here they are after the firing!

To fulfill my swap requirement of them being wearable, I hung each from some ball chain necklaces that I purchased through MyElements.  Since ball chain can be easily cut with a pair of scissors, participants can decide how they would like to wear them (necklaces, keychains, etc...)

Of course, I had to go a step further and make cute packaging for each trinket.  I punched a hole in my Moo cards and slid them on to the chain.  Then I stamped mustaches on the envelopes and sealed each with washi tape.  I was having so much fun with my mustache stamps that I went ahead and stamped the bag I'll be carrying them in.  

I'm looking forward to Saturday and I can't wait to see what the other trinket swappers have created!

Happy Beading!

Diana P.

Suburban Girl Studio LLC

A Peek Inside Berks Bead Bazaar

Last weekend I had the pleasure of vending at Berks Bead Bazaar in Reading, PA.  This is a smaller show with a focus on art beads and high quality components and gemstones.

Here's my table (with Colin holding down the fort).  I debuted lots of new designs at the show.

I was thrilled that I was in between Staci Smith and Jenny Davies-Reazor's tables.  We're all friends so it made the weekend that much more fun!  Shout-out to Staci's daughter, Julia.  She had a little table to sell her beads at and we had lots of laughs together.

And here is some eye candy from the show...

Enameled beads by Gardanne Glass Lampwork and gorgeous bead weaving by Sleepless Beader/Leslie Rogalski.

Stunning ceramic beads by Tracey Donoughe.

Fun charms from MyElements and delightful lampwork headpins by Laura Drosner Schreiber.

Yummy lampwork hollows from Louise Mehaffey.

Cabochons as far as the eye can see by Greg Graupp.

Silks and lampwork focals by McGinithen GlassWorks.

And this wasn't even everything!  I was having so much fun I didn't take nearly as many photos as I should have.  I highly recommend that if you are in the area next year, you come out and shop Berks! You'll have no problem finding special pieces to use in your jewelry!

Thanks to Joan and Louise for hosting this wonderful show!

Happy Beading!

Diana P.
Suburban Girl Studio LLC

Charm Swaps

Charm swaps - they make up a particular niche in the jewelry world.  From the Merriam-Webster dictionary:

NICHE

1

a :  a recess in a wall especially for a statue

b :  something (as a sheltered or private space) that resembles a recess in a wall

2

a :  a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person or thing is best fitted <finally found her niche>

b :  a habitat supplying the factors necessary for the existence of an organism or species

c :  the ecological role of an organism in a community especially in regard to food consumption

d :  a specialized market

 

I've been a part of many charm swaps, particularly our own Jennifer Cameron's Charm Swap to benefit Beads of Courage, as well as charms swaps with ArtBLISS, Ornamentea, and a charm swap group I belong to on yahoo.  

 

This first photo is from the Ornamentea Charm Swap.  Cynthia does a charm swap every year - you send six, and get six.  She has a party, and if you can't make it to the party (since they're in Raleigh) you pay for postage, and she puts the package together for you and mails it! I've done it for two years in a row now and it's always fun to open the package and see what everyone made!

This next photo is from a Seafoam Blue/Green swap I did with a Yahoo Groups swap.  In this group, there's a hostess who coordinates the theme and the swap.  You make the charms in the appropriate number, send them in with money for postate, and the hostess distributes the charms back.  This is a nice group because you can pick and choose which types of swaps you are interested in, and they aren't all limited to jewelry or beads. 

We also do charm swaps at the ArtBLISS workshops in September, in Virginia.  This is fun, because we get together at a pizza lunch, someone usually makes a really nice bag to put the charms in, then chaos ensues as everyone drops their charms in the various bags.  This is the charm I made the first year I attended, the theme was leaves.

This is a group photo of the charms made the second year - the theme was Bliss.  Unfortunately I didn't attend the third year, so I don't know of the theme.  This year there's a swap and there's no particular theme.  And I will be there and make a group collage of the charms I make and receive!

You may have read the post by Jennifer Cameron - she is hosting a charm swap this year to benefit Beads of Courage.  This is the second year her swap will benefit that organization.  Last year the theme was FUN!  This year the theme is LOVE.  You make 11 charms - 10 to swap and 1 to auction.  She lists all the charms separately on eBay and all proceeds of the auctions go to Beads of Courage!  Even though registration for the swap is closed, you can still participate by donating a charm in that theme for the auction! Or, you can bid on the charms when the auction becomes available!

 

I enjoy participating swaps because 1. I love seeing what other artists make and 2. getting those packages in the mail is so much fun!  There's so much creativity out there, and charms are a nice little way to express it!

SO, do you participate in charm swaps?  What do you like about them?  What other "niche" swaps do you participate in, in the jewelry world - earring swaps (a la Diane Ptaszynski) or ornament swaps (a la Sally Russick)? 

