2011 Holiday Collection Preview

Here is a sneak peak at more designs from my 2011 Holiday Collection. The collection's theme is looseley based on historical holiday traditions around the world. There are a few new pieces in the Ancient Romance Series; and some new Victorian Christmas Ephemera pieces, several of which may look familiar, since I used the images in last year's Ornament collection. They feature Santa and Father Christmas in various incarnations.

  

I hope to add a few more which depict holiday traditions in other countries. I've always loved the story of Sweden's Christmas Rose. When I was a teenager, my grandmother gave me a crosstitch pattern book which had different Christmas traditions in it, and I recreated them all and put them on our tree.  My mother still puts them on her tree, and has every year for the last 35 years.

 

November ABS Entry- Stillman's Madonna

The painting the ladies at Art Bead Scene chose for this month's challenge is a gorgeous painting by Marie Stillman in the style of Rosetti and Waterhouse, two of my favorite artists who painted Pre-Raphaelite women.   The Pre-Raphaelite woman has been a recurring theme in my Ancient Romance Series of Medieval and Renaissance era inspired jewelry, so this challenge was right up my alley.

The name of the painting is "Madonna Pietra degli Scrovigni."  The woodland setting and the lush olive green and gold tones, with that touch of crimson in the flower adorning the lady's bodice made me think of a Medieval Christmas, so with "Greensleeves" running through my head, I sat down to create what I hoped would be a delicate, old world necklace dripping with jewels.

I transferred an image of the painting to polymer clay and added Siam Swarovski crystal, a beautiful crimson red color; and Peridot Czech glass bell beads, all of which I framed and accented with Vintaj flower end caps and other brass connectors and components.

I am going to add this one to my 2011 Holiday Collection,  too.  It fits right in with my other "Ancient Romance" pieces.

(see more views in my flickr photostream)

November Blog Prize Winner - Lois Moon!

We had 16 entries entries this month for the Faux Ivory and Swarovski Crystal Brass Embellished Necklace; and the winner is Lois Moon!   

Congratulations, Lois, and thank you very much to everyone who took the time to comment and enter.  In this big old virtual world, I appreciate each and every one of you who spends time with me here on my blog every day.  You are the best!

Have a fantastic day, my friends!

A Sunday Walk In Autumn

I was inspired to create this necklace by the crisp, cool Fall weather I woke up to this morning in the South Carolina Lowcountry.  No snow, but it is plenty cold enough for me.   The leaves are gorgeous, and I took a stroll through the neighborhood.  I found a beautiful leaf that has a riot of colors in it, even a bit of plummy aubergine, and I brought it back to the studio for inspiration. 

The pendant is one of my faux red jade floral pieces. I added faceted orange carnelian beads, Czech glass flowers and Cathedral beads, and lots of Vintaj brass. 

Working with these flower sprays from Vintaj is not the easiest thing to do, as I am sure many of you can attest.  I can never figure out what to do with them, so I'm a little proud of myself for successfully incorporating them into this design.  Of course, it doesn't mean anything if the piece doesn't wear well, so I took it for a test spin.  I'm happy to report it drapes beautifully and is very comfortable to wear.  Hmm, this one might not make it to the shop... 


Happy Autumn, everyone. If you got snow, I hope it was a welcomed snow, if not, it will surely be gone soon. Wonder if my buddy M.E. in Baltimore got any...M.E., are you snowed under today?

November Blog Prize - Win This Polymer and Brass Necklace!

I know it seems like it, but I have not forgotten about my blog.  It has just been that kind of hectic lately, so much so that I have had to give up on the idea of a holiday shoppe for this year.  I am very disappointed, because I love creating ornaments and crafting from my collection of vintage fabrics and trims as much as I do creating with polymer.  There just isn't enough time to get the second shop at Etsy stocked, so I have put it in vacation mode until after the first of the year.  I am going to try and create a few things, ornaments and small gift ideas, to sell directly from the blog here.   There just isn't enough time in the day to do what I want to do any more! 

