Gorgeous Copper Jewelry and Tutorials by MiedzianaMagia
Love copper jewelry? Then you will be wowed by the gorgeous copper jewelry and tutorials by the talented Polish artisans, Natalija and Piotr...
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Pearl Blay
feature designer
giveaway
metal work
wire work
Gorgeous Copper Jewelry and Tutorials by MiedzianaMagia
Love copper jewelry? Then you will be wowed by the gorgeous copper jewelry and tutorials by the talented Polish artisans, Natalija and Piotr, in the Pracownia Miedzianej Magii which translates to the Copper Magic Studio.
Magic is a good term as they are whizzes with this beautiful metal. They use metalsmithing and wire work techniques. Many of their designs combine copper etching. The gemstones used gives the final pieces a pop of color.
Pearl Blay
beadwork
tutorial
video tutorial
5 Beaded Ball Earrings Tutorials | Large and Small Sizes
Beaded ball earrings are fun to make and wear! They are super light especially you can get polystyrene balls for the inside. Check out these tutorials from great designers.
The first is the colorful tutorial for a pair, shown above, in happy colors! The Dutch designer is BettyBeadingjewelry.
Pearl Blay
tutorial
video tutorial
wire work
One of my favorite wire artisans on Youtube is the Estonian designer from Suzy Wong Studio. I featured her previous lovely wire tutorial for a beaded toggle clasp some time ago. That design had small round beads around the ring part of the clasp.
In this tutorial, she puts the round beads along the bar itself. The beads look really large in the image above but they are only 4 mm beads. You could also experiment with even smaller beads, like metal ones.
She uses 18G wire for the main part with 23 G (use 22 or 24G as alternatives) to wrap. You can drop down to 20 G and 26G but I do recommend you stick to the wire dimensions the instructor uses as the clasp will be sturdier and look better.
Another Wire and Bead Toggle Clasp Tutorial
Pearl Blay
feature designer
polymer clay
tutorial
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Maine designer, Melanie West, has a degree in natural science and has been a naturalist all her life. She is also a gifted artist specializing in polymer clay and mixed media. Her love of nature and science shows in her work. She certainly is an astute observer of the varied forms, colors and patterns found in nature.
Her primary medium is polymer clay. And luckily for us, she also instructs in this artistic medium. Shown here are her polymer clay tutorials on CorvusFiles.
Gorgeous Polymer Clay Tutorials by CorvusFlies
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Pearl Blay
bridal
featured supplier
gemstone
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Sometime ago, I wrote about cubic zirconia which is an inexpensive, synthetic diamond alternative. A reader nudged me to write about yet another diamond alternative, moissanite which has been increasingly popular over the last two decades or so. That is because it has some distinct advantages over diamonds, not least because it costs a lot less than actual diamonds - about 90% less.
Moissanite is silicon carbide, a rare element and the rarest gemstone which was originally found in a meteorite crater (Meteor Crater, Arizona) back in 1893 by Nobel Prize winning French chemist, Henri Moissan. The element was later named in his honor.
Why is Moissanite Trending as a Diamond Alternative?
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Pearl Blay
Etsy
Everything little thing these days helps, right? This Etsy offer of $5 off for everything over $25 (US and Canada) begins now and ends at 11.59 pm this Sunday, September 17.
So it there are things you need or want, this weekend will be good for shopping and supporting small businesses. Can't think of anything just yet? Gift cards are the way to go for easy gift shopping. So a $25 gift card will only cost you $20.
The code below can be used as many times as you want so long as each order is a minimum of $25 :
Etsy's 48 Hour Offer : $5 Off EVERYTHING over $25!
Pearl Blay
ceramic
feature designer
Contemporary Porcelain Jewelry by OeiCeramics
I first featured Dutch artisan, Ilona of OeiCeramics work in this past feature on the Japanese art of kintsugi or "golden joinery" of broken ceramics. Her contemporary style of dainty geometric porcelain jewelry appeals to modern esthetics. The addition of gold areas gives her designs considerable elegance.
I love her delicate patterns using different colors especially in blue which is reminiscent of the blue and white porcelain made in the city of Delft where she lives. Indeed, Ilona must have been inspired by Delft's centuries old tradition of making ceramics.
Pearl Blay
beadwork
A Handmade and Beaded Mother of the Bride Dress | Recommended Books : Bead Embroidery Stitch Samples
Did you remember this recent post, A Dazzling Vintage Coral and Bead Embroidered Dress | Vintage Coral Jewelry? It was about the heavily beaded 1960's Yves Saint Laurent dress in the Victoria and Albert Museum of Design in London.
I asked readers this question : "Have you ever wondered what it would be like to work in the atelier (studio) of a top haute couture house? It must be hard work but also something wonderful to be doing something you love, at the highest skill level."
Pearl Blay
kumihimo
tips and tricks
tutorial
video tutorial
wire work
Mineral Beads and Jewelry Workshops Online is the channel a Panama City based supply shop of the same name. They have a marvelous idea for kumihimo fans wanting to do something a little different with their discs.
This tutorial of theirs (click on this link to be taken to Youtube) shows how to make a wire kumihimo cage with wire spiral bead caps. The rondelle crystals are strung on wire and added inside the wire cage.
The tutorial is clear without having to know any Spanish. You do have to have reasonably thick wire, 18G for the wire spiral caps and 24G for the cage. You could also experiment with different gauges if you wish.
Wire Kumihimo Bracelet Tutorial with Caged Beads
Pearl Blay
beadwork
feature designer
feature supplier
tutorial
More Lovely Beaded Jewelry Kits and Tutorials by MadebyShila
I find it hard to feature excellent beaded jewelry designers because it's difficult to select pieces to include. And so it is with British bead artist, Shila of MadebyShila. I first wrote about her work over two years ago here.
I simply had to include a second selection as she has many lovely designs. I like that she offers kits as well as separate tutorials. As one reader once pointed out to me that kits are attractive as it saves the effort of trying to source all the materials AND not have too much left over.
Pearl Blay
feature designer
feature supplier
metal clay
polymer clay
supplies and displays
tools
3D Print Your Own Clay Cutters and Texture Rollers | Gorgeous STL Files from CuttersMammaMia | PLA Finishing Tips
3D printers are increasing popular and are so useful for creating all sorts of things including tools for clay (polymer and metal) work. I have previously featured different designers who sell such 3D printed tools before (see links below).
Italian designer, Guilia, with help from her partner do something different. She creates and sell STL files from her shop, CuttersMammaMia. She does all this from Rome - she says they can see St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican from their apartment building!
Pearl Blay
feature designer
Real Sea Glass and Sea Pottery Jewelry by SeaGlassDesigns
Nova Scotian, Rita Laidlaw was one of the first feature designers I wrote about. It's been 15 years since that feature and the early beginnings of her shop, SeaGlassDesigns! Rita is still going strong continuing to offer highly desirable real sea glass and sea pottery designs.
Nova Scotia, Canada, has a long and rich maritime history. Its coastline has seen a lot of fishing, naval and merchant shipping for over 400 years. An estimated 25,000 shipwrecks has been put forth by the Maritime Heritage Database. People also threw unwanted materials into the rivers and oceans. All that contributed to sea glass and sea pottery being washed up on its beaches.
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