On the Bench

These are just a couple of recent commissions of custom jewelry that I really liked.



Elk tooth earrings view 1
 

Elk tooth earrings view 2

 

This snowflake obsidian bracelet combined with filigree was particularly pretty, I thought.

Snowflake obsidian bracelet front view

 

Snowflake obsidian bracelet side view
 

Snowflake obsidian bracelet reverse view

 



 



On the Bench



I like to show people what I'm working on occasionally, so I'll show what's on my bench in the process of being worked on.

This one is getting close to getting set. It has a large titanium coated drusy with checkerboard garnets. It'll be done as a bead enhancer, which means you can take it off beads to wear as a pendant on a chain. This one will be set on a garnet bead strand.

Titanium drusy crystal with checkerboard cut garnets being fitted for a bead enhancer pendant

 OK, I work on a bunch of things consecutively, so it doesn't seem like I'm doing anything, then all of a sudden there's a bunch of pieces done. These really pretty pieces have complex executions, so it takes awhile to complete them. This one will have a Storybook on how I made it too.

This particular piece began as just sheet. I hand etched the Celtic pattern into it, cut it out, made the hinges, did the hinge pin catch assembly and set it with amethysts on both the top and the bottom of the catch assembly.

Everybody who got a sneak peak preview at the opening of the jewelry show was fascinated with the catch. (Thank you Jean Stark for teaching me that catch--elegant.) They were pulling the catch pin up, unfastening, putting it on, fastening the thing. Repeat. All the extra tight hinge allowances have now loosened to their proper tension.

Celtic key pattern hinged panel bracelet with amethysts

 

I'll show better pictures of it when I do more photo shoots.

On the Bench

I'm not a big fan of citrine, but this one sure caught my eye. Orange, double cut star, decahedron (12 sides), 13+ carats. Ah! Nothing like a setting challenge!

I'll have more about the setting and how it was made in a Storybook Jewelry feature, but I decided to keep the emphasis on the stone itself, the setting had to be minimalist. So here's a picture of the necklace with the lovely setting on a neck wire.

Here's another view:

The neck wire looks odd because it's not sitting on a neck form. It's shaped to lay on the collar bones so as to not stick straight out. I also found out I need to turn the termination 90 degrees so it'll flat against the neck. Duh! Obvious things are not always apparent right out of the gate.

Okay, okay, just one more picture!

On the Bench!

Working on the concept

This is one of my current projects. Maybe you can guess what it is, but I'm not going to tell you until it's finished and I have it in a Storybook Jewelry posting. But I like the way the lines move on this piece. It's somewhat similar to the honking big amethyst pendant in another Storybook Jewelry posting. I think I'm going to have to do a whole series of this type of pattern development to get it out of my system. These have been some of my more enjoyable ones, so it might take awhile. I have a whole season of downtime (my favorite and most creative time!) coming up. 

If you have any ideas of what you think "lines" might look good in jewelry, why don't you give me some feedback. You never know when I might use those suggestions to make something. I depend on feedback from people to help me develop jewelry that gets noticed!

Copyright 2011 by Katherine Palochak