More Angels

An original creation from hand hammered and soldered sterling silver.  Her body is Amethyst and her head Carnelian Agate.  She's 2 inches high and 1.75 inches wide.  She can be found in my ETSY shop here.

Another completely original creation from hand hammered and soldered sterling silver.  Her head is Adularia Moonstone with blue flash and her body is Chrysoprase.  She is rather large at 2.75 inches high and is 2 inches wide.  You can see her in my ETSY shop here.

Two Angels and Two Hearts

 My attempt to create a more feather-like abstract sterling wing produced these results.

 She has a Rhodonite face from Australia and a white Agate body.  Not sure which agate specifically.  This is the larger one, she is about 2.5 inches high (including the bail) and is 2 inches wide.

 She is smaller at 2 inches high (including the bail) and 1.5 inches wide.  Her face is Tiger Eye and she has a Selenite body and she is made of sterling silver.

Offset sterling Red Jasper heart.  1.5 inches high (including the bail) and 1 inch wide. 

 There is nothing better than having a big heart and this Rose Quartz, the stone of love, set in sterling silver is big and bold.  2 inches high and 1.5 inches wide, a creation that shouts the word LOVE.

Two hearts celebrating life's poetic moments.

Happy Smiles and New Creations

Such a bright, joyous gift for our little family, darling baby Abigail is almost two months old and is now smiling.

She's growing so fast and this beautiful pudgy baby is so loved and well taken care of.

We took a walk along the Hudson River with baby Abigail...

... and her beautiful Mama.

We had views of Manhattan and the new building being built on the 9-11 site (it is the one with the new spire-- just became the tallest building in the western hemisphere)...

... and Ellis Island...

... and the Statue of Liberty.

Our sweet little baby slept peacefully through it all.

Grandmommy made her an Angel with a Missouri Lace Agate dress and Golden Moonstone face in Sterling Silver and it will hang over her crib.

In fact, Grandmommy's been very busy in her little workshop/house on wheels. 

A Shattuckite and moonstone in Sterling Silver moon and star pendant.

A Sterling Silver Golden Moonstone sun.

Graveyard Point Plume Agate in Sterling.

Rainbow Obsidian heart in Sterling Silver.

Sonoran Dendritic Jasper in Sterling Silver.

And lastly, a Sterling Silver Tiger Eye and Carnelian shield pin.

Joanne Boyle's Artisan Pendants

Just wanted to share my latest youtube vid.  It's about 5 minutes and is and overall of my work in cutting and polishing stone cabochons and then setting them in precious metals.  Not set to music at this time but might do it later.  Enjoy!

Morrisonite, Dino Bone and Zebra, Under a Moon

Morrisonite is named for explorer/prospector James Morrison who for fifty years made his home in Owyhee River Canyon, Idaho.  It's warm colors and orb patterns make this Jasper a real gem.  This 2.25" high and is 1.5" wide pendant is made of tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver and can be found in my ETSY shop here.

Some time around 150 million years ago, a dinosaur finished it's life here on Earth.  Subsequent covering of sediment and millions of years of heat, cooling, moisture, dryness and pressure enabled the cells of the dinosaur's bones to empty while ground water brought minerals from the surrounding area to fill those cells with stone.  The result is this gem grade dinosaur bone which I've hand worked and set in hand hammered and smithed tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver.  This miracle of natural science pendant is 1.5" high and 1" wide and is in my ETSY shop here.  I purchased this bone last spring on our travels through Utah, which is a Dino Bone hotspot.  Dino Bone is found in a layer of Late Jurassic sedimentary rock in the Earth's crust called the Morrison Formation.

The bottom stone of this unusual abstract pendant is Green Zebra Stone and the top is a self collected Moonstone from Pennsylvania.  Measuring 3" high and 1.5" wide, this original hand created pendant is made of tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver and can be found in my ETSY shop here.

A Bruneau, Dinosaur Jade and a Leaf

A lovely Bruneau Jasper cabochon in a rather unorthodox wire wrap.  For this orby stone, I used tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver wire, and yes, it's tight.  As I contemplated how I would construct this piece, I turned it around and around until I found the most surprising presentation.  Considered a high end stone, Bruneau Jasper comes from Owyhee County, Idaho and is highly sought after.  If you would like to purchase some rough Bruneau Jasper, I recommend Idaho Rock Shop.  This piece has just been listed in my ETSY shop.  It measures 2" high and is 1.5" wide overall.  You can view the listing with more pictures here.

The beautiful green hue of this Jade stone on the bottom of this pendant is accented by an organic brown Dinosaur Bone (top) that we found in our travels through Utah last spring.  I attempted of create a sense of balance within an asymmetric framework with a hand hammered texture on the bottom half, echoing the dino cell pattern.  This soldered and smithed piece is made from tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver and measures 2.75" high and 1.5" wide overall.  You can visit the listing in my ETSY shop here.

