Favorites For Friday

It's been a while, that is what happens when you get a job...lol. Actually, it has been weird working after being unemployed for 2 years and of course, in my job I have a different schedule every week. Some days working early and others working later. Fortunately I don't have to do any graveyard shifts otherwise I really would be up a creek! I was wracking my brain trying to think of something good for this weeks favorites seeing as it had been a while and I went to my favorites over on Etsy and decided to spotlight some beautiful niobium pieces. If you don't know this already (which I'm sure you do) niobium is a great metal for those with metal allergies. Now, to the best part.

WYSIWYG Niobium Spin 'em In Earrings - Element 41

Parallel Helm Chainmaille Bracelet - Greenstar Jewellery

Coiled Niobium Toggle Clasp - C & T Designs

Rainbow Peacock Earrings - Late Night Muse

Cerulean Blue Fantasy Earrings - On The Bead

As you can see by my picks, I prefer niobium when it has been anodized. It changes to some amazing colors.

Here's One I Made Earlier

Obviously I have had a severe lack of funds to buy more jump rings for a little while so I have been playing around with what I have. I really don't know how I ended up with SOOO many purple jump rings but as I was sick of looking at them sitting there and didn't want to make more purple items for my shop I decided to make something for myself. It's just a simple double spiral chainmaille weave necklace (choker).


I also noticed that despite the fact that I love copper, I really didn't have that many pairs of copper earrings in my own collection. With the new job we are only allowed to wear small earrings though I have noticed quite a few people don't follow that rule (lol). I had been wanting to make another pair of these earrings for myself and I finally sat down the other day and did it. They are woven in a variation of byzantine weave called romanov. Basically it is just two sections of the byzantine weave, connect at each end with a slightly bigger jump ring and add a lovely Swarovski crystal in between. I used 6mm crystals and they were some freebies I got but I think the color is Siam though it is hard to tell in the photo as well as in person. It's such a dark red but really pretty with the copper.


Needless to say, I have plenty of ideas running around my head for projects it's just getting the rings to play around. One thing I really want to do is play with some really thick gauge rings, like 14, to make some chunky jewelry. Hopefully I will be able to get those and of course, I'll post any and all new projects here.

Been Busy

Ahhh boredom can do funny things to people. For me, it makes me just sit down and play! I'm sure there are others of you that do the same thing and you will know that sometimes things work....sometimes they don't. The first photo is a bracelet that I ended up making for myself. I've had my coiling gizmo for a while now and had attempted these coils before but just could NOT get them right. I finally sat down and set it up and was determined this time to get them to work. They turned out much better than previous tries but I still wasn't 100% happy with them. At least not enough to sell something like this but at least I'm getting there.

I love wire, all colors, shapes and sizes. In fact, I collect wire like Lisa over at Alterity Art collects buttons! Seriously, I have a box full of wire. So, again time to play and I came up with these babies. I also have a real fascination with swirls so I love to mix and match colors. By the way, these are listed over on Etsy here....only $6!


Of course, I couldn't make all these earrings and skip out on my first love - chain maille. These are Shaggy Loops earrings which I also added some big (size 6) seed beads. I have this tube of beads in all these lovely shades of purple and thought they would look very nice on some aluminum jump rings. I made them shorter as I know the majority of women prefer shorter earrings, especially for every day wear.


Lastly, this was originally a necklace which I had used these fake Swarovski crystals that I bought years ago when I first starting making jewelry. They really looked fake too. I decided to take it all apart other than the chain maille bits and then re-connect them. I decided to go with these orange anodized aluminum rings which I think look pretty nice. Now it is a bracelet which I shall be listing on Etsy soon.


I still have a few more pairs of earrings that I haven't had a chance to take photos of yet but there is time. Plus I have a few more ideas running around in my head of some more wire creations.

More New Photos

First of all, thanks for all your comments on my last post. Good to see I'm not the only one who LOVES pink. Since I signed up on Facebook, a friend got me hooked on playing that game Farmville and I'm dying to buy a little pink house for my farm...so sad!

As I am writing this post the husband and his mother are on their way here to Las Vegas. Hopefully he is not too stressed out. He has been calling me all the time while he has been away. Mostly because of his mother, though also because he misses me and of course, I miss him. Last Friday I went and stayed with friends which was great because we spent most of the time in the pool or making jewelry. Works for me. My friend Jenny had ordered me these pieces and I managed to get some shots before I had to move my "photo studio" to the closet since it is in the bedroom the MIL will be using. I just love the little pillow.


I definitely think that on the whole my photos are improving all the time. There are some that when I've taken them I though they looked okay until I put them on the computer. No problem though as I'll just keep taking more.


This last one is one of my favorites. I think it really shows off the square wire rings of this piece and that (to me) is the high-light of it. Though I do love the chainmaille weave which is called Full Persian.


Hope everyone has a great week.

REALLY Bad New Photo

Actually it just looks a bit grainy now that I'm looking at it again. Needless to say, it is definitely not one I would use to sell this necklace on Etsy...lol. I just had to share since it is one of the first things I've finished in ages. Well, didn't even really finish it yet since I still have to put on a clasp, but close enough. I found the hematite fan ages ago at a bead shop I rarely go to over by the airport here in Vegas. That main part is actually strung and then I added the chainmaille bits on the sides. I used bright aluminum rings and so the maille part is very lightweight. I was quite happy with how it came out although I did end up having to get some help on the stringing part from my friend Jennifer as it had been so long since I'd done any I was having a heck of a time getting it to sit just right. I took a few other photos of things I was playing around with but they were even worse. If I had Photoshop it wouldn't have made any difference with the other photos, THAT is how bad they were!! Really need to find a decent new set-up for a light-box.

I wanted to say thanks to all who commented on my last post about tutorials. I have to say that for the most part I agree about the fact that if you search hard enough you will find a free tutorial for just about anything. I do agree that people who do put together tutorials put a lot of time an effort in so yes they deserve payment for that but I can't see why anyone would take the time to do a tutorial for say, peyote weave, and then charge for it when there are a zillion and one free tutorials out there. At the end of the day, I'd rather keep more money for beads and jump-rings and wire!

New Stuff...Sort Of

I just finished a really cool hematite and chainmaille necklace which I need to take a few pics of then will post them as soon as I do. Also, I plan on doing a bead-woven necklace next but need to grab some beads for it since I have a particular color scheme in mind. Just wanted to do a quick post to say hi to anyone who happens to still stop by. Wondering if I typed in "valentine" or "heart" on Etsy how many pages there will be! Will try to get those photos taken soon so at least you will have a reason to stop by.

New Things and an Update

Yes, I'm still here, just on a SUPER sllloooooww dial-up connection. Ever noticed that not only is dial-up slow but you ALWAYS get kicked off. . . and it is usually right when you are doing something important! So, we are all moved out and in between I managed to snap a few shots of a few new things I have done lately. I have a few more pairs of these beautiful lucite flowers in other colors but this is the next pair that I made. Same as the red ones I posted previously but the ear wire I made a bit different. I really like just making these very simple since I want the flower to be the focal point. Much as I love the earrings that have a flower with beads, crystals and maybe a leaf or two, these just cry out to be on their own (IMHO).


This next piece is something I have actually been working on for a few months a little at a time. I believe the beads are Fancy Jasper but if you know they are not then please let me know. I was just going by pictures on Fire Mountain Gems site and so I could be totally off base. I did the copper wire spiral caps and then separated the beads with Byzantine chainmaille sections. Then added more Byzantine to the "back" part of the necklace. I'll have to get a shot of me modeling it so you can see how it lays. It's meant to sit at the base of the neck. The beads are actually really big, probably 10 or 12mm or for reference, the size of marbles. Chunky but not over the top.

I haven't been able to do many Entrecard drops or stop by any blogs but I noticed that there is a library that my husband passes during the day. I'm hoping to go there one day and use the wi-fi. Might actually be able to achieve a few things. I did get to the LV Gem & Mineral Society shop on Tuesday to finish up some cabochons I needed to shine up. I have some copper and brass wire and plan on wrapping them soon. Of course, I'll share photos when I'm done. Hope all is well for everyone out there in Blogland and I'll attempt to stop by soon.

Something New!

Lately I haven't really been in the mood to make much but I did manage to whip up these earrings a week or so ago. The only problem is that I didn't notice until after I'd made them that some of the anodized aluminum rings have white spots on them. This sometimes happens when you get a bad batch. Shame since you really can't see them that much but if I were to sell them then I'd have to mention it and then probably would only sell them for like $1 or something. I love this style since it's very simple but looks good no matter what type of jump rings you use. I have a pair I made when I first started weaving chainmaille that are Argentium silver and I added a Swarovski drop on the bottom.



This photo has nothing to do with anything other than I thought I'd just add it for fun. That is the husband and I at the Coliseum in Rome when we went there in January of 2006. As you can tell it was a bit chilly but the flights were dirt cheap from England and we were living there at the time. EasyJet is similar to Southwest here in the States...cheap and no frills. If I remember right, the flight was like 1GBP and you just pay the taxes which are usually about 15GBP. Even by today's exchange rate that is only about $25 for a return flight. Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Working On A Dream

Actually, more like working on photos. I suppose this is something I should have done months ago but I never really paid much attention to the fact that I should "get to know" my camera. I bought my camera (my first ever digital) back in December and never really fiddled around with the settings. Really, I didn't have any idea about them until I got one of the Etsy emails about Storque articles and threads in the Forum about taking pics. So, I grabbed my camera, a pen and pad of paper and started to play. I wrote down the different settings I was using for future reference. The best thing about having your settings correct is that you don't need to edit the photos much. Here are a few I have done so far.


This bracelet (above) is not in any of my shops at the moment though I may re-list it over on Etsy with the updated photos. It's woven in a weave called Inverted Round and I used argentium silver and rainbow anodized niobium rings. I think with the new photos you can see the range of colors on the niobium rings much clearer. The rainbow rings are so cool and each ring has at least 2 colors on it.


This next bracelet is one listing in my Etsy shop here. It's a chainmaille weave called Queen's Chain and I added the Swarovski cubes as a center piece. Like I said, the photos didn't need much done to them other than cropping which is such a relief.


This last photo is a pair of earring I just made recently and will most likely list them over on Etsy too. I call them Queen of Hearts. Obviously you can get the heart part of the name but the Queen part comes from the small section of Queen's Chain at the top. There are so many chainmaille weaves and so many new ones all the time but I tend to gravitate towards the older ones such as Queen's Chain, Byzantine (ropey weave), Double Spiral (ropey weave) and European 4 in 1 (flat weave). I'd rather use one of these weaves and add embellishment of some kind. I try to learn new ones but I always end up back with the old standards. So, what do you think? Be honest now, you won't hurt my feelings. Well, even if you do, I won't tell you. Do my photos look a little more "professional"? The only problem I seem to be having is with the copper jewelry. I may have to get a different (darker) background for those items. Maybe a grey rather than black.

EJDSS Team Giveaway

The Etsy Jewelry Design and Supply Shops (EJDSS) Street Team is having our monthly giveaway for August. The prize are these Argentium Silver Chainmaille earrings with a pretty little Swarovski drop in Sapphire AB at the bottom. Oh, and they were made by ME! The rules are very easy, all you have to do is go to the post on our team blog here. Once you get there you also need to stop by my shop on Etsy here and leave a comment with your favorite item. Just make sure you go to our Team blog first.

Creative Fork in the Road

The sign should really have 3 prongs on it for this post. Now I'm not talking about a creative block, that would be when you just can't come up with anything. The ideas just don't flow. When I refer to a creative fork in the road I simply mean, I have too many ideas. My mind just can't stop thinking about different jewelry designs. Sure, that could be a good thing but here is why there should be 3 prongs on my fork - do I work on a chainmaille design? or something with wire? or maybe do some bead weaving? OK, so I could do a little bit of all three at once but my anxiety would take over and I'd have to finish one project before I could move onto the next one. I really want to get back over the the Gem and Mineral Society's shop too. If I did that then I could work on some wire wrapping. I have been working on one beadweaving project but it has had me ripping my hair out so I keep having to put it down and then get back to it later. I'll post pics of that one once I get to a good point to show it off. So, do you ever get like this, too many ideas, not enough time or supplies? Or just can't decide which project should come first?

On the other hand, I could be negative and say "Well, the economy stinks, no one is buying much jewelry so why bother with anything". Nah, I just can't do it.....the compulsion to create just overcomes me. Sadly, you could say I'm like the heroin addict looking for their next fix. I NEED to BEAD or make chainmaille. Considering my analogy, I guess there could be worse things to be addicted to.

Now, since I'm on the subject of bad economy and slow sales, what are other Etsy sellers opinion of the site right now? I know they finally caved in on the whole SEO debaucle but I still am starting to feel like it just isn't really a great place to waste my money on, listing and re-listing. I know there are many people who have gone over to ArtFire and I really like the way they look and how attentive they are to sellers but I really can't afford to spend $12 a month to list all my jewelry with no guarantee of any return. I suppose if I was working, then I might consider it. I've been told they have a free account which has a limit on how many items you can list but I can't seem to find any information on how much the fees would be if I did sell something. I even asked Artfire John over on Twitter and he just referred me to their unlimited $12 a month plan. I don't think it is too much to ask to be able to try it out. Obviously if I were happy and selling then I would upgrade to the other account. I did see someone had on their blog the PayPal widget which looked pretty cool. It certainly would cut out the middleman and no more fees other than PayPal's. Any opinions on all these sites and where to sell?

Blog Giveaway!

STICKY POST - SCROLL DOWN FOR NEW CONTENT UNTIL JUNE 13TH
I decided it was high time I give something away on my blog so here you go! Plus, I'm just in the mood to give something away. At stake are these lovely little earrings I made. They are sterling silver rings woven in Byzantine chainmaille weave. I hooked the ends together and added a Swarovski crystal that is actually black with an Aurora Borealis coating. Yes, I realize there are some people who are NOT jewelry designers who read my blog and have no clue what all that means so all you need to do is look at the pretty photo and follow the rules below. By the way, these are actually a small earring, they dangle a whole 3/4"/2cms.

So how is this giveaway going to work you ask? Well, I decided to make it real simple and here are the "rules":

1. Become a Follower, leave a comment that you are a follower and a way to contact you.
2. If you are already a Follower, leave a comment that you are and a way to contact you.
3. An extra entry by stopping by my Etsy shop, find something you like or think is cool and come back and leave a comment and a way to contact you. Here is the link to my shop Theresa's Treasures.

This giveaway is going to end on June 13th at midnight West Coast USA time and is open to everyone no matter where you are. I will be doing the draw on June 14th which is Flag Day over here in the States and it's also my birthday. I'll use Random.org for the number. Please make sure you have left a way to contact you, I'd hate for someone to lose out because I can't contact you.

Good luck to all!

Etsy Chainmaillers Guild Contest

Want to win some gorgeous chainmaille? Now is that a silly question or am I just biased?!? Check out this list of prizes to be won over at the Etsy Chainmaillers Guild blog here. Then you just need to go back and vote once all the entries are posted. The title of the contest is Romance Blossoms and I can't wait to see all the entries. I wonder if I can win one of those prizes because they are awesome! Keep checking the blog and cast your vote.

Etsy Treasury West

I don't spend much time on the Etsy forums as of late but yesterday I was on there and noticed that the Treasury West was about to open. Can you believe it, I got one so I decided to do a collection of items from the Chainmailler's Team. I had to include the dice bag because the bright colors of the dice just drew my eye to it and of course I also had to include the collar since that dog is adorable. If want to check it out in all it's glory, just click here.

Where Do You Find Inspiration?

Everyone will have a different answer and I'm always interested to find where people get their inspiration from. I was reading an article about this subject but it covered the topic of wire work and design. The author's suggestion was to look at buildings with ironwork which makes perfect sense. I'm sure there are people who live in the country and have the landscape around to give them ideas. There are people who paint or photograph what is around them. I have to admit that I don't really know what inspires me, silly as that may sound. When I come up with a design sometimes its just sitting with a bunch of bead or jumprings in from of me and hoping for the best. Other times it might just suddenly come to me what I should do with that awesome focal bead that has been sitting there for ever. Then there are the other times when I'm out and I see something that gives me an idea for a design.



One thing I do love to do is look around for inspiration. Whether it is from nature, like the first photo (Zion, Utah, USA) or from something manmade like the bridges and buildings in the second photo (Tyne Bridges, Newcastle, England). It might be the colors or the shapes that give you the ideas to come up with a design. So what inspires you to make what you do? or do you have many different inspirations? I'd love to hear what inspires you.

Hobby Versus Obsession

I admit it, I'm obsessed with chainmaille. Most of my jewelry designs revolve around it. I do have a hobby though, well, really a few but this one is what I do second most to chainmaille. Bead weaving. When I have my moments where I can't seem to come up with a design using chainmaille then I pick up the seed beads and weave. I have quite a few bead weaving projects that I have started when in a chainmaille funk only to put them down to get back to the jumprings. I will eventually get back to them but for now they sit waiting for me....patiently.



Every trip to the bead shop ends up including seed beads of some kind. I just can't resist them, all those gorgeous colors and shapes and sizes. Well, I usually end up with some shade of pink or green since those are my favorite colors but I have been trying to curb that and go for other colors. Of course bead weaving isn't always just seed beads, you have to add some pearls or crystals too. Take the blue and topaz necklace above. That middle bead is a rivoli from Swarovski. It has no hole and you have to bead around it. So much fun to play around with colors and designs. Again, I have about 5 rivolis sitting in my bead stash just waiting for me to come up with some cool way to play with them. I have another that I have already finished but haven't actually attached it to anything yet. I'm thinking of making it into a cuff, sort of like a corsage. So that is one of the reasons why I decided to start adding some of these items to my shop on Etsy. I know that the Etsy Beadweaver's Team aren't going to be running over to ask me to join and that is fine. I could never compete with those designs they come up with. I'll just stick to my hobby and work hardest on my obsession.

Working On Photos

Yesterday I spent the day at a friend's house and we took pictures all day. Most were in her backyard but I did bring my "lightbox" (it's a home-made one) with me for us to play with. Her husband decided at 1pm to set it all up which didn't give us much time since my husband was picking me up around 3pm. So this is one of the ones we took in the lightbox. It took a lot of playing with her fancy camera and moving about 6 lights around but we did get some great shots in the end. I left my lights and lightbox for them to play with and I will probably go back again next week to play some more. Her camera has more settings than Imelda Marcos had shoes so I'm hoping they can figure out all the right settings for the next time. I find the main problem with any kind of metal jewelry is getting it right so that it doesn't wash out the color of the metal.

If only I could find some budding photographer at the local Community College who wants to build up his/her portfolio then I'd be set but till then we will keep on playing. Beats sitting in the apartment all day.

Rocking With Rocks

Last December I sent off my application and the fee to become a member of the Southern Nevada Gem and Mineral Society. I missed the first meeting of the year but was able to make the latest one in February. Everyone I met there was very friendly and to be honest I know a bit about Gems & Minerals but nothing on these people. They offer classes for members, which is always a bonus as I love to learn new things. They had a cabochon class which I signed up for that night and they held it on Wednesday.



So, I get to the shop at 9am and the man in charge is Richard. He shows the three of us in the class the saws and other big machinery they have for the use of the members. Now comes the fun part, we get to go through all the slabs and pick out one to make into a cabochon. We get one that is included in the class price and of course we couldn't pick JUST one. The three of us were setting aside a few extras to purchase afterwards. The top photo is one of the extras I bought and this is how the slabs look before we cut, grind and polish them into cabs. The bottom photo is my finished cab. I was quite happy with how it came out since it was my first time. Total time of the class was about 3 hours and I learned alot and am very anxious to get back and make a few more. The Society also has field trips where you can go digging for rocks and other classes too. Of course, my dilemma now is what to do with my cab? I could wrap it in chainmail but I've done that before and I'm lucky to have hair after that experience! So, I'm thinking of trying my hand at some wire wrapping. I'd like to do something simple so the cab is the focal point and the wire wrapping is a compliment to it. Besides, I've got more to make so I can always wrap one in chainmail at a later date and of course there is always seed beads. So many ideas...so little time!

For The Love Of Maille

Why do I love Chainmaille so much? Good question, especially since I'm not really into the whole Renaissance Fair scene. Only ever went to one once when I was about 10. I really don't have any desire to make a Hauberk (a shirt made of mail - see Wikipedia) or any other clothing of mail. Although a belt would be pretty cool. I do have great admiration for those Maillers who do such projects. No I just like jewelry made of Maille. I love the idea of taking a pile of jumprings and weaving them into something pretty.

Some of the weaves are so old and that fascinates me but there are new ones that are gorgeous too and someone has just sat down with a bunch of rings and played around to come up with something completely new that is based on this ancient art.
Then, of course, you can add beads to a piece to add variation. I don't just mean adding them in between sections of a weave. I'm talking about "capturing" the beads as in the above photo. This bracelet (Sea Sprite) is from Nicole Hill who makes some beautiful pieces, check out her Etsy shop here http://nicolehill.etsy.com/. On top of using beads in Maille, a change of metal can alter the look. Sure you have the usual suspects of Stainless Steel, Silver, Gold or Copper but what about some Anodized Aluminum or Niobium to add some color. Or how about using some Stretchy (EPDM) rings.

My personal fave at the moment is the Rainbow Anodized Niobium from CandTDesigns. Curt over at CandT manages to get at least 2 colors on each ring which makes for some stunning pieces. He also has started a line of rings made with square wire, which are on my shopping list. So really, you can see why I love Maille. With so many possibilities the world is your oyster. I personally end up sticking with the "standards" but I do everything I can to make sure they are far from standard. If you want to see more Maille then stop by our Etsy Group Blog, AKA Chainmailler's Anonymous.

Holidays?

Before I begin about the topic, I have to tell you something about myself which you will find out to be relevant to the topic. The first Christmas my husband and I spent together some 20 years ago he bought me this leopard skin dress. Why did he buy it? Well we were walking by this shop and I (flippantly) said "That's a cool dress" but I didn't say I wanted it or would wear it, a little too bold for me. I think I had that dress on twice, if that, before I gave it away with a bunch of other clothes to the local Goodwill. Needless to say, we no longer exchange gifts at Christmas. Don't get me wrong we still buy things for each other on the odd occasions but we don't do it because it is a specific day. It works for us.

So, yes, I know Christmas has passed but I'm referring to holidays that aren't really holidays. You see, to me, a holiday is something that I'd get a paid day off for (if I wasn't unemployed). Or it's a day when they tell you on the news all the Government agencies that won't be open. The holidays I'm referring to in this post are the days that people may celebrate by buying and giving gifts or cards but are not officially holidays. The days I'm talking about are (to name a few):

• Valentines Day
• Mother's Day
• Father's Day
• St. Patricks Day

As someone who didn't pay much attention to days like that previous to starting Theresa's Treasures, I have quickly realized that I now have to. Of course, that doesn't mean I will be running out to buy every heart bead in Las Vegas or plenty of green rings for my chainmaille. No, I'm talking about making yourself known, marketing yourself so when John Doe realizes he needs to buy his wife/mother a nice gift to show how much he loves her then I am there. Well at least I hope I am.

I suppose that really what I am trying to say is that sometimes you have to change the way YOU think because not everyone thinks the same. Whilst these days are not important to me in my relationship(s) or life I know that for some, they are. Especially if you want to succeed in your endeavors, whatever they may be.