Super Size Me!

Hearts That would be..........I have some new extra large, focal sized hearts, I just put in my shop. They are about 32mm x 30mm x 18mm(1 1/4 x 1 1/8 x .75 inches) in size. I also have another new shape which is a folk art/ Shaker style heart, which is long and slender.

The large focal heart can be made with either a horizontal or vertical hole. The folk art heart is available in three sizes, the largest of which is currently listed in my shop. I will work on making the smaller two sizes this week. I think the smallest one will make a really cute earring size.

The bigger hearts do have a bit more weight to them. They take the better part of a rod of glass to make and a significant amount of time to build. Since these spend a lot of time in the flame this size may not be well suited to some of the more sensitive colors like pink, which tends to get fickle when heated too long. The more heat loving glass like ivory and opal yellow are awesome with this size, since the longer you work it the more interesting it gets.

I will be playing around with designs on these two new sizes and shapes in the weeks to come. The larger heart offers a really nice big canvas in which to work on.. lots of potential for design possibilities there. It's also a lot of glass to control and keep hot!

I am still playing with my vintage jewels! I will continue to explore designs with them and you'll see these larger hearts be incorporated into my heart necklaces soon. I may also do some simple pendant style necklaces with them as well. The jewelry as always, is listed in my Juniper Gems shop. Thanks for stopping by!

Different Metals...Make a Difference!

Seems like a simple concept doesn't it, but it isn't usually till you see things in action that you realize how a small change has a big impact on the overall look of the same items. What do I mean exactly? Well, I have been using a lot of vintage jewels in my jewelry designs lately and I LOVE them. They are pretty, sparkly, affordable and have a little history built into them. It's kind of cool to add these pieces to my jewelry knowing they have been around for awhile either sitting waiting in a warehouse somewhere to be discovered, or they have already lived some life and are now being re-purposed .

I love the look of antiqued brass and the way it combines so well with the vintage jewels, but not everyone likes that look, plus I also wear a lot of silver jewelry myself, so I have been finding more jewels set in silver plated brass. I have found it rather amazing, how by simply putting the same color, size, and cut jewels in two completely different settings gives such a different look. The vintage jewels are still the same of course, but the setting have a big impact on the overall look.

I have posted several pictures here of jewels in the same sizes, cuts and colors.. the only difference is one is set in antiqued brass, the other in silver plated brass. Take a look and you'll see what I mean. I like having the option to offer the jewels in both metals. I wear them both and find they both go with anything. For those with a strong preference one way or the other, you have choices! I still find more things in antiqued brass than silver, but I have a supplier I am working with to get more variety. You'll see more of both versions, along with necklaces and bracelets in both metal options in my Etsy shop, Juniper Gems in the weeks and months to come. Thanks for stopping by!

Ignorance is............

Can be bliss, but in this case it's losing money! I finally made myself sit down the other night and do a comparison of glass prices. I knew where sterling silver had been going. It was hard to miss that. But I hadn't really been paying attention to the rising cost of glass. I bought when I needed it, tried to get things on sale when ever possible, but recently a couple different sources referenced the rising price of pink glass. This caused me to actually sit down and look at what I had paid for these colors in the past. Let me just say I about fell over! One glass, which thankfully I haven't used a lot, but I do like and would like to use in the future has gone from $30.00 a pound to $85.00 a pound!

If you buy glass, you'll know that the expensive, silver laden glass can run between $85.00-100.00 per pound. The glass that just went up to $85.00 is just a soft pink, semi-opaque color, that doesn't do anything special!  Needless to say, in the future, if it is pink, it's going to be priced a wee bit higher than other beads. I also just ordered more sterling silver tubing for coring my Pandora style beads and that is about 50% more than it was a year ago. I have been making more sets of beads unlined and they seem to be getting a good response. I am still going to core some of the beads, but may just stick to doing so on larger focal's and single beads.

