In the Land of the Free

Hello, readers, this is a quick catch up all the way from the USA where I am gearing up to attend a Big Fat Indian Wedding. I am really looking forward to dressing up and meeting old friends.

Between the last installment of the blog and my departure on Wednesday, I had time to put a few pieces of jewellery together. I feel bereft these days if I do not have beads or wire to play with as I sit in front of the TV of an evening.  Perhaps Mike and I ought to get out more, but as we are so active all day it is a pleasure to allow ourselves to sit down and relax with some music or the television in the background and a spool of wire to play with. It is a great stress buster and if I have something to show for it at the end of the day, why complain??

Trade WInds

I love sea sediment jasper and  found these two strands online and knew at once that I had to have them. When they arrived, I decided to take the lazy option - instead of looking for two completely different designs, I made the same design in two colourways, and named the pieces after two Trade Winds - the red one is called Scirocco, after the hot, dry desert air over Northern Africa, flowing into the southern Mediterranean basin, and the blue one is called Mistral, after the  strong, cold wind that blows from southern France to the northern Mediterranean.

The Garden at Midnight

I am very proud of this particular necklace. I love the Bargello technique taught to us by the polymer clay artist Jana Roberts Benzon - I love it so much, that every so often I pull out the hand- out that she gave to the class and practice the technique with some left-over clay, lest I forget how to do it. Then, of course, I have to make something with the 'thing' I have produced and that's how this lovely bead came about. I made it about six months ago - that reminds me, I need to play with the hand-out again as it's been a while.
This bead sat in my tray for ages, I simply couldn't think what to do with it - and then a lightbulb moment! The lapis lazuli beads arrived in the post and I could just see the blue and green with tiny peridot beads to match and the necklace created itself.

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A lapis and peridot combination could have been conceptualised and made by almost anyone with an eye for colour, but the addition of the bead makes it a one-of-a-kind piece, made only at Caprilicious! 

Old Canes Never Die

I made these canes so that could make faux trade beads - the idea came out of Marie Segal's blog Art from my Heart. The beads went into a lot of necklaces with pendants from Afghanistan giving them a rustic beauty, yet keeping them light and one of a kind ( see, there's a theme to my madness, the words 'one-of-a-kind' are very important to me!!).
The only problem with this is that the canes were made in September 2013 - Marie's canes all use approximately 10 ounces of clay each - AND THATS A LOT OF CANE! I have made everything I can think of with them, and I still have loads more left. 
I would eat my eyeballs before I threw them away or used them as scrap, though - they were the first canes I ever made and to my untrained hand, the equivalent of hell on legs, but I made them and they're my babies. 

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A totem on Craftartedu caught my eye and I decided to make a totem pendant - using my canes and a load of colour. I shall call these my Jungle Book series. I also made a load of little beads, but will only get time to string them into a necklace once I get back from my holiday - if my idea works out, it will be a fandabidozi piece of jewellery. But, I still have loads of cane left, sigh!

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My totem pendants are pretty and will probably go to the craft fair in Worcester with me. They are basically long 'trade beads' as taught by Marie with a bead cap on each end. I might even give them a test drive in the USA myself - they are certainly my kind of jewellery.

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That's it for this week, I'm posting this a bit early as we fly out to the wedding first thing in the morning. I have been on a day tour around Boston and need to wind down before I repack my suitcase with all my wedding bling -have a lovely week, and I will catch up with you next Friday, same place, same time 
xx