A Little Fun after the Snowfall

Sometimes you just do a craft show because you know it will be fun.  I occasionally am asked for advice about the criteria I use for selecting shows to apply to.  And I definitely have my list -- well established, good traffic, communicative organizers, no re-sellers, etc.  But Handmade with Love, the little show at Eastworks that happens twice a year, has always been an exception.  While it ticks several of my must have boxes, it's still a small show with traffic well below the 3000 I generally look for.  But the organizers are organized, the handmade arts and crafts are varied and well made, and the vendors are all local and all friends.

So even after Nemo hit and they had to postpone until the next day and a few of the artists weren't available on Sunday, it was still a successful show.  Yes, traffic was lower than usual and sales were a bit off.  But in between groups of customers who seemed to come in waves, we chatted, checked out each others' newest items, got caught up on what shows we were applying to, and even had a little unofficial AWM meeting about our planned Demo Day.  More about that in the future.

Then came a little impromptu treat that I hope will become a tradition at this show. As it got close to closing time, Jen pulled down one of her very ornately painted guitars and she and Karen serenaded us with a few oldies.

You know they were REALLY oldies since I knew all the words.

So for those of you who were unfortunately still shoveling on Sunday, you missed a great little artisan show in Easthampton.

More Fun with Metal Clay

I've got a half dozen craft show applications sitting in the office, my Etsy shop has been totally neglected, and my website is down pending some new pictures.  So I've been spending a lot of time working on some new silver designs. Wanting to try with silver the techniques I used with bronze clay, I spent another week buried  in my workshop.

Trying to create open work curlicues with silver is a bit different from  bronze.  Silver hardens more quickly and seems to be more fragile when dry.  It breaks more easily.  It took me a while to get used to the feel again so I started with some simpler pieces.

Like flowers and leaves, the curlicues are much easier to put on a solid surface.







But I eventually created a pair of earrings that I really like.

And later a pendant set with a genuine ruby cabochon.

But the best piece I made this past week was actually one I made using a tutorial.  Now there are lots of tutorials out there and they are a great way to learn new techniques.  I just haven't found one for anything I really wanted to try.  But in an older issue of Metal Clay magazine I found a tutorial by Anna Mazon.  She's a metal clay artist and instructor from Poland.  While she's the expert on the open work technique I've been working on, her tutorial is for a 3-dimensional pendant called "Hidden Pearl".  I spent several hours on this piece and I have to say that it's really nice to have all the logistics of the design already figured out.  (Sometimes that takes more time than the design itself.) So I just followed her very clear instructions and pictures and here's the result--

I haven't decided yet if I'll put this one up for sale or just keep it for myself.

January and the Creativity Zone

I'm in the zone right now, holed up in my downstairs workshop.  January is when I take out all those pictures I cut out and the sketches on little scraps of paper and try to create some new designs.  Not all of them work out as planned but I've made a resolution that this year I will only fire those I'm completely happy with.  Then I can't fall asleep for thinking about how I can change something that didn't work or what can I add to a dull piece so I won't smash it in the morning and reconstitute the clay.  A lot more clay than usual has been reconstituted this month.

I've done a little more work with those curlicues I mentioned a couple of posts ago using the bronze clay in an attempt to get better at it before I move on to silver. While the open work can probably be even finer, these are pretty good initial designs.  Sanding is really important for a smooth finish but I'm finding it difficult not to sand these brittle pieces to the point of breaking.

These are time consuming, a challenge, and a bit different from my usual geometric Art Deco style.  But one needs to move on creatively and challenge oneself, no?

As for geometric, I also made more of the the dangly retro style necklaces.  These are just fun and a nice break from the detail work.

Fresh Start in the New Year

Yes, I've been neglecting my blog for a month now.  I've been so busy that I really hadn't thought about it until today.  And I've missed some great posts from some of my favorite bloggers--Wug's Backyard, Pussdaddy, Facing 50 with Humour to name a few.  So I spent a little time getting caught up.

It's a new year and every January I get itchy to start new jewelry designs.  I spent some time in December going through my inventory, purging older items that didn't sell and making little sketches of things I want to make in the new year.  I managed to win a stash of old clock gears and old balance cocks on Ebay, bought some really old brass chain (spent an hour cleaning it because it was so grungy), and got some nice old metal buttons at a local auction.  And right after Christmas I received the bronze and silver clay I ordered.  So I'm now ready to get started.










My workbench is in the downstairs family room and I have to walk past it every time I go to do the laundry. Not being able to resist the pull of my new findings, I created a few steampunk pieces in between loads.  And in perusing the metal clay forums I came across a product that I purchased to seal the brass pieces and chains to keep them from turning brown or discoloring skin.  You just paint on Permaclear with a small sponge.  It's undetectable. Love it!

When I was cleaning my work area in December I came across a bit of leftover bronze clay. So I decided to try out one of my new ideas for a necklace.

It looks a little retro to me but not like anything I've seen anywhere else.  I'm hoping it sells because I plan to make a few more in a similar style.  This one was fun.

So I'm well on my way in 2013.

Filigree and Curlicues

With a little left of my Goldie Bronze clay I was having a tough time staying away.  I have pages of new ideas for next year and am really anxious to try them out.

Bronze clay is perfect for experiments as it's inexpensive and reconstitutes several times over to a soft,  easily manipulated state.  I've been thinking about filigree and airy designs.  As a self-taught jeweler and no classes around that teach this technique, I got to work on my own.  I rolled a long thin snake and tried to put it onto a clay frame I had made and it just wasn't working.  Wetting the snake to curl it and get it into position just wets the frame and everything eventually gets mushy.  (Put used clay into dish for reconstituting.)

Make new frame.  I don't have a syringe for bronze clay so I turned to my extruder. Using the smallest hole I extracted a snake that was very fine and with a damp brush I formed curlicues on my non-stick surface.  I had drawn out a pattern for the first pair of earrings so I knew the size and shape of the curls I needed.  After letting them dry it was much easier to place them on the frame with a little water to "glue" them on.

The first pair of earrings came out perfect but in my obsessive need for perfection I sanded it too energetically and one broke, not to be repaired.  I did try.  (More clay into the dish for reconstituting.)  And now I have to make the earring again.  But repetition is one way we learn.

I'm now getting better at curling snakes of clay.  After reconstituting the clay in the dish I try another pair of earrings--bigger and trapezoidal in shape.  Well the frame was a bit too big but I figured out that I could attach cross bars of clay to the frame to act as support for my curlicues.  And that worked pretty well as they aren't really noticeable under the filigree.  This larger, more open design was a bit harder and the earrings didn't come out exactly the same.  But I got a lot of practice making curls as I broke a few in the process. (Broken ones in the dish for reconstituting.)

Adding reconstituted clay to the piece I had left I made a large triangular frame for a pendant.  A bigger piece, it needed more support than the earrings so I put a wide bar across the triangle and attached a circle & post for a half drilled pearl.  I wanted to see what random twists and curls would look like.  Using long strings of clay I just let is fall naturally and then used a little water to keep it in place.

Now the big test.  Will these fine filaments of bronze clay survive the high temps of the kiln.  Like any other metal clay, bronze clay shrinks a bit when the bonding agent burns off.  It has to be fired twice in coconut shell carbon--once to burn off the bonding agent and at a higher temp to fuse the bronze particles together.
Fingers crossed I programmed the kiln. And here's the result.  No broken filaments, even after vigorous cleaning.

I'm pretty pleased with my first attempt.  I have a way to go in refining this look.  I know I don't like the randomness of the pendant. I prefer the pattern of the earrings.  And I think less curl might work better if I use more of them.  I'm waiting for another batch of bronze clay and when it arrives I've got a couple more designs I can work on to help me get better at this.

Black Friday, 9am, and I'm Still in My Bathrobe

It's Black Friday and I'm at home looking at news pictures of crowds at the mall fighting over products.  Christmas is different these days as my daughters are grown and living away. Hubby already got his gift and I'll pick up mine later this weekend.

Yesterday we had a noisy houseful of relatives and talked to my daughters via Skype.  It was nice to see them but not the same as having them at home.  Things have changed.  But what hasn't changed is that I still feel stuffed on Friday morning.  And as I'm not presently making jewelry, I'll have to use my creativity on the fridge full of leftovers.

And now the rundown til Christmas.  I'm anxious to start decorating the house and probably will do so much earlier than last year.  I love the little white lights in my living room and listening to carols while I cook and clean.  We may have to put the tree up gradually to let our new cat get used to it before we decorate it.  I'm afraid any movement on the tree will encourage her to pounce on it.  She's a beautiful cat but not really trainable.

Jansjems is on hiatus.  My workshop is clean and organized for the next round of jewelry making.  But I probably won't be doing that until January.  While I'm technically on vacation, my mind is forever designing pieces.  I have a few pages of sketches and notes on the things I want to try in January.  Bronze clay, a so much more affordable alternative to fine silver, will give me the chance to try some new techniques without the fear of wasting clay.

I'm done with craft shows but Jansjems jewelry is still out there and available for purchase.  If you're looking for gifts of jewelry, check out the following locations--

Jansjems Etsy Shop has over 90 items still listed and I still have a small group of pieces that will be posted soon.

The Daylily.  Bridget has several traditional Jansjems pieces and a rack of earrings in a shop full of unique handcrafted items right in the center of South Deerfield.

The Red Lion Inn Gift Shop is in Stockbridge, in the Berkshires, and includes a wonderful assortment of handmade items from the useful to the quirky.

Saw Mill River Arts Gift Shop is next to the Bookmill in Montague.  There's lots of fine art in this shop, pottery, and Jansjems jewelry, of course.

Three holiday pop-up shops also have both the fine silver and steampunk that I create.

Artisan Gala is at 22 Federal St. in Greenfield, next to the People's Pint.  Darcy and Ray have a great space and a beautiful variety of locally handmade items.  Darcy has lots of pictures of their items on the Facebook page.

Knack.Org is all about recycling.  Their Saturday Holiday Pop Up shop is on Massonic St. in Northampton.

The Power Town Pop Up is in Turners Falls, next to the Shea Theater. The doors opened on this one just this morning.

So shop locally, shop often, and buy handmade this holiday season.

November Musings

It's Wednesday morning and the election is finally over.  Did the campaigning last a lot longer than usual or did I just get tired of the rhetoric sooner?  Whew!  Now the phone will stop ringing.

I got an email this week from Fairs and Festivals with the usual list of upcoming shows--craft, garden, agricultural, all kinds.  It was my reminder that it's pretty near time to start thinking about next year's shows. Some have pretty early deadlines.

As I look over my stats on shows I did this past year I see at least 3 that I won't be applying to next year.  Each year I've had fewer and fewer buyers.  My customers just aren't there.  On the other hand I have 4 or 5 that were huge successes so I'll make sure to watch for the apps online.  It seems I still do much better South of here rather than locally.  I'll also try to find a couple of new shows to try as I do each year.  Sometimes you just can't tell about a show unless you participate in it.

I'm finished with craft shows for the year.  Last weekend I was at 2 great little shows--Handmade with Love in Easthampton's Eastworks and the Handicrafts and Collectibles Show at the Salem Cross Inn.  Both had great traffic with people beginning to shop for holiday gifts.  Both are keepers.


My remaining inventory has been sorted and will be distributed between a couple of local pop-up holiday shops--one in Greenfield and one in Northampton.  Darcy Rosner is opening a shop, probably this weekend,  on Federal St. next to the People's Pint.  It will feature mostly local artisans and she's already collected some wonderful items.  I'll post the url on my Facebook page when I get it.  Knack is a local organization dedicated to the art of creative reuse.  Their pop-up on Massonic St. in Northampton will be open every Saturday beginning Nov. 17 through Dec. 22. Everything in the Knack Holiday Pop-Up Shop will be handmade by local artists who use at least 75% reused materials in their work.  

Looking over my spreadsheets I can say that this year was better financially than last.  Jansjems sales have been growing a little bit each year.  And, most importantly, it's still fun.  Besides the pop-up shops, my jewelry can now be found in 3 gift shops and I have one holiday wholesale account.

I'll be getting ready for the holiday, cleaning up my very messy family room workshop, deciding on the menu for Thanksgiving, and eventually, my favorite, decorating for Christmas.  But for now I'm off to get a little exercise at the Y.