Here's a brand new pendant capture that I just made... I used black steel wire from the hardware store... & a piece of broken china..... I then waxed the whole thing with Renaissance Wax.. the steel wire is VERY Messy to work with..  gets your hands very dirty... after I clean the whole piece I use the wax. 






This pendant was constructed using the Tiffany method... copper foiled around the outside of pendant,  then soldered using LEAD  FREE  solder..

Just putting the finishing touched on pieces  for the blog hop..managed to get a necklace, earrings & bracelet  from all the beads that my partner Bonnie sent..

Here are some things that I consider when I am designing a piece of jewellery.

The Line of the piece:  How does it fit the body, where will it sit? What length will it be?
Colour: I use colour to convey & create emotion

Shape:  will the shape or style work with the beads that I have chosen?  Is it pleasing or interesting... Usually when I look at a the pieces that I have lain out I know instantly whether I like it or not...Don't ignore those little feelings of doubt.

The value  (or lightness or darkness) of the chosen beads:  how light or dark is the piece.. do all the beads work with each other?? Is there light , medium,  dark.. parts ..  crystals,  silver, gold,    create a bit of tension in the piece.

Texture:  Is there texture on the surfaces of the beads?  smooth, rough, carved, shiny, matte, or  faceted.

Of course a piece does  not have  to have all the above mentioned inclusions.. Shapes can be repeated.  Once the eye sees a shape, if the shape is repeated it makes the eye more comfortable.. I like at least 3 repeats... I most always go for the number 3 in my designs...

A focal bead is used to draw the eye in and the beads surrounding the focal showcase the focal..

Add some zing to your designs by using some decorative head pins, adding some black to the mix... I also like to add some silver colour,  by using bead caps or silver spacers

WHAT makes a  piece of jewelery work?? Here  is a  list of   components that I use to design my jewelry.  I use  a lot of the same principles of Interior Design.  both in  design elements and color elements... I like to use  these shapes: round, square, oblong, flat, these textures:  smooth, rough, shiny, matte, different sizes:

big, medium & small.  If I am using found objects then I would include something old & something new.  If I am feeling really daring I would add some sparkle to the whole piece. 

For color I usually go with an analogous color scheme..(3-6 colors adjacent to a key color with 1 color in common. I try to  use other combos such a complementary but I struggle with them..so I just stick to what I do best... I dress the same way... It is just the way it is....

Here is a little memory wire bracelet and as you can see I have used all oranges, yellows, reds and thrown in some white for contrast.  These are some lampwork beads that I have made.

Here's a photo of the bracelet that the home-schooled class made... They only had about 20 minutes to pick the beads out & assemble it.... I kept it simple and easy for little hands to make.  The stretchy cord is about 1 mm. thick & I wrapped scotch tape around 1 end to easily go thru the bead and I made a knot at the other end so the beads didn't fall off.

After the bracelet had all the beads on we centered the beads, tied a knot at each end of the beads, then tied a knot to make it into a bracelet.... This is a super easy project for little kids!!!  They were all thrilled to bits!!!

Here it is    Monday....... I am so behind....

 On Friday ..My dear husband decide to rent a JACK   HAMMER  & rip out about 50 sq. feet of tile which was very Securely  affixed to the cement base.... WELL... it took him 8 hours of hard labour... (Something like having a baby????)  to rip it all out... after about 2 hours ( I was away having FUN... giving a talk about glass to 14 home-schooled children... &  then they all made a  simple bracelet with beads)  HE  took a look at all the dust that he created & then decided to put up some plastic.... by then it was way too late.... the dust was everywhere....We have finally  finished cleaning up most of  the dust ..but we still have a few rooms...  The door was closed to these rooms so its not urgent that they be cleaned......
Today  I gave a lampwork  class and was all prepared for 2 students but ended up having 4.... some kind of mix up with the front desk......All one can do is suck it in and carry on...  Never let your students see you are a bit ruffled....It all turned out well in the end.... (Fortunately I am always prepared  with more supplies than I actually need!!!)

I have a private student tomorrow afternoon.... so my bead-soup mix will have to simmer on the back burner for a few more days....

Now I have to go  down to my studio & whip up a Valentine's Card for My dear husband!!!!

Here's the photo of the  fab  Bead Soup that I received from my partner Bonnie:  www.jasper-moon.ca
  These are some of my favorite colours... I just love putting BLACK in my designs...  The cream colour beads are actually carved bone... I have never used real bone in any of my creations... so this will definitely be something out of my comfort ZONE.... but I am up for the challenge...  The tiny black bicones are Swarovski crystal  (another of my favs... I just love anything sparkly as witnessed by all my t-shirts with sparkles & rhinestones on.    

The light green  crystal rhondelles are a fav. of mine as well.
The black faceted beads will add some weight to my design..

    Here's my Etsy Shop.....

                     WWW.FayWolfendenDesigns.Etsy.com  

I will be posting some more goodies for sale shortly!!!!!

I have been busy getting ready to give 14 home-school students a small talk
on glass... & a bead-making demo........it's taking a lot longer then I thought..
After the demo they will each make a simple bracelet!!!!!

Received my bead soup package from Bonnie yesterday.. will take some pictures & post on Friday...       doing some skiing @ the local mountain... fabulous skiing,

                                   Was a fab sunny day & not too cold