Finally! Moving Forward

This very quiet week I have had two major break throughs. One will be glaringly visible in just a few days and the other in a couple of weeks. But at my house things are happening.

Ok, I finally went to the supplier and bought some flux. I have hesitated for so long because I feel it's harmful to both me and the environment. But I have explored all the alternatives, and there's no way to solder without flux. Fusing fine silver gets very expensive and unnecessary to use for frames, and it's also too soft. I want brass!

So now I have test soldered a couple of circular elements in brass, using the "W-flux" that I'm guessing is borax. I don't want to know. It works - I'm happy. I pickle in an environmentally friendly way, though. With citric acid solution in very high concentration. It takes a little longer, but I'm slow to start with, so it doesn't matter, really.

Now I can begin do make the designs I really want, relatively effortlessly. I need to upgrade the solder, though. Why use medium hard solder on a simple element which will be worked on once? Because I want to make things more challenging I suppose.




The other break through is my purple love from russia. I have searched high and low for some affordable charoite beads to use in my latest lavender/green creations, and found everything from amethist, dyed jasper, expensive large irregular chips (which I dislike) and unpolished slabs on eBay. Not to mention the one piece (1!) round 12mm bead from a Swedish bead store for 65 Skr! Or a full strand from the US for $100 and then some. I'm a scavenging container rat for F's sake! I don't buy beads unseen for that kind of money (unless I find a lot of money in some container some day).

But now I've found some hopefully reasonalbly good quality from a dependable source to a price where I can afford to just take a chance. If they're not good, my son can have them to make christmas ornaments or use as marbles...

Charoite - From Russia With Love

Charoite is another type of rock that as far as we know can only be found in one place on earth - along the Chara River in Siberia. It is unlikely that the same geological prerequisites have occured elsewhere. It is found where a syenite (the Murunskii Massif) has intruded into and altered limestone deposits producing a potassium feldspar metasomatite, all according to Wikipedia.

During the Soviet Union it was very little known outside the walls, except for one of a kind urns and vases in palaces, and it was not until relatively recently that it has begun to be used in jewelry making. It's sometimes used in "palaces" nowadays, too, like this luxury hotel bathroom. (I like cahroite, but that bathroom would be chopped onto cab.sized pieces if I owned it.)

It's hard to come by. At least if you want the real deal. I'm looking for it n the usual places like eBay and Etsy, and I would say that 80% of what is claimed to be charoite is not so. It's amethyst, dyed agate or jasper, dyed marble or what looks to be actual plastic. The 20 percent left is of varying quality. And it seems you can't even go by price because some quite boring pieces still have a high enough price.
I have a slab of one-sidedly polished rough at home, a gift from my husband. I have managed to aly my hands on a few nice nuggets that I might be able to do something with, and some rondelles. And some fakes. Fortunately, my fakes instead proved to be some really nice chevron amethyst that had been mislabeled. And I like amethyst, too.

Amethyst and Sterling Silver Bracelet

Here is a cute sterling silver bracelet featuring 10 large faceted nuggets of chevron (banded) amethyst. The beads range from bright to dark to pinkish to deep purple to give a playful contrast together with the haphazard faceting of the nugget beads. They have been simply wrapped in bright sterling wire and finished off with a simple toggle clasp, which is, of course, hand made by me. 20.2cm - 8" for a medium ladies' wrist.

Cloudy Quartz and Sterling Silver Bracelet

For lack of a better name I call these quartz beads cloudy. Quartz comes in many shades and colours and there's no strict names to the variants except "rock crystal" "amethyst" "rose quartz" "smoky quartz". These were named  "lemon quartz" by the seller, but that usually refers to an almost greenish yellow shade of quartz. These have not the slightest hint of either green nor yellow - they're tan.
They are very evenly milky making them translucent and discretely shimmering. The 10mm round beads are set in medium sized sterling daisy spacers and smooth beads, then wrapped in medium sterling wire and connected by a soldered closed sterling jump ring. It looks elegent but is very sturdy. The clasp is hand made from sterling silver wire and the whole piece has been gently oxidized and buffed. Length 21.5cm - 8.5".

Aquamarine and Copper Bracelet

Here's a rustic and lushious aquamarine beads copper wrapped bracelet that will catch anyone's eye. The large smooth 12mm milky aquamarine beads are fitted inside loopy petal-like copper bead caps and wrapped together with medium heavy copper wire. Some beads are lighter, some are darker, some translucent and partly transparent giving nice variation and contrast.

