Another handmade silver ring - with a black glass pebble

What can you make out of a black glass pebble, a small silver plate and a piece of silver wire?

This is what I worked on in my jewellery making course earlier this year. I am sorry for being so slow to actually upload it on my blog.

Before I started bending the wire I decided to make it half round in the middle, and flat on the sides. I didn’t want any visible soldering, so therefore I chose to make the bits that are holding the pebble in place and the actual ring bit into one piece. Easier said than done!

Bending the wire into the exact shape of the pebble took me several tries. Here is a picture of the ring in progress.

As you can see the wire is all over the place and it’s not at all shaped as the pebble yet. In this picture I’ve simply laid the pebble on top of my finger to give you an idea of what it might look like when it’s ready.

Once I had managed to bend the wire into the right shape I soldered on the small silver plate on the back, so that I had something to glue the pebble on to.

This is my finished result. 

My swirly tree has a twin in Texas

Do you remember last year when I wrote 3 different blogpost on the progress of painting a swirly tree on the wall? If not, then may I remind you by directing you to swirly tree post no. 1, swirly tree post no. 2, and swirly tree post no. 3.
My finished result was this - an olive green tree painted on a white wall in my house:

Now, a while ago I received an email from a lovely lady in Texas called April. She was very impressed with my design, and asked if she was allowed to use if to paint a tree on her wall. Of course I didn't mind it, but instead I was extremely flattered! Someone halfway around the world liked my tree so much she wanted it on her wall! :)
April didn't paint the tree exactly the way I had done, but she decided to add a personal touch on hers to make it fit in more in her house. She painted a grey silvery tree on a red wall, which had a very dramatic effect. She also made one of the branches longer, and added some falling leaves and some birds in the tree. This is her result:

Absolutely amazing! I am very impressed with what she has created.
April runs a photography blog, and you can see her tree post here.

My handmade silver ring - the "blob"

I had a few pieces of scrap silver left at my jewellery course, and I decided to melt it all down so that it didn't go to waste. The melted silver turned into a "blob", and I decided to make a ring out of it.

I used a square wire for the ring itself. I flattened the ends of it, and when I bent it round I didn't let the ends meet, but I saved quite a bit of space in between. I then soldered the "blob" onto the ring where the space was, and this is how it turned out. Here you go, mum. This one is for you :)

Just another pencil portrait

My dear friend Laura kept asking me if I could do a potrait of her, so I decided to draw one for her birthday.

I felt like a right stalker when I looked through all her photos on Facebook, to find one that was of good enough quality where you could see all the little details. This is how it turned out. She was really chuffed when I gave it to her, and I'm so glad she likes it :)

It's just made with normal soft pencils on a quite thick sheet of A4 paper.

Unique lighting

I used to work in a warehouse for lamps a few years back (yeah, I know - great job... not!) and to be honest I got a bit obsessed with lamps. Not normal boring lamps, but unique and creative lamps. The artier - the better! Lamps don't only function as light sources, but they are for decoration as well. 

I do admit, the lamps in my house are quite plain and boring, but I am looking to invest in some more creative and unique lamps to match my creative mind :) I want the interior decorations in my house to be as arty as possible.

The dream would obvisously be to have one of those amazing Chihuly chandeliers that I wrote about in my last blogpost - but I think that's gonna have to stay a dream. 

I've been looking at some fantastic handmade wall lights that I would give anything to have. What do you think about these?

Or what about this wall lamp made out of reused umbrellas? That sure is creative!

I do quite like lamps made out of other things, such as this old typewriter lamp. My friend actually made me a table lamp out of an old converse shoe not long ago. Interesting... The thing is that I had to take this lamp in my hand luggage on a flight. The staff in the security control sure looked at me funny when they looked through my bag!

 

When it comes to ceiling lights I've got a thing for swirly baroque style chandeliers. I used to have one very much like this one, which I loved, but I had to give it away when I moved over to England. My sister is now taking good care of it back in Sweden. 

I've got a silver one in my house now, but it looks awful (my boyfriend bought it before we even met). I'm thinking if it's possible to spray it black with some matte spray paint. It would look so much better. Any suggestions?

Chihuly exhibition at the Halcyon gallery in London

Just over a week ago, which was the last weekend of January, my dear boyfriend took me down to London for a couple of days. I haven't been to London for years, so this was really appreciated. 

We hadn't planned to do any touristy things at all, but we simply had some nice strolls around the city. We visited Covent Garden market - I love that place (but not as much as Camden, of course!), and we had a very short look on Oxford street before we got bored. What's the point of going there when you've got the exact same shops in Leeds?

Anyway, when we turned off Oxford street we got to New Bond street, on which the Halcyon gallery is. We looked in the windows of the gallery and were both gobsmacked. In there was one of the most fantastic exhibitions I've ever seen! I've always been fascinated by glass art, since I come from the part of Sweden that it known for glass blowing, but this was truly amazing.

The gallery was hosting an exhibition by Chihuly, and I was sold first thing! Just look at these fabulous pieces.

The glass pieces are all inspired by shapes you can find under the sea. The massive ones you can find in the gallery's two windows (one blue and one purple) look like octopus arms and sea shells mixed together - twined and twisted in every angle imaginable. It's very mesmerising looking at it all. Unfortunately my camera doesn't do these pieces justice, but you really have to see them with your own eyes.

Chihuly also exhibited a few abstract paintings with "splash" effects. I love abstract art, and it's what I prefer to paint myself. These paintings with simple yet beautiful patterns, and the contrast of colours, are gorgeous. Just my style! I wish I could hang one of these in my livingroom. They're definitely something to get inspired by next time I decide to be creative enough to paint. If only I had some motivation!