For the November blog prize, I am giving one of you a chance to win one of my polymer and brass embellished necklaces from my 2011 Holiday Collection.  This necklace would be a beautiful accessory for a holiday part outfit; or use it as a gift for the romantic on your holiday gift list.  It features one of my faux ivory floral polymer clay pendants and is embellished with antique finish brass, including Vintaj components, and Ruby Swarovski crystal.  

So, you know what to do.  Just leave a comment, no purchase is necessary, and I'll draw a winner from the comment pool at random on November 1st.  You may comment as many times as you like, but only one comment per person will be entered.  If you do not have email enabled on your blog, please include your email address in your comment, so I can contact you for your mailing address if you are the winner.  I ship all over the world, so even if you don't live in the U.S., you are welcome to enter the drawing.  Thanks, friends! 

Vintaj Liquidation Sale - 50% Off With Discount Code VINTAJ50

UPDATE 10/13/11:   A very kind soul purchased most of the remaining Vintaj inventory in my PCDiva shop, so I closed it early to get it ready to reopen as my annual Holiday Shoppe.  Thanks again to everyone who purchased Vintaj from me.  Stay tuned for details on the new shop!    

I am liquidating my inventory of Vintaj items and will be closing the PCDiva shop at Etsy at the end of October, or sooner if the remaining quantities of brass items sell out before the end of the month, to get it ready for the holiday gift-giving season.   It will shortly reopen as my annual Holiday Gift Shoppe and will feature handmade polymer ornaments and fabric items, as well as vintage collectibles and goodies to help you fill your gift list. 

If you love Vintaj and use it in your jewelry designs or scrapbooking, this is a good opportunity to get some of your favorite pieces at a great price, so I hope you will check it out.  If you see something you like, use VINTAJ50 discount code at checkout (you must include the discount code in the blank box provided at checkout or Etsy won't credit it to you) and receive 50% off the total order in the PCDiva shop only; and, if you purchase $50 or more, no matter where you live, shipping is on me. 

Final quantities of every item are listed.

Thanks, friends! 

New Series - Southwest Landscapes Series Pendants and Earrings

Anyone who knows me knows how easily bored I get, even when creating.  I could never be a wholesaler.  It is very hard for me to make more than two of anything.  I work in very small batches of clay, usually enough to make 2 or 3 pieces from the same color batch, and that's it. 

Even a pair of earrings is a special challenge.  Don't laugh, it's true.  I have recently discovered though, that I love making polymer earrings.

This new series, which I am calling Southwest Landscapes, was inspired by the September Art Bead Scene challenge entry I created last month.  The color palette features some of my favorite tertiary colors:  Burnt orange, chocolate, tomato red, denim blue, turquoise, ecru; and more often than not, my favorite faux bone recipes, either showcased on the face or on the back sides of the earrings.

These are not really made from scrap clay, because the color palettes were deliberate, so it has become my "controlled marbling" technique, since I control the amount of each color added to the blend, and the colors themselves. 

I turned a teardrop cutter on its head to create the challenge entry for the October ABS challenge, just to be a little different.  I love the results so much, I may never go back to orienting the tip on the top of a pendant or earring.

I added some distressed finishes to a few, to give them that rugged, Old West look; and dressed up some with Czech glass and Chinese crystal, some of my recent finds at LimaBeads.  The Czech glass really lends itself well to these variegated color palettes because they have so many colors swirling around in their little bodies, too. 

I made these latest pieces while waiting for a shipment of bracelet blanks for one of the projects in the new faux jade tutorial (how is that for a tease?) and they are supposed to be here today, so it's back to the faux bone grindstone for the rest of this week.  Next time I write a tutorial, I'm going to keep my mouth shut about when to expect it until my sorry self has actually finished it!  Thank you again, everyone, for being so patient about it.  I promise, it won't be much longer. 

Here is some more stripedy eye candy to look at while you wait.