Tutorial: Using Scrap Copper to Create your own Elements: A Rerun

It's Christmas Eve! I'm sure many of you are scrambling today as much as I am (or am I the only one?), so here's a tutorial I wrote a couple years ago utilizing scrap sheet copper that would make a quick, economical, and very FUN (because HAMMERING! and FIRE!) last minute gift. I want to wish each and every one of you a Merry Christmas and say thank you for reading AJE. We appreciate all of you!

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If you use sheet metal in your designs, you may be like me and have a difficult time getting rid of it. If you're using precious metals, you can always send it in to places like Rio Grande for credit or money. But what about base metals like copper and brass? Don't throw it out, because you can do some really interesting things with it.

For example, I enameled scrap copper to accent the focal in the necklace I made for the Kalmbach bead soup party:

The good news about using scrap to play? If it turns out ugly or it gets messed up, there's nothing lost, except time. However, even time isn't wasted because it's a learning experience.

So let's start with this copper piece snippet. It came from a much larger sheet that I cut discs from. For this one I thought it might be fun to not cut a straight line to remove the holes from the rest of the sheet. Because I live life on the edge.

If you want your copper to have some texture, do it now. I did some hammering on my piece.

File all edges, corners, etc. you don't want sharp bits.

Next, anneal your piece of copper. I usually use my lampworking torch (a Mini CC) to anneal, but for this tutorial, I used a butane torch. My favorite is the Lenk 500 LPT. And yes, I have several varieties...about 5 or 6. It may or may not be excessive.

If this is your first time annealing copper, wear eye protection, tie hair back, make sure clothing is natural fiber (cotton) and doesn't flop around where it can get in the flame. Also, make sure you are working on and around fire proof surfaces, have a cup of water in a heat proof cup for quenching, and a pair of pliers to hold the metal.

You do not need to burn the crap out of the metal. Just heat it softly...the metal will change color.

Once your metal is annealed and quenched, use one of those multi-grit nail buffers to clean some of the fire scale off the piece. 

Make a couple random folds. Using a chasing hammer, hammer along the fold. Unfold the metal. It will look like this:

Anneal the metal again, clean it, and make more folds.

Hammer the folds.

Unfold.

Repeat until you're happy with the results.

File any new sharp edges created by the folds.

You can also leave folds in place like in the final result below. And while torch-uring the metal is fun, now you get to start designing with the results. I'm thinking this one will make a great pendant and I will use some bronze wire (my new favorite wire...I LOVE that stuff) to trap the bead in the hole.

Here's another scrap copper pendant that will become a pendant.

This was a long strip of disc holes that I made into a cuff by folding it in half lengthwise then twisting the length of it then forming it onto a bracelet mandrel. I then enameled it in white and cobalt.

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Twisted Flower Bead Tutorial - ReRun

This is a rerun of my tutorial for making twisted flowers on lampwork beads.  I hope you enjoy it and have a wonderful holiday!

Bead Tutorial: Twisted Flowers

Materials:
1 rod light turquoise
1 rod light ivory
Tweezers

Remember to occasionally flash your bead in the flame so it doesn't crack!

Step 1: Gather your materials. With your tweezers, pull a few stringers of light ivory. Also, pull a short (1 1/2") stringer of ivory with a larger base, so you can hold onto it to twist.
		Step 2: Make a basic bead of light turquoise. Make sure you are happy with the shape - you won't really be able to adjust it after you add your dots.
Step 3: Add 3 dots of ivory in thirds around the bead. Make sure they are evenly spaced and about the same size.
		Step 4: Melt the dots in. Be careful not to let them get too molten, or they will misshape.
Step 5: Heat the space in the middle of one set of three dots. With your little handmade twisting tool, twist the space in the middle of the three dots, turning only about 1/2 to 3/4 of a turn. The more you twist, the more your circles will distort. After you twist the dots, wiggle the tool a little bit. If it's cool enough, it should pop right off. If not, blow on it slightly then wiggle - the tool will come right off and you'll be ready to twist the next set of dots.
Finished bead!		Step 6: Continue with the other two sets of dots. When you are done, put the bead back in the flame to flame polish and shape it up!

© 2007 SueBeads.com

Of course, you can do other things with this basic tutorial, just use your imagination!  Make 5 petals; make the petals two-toned; leave the petals raised!

Susan Kennedy 
SueBeads Etsy Store
SueBeads Website 

Goodbye to another year!

