It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Siena is having a ball, playing in the snow. Luckily, she is easy to spot in the snow.
Wishing everyone a blessed, happy and healthy New Year!
Archive for December, 2009
Snow, Snow, Snow!
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009Green to Silver
Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009After two hours in the kiln the the green ware leaf from the previous post was transformed into a leaf of fine silver, with the word “wisdom” on the reverse. The silver leaf was cooled, filed and sanded, dipped in a liver of sulfur bath and then polished. The chain was attached and the leaf was embellished with a green tourmaline stone. It was packed with care and shipped off, to be given as a Christmas gift.
Green
Saturday, December 19th, 2009Before taking time off for Christmas, I had one final custom commission. The order was for a bracelet in my “Leaf a Message” Collection. The mold I used was one of the last remaining leaves from the butterfly bush in my backyard – buddleia, for those of you who know your plants! Lucky thing I plucked the leaves this morning – everything is covered with almost a foot of snow, now.
The photo shows the real green leaf – as well as the metal clay leaf and word, both in the green stage. Once it has dried overnight, I will file and sand a bit and also enlarge the holes through which the jump rings will be attached. The word will be attached to the reverse of the leaf and then the piece will be popped in the kiln for two hours at 1650º F. I will post a photo of the finished bracelet before I send it off on Monday.
Elton John AIDS Foundation
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009To honor my commitment to donate 100% of the purchase price of my “Cooking Red” necklace to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, below you will find the receipt for payment, as sent by the foundation. Congratulations again to Sasha for her winning bid – enjoy your necklace!
Many thanks again to Angela of Spinach Tiger for founding “Cooking Red.” I’m looking forward to this movement growing bigger, with more participation every year.
________________________________________
Hi Maria,
Thank you for your tax deductible donation of $25.00!
You have made a real difference helping the Elton John AIDS Foundation in the fight against HIV/ AIDS!
We’ll keep you posted about our events and other news.
Yours truly,
Scott Campbell, Executive Director, and everyone at EJAF
You can print this email as a record of your donation for your tax purposes. The Elton John AIDS Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, tax ID #58-2033460. Donations to EJAF are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.
Donation Summary:
Confirmation Code: 2753029863
Donation Amount: $25.00
Donation Date: December 15, 2009
"Cooking" Red to Remember
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009As you must have noticed by now, I make jewelry, but I dabble in cooking. I belong to Cooking Italy, a group founded by Angela of Spinach Tiger, with members all over the globe (really!) Well, my dear, courageous friend Angela is standing up and starting a movement. Angela lost two loved ones to AIDS and has set aside today, World AIDS Day to remember victims of AIDS by Cooking Red to Remember. You should really read her post – she has poured her heart and soul into it.
Like I said, I only dabble in cooking, so really didn’t feel I could dream up a wonderful dish in red. But I did “cook” up a little something in red. I had a piece of red jewelry, ready to post, last night. But it wasn’t the piece below. It was a showy, special occasion piece – lots of bling, filigree and a drop pendant. Then last night, I read this post by Greg of Sippity Sup. He got me to thinking about the difference between a once a year remembrance and remembering every day. I decided to rework it into a more “user-friendly” piece.
This design uses Crystallized™ Swarovski Elements (yes, long to write, but necessary to keep the Swarovski lawyers away!) The crystals are asymmetrically faceted – I liked that, because it is a reminder that AIDS victims are not all alike – they can be old or young, man or woman, gay or straight and from every corner of the earth (oh – and the asymmetric facets sparkle like crazy, too!) The crystals are of course, Red to Remember. The focal charm with the sun is a reminder of the hope that each new dawn gives us – until we reach the dawn when a cure is found. The necklace is 18″ long and includes components of 14kt gold-filled and vermeil (gold over sterling.)
Do you like this necklace? If you do, please BID on it! I am auctioning it off to the highest bidder and 100% will be donated to the Elton John AIDS Foundation. I selected this charity, with Angela’s approval, because they are top-rated by Charity Navigator and their mission statement includes “…efforts to eliminate stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS…” as well as direct services to patients with “…food distribution, assisted living, social service coordination…” The meals for patients was an important factor, as this movement was born of a food blogger!
If you have questions about the piece, feel free to email me. The auction will run until midnight of December 7th. Bidding will start at $20 – which is less than the cost of materials! – and will go up in increments of at least $1. Shipping is on me. You can either email your bid privately to me, or post in a comment. I will keep a running list of bidder’s initials and their bids on this post. Bidding order will go by time stamps on bids received.
If anyone has experience with eBay’s Giving Works, please email me – I may move the auction there, if I can figure it out.
Good luck!
