Adventures in making fused glass jewelry: silver wire wrapped double dichroic necklace

I've gotten a lot of interesting requests for custom orders, but a friend recently asked me to make her a very special fused glass necklace: she wanted me to design a double pendant with each part representing one of her twin girls.

The babies will be celebrating their first birthday this summer and already have strong personalities. But it's not pink for these girls -- it's purple and yellow. Mom associates these colors with her daughter, one who she says is "fiery" and the other, mellow. That said, she asked me to make her a purple and yellow piece:

I had a few challenges when it came to making this necklace: First up is my friend's allergies to various metals. I usually use silver plated wire because it's sturdy, inexpensive and malleable, making it perfect for wire wrap creations. However, my friend requested sterling silver, which is a bit more delicate and not as easy to shape.

I also had some issues when it came to finding the "perfect" yellow and purple. As I've said before, dichroic glass is made of many colors and those hues often appear after a firing... so glass that I thought would be yellow would look more green, while purple glass would turn out to be blue. I made a few trial pieces, though, and finally came up with two that were just right.

,p> My friend also asked me to make a ring featuring a purple and yellow "wave," where it looks like the two sides are embraced in a hug. Again, it took me several tries to find the right colors. Unfortunately, I could not get this particular batch of sterling silver wire to properly shape into a ring. I ended up going through an entire roll before calling off the project. The last thing I want to do is present an inferior product. This is something I can work on in the future. Sometimes I need to step away from a project and then return to it with a fresh outlook.

Still, my friend is happy with the double pendant, which I connected with a purple crystal. It's simple, but such a cute idea -- and perfect for a new mom of two! This was a tough necklace to make, but seeing my friend actually wear it made the work worth it.

Check out more of my jewelry creations and Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

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