Smoky Quartz and Copper/Sterling Silver Bracelet

Fall calls for those warm hues of orange and brown, such as smoky quartz and copper.
Arranged with a little more details and contrast, the 10mm micro-faceted smoky quarts beads are wrapped with large copper daisy spacers and smooth copper 3mm beads, using sterling silver wire. The clasp is handmade from copper wire. Length is 21.5cm - 8.5", for a slightly larger ladies wrist.

Prehnite and Sterling Silver Bracelet

I made this bracelet for those summery days when the glow of prehnite against the tanned skin looks so yummy you can almost taste it. Well, summer's gone but the bracelet remains. And it still looks good whithout the summer tan.
It is a simple, yet elegant, wire wrapped bracelet, with 10mm round micro-faceted prehnite beads linked together with sterling silver wire. The clasp is hand made in a simple style from a slightly heavier wire to match the rest of the bracelet. The bracelet has been lengthened with a short piece of heavy rolo chain to fit a slightly larger ladies wrist. Total length is 21.5cm - 8.5".

And, yes, this bracelet has been used. By me. A lot. 

Chandelier Prism Copper Wrapped Pendant

I dropped by the Town Mission's Salvage Store the other day (I'm a regular), and it seemed they had some kind of sale, or something. I found several things that I liked for really no price at all, which is less than usual. Among them were two brass candle holders with a prism tied into the middle of each them in a flimsy way. It didn't look good but I could tell the prisms were good and unchipped. So I bought the candle holders, snatched off the prisms, and handed the candle holders back to the chashier. I said, "Guess you can sell these again, huh?". When she recovered from the surprise, she looked at the price tags and noted "I don't even have to change the price..." and put them on the out-shelf again. And I was happy not to have to take two cheap brass trinkets home with me. I have enough of those already.

As I got home, I realised that it's really all or nothing, because five of my Hong Kong pendants had arrived in the mail as well, so now I had seven nice pendant beads that begged for some attention. But I felt the most for the prisms.

I quickly decided on the "Strukova pattern" as I like to call it, thusly named after one of my absolute favourite wire artisans Elena Strukova. I usually don't make it like she does, I put on variations and stuff in all directions, just as to not copy anyone's work.

I picked 2 glass briolette beads to adorn it with, and voila, it looks like i just took a piece of a chandelier down and hung it around my neck. Well, not quite, but almost. I'm pleased. I plan to make the other one a bit like it but maybe use brass wire or coloured briolettes, or whatever comes to mind at that moment.
This pendant will be listed in my Etsy-shop very soon.

ABOUT: Rogaland Anorthosite

A type of stone that I often use for jewelry is the indigenous Norwegian anorthosite from the Rogaland area in southern Norway. It has no official name but is often referred to as "Blue Eyes" or "Labrador Antique" in interior decoration referring to the names used for marketing Larvikite as "Light Labrador" or "Dark Labrador" since it has many similarities with that rock. This rock has a soft brown background colour to the occasional fiery blue shillering crystal. And that's where similarities end because this rock is made up of other minerals and has other characteristics. But most strikingly it has a completely different origin and age (900 million years).



En sten som jag ofta använder i mina smycken, är en anorthosit från södra norge, som jag för enkelhets skull kallar rogaland-anorthosit. Den saluförs med många namn, bl.a. "blue eyes" eller "labrador antique", vilket syftar på utvinningsfirmans andra produkter, larvikiten, som saluförs som "ljus el mörk labrador" "blue pearl" eller "emerald pearl" då den påminner om den stenen men är som bottenfärg brun istället för grå. Det är egentligen inte alls samma bergart, utan har en annan sammansättning, ett annar ursprung och en helt annan ålder (900 miljoner år gammal).

Som smyckessten är den en diskret sten utan särskilt blank yta eller extremt färgspel, förutom spridda ögon av klarblått, turkos eller till och med lila, mitt i det milt bruna. I dagsljus framkommer detta mycket tydligare än i inomhusljus. Stenen har inte samma hårdhet som många andra smyckesstenar, och därför formger jag nästan alltid med stenen skyddad eller något inlindad i metalltråd om smycket sitter på ett utsatt ställe (armband eller ring).

Lite information på engelska:
Norges geologiske undersøkelse - The Rogaland Anorthosite Province

Copper Wire Bracelet with Rogaland Anorthosite Cylinder Beads

This bracelet was made in the same style as the previous necklace and bracelets with Larvikite. The soft brown of the anorthosite goes very well together with the oxidized copper for a casual look. See this post for more info on Rogaland Anorthosite.

