Snow Chains?

The only kind of chains I know about are the ones that are gold and sparkley. Chains for my tires? Who thought of that one? Probably a man, and one with no girlfriend.

OK, tire chains are jewelry for your car. I can get into that. Hum… Let’s see, I would like something striking, yet sophisticated. Maybe something in silver… yes, silver would be nice. Chains that would be wearable for any occasion. Now, where does one buy these lovely chains for their car?

Clear Resin Jewelry Seahorse Bangle Bracelet

New!
Clear Resin Turquoise Seahorse and Starfish Bangle Bracelet
Description: A colorful 8 inch long, hand cast seahorse and seashell are encased in water-clear resin. Fun summer colors of turquoise, blue and orange highlighted with tiny orange starfish. The seahorse has a Swarovski Aurora Borealis Crystal eye. Stunning!So Modern, so Chic, so Artsy. Wear this fabulous bangle dressed up or with jeans.
Warning! This product may cause gasps of delight, impulsive arm grabbing, conversations with strangers and glares of envy.

I Miss the Shopping

We city girls are spoiled. Shopping is just so easy. Get in the car, drive to Miami, and shop till you drop.

But living in the wilds of Colorado is a different story. I live 20 miles from the nearest town. And they don’t even have a Wal-Mart. The largest city is an hours drive away. How did I think I could survive in the mountains without shopping malls?

Thank goodness I have the internet. I can still shoe shop, till I’m blue in the face. But, I miss trying them on and scrutinizing them in the shoe store mirrors. I miss fighting for the perfect parking spot. I miss the rush of adrenaline at finding that unbelievable bargain. But, that is the sacrifice I make to live with of all this peace and beauty.

Clear Resin 4 Natural Color Butterfly Bangle Bracelet

New Clear Resin Bangle from nightskyjewelry.com
Description: Four different Natural Colored Butterflies encased in water-clear resin. In the rich Fall colors of Autumn, yellows, oranges, browns and black. This bangle bracelet has the beautiful, subtle, natural Autumn colored butterflies, perfect for Fall and Winter. Each butterfly is backed with an iridescent liner for even more shimmer. Tiny black, hex-shaped glitter is tastefully scattered throughout the bracelet. Stunning!

This bangle bracelet is polished inside and out. On the bottom you will find my logo tag, for Night Sky Jewelry.
So Modern, so Chic, so Artsy. Wear this fabulous bangle with your suit to the office or with your new Fall sweater and jeans.

Warning! This product may cause gasps of delight, impulsive arm grabbing, conversations with strangers and glares of envy.

How to Make a Resin Jewelry Bracelet Master

Thought I'd take some photos to show how I'm progressing on the new 3" inside diameter, resin jewelry bangle bracelet design. I have had requests for my bracelets in a larger 3 inch size. Making the masters for molding is the most tedious and time consuming part of the whole design process. With my 2-1/2 " bangle bracelet design, I used polymer clay to make the master. Much prettier to look at, but, took forever to get the shape and size right.

This time I decided try something simpler. I discovered that 3" PVC pipe, used in plumbing has a perfect 3" inside diameter. But the wall thickness was too thin for my design, only about 1/4 inch thick. So, Tom suggested using a 3 inch, schedule 80, PVC pipe coupling. These are not available at the hardware stores, but must be purchased from a plumbing supply house. They are made to fit over the outside of the 3 inch PVC pipe, so the fit was perfect. The schedule 80 pipe coupling looked huge, and was about 4 inches long. Too long for a bracelet, but it was easy enough to cut off the excess on the chop saw.

I now had a good starting point for my new bracelet master. The total wall thickness of the combined pipe and coupling is .560 inches, or 9/16". The photo above shows the left over piece that was cut off from the combined pipe and coupling. The 3" PVC pipe is white, and the schedule 80 pipe coupling is dark gray. But you can see how well the two pieces fit together, and the combined wall thickness.

Next comes the shaping and sanding. I will post about that next.

Clear Resin Jewelry Tropical Fish Bangle Bracelet

New Clear Resin Bangle from nightskyjewelry.com
Description: Three little Clown Triggerfish are 3-dimensional and totally encased in water-clear resin. Each little tropical fish is cast with in detail down to their tiny scales. Each has hand painted spots and a Swarovski Crystal eye. Stunning!
This bangle bracelet is polished inside and out. On the bottom you will find my logo tag, for Night Sky Jewelry.
So Modern, so Chic, so Artsy. Wear this fabulous bangle dressed up or with jeans.
Warning! This product may cause gasps of delight, impulsive arm grabbing, conversations with strangers and glares of envy.

This is a HUGE-WIDE bangle bracelet.
Height is just over 2" at 2 5/32 inches,
Inside Diameter is 2 1/2 inches,
Inside Circumference is 8 inches,
Outside Circumference is 11 9/16 inches,
wall thickness is 9/16 inch,
Weight is 189.7 grams or 6.7 ounces.

Kelp Mermaid and Sea Lion Clear Resin Jewelry Bracelet

Buy it here Clear Resin Jewelry from Night Sky Jewelry
A colorful 8 inch long, hand cast Mermaid and her little seal friend are 3-dimensional and totally encased in water-clear resin. The young Mermaid's long black hair is highlighted with shimmering blue and studded with tiny pearls. She is adorned in lovely green seaweed. Her tail shimmers with iridescent color change pigment that changes from turquoise to blue to violet with Aurora Borealis hi-lights. Her little sea lion friend shimmers in black with iridescent blue. The background is highlighted with iridescent violet-blue and green-gold "seaweed", and tiny red starfish. The Mermaid and her little Sea ion friend both have Swarovski Crystal eyes. Stunning!

Clear Resin Jewelry Mermaid and Dolphin Bracelet

Buy one like this here Huge Clear Resin Jewelry Mermaid Bangle Bracelet
Description:

A colorful 8 inch long, hand cast Mermaid and her Dolphin friend are totally encased in water-clear resin. Her long black hair is highlighted with shimmering purple and studded with tiny pearls. She wears a crown of red coral studded with pearls. Her tail shimmers with iridescent violet and aurora borealis blue. Her Dolphin friend shimmers in iridescent color-change pigment that changes from turquoise to blue to violet. The background is highlighted with iridescent violet-blue and green-gold "seaweed", and tiny red starfish. The Mermaid and her Dolphin friend both have Swarovski Crystal eyes. Stunning!

Clear Resin Jewelry Butterflies Bangle Bracelet

Huge Clear Resin Jewelry Butterfly Bangle Bracelet

Here is my latest resin bracelet I have just listed. It turned out even better than the first one. I love making these colorful butterfly bracelets. They are so pretty. And I am learning how to do the videos on YouTube. Here is my YouTube link: inartstudio on YouTube

Description: Four different Monarch Butterflies encased in water-clear resin. Each a different color, each with Hologram jeweled antennae. Each butterfly is backed with an iridescent liner for even more shimmer. Stunning!

So Modern, so Chic, so Artsy. Wear this fabulous bangle dressed up or with jeans.

Warning! This product may cause gasps of delight, impulsive arm grabbing, conversations with strangers and glares of envy.

Note: No real butterflies were harmed during the making of this bracelet.

Clear Resin Jewelry Dolphins Bangle Bracelet

Clear Resin Jewelry Dolphins Bangle Bracelet

A pod of female dolphins swims through an idyllic glassy sea.

The Grandmother dolphin leads the way, ever conscious, that she needs to keep a slower pace.

The Mother dolphin looks back nervously watching her infant.

The baby dolphin, trying to keep up, looks to his Mother for guidance and reassurance.

The Auntie dolphin swims behind him, giving him encouraging clicks and squeals.

Part Sculpture, part Art, part Jewelry. This is art, you wear on your wrist.

I love the way this one turned out. And my video looks a lot better than the last one.
Description: Four iridescent dolphins are encased in water-clear resin. Special color-change pigments are used to capture the light. The color of the dolphins changes from deep turquoise to light blue-green to lavender. You can see this color change in the pictures above. Each dolphin is hand painted and then given Swarovski crystal eyes. The background is highlighted with iridescent violet-blue and green-gold "seaweed". The "water" is studded with blue, purple and green iridescent bubbles. Stunning!