Abstract art meets the natural world in this textured leaf pendant.  I wanted to capture the marriage of two contrasting halves creating a symbiotic whole.  The horizontal hand textured left side has a pink Rhodonite and a golden Tiger Eye.  The right side has a vertical textue and green Moss Agate.  All are hand worked natural stones set in hand smithed tarnish resistant Argentium Sterling Silver.  This exciting piece is 2.5" high and 1.5" wide overall.  It is currently in my ETSY shop and you can see it here.

3 Silvers and an Ametrine

Finished a couple more silver pieces.  This is a Chrysoprase and Green Moonstone in Argentium Sterling Silver.  Had a little trouble with the two stones being situated so close together, but made it work finally.  This was the second piece I did in this batch and my fifth silverworking piece overall.  Size is 1.5" wide by 2.5" high with a large enough bail to fit oversized chains and clasps.  It's in my ETSY shop now and you can see it here.

This Royal Aztec Lace Agate has beautiful pastel lacey patterning.  It was my third in this batch and 6th overall silverworked piece.  This one flowed more easily and I'm pretty pleased with the final look.  I chose gallery wire for this setting for continuity of the lace theme.  Size is 2.5" high and 1.25" wide.  It's in my ETSY shop now and you can see it here.

This is the formal pic of the piece I showed in my last post.  The large stone is a Shattuckite from Arizona and the smaller stone is a dark green Jade.  This is the first one I did in this group.  It was my fourth overall of my silversmithing effort.  I wanted to capture an abstract feel to the piece, rich in textures, with a touch of unpredictability in this truly original piece.  Overall size is 2.5" high by 1.5" wide.  You can see it in my ETSY shop here.

Lastly, I finished the Simple Jack Ametrine faceting project I showed in my last post.  It ended up being 12.5 mm and 7 carats.  The girdle is thicker than the standard 2% of the stone's overall height. I intend to utilize the deep girdle in a future project hopefully sometime soon.  This was my first Simple Jack cut and although there are plenty of mishaps in my cut, I'm pleased with the results for this first run through.  As with anything lapidary... results improve with practice, practice, practice.  If you are a faceter and would like to try this cut, you can find the diagram here.

Catching Up in the Southeast

Been mighty busy in the southeast this winter.  We finally finished the repairs from our Hurricane Sandy week.  While staying put, I was able to break out my faceting equipment and started working a beautiful Ametrine (Amethyst and Citrine.)

It's not finished yet and I had to put it on hold while I order a new 3000 grit diamond lap.  I hope to finish it soon.

While keeping warm in front of the fireplace, I brushed the cobwebs off  my crochet needle kit and made this adorable sock monkey hat for our brand new granddaughter Abigail who is due to make her arrival into this world next month.

If you like the hat, you can find the free pattern here:  http://knottyknotty.blogspot.com/2011/03/free-sock-monkey-hat-pattern.html

Made a second sock monkey hat in adult size for my step-son Chad and he loves it.  He said it was smiling at him when he took it out of the envelope.  :)

Also had enough time to use my silversmithing equipment and turned out this piece.  The stones are Shattuckite and Jade in an abstract setting made of  Argentium Sterling Silver.  I really loved working with Argentium in this manner, it is what I use in my wire wraps because it is brighter, feels better and because it has germanium instead copper, it is tarnish resistant.  I found soldering Argentium to be a tricky challenge, but managed to overcome them for this finished piece.  I did find that I need a few more things to be able to get through the technical work well enough to concentrate on the art, but I'm liking where this is going and will endeavor to continue with it.  It can also open new doors on my wraps too.

Lastly, I donated my hair again to Locks of Love which is such a worthwhile program.  They use the hair to make wigs for children afflicted with cancer.  If you want to donate, they like to have at least 10 inches in length.  Tie it in a ponytail band and cut above the band and keep the band on the hair when you send it in.  I just made the 10 inch line, but I did read that they do accept hair that is shorter and will sell it to cover the cost of wig making.  If you are interested in donating or want to know more, here is the donation guidelines page:  http://www.locksoflove.org/donate.html

Want to give a special shoutout to our son, Scott, and congratulate him for being accepted into PCOM (PA College of Osteopathic Medicine.) We're proud of you!  We're proud of all our kids.  <3>

New Batch of Tumbled Stones

Just took a few stones out of the tumbler. I just love this step. Seeing the final results of months of hard work is incredibly rewarding. Please enjoy.

The whole batch

Crazy Lace, Stromatolite and Agate

Turitella, Crazy Lace and Stromatolite

Crazy Lace, Noreena Jasper, Serpentine and Fancy Jasper

A couple beach pebbles, Crazy Lace, Noreena and Jaspers

Now for a few closeups

Boiled Peanuts

One awesome thing about the south in winter is boiled peanuts.  I've never seen how peanuts are actually grown, and had the opportunity to see it, right before my very eyes.

The farmer goes through pulling up the peanut plants and leaves them to dry.

The peanuts are actually hidden underground, attached to the roots.

The farmer turns them over from time to time so they thoroughly dry.

Then, when they are ready, he will come along with a harvester that will pull the peanuts from the roots.

...and they look like this.

Rinse 'em, and put 'em in a pot with some salt water and boil 'em up for a few hours.

Til they look like this.

They have a wonderfully surprising, nutty taste similar to boiled chestnuts.  Yum!