Wire and Iridescent Glass Jewel Brooch

A brooch I made out of silver wire with an iridescent blue glass jewel in the centre. The brooch pin is behind the thick silver solder at the top.

The back of the brooch

::

Goggo/Insect range - Leopard Tortoise

A Leopard Tortoise hand-crafted with a shell, painted with oil paints, with soldered edge and feet. The head is a yellow glass bead.

Within my house of patterned horn
I sleep in such a bed
As men may keep before they're born
And after when they're dead.

Sticks and stones may break their bones,
And words may make them bleed;
There is not one of them who owns
An armour to his need.

Tougher than hide or lozenged bark,
Snow-storm and thunder proof,
And quick with sun, and thick with dark,
Is this my darling roof.

Men's troubled dreams of death and birth
Pulls mother-o'-pearl to black;
I bear the rainbow bubble Earth
Square on my scornful back
- Elinor Morton Wylie

Southern Africa is very fortunate to have the largest variety of animals in the world. It is home to more than 800 bird species, 150 mammal species, about 50 snake and lizard species, 11 tortoise species and thousands of invertebrate animals like insects and arachnids.

The Leopard Tortoise (or Mountain tortoise - Geochelone pardalis) inhabits a wide range of habitats, from dry Bushveld to moister coastal plains and is the most widely distributed and also the biggest of the 12 species of land tortoise found in Southern Africa. It is believed to take its name 'mountain' tortoise from its size rather than its habitat. ('Leopard' tortoise' comes from the black and yellow blotched patterns on its high-domed carapace.)

::

Goggo/Insect range - Hermit Crab

A Hermit Crab sporting his brand new shell he has just found!

This Keepsakes range consists of insects (for the insect-lover!) to display as ornaments but some of them can also be fashioned into brooches. Hand-crafted with silver, copper, pewter, glass jewels, silver wire and shells, each Goggo/insect can take 3 or more hours to make. Only materials of the highest quality is used and great attention is given to detail and these little animals are unique, one-of-a-kind designs not to be repeated.

Although the items should be treated with care, each item is strong and sturdy. Taking care and cleaning of your unique insect is as easy as scrubbing gently with a toothbrush and Sunlight Liquid and giving it a good rinse with cold water, drying gently with a soft cloth. A natural patina develops over time, adding charm to the item. Each insect comes with its own descriptive card, unfortunately no card available for this one.

Hermit crabs are decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea. Most species have long, spirally curved abdomens, which are soft, unlike the hard, calcified abdomens seen in related crustaceans. The vulnerable abdomen is protected from predators by a salvaged empty seashell carried by the hermit crab, into which its whole body can retract.

Hermit Crabs are very social animals and can live 10 years or more, changing shells, moulting several times throughout their lives and growing up to six inches in length. Did you know that Hermit crabs are sometimes kept as pets? Hermit Crabs are docile and are easy and economical to care for and their crabby antics, like climbing, digging and shell switching are as entertaining as they are educational!

 

 

The underside of the crab 

 

 

A lot of research goes into making these little creatures. I use photographs for reference, live study where possible and also Google the necessary information regarding their size, habits, lifestyle, etc. Hand-crafting these little animals has taught me so much about nature and given me a new respect for all Mother Nature's beauty.

.

Amber, warm and powerful. Necklace

Scouring some vintage shops like I normally do, I came upon these loose Amber beads in an old tin on a shelf and when I enquired whether it was for sale, the lady said yes and I was surprised at how affordable they were and snatched them up immediately!

They obviously came from a previous neclace, so I just threaded some tiger-tail wire through the holes, attached some clasps and earring hooks onto the two I used for earrings and voila! a warm and powerful necklace with matching earrings!

While often considered a gemstone, the glowing amber is not actually a stone, but fossilized resin from ancient evergreen trees. The oldest amber discovered on Earth is about 320 million years old. Imagine the incredibly powerful energy this amber contains!

Young amber stones are less than 100,000 years old; the most valued pieces of amber are much older than that. (It takes a long time for the tree resin to become true amber). Isn’t it mind boggling to know that the amber jewellery you just bought contains such old, wise energy?

The most obvious quality of amber is its old, old, (very old!) energy. With it comes the accumulated wisdom of the earth and its natural kingdom. You can often see little insects trapped in the amber while it started as a tree resin; this gives the amber stone quite powerful magical properties. It is believed that amber:

• Balances emotions
• Attracts good luck
• Eliminates fears
• Relieves headache
• Clears the mind
• Dissolves negative energy
• Helps develop patience and wisdom

Amber clarity ranges from transparent to opaque and it has a resinous lustre. Most amber specimens have pockets of air bubbles and various other inclusions.

Bracelets - Bound Chaos

Bracelets (and rings) fashioned out of silver wire, some inter-laced with beads and some left plain.

From my Earth Range, I've named them "Bound Chaos". Just like in our daily lives, these pieces are gently woven together, trying to make sense of uncertainty and chaos, giving meaning to experience.

"Bound Chaos" bracelets displayed with two Crystal bracelets

"Bound Chaos" - Two silver wire bracelets inter-laced with blue beads

::

Tamboti leaf Choker and Earrings

If you are a porcupine, the thought of chewing on the bark of the Tamboti tree is enough to send thrills down your quills. If you are a black rhino you will seek out the slender, leaf-filled branches and eat them with relish.

If you happen to be of the species Homo sapiens then beware - Tamboti spells danger! The tree contains a white, milky latex which is poisonous to humans. This latex is characteristic of all members of the Euphorbia family (Euphorbiacea). The tree does have important medicinal value and the roots, bark and even the sap (latex) are used to cure various ailments although nausea always results and a heavy dose may even cause death. A little sap dabbed on an aching tooth is said to bring relief but liberal quantities may result in permanent relief from all pain - an early grave.

The Tamboti tree (Spirostachys africana) is sought after for the making of furniture as it is a hard, fine-grained wood. An interesting contrast is created by the light, creamy sapwood and the dark brown heartwood. The heartwood is resistant to decay and termite attack and is therefore used for building huts and as fencing poles. Of course, great care has to be taken when working with the Tamboti wood as the sawdust is poisonous. Even the smoke from a Tamboti fire is poisonous and could result in you painfully re-examining the contents of the previous night's bush braai.  The wood should not be used for cooking fires, although once it has burnt down, the glowing coals can safely be used.

The small, green leaves turn to magnificent shades of yellow, orange and red and a grove of Tamboti trees in autumn is a sight to behold. It was during autumn, when my tree was ablaze with colour, that I was inspired to craft these Tamboti leaf earrings with matching choker, using silver wire and silver solder. The choker also has a single Tamboti leaf suspended.

Other common names: Tamboti (Eng.); Tambotie (Afr.); umThombothi (Zulu); Modiba (Northern Sotho); umThombotsi (siSwati); Ndzopfori (Tsonga); Morukuru (Tswana); Muonze (tshiVenda)

.

Life's a bitch...

but I appreciate her nontheless.
.
::
.

I woke up feeling utterly depressed this morning. No particular reason, everything is running smoothly in my life, no worries, no stress, no problems, no debt, and yet, I had this completely flat and miserable feeling. Even finding some beautiful feathers in the garden could not motivate or inspire me. In fact, my garden looked like shit. Even the birds, who normally wait in droves at the bird feeders, seemed to have deserted my space.

I wandered back into the house to my studio and opened a box of beach finds, hoping to find inspiration there. But nothing. My muse seems to have taken a walk, leaving me with the dregs of imagination.

When the thought, "life's a bitch" came into my mind, I decided to Google it, maybe find some explanation or inspiration. But all I found was "life's a bitch and then you die" and "life's a bitch and death is her sister". Not very inspirational or explanatory at all. I pondered this for a while and summarily decided that I didn't like those references at all. They must've been written by somebody in a deeper depression than myself and the thought was very scary.

I remembered a quote I had read some time ago, "Creativity is a drug I cannot live without" and decided the only solution was that I HAD to do something creative to break this feeling. Even if it's just something simple, not too complicated, just to get the juices flowing again.

I remembered seeing a nice round pebble, well, stone actually, in my garden earlier (so I DID notice something nice after all!), so I went out in search of it. I gave it a thorough wash and just holding it in my hands brought a feeling of peace. It wasn't long before I was totally immersed in wrapping it in some silver wire, as if wrapping some peace and love into it, safely securing it with some drops of solder. Attaching a ring and adding a chain, it was ready to hang around my neck.

Hand-crafted river pebble (2½" - 5cm) pendant hanging from a leather thong

Pebbles and stones represent solidity, stability, dependability. And that's what I needed to feel today, solid and stable.

Since earliest history, people have collected and admired pretty pebbles, often believing they had magical and healing powers. Even the earliest people told stories about magical creatures made of stone. Pebbles, stones and rocks are a vital part of our earth and our history - from providing us with our very first tools and building materials to giving us a chance to express ourselves through sculptures, jewelry and other fine arts.

Go ahead, hold a pebble in your hand. Feel its smooth surface grow warm in your palm. See it glow with light. I asked myself: Where has this pebble been, and what has it seen, in all its thousands of years of existence? Then I opened my mind to its healing power...

.

I go to nature...

... to be soothed and healed . and to have my senses put in order 

Hand-crafted from copper and silver solder . the copper assists in energy flowing more freely

Karee leaf and seed – Hand-crafted earrings made from Copper and silver solder with patina for a vintage look – from my EARTH range of ‘Afrika Street Jewellery’ – displayed on a large Rose Quartz crystal. The EARTH range of jewellery is inspired by nature and this one is fashioned after the leaves of the White Karee tree (Rhus viminalis).

Albert Einstein said, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

::