Labradorite Necklace For A Friend

This is a copper wire necklace with a large wrapped toggle clasp in front that serves as a focal. It is embellished with wrapped sticks of indian green/gray labradorite, and the chain is hand made by me link by link. Not for sale.

Detta är ett kopparhalsband med ett stort lindat togglelås mitt fram. Det är dekorerat med lindade hängande pinnar av indisk labradorit, och kedjan, som är handgjord från koppartråd (av mig) är dekorerad med en och annan snurrad snurr och labradoritpinnar.
EJ TILL SALU

Kambaba Jasper and Copper Necklace

Kambaba Jasper and Copper Necklace, $34

This necklace contains so many of ny favourite design elements that I don't really know if I will be able to part with it. But of course I will.


First of all the kambaba jasper is my absolute favourite of the jaspers. That deep forest green, the oolites and swirls, the shiny surface and hardness of the jasper. Then the fact that life's early history is written in these stones - they are fossilized stromatolite algae, one of the earliest forms of life on our planet.

Copper has gone from being my practice wire to being a favourite material in its own right. The warm brown of oxidized copper. Mmmmm.

The Indian Eye shape of the focal stone making it look like some kind of leaf from a prehistoric plant. It has movement and life in some way.

And last, but not least, the design element of wrapping rolo chain onto the outside or inside perimeter of a frame using fine gague wire.

I have used small kambaba rice beads 6x4mm and a flattened curb chain in copper. The unusual clasp is, of course, my own design.

For sale in my Etsy shop for $34.

Svensk översättning kommer snart.

Firepolish and Moonstone Copper Diamond Cable Bangle

Diamond Cable Bangle with firepolished glass beads,
copper wire and moonstone rondelles. $50

This bangle was made from 4mm chinese firepolished glass beads, a couple of rainbow moonstone rondelles and copper wire and Miyuki seed beads.It looks very frail but is really very sturdy in its construction.The hammered, handformed floral focal is the clasp although it can pass over even my big hand without opening. A 1mm copper wire runs inside the bangle. This will look great on your arm with that summer tan or during white christmas.
For sale in my Etsy shop.

Ett armband av firepolished facetterade glaspärlor sydda i netting-teknik med seed beads och små miyuki. Själva kabeln är nästan genomskinlig. Ser väldigt lätt ut men känns väldigt gedigen. Som spänne sitter en blomma av koppar med små månstensrondeller i mitten. Armbandet stängs med en hake under blomman.
Skirt och vintrigt, eller skirt och somrigt - som man vill.
Till salu i min Etsy-shop.

ABOUT: Larvikite - Norwegian Labradorite

Same bead from three different angles.

Larvikite is one of my favourite rocks. It has it all. It's totaly indigenous to a small plutoon in southern Norway, where it was formed by geologic processes about 280 million years ago. technically it's a monzonite with plagioclase feldspar (like all labradorite rock) but it's uniformly steel gray and blue in its schiller effect. Very easy to match with other elements, so to speak.

It comes in a variety of shades of gray, and intensity in the blue of the schiller effect, totally depending on where it's mined. It is commonly used for facade decoration, and for example the University Library in Oslo is totally covered in a darker variety of this rock. The UN building in New York also features this stone. In my home town Stockholm in Sweden you can admire polished slabs of this rock on the facade of the building opposite Åhléns City, and unpolished slabs in the pavement outside the entrance to the Scandia Bank on Sveavägen, among other places.

The name "Larvikite" causes some trouble in non-scandinavian countries, and it is thusly called "Norwegian Moonstone", "Black Labradorite" or simply "Labradorite", which is in a sense correct, but a bit misleading because most people associate the word "labradorite" with a strong blue/yellow/green/orange/purple shiller effect in a gray/brown background, like the rock mostly used for jewelry and decorative purposes and that is mined in Madagascar and Canada. This is a visually very different stone, and the name Larvikite, coming from the town of Larvik/Laurvik where it was first mined is much more descriptive and correct.

Way back when, the Norwegians built foundations and churched with unpolished blocks of this stone, and it wasn't chosen because of its lustre but rather for its abundance. It was used as ballast of ships, which has lead to it being found in the great lakes of North America as well as in Great Britain. But geologigally speaking it is only found in one very special place - Vestfold/Telemark in southern Norway.

More about the rock which was elected Norwegian National Rock in 2008:
Norways National Rock

 

 

OM - Larvikit, norsk labradorit

Samma larvikitpärla från 3 olika vinklar

Larvikiten är en av mina absoluta favoritbergarter. Den är helt unik för södra Norge och har uppstått ur geologiska processer i oslofältets pluton för c:a 280 miljoner år sen. Tekniskt sett är det en monzonit, med plagioklas fältspat (som andra labradoriter) men den är helt grå med grått eller gråblått färgspel i shillereffekten. Väldigt lättmatchad således.

Den finns i några olika varianter beroende på var den bryts, en lite svartare med något grönaktig färgspel, en blåaktigare med stark schillereffekt och gråare varianter, både ljusa och mörka. Stenen används ofta till fasadsten, och t.ex. är hela universitetsbiblioteket i Oslo inklädd i denna iögonfallande sten. I Stockholm finns den på flera fasader, bl.a. Axelssons dammode i korsningen klarabergsgatan/drottninggatan (mitt emot Åhléns).

Ordet "larvikit" verkar vara svårt internationellt, och den kallas (förutom rena felstavningar på ordet larvikit) för "Norwegian Moonstone", "Black Labradorite" eller bara för "Labradorite" vilket i och för sig är korrekt men kanske missvisande, då folk väntar sig en sten med stark blågul/grön/orange/lila schillereffekt. Namnet kommer från staden Larvik, i vars närhet man först hittade och började utvinna stenen.

Tidigare byggde man husgrunder och kyrkor med stenen, men de var opolerade och användes inte för sin lyster utan för att det fanns så rikligt av den. Man använde den även som ballast på båtar, vilket har gjort att stenbumlingar av larvikit återfinns lite varstans i världen som på engelska kusten och i de stora sjöarna i nordamerika. Men rent geologiskt finns stenen bara på ett enda ställe i världen - Vestfold/telemark i södra Norge.

Mer om larvikit som korades till Norges nationalbergart 2008:
Norges nya nationalbergart

Larvikite Cylinder and Copper Necklace

Larvikite and Copper Necklace $18

A necklace handmade by me from copper wire and copper chain with 5 larvikite stone cylinders, a form of black labradorite only found in southern Norway. (Read more about the Norwegian National Rock Larvikite here.) The clasp is a design element and located on the side of the neck, well visible from the front. It has a twin spring link on the other side. 

The chain around the back of the neck is of a scroll/myriad type, and the whole piece is relatively short albeit not a choker style necklace. It rests on the collarbones.

I can list this necklace on Etsy.com or Artfire.com if you are interested in purchasing it.

There is a matching bracelet for this here.

Halsband av koppar och larvikitcylindrar

Halsband av larvikit och koppar $18

Ett halsband i koppar med larvikitcylindrar som ska matcha armbandet med 5 larvikitcylindrar. (Läs mer om Norges nationalbergart här) Haspen sitter på sidan väl synligt framifrån, och har sin motsvarighet i en kopparfjäder på andra sidan. Runt nacken går en kedja av skroll-modell (scroll chain, eller myriad chain, eller vad man nu vill kalla det). Halsbandet är ganska kort och sitter högt så att larvikitcylindrarna vilar på nyckelbenen.

Jag kan lägga ut detta till försäljning på Etsy.com eller Artfire.com om du är intresserad av att köpa det, eller köpa det av mig personligen i Stockholm.

Det finns ett matchande armband till halsbandet här.

Introduction

In the foreground; Diamond Cable Bangle with Hematite and
Sterling Silver + a Small Larvikite Stone Bead, $70. In the
background; Diamond Cable Bangle with wax beads, copper
and a lemon quartz bead $45.

This blog will be showing all my designed and handmade jewelry for sale, and those items already sold as well. All jewelry can be purchased through Etsy.com, or ArtFire.com and if it's not already there I can list it upon request. You can also buy items in person in Stockholm (cash only). And of course you will get a receipt either way.

It will probably take me a while to post all the jewelry I've already made, but hopefully all new creations will be posted immideately along with photos of the creative process. Hopefully someone else might find that just as as interesting, like me.


Denna blogg kommer att visa alla mina designade och handgjorda smycken som jag har till försäljning på Etsy.com, och ArtFire.com så väl som det som redan är sålt. Det som inte finns i webbshopparna kan jag lägga upp om du kontaktar mig genom shoppen, eller så kan du köpa det av mig personligen i Stockholm, kontant. Kvitto får du naturligtvis ändå.

Det kommer att ta ett tag så här i början att lägga upp alla smycken jag har gjort hit intills, men förhoppningsvis kommer alla nya skapelser att läggas upp direkt och jag planerar att ta med bilder från skapandeprocessen som ju kan vara minst lika intressant.