I've finished my Christmas shopping and the tree is cut and ready for decorating. It's so hard to believe that this year is nearly over! My mind has been filled with ideas, new hopes and plans for the coming year. And of course, reflection on the year that's quickly flying away…

"Joyfulness" My first ever cuff bracelet featuring Jenny's polymer mixed-media focal. I loved creating the layout of the scattered beads and stitching each one in place.

It's been a great year for me—so much better than I had dreamed in a lot of ways! It's been another fabulous year with AJE—I feel honored to be a part of this talented group of inspiring ladies! And it's been such a joy to connect with all you awesomely supportive readers.

"A Love for Autumn" This necklace is my very favorite necklace of the year! I used Melissa's enameled heart, but I gave it a little twist and turned it backwards to create a heart-shaped leaf for an autumn inspired necklace.

One of the things that I've loved most about 2014 was getting back into jewelry making. I had mostly abandoned it for bead-making, but this year I used writing tutorials for AJE and the wonderfully inspiring CoM challenges to push me to create more jewelry. And more and more jewelry! In fact, believe it or not, I've very nearly depleted my entire stash of beads and supplies. I sure hope 2015 will bring me a bigger jewelry supply budget… along with a good sprinkling of art beads to keep me inspired!

I had so much fun writing tutorials for you all! It gave me a good excuse to dig deeper into my little bead stash and create new things.

"Fly with Painted Wings" I really love Kristen's beaded beads!

My goal for jewelry creating this year was to spend as much time as I needed (sometimes that meant I was very late to a challenge reveal!) to make it something that I totally loved—to really develop my voice in my jewelry making. Lots of wire wrapping, working with various fibers and leather… and always trying to dream up new ways to use a component. Looking through my bulging jewelry box I feel that I did just that and I'm so happy!

"Wings of Gold" Caroline's stunning gold moth was quite a challenge for me—probably one of the largest focals I've ever used, but I'm so very pleased with the results.

"A Countryside Spring" This necklace is a relatively simple design, so simple in fact that the only work that is my own is the stringing and arranging of beads. The star of the show is Lesley's button clasp which paired up beautifully with my sister Bethanne's rose pendant and my mom's fabric covered bead cord—it's all about the art jewelry elements!

"Sweet Flower Dreams" Sue's sweet little chicklets were another fun challenge! For this bracelet, I pushed myself to create without any wire or metal components and supplies.

That bulging jewelry box also makes me wonder if I keep too much! I have such a hard time parting with my jewelry, especially when it's become the home of a long coveted art bead from an artist I really admire. With my own bead-making I always keep it in my mind that the bead I am crafting is meant for someone else and I very rarely get attached to a bead I make… but jewelry making is totally different.

"Wood Fern" I am so very thrilled to be one of the first owners of Linda's new ceramic lovelies! I tied it all together with a scrumptious batik ribbon from Karen and added a little creek-pebble for a necklace that will always remind me of the woods that surround my home.

"Crimson Raven" My leather feather paired up with few speckle beads and a couple black rustic beads from Lesley. There's something so fun about using mismatched elements!

"Star Burst" More beaded beads from Kristen!

Still a few more lovelies to inspire in the new year…

All made by the AJE team!

Do I have plans for the new year? You bet! Nothing too big, a couple wild dreams and some realistic goals, but mostly I hope I just get to keep on doing what I love. I'm excited to see where that all will lead me next! And I'm looking forward to sharing in all the new adventures with you all!

I hope you enjoyed this little peek into my jewelry box at some of my jewelry creations from 2014 featuring AJE components. Thank you to my AJE teammates for making all these inspiring lovelies!

Happy Holidays to you all and wishes for a most wonderful and creative New Year!

Rebekah Payne

Tree Wings Studio

Big Changes, Bright Colors!

Hello all!  I recently acquired a job!  I have joined the world or the working again, this time in an office with a business casual dress code.  After tearing through my closet like a fiend, I discovered that an entirely new wardrobe is needed...oh gee, shopping, what a drag!

As I don't have much budget just yet, it's important to collect a wardrobe that is as few pieces as possible, but each piece must be able to combine with any other pieces to create an entire outfit.  In order to do this, keeping to a tight color palette is necessary, again, so all of the pieces may be combined.  Because I have brown hair, brown eyes, and a warm rosy complexion with freckles, saturated autumn colors work well on me.  You can see above, that I'm concentrating on an analogous range of colors, from blue-violet to pumpkin orange, with turquoise, emerald and olive green as accents.  Black, grays, and cream are my neutrals, mostly because I haven't found navy or brown pants that fit right yet.  I love that this palette is so bright and cheery, yet the pieces are still professional and well fitting.  And you might have noticed an absence of patterned tops - I like my shirts to be a blank canvas for my jewelry.

