I create this wonderful brooch as part of a casting class. I had made a mold to create waxes from, and through various experiments in wax injecting and shaking, etc., I came up with this little form. It was inspired by plant life in the ocean, so I am calling it "Sea Pod no. 1". It is made from recycled sterling silver, and has a steel brooch pin. I have given it a fine silver finish to brighten it up a bit. It has a bit of a weight to it, so is best worn with thicker fabrics, coats, or scarves. I hope it finds a wonderful new home! You can find it here, in my Etsy Shop.

I will soon have a tutorial up on cuttlefish casting, I'm just waiting to get my images from a friend. Here is the end result of the recent cuttlefish casting I did--a sheet. I wanted to create a sheet of metal so that I could cut out shapes at will. I've already made a bracelet with part of it, for my mom's birthday, but I know she checks my blog so I haven't posted it yet (Hi Mom!) .

Darling River Trilby Station western NSW

Oh, I would save the world if I could. I have struggled many years with deciding what I want to do with my life based on that. As part of my "reorganization" of my business, I have decided that it is high time for me to start donating to various charities. I will soon be selecting a certain charity every few months, and making jewelry specifically relevant to their cause. All proceeds from the sales of this jewelry will be donated to said charity.

The first on my list, starting in September, is Aussie Helpers. Once in a while, you may hear me talk about Australia, and those who know me well know how deeply my love for Australia runs. Recently, National Geographic Magazine ran a story on the drought in Australia. It left me in tears. The Murray-Darling River Basin is low and has become salinated because of over use for crops, irrigation, dams, etc. Pair that with the drought and you have some serious issues not only for the river itself, but for the environment and farmers.

This is where Aussie Helpers comes in. The founders, Brian and Nerida Egan, established Aussie Helpers in 2002 to help fight poverty and lift the spirits of those severely affected by drought in the outback. Brian lost his own farm in the 1990's and is no stranger to hardship. Brian and about 40 volunteers work hard to assist families in the bush who are in desperate need of help--whether that is in the form of groceries, or food for cattle, Aussie Helpers makes it happen.

What attracts me most to Aussie Helpers is that it is such a grass roots organization. The money donated goes directly to them, and their help goes directly to the families. I did plenty of research and have found Aussie Helpers to be a stand up organization, backed my many other organizations around Australia.

If you would like to learn more, please visit Aussie Helpers website. There are tons of photos and much more information.

I am offering Free Worldwide Shipping in my Etsy Shop this weekend! Friday 8/14 through Sunday 8/16.

I enter giveaways and contests all the time, and rarely win anything, so I'm super excited when I do. Especially when it's the work of someone who I've admired for a while, like Julia Pott. Recently, Doodlers Anonymous had a contest for a print by Julia Pott entitled "I Can't Breathe". I've lusted over this print for ages! Contestants were to tell a story (or a drawing) about their first crush....well, you can head over to the original giveaway post to read about mine. The print finally got here today and it's lovely! I can't wait to find a frame for it to hang in (and then I have to decide where to hang it). I'm so absolutely thrilled. Thank you, Doodlers Anonymous and Julia Pott!!!

image via Julia Pott

This is Bob's 4038, the copper boat I've been working on re-doing. The above shows a bit of it's evolution so far. Clockwise from top left:
1. The boat with black patina
2. The boat with lid and black patina
3. My first method: a layer of fixative, dried, followed by 1-2 layers of prismacolor, repeat. I don't know if it was the heat of the day, or the fixative not curing, or too many layers, but it started to peel, so I had to remove it and started on a different method using gesso.
4. My second attempt: a layer of white gesso, upon which prismacolor is to be applied
5. The first layer of prismacolor
6. The 2nd or 3rd layer of prismacolor
7. The final layer of prismacolor. I did apply fixative after the 3rd layer of prismacolor to give it some more "tooth" to keep going and get a bit of a darker color. I finished it with a layer of fixative to seal the prismacolor. It's a bit spottier than I would like, but it is modeled after children's illustrations, so it's pretty true to the original.
8. Now, on to the lid...

You can view more progress and photos on my flickr page. Enjoy!

My "new shop" is up and running...I have ousted the old pieces (don't worry, some of them just need to be re-photographed) and added a few new pieces. I have a few more pieces that are ready but need to be photographed and listed. All in good time. Be sure to check my Etsy shop, shower the pieces you love with "hearts" and keep checking back!