Folklore Friday - milagros

 Folklore Friday - milagros

I have been thinking a lot lately about what inspires me to make a piece, to create a pendant, to wear a certain piece of jewelry. Yes - partially this is inspired by preparing work for Beadfest in Philadelphia this upcoming August. But I have been chatting lately with fellow bead makers and discussing inspiration, ideas, motivation. It seems to make me a bit introspective. I am motivated to create a piece with meaning, with intention, with a history and a symbolism that speaks to the wearer. I want a person to be drawn to my piece ( be it pendant for their own use, or a finished piece I have created).  I hope it resonates with them; that it is a meaningful piece they can carry with them, an amulet, a talisman. So I plan to do a series here, if you will join me - on ancient and multicultural amulets - their meanings, and how they inspire me. 

Milagros - trans. from the Spanish -  "Little miracles" 

Photo credit: nomads and zingari blog

Milagros are votive charms, a sort of folk medicine and prayer combined. They are used in many Hispanic regions and countries, from the US through Latin America, even the Iberian Peninsula. Made of gold, silver, wood, wax... but most frequently found in tin and pewter, milagros vary greatly in size and depth. (Most are relatively flat, and smaller than a quarter.) Whether found at a saint's shrine, in a church, left as an offering or hanging on a simple ribbon in a home - they are unified by their symbolic meanings, and their intention.

"As part of a religious ritual or an act of devotion, milagros can be offered to a symbol of a saint as a reminder of a petitioner's particular need, or in gratitude for a prayer answered. They are used to assist in focusing attention towards a specific ailment, based on the type of charm used. Milagro symbolism is not universal; a milagro of a body part, such as a leg, might be used as part of a prayer or vow for the improvement of a leg; or it might refer to a concept such as travel. Similarly, a heart might represent ideas as diverse as a heart condition, a romance, or any number of other interpretations. Milagros are also carried for protection and good luck." (Wiki)

Ceramic milagros fresh from my kiln this morning. 

My favorite: the eyes milagro. These are currently available in my Etsy shop. 

I find the eyes a very powerful symbol of the self and the soul. I like this icon paired with inspiration words - perhaps things we need to "see" in ourselves or our lives. 

Two very different necklaces that I have made - and wear often.


What milagro symbol would you wear for protection and luck?
What do you need to "see" more clearly, or manifest in your life? 

Thanks for stopping by - I would love to hear your thoughts... 

Jenny

www.jdaviesreazor.com

References and shopping: 

Zanzibar trading 

Sacred Art Images

Happy Mango Beads

Direct from Mexico

An assortment from Etsy: 

Milagros on Etsy: LindaQueally, SHIWASHIWA, reDonewhat, LaMariposaGallery, HINT, suenosimports, TheRealJackChow, suenosimports. 

June Component of the Month Reveal!

What a whirlwind this month has been! I have been up to my elbows in clay - teaching an intensive pottery "camp" for teens and young ones. Whew! I hope to settle in and make a few pretties for Beadfest Philadelphia before too long!

Are you ready to see what the team and our special guests have created?

This is what I made:

And away we go: 

Guest artists: 

Leah - http://beadyeyedbunny.blogspot.com

Elisabeth - http://beadsforbusygals.blogspot.com

Jean - http://prettykittydogmoonjewelry.blogspot.com

Sarajo - http://sjdesignsjewelry.blogspot.com

The AJE Team

Jennifer Cameron -  http://glassaddictions.com/
Jenny Davies-Reazor  -  http://www.jdaviesreazor.com/blog (that would be me)
Susan Kennedy  -  http://www.suebeads.blogspot.com/
Linda Landig -   http://www.lindasbeadblog.com/
Melissa Meman   -  http://melissameman.blogspot.com/
Rebekah Payne  -  http://www.treewingsstudio.com/
Jo Tinley  -   http://daisychaindesignsjewellery.blogspot.com/
Lesley Watt  -   http://thegossipinggoddess.blogspot.com/
Francesca Watson  - http://www.francescawatson.com
Diana Ptaszynski   - http://www.vintagebluestudio.typepad.com/
Kristi Bowman -  http://dreamsomedesigns.blogspot.com
Kristen Stevens  - http://kristen-beadjourney.blogspot.com/

I am thrilled to have so many people trying these "organic ceramic" charms! I cannot wait to take a look! Thanks to one and all for participating in the AJE Component of the Month this month!

Jenny 

www.jdaviesreazor.com

Feel the heat! Ceramic cone 10 reduction firing...

This was on my plate this week - literally. It is a plate full of porcelain charms and pendants stamped with new (to me) designs and textures. Do you recall the post a while back where I made molds from a plethora of organic items? Star Anise, coral, sea urchins... they are finally seeing the inside of the kiln! 

