The bane of my existence...

for the last couple of weeks has been my new sewing table. I had lusted after this table for quite some time and finally broke down and bought it.

Now, I consider myself an expert in modular furniture construction. In my office alone, there are eight pieces from Ikea. My power rack in the garage took me a total of 45 minutes to put together although there were all kinds of reviews about it being too hard and not having good directions.

This table on the other hand was horrible. It arrived with 2 packages of one type of screw and none of another. The little wooden dowels - there were 2 fewer in the box than tha directions called. The screws that were supposed to be used with the hinges had heads smaller than the holes on the hinges. The screws for the handles were not long enough to go through the wood and into the handles. Needless to say, after six trips to the hardware store, it is finally done. Yes, I did try calling customer service, but it was of no use.

If this had been my first piece of furniture that I had to put together, I would have never ever tried these other pieces in my house. I'm so glad it is done and will begin working on some sewing projects this week!*************************************************************************
On a more exciting note, I was plaing with my wire weaving all week long!

On Thursday, I made this bow pendant/necklace for my sister-in-law's birthday. She loves bows and pink, so I figured rose quartz and a sterling bow would be perfect. I finished it off with a toggle clasp adorned with rose quartz chips.

On Friday, I was playing with my brand new lampwork beads and made an asymmetrical pendant set.
I've been so productive this week I want to jump and scream at the top of my lungs! I hope you've had an excellent week, too!

Halloween Jewelry

This year, I decided to have some fun with some jewelry. I tried a few spiders, but even silver foil glass can't make a spider look attractive. When I tried to make a pair of earrings,
I decided those would be the last spiders I ever make :) I even found some cute skull beads

to make a few pais of earrings, but my absolute favorite

had to be my button rings :)

Saint Patrick's Day

I had a friend ask me what I was making [jewelry-wise] for Saint Patrick's day... and then I thought, what am I making - I've never done clovers before...?

So sitting in front of the TV, I drew this (interupting my husband's viewing of the Colbert Report) and held it up to my neck to see if hubby thought it was the right size and could tell what it is supposed to be:

(the "what it is supposed to be" is a new litmus test I've been using because I discovered I don't see some things the same way as others.)

And here's what came out when I played with the wire and a green glass bead:

Now, it just needs a jump ring and a green ribbon necklace.

Hearts, Hearts, Hearts

In honor of Valentine's Day, I have been going nuts in the heart department :) In truth, though, I've always loved hearts year round, but was making this set specifically to wear to dinner next Sunday... I had this shirt with a deeper neckline and nothing quite perfect to wear.

So without further ado, here are the earrings:
They are rather simple, one piece of 20 guage wire for both the heart and the earwires that I have hardened and flattened. (I believe I enjoy pounding metal with a hammer a bit too much.)

And here is the matching necklace - a three heart pendant on a suede choker.I also made a matching bracelet and ring, but need to redesign both (I've been wearing the entire set since last Saturday and yesterday caught the bracelet and ring too often on my pockets...)

Do you want this set? There's a Hearts Galore Giveaway on the Shore Debris Facebook Fanpage where you can win it.

I'll also be sending a set to Hearts for Haiti later today, but if you miss it in both places, they are up in Shoredebris1 on e-Bay.

Rings, rings and more rings

The week before last, Linda (Linda Searcy Jewelry Designs) showed us how to make wire rings (specifically the button and heart ones)
I liked it so much I spent the entire weekend making a few too many... this picture just shows about a third of them. Guess I don't know where to stop when I am having fun :)