About Me

My photo
I am an artist, wife and mother, paraeducator, yo-yo dieter, and small town country girl. I love singing in my church choir, computer time, beading and making jewelry. And I love enameling! There is something very magical about turning powder into smooth, shiny, and colorful glass.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Giveaway!


One of my customers to my supplies shop ordered extra long head pins from me and then asked for advice on making earrings using bead with holes in the center. I experimented and liked the earring I made and decided to pass the tutorial on to you. And I'm giving these earrings away! Entering this giveaway is easy, you can become a follower of this blog an leave a comment with your email so I can contact you if you're the winner! Or you can like my facebook page and leave a comment there, too. If you do both, you'll get two chances to enter.
       The enameled flowers were made with copper blanks and first enameled with a clear coat. I then put a layer of white, not too heavy, and fired it again. Then came two coats of transparent purple. I seemed to be obsessed with purple lately! The speckled layer of white causes the purple to be mottled and a bit rustic looking. 
       The next step is to make the head pins. I use 20 ga. argentium sterling wire and cut it to 2 1/2 in. long. I then lit my small butane torch. Put the wire into the flame at the edge of blue flame. If you can see a yellow flame behind the wire, you've hit the sweet spot! As the wire melts and balls up, move the wire down into the flame until you've got a 2mm. ball and slowly take it out.
Make two of these. Let the wire cool, then put it into the pickle solution for a few minutes.  Scrub it with the Penny Brite and then polish it by hand or put it into a tumbler.
      Put your head pin through your bead and put a seed bead or small bead behind it. Then bend the head pin at a right angle and down over the seed and focal bead. This will keep the focal bead upright. You may have to fiddle with it to get it just right.
Then create the ear wire above that. I use wire forming tools but you can also bend the wire over mandrel such as a pen. Snip off the ends of the wire until you like the length and smooth the edges. You've got gorgeous hand crafted earrings!

 This giveaway ends on May 1st and the winner will be contacted by email. Good luck!!

59 comments:

  1. I love your earrings :)

    kelly
    Allthingsimple.etsy.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. very interesting - I don't know alot about jewelry making so this good information for me - thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  3. lovely earings!
    I'm your new follower

    kasia433@onet.eu

    ReplyDelete
  4. Cut earrings.
    I follow
    samamfee@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. So cute!

    I can't wait to see what else you will create!
    B_Fortes@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am your lucky number 13th follower as jhb. These are lovely; thank you for the chance in this very spring inspired giveaway!
    Jhbalvin at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Nice tutorial! I'm a follower now.
    ghainskom at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  8. gfc follower
    tumblemumbo at gmail.com
    thanks

    ReplyDelete
  9. fb fan / ana amanti
    tumblemumbo at gmail dot com
    thanks

    ReplyDelete
  10. Lovely! Great tutorial & I'm a new follower. cozynoggin at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love these earrings! Simply lovely!

    aikychien at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  12. Beautiful earrings. That color is perfect for Spring.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Beautiful and you make it seem so easy! I'm a purple fan, too!

    maryleebythesea(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  14. love the color purple ! natalene(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  15. Follow your blog with GFC - Denise G

    ontariohappychick at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Those are very pretty.

    melodyj(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  17. Lovely earrings. I Follow Google Friends Connect.
    My e-mail.
    Me4Wrest@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  18. beautiful!! I follow google connect "anash"
    Thank you kindly.
    anashct [at] yahoo [dot] com

    ReplyDelete
  19. Your jewellery are gorgeous! I hope the giveaway is international :).

    badorka@vipmail.hu

    ReplyDelete
  20. These are so pretty! I would love to be able to make jewelry like this!
    I'm a follower
    irishdancer2459 (@) yahoo (.) com
    catheywithane.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  21. Beautiful earrings! I always wondered how some of those processes worked, thanks for the great how-to.

    Thanks for the chance to win!

    --Liza

    ejm6x (at) yahoo (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
  22. beautiful earrings

    paula.elizabeth at cox dot net

    ReplyDelete
  23. I love how you've experimented with this technique and produced gorgeous earrings :)

    I really do like the earrings so I have followed your blod via. Google Friend Connect.
    My email address is coppernails8@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  24. GFC follower (Goga)

    gogunia3(at)wp(dot)pl

    ReplyDelete
  25. Beautiful earrings! Became a follower, hope I win ;)

    isztarv at o2 dot pl

    ReplyDelete
  26. Wow, how fascinating to actually see how these are being created :-) ! They are really pretty!!
    New follower on GFC!

    danaan at gmx dot at

    ReplyDelete
  27. I'm a GFC follower. Never heard of melted glass jewelry before so this one is interesting.

    lifeis.oceanbliss@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  28. new follower

    faked_sugartone at hotmail

    ReplyDelete
  29. Following your blog with GFC. Love the earrings!
    flataif@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  30. Gorgeous earrings! I'm following you via GFC

    Rachel
    vintagequeengf(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  31. I liked your page on fb (as ajoeynamedroo). Thanks!

    Rachel
    vintagequeengf(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  32. I heart you and follow you! These are gooorgeous!!

    jrlbeale (at) gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  33. I am a public GFC follower as uk7ss@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  34. I love these earrings! So pretty.

    Neeksota@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  35. Thaose are super cute!

    sweetpeg at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  36. follow you. These are so pretty. Thanks! joleehamlin [at] comcast [dot] net

    ReplyDelete
  37. Following you. :)

    whitsend@live.com

    ReplyDelete
  38. I am following you. Your jewellery is lovely. I was able to try copper enamelling when I was in school and loved it. These earrings are very special. Would love to show them off!

    eatrunsail@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  39. I'm a follower

    mar.loveishate@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  40. Hi! I'm a new follower of your blog. Thanks for the chance to win those gorgeous earrings.
    Zoe0825@verizon.net

    ReplyDelete
  41. I am your new follower! (ksyshenka)
    I adore these lovely earings!

    Thank you for the chance!

    ksyshenka(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  42. I like you on FB:

    (oksana vladimirovna)

    ksyshenka(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  43. These are soooo beautiful! I'd love to win them!
    My email address is nicole at knitnicoleknit dot com

    ReplyDelete
  44. I LIKE You on Facebook
    Jesselyn A

    jessterlyn(at)aol(dot)com

    Note: I would gladly Follow on GFC - but my account is messed up and not letting me add new blogs!)

    ReplyDelete
  45. I'm following via gfc!

    erinkpitts at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  46. Liked you on fb too. I commented there as well cause I didn't know where you wanted to be commented on. Sorry. :)

    erinkpitts at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  47. angiebestboss@gmail.com
    What a beautiful and sweet pair of earrings - perfect for Spring!
    AngieBoss

    ReplyDelete
  48. angiebestboss@gmail.com
    I liked you on FB as well
    Angie

    ReplyDelete
  49. I am a new follower and LOVE the earrings.

    4allibaby at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  50. I like you on FB

    Cassie M

    4allibaby at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  51. Follow blog via gfc=Lyudmila
    Cute item!
    lusizova at gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  52. pretty earrings!
    GFC follower: agnes merza

    name: agnes
    acmerza777 AT gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  53. liked your FB page (Agnes C Merza)

    name: agnes
    acmerza777 AT gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  54. Following on GFC

    Christie
    swaggirl01 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  55. Liked on FB

    Christie
    swaggirl01 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  56. I LOVE these earrings!!
    I hope you will be selling them {in case I am not fortunate enough to win this pair!!).
    jambochameleon@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  57. (forgot to say in previous msge that I am now following your blog)/

    Also liked you on FB {as Sally Cooper}

    Sally
    jambochameleon@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete