A Rise From the Ashes, by Caprilicious Jewellery

 Hello folks, how are you today? I write at the end of a very busy week at work, culminating in a swab test, required because four members of staff on my ward being struck down with the dreaded C- word - that swab up my nostril was an unpleasant experience, but hey! a small price to pay for keeping everyone safe!
This is the week when President Biden and Vice President Harris were sworn in and the world heaved a sigh of relief. No one more so than Dr Fauci, the Chief Medical Advisor who reportedly has turned into Dobby the house elf, grinning from ear to ear, looking ten years younger as he prepares to serve under a sensible, scientific regime. I have a number of very dear friends and classmates in the US, working very close to the frontline and I feared for them - soon, that anxiety should finally be a thing of the past. 

Go Big or Go Home

I watched the goings on in Washington along with the rest of the world and a picture of Lady Gaga wearing a huge dove of peace brooch and singing her heart out struck me - no longer are lovers of visible jewellery (by that I mean 'big') going to be apologetic - way to go, Gaga!  Big and visible - that's the only way forward!

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La Fenice - The Phoenix

La Fenice

In ancient Egyptian, and later Greek and Roman mythology, a phoenix is a long-lived bird that cyclically regenerates or is otherwise born again. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor. Some legends say it dies in a show of flames and combustion, others that it simply dies and decomposes before being born again. 
La Fenice - or The Phoenix is one of the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre - it was built first in 1774 after the city's leading house was destroyed and rebuilt, but not opened until 1792; the second fire came in 1836, and rebuilding was completed within a year. The third fire was the result of arson. It destroyed the opera house in 1996 leaving only the exterior walls, and was rebuilt and re-opened in November 2004. 
I am not an opera buff but when in Venice, one has to go to it's most famous (and resilient) building, and I'm so glad I did. The beautiful colours of the interior stayed imprinted on my brain and I reproduced the maroons and gold of the beautiful swags and upholstery as well as the bright colours of the ceiling in my necklace, the embroidery of which was finished just in time for the rebirth of the USA, plucked just in time from the brink of disaster.
The pictures were taken at the end of each day using my iPhone and a ring light - the necklace will be completed and ready to view and wear for next weeks post. 

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I started out with two cabochons - a black agate with a druzy window and an agate druzy coloured with gold vapour that I put together to signify the phoenix with wings on either side. I picked out the bezels in maroon - the little Czech beads are lined with silver, and  glow with an inner fire like garnets. I decorated the 'wings' in bright colours, sprinkled with gold and added a few Swarovski crystals surrounded by bright orange bezels. The background was filled in with more maroon. When that was complete, the back was padded and covered with red ultrasuede, and the whole thing edged with yet more maroon, with the addition of a couple of closed jump rings at the 'wing tips' to hang the necklace.

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The photographs need to be retaken with my DSLR camera once I decide what the back of the necklace will look like and it will be finished over the weekend. 

In my house we are massive fans of Bernie Sanders and I couldn't leave without a picture of him sitting across the street from ours, from the meme that is taking the world by storm! If you wish, you can read how this meme came about.

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That's me for this week, folks. Take care and stay safe, and have a fabulous week. I'll catch you next Friday, same time, same place.
Until then
​xx