Bit behind with my 52 Things Challenge -- Week 10 & 11

Yes I have gotten a bit behind with my challenge write up, I have been making things but just not had chance to do the writing up of it.  I can only write my blog on my laptop as I can't get pictures to load from my Samsung Tablet onto Blogger for some unknown reason. And as I am always on my tablet my blog gets a bit left behind because my laptop battery is completely fried and I need a new one, so my laptop is a bit of a chore at the moment.


So here we are then Week 10 first

I was actually off ill with a bit of a bug this particular week from work, but I did manage to put a pair of earrings together just before I was ill. I used some of my spiky pod like headpins in a deep dark blue CIM glass called Trade Winds, well originally I thought it was CIM Marine but when I checked the other day, I had it wrong, they are called Marine Spiky Pod Earrings, it doesn't matter as they are for me.

 

My own large earring hooks

I used black patinated brass metal bead caps and beads along with black patinated wire which I used for the hooks but I think it could be copper wire, these came from Fallen Angel on Etsy. I have others which I intend to use very soon as well.

I couldn't sell these headpins as I had dropped them after a photo shoot, so I just had to keep them for myself, not that you can see the tiny scratch on them.  Plus I need a pair of earrings in these colours for a top I don't have any jewellery for anyway!!  I do enjoy making jewellery for myself but I just never seem to get round to it much anymore!!



Right onto Week 11 then


I am getting to my torch at least once or twice a week now, as I really am determined to get more beads made along with new designs in headpins, cabs, well anything I can come up with.

I am still practising with my flowers and thought I would have a little go at putting one onto a cab, not sure if its quite good enough just yet, its a work in progress....

I will give it another go but maybe different petals next time, maybe a pansy!!!

I am enjoying my time playing!!


Oh and here is the rose bud you can see in the background

Its sort of between a full rose and bud really, maybe we'll call it semi-opened!!  Ha ha!!

Ta Ta

E x

Week 9 -- 52 things -- Red Flyer Rosebud

Yes more practising and I think I'm improving ---- slowly!!

Wanted to use a nice Red glass because I had a few new ones and hadn't had a play with them yet, mostly CIM glasses, my favourite type of glass, this one is called Radio Flyer its opaque on the rod but when I pulled the petals -- Wow it was gor-ge-ous!!!

It turned transparent and started to 'strike' fairly quickly! Most red transparent glass has to be 'struck' which means you have to cool the glass then reheat it to bring out the true colour!! I've always had trouble with 'striking' reds especially, they never seem to stay a good red, they can go a semi clear which can be quite annoying, just my own inexperience and lack of patience mainly!!


This one was a dream, I LOVE IT!!!

So I will be using it more often, me thinks!!!

I also had a go at a sort of tulip which didn't really work, but the more I practice the more I learn!!

Also made some spiky pod headpins with my 'confritti' decoration on (this is frit - tiny chips of different colours of glass), which I leave slightly raised, basically its not melted all the way into the base. I made these a while ago as a set of three and one cracked so I thought right I'll make more to complete the set ........

Spot the mistake!

Yep!! I used the wrong green for the base colour, so now got to try and find the right green for the darker one and make more of the lighter one too. Ha ha!! Thats the trouble with artificial light, can't always tell!!! Think I need a daylight lamp up in my workshop!


Til next time

E x