Showing posts with label wire. Show all posts

Introducing a New Line

Image may contain: 1 person, smiling, sitting, ocean, sky, sunglasses, mountain, outdoor, water and natureHappy June! I can't believe we're here already. The year has really flown by since January. I have been really busy with work and creating new things; it has really been fantastic.  The park is fantastic and we're really enjoying being outside more and celebrating a fantastic life together.

So many have asked me about my wire weaving.  They ask, how do you do that? Have you ever thought of teaching a class?? How about a tutorial?  Can you make a tutorial??
Well, I decided that I would do a quick intro series on what I call Wire Theory.  Basically I'm not going to sit down and write out exactly how to make one specific piece. I think we can safely say there are plenty of people out there who do that.

You will learn the skills to create something like this carnelian piece that sold literally ten minutes after I finished it.

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What I find most lacking in the tutorials available today is the theory behind the piece. What do you do when the wires are too short?  What do you do when you don't have the right bead?  How do you make something without a tutorial?? I'm going to fill that gap for you. My tutorials will be written in such a way to provide you with the gentle nudge you may be looking for to get started in become a Wire Jewelry Creator instead of a Wire Jewelry Replicator. My tutorials also come with support.  At any time you have a question, or just want to chat about wire weaving, share your work or ask a question you can pop into the  Facebook group and leave a message there or message my FB Page. I'll do my best to respond as quickly and as fully as possible.  I've uploaded 4 PDFs and one Introduction file to the website and you can find them here.

Also in celebration of 38 years of LGBT Pride Parades I've added a coupon code for the month of June, LGBT Pride month.  For all orders over $100 you can apply the PRIDE38 coupon code to get 38% off your total purchase.  I've excluded the tutorials but everything else is fair game. EVEN items on sale!

So that's what's going on right now.  Tons of stuff. Lots of pretties on the website, festivals coming up. So much to do.  I really hope you all have a wonderful month. Remember to share your pretties on the Facebook page.  I'd love to see what you're working on!

Hugz!
Sosanna


A Witch's View - SPACE

Lately hubby and I have been working on some new products. We have been playing with resin. Along with the cold casting, we have been creating pendants with images inside them. I found some really nice public domain images from the Hubble telescope. I wanted to share those with you.


Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson


And here's a video.  








I am really pleased with how these turned out.  You can find them for sale on my website.  



Witchy Wednesday - Weaving Magic

It has been a while since I shared any of my wire work.  I'm extremely pleased how some of my new pieces are turning out.  So for this week I thought I would share some photos (and maybe a video or two) from the newest ones.

Photo and Wire Art by Renee Sosanna Olson














I'm really in love with these blue labs now.  Here's some info I found about Copper/Labradorite on the web.

This labradorite pendant is so impressive and amazing. It is modern and elegant. Blue flashy labradorite is eye-catching in a classy way. 

A stone of transformation, Labradorite is a useful companion through change, imparting strength and perseverance. It balances and protects the aura, raises consciousness and grounds spiritual energies. Excellent for strengthening intuition - promoting psychic abilities. Also just plain drop dead gorgeous of a stone!

Copper is said to promote love, sensuality, friendship, positive relationships of any kind, negotiations and peace. Healing work, fertility spells, prosperity spells, and spells to attract love.

Angel: Haniel
Gods/Goddesses: Shamash, Innana, Astarte, Ishtar, Aphrodite, Venus
Chakra: crown, heart, solar-plexus
Element: water
Astrological Sign: Taurus
Planet: Venus;
Sabbat: Midsummer or Litha;
Tree of Life: Netzach
Tarot: The Empress

Copper is 100% recyclable without loss of quality. There is anecdotal evidence that copper can be used in the treatment of wounds and skin diseases, as well as internal diseases, anemia, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and heart disease. It can also help improve the circulation of blood, increasing energy and detoxifying the body. It is primarily said to benefit the Root and Sacral Chakras, but may also benefit the Heart Chakra.



Photography and Wire Art by Renee Sosanna Olson
You can find my work on Etsy and Amazon Handmade.

A Witch's View - What Makes a Home?

Because of my ability to work from home, I have the benefit of being able to avoid certain stresses. I don't worry about traffic or car problems.  The weather is generally not a concern of mine when planning my work week.

I'm also pretty lucky that I have a fantastic partner who supports my need to be creative.  He allows me the freedom and the understanding to do all the crazy things that I do.  I tend to spend a lot of time making jewelry.  I do dabble a bit into soldering but my passion is weaving the wires. It is so relaxing to me.  Recently I made a few pieces that I really loved.  I have shared them on here before and one of them is actually sold already but I can't help but share it again.

Photography and Jewelry by Renee Sosanna Olson


This piece really spoke to me.  It spoke to me about protection. While I was weaving the wires together I thought about the wrapping of the copper around the glass eye. Copper is well know for the healing properties it possesses.  I leveraged that along with the knowledge that comes from seeing clearly what is around you. The friends that are behaving as enemies or the family that is behaving as a foe. Using the eye as a way to see what you really need to see, you can open up a channel of knowledge simply by allowing the eye to see what you have been blinded to.

Many people use the adage "Home is where the heart is" , to me I'm one that doesn't give much thought to the structure that surrounds my belongings. A house is just a vessel that I use to keep my stuff from getting wet. At least it always had been.  Last year Hurricane Matthew came through and wiped out many people here in Seven Springs.  We lost our vardo, which took away our ability to travel to our events.