So I've been perusing my collection of art beads, looking for inspiration within my palette to make some new jewelry with.  As we creep towards spring, one of my most productive times of year, I start planning new jewelry so that I can just jump from project to project.  Here are some of the things I've rounded up!

Red moon and sun cabochon by Firefly Design Studio, coral, yellow, and green cabochons by Diana, and a bright butterfly cab by Jenny.  I love how cheery the warm section of this palette looks.  

Just look at these gorgeous polymer clay spacers and components by FanceeThat, big bright ammonite lampwork beads by our fearless leader, Jen (she's got tons of cool ones in her shop right now), and another ceramic butterfly plus an antiqued bronze focal by Lesley.  This contrasting portion of the palette reminds me of the colors used in South-Western art and jewelry - I see it as the earth speaking in color.

I love turquoise and brown together - it's such a great combination.  Here we have another collection of components and cabs by Diana (yes, including our December Component of the Month), a beautiful leaf pendant by Shaterra, plus two pendants and a cab by one of my favorite Oregon artists - Dana Swisher.  I get Dana's beads from my friends at Kaleidoscope Studios, as they are her primary retail outlet.   

My friend Steve of Stephen R. Hicks - Artist, is always happy to supply me with fabulous objects and art pendants to work with.  Here we have a pine knot cabochon, fossil shark tooth, a fossil bone carved feather, and a piece of agatized coral.  I've also been thinking about what to do with my magical hare cab, by Laura Mears, for quite a while now...perhaps this new palette is the perfect world for her!

I have quite a few of my own polymer clay pieces that will work too, including these two ammonites and a newly molded face.  And Sue's beads will be a great addition to this palette!  I specifically requested those robin eggs - I see a beaded nest with the three little beads housed inside.  You have to love that cabochon too!  The perfect combination of purple, yellow, and orange...I just can't wait to play.

But this is just what's in my collection right now - the world of possibilities is endless!  Just look at some of the awesome things that are in my fellow Art Jewelry Elements member's shops!  This is just a small sampling of my favorites...

1)  Kristen Stevens has a lovely tutorial in her shop for this delicate bracelet.  I can just see it with the same turquoise spike beads, plus coral, brown, or orange seed beads.

2)  Sue has this lovely subtle set in her shop...It's pretty obvious that I like that turquoise/orange/brown combo, isn't it?

3)  Lesley has this pretty ceramic pendant with a lovely inky blue design.  I love how refined the shape and motif are...but it still looks rustic, made out of a nice speckled stoneware.

4)  Over in her jewelry shop, I also spotted Lesley's gorgeous "Colorful Summer" necklace.  It will work for fall too!

5)  Linda has these spectacular earrings in her shop - They are so unusual, and that orange makes quite the statement against that muted copper patina.  I just love it.

6)  Caroline is obviously inspired by the sea, just like me, so I am drawn to her urchin beads, plus this lovely ceramic and resin focal.

7)  Jen has tons of fun ammonite beads in her shop right now, including this spotted beauty.  One can't have too many ammonites, right?

8)  Jenny has so much fun stuff to choose from in her shop, but I just love this super cute matroshka doll bead.  Designing a necklace around her would be so much fun!

9)  Like Jenny, Diana has tons of awesome beads and components in her shop that fall into my palette.  I would love to bring the purple in with this love porcelain donut.

10)  Karen has this rustic set in her shop that not only brings in the turquoise and brown that I love so much, but also cream, for a nice highlight.  

11)  I have been ogling these copper starfish focals in Kristi's shop for quite some time now.  It's a good thing that copper, brass, and bronze fit right into my palette.

12)  I love the combination of fuchsia and other warm colors in Melissa's polymer clay morsel - it would look really great with some matching beaded flowers, don't you think?

13)  I always love browsing through Rebekah's shop - so many fun animals, textures and colors to delight the senses!  I find this color combination intriguing, and would like to try it out in my clothing layers...perhaps black tights under my magenta sweater dress, my orange chunky knit vest, and a light blue or aqua necklace?  And I definitely need this bead to make into a bracelet - how fun!

I hope this post gives you ideas for your own wardrobe and art beads!  Wish me luck on combining new clothes and accessories into outfits this week!

Lindsay

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