Cinnamon Jewellery

Look out for issue 45 of Bead magazine which was out on 13 March. Bead has a new look this issue and is full of Spring inspiration! There's quite a lot of floral action going on including a step-by-step project for my copper wirework earrings with ceramic flower beads.  I love those beads!  Seeing the photos has reminded me to dig out the rest of those ceramic flower beads and do something else with them. I bought a mix of colours including lilac, pink and yellow. I'd like to thread them onto copper or silver hoops then solder the hoops closed. I "think" the ceramic beads will stand up to the heat of the torch ok. Some strategically placed pliers would act as a heat sink and easy solder would make it a quick in and out job so I may well have a go soon. Here's the colourful front cover of Bead magazine - it's so bright you can't help but be cheered up by it :D

The Oct/Nov issue of Bead magazine (out 21st September) features two of my projects! The theme was "autumn" so I thought antique copper, greens and oranges would fit the bill and came up with a pair of hoop-style wirework earrings with swarovski crystal elements beads in olivine and crystal copper. The earrings are finished with a pair of handmade hoop earwires. The second project shows how to make the hoop earwires plus another pair of simple earwires. I also made a sterling silver version with amethyst beads  The vintage edition looks to be pretty interesting!

Issue 28 of Bead magazine is out today and features a variety of lovely projects including my green freshwater pearl and sterling silver wirework earrings on page 45! I forgot to take a photo of the finished earrings before sending them off to the magazine for photographing so here's a couple of the step-by-step photos I took plus a copper version of the earrings 

The New Year has inspired me to come up with some new earring designs. I'm going great guns at the mo - full of ideas and feeling like there's not enough hours in the day at the moment! I've even made a stock of ball-end earwires and headpins with my new torch ready for when I'm making earrings which is very unlike me, I usually make them as I need them. I love my new torch but I'm still at that "slightly scared of it" stage which I'm sure will soon pass! It's soo much better than using the ring on the gas cooker and means I can ball the end of copper wire now (the flame on the cooker isn't hot enough). Here's a selection of what I've made so far soon to be listed in my  Folksy  and  Artfire  shops. I've also just finished oxidising some heart inspired earrings ready for Valentine's Day - I said I was going great guns! Copper and riveted Sterling Silver Spiral Swarovski Pearl and Sterling Silver Wirework Lampwork Bead ...

Looking through my Blog reading list the other day I visited wirework jewellery maker Linda Jones' blog The Wireworkers Guild  where I found a  tutorial  taken from one of Linda's books for her Orbital Rings. I liked the idea so thought I'd have a go at my own variation of the design. I used 22g (0.6mm) copper wire as it's easier to wrap and using a thick felt tip marker pen wrapped the wire five times around the pen to create the hoops. Instead of wrapping the wire all the way round the hoops I wrapped it three times at the top, made a hanging loop then wrapped three times at the other side before trimming the wire and tucking in the end at the back. I used the other end of the wire to make a few wraps at the bottom of the hoops for balance then trimmed the end and tucked it in at the back. As the hoops were a good size I had enough room in the centre to add a green opal bead which attaches in the gap left by the hanging loop and d...