Wire wrapped pendant necklace with fused blue dichroic glass and wire spiral; "Rhapsody In Blue" necklace

I really love working with glass, but one thing I've learned is that it's really difficult to make custom pieces. Dichroic glass is gorgeous, but it's prismatic, so it has more than one color. Also, those colors are quite complex, so when you fire two pieces -- even if they're made from the same sheet of glass -- you just never know what you're going to get. One piece might be bright blue, while another looks more purple or even gray. This is probably a different case when you're using a professional-level kiln and can spend hours letting a piece heat, but I have to work with my little microwave kiln. It's a great tool, but it does have some limitations.

Right now, I'm working on a necklace and ring for a friend. It's a double pendant, where one square is purple and the other is yellow. She wants a matching ring that's half and half, but I've had a hell of a time finding the perfect purple. I've made several attempts and am still not 100 percent satisfied. She likes at least one of the rings I've created, but I still want to find the right color.

It's much easier for me to simply fire the glass and see what I get. Most of the time, I like the end result! I really love this blue square that has a swirl of turquoise and navy. It reminds me of a tropical ocean.

I wanted to give it some extra "oomph," so I added the brass spiral. That's made from 16 gauge wire, which is quite thick and difficult to twist. I usually attach the backing and then wrap the extra wire around the bail before adding my design, but in this case, I made the backing and spiral from one piece of wire.

I call this necklace "Rhapsody In Blue" for obvious reasons, but I also name it that because I've been performing a Gershwin program on my flute. I wear a few different hats; in addition to designing jewelry, I write and am a musician. I haven't written in a while -- other than writing for this blog -- but I play flute at senior homes around the city. I really enjoy it and the seniors especially liked my Gershwin set. So when I saw this blue, I knew I had to give it that name.

What's interesting about my musical job is that it's beginning to merge with my jewelry work. One of the homes has vendor sales and I've been invited to sell my jewelry. We still haven't come up with a date, but I'm hoping that I can do it this spring. And at another home, the recreation director is seeing if I can teach a jewelry making class to the seniors. You just never know where an opportunity might arise!

I'll fill you in as these events happen (or don't because you never know). Meantime, check out my handmade wire wrapped, fused glass and enamel jewellery at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

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