Jump Rings Etc.

Jump Rings Etc., a photo by Roberta Warshaw on Flickr.

I am revisiting one of my earlier designs now that I know a bit more about finishing my pieces.

When I first began these applique pieces, I had so much trouble getting the bottoms to fit, getting the edges to look finished and most of all figuring out how to connect the beads once they were done.

I gave up for a while but now that I have taken some tutorials, I feel more empowered with the new knowledge.

I used Ronna Sarvas Weltman's idea of coloring the inlaid stamps with shoe polish. It is a nice rich color but I do want to get some new acrylic paints as I would like to try that as well. I also want to try the Krylon 18K gold pens as Louise Fischer Cozzi suggests in her book and magazine articles.

I attached the bottoms with liquid clay and then as I learned in Helen Breil's tutorial added the border using my new extruder. The extruder makes lovely borders in case you were wondering. I just extrude the clay and then run it through the pasta machine for a nice, even, and flat trim.

Then came the jump rings. I have never liked jump rings as connections unless they are soldered. Even then, I never really liked the way they looked. But after seeing some jewelry designers use multiple jump rings, I thought I'd try that. I like it much better. I also feel better in that it makes the piece stronger. One un-soldered jump ring just doesn't work that well. But two, or maybe even three. Now that is a different story! I am also going to re-visit my use of coils as attachments. I like making my own findings as I think it really enhances the hand made aspect of the work.