I can see clearly now - Brooch and earrings

Brooch (on the left) and pin earrings (on the right) - Clear glass jewels inset into copper for a crisp, no-clutter look. Both the brooch and the earrings have been patinaed for a vintage look.

The hook earrings are fashioned from silver wire, filled with silver solder with blue glass beads and silver baubles dangling from the top centre. A coat of black patina has also been applied for a vintage look.

The brooch displayed on a lace table cloth showing how clear the glass jewel is.

Earring extravaganza

Hand-crafted from copper, silver solder, wire, stained glass and glass jewels.

 

Amber Glass Jewel Earrings and Brooches

A collection of amber glass jewel earrings and 2 brooches (top left). The round brooch is adorned with filigree hand-crafted out of silver wire. The teardrop-shaped earrings are with pin and butterfly, the other three pairs with hooks.

Using bezel frames

The bezel frame above was quite a challenge for me as it was the first time I soldered anything to a pre-formed object. It is made of some unknown (to me!) metal which doesn't take easily to solder, it tends to just melt away with excessive heat.

First I cut two pieces of clear glass to size (one for the front and one for the back), put some copper foil around (so that the solder can take to it) and also cut a photo to size, which I sandwiched between the two pieces of glass. Soldering the two pieces of glass together took some doing, trying to prevent the flux from seeping in between the two pieces of glass and spoiling the photograph.

Then came the job of fitting the glass into the space and then carefully, tacking it to the frame in short bursts so as to not over-heat the piece. Then some filling and smoothing and finally it was finished.

I can't say I enjoyed that, so I have done very few of them!

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Stained Glass panel - Flying Duck

A South African Shell duck depicted in glass.

This stained glass panel (1m x 1.5m) was also commissioned by a client and here I tried something new, doing it in 3D, which means that the one wing sticks out from the panel.

Goggo/Insect Range - Thin-tailed Scorpion

Thin-tailed Scorpion

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 and silver wire, *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.

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.

Thin-tailed Scorpion
these scorpions, of which there are various genera, have thin tails and large pincers. They are found throughout the country, usually under stones or in burrows. The sting is usually no more dangerous than that of a bee. Scorpions are nocturnal creatures, feeding mostly on insect prey.

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Stained Glass panel - Kalahari scene

In the early 80’s, I was the proud owner of a Craft & Gift Shop, offering lessons in various crafts, one of them being working with stained glass. During this time I was commissioned to do a stained glass panel for a Game Lodge in the Kalahari and the owner was very specific about what she wanted, describing the area in great detail, with me frantically taking notes – low mountains, a scarcity of vegetation, dry, hot and dusty landscape, the colours at sunset and little troops of buck and zebra eking out a living on the seared landscape. And the size – 3m wide by 2m deep! I had never made anything this big, except for a couple of window restorations and I must say I was a bit overwhelmed.
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I worked on this piece for two weeks and finally the customer flew up to Gauteng to come and view the finished article. I think I chewed my nails down to the bone waiting for her arrival. But I needn’t have worried, much to my delight she was ecstatic and my work now proudly takes pride of place in the reception area of her Game Lodge in the Kalahari

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Brooches in Copper and Silver wire

Making jewellery is a fascinating past-time. Holding a piece of copper or stained glass in my hand and imagining what it can become is exciting and exhilarating, gets the creative juices flowing and can lead to hours of immersion in the design. There's a certain thrill in looking down at the new piece just made.

.10mm Silver plated wire from Germany I mostly use. Other sizes are 0.8mm and 0.6mm, after that at gets a bit too thin.

Using wire and copper in making jewellery gives you endless choices in creativity. Wire allows you the freedom to get creative with twists, turns, and wraps and endless creative shapes can be cut out of copper. I mostly use silver plated wire from Germany, but also love the .20mm copper wire you can buy from electrical shops. It's thicker, firm, but still easy to bend into shapes.

A necklace with Green beads made out of copper wire

If you're interested in using wire in jewellery making, there are many tutorials on the internet, but I found this easy one for a 'Purple Passion Pendant' at Domestic Diva. At 'All Free Jewelry Making' you will also find some useful links.

I use copper sheeting bought by the roll from many craft shops, it's soft and pliable and very easy to work with and the solder takes to it perfectly. 5 Mil (.005 inches thick) 36 gauge, copper is thick enough that it will hold shape pretty well. You cannot tear it with your hands, but it can be be cut with scissors. It is very flexible and pliable. To use in jewellery as is, you have to have something solid backing it, but covering it in solder gives it the necessary rigidity for brooches and pendants. It is perfect for die-cuts and punches. 8 Mil (.008 inches thick) 32 gauge, copper is approximately 11 - 12 times thicker than typical household aluminium foil and 1.5 times thicker than the 5 mil. This is a heavy-duty tooling foil. 8 mil can be cut fairly easily with scissors and is still very pliable and holds its shape a little better than the 5 mil, but to punch it requires quite a bit of pressure. I rarely use 10 mil as it needs to be cut with heavy duty scissors or a utility knife. As with any sheet metal, the edges can be extremely sharp. Be careful when cutting or working with copper sheeting. Whenever I create pieces that have sharp corners, I usually use an old pair of scissors (so I don't worry about ruining them) and trim the corners so that they are slightly rounded.

Here is a fairly easy tutorial on "How to work with copper sheeting".

Hand-made brooch out of copper, wire and silver solder with a clear blue glass jewel in the centre

Two amber glass jewel brooches, the first surrounded with silver solder, the second with silver wire and silver solder and a ring for hanging something

Silver wire brooch with silver wire, filled with silver solder and two seed beads

Red glass jewel brooch with silver wire filled with silver solder

White glass jewel brooch with silver wire and filled with silver solder

An iridescent glass jewel brooch with silver wire and silver solder

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Goggo/Insect range - Scarlet Dragonfly

Handcrafted by myself - silver wire, silver solder and clear red glass jewels

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 and silver wire, 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:

Scarlet Dragonfly
The adult male Scarlet Dragonfly has a bright red, widened abdomen, and small amber patches at the bases of the hindwings. Females and immatures are yellow-brown and have a conspicuous pale stripe along the top of the thorax. The Scarlet Dragonfly is a common species in southern Europe and north Africa. It is recorded from every country in Africa and occurs across Asia as far as Southern China.

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A collection of Crystals and Keepsakes

A collection of crystals on hand-crafted wire stands in my lounge. The snake skin in front is from my resident Mole snake, Mollie, which she shed a couple of weeks ago

A collection of crystals on hand-crafted wire stands

A vintage bowl filled with earrings and brooches and a display of some of the insects I make

A few watercolour bird paintings and some Keepsakes jewellery

Rose Quartz crystal wand on hand-crafted wire stand

Rose Quartz crystal wand

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Goggo/Insect range - Large Green Praying Mantis (Sphodromantis gastrica)

Hand-crafted by myself.

The abdomen is a blue glass bead, the rest of the body is silver wire and solder. (Approx. 9cm long and 6cm high (3½" x 2½") 

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 and silver wire, 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.

Large Green Praying Mantis 
Sphodromantis gastrica

It catches its prey with its distinctive front legs, which it usually holds up as if in prayer. Its diet of troublesome insects makes it a favorite with gardeners and farmers. It is said that the female devours the male after mating. Often well-camouflaged on twigs.

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