Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Days off are so refreshing...

...and then you have to go back to work.

Sigh.

But at least I achieved my goal of getting some jewelry made and, as an added bonus, got the website updated as well.

I'm still having such a great time playing with all my new brass, gunmetal and brushed silver chain, filigree pieces and Lucite flowers that I just can't stop making stuff. Here are some of the newest pieces of my Memoire Collection:


Here's a close-up of the "bouquet" section:


The back:




And the coordinating earrings:


It's amazing how the use of the brushed silver chain just completely changes the whole feel as compared to when I use brass:







And the earrings - made these a little more "lush" by adding extra flowers:


And then I decided to experiment with a color palette that's WAY outside my comfort zone - orange and purple:



To go even further out of my safe little "zone", I tried to get a bit asymmetrical with this one by hanging a single dangle on one side only (I know, I know, I'm really living on the "edge" here, but if you only knew how hard it is for me not to make everything all "matchy-matchy" all the time, you'd know what a huge step this is for me):










And then I went REALLY hog wild and mixed dark gunmetal with pale pastel lavender, yellow and white and put flittering butterflies in asymmetrical spots (because, after all, butterflies don't care if they land in the exact most "balanced" spot, right? they're just looking for the best nectar):










Of course, there is one TEENY TINY issue I have with the Butterfly Blossom set, but so far, everyone tells me they can't see it unless I point out exactly what it is. So, I'm on the fence about whether or not I have to fix it (it's purely an aesthetic issue and nothing to do with the quality of the piece at all). So, I'm leaving it up to you - can anyone see what the issue is and if so, does it bug you enough that you think I should correct it?
KJ

6 comments:

SueBeads said...

Is it that you used sterling jump rings? I don't think it's an issue; I guess if they never sell, you might change it! They are all so pretty, I love them!

Ruth Trowbridge said...

I adore this stuff, you do have a magic touch! Thanks for sharing.

Marie Cramp said...

I can not see what it is. The pieces are all lovely. I have to say that the purple orange is my fave, I am glad you tried that one it turned out really great.

{I made it into the Oct issue of Bead Trends!!} I am telling you this because after I saw your stuff in the book, I just had to try. Thanks;)

Marie

Silver Parrot said...

Sue - Thank you for the compliment and YES! You got it. The gunmetal jump rings I have are too thick to fit through the holes in the butterflies. A search of all the area bead stores over the weekend didn't turn up anything thinner so I finally gave in and just used the bright silver. However, a friend pointed out to me yesterday (because I think she was tired of listening to me complain) that I can just (DUH!) take a Sharpie and darken the rings.

Silver Parrot said...

Ruralrose - Thank you!

Silver Parrot said...

Marie - glad you like the purple and orange. Even though it's a bit "out there" for me (I'm a blue/green girl, usually), I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Oh and CONGRATS! on "Bead Trends." That's awesome!