07.24.17 Everything's bigger in Texas

I love doing custom work - there is a special sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that comes from taking an idea or request from a client, and turning into a piece of jewelry that tells their story. When a request comes from a fellow artist - well, making that kind of piece is truly an honor.

I've purchased a number of wonderful cabochons from Chip and Deborah Allen, including this beautiful Kingman turquoise. They are wonderful folks.  I've gotten to know them through the Cabs and Slabs facebook group - and it turns out that they, too, are Texans.

Not too long ago, I had a message from Chip asking if he could send me another piece of Kingman so that I could make a custom pendant for Deborah.  I said "of course" and "thank you" because his request is an enormous complement.

When the stone arrived, I was not surprised by the quality - but I was amazed at the size - and excited to get started working on the pendant.

Deborah had seen some of my other pieces with Texas cut outs on the back, so she knew that was what she wanted. Because of the size of the stone, I made the cut out almost a full square inch - so lots of the color could show through on the back.




I used the same style as the other piece of Kingman - serrated bezel surrounded by twisted wire - to set this piece, but because of it's size, it needed a substantial bail rather than just a small wire loop.

This style of setting has become something of a signature for me - I love the look that I get when I put a patina on the twisted wire and then give the whole piece a high polish.


The last step before setting the stone is making sure there are no scratches or patina in the wrong places, then I hand polish, both the pendant and a chain that has been oxided to match, with a Sunshine cloth.

I'm really pleased with the finished piece, and delighted to have had the opportunity to make something so special for people I am glad to call my friends.

The Allens are among many of the wonderful folks I have met in my metalsmithing journey - hopefully we'll meet in person on one of their trips through Texas.

Until next time.

07.10.17 Can I see some ID?

Our daughter (and youngest child) turned 21 the end of last year, right before she took her finals - which meant no real celebrating.

When I asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she said "some Southwest drink coupons please, so I can have an adult beverage on the flight home".  I said "ok" and put some in her birthday card - and she toasted to the end of her semester at 30,000 feet.



Maybe it was that conversation that planted the seed in my brain that led to my series of "adult beverage" pendants...maybe not...but the theme has sort of taken on a life of its own...

First, there was the wine glass, which I liked so much I kept - and then decided to keep a pair of earrings because they match...

...next came the margarita...

I bought this great amazonite heart, and to me it looked just like the color of that wonderful frozen concoction of lime and tequila - so I thought, that's what I'll put on the back!  It turned out great (and has since sold) - but I was definitely on a roll.

A few weeks later, while having dinner at Dai Due, one of our favorite spots in Austin, I had a fabulous summer shandy (beer mixed with orange juice, lemonade - or my favorite - grapefruit juice).  I'm not a huge beer drinker, but this was a wonderful grapefruit gose combined with fresh squeezed juice and it was amazing!  It was also inspiring - as I had been looking at some fossilized coral cabochons - which look like citrus slices.

I'm particularly proud of the Summer Shandy pendant because the saw work was tricky.  I wanted to leave just enough silver in the cut out to separate the glass and the fruit wedge - and I managed that - then I had to be very careful with torch to make sure I didn't melt it!



Next up a martini - using this great piece of rutilated quartz - because it turns out my daughter (who has become a student of cocktails) is a fan of a dry, dirty gin martini (as was Julia Child).

What ever your drink of choice - I hope you find time this summer to lift a glass, visit with friends, and enjoy.

Until next time.

Photo credit: seriouseats.com