Uptown Magic

This is "Uptown Magic", from The Luella Collection. Just finished last week. The center pieces were a pair of vintage clip-on earrings. I've added the swirls of gold wire and the dangling pink Czech fire-polished beads. Suspended on french earwires, these beauties measure over 3" long. One of a kind and sure to get noticed! I'm thinking...holiday parties? On sale in my Ruby Lane shop.

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Special Orders

Thank goodness for special orders these day! The weather has kept the usual crowds from shopping here in Cocoa Village, but I still have people bringing stones to be set or beads to be restrung or other assorted special requests. I recently restrung an old set of ivory beads for one woman, and encased a large uncut emerald in a freeform setting to be added to a heavy chain for a man's bracelet. On my clipboard of Things To Do, I've got a baggie full of vintage earrings to be remade into pendants (see The Luella Collection on my website if you've got some of your own you'd like made up!), and an order for an asymmetrical neck wire and a bracelet with blue cube beads (among other things).

Sure, I've got plenty of regular inventory to be made, too, but I enjoy doing the special orders because they usually make me think a little more outside the box than my normal jewelry-making requires after all these years. Every artisan needs a challenge once in awhile--keeps us fresh!

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From Found Items to Fancy Accessories

I have a customer from New York--Liz--who comes to Florida to visit friends two or three times a year. And each time she brings me something she's "found" for me to make into something "fancy". She frequents antique stores and estate dealers because she loves discovering old stuff that can be recycled into something new and cool. This last time it was a strand of garnet beads and a pair of vintage crystal clip-on earrings, which she had me combine and upcycle into the necklace pictured above. She has a pair of dangle earrings that I made awhile back, with garnet and crystal beads and liquid gold heishi--the necklace is constructed to match the earrings.

The other thing she brought me was the turquoise-blue scarab. It used to be a pin, but the pin back had broken off. Her antique dealer had it in a box of stuff that he considered "useless". Needless to say, that's Liz's favorite place to look! She had in mind a fancy scrollwork pendant with a double bail, something that would have an "Egyptian" feel. She even provided me with a little sketch of the general idea. Helpful, but not really necessary--it seems Liz and I are on the same wavelength most of the time. She's had me make several pieces over the years, and has yet to be disappointed!

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