The process can be slow - create, dry, refine, fire, glaze, fire... depending on the creator this can be a week - or a few months! For me I work in 2 very different clay categories. I work in earthenware, a lower temperature clay for my sculptural "Mythic Nature" pendants. I use commercial low fire glazes as they afford me a colorful, reliable palette with which to paint. These pieces fire in my kiln at home, an electric kiln, whenever I feel the need. Easy peasy. ( Temperature range - ballpark 1900F)

I also work at a ceramics studio where we fire to cone 10 reduction. ( More on reduction in a sec, hang on...) There are stoneware clays in a variety of colors and porcelain. The firing is done in a large, hand built gas kiln out in the courtyard. Its a bit rough, but a work horse. But it might get fired once a week, and it is a group firing overseen by my colleague who teaches the adult class. She fits in what she can, theoretically including student work before instructors, and trying to get a few pieces in from each student. So there is the waiting game, and I am an instructor so... Sigh. It can take a while to get small fiddly little charms in the kiln. 

Big Bertha in reduction. Yes - flames are flitting out!

With Beadfest coming in a few months - its a rush to make hi fire things now! I hope to include a few in each firing this summer, but classes are smaller and the kiln fires maybe every other week. 

This week - my colleague was away. So I loaded the kiln, and  it fired  today. And we did make sure to get my half shelf of charms in.... I wanted to show you the process: 

My porcelain

From the last firing... 

The kiln on the far left. Panarama shot. Pots everywhere... we got 95% of this in the firing. 

Building shelf by shelf, the full kiln, bricking up the doorway.

It took the 2 of us two hours. While this style kiln allows great flexibility for placement of shelves, it has to be rebuilt and reconfigured every firing. It fires with propane to app. 2377 degrees, and can take approximately 8-10 hours. It will cool for a full day, and as the weekend is here - we wont unload until Monday. It is nervous anticipation, like taking an exam and awaiting Christmas morning - all in one!

The reduction firing - in layman's terms - means that during the firing cycle one purposefully reduces the oxygen intake via vents on the kiln. This causes a "reduction" atmosphere inside the kiln - oxygen is leached from the clay and the glazes - magic! Or to be technical: "A reducing atmosphere is also used in order to produce specific effects on ceramic wares being fired. A reduction atmosphere is produced in a fuel fired kiln by reducing the draft and depriving the kiln of oxygen. This reduced level of oxygen causes incomplete combustion of the fuel and raises the level of carbon inside the kiln. At high temperatures the carbon will bond with and remove the oxygen in the metal oxides used as colorants in the glazes. This loss of oxygen results in a change in the color of the glazes because it allows the metals in the glaze to be seen in an unoxidized form. A reduction atmosphere can also affect the color of the clay body. If iron is present in the clay body, as it is in most stoneware, then it will be affected by the reduction atmosphere as well."

So there.

Its art and alchemy. 

Its primal. 

Its hot. 

Its chemistry. 

It can be a surprise... 

And I have to wait until Monday... 

Have a good weekend!

Jenny 

www.jdaviesreazor.com

Fortune smiles on... these winners!

Fortune favors.... 

Roman goddess of Fortune with the wheel of fate. 

These lucky winners:
Jean
Elisabeth
Sarajo
and Leah!

Why are there four? Because as I pulled the last slip out of the dish they stuck together. I decided - the more the merrier, right?

Look for an email tonight!

And to anyone else who wants to participate - there will be more charm pairs listed in my Etsy shop early next week. I will announce on my FB page - but have a show this weekend... so maybe Tuesday? Wednesday? 
Feel free to use the code "AJEfree" if you decide to order - free shipping!




Please don't forget the AJE earring challenge...
I cannot wait to see what you create with these organic ceramic charms!

Jenny

www.jdaviesreazor.com

June Component of the Month and ... a giveaway!

News Flash: 
June is right around the corner. Hello Summer! And this month's CoM is... 

... earrings pairs!

April/May issue

I am thrilled to share these with everyone - for a few reasons:

• My kiln was broken for 2 months. My friend Marsha helped me trouble shoot causes, order parts, and taught me elemental repairs. ( Kiln humor - we replaced the heating coil elements as option 1). I am very happy to have my bestie up and running again - this was her first glaze load! 

• These organic earring pairs were included in Step by Step Wire magazine this past past issue. 

• I will be expanding this line to porcelain, and high fire glazes in time for Beadfest in August!

My pieces and Suebeads below. 

And you have heard that we are in the midst of a fabulous 52 week earring challenge, right? With a Pinterest board and all that. Here are the details if you are late to this... 

So without further ado: 
Organic ceramic earring pairs.

Hand stamped, from organic forms including star anise, poppy and eucalyptus pods!

Here's how the giveaway, challenge, and blog-hop will work (please read all the information carefully!):

• I will give away 1 earring pair to each of 3 winners selected randomly from those who leave comments below this post. 
• Please include your EMAIL address in your comment so that I can contact you ASAP should you win.
• Please (PLEASE) only leave a comment if you can commit to creating a finished piece and blogging about it on the reveal date.
• I'll choose the color, so you'll be surprised!
• The names of the 3 winners will be announced on May 31st in the evening so I can get international packages out if need be!
• The blog reveal will be Sunday, June 30th!

I am excited to share these with you! Do you want in on this organic ceramic goodness? 

Jenny

www.jdaviesreazor.com