Rings & Things Design Gallery

Alternative Materials Category

Fri, 07 Apr 2006 19:14:36 GMT

Elegant Gemstone Fiber Necklace

Artist: Kathy Wiesner-Fraga (Buzzards Bay, MA)
First Place, Alternative Materials

"I had ordered tigereye beads and potato pearls with two separate projects in mind, but when they arrived I thought they complemented each other well and decided to combine them, with my new love for fiber, into a necklace ... On white DandyLine�, I strung three seperate strands of tigereye and pearls using gold Toho Treasure seed beads as spacers. Each of the three strands are different from each other, but all follow the same pattern within the individual strand. I added a vintage crystal topaz AB round in the middle of one [strand] for extra sparkle. I then combined two groups of fibers with each bead strand and braided them loosely together. It was easy to tie off the bundles and join them with a long eye pin through the bullet end. I beaded a clasp and voila! A one-of-a-kind spectacular piece. I love it because traditionally I have not thought of tigereye as a "dressy" stone and I think this look is very elegant." � Kathy Wiesner-Fraga

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80 views
Apr 07, 2006

Gemstones & Pearls / Grand Prize

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 23:55:08 GMT

Buffalo Spirit

Artist: Svetlana Hinkle (Spokane Valley, WA)
Grand Prize; First Place, Gemstones & Pearls

"I grew up reading Jack London's stories about the Native Americans, and from a young age I was fascinated by their culture. After having moved to Washington State and marrying a man who is part Cherokee, I came in closer contact with the life and traditions of the Native Americans. The opulent nature and abundant wildlife of the Western United States added to my deep inspiration in creating Buffalo Spirit ...

"It was immensely rewarding creating Buffalo Spirit, however I did face several challenges along the way. The first was carving and shaping the central stone, which is druzy calcite. I had to make sure the original structure and shape of the stone remained intact, as it is fragile and delicate in nature. It took several hours of careful work to prepare it for setting. The second challenge consisted of making sure that the beading around the stone was even and proportionate, as the shape of the stone was not smooth or uniform. The third - and biggest - of the challenges was attaching the fringe to the edge of the piece. I had to sew through a layer of feathers surrounding the necklace, which was exceptionally difficult. In all, the work took three months to complete." � Svetlana Hinkle

No photographic image can do justice to the three-dimensional beadwork on this piece, which includes seed-bead towers topped by corn pearls, and the focal stone's intricate setting, carefully crafted out of seed beads and "rice" oval pearls.

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61 views
Mar 31, 2006

Metal Clay Category

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 20:57:28 GMT

Moments

Artist: Linda Stiles Smith (Dayton, OH)
First Place, Metal Clay

"I have been working in metal clay for four years and selling my work at summer shows. In the winter, I get to "play" with new designs and ideas. I had purchased this cabochon over six months ago with no idea how I would use it. I also wanted to try using some gold in my work. Drawings and ideas came together in my sketchbook over several months. I recently discovered that I have pine-tree allergies, so I thought the best way to enjoy them was to have them on a pendant that didn't make me sneeze!

"I created a mold from my original stamp and pressed my clay (rolled to three cards) into it. It was rough around the edges, but that seemed to be okay. I further defined the trees and shapes by carving into the bone-dry piece. Then the "how" of making the rest of this piece was discovered as I worked. The bezel for the stone needed to be set into thicker clay than what I used for the tree shapes, but it was already pretty big, and would be very heavy if I used another solid slab of clay. I decided that a thick coil of clay might do the trick. I was right. I was able to set the bezel wire into the coil, as a separate piece, then attach it to the tree piece by merging the rock design into the front and using a leaf pattern on the back.

"This was a pretty large piece and needed a decent sized bail to hold it, but not an obvious one, and I still wanted to use some gold. I came up with the idea of a tube bail that was formed separately and attached with paste in the center of the top. The domed shape that sits on top hides the bail and complements the design. I added gold paste and torch fired and burnished it to a high shine. To me, it's the sun glowing over the pine forest with the deep green moss [covered] rocks underfoot. Peaceful, and just the place I long to be! On the reverse of the piece, I added how I feel about this piece ... The words and leaves were stamped, cut out and attached with paste to give them a relief which complements the three-dimensionality of the other components. The whole has been given a selective patina with liver of sulfer and a brush, the trees and words hand-burshined to a high shine, and the finished piece is worn from a rigid neck collar." � Linda Stiles Smith

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61 views
Mar 31, 2006

Glass Category

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 19:51:24 GMT

Gift from my Grandmother

Artist: Svetlana May (Phoenix, AZ)
First Place, Glass

The beautiful focal piece of this necklace was a gift Svetlana received from her grandmother. Svetlana explains that after accidentally breaking the chain that this pendant originally hung from, "I made this necklace to [go with] my evening dress, so my grandmother would not be offended." Our contest judges were impressed not only with Svetlana's skillful stitchwork, but also with how perfectly she matched the colors of the pendant with our seed beads and Swarovksi� bicones.

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65 views
Mar 31, 2006

Polymer Clay Category

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 19:51:22 GMT

Aunt Sadie's Garden

Artist: Patricia McKay (Cameron, NC)
First Place, Polymer Clay

"... Usually when I make polymer clay beads, I think in terms of the bead alone, independent of any future design. This set was a little different. I wanted to make a necklace with polymer clay beads that looked like glass lampwork beads. So when I designed the bead set, I was thinking in terms of the finished piece. ... Having the design in mind, picking clay colors took no time [although] conditioning the clay took awhile. I used a number of canes in this design: bulls eye and leaf canes and a number of flower-petal canes. Each flower petal had to be applied to the base bead individually. The butterflies were made from flower-petal canes too. I make my own canes and each one used was a separate item to prepare. When the beads were ready, they had to be cooked for 30 minutes to cure them. To add a shine, two coats of flecto Verathane diamond finish were brushed onto each bead after they were cooked. Then the really fun part came, constructing the necklace. I always take a little time to try out various combinations on my bead board before finally putting together the finished product. I was happy to have enough beads to make coordinating earrings." � Patricia McKay

Patricia complemented her handmade beads with gemstone rounds, Czech firepolish beads and Swarovski� crystal beads.

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45 views
Mar 31, 2006

Nature Category

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 19:51:22 GMT

Ocean of Dreams

Artist: Katia Everett (Burnaby, BC, Canada)
First Place, Nature

"I absolutely love the ocean. It has a calming, magical quality about it. I wanted to make a piece that reflected that feeling of inner peace. I used a dremel tool to make holes in some of the shells I've collected from my sunrise walks along the beautiful serene beaches of the Sunshine Coast, near where I live." � Katia Everett

In addition to using hand-picked shells in her design, Katia also used sea urchin, ocean jasper and picture jasper beads.

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47 views
Mar 31, 2006

Mostly Metal Category

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 19:51:20 GMT

Oceana Bracelet

Artist: Cassandra Chamness (Chicago, IL)
First Place, Mostly Metal

"I love to go mining and dig up my own gemstones! I have mined around the United States a lot, but I have good friends that take mining trips all over the world. The blue tourmaline that originally inspired this bracelet was the best that I found on my trip to San Diego. The rest of the stones -- aquamarine, opal, and apatite -- had been dug by my friends on their travels to Brazil and Australia. All of these stones together were just perfect for an ocean-themed piece of jewelry, so I added the fish and got to work on my bracelet. I've been making wire-wrapped jewelry for two years, and this turned out to be my best bracelet so far. It took me about twelve hours to create, using all sterling silver wire." � Cassandra Chamness

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59 views
Mar 31, 2006