Handmade wire wrapped amethyst pendant for February

Since I have a February birthday, I love my birthstone, amethyst. I own a lot of purple amethyst jewelry and often use the gemstone in my own pieces. But while I use many amethysts that have been cut into clean and clear shapes, I really love the natural look of the stone. I've always wanted to get a huge amethyst geode, but those can be thousands of dollars!

The next best thing was to get a smaller version and so I purchased "raw" amethyst beads. I like using large beads as a canvas for my wire wraps, so I dressed it up with a brass design. I actually made this pendant a couple of years ago, but it's been getting a lot of attention on Etsy this month -- probably because it is February -- so I'm giving it a little showcase:

What's interesting about this set of beads is that not all of the stones are purple. Some have a greenish color and some are purple and clean. Then there are even a few that look almost clear. Most people I know associates amethysts with purple, but they're more varied. It's amazing what beauty is produced in nature!

I'll continue to use my amethyst hearts and bicones, but these purple stones are lovely to look at as is.

Check out the rest of my wire wrapped and enamel jewellery at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

Tales from enameling class: Pink and black heart and polka dot enamel dangle earrings

The winter/spring session for my enameling class started last week. I'm thrilled to be back, though I was disappointed to learn that a few of the "regulars" have moved on to other things. The good news is, we have a couple of newcomers who are really nice. One is a travel agent and the other is a travel writer. Given my love of traveling, we have a lot to talk about.

It always takes me a while to get back into the rhythm of the class and this semester is no exception. I'm already a klutz, but this past week, I took my clumsiness to new levels. First, I tried to drill a tiny copper square... only my finger kept getting in the way so I let go and the piece flew off the table. Luckily, no one was hurt! However, I accidentally burned myself when my thumb grazed a flaming hot trivet, fresh out of the kiln. Ouch! Again, I was fortunate in that no major damage was done.

By far, my biggest mistake came when I attempted to make a pair of earrings. I had some leftover small rectangular pieces and painted them with stripes of green, yellow, pink and light blue. They looked really cute; the other women in the class called them "candy earrings" because of the bright pastel colors. I was almost finished with my project, but put one earring down on the wrong side of the trivet... and it ended up fusing to the metal. Stupid, stupid, me! I had to pry off the earring with pliers and in the process, snapped it in half. Honestly, I don't know what the hell I was thinking. I guess we all have bad days, right?

On the positive side, I now know a color combination which looks really good and I plan to make another piece using those pastel stripes. Plus, I DID manage to successfully complete a pair of pink and black heart and polka dot enamel earrings:

I'd forgotten I had a pair of copper squares and in my bag and was happy to find them. As I said to my teacher, it's like discovering buried treasure! Since Valentine's Day is on the horizon, I decided to go with a simple heart theme. I applied a layer of rose pink enamel over raspberry to get that bright pink hue and then painted a black heart on top. I then used a thin piece of wire to create that sgaffito design of swirls and scrolls. The heart's edges are a little jagged and I left it slightly underfired so it has a "stamped" appearance.

I initially planned to have a plain pink counter side, but decided it would be fun to add the polka dot design. I think it gives the earrings even more of a whimsical touch.

Now that I've made these enamel earrings, I feel like I'm back in the groove! Check out the rest of my handmade enamel and wire wrapped jewellery at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations.

Copper wire wrapped marble pendant... and a special jewelry model!!!

Growing up, I went to one of the largest high schools in the country. My GRADUATING class had over 1300 kids and our school was separated into two campuses: Sachem South housed 9th and 10th grades, while Sachem North was home to the juniors and seniors.

Because there were so many students, it was difficult to get to know many very well. I had my group of friends and was then acquainted with, maybe, the 150 other kids or so, who were in my classes. You'd think that with so many people around, it would be easy to be a part of a big group, but the large number of kids actually made me feel rather isolated.

Thanks to Facebook, though, I've reconnected with many of those former acquaintances ... who've become actual friends! I've joked that I now have more high school friends than I did when I was in high school, but it's true! It's funny how things sometimes turn out.

Many of these old/new friends have been extremely supportive of my jewelry and writing ventures. Several have purchased pieces from me and have read my novel. I appreciate any support, but to get it from people who (barely) "knew me when" means so much. I never felt as if I were part of a community in our huge high school, but I do feel some of that now.

One of these friends is Andrea, who played flute with me in band. She purchased my copper wire wrapped mahogany marble necklace and was kind enough to model it for me:

I know she truly appreciates my work because her young daughter, Z, is an artist. Z makes amazing clay figurines and I can seriously see her designing creatures for a program that uses claymation. Since Andrea sees the work that her daughter puts into her art, she has an idea of what it takes for me to make my jewelry.

So, thank you, Andrea, for showing off my necklace. You look great!!!

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

Silver wire wrapped Rhodonite earrings with Swarovski crystals

Happy New Year! Hope you all had a wonderful and relaxing holiday. Mine was pretty busy with jewelry and book-related stuff (not to mention holiday parties!), but things have settled down as they usually do at the start of the new year.

Happily, my enameling class kicks off the winter/spring session tomorrow; meanwhile, I've had time to make several new jewellery pieces.

A woman recently purchased my silver wire wrapped pink oval necklace with pearls and asked if I had any matching earrings. I'd just happened to buy a string of small, pink, oval Rhodonite stones, so I came up with this pair of earrings to go with the pendant:

Though it's difficult to tell from my photo, the stones are quite small; maybe 3/4 of an inch across at the widest point. I tried making them with pearls to perfectly match the necklace, but the crystal pearls I have were just too big for the design on this size stone. The wire kept buckling and the pearls wouldn't lay right.

After a few attempts, I moved on to using Swarovski crystal bicones, which are much smaller than the pearls. I tried to make the design with two crystals, but again, they didn't fit right. Finally, I went with only one crystal, but enlarged the spiral... and voila! I came up with a design that works!

I'm not a huge fan of pink, but I like the rose color of these Rhodonite stones. The pink isn't too bright and the dusty shade gives the stones a vintage look, especially with the oval shape. When I see them, I think of cameo jewelry, which is why I get a vintage feel from these pieces.

I was surprised when I discovered I'd sold all of my pink stone pieces. When I went to purchase a new batch of beads (yes, these are technically beads, even though they're so large), I couldn't find the stones I'd originally bought -- probably about two years ago or so. Thankfully, I came across these large Rhodonite beads at Fire Mountain Gems.

I haven't used pink that often in my work -- but these pretty stones have made me rethink my color scheme. Check out the rest of my handmade wire wrapped and enamel jewelry at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations. And check out LOVE NOTES, the anthology which features my novel REVENGE OF A BAND GEEK GONE BAD.

Painting Versus Making Jewelry

This semester I signed up for an acrylic painting class at the Y. It was the first painting class I've taken since junior high -- and the reason why I haven't written much about it is because, frankly, I didn't really like it.

I'm trying to figure out exactly WHY I didn't care for it. Earlier in the year, I participated in a Paint-Along New York class and had a blast. Plus, the teacher at the Y was great. He was interesting, caring and encouraging, all of the things you'd want from an instructor. He never had a bad word to say to anybody, even if his or her work sucked. Some of my paintings were pretty awful, but he always found something to admire.

Still, the class itself was pretty dull. For one thing, we were all confined in our own little spaces behind our easels and tables, so no one really socialized. Yes, I get that we were there to learn, but one of the things I love about my jewelry classes is that we work AND talk. We're all incredibly busy, but have had some fascinating conversations as we make our pieces. Painting felt a lot more lonely.

I was also turned off by the cost of the class. This was a short session, only six weeks, and it was listed as a beginner class. However, we were encouraged to buy professional level supplies -- which ended up costing more than the class! I refused to buy 20 different colors of paints because I wanted to see if this was something I intended to continue. Instead, I purchased red, blue, yellow and white paint and simply mixed the colors as needed. We were also told to purchase all kinds of brushes, canvases and top coats, none of which I ever used. We were even instructed to get expensive "painting towels," when a plain, old paper towel worked just fine. I ended up using the specialty cloth towels to clean our fridge! I'm all for having professional supplies ... if you intend to pursue something at an advanced level. I own a set of enamels and enameling tools because I've been doing the craft for years. However, I didn't buy these supplies until I knew I needed them. I now have all of these painting tools, which I'll have to return or sell. I wish our teacher had started us off with the basics.

Last week my teacher was ill so we had a sub. She was really sweet, but sooooo anal. She made me line up my paint tubes and brushes in the exact way she does and kept moving and organizing all of my stuff. For the record, I am NOT unorganized. I just don't have everything lined up in military rows. She drove me crazy and I almost walked out in the middle of class. It took a lot to keep my calm when she kept grabbing my things.

I think it was the seriousness of the class that got to me the most. I take my jewelry making classes seriously, but I don't want to be a painter. I simply wanted to take a FUN class and maybe learn something as I did so. However, my teacher treated this as if it were a college course and went into detail over every line and brush stroke. The information he shared is very important if you want to truly learn painting -- but I was obviously in the wrong type of class for my needs. I was looking for a light-hearted class where I could blow off some steam; this just wasn't it.