Flood Oct 2016 - Renee Sosanna Olson

Now we're looking at the possibility of resettling.  It leads me to ask what exactly is a home? What do we need?  We're looking for a place with protection from the elements, but also a place where we can live with like minded people.  A place that we can afford but also a place that offers protections for people like us. We want to be around people who think like we think and care like we care about those around us.

Since moving back to NC, my childhood home, I have found that being close to blood relatives does not make a place home. As many of you know I ended up caring for my mother in my home a few years ago and I have just now gotten over the negativity she brought into my life.  At the time I placed her in a nursing home my younger sister got mad at me and pretty much disowned me. This past Christmas she came to my cousin's house and broke down in tears. I have to admit I didn't feel as connected to her but I thought I would give it a try.  My birthday is next week.  She has messaged me once on Facebook since then.  I really believe if I was that big a part of her life she would have reached out a bit more.  It is something I long for, but have come to understand that we just do not have that type of relationship.

Kallan & Renee



Ideally what makes a home is a place where you are safe and cared for.  A place where you can count on those around you. A place where someone remembers your birthday or calls you just because they want to talk to you. A home is where your family is. Not blood family necessarily but those who come to your defense when you're under attack.  They offer themselves up to help you when you are down and they want to know what your day is like. Just because they love you.

Renee, Kallan & Elijah


I will be going home soon.  Our walls will change.  Our address will be different.  Our lives will be happier.  I'll need one of those little signs that says "Home Sweet Home".  And don't you worry, on the back will be a nice little eye, just to help me keep my eyes open to the world around me.


Weaving Wednesday - Sterling Silver & Rainbow Moonstone

This is a piece I created recently with Sterling Silver wire and a beautiful Rainbow Moonstone.

Here's the finished piece.


Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson


I started with a basic chevron weave and created the frame.


Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 Next I secured the frame and started on the bail.
Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 I pulled four of the frame base wires around to create a basic figure eight weave for the bail.

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 After securing the bail I started on the two side wires.  I created a circle for the bail with one side.

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 And some loops around the front on the other side.


Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 Here's a look at the base weave on the side of the stone that frames the stone in place.

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 And a look at the front.  Man, that Moonstone shimmers!

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
 Finished piece.  Love it.

Photo Credit Renee Sosanna Olson
You can purchase my pieces on my Etsy shop or over at my Facebook page.  The etsy lnk in on the side rail of this blog and my facebook page is here - www.facebook.com/baublesmith

Back to Copper - Weaving Wednesday

Due to the flood I've been taking a few weeks off to get things back together.  I decided to start with a copper piece to get back into my flow.  This is the first piece I did.  This one hasn't been tarnished yet, but this is how it looks so far.


Here's the finished product

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson


I started with a base weave on 6 wires and wrapped them around the tear drop shaped stone.



Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Next I joined the top together and circled the back to create the frame.  Using the weaving wire I created the bail by using a simple figure eight weave.


Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
 Once the bail wires reach the back I pulled them around to continue to access the front of the piece.


Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
 Here the bail wires are woven with a three three pattern and then attached to the front frame of the piece.

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
 The second set of wires are also woven with that same three three pattern and attached to the frame.

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

 This photo shows the back of the piece where the stone is framed in as well as the spirals I created along the opposite side of the stone.

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
 And the finished piece.  I still need to tarnish the copper.  I'll be doing a video of that for the blog a bit later.

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
 You can find all of my creations for sale on my Facebook page shop - www.facebook.com/baublesmith



Weaving Wednesday - Silver & Labradorite

This is another piece I finished while we were evacuated due to flooding from Hurricane Matthew.

Here's the finished piece

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson

I started with five base wires and did a stair step style weave to create the frame.

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson

 I circle the frame around the stone and use the wire to close the frame.

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson
 The stone is held in place by attaching the base wires to the back.

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson

I then separate the base wires leaving four for the bail and four for the front weaves.

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson
 The bail is attached and then the extra wires are used to create the decorative weave down the sides.

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson
 These are the finished photos.  This piece is available on the Facebook Page for purchase.


Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson

Photography & Jewelry by Renee Olson

Weaving Wednesday - Silver

I ended up evacuating for a flood from Hurricane Matthew and didn't get a chance to get this post scheduled.  So here it is finally ....

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
I started out with five base wires and created a wide weave due to the size of the stone.

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
 I think wrapped it around the outside of the stone and joined the wires at the top to begin working on the bail.

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
 To create the bail I pulled four of the wires up straight to the top and started a type of figure eight weave to create the bail.  To of the front wires are pulled around the back to lock the stone in place.

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
 The bail weave is created and tided into the back of the piece.

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
 Using the remaining wires I pair them up in sets of two/three/four and create decorative weaves to go along the sides of the piece.

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson
 These are the final pictures.  I needed up using the plain wires across the front to add a bit of a decorative element to the front of the stone.

This piece is available for sale and can be purchased on the Facebook Page


Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson

Jewelry & Photography - Renee Olson


Weaving Wednesday - Sterling Silver

I'm slowly starting to work with more sterling silver wire.  Here's my latest piece with some lovely labradorite.

Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson


I started out with five base wires that were 22 gauge and a single weaving wire of 28 gauge.

Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
I used a basic chevron style weave to create the frame.

Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
 After the frame was shaped I used one wire from each side to secure the stone in the back.

Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
 Next I set the stone.


Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
 I used four of the remaining base wires to create the bail.

Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
 After securing the bail, I used the two left wires to create a decoration down the right of the stone and then crossed the remaining two wires to the left to create a balanced design.


Photography & Jewelry by  Renee Sosanna Olson
Here is a video of the finished product.