I have been listing beads at least once a week in my Etsy shop, some times twice. I think I have found a pretty good rhythm that works for me and allows me the time to fit in other things and doesn't wear me out. I have decided to stop previewing my beads on Facebook. I am trying to fine tune things down to only doing that which is a profitable use of my time. While I really do enjoy giving my Facebook customers the opportunity to see things in advance, this was only creating twice the work for me, so I need to cut out what isn't helping me. I'd rather have more time to do the creative part of this endeavor, and be more efficient with the necessary,  but much less fun parts like photos, editing and listing!

I am working on getting more jewelry pieces listed consistently. This seems to be the thorn in my side right now! For some reason, I just can't seem to get all my ducks in a row on this one for more than a week or two at a time! I will just keep trying. Thanks for stopping by and listening to me ramble!

My Latest Creations!

I finally got myself back on my torch and spent some time working on goodies for the shop. As usual, I placed a large empathises on hearts. This time I spent a good deal of time working on some ocean/beach themed pieces. I am pleased with the results, but there is more I can do with this concept, so you will be seeing more of these in the days to come.

I made a couple of bead sets with a focus on spring. I am SO done with winter! While it is not truly winter here in Texas, it has been cool lately, cooler than I am interested in, so I am ready to see some nice spring temps!

I am working on keeping a better stock of Pandora/Troll style beads in the shop. I have been focusing on unlined sets currently, but I am working my way into some nice cored focal pieces and may possibly put in some basic spacers sets in a variety of colors and see how those do.

I continue to preview my beads on facebook prior to listing them in my Etsy shop. I try to give some notice of when I am going to be putting items up for preview. It is a bit random and depends upon some of my other life obligations which tend to not always land on the same days. The best thing to do is to just check often! I am working on some new pieces for my Juniper Gems shop. Hopefully I will have some things to start adding soon. Thanks for stopping by!

What did you get for Christmas?????

If you got one of the European style charm bracelets and need to start filling it up, I just made a whole new batch of beautiful Artisan glass beads for these bracelets. My beads will fit all the popular brands like Pandora, Troll, Biaggi, as well as any of the generic or knock off versions.

All of my beads are my right here in my home studio in San Antonio, Texas. They are properly annealed (a tempering type process), which many inexpensive import beads (China) don't do. Not annealing the beads leaves them unstable and prone to breaking, not something you'd want to have happen while wearing glass around your wrist!

The beads I make are all hand made and are one of a kind. They are uniquely my style, and although many people make similar beads, we all seem to put our own little signature on our work, which makes it something you won't find anywhere else. The name brand companies do offer beads, or charms as they refer to them, in glass, but the selection is limited and is not very unique.

I make beads that are both lined and unlined. I can line beads with Sterling silver, Brass which can be polished to a high shine or left oxidized (I think it is prettiest this way) and copper, which can be treated the same as brass. The unlined beads are perfectly fine to wear on your bracelet, but I do recommend making sure that they are not allowed to slide around a lot, use stoppers to keep them in a limited space while you fill your bracelet. Once it is full, they won't slide around very much.

Unlined transparent beads can pick up the tarnish that naturally comes off a sterling silver bracelet. You may notice that the inside of lighter colored, transparent glass beads may start to look dull or gray. This is easily cleaned. Just take them off your bracelet and use a mild soap, like dish washing soap and a soft toothbrush. Gently clean out the hole until all the residue has been removed. Allow the beads to dry and replace them on your bracelet. It only takes a minute and they are sparkling clean again!

No matter what brand your bracelet is,  your glass beads should always slide on easily. You should never have to twist or force them on. I know some of the brands use a threaded system with their beads and this is the exception. Even with those, if the threads don't line up, don't force it or you'll ruin the threads on your bracelet. If there is ever a problem with the size of my beads for your bracelet, they can always be remade or adjusted to fit properly. If in doubt about the size needs of your particular brand bracelet, you can always ask for assistance. I should be able to help you with that.

The beads shown here are available for preview on my facebook today and tomorrow and will be listed in my Etsy shop later this week or next week. I have plenty of great jewelry pieces in my Juniper Gems shop! Stop by and take a peek!
Thanks for stopping by!

New Beads!!! Finally!

Yep... you read that right.. I made beads! I've been working so hard on other projects lately that I haven't taken the time to make a lot of beads, so I decided to get back to my torch and spend some dedicated time just making beads. I think my creative slump lifted a bit and I was able to come up with some fun sets.

I, of course, still made a bunch of hearts, I think that is just a given these days, I can't help myself. I did go bright and bold with most of them. I decided I wasn't interested in doing anything truly winter themed or in real neutral colors, so I went with a "Cheer up, Winter won't last forever"  point of view. I like how they turned out... Hope you do too!

I absolutely love the red I have been working with lately, a Lauscha red. The glass brand does have a reputation for NOT working and playing well with others, even not so well with itself, but so far I have had no major problems. I think most of the issues with this glass come with encasing and I don't do a lot of that. The red is the perfect "Holiday" red, but not just speaking of Christmas.. Valentines day, heck ever the fourth of July would be made better with this red! It's a nice medium color, not too dark, but not too orange-red, and it plays well in the flame. A lot of reds will get dark spots, even turn a bit brown if not worked just right, but I find this glass to be very cooperative! The beads all come out gorgeous and glossy and it doesn't even leave striations, so it's a nice even color through and through!!! Can you tell I'm in love???

The beads I have shown here are currently being shown on my Facebook page, but will be listed in my Etsy bead shop, Principessa Glass on Monday. I still have lots of fun jewelry pieces available in my Etsy jewelry shop, Juniper Gems and there is plenty of time to get things shipped, most places, before the Holidays. I can always upgrade shipping upon request to Priority mail for anything last minute. Thanks for stopping by!

Sparkling Jewels!!!

One of my latest obsessions is vintage jewels. These pretty little sparkles have been around a long time, but like depression glass, have stood the test of time. Lots of it has sat in boxes, forgotten for decades only now being unearthed and given a new life. The array of colors and finishes is astounding! I feel like a kid in a candy store... so many pretty sparkly things!

The jewels themselves are vintage, the settings are all new, which allows for some diversity in the type of metals used and finishes.  I of course am loving the antiqued brass, but I have been finding more pieces and settings in an oxidized silver, which you will be seeing soon.

I have been using a lot of these pieces in earrings, but I have also made bracelets and used them in some of my necklaces. No doubt I will be incorporating more of them into everything as time goes on! I love the look, and feel that they have and I love that little bit of history they bring to each piece I use them in.

I have been using a lot more antiqued brass lately and have plans to start incorporating some other metals soon. As of today, sterling silver is now $28.00 a troy ounce. In the year 2000, silver was $5.25 an ounce, at the beginning of this calendar year, it was just over $18.00 an ounce, it has gone up $10.00 in the past 11 months. That makes the costs of all the components I am fond of using a whole lot more expensive to me! These are cost increases way beyond what one can absorb. I have always been annoyed by the way your local gas station will raise the price of gas based upon what the price per barrel of oil that was just announced toady. It's not the price they paid for the gas you are buying now, but somehow, you get to pay more sooner. I have put off raising my pricing on items containing sterling, mainly because I have always carried a large stock of items, so I don't buy often, but I am to the end of many things and am forced to restock at record prices. So if you don't like the price of sterling silver jewelry.... maybe I could interest you in some lovely antiqued brass!

I have decided to limit my previews on Facebook to beads only. It appears that the majority of the interest lies there. In the interest of making life more efficient and cutting out things that aren't worth the effort, I will just post a link to the listing I have put on Etsy for my jewelry. You can check out my Etsy jewelry shop, Juniper Gems to see what new listings I have and my Principessa Glass shop for all of my Lampwork beads. Thanks for stopping by!

New Jewelry Pieces!

 Finally I have made and listed some new jewelry pieces in my Juniper Gems shop on Etsy. It has taken me a while to get things together since I started selling beads online at the beginning of this year, but I hope to continue to be able to add things on a regular basis.

I made a couple of necklaces, which is a fairly new thing for me. I wanted to do something that utilized the Pandora style beads I make, but in a different way than the traditional bracelet or a single bead slid onto a chain for a necklace. When I bought a troll bracelet for myself last year, I noticed in their catalog that they had a necklace concept, kind of lariat style necklace, that is anchored with a large silver charm. I have since seen several people doing different variations on this same theme. I wanted to do something that was unique to my style, so I have decided to make my version anchored with my pretty, plump, lampwork hearts. The chains don't have clasps on them, (unless you want one) and are long enough to slip over your head. This allows you to change the Pandora style beads that come on the necklace with others you may have or if you purchase more, giving you the ability to change the look of the necklace with ease.

I am also taking some of the vintage skeleton keys I have been making beads on and making necklaces out of those. They have a very vintage style to them, using antique natural brass chain, wire and charms, as well as Swarovski crystals, pearls and anything else I think looks good!

I have some new bracelets listed, with many more in the works, all featuring my own artisan made lampwork beads. I am finally doing what I set out to do when I learned to make beads! I wanted to be able to make beads for my own designs and have them be exactly what I wanted, not buy what was available from other bead makers. I have always loved buying beads, but often times, I couldn't get exactly what I wanted, or too many of one thing, not enough of another... Now I am finally utilizing my own skills to suit my needs! I really like this new aspect! I of course will continue to sell my beads, but up until this point I wasn't making them for my own jewelry designs.

I have really enjoyed the growing relationships I have made with all the people I have met through facebook. I post all of my bead and jewelry listing there within a short time after I put them up on Etsy, so it's a good way to see what is new, quickly and easily and stay connected with all the goings on in my crazy life! If you haven't already become a fan, pop over and become one today! Be sure to stop by my Etsy bead shop Principessa Glass and see what is new, and Juniper Gems for jewelry listings. Thanks for stopping by!

Key to my Heart!

Beads... of course! Well, that and maybe a shopping spree at Nordstroms! I don't know where the time goes, but go it does! I have been distracted lately with a nice long visit from Emily's best friend Hannah, who we enjoyed for two weeks. The girls kept me quite busy, but we really had a very good time trekking all over San Antonio, checking out all there is to see and do.

On the bead front I have been making loads of hearts and skeleton key beads lately, hence the title of this post. I found an awesome bead press, thanks to a post by Marcy Lamberson, from a Gal who lives in the Canary Islands. She makes some very nice, unique brass presses and the heart press is to die for! I took a little leap of faith and bought it, since the last one I bought wasn't really all that thrilling as far as I was concerned. This one makes beautiful, plump hearts! It's not a super simple press to use, it does take a little practice to get it down, but it's also not terribly complicated. It is a bit like making a heart without a press, but this enables you to make them of a consistent size and gives them a nice crisp finish!

I have been searching antique stores for skeleton keys, which has been a bit more difficult than I thought it would be, but I do enjoy the hunt! Thankfully, Emily also likes antique stores and knows to look for keys, so she lets me know if she stumbles across a stash. I have begun resorting to buying them online, but have found plenty of sellers willing to test them for me and pick out keys that meet my preferences. Not as much fun as picking them out myself, but so far I have had pretty good success with the online purchases.

I am starting the think about fall and winter beads already. It seems odd, but if you've been in your local craft store, like Hobby Lobby, they are already selling fall decor and I have no doubt that Christmas decorations are in the stock room and ready to hit the shelves any day!

I am gearing up to get my jewelry shop, Juniper gems, back in shape in the next few weeks. I have some great new pieces planned and some new (to me) concepts to introduce as well.  I am going to try and be more consistent with my blog posts. I have just been so distracted by other life issues lately!

Stop by my Etsy shop and see some of the new bead sets, hearts and keys I have listed! Also if you aren't already a fan of my facebook page, consider becoming one, I post all my new listings there as soon as I put them on Etsy each day. Thanks for stopping by!

Loooook! New beads!

Can you believe it??? I finally have a few new listings up! Between trying to learn my new camera and life just constantly getting in my way, top that off with a migraine and you've got one bugger of a week, or two! I do have some great sets, at least I think so, coming up to be listed in the next few days. I have some more pictures still to work on, but things are coming along.  The new camera is amazing and would probably be even more amazing if I really knew how to use it!!!

I am thinking about taking some classes this summer on photography and Photo shop. I am sure I would learn a lot and since I am a very visual learner, so reading a manual only makes me crazy! From the class descriptions for both, it sounds like I would gain knowledge by taking both courses. It beats banging my head on the desk!

I am hoping to get my poor Juniper Gems shop re-photographed and spruced up and possibly even start making some pieces for the shop!! You know, I don't know where a day goes.. I rarely sit down unless I am at the computer and then I am working on stuff, like hours of editing for example! I hardly ever even sit down to eat my breakfast! Suffice it to say, I don't have grass growing under my feet, but yet, I can't seem to get much accomplished in a day. I suppose I might be setting unrealistic goals for myself... me... no,  not possible..

Stop by my Etsy shop Principessa Glass and see what new listings I have for this week. Hopefully I will get some torch time in soon and have some more beads to keep this momentum going...

New Camera...?

OK, I took the leap and plunked down a good bit of cash on a new camera in hopes of improving the quality of my bead and jewelry photos. I mention the jewelry here only to fool myself into thinking that I am actually doing something with my poor neglected Juniper Gems shop... (that's a whole different subject!) After doing a bit of research, which I am known for being a bit obsessive about, I settled on a Nikon D40. I ordered it online and got it on sale at a significant savings, which made me happy and kept my husband from having an immediate coronary issue. After a ridiculous shipping mishap, I finally got my new camera two weeks later, but still needed to get a memory card. I knew I needed one, but not being super techno girl, I was waiting on my honey to help me sort through the array of choices online. He works 50 hours a week and tends to be in a zombie like state for at least the first 24 hours he is off, so I was trying to be patient. He does after all pay the bills... it's not like what I do makes any money!

So now I have all the parts.. charged the battery and inserted the memory card. Step one.. turn camera on... OK, this is NOT a simple point and shoot camera that I am used to, so it took me a good hour of going through all the features in the menu.. repeatedly... to get things set the way I thought they should be, and this is on the most basic settings... It took some adjusting. I have to now use a view finder, I'm used to a big screen on the back of my old camera.. the image you take a picture of will display on the screen after you take a picture on the new camera, but it's not a big view finder like my old camera.. This puppy has a big lens on it, it works very well, but it makes the camera big, much heavier and more awkward to handle.. I've just never used this type of camera before, so this is like having a dishwasher after hand-washing dishes your whole life!

The first few photos I have taken on this thing have come out fantastic! I am amazed at it's ability to adjust to lighting situations without the use of a flash. I showed my Husband the first couple bead pictures I took, just some simple preview photos for custom orders, with NO editing, these pictures looked better than my best edited pictures on my old camera, except for the dust... that darn silver riser!!!

I took some indoor pictures around the house in all kinds of situations that our old camera just would not have worked.. this new one worked like a charm. My outdoor photos needed almost no editing at all, a little sizing and a tiny light tweak! I know I have yet to realize the true potential of this camera. I am hoping to find some online tutorials to watch or read to help me get better acquainted with my new techno camera... All in all, I think it was well worth the money. I am going to try  retaking some photos of beads in my Etsy shop that are not very photogenic and see how they come out. Some elements in beads and jewelry are REALLY hard to capture in pictures, but I think I have found the assistance I need to do a much better job. Hopefully this won't take me as long to figure out as photo shop did, nor require the amount of tissues I used!