Making handmade jewelry: silver wire wrapped bracelet with pink dichroic glass heart charms and crystals

Hello, readers! I know, I've been MIA, but that's because I've been busy creating... and teaching. I recently started a glass class at a third location: the Atria Senior Residence. I've volunteered as a musician there for the past two years, but they were looking to hire some people for "different" kinds of programs. No one had ever taught a glass-making class, so I was their pick!

I'll write more on that later, but for now, I'd like to share some photos of my latest custom-designed item: this Queen Of Hearts bracelet, made with silver plated wire, crystals and three pink dichroic glass heart charms.

This bracelet actually developed from me making a ring. This week, a friend is in Vegas renewing vows -- with Elvis officiating! -- with her hubby of seven years. She asked if I'd design a ring for the event. When I asked her what she was looking for, she replied. "Anything you want. Something fun and cool." I told her I needed more information and showed her some photos of my rings. She fell in love with the ones made with dichroic glass and liked the idea of featuring a heart. She also requested that I use her favorite color, pink.

Since she didn't have a clear idea of a design, I made four versions of the ring, using pink and hot pink glass. Each had a different heart decal fired onto the surface. She ultimately chose a plain pink ring with a simple heart. Unfortunately -- or fortunately for her, anyway -- she lost a few pounds between the time I made the ring and the time she left for her trip, so my piece ended up being too big for her traditional ring finger. She's been wearing it on her thumb, which is a little odd for a wedding ring, but as she said, "It's fine for Vegas."

She felt badly for only choosing one of my four patterns, but I assured her that all of the pieces would be used. I decided to turn them into this fun and colorful wire wrapped bracelet. I'd originally planned to use one shade of pink crystals, but went with a bunch of different pinks, as well as some purple and lavender.

I'm hoping that my friend will allow me to share some photos of her ring. More importantly, I hope she's having an amazing time in Vegas!

Check out the rest of my jewelry at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

Adventures in teaching jewelry: handmade wire wrapped charm bracelets

When doing crafts with my seniors, I like to plan activities that are easy, fun and not too messy. After a friend showed me the charm bracelet she'd received for Christmas, I thought, "That's a great idea! And so simple to make."

You can buy bags of assorted charms on Amazon. They sell Murano-style beads, birthstone charms, colorful enamel charms... really, any kind of shape you can imagine, but I went with a large bag of silver-plated pieces. Each charm is different and I figured that the ladies could choose pieces that reflect their interests and personalities.

At first, I wasn't sure there was going to be a class because the home's rec director had forgotten to put me on the calendar. She made an announcement, though, and pretty soon, my whole table will filled up. Also, the director's new assistant was there for her first day of work, so she was on hand to help me out. She was thrilled that she just started and was already getting jewelry out of the experience.

For the actual bracelet, I simply cut strands of 18 gauge silver plated wire. I was going to use thicker wire, but I decided to go with material that would be lighter and easier for the seniors to work with. I went with a cuff bracelet design, with closed loops on each end, so they can easily take the bracelet on and off and don't have to worry about securing the hook.

The ladies had a great time choosing their charms. One is a self-described cat lady and went right for the cat charms. Another choose the fish bones because they reminded her of a scorpion and she's a Scorpio. And one lady chose the scissors charm, "Because if anyone messes with me, I'll cut them!" she explained.

These charms do have loops on top, but in order to get them to face forward on a bracelet, you need to add jump rings. I'd only brought one pair of pliers with me because I hadn't known there would be an assistant on hand. She used the pliers to open some jump rings, while I just used my fingers to handle the rest. Ouch! I broke a couple of nails in the process, but finished the job.

This was such a simple craft, but the ladies were pleased with their bracelets and liked that they reflected who they are. Here are a few of the seniors showing off their work:

I always enjoy being with this group and especially like hearing their stories. Many of the women are in their late 80s and 90s and have led interesting lives. They're such a kind and friendly group.

Next week, I'm teaching another cemetery class and I'll then be making glass earrings with the seniors. I always have something to look forward to!

Check out the rest of my handmade wire wrapped, fused dichroic glass and enamel jewelry at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

Wire wrapped rainbow add a charm bracelet for girls

I'm not a mom or a teacher, so I've been getting ideas for my children's jewelry line from my friends who are mothers or teach young kids. My friend Karen, who is an elementary school teacher, has been particularly helpful to me in suggesting pieces that children would want to wear.

She noted that charm bracelets are very popular amongst the girls in her school, especially the kind where you can add on your own charms. So I came up with my own wire wrapped version of the add a charm, or choose a charm bracelet. I made it with different color 20 gauge plated copper wire so it looks like a rainbow. It's festive and fun, and just an explosion of color:

I wanted to come up with a safe way for the charms to be added. With many charm bracelets, you can order the charms separately and then add them yourself, however, I don't want kids playing with the wire or for the charm to be put on wrong and then break. So instead, I set it up on my Etsy page where you can pick five charms from a list of various charms and colors that each is available in. This way, the customer can make it a personalized gift, but won't have to add the charms herself.

Creating children's jewelry is an interesting challenge because I'm learning that it's not just about what the jewelry looks like. The jewellery almost has to be like a toy, something that can be played with. And this charm bracelet is exactly that!

To purchase my jewelry, head to Naomi's Designs. To purchase my children's jewelry, head to MayaGirl Creations.