Now that I have all of these half-used supplies, I might try painting on my own. I'll definitely take another Paint-Along class. I still think it can be a lot of fun; I just have to find the right type of class.

Meantime, check out my handmade wire wrapped and enamel jewellery at Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations. And check out LOVE NOTES, the music romance anthology which includes my book, REVENGE OF A BAND GEEK GONE BAD.

Making Handmade Jewelry: Beads For Love Event

I've participated in many charity events relating to music, but this week, I was involved in a wonderful program that called upon my jewelry-making skills. A bunch of us from the 92nd Street Y signed up for "Beads For Love" and visited a nearby elementary school so we could help students make beaded holiday gifts for their loved ones.

About 30 5th grade girls signed up -- and about 25 adults! Seriously, there were as many adults as kids present and I feared that some volunteers wouldn't have anything to do. But everyone managed to find a kid or two to befriend, and the event was a success.

I sat down at a table with two lovely girls, I and K (I'm only using their initials for this blog). Both seem to have a flair for design, especially I, who made a complex necklace using small and large beads. Though her piece was only made of one strand, she hung her beads in a way which made it look as if it were a two-strand necklace. It was stunning!

Several bead manufacturers donated materials so we had beads in every size, shape and color. But the girls' favorite beads were these large, round gold balls that looked like disco globes. They were practically fighting over them; luckily, we had more than enough for everyone!

My job was to help the girls finish their jewellery and crimp the ends. We had a mishap when I dropped her necklace and all of her beads went flying. She was almost finished with it at this point and I expected her to freak out. I certainly would have! Instead she burst into giggles. "You know, you're handling this a lot better than many adults would," I told her. "Sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself," she said as she re-organized her beads. "Besides," she added, "Getting upset won't fix my necklace." Wow! Wise words from a 10-year-old! I'll think of her the next time I make a mistake on a piece and have to start over.

As K and I worked, we had plenty of time to chat and they told me all about their families and favorite subjects in school. I was disappointed, though, to learn that this school doesn't offer art or music classes. When I was in elementary school, these were my favorite subjects and I think it's important for kids to have an outlet for their creativity. Unfortunately, art and music are usually the first classes to go -- especially in NYC schools, where budgets are tight. It's a shame, because these girls could've beaded all evening if we'd let them. The two hours flew by and they were sad when they were told it was time to go.

The good news is that I spoke with the Y's jewelry program director and he says that he's already in the process of trying to make Beads For Love a more regular program. It would be great if we could visit the school (or even multiple schools) once a month. The director is trying to set it up so the workers would get paid, but honestly, I'd do it for free.

The Y is closed for the holidays so I'll be away from enameling for the next few weeks -- but this was a really nice way to finish up the semester.

Update On My Handmade Wire Wrapped Jewelry And Some Exciting Non-Jewellery News!

Sorry I've been MIA for a couple of weeks, but things have been crazy since the Y's craft fair. Now that Christmas and Hanukkah are right around the corner, orders are picking up -- and I've been making jewelry for Naomi's Designs and MayaGirl Creations around the clock.

The fair itself went pretty well. I sold two more of my enamel cat Christmas ornaments and made a little bit of money for the Y. Actually, all seven booths on the third floor sold items, so our tiny "club" had a 100 percent sales rate! I'm proud of our group, especially since we were stuck in the nosebleed section. As I said earlier, next year I'll know to sign up for the fair IMMEDIATELY and not wait.

Meantime, I've designed a whole bunch of new wire wrapped and enamel pieces, some of which I will blog about later on. But here is a little preview of my work:

Oh, and here is a photo of my booth from the fair. It's not the best picture or the fanciest arrangement, but you get the idea!

And now for my exciting non-jewelry rated news: As some of you may know, I was a writer before I fell in love with making jewelry. I spent 14 years working as an editor for an entertainment magazine and even published a novel, REVENGE OF A BAND GEEK GONE BAD. It's gotten great reviews and has done, well, okay, in terms of sales, but I figured that was it: It's out and whomever reads it, reads it.

Well, BAND GEEK is now getting a second life! I was recently contacted by an author named Kira Adams, who also wrote a music-themed novel called PIECES OF ME. Kira invited me, as well as authors Shane Morgan (THE RIGHT SONG) and Breigh Forstner (STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART) to combine our work, all of which is tied to music, into an anthology. Our collaboration is appropriately called LOVE NOTES and is currently available for pre-order on Amazon for 99 cents! It's set to debut on February 2, 2015 -- the day before my birthday.

You can learn all about the project at our release day Facebook party! On Feb 2 from 12-4, we will be chatting with fans and giving away prizes. It should be a lot of fun, so please check out and like our FB page and join in. Also, please help spread the word with our Thunderclap.