tkmetalarts: blog carnival

Showing posts with label blog carnival. Show all posts

Monday, March 4, 2013

Etsymetal Blog Carnival - March 2013, Where Do You Live

Every month my teammates on EtsyMetal choose a theme for our blog posting. We call this our EtsyMetal Blog Carnival. For this month, the topic is:
"Where do you live?"
Physically, mentally, emotionally...
City, state, country; house, apartment, farm; orderly, chaotic, on the edge...
Give us a picture of who you are by showing and telling us where you live, how your surroundings may inspire you...

I live in, San Mateo, one of the suburbs in the San Francisco Bay Area, pretty much half way between the city of San Francisco and San Jose. The 2010 census says that there are 7.15 million people living in communities surrounding the bay. San Francisco is a very picturesque city, and the streets weave between colorful Victorians in the residential hills as well as through the downtown modern highrises. Although I'm in the suburb, it's only a 15 min. drive to reach the city limits. However, it typically takes me 30 minutes to cross town due to city traffic.

To me, San Francisco is a city of tolerance, a city of ethnic and cultural diversity. That kind of spirit is very encouraging for the arts. There's always some events going on each weekend. We are very lucky to have some of the finest museums in the world. The current exhibit, which I plan to visit, is the Girl with a Pearl Earring, Dutch Paintings from the Mauritshuis at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park. This puts me in the mood of making pearl earrings. LOL.

Another museum current exhibit is the China's Terracotta Warriors at the Asian Art Museum. Some years ago, I went to Xian and saw the excavation pits where these statues were unearthed. But hey, seeing them again will bring me closer to home, closer to Asia.

In San Mateo, I live in a small house where my studio takes up a portion of the garage. It's not the prettiest place, and that's why I rely on the attractions in San Francisco to provide me with tons of inspiration. Having a network of local artist friends is invaluable. I feel very lucky that I am surrounded by resources.

Hope you enjoy reading the other team member's blog posts on the same topic:
1. Lou Hunter: http://peculiarforest.blogspot.ch/
2. Laura Jane Bouton: http://laurajanebouton.blogspot.it/
3. 2Roses: http://www.jewelrytutorial.blogspot.com
4. Inbar Bareket : http://www.inbarbareket.info/blog/
5. Laney Clark: http://www.silentgoddess.blogspot.com
6. Abella Blue: http://www.abellablue.com/blog
7. Cynthia Del Giudice: http://www.cynthiadelgiudice.blogspot.com
8. Rebecca Bogan: http://adobesol.wordpress.com/
9. Erin Austin: http://metalmusing.blogspot.com/
10. Deborah Lee Taylor http://www.e5jewelryblog.com
11. Anne Walker: http://creativeinclinations.blogspot.com/

Monday, May 7, 2012

EtsyMetal Blog Carnival - May 2012, Unconventional Tool

It's EtsyMetal's Blog Carnival again. The team chooses one topic that we would write about for the first Monday of the month. This month's topic is "The Unconventional Tool", tool(s) that I either made myself, items that were not intended to be used by a metalsmith, tell about it and describe/show the results my special tool(s) give in my creative process!

I got this little plastic disc, about 1 inch in diameter, from our local plastic shop. I found it in the scrap bin where they discard pieces that are broken, odd ball sizes, or unpopular items. Someone's trash is another's treasure, right? Well, let me tell you, I can't live without it when making a bezel setting.

Before, I tried using a bezel rocker to push the bezel wall onto the cabochon. Because it is made of steel, the bezel rocker would leave marks on the thin, soft fine silver bezel. I would have to sand it down so thin that sometimes I wonder if the bezel wire would develop a hole, showing through to the stone.

I use this plastic disc to pull or push the soft fine silver onto the cabochon without marring my bezels anymore. Being 1 inch round, it is small, handy, and easy to maneuver. The best part is, it is FREE - totally within my budget. =]

See what my other teammates have to say about this topic:
1. Mary Anne Karren - http://silverpearlmetalworks.wordpress.com/
2. Laney Clark ~ http://silentgoddess.blogspot.com
3. Beth Cyr - http://bcyrjewelry.blogspot.com
4. Inbar Bareket - http://www.inbarbareket.info/blog
5. 2Roses - http://www.jewelrytutorial.blogspot.com

Monday, April 2, 2012

EtsyMetal Blog Carnival - April 2012

It's been a while since I last participated in EtsyMetal's Blog Carnival. The team chooses one topic that we would write about for the first Monday of the month. This month's topic is "Nobody's Perfect".

I have to admit, I usually spend time to think and/or sketch a design before I start working a piece. A lot of times, it works out exactly how I imagined it, but a lot of times...well, let's say, things happen. LOL

Just the other day, I made some simple bezel set gemstone post earrings. I didn't want to have a puddle of solder at the base of the posts, so I was being careful not to put too much solder. I was so happy everything worked out just right, and threw the settings in the tumbler to bring a high shine to them. I use the tumbler for 2 reasons: to harden the posts after heating and to see if the solder joins can withstand the forces of tumbling in steel shots. Well, they came out nice and bright, and I went ahead and set the stones. Well, lo and behold, one of the posts snapped off when I did a final test by tugging gently with pliers.

Aquamarine Post Earrings

Well, I know that once the stone is set, I can't introduce heat anymore. So what to do?

Aquamarine Earring turned into a Pendant

I refinished the back of the earring where the post came off and made it into a matching pendant. The jump ring bail was carefully soldered close while I put the stone, face down on a heat sink pad. After that, I made a new single earring for replacement. This turned out quite well, so I made another matching set using garnets.

Here are the 2 matching sets of earrings and pendants.

Lessons learned here are:

Use a little more solder than the snippets I cut
Test the earring posts thoroughly before setting the stones
As makers, we have to remain open with our designs and adapt with surprise accidents.

See what my other teammates have to say about this topic:
1. Silentgoddess - http://silentgoddess.blogspot.com
2. Gracebourne - http://gracebourne.blogspot.com/
3. 2Roses - http://jewelrytutorial.blogspot.com
4. Inbar Bareket - http://www.inbarbareket.info/blog
5. Anne Walker - http://creativeinclinations.blogspot.com/
6. Beth Cyr - http://bcyrjewelry.blogspot.com
7. wildflowerdesigns - http://wildflowerdesigns.blogspot.com
8. Michele Grady Designs- http://michelegradydesigns.blogspot.com
9. Evelyn Markasky - http://markasky.blogspot.com/

Monday, July 11, 2011

EtsyMetal Blog Carnival - July 2011

Every month my teammates on EtsyMetal choose a theme for our blog posting. We call this our EtsyMetal Blog Carnival. For this month, the topic is "Artist's Work That Has Influenced My Own". Be sure to check out posts by the other participating members (see list at the end).
John Cogswell has been teaching jewelry making for thirty plus years and had recently retired from teaching at SUNY New Paltz. When I found out that he was going to be teaching stone setting at Revere Academy 3 months ago, I jump at the opportunity to learn from this man LIVE. Besides, I learn better by watching, and I heard he is a wonderful teacher. The class was a real joy, and he has endless funny stories to share.

If you don’t get a chance to attend John’s workshops, I highly recommend getting his book, Creative Stonesetting. Here are a few of the results of his class demo: