History Hop: Paleolithic Style reveal!

Today is the reveal for the most recent instalment of the History Hop. Our inspiration this time was the Paleolithic era. This was a time in early history when primitive humans began to use tools and create art. There's more info on the period in my original post here.

Before I show you what I made, I'd like to thank all of you for taking part! I'm excited to see what each of you made. I hope you had as much fun creating for this challenge as I did!

I drew most of my inspiration from the cave paintings and simple tools of the era. I kept thinking back to the materials primitive man might have used - stones, fiber, gems...The first pair of earrings I made were inspired by the faceted tools called hand axes that our Paleolithic cave dwelling friends used. I carved my own "hand axes" from polymer clay. I used black as a nod to one of the many stones they would have used - obsidian.

I paired my little hand axes with rough amethyst gems and organic styled art glass pebbles by Julia Hay (she's also taking part in this blog hop). The glass pebbles really do look like little stones with patches of moss.

Finished with hemp and brass earwires (I don't think they had those back then, but you've got to wear them somehow!).

Next up is a pair of earrings inspired by the weather. Dull? I think not! I honed in on ice and snow, glaciers and touches of blue sky. These earrings have artisan ceramics by Scorched Earth and At Home In Taos. I wire wrapped icy rutilated herkimer quartz in blackened copper and finished with a pair of my handmade sterling silver hooks for an extra touch of icy cool colors.

Last but not least is actually the first piece I started designing. I fiddled around with a number of ideas for this necklace before giving up and making the earrings. It finally came together yesterday. You can probably tell this one is inspired by the cave paintings themselves. I chose a ceramic face bead by At Home in Taos and a terracotta arrow (it's actually a heart) by Scorched Earth. I used hemp to bind the pieces together and created a totem of stones above the face.

The totem is a mix of natural stones with an organic feel. I used turquoise, herkimer quartz and juicy amethyst. I created a little cradle for the stones with a hand worked copper base and wrapped it tightly with waxed hemp. I even worked in a tiny herkimer above the terracotta arrow to draw the eye to those mica sparkles. And they do sparkle!

The necklace is finished with strands of hemp cord and recycled sari silk in earthy terracotta, umber and pale mustard.

I hope you've enjoyed this blog hop! Please check out the full list of participants below.


Full list of participants:

Leah Curtis (hostess) - Beady Eyed Bunny
Shaiha's Ramblings
Anafiassa
Emmanuelle
Julia Hay - Pandanimal
Rachel Mallis - Mint Monarch
Beadrecipes
Robin Reed - Artistry HCBD
Joanne Tinks
YeeLen Spirit Designs (will be revealing on Dec. 12th, please check back then!)
Karin G. - Gingko et Coquelicot
Dini Bruinsma
Deborah Apodaca
Tapping Flamingo

Facebook Participants:
Laura Bailey Taskey
Album for Facebook participants found in Bead Soup Cafe 

PS. Check back later for another blog post with a giveaway! I've made a special set of beads similar to the polymer clay hand axes I've used here.

Guessing Game Giveaway!

It seems like all I blog about is giveaways! But when I was taking photos of my recent beads, I couldn't resist using them for a quick game. All you have to do is guess how many beads you think are in this little basket. Easy!

The prize is a 15% off coupon to use in my Etsy shop.

Enter the giveaway by leaving a comment with your guess.

Extra entry for sharing this post on your Facebook, blog, or wherever you like! Come back and guess again.

Deadline is Sunday the 13th of April.

The closest guess wins. Simple! Here's a little hint...somewhere between 1 and 72. Good luck! :)

Giveaway!

Wouldn't you love a bit of Spring? I felt like making a wirework piece, so I dug through my stash and made a little practice pendant. And it could be yours!

I used a beautiful little cabochon by Laney Mead and wrapped it in swirls of pure brass wire. The cab has a warm, burgundy background with lime leaves and a pretty little blue and yellow blossom. There's a sweet little bubble at the center of the flower that sparkles just right in the sunshine.

And I'm giving it away! all you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post.

International entries welcomed!

You can enter until January 31st.

There's no need to share this on your blog, Facebook, etc., but if you want to spread the word and a little bit of Spring, then thank you!

More beautiful art beads...

Guess what? In my last post I shared with you that I won some of Gaea's handmade beads. Well, they've arrived! And they're gorgeous. It's a beautiful set of ceramics in earthy and pastel colors. I'll share photos soon, I promise!

But for now, I have more art beads to share. I won an absolutely stunning set of beads from Caroline of BlueberriBeads. You can see the exact set I won here. And now for some photos of what I've made so far...

In this bracelet, I used Caroline's stoneware dragonfly, copper lentil, stoneware barrel, and her beautiful silvered glass lampwork spotty barrel.

I went with a natural, beachy theme and added some faceted aqua quartz from my friend Tanya of FusionMuse. The beads are wrapped in solid brass wire and finished with a handmade clasp.


 

Here's another pic of that gorgeous dragonfly bead. This bracelet had a lot of ooohs and ahhhhs at a recent show and will be listed in my Etsy soon.





I've made another bracelet with Caroline's beads that has some scrummy larimar and heat patinated brass chain. It'll have to wait for another blog post, though.

Something that has managed to find its way into my shop, is gemstone earrings. I made two pairs of copper earrings with my handmade rosy ball end headpins. I love how the little balls of copper add that extra bit of detail to these earrings.
 

Aren't those gemstones yummy? The yellow pair has faceted yellow sapphires and smooth citrine drops. I love how the citrine sparkles.

The red pair has faceted rubies and the daintiest Turundu sapphires. All those little facets add a surprising amount of sparkle.

I love making these little rustic earrings. A bit of sparkle, a splash of color, and just the right amount of femininity mixed with rustic simplicity. What could be better? If you'd like to see more photos, you can find them here.