Alas, My Lord! one of a kind necklace

I just made this Victorian necklace. What a romantic piece!

First I made this pendant. It started with a recycled keychain and a rhinestone earring from a bag of jewelry that I bought at a yard sale last weekend. Then I went through my ephemera and found this lovely image of a woman. She is part of a page of a book published in 1917. The caption reads, "Alas! Of all the ships I see, is there never one that will bring my lord home?"

The lady is staring out to sea at ships in the distance. So I added the ships she so longingly watches to the back of the pendant. And sealed all with artist's acrylic gel medium.

 

I added beads recycled from vintage necklaces and from a vintage designer dress. The semi-precious stone is store-bought. All in all, it makes quite a romantic necklace.

 Then I decided to make earrings to coordinate with the necklace. Therefore, I included a ship on one and a vintage monogrammed heart charm on the other. I like to think that it's the monogram of the lady. The heart symbolizes her aching heart.

And here they are together!

A Few More Pretty Victorian Earrings

Hey there. Yes, I'm a Southerner so I say 'hey'. Anyway, I just made a few more Victorian inspired earrings. So let's take a look.

I started on this piece with a pair of prong set moonstone clip-on earrings. I removed the clip on and added the fishhook ear wire. Then I layered chain with vintage chandelier crystals with long filigree pieces finished with pearls topped with small crystals. All recycled except for the small crystals.

 I used a different filigree piece for this one with blue pearls and faceted glass beads. All recycled.  

Did you know that Greek and Etruscan filigree jewelry dates back to as early as 6th century BC? You can see them at the Louvre and the British Museum. The Louvre has some pieces online. Like this diadem, a kind of small crown. And these earrings. Aren't they gorgeous?

Recycling Dated Earrings

Since I buy box lots of jewelry at auctions and estate sales, I have acquired a number of dated earrings. Sometimes you can take one part of the old earrings and combine them with other elements to create something entirely new.

On this pair, the silver and black enamel piece at the bottom was part of the old pair. I added vintage leverback ear wires, vintage pearl and faceted glass beads. 

I really liked the next part - the blue moonstone prong set on a ridged oval base. I added a blue tone pearl to complement the blue moonstone and a vintage creamy pearl that coordinates beautifully with the gold tones.

You can see the moonstones better in this picture. 

When you spend time creatively, it is so interesting to see how it affects you. I find that my brain starts overflowing with design ideas. And I just want to make more and more things. In fact I haven't even gone to the store for days. We are out of milk, bread, and just about everything else. The pantry is so bare that my eighteen year old son even offered to go to the store tomorrow. So that's what it takes! No, I'm just kidding; he's a great kid.

Ever Been Inspired by a Color?

Sometimes something just grabs my attention, an obscure bit buried in one of my printer's cabinets that catches my eye. That happened to me today with this bead. It's some kind of semi-precious stone. Maybe jade or aventurine. But since I recycle the vast majority of my components, I'm not always certain what they're made of. 

This particular bead is such a subtle shade that I knew I had to design a necklace around it. 

Digging through my drawers I found this piece of a  Victorian bracelet. There is a hint of silver in the link that complements the bead beautifully.

Then I finished with the vintage tassel. It makes a long necklace that hangs gracefully in your decolletage. 

I am really pleased with how this turned out. Simple yet elegant.

Isn't it fascinating how color can affect you? My living room is goldenrod yellow, and I love it. It makes me smile when I look at it because it's so cheerful. I think that's why I like the jade bead so much - it feels calm and serene.

Playing with My 1930's School Medals

For Christmas, my husband bought me a bunch of 1930's school medals. He knew I had been watching them on Ebay, so he bought them for me. Now that I have set up my monster drill press in my studio, I am ready to drill some and play with them.

I love the colors of this first pair of earrings - the blue of the pearls with the warm copper of the medal. 

Here's another view of this pair. The medals are for Effort and Tennis. I love that they had a medal for effort.

Here's another rather simple pair. This time I've included a champagne colored pearl.

And you can see that this pair includes a medal for Diving. The other medal shows a quill and a scroll. I'm not exactly sure what that represents: Penmanship, Essay Writing...who knows. I'd love to hear other ideas.

There is something about the warmth of old things that I am drawn to. I like that their shine has dulled; their age makes them feel warmer to me.  

Time for Some Victorian Earrings

So I decided that I needed to make some Victorian style earrings to go with the necklaces I have been making.I'm really pleased with this pair. It is made with all recycled components: pieces and beads from old necklaces, rosary bits, vintage pearls, and vintage brass buttons. I don't know why I love old buttons so much, but I do.

 

I particularly like the small buttons. I hammered them slightly to flatten them into a thinner shape and to flatten the metal shank. It was surprising to see how little the hammering altered the designs on the surface. Then I drilled them on my monster drill press (I love my drill press.) Don't you love the anchor!

 One last look before we move on to the next pair. And just because I love how this picture turned out. 

 I love this pair! They are quite simple yet elegant. I recycled some lovely vintage chain and these huge vintage pearls. I would love to find more of this chain because it's so unusual.

Have a great day!

More Victorian Jewelry - Necklaces

So I still felt the Victorian vibe. This first necklace is very simple. It uses one of the antique optician's lenses that my husband bought for me. 

Look at how beautiful the lens' holder is. I love the way people used to make the most prosaic items look beautiful.

I like how it lies; it looks very graceful. And everything except the clasp is reused.

Next I made this necklace. 

You can see that I added a recycled chandelier crystal and vintage pearls. Can't you just see this on one of the ladies of Downton Abbey?

Here's a final look...

"At a flea market I always head for the junk jewelry table first."  - Ethel Merman.

That is so me!

In a Victorian Mood...

So the urge to make jewelry came over me recently. I like to pick out a piece of jewelry, bead, buckle, or other random item. Then I use that piece as a focal point and choose the other parts to revolve around the first piece. So I chose a Victorian cut steel shoe clip to use as the focal point for a bracelet.

I added a vintage chandelier crystal in the middle of the clip. I love the sparkle of the crystal against the patina and age of the shoe clip.

And a Victorian brass shank button as a dangle. This way the bracelet is adjustable in size. And it leaves the pretty mother of pearl button to swing from the bracelet. I always like jewelry that has motion. I think it draws the eye in.

  

Here's a final peek...