Creating Arctic Mermaids and Orcas in the Summer Heat

It's been so hot here, that I work outside early in the morning and late in the evening, and work in my studio during the heat of the day. Tom is building me a new studio addition. I'm so excited! I try to help as much as I can, if you call my feeble attempts at building, help. I will try to remember to take some pictures today of the new room.

In the meantime, here is a a new Mermaid Bangle Bracelet I have in the works. She is an Arctic Mermaid, all pale and shimmering with ice crystals. Still trying to decide if I she needs something special in her hair, maybe an ice crystal crown. Her little Orca buddy is almost finished. A bit more painting and then his eye. I need to dig and see if I have any tiny, jet black Swarovski rhinestones. Something about creating Arctic Mermaids and Orcas in the summer heat makes my studio feel cooler.

New Clear Resin Jewelry Mermaid Bracelet

Huge Clear Resin Jewelry Mermaid Bangle Bracelet

This is a new clear resin cast mermaid bracelet. I think she turned out great, for my first one. I have more of these in the works. This bracelet took 5 separate castings to make. I kept my fingers crossed, that I would not mess up the last cast.
Description: A colorful 8 inch long, hand cast Mermaid and her Surgeonfish entourage are encased in water-clear resin. Her blue-black hair is studded with tiny pearls. Her tail shimmers with iridescent color that changes from turquoise to blue to violet. She is about to pluck a large pearl from a shell she just found. The background is highlighted with iridescent violet-blue and green-gold "seaweed". The Mermaid and her 5 Surgeonfish friends all have Swarovski Crystal eyes. Stunning!

This is a HUGE-WIDE bangle bracelet.

Height is just over 2" at 2 5/32",
Inside Diameter is 2.55 inches,
Inside Circumference is 8 inches,
Outside Circumference is 11 9/16 inches,
wall thickness is 9/16 inch.
Weight is 189.7 grams or 6.7 ounces.

This is my first time making and uploading a video. I tried to keep it simple. Just in case it does not work, I included a picture.

New Modern Resin Jewelry

Huge Crystal Clear Seahorse & Starfish Resin Bangle Bracelet SOLD

Resin jewelry is in, again. The old vintage pieces are still hot items. The old Bakelite and phenolic and celluloid pieces are fetching high prices. We are a plastics society.

I love plastics. I spent my career designing industrial pumps and motors with plastics. With all of our new plastics technology, and all the new resins on the market, the possibilities are unlimited. Take a look at all the plastics around you. Most of these plastics started out in a liquid resin state. Endless varieties of shapes and colors. Does this get your creative juices flowing? It does mine.

Here is an example of what you can do with plastic resins. This bracelet is composed of 3 different resins. Each resin is cast in 4 different molds, in 4 different pours. This bangle bracelet is just one of my designs.

Challenging? Yes. Fun? Of course. Easy to make? No.
I am currently working with 4 different resins, each with it's own chemical properties, and quirky characteristics. Each must be measured and weighted differently. Each must be handled and cured differently. Then there are the molds. No, not the kind that grow on my shower floor, the kind you cast into. First I sculpt the master. Then the master is used to create a mold. Each type of resin requires a different kind of mold material. I use 4 different kinds of mold silicones. These guys can get expensive. So I baby them, give them frequent bubble baths and mineral oil rub-downs. Ooh! That sounds heavenly.

I have many more designs awaiting birth. There are mermaids, seahorses, dolphins, and some really fun, high-tech designs coming out very, very soon. So, keep your TV tuned to this channel.

I'm Back......

This has been a trying and busy year, and it's only half over. Lost my little 7 year old Grandson, Nicholas, to cancer. Already had the cancer beat, but it came back, and his little body just could not handle the chemotherapy a second time. We miss him so much. He was such a sweet and tough little guy. He will always be close in my heart.

My daughter and her husband, felt that it was a good time for a change in their lives. So Tom and I drove the truck and trailer back to Florida, loaded them up, and moved them to Pueblo. I love having them so close by. I don't have to worry about hurricane season, no more.

I am getting a 10 x 10 foot addition to my studio. I am soooo happy. It will be nice to have room for all my art and jewelry making stuff. Tom just finished pouring the concrete foundation today. Yipee! Now we get to do the fun part.

We are building an observatory, with a real dome. An automated, computer controlled place to keep that gigantic telescope, besides the living room. I will not be sad to see it go. Tom keeps a sheet over it, and I swear, it looks like a ghost. He is blogging the whole thing here. http://nightskyobservatory.blogspot.com/
So if you are into astrophotograpy or thinking about building an observatory someday, check it out.

I have been busy developing a new line of jewelry, resin jewelry to be exact. Love making the silver, but the price of sterling is through the roof. Time to try some new ideas anyway. Will post pictures soon.

My Poor Florida Truck

My truck does not like this cold weather. I have to agree. It was born and raised in the tropics. It was modified to not overheat while pulling boats or sitting in traffic with the air conditioning going full blast. The 12 volt battery has given me the most trouble. The truck has had 3 new batteries since the weather turned cold, 2 months ago. And the heater, which has never seen use, does not put out heat. It seems I need a different thermostat, one for cold temperatures. And my coolant hoses are routed incorrectly for cold weather. My radiator is oversized, with no easy way to block the cold incoming air. But at least I have good tires. I still love my truck

Finally Finished Moving

Just finished moving 50 miles east to La Veta, Colorado. It's a charming little town on the eastern side of the Sangre de Cristos mountain range. Very pretty here.
Packing and loading boxes, hauling furniture and hefting artwork is never fun. But, my new studio is great. Tom, just finshed building it for me. It has walls of windows on three sides for plenty of natural light and afresh coat of paint. What a bright and cheerful room.
I still have plenty of unpacking to do, and with winter approaching there are a lot of outside projects to finish. So I haven't done much artwork lately, but I am so happy to be here.

They Voted NOT to Let Me Enter Clay Show

They voted NOT to let my polymer clay art in the Clay Continuum show. "They" being the other clay artists. Maybe, by next year, I can change their minds about polymer clay.
While my little polymer clay sculpture, sat waiting at the gallery for a decision, someone came in, and fell in love with him, and bought the little guy. So, "Life is a Blancing Act" is SOLD

New Show for Clay Artists

This month begins a new show in at the SPACe Gallery. It's called the Clay Continuum.
I dropped by with one of my smaller polymer clay sculptures. Not sure if they will accept me into the show. All the other artists work in earthen clay, the kind you need a kiln to fire. I explained that it is clay and it was fired, just not the same kind of clay. They liked my sculpture, but have to take a vote. I hope they will allow my art work into the show.

"Life is a Balancing Act"
Polymer Clay Sculpture
20"high x 11.5"wide x 7"deep
July 2007 SOLD

Sawing Your Own Lumber

I sat in the little bit of shade that the pickup truck provided. Wearing my boyfriend’s hat and getting the seat of my pants wet from the rain soaked log I was pearched on. I watched in amazement as Tom took logs and turn them into 2x4’s. They do that here, in Colorado.

Where I come from, if you need some lumber, you make a trip to Home Depot. You pick out the prettiest boards, pay the cashier, and load them into your truck. But, you don’t get to watch your man, all muscles and sweat, playing Paul Bunyan. My goodness! Let me see you do that again, Honey.

2007 Colorado - Best of Show Award

My animal skull sculpture, "Battle Cry", won the
"Best of Show" Award, at the 2007 Colorado Show in La Veta.

This show was juried by artist Albert Anderson Clymer, who gave a
painting demonstration before the show opening. His art works have not
only drawn rave reviews, but have also earned him inclusion in the
prestigious Who’s Who in American Art and Men of Achievement.
Clymer’s art has catapulted into prominence through Paul Gillette’s
book The Single Man’s Indispensable Guide listing him as one of the
top three artists in America today. Here is a link to his bio. Al
Clymer bio